2 Nephi 6-10

Nephi assigned his brother Jacob to give a sermon to the Nephites, and gave him the subject:  Three chapters of Isaiah.  These chapters will be familiar to those who have been reading the assignments because Nephi quoted parts of them to his brothers already.  Anytime we see repetition in the record, bearing in mind the difficulty of inscribing onto metal plates, we can be certain the message is very important.

Isaiah 50-53 has been treated in an Old Testament lesson, which you can find at this link:

http://gospeldoctrineplus.blogspot.com/2010/10/ot-lesson-39-how-beautiful-upon.html

The chapter headings for 2 Ne. 7 and 8 give us a quick reminder of the content:

·         Isaiah speaks Messianically

·         Messiah shall have the tongue of the learned

·         He shall give his back to the smiters

·         He shall not be confounded

·         In the last days, the Lord shall comfort Zion and gather Israel

·         The redeemed shall come to Zion amid great joy

THE IMPORTANCE OF ISAIAH’S MESSAGE

Why was this section of scripture so important that Nephi included it in the record twice?  A little story from history might illuminate us.

Florence Chadwick

“It was July 4, 1952.  [Florence] Chadwick, who had previously swum the English Channel, now attempted the 21-mile swim from the southern California mainland to Catalina Island.  The water was a freezing 48 degrees.  The fog was thick and visibility almost nil.  Finally, only a half mile from her destination, she became discouraged and quit.  The next day reporters clamored around her asking why she had quit—had it been the cold water or the distance.  It proved to be neither.  She responded, ‘I was licked by the fog.’  She then recalled a similar experience while swimming the English Channel.  Evidently the fog was likewise engulfing.  She was exhausted.  As she was about to reach out for her father’s hand in the nearby boat, he pointed to the shore.  She raised her head out of the water just long enough to see the land ahead.  With that new vision, she pressed on and became the first woman to conquer the English Channel.

“That story teaches a magnificent principle:  with increased vision can come increased motivation.  So it is with the Atonement.  As our vision of the Atonement is enhanced, our motivation to embrace its full effects is proportionately increased…

“Every attempt to reflect upon the Atonement, to study it, to embrace it, to express appreciation for it, however small or feeble it may be, will kindle the fires of faith and work its miracle towards a more Christlike life.  It is an inescapable consequence of so doing.  We become like those things we habitually love and admire.  And thus, as we study Christ’s life and live his teachings, we become more like him.”  (Tad R. Callister, The Infinite Atonement, p. 16-17)

With that background, let’s look carefully at Jacob’s explanatory sermon.

JACOB’S COMMENTARY

“And now, my beloved brethren,” said Jacob, “I have read these things that ye might know concerning the covenants of the Lord that he has covenanted with all the house of Israel…Behold my beloved brethren, I speak unto you these things that ye may rejoice, and lift up your heads forever, because of the blessings which the Lord God shall bestow upon your children.  For I know that ye have searched much, many of you, to know of things to come…”  (2 Ne. 9:1-4)

“For as death hath passed upon all men, to fulfill the merciful plan of the great Creator, there must needs be a power of resurrection, and the resurrection must needs come unto man by reason of the fall; and the fall came by reason of transgression; and because man became fallen they were cut off from the presence of the Lord. 

“Wherefore, it must needs be an infinite atonement—save it should be an infinite atonement this corruption could not put on incorruption.  Wherefore, the first judgment which came upon man must needs have remained to an endless duration.  And if so, this flesh must have laid down to rot and to crumble to its mother earth, to rise no more.”  (2 Ne. 9:6-7)

If we look ahead over the rest of the chapter, we can find many significant and instructive statements about God and the power of the Atonement if we look for the word “O.”

“O the WISDOM of God, his MERCY and GRACE, for behold, if the flesh should rise no more our spirits must become subject to…the devil.” (2 Ne. 9:8)

This first statement seems to be a general overarching statement about the plan of salvation, elaborated on in the following statements.  Three attributes of God are mentioned here:  Wisdom, mercy and grace.  Because of them, we gain freedom; we are saved from the devil.  These three attributes are inextricably linked together, but we can try to examine them separately in order to understand them better. 

·         Wisdom would be knowledge with correct application.  Without this, God wouldn’t know what to do, how to save us. 

·         Mercy indicates that he actually cares about what happens to us.  He is filled with love and kindness for us.  He desires our spiritual progress (M. Scott Peck’s definition of love, and the best one I think I’ve ever read). 

·         Lastly, he has grace.  Remember that Christ grew “from grace to grace,” until he was finally able to offer to us the mighty power of his Atonement to heal and sanctify us.

The Wisdom of God

People we would describe as “good” are those who properly apply the knowledge that they have.  They are people with integrity and steadfastness. 

