Thursday, April 30, 2009

1 Nephi 19:10

In verse 10, we find that Nephi is talking about the life of Jesus Christ nearly 600 years before it happened. A great thing about this verse is that he mentions stories from, what we can assume, the brass plates. As a testimony of who He is and what He has done, Nephi begins by saying that Jesus is the God of our fathers. He led the Israelites out of Egypt and kept them alive as they wandered in the wilderness. He is the same God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He will come down to the earth live among men and yield himself, according to the words of the angel. I'm assuming that Nephi is referring to the vision he had hosted by an angel (see 1 Nephi 11:32). So, he will give (gave) himself to the traitors and be judged of the people. A prophet named Zenock prophesied that he would be lifted up, and Neum (most likely the Nehum from the Old Testament) said that he was going to be crucified. Zenos, another prophet said that Jesus was then going to be buried in a sepulchre. He also prophesied that there will be three days of darkness on the isles of the sea when Christ dies, which will be given as a sign of His death. A sign more especially for the house of Isreal. This is interesting the "more especially...", because it could mean that there were others on the isles of the sea that might not have been of the house of Israel, who saw the sign. However, we know that the Nephites and Lamanites were of the house of Israel and those that did not die, saw the sign of the three days of darkness (see 3 Nephi 8:20-23).

We can see that Jesus Christ did come to do many things and one was to fulfill all that He caused to be written about His life on earth by the ancient prophets (e.g., Matthew 1:21-23).

So, what about these prophets? In the past, I have thought about these references to scriptures that we do not have. Here is a good entry for Lost Books in the Bible Dictionary that explains some of this. We can also find a little more from the entries of Zenock, Zenos, and Neum from the Index of the Book of Mormon. Here is another interesting article about these men among others.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

1 Nephi 19:8-9

In verse 8, Nephi states that Jesus Christ will come to the earth 600 years after Lehi left Jerusalem. In the next verse, Nephi tell a little about His life. Nephi had seen a vision of the life of Jesus Christ in 1 Nephi, chapter 11. The more particular connections to this verse were in 1 Nephi 11:32-33. Nephi says that because of the world's iniquity they shall judge Him to be a thing of naught. I think that this is as true now as it was when Jesus came. Nephi testifies that they will scourge Him and He will suffer it, or allow it or endure it. They will smite Him and He will suffer it. This suffering and non-retaliation is because of His loving kindness and long-suffering towards the children of men. He truly does love us. He loved those who were His enemies and His friends. He could have retaliated as He did in the temple that one time. But, He loved and loves all men so much that he died for them. He had to let them do it, in order for His sacrifice to be complete. Now, we can return and live with Them in heaven again.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

1 Nephi 19:7

In verse 7, Nephi is just coming off from talking about the sacred nature of the Small Plates and the weakness he has in writing and errors. He states that there exist some things that some men, which includes women, esteem of great worth. It is of a great worth unto body and soul. These same things are set at naught by others, trampling them under their feet. It is sad, but true, the statement that Nephi makes about the very God of Israel men do trample under their feet. He clarifies this by saying that men do this when they set at naught His counsels. It is interesting that Nephi uses the word counsels. I believe that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, in addition to giving commandments, counsel us. They do so through the Holy Ghost. It may even be through one of our spiritual leaders who is inspired by the Holy Ghost. We could be counseled by our spouse, parents, bishop, stake president, the prophet and apostles, and ultimately Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. What do we do when we hear and understand their counsel? We are faced with a choice to follow it or not. Either choice will produce consequences. If we put our faith in the inspired counsel and apply it and follow it, we will receive the blessings that are the consequence. If we do not, we forfeit the blessings and the potential progression (whether spiritual or temporal) that would have come. Three scriptures come to mind:

Doctrine and Covenants 130:20-21:

"20 There is a alaw, irrevocably decreed in bheaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all cblessings are predicated—
"21 And when we obtain any ablessing from God, it is by bobedience to that law upon which it is predicated."

I think this means if we obey a commandment we will receive a blessing. This is a binding contract with the Lord from before the very beginning. It is true.

Alma 12:10:

"10 And therefore, he that will aharden his heart, the same receiveth the blesser portion of the word; and he that will cnot harden his heart, to him is dgiven the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full."

