Nearly 2,000 years ago, a small group of women arrived at the open and empty tomb where the body of the Lord Jesus Christ had been laid after His Crucifixion.
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf unfolded that New Testament scene as he opened the Sunday morning session of the April 2026 general conference’s second day. The acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles admitted he couldn’t imagine the women’s grief, heartache, helplessness and hopelessness not only in finding the empty tomb but seemingly being left without the Savior — especially after they and others had witnessed Him healing the sick, walking on water, teaching of hope, feeding the thousands and even raising the dead.
They likely wondered: How could the Savior Himself have died?
“Today, we understand better why the Savior had to die,” said President Uchtdorf in his message on Easter Sunday, April 5, in the Conference Center at Salt Lake City’s Temple Square.
‘It changed the world’
Finding the tomb empty, Mary and her friends heard two heavenly messengers pronounce that Jesus had risen.
“This encounter at the empty tomb changed them forever,” President Uchtdorf said. “It changed the world.”
The message of the empty tomb is that Jesus Christ is not merely a historical figure, the Apostle said, and that He is not confined to the pages of a book any more than He was confined to a grave of stone.
“The scriptures teach not only who Jesus was but who He is,” President Uchtdorf said. “Because of what happened on that Sunday morning, we can speak of Jesus Christ in the present tense. He lives. Today. At this moment.
“He lives and is an active, ongoing influence in His Church and in the personal lives of those who follow Him.”
President Uchtdorf added that Christ even today guides, comforts, listens, calms fears and wipes away tears.
“The message of the risen Christ is that with His strength, all obstacles can be overcome. Because Jesus Christ conquered death, surely He can conquer any danger, confusion or doubt we face,” President Uchtdorf said.
‘We must encounter the empty tomb’
Mary and the small group of friends — despite grief, fear and unanswered questions — encountered the empty tomb and learned for themselves the glorious truth of Christ’s Resurrection, becoming the world’s first witnesses of the world’s single greatest event, President Uchtdorf said.
“We must do the same. We must encounter the empty tomb, experience the reality of what it means and in turn share that witness with others.”
Sharing that witness can come in many ways, such as serving full-time missions, becoming lifelong missionaries through humble acts of discipleship and serving God with all diligence, President Uchtdorf said.
“Living the message of the risen Christ testifies of our devotion and love for our Savior. It may well be that our consistent, courageous and humble acts of service and love for God and His children will speak far more eloquently and powerfully than we ever could through words alone,” the Apostle said.
‘Become witnesses of Jesus Christ’
President Uchtdorf said all must know for themselves the words of the heavenly messengers at the empty tomb: “Be not afraid, for Jesus who was crucified is not here. He is risen” (See Matthew 28:5-6.)
“Those words will change us. They will inspire us to take upon ourselves the name of Christ,” President Uchtdorf said. “And, from that moment on, the Light of Christ will begin to bloom within us. It will, in time, bring about a mighty change in our hearts and bless us with a disposition to do good continually. Jesus Christ and His restored gospel is our strength. Jesus Christ will be our guide for making choices, will bring joy and happiness in this life and extend into the eternities.”
He added: “No, we were not with Mary on that blessed Easter morning. We did not see what she and the other women saw. But we can ask ourselves: What have we seen, felt or experienced?
“Shall we not, therefore, become witnesses of Jesus Christ? Shall we not share our love for Him with others?”
‘It will make a difference to you’
In concluding his Easter morning message, President Uchtdorf offered his witness of the living Savior: “He is risen. He is. I have stood at the entrance to the empty tomb and seen with spiritual eyes the eternal truth that Jesus Christ is not found among the dead but among the living.
“He lives indeed. That testimony has made all the difference in my life. That encounter at the tomb will do the same for all who earnestly seek Him. It will make a difference to you.”