“O how great the GOODNESS of our God, who prepareth a way for our escape…from death and hell…and because of the way of deliverance of our God, the Holy One of Israel, this [temporal] death…shall deliver up its dead; which death is the grave…And this [spiritual] death shall deliver up its dead; which spiritual death is hell…” (2 Ne. 9:10)

God uses his infinite wisdom (applied knowledge) to rescue us from our inevitable physical and spiritual deaths.  He doesn’t do it randomly or accidentally; God never “wings it.”  He always has a plan.

“O how great the PLAN of our God! For on the other hand, the paradise of God must deliver up the spirits of the righteous, and the grave deliver up the body of the righteous; and the spirit and the body is restored to itself again… (2 Ne. 9:13)

God, with his perfect wisdom, created the perfect plan to save us. 

“Wherefore, we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their righteousness, being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness.” (2 Ne. 9:14)

When his plan is complete, the thing we have lacked, a perfect knowledge, will now be ours.  What is it that we will know?  What we have become. 

President John Taylor said, “The spirit lives where the record of his deeds is kept—that does not die—man cannot kill it; there is no decay associated with it, and it still retains in all its vividness the remembrance of that which transpired before the separation by death of the body and the ever-living spirit…It would be in vain for a man to say then, I did not do so-and-so; the command would be, Unravel and read the record which he has made of himself…” (Journal of Discourses, 11:78-79)

A woman who had a near-death experience with the afterlife said that, in addition to reliving everything that had happened to her or that she had thought, she also saw “the effect of each thought, word, and deed on everyone and anyone who had ever come within my environment or sphere of influence whether I knew them or not (including unknown passersby on the street)…” 

Another man who had such an experience reported that he relived his life, but with an omniscient viewpoint:  “It showed me not only what I had done but even how what I had done had affected other people.”  (Brent and Wendy Top, Glimpses Beyond Death’s Door, p. 201)

The Mercy of God

Mercy and justice are conjoined twins, two sides of the same coin.  A god who is not merciful would not care to exercise justice either.  A god who was not just would not offer mercy.  The attributes of mercy and justice in God indicate that he cares enough to make things right, either the one way or the other.

“O the greatness and the JUSTICE of our God! for he executeth all his words…[and] the righteous…shall inherit the kingdom of God…and their joy shall be full forever. (2 Ne. 9:17)

“Joy is the best word to describe a continual state of exaltation…The other kingdoms of glory will experience happiness—that is a state of well-being and even of accomplishment—but they are barred forever from joy, for there is no exaltation where they dwell…[God’s] plan for us goes well beyond achieving a state of well-being, which is sometimes mistakenly made synonymous with eternal life.  Achieving a state of well-being is not our full purpose.  Achieving eternal life is not an end in itself.  The purpose of life—eternal life—is maintaining a state of joy…” (Richard D. Draper, A Fulness of Joy, p. 17-18)

“True righteousness is selfless service…The joy of heaven grows out of serving others, and not out of whether others accept or reject that service.  Therefore, the threat of the pain of hell can never hold the joy of heaven hostage.”  (Draper, p. 11-14).

“O the greatness of the MERCY of our God, the Holy One of Israel! for he delivereth his saints from…death and hell, and…endless torment. (2 Ne. 9:19)

Christ’s Atonement allows an escape from death and hell, which are not just the killing of the body (death) and the location of the spirit afterwards (hell), but agony of knowing we fell short and cannot be reunited with God (endless torment).

Joseph Smith said, “A man is his own tormentor and his own condemner…The torment of disappointment in the mind of man is as exquisite as a lake burning with fire and brimstone.”  (History of the Church, 6:314)

The Grace of God

“O how great the HOLINESS of our God! for he knoweth all things…And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice.” (2 Ne. 9:20)

How is “holiness” actually defined?  It appears that, in this instance at least, it is deep knowledge of truth, not just mental knowledge, but experience—a complete relationship with truth.  Because Christ is completely holy, and is in fact Truth, Light, and Love, he can offer us his grace, his power, his understanding.  He not only possesses infinite power, but the power to give that power to his children if they will come unto him.  He has the power to execute his plan.

WARNINGS OF DANGER

Jacob then delivered many warnings against wickedness, easily found by looking for the word “Wo.”  Wo unto those who are too smart for God, who elevate themselves with material riches, who refuse to hear or see the truth, who refuse to obey the commandments, who are liars, murderers, temporal or spiritual adulterers.  There is a standard we must meet in order to receive the effects of the wisdom, mercy and grace of the Lord in our lives.