This shows the consequences of those who follow the Lord's counsel and those who do not. Those who do are added upon and added upon until they know all. If they don't they will receive a lesser portion.

Doctrine and Covenants 98:12 (see also Isaiah 20:10, 13; 2 Nephi 28:30; Doctrine and Covenants 128:21):

"12 For he will agive unto the faithful line upon line, precept upon precept; and I will btry you and prove you herewith."

This shows that our progression is little by little according to our obedience to the laws of God. This is how he tries us and proves us.

I may have mentioned this before, but I think about the New Covenant of the Book of Mormon (see Doctrine and Covenants 84:57). Are we trampling under our feet this sacred work? Do we set it at naught as Nephi has said. The Book of Mormon is the very sacred record that Nephi was writing on and about, too.

Monday, April 27, 2009

1 Nephi 19:5-6

Nephi is talking about how the Lord had commanded him to make two sets of plates, or records of his life and ministry. What we have come to term as the Large Plates of Nephi are a history of the more particular events of Nephi's life, like the wars and contentions of his people. The Small Plates of Nephi were written at a later time and had the express purpose for recording spiritual matters, like prophesies and ministries. In verse 5, Nephi states that he will talk more about the making of the Small Plates later. He says that he continues with his more spiritual account to record more sacred things that they may be kept for the knowledge of his people.

In verse 6, we read that he does not write anything upon the Small Plates but those things that he considered sacred. Then he talks about making mistakes. He says up front here that there might be errors in the writing. He says that they are errors because his is but a man and all men make mistakes when writing, even as those prophets of old who came before them. The cross-references are interesting to this statement. I must say that if one finds fault with the book, then they have great cause to repent. The first verse is found in Mormon 8:17:

"17 And if there be afaults they be the faults of a man. But behold, we know no fault; nevertheless God knoweth all things; therefore, he that bcondemneth, let him be aware lest he shall be in danger of hell fire."

This verse was written by Moroni, the son of Mormon, who wrote the abridgement of the Plates of Nephi, which is the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ. He states that if you condemn the book and the faults therein, you shall be in danger of hell fire.

Let's look at one more verse. It is found in Ether 12:23-28:

"23 And I said unto him: Lord, the Gentiles will amock at these things, because of our bweakness in writing; for Lord thou hast made us cmighty in word by faith, but thou hast not made us mighty in writing; for thou hast made all this people that they could speak much, because of the Holy Ghost which thou hast given them;
"24 And thou hast made us that we could write but little, because of the aawkwardness of our hands. Behold, thou hast not made us mighty in bwriting like unto the brother of Jared, for thou madest him that the things which he cwrote were mighty even as thou art, unto the overpowering of man to read them.
"25 Thou hast also made our words powerful and great, even that we acannot write them; wherefore, when we write we behold our bweakness, and stumble because of the placing of our words; and I fear lest the Gentiles shall cmock at our words.
"26 And when I had said this, the Lord spake unto me, saying: aFools bmock, but they shall mourn; and my grace is sufficient for the meek, that they shall take no advantage of your weakness;
"27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their aweakness. I bgive unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my cgrace is sufficient for all men that dhumble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make eweak things become strong unto them.
"28 Behold, I will show unto the Gentiles their weakness, and I will show unto them that afaith, hope and charity bringeth unto me—the fountain of all brighteousness."

Again, Moroni is worried about the people who may mock the weakness in writing of the prophets in the Book of Mormon. The Lord comforts him by saying that fools mock and they shall morn, my grace is sufficient, no one shall take advantage of your weakness. He promises Moroni that even though there may be some weakness found in the writing, no one will take advantage of it. He also told Moroni that fools mock and they shall morn. I think that if one is a fool they mock. I also believe the converse, those who mock are fools. No one should make fun of or mock other's actions. I'm told that I'm too sensitive, but even if people are joking, it has an effect on the person that was made fun of. Sometimes people say they don't mean it, but I'm not sure that takes away the initial awkwardness or hurt caused by the initial comment. Let us try a little more to think before we speak. I will try, too.

Friday, April 24, 2009

1 Nephi 19:4

In verse 4, Nephi talks a little more about the Large Plates. He says that that account contains a greater account of the wars, contentions, and destructions of his people. This is quite a jump from our story. Up to this point, pretty much all we know about the family is that they have arrived to the promised land and have tilled the ground. He lets us in on the fact that there was/will be many wars, contentions, and destructions to be had. For me it is kind of sad that Laman and Lemuel did not repent and work to destroy Nephi. In 1 Nephi 2:24, we read, "24 And if it so be that they rebel against me, they shall be a ascourge unto thy seed, to bstir them up in the ways of remembrance." So, it seems that they will rebel and scourge the seed of Nephi. Let us continue with the story and find out how that takes place.

In the rest of the verse, Nephi states that he has instructed his people what they should do with the records that he is making and that they should hand them down from generation to generation, from one prophet to another, until there are further commandments from the Lord. It is amazing that the Lord protects the plates and this happens from generation to generation for just over a thousand years. Until Mormon abridges the records, gives them to his son Moroni, who buries them in the earth in New York. When in 1823, Moroni appears to a young man named Joseph Smith and tells him of the plates (see Joseph Smith--History 1:29).

Thursday, April 23, 2009

1 Nephi 19:2-3

In about 588 B.C. Nephi was commanded to make a record of his life. These are the Large Plates of Nephi. In verse 2, he states that when he was commanded to make the Large Plates, he did not know about the future commandment to make the Small Plates, in about 569 B.C. So, he recorded a more particular account of everything that had transpired up to this point on those plates. Things like the record of his father, the genealogy of his fathers, and their proceedings in the wilderness. Then he makes a distinction or contrast between the Large Plates and the Small Plates, as he currently writes this on the Small Plates, which is that the Small Plates would contain the more plain and precious parts of their ministries and prophesies. They were to be kept for the instruction of the people. Jacob reiterates this commandment and desire in Jacob 4:1-6 or so.

I believe that many times people wonder what was contained in the record of these events on the Large Plates of Nephi. We do not have them. But I distinctly remember in Institute one time that our teacher put forth the argument that the content that we have now from the Small Plates is of greater worth to our souls that what was contained on the Large Plates. I believe these verses are one of the reasons why. On these plates, we have more plain and precious parts of the ministries and prophesies of the people of Nephi. Nephi delves into them deeper and deeper as he gets older and as we proceed through the rest of 1 Nephi and through 2 Nephi. It is amazing.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

1 Nephi 19:1

Nephi is now in the promised land. The time is somewhere between 588 B.C. and 570 B.C. and will be until 2 Nephi 5. It is interesting that this is the time when he is commanded by the Lord to make a record of his life. The next time he mentions a specific year was when he was commanded by the Lord to make another record, one of his spiritual life.

So, in verse 1, we read that Nephi was commanded by the Lord to make a record of his people on plates of ore. Nephi shares with us that he engraved (1) the record of his father, (2) their journeyings in the wilderness, (3) the prophesies of his father, and (4) many of Nephi's own prophesies.

I thought a moment about the record that Lehi kept. He was probably commanded by the Lord to make a record, quite possibly at the time he was called to be a prophet. Like Nephi, Lehi probably wrote a lot of the important spiritual events up to that time in hindsight. But, who knows for sure. However, Nephi copied it down on his plate. We'll get more into this, but Nephi will share that his Large and Small Plates are for the prophets to hand them down from generation to generation. This would end up being Jacob's posterity for the rest of the Small Plates. But I wondered what happened to the actual record of Lehi. Nephi had made a copy of it and put it in his Large Plates (which were eventually translated by Joseph Smith taking up 116 pages of paper and such translation was stolen and/or lost while in the care of Martin Harris). I thought about this and I wonder if Lehi had given his copy of the record to Laman and Lemuel's posterity in hopes that it might convince them of the truth and to bring them to repentance. We can see Lehi's desire for such change in 2 Nephi 1:10-27 or thereabouts. But, who knows. : )

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

1 Nephi 18:23-EoC

In verse 23, we find our family sailing toward the promised land. After many days, they did arrive there. They went forth upon the land and pitched their tents and they called it the promised land. At the end of this verse, we can see that Nephi, and whoever else constitutes "we," were still drawing parallels to the Israelites and their journeyings in the wilderness to their own travels in the wilderness and the ocean. It is good to apply the scriptures to the present day.

Once they were there, they began to till the earth and plant seeds that they had brought from Jerusalem. Nephi shares that their crops grew abundantly and that they were blessed. This sentence shows his gratitude to the Lord for the things He had done for them at that time.

Nephi has also shared with us that they had found many useful things on this promised land. They had found (in verse 25) "that there were abeasts in the forests of every kind, both the cow and the ox, and the ass and the horse, and the goat and the wild goat, and all manner of wild animals, which were for the use of men. And we did find all manner of bore, both of cgold, and of silver, and of copper." They found these animals on explorations of their land.

They had landed on the promised land in about 589 B.C. Thus, it had been about 11 years since they left Jerusalem.

One of the curious animals named in the last verse of this chapter is horses. It has been contested that there were no horses in America at the time of the Book of Mormon. This comes from the idea that when the Spanish brought horses to the indigenous peoples of the Americas in the 16th and 17th centuries, they had never seen them before. The article "Evolution of Horses" from Wikipedia shows that about 50 years after Book of Mormon was translated to English, horse fossils and other remains were being discovered in the Americas.

Here is another excerpt from the Book of Mormon Institute Manual:

1 Nephi 18:24–25. Horses Before Columbus’s Time

“If Joseph Smith had been writing the Book of Mormon instead of translating it from ancient records, he would have been very foolish to have included references to horses on the American continent in Book of Mormon times. (1 Nephi 18:25; Enos [1:]21.) In 1830, nearly all the historians and scholars were convinced there had been no horses on the American continent before the coming of Columbus. After the Book of Mormon was published, however, archaeological discoveries were made that clearly indicate that horses were in the Americas before Columbus arrived. In the asphalt deposits of Rancho LaBrea in southern California, numerous fossil remains of horses have been found that antedate Book of Mormon times. Although these discoveries do not absolutely prove horses were in the Americas in the time period covered by the Book of Mormon (about 2600 B.C. to A.D. 421), they do prove horses were there before the coming of Columbus” (Daniel H. Ludlow, A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon, p. 117).

Monday, April 20, 2009

1 Nephi 18:20-22

In verse 20, Nephi reiterates that his brethren were in such a state that there was only one thing that could get their attention and help them do what was right. And that thing was the power of God. He sent a storm in the ocean, which probably meant lots of waves, thunder, and lightening threatening to swallow them up in the sea. And when they realized that their very existence was at stake, then they tried following the pleadings of everyone else and untie Nephi.

When they did so, Nephi took the compass and it began to work. He then prayed to God and presumably plead with Him to calm the storm, because after he prayed the winds ceased, the storm ceased, and there was a great calm. Then Nephi guided the ship towards the promised land.

I want to think about the great calm that Nephi describes. It stands out to me because, if you think about it, the storm had been raging for four days, and then when things stopped you could sense the calm more so than usual. Sometimes it is like that with life for me. If you watch too much TV or radio, then when you turn it off, you notice the calm. Or, if you can't turn off the interruptions of life, you long for the calm and seek it. This is a good thing because in the calm you can perceive the Spirit and receive instructions from the Lord about your life, just as Nephi did in order to guide the boat to the promised land.

Friday, April 17, 2009

1 Nephi 18:17-19

So, we come back to our story where Nephi is sharing with us the attempts of his family to free him. In verse 17, we learn that Lehi had tried to talk with Laman, Lemuel, and the sons of Ishmael many times to convince them to let Nephi go. Nephi says that they did breathe out many threatenings against those who spoke on behalf of Nephi. At that point, Lehi and Saraiah, who have now become elderly, had been so worried about their children doing things just like this for so many years, that it made them sick. They were so sick that they had become bed-ridden. Thus, because of their grief and the iniquity of Laman and Lemuel and the sons of Ishmael, they nearly perished. The language here is interesting. In verse 18, Nephi writes the scene as thus:

"...yea, their agrey hairs were about to be brought down to lie low in the dust; yea, even they were near to be cast with sorrow into a watery grave."

It is so sad! Nephi further mentions that Jacob and Joseph, the two youngest sons of Lehi and Sariah, who were born in the wilderness, were so sad to see that their mother was so sorrowful and afflicted. Nephi shares that they were at this time still very young and needed much nourishment.

Here's the clincher, and Nephi waits to share these efforts from his family last, i.e., the efforts of his wife and children. I believe that this is the only time that he speaks of them in these plates. He says that not even his wife's tears and prayers, along with those of his children, could not soften the hearts of their brethren to loose Nephi's bands and let him free.

How could they be so hard? Well, in the past we've seen that only one being has been able to convince Laman and Lemuel to do what is right. It is interesting that He has helped them do what is right up to this point, because His plan for them is to get the whole family to the Americas, in order to prepare a place for many of His children to dwell with agency to choose right from wrong. Next time we shall discuss this more.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

1 Nephi 18:16

Well, Nephi has been tied up on a boat for four days. What would you do if your brothers tied you up for four days? Possibly outside in a terrible storm? My first thoughts would be plans of getting them back somehow. I want to say that I would be like Nephi in verse 16. He says that he did look to his God all the day long. He did not murmur against Him because of his afflictions. This is incredible. We have our own set of afflictions. Do we murmur to God because of them? Or do we look to Him for help, guidance, and strength through them? Let's think about that until next time. I know that we can get help. This is because Jesus Christ has paid already for our pains and sins. Here is another scripture from Alma that conveys this message (Alma 7:11-12):

"11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and aafflictions and btemptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will ctake upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.
"12 And he will take upon him adeath, that he may bloose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to csuccor his people according to their infirmities."

(Try searching more about these topics in the footnote links!)

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

1 Nephi 18:13-15

Laman and Lemuel have just tied up their brother Nephi and in verse 13, they attempted to steer the ship towards the promised land. But, to no surprise, they did not know where to steer the ship, because the Liahona was not working. This will help tell you how hard-headed they were, because when Nephi was tied up, there arose a storm that threatened to drown them all into the sea. They were frightened for their lives, but they did not untie Nephi. This situation persisted for three days. For three days they were driven back upon the waters.

On the fourth day, the storm got even bigger.

Nephi shares that for the space of four days they had been driven back and nearly drowned, that it was then that Laman and Lemuel began to see that it was the judgments of God that were upon them, and that they must repent or perish. Well, when they realized that their lives were at stake, then they would rather untie Nephi than die. They loosened the bands around Nephi's wrists and ankles. They had swollen exceedingly, Nephi says, and great was the soreness.

Even though we have an outside perspective on how Laman and Lemuel's decisions affect their situations and we say, duh, after one day you two should have know that your actions caused this. I can tell you that when you have fallen into a snare by the evil one, you might not realize it. The carnal mind can be appeased so much that you don't realize what you're thinking. Even if the people on the outside looking in can easily see that you have been drawn in, you will think they do not know what they're talking about and you shun them. I have seen people in these situations. They are so stuck that you cannot get through to them. You just have to pray that something will happen to wake them out of it, that they can realize what they're doing.

Fortunately, Laman and Lemuel did realize what they were doing, but not due to the pleadings of others, which we'll talk about in the next few days.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

1 Nephi 18:12

We come back into the story of our family crossing the ocean to the Americas. Nephi's brothers and the sons of Ishmael do not like being told what to do. Especially because their behavior was wicked and they are in a state of aversion to truth and correction. In verse 12, they tie Nephi up. Nephi makes two good connections here in the second part of the verse. He says that the Liahona which had been prepared by the Lord ceased to work. He is showing us that when they were not righteous, they did not have direction from the Lord with the compass. And since Nephi says that it was prepared by the Lord, then when it ceased to work, it was a manifestation that the Lord did not approve of their actions. Laman and Lemuel have seen the power of God already manifest in their lives. They have seen the commandments of God fulfilled, e.g. getting the brass plates, angels, Laban delivered to their hands, getting Ishmael and his family to come with them, wives to marry, being shocked by Nephi using the power of God, and the list goes on. They should know by now that when the Liahona ceases to work, then the power can be manifest. Why would they tempt Him again?

Last night in family scripture study, we read more about the Liahona when Alma passed it down to his son Helaman, a tradition that has happened from generation to generation since Nephi, about 520 years later. In Alma 37:38, Alma begins his connection from Lehi's family following the Liahona to get to the promised land to us following Christ to get to heaven. His comment in verses 41-42 is the connection to what just happened on the boat that I wanted to mention:

"41 Nevertheless, because those miracles were worked by small means it did show unto them marvelous works. They were slothful, and forgot to exercise their faith and diligence and then those marvelous works ceased, and they did not progress in their journey;
"42 Therefore, they tarried in the wilderness, or did not travel a direct course, and were afflicted with hunger and thirst, because of their transgressions."

From these verses, it seems that there were some times that the Liahona did not work for them during their travels in the wilderness. This connects to the boat situation, because I believe that this is the first time that Nephi mentions the Liahona ceasing to work for them because of their wickedness, even though in the beginning when they found it he said that the spindles worked according to their faith and diligence. I find that it is interesting that Mormon, the abridger of Nephi's recordings on the small plates or possibly Nephi himself, only shared the account of the broken bow as one of the trials in the wilderness. It is likely then, that the other trials and activities did not have much importance for our day. They could have, but I find it interesting that this is what we have. Let us study them and draw conclusions for our lives with the aid of the Spirit.

Monday, April 13, 2009

1 Nephi 18:10-11

Because of the rude dancing and singing in the boat, Nephi says in verse 10 that he began to fear the punishments of the Lord because of their wickedness. He knew that the Lord had done much for his family. I don't think that the Lord would let His work be for naught. If there were people that were wicked, one might think that the Lord could consider them expendable and call them home. This is what I thought at first. Nephi was thinking something a little more extreme. He says that he was worried because they were over a very large ocean and he thought that the Lord would smite them and leave them to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea. Nephi even says that this would be on account of "our" iniquity. I wonder why Nephi includes himself in this. Surely he was not doing the same as his brothers. Perhaps this is his way of being humble and acknowledging that no one is perfect. Maybe he takes responsibility for their behavior because he had not at that moment taken liberty of admonishing his brothers. Then he says that he did speak unto them with soberness. They, of course, did not like that and promised that they would not have Nephi to be their ruler.

Then, they tie him up with strong cords. They treat him with much harshness. It is important to know that the Lord allowed this to happen so that he can show forth His power and fulfill His words that He said concerning the wicked. I think that this is what happens to anyone that is righteous and is persecuted for His name's sake (see Exodus 23:7, Psalms 37:8-13, Alma 14:11, and Matthew 5:44).

Friday, April 10, 2009

1 Nephi 18:9

In verse 9, Nephi tells us that after being driven forth by the wind for many days, the sons of Ishmael, Nephi's brethren, and their wives began to make themselves merry. They also began to speak with much rudeness. They even forgot the power that had brought them to this point and that was carrying them across the sea. He emphasizes again that they were exceedingly rude.

I want to apply this scripture to our lives. I am fearful of how many times we forget the Lord and participate in conversations or activities that would be considered exceedingly rude. A modern application to this scripture is participating in events that promote rude singing and dancing. We must take care which concerts we attend and which dancing establishments we attend. It is not too popular here to do discos and such as it is in other countries, but there are concerts that tour the U.S. that we should not go to. Let us seek whole some entertainment and places to sing and dance. The great thing about our homes is that we can make them any kind of place we wish. Let's make good singing and dancing there.

Here is an excerpt from the Institute manual for the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

"1 Nephi 18:5–10. Proper Dancing and Singing

"Some people may conclude from 1 Nephi 18:5–10 that the Lord does not approve of dancing or singing. Nephi says twice in verse 9 that his brethren and their wives fell into error when their dancing and singing led them 'to speak with much rudeness.' The word rude refers to being harsh, vulgar, or coarse. The Lord has stated that he approves of proper dancing and singing (see Psalm 149:1–4, D&C 136:28). Note from these scriptures that dancing and singing are ways of praising the Lord. However, Satan can use music as a means of corruption and loss of the Spirit. That is why Church leaders caution us about the kinds of music we listen and respond to."

Thursday, April 9, 2009

1 Nephi 18:5-8

Well, the time to go down to the ship and set sail for the promised land has come. Of course, they have to prepare many things before they actually get going. In verse 6, it describes some of the things they had prepared for. They packed much fruit, meat, honey, provisions that the Lord commanded them, loading, seeds, and all things according to their age. They all went along with their wives and children. Verse 7 shares with us that Lehi and Saraiah even had two more sons in the wilderness. Jacob was the older and Joseph was the younger. After they packed all their provisions, they were put forth on the sea and made their way to the promised land.

As I think about this section of the chapter, I am amazed at the distance they've traveled to get to this point. They spent eight years traveling in the wilderness. Now, they have to go further and travel the last part of their journey by sea. Sea travel on a boat through the Pacific Ocean is not a cake walk. I foresee some troubles ahead for our family. (I've also read this part many times, too.) However, let us see how each of the members of the family react to their trials another time. I think that this account of the life of Nephi really helps those that feel that they are fraught with trials. Nephi certainly has his fair share. How does he react each time?

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

1 Nephi 18:4

In verse 4, we read that Nephi and his brothers finally finished the boat that would take them on their long journey across the ocean. At this time, I'm not sure if Laman and Lemuel knew how long this would take and what trials they would face along the way. I say this because the verse notes that Laman and Lemuel again humbled themselves before the Lord. However, as we will see later on, this does not last. As we read the story of Lehi's family's journey through the wilderness, we want Laman and Lemuel to be humble and repentant. But, alas, they are never truly repentant. To truly be repentant, one must make the change from doing evil to doing good, and not hold on to their favorite sins. Some are able to suppress these for periods of time, but when something happens like they are tempted or too much time passes, they slip up and fall again. For Laman and Lemuel, when "the goin' gets tough," they rebel and don't make the "tough get goin'." The father of Lamoni, in the Book of Mormon, puts it this way (Alma 22:18):

"18 O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day...(emphasis added)"

Here we see that the father of Lamoni is willing to give away all his sins and his desire to sin, to know God. This is repentance.

Here is a talk that discusses the whole idea in more detail and has been adopted by our stake as a core document:

The Meaning of Repentance by Theodore M. Burton

Monday, April 6, 2009

1 Nephi 18:3

Nephi testifies to us, in verse 3, that he had gone up to the mountain oft and prayed to receive instructions from the Lord. He says that he was shown great things from the Lord. How to build a boat of curious workmanship not after the manner of men, I would consider one of those things. However, I would think that Nephi was gaining more insight into the mysteries of God.

I want to finish this post with a general thought from Conference. We need to go up to the mountain of the Lord's house oft to pray and be shown great things from the Lord. We were counseled that if we lived close to a temple, that we should go often and regularly. I know that if we do this, we will be blessed with understanding of the mysteries of God, if we seek them.

Thursday, April 2, 2009

1 Nephi 18:1-2

We find our family on the shores of the great sea called Irreantum, which in our day is probably some ocean like the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. Nephi is commanded to build a ship that will take his family to the promised land, somewhere in the Americas. Nephi has just found that his brothers are now willing to work and help him build the ship. He says that they went to work timbers of curious workmanship after the manner that the Lord showed him from time to time.

The next verse is interesting in that Nephi says that he did not build the ship after the manner of men and that he built it after the manner which the Lord showed him. First, this means that men at 600 B.C. had ways of building ships. I wonder what they were like? Well, here is an article from Wikipedia that showed how some of the ships of the day were built:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trireme

I think that this is a contrast showing how the ways of the Lord are far superior than that ways of man. I know that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have ways that are far superior to ours. Let us follow Their directives.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

1 Nephi 17:52-EoC

Nephi continues over the next many days to confound his brethren and he also had the power from the Lord that they could not touch him, and Laman and Lemuel knew it. In the next verse, the Lord commands Nephi to stretch forth his hand and show them His power. He said that He would shock them so that they knew that He was their Lord. Nephi does this and the Lord shakes them, but does not cause them to wither.

This is really interesting language. I have an idea of what happened, but because "shock" and "shake" were both used to describe what the Lord did to Laman and Lemuel, there could be different ways to think about what that was like. Take the Book of Mormon Movie, for example, this part portrayed there was really kind of weird.

Finally, in the last verse of the chapter, Laman and Lemuel confess that the knew that it was the power of the Lord that had done this to them. We can have an insight into their spirituality level with what they do next. They fall down before Nephi and were about to worship him. He tells them that he is their brother, even their younger brother, and to worship the Lord their God. Also, he admonished them to honor their father and mother that their days might be long upon the land that the Lord God would give unto them.

I think that this is great advice for anyone. Esteem Heavenly Father over all things. Honor your parents. It is fascinating that this is the recipe for long life on the earth, because one might think that other things would be the sole contributors. Chapter 17 was a big chapter, and it was very rich, too, as it is with the previous chapters in 1 Nephi. I am excited to see what is in store for chapter 18. : )