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The Gospel of Jesus Christ restored through Joseph Smith rests upon
certain basic assumptions, namely, the tangible reality of the glorified Christ as
the God of this earth who wrought out His perfect atonement for the redemption
of men, the view of man as a fallen creature in need of saving grace to attain
unto glory in a resurrected state, and the testimony renewed and confirmed in
modern times that through the atonement and power of Christ men may be born
of God from their fallen and carnal state to a state of righteousness in which they
can overcome the world and rise in the resurrection unto eternal life. As the God
of this earth, Christ stands therefore as the central figure in the plan of salvation
for this reason, Joseph Smith declared the basic principle of the Gospel to be,
“The testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He
died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven." Said
the Prophet: "All other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages
to it," Among these appendages, he listed "the gift of the Holy Ghost, the power
of faith, [and] the enjoyment of the spiritual gifts according, to the will of God."