THE WAY

Both messages, of “O” and of “Wo”, are followed by this entreaty: 

“Remember, to be carnally-minded is death, and to be spiritually-minded is life eternal.  O, my beloved brethren, give ear to my words.  Remember the greatness of the Holy One of Israel [the “O’s”].  Do not say that I have spoken hard things against you [the “Wo’s”]…

“O then, my beloved brethren, come unto the Lord, the Holy One, Remember that his paths are righteous.  Behold, the way for man is narrow, but it lieth in a straight course before him, and the keeper of the gate is the Holy One of Israel; and he employeth no servant there; and there is none other way save it be by the gate; for he cannot be deceived, for the Lord God is his name.”  (2 Ne. 9:39-41)

One little word in this verse is important:  the word “straight.”  In every other instance in the scriptures in which a path is described as leading to heaven, it is called “strait and narrow.”  This is the only one that uses the spelling “straight.”  Is it just an editorial error made by E.B. Grandin?  No, because the Book of Mormon has gone through many editions since in which small errors have been corrected.  The word “strait” refers to being restricted, confined.  It is just another term for “narrow,” a Hebraic emphasis.  The word “straight” refers to being straightforward, true, clear, easy to see.  “The way for man is narrow, but it lieth in a straight course before him.”  For those listening to Jacob’s words, there were actually two adjectives used to describe the path:  1) narrow/strait, and 2) straightforward and easy to see.  And so it is for us:  We have the knowledge of the gospel; therefore, although the way is very strict, it is also very clear.

Jacob offers some counsel for staying on this straightforward path:

“Behold, my beloved brethren,

1.      remember the words of your God;

2.      pray unto him continually by day, and

3.      give thanks unto his holy name by night. 

4.      Let your hearts rejoice.”  (2 Ne. 9:52)

A VIEW OF THE SHORE

Jacob noted that Christ will be the one to greet us on the other side, not St. Peter as is often thought.  As we come to know our Savior more, being greeted by him at the door to heaven will mean more to us.  If we gain a vision of this, it can encourage us to finish the race.  If we get lost in the fog of earthlife, like Florence Chadwick we may give up just short of the shore.  Elder George F. Richards shared his vision of this reunion with us.

“Elder George F. Richards saw the Savior in a vision.  ‘He spoke no word to me, but my love for him was such that I have not words to explain.  I know that no mortal man can love the Lord as I experienced that love for the Savior unless God reveals it to him…If only I can be with my

Savior and have that same sense of love that I had in that dream, it will be the goal of my existence, the desire of my life.”  (Brent & Wendy Top, Glimpses Beyond Death’s Door, p. 87-88, also quoted by President Kimball in April 1974 General Conference.)

The choice is ours:  either suffer pain, deaths and torment, or accept the Atonement, live a Christlike life, and receive joy.  It's a straightforward choice.

“Therefore, cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves—to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life.” (2 Ne. 10:23)

2 Nephi 1-5

(I'm not going to focus on 2 Nephi 3, but there is good information about this prophecy regarding Joseph Smith in the April 1989 Ensign, "I Have a Question" feature, available at this link.)

THE IMPORTANCE OF TEACHING OF CHRIST

In chapter 2 of 2 Nephi we learn something remarkable about Nephi's younger brother Jacob:  He had seen Jesus Christ personally in a vision--when he was very young!

"Nevertheless, Jacob, my firstborn in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God...Wherefore, I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer; for thou hast beheld that in the fulness of time he cometh to bring salvation unto men.  And thou hast beheld in thy youth his glory; wherefore thou art blessed even as they unto whom he shall minister in the flesh" (2 Ne. 2:2-4).

It's interesting that even though Jacob had seen the Lord himself, his father Lehi still wanted to teach him about Jesus Christ.

"Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah; for he is full of grace and truth.  Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered" (2 Ne. 2:6-7).

And here we find the reason why Lehi taught someone who already knew--to make sure that that someone understood how important it was to teach others:

"Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise.

"Wherefore, he is the firstfruits unto God, inasmuch as he shall make intercession for all the children of men; and they that believe in him shall be saved" (2 Ne. 2:8-9).

Jacob took the lesson to heart, and later wrote,

"For this intent have we written these things, that [our beloved brethren and our children] may know that we knew of Christ, and we had a hope of his glory many hundred years before his coming; and not only we ourselves had a hope of his glory, but also all the holy prophets which were before us" (Jacob 4:4).

RESURRECTED TO PERFECTION

As we pass through this mortal life, we receive wounds, we become ill, our bodies age, we get gray hair and stiff joints.  We slowly deteriorate from the day of our birth until the day we die.  But dying is not the end but the beginning, because Christ provided the way for us to be resurrected to perfection.

Alma taught,

“The death of Christ shall loose the bands of this temporal death, that all shall be raised from this temporal death.  The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame, even as we now are at this time; …

“Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame” (Alma 11:42–44).

So after the resurrection, all our diseases will be gone, all our wrinkles will be smooth, amputated limbs will be restored, minds will be young, and scars will just disappear.  Whether celestial, terrestrial, or telestial, all the inhabitants of heaven will have perfect bodies.

All, that is, except for one.  There is one resurrected person whose scars remain. 

As Jesus Christ hung on the cross he was taunted, "He saved others; himself he cannot save" (Matