After faith begins to develop, we must continue to rely on Christ’s merit, the Atonement, as we endure to the end. And it is only through constant faith in the Redeemer and through repentance that we can endure to the end. In this sense, Jesus is the “finisher” of our faith.
From the time we accept Christ and qualify for a rebirth until we have endured to the end, we must rely “alone upon the merits of Christ, . . . the author and the finisher of [our] faith” (Moroni 6:4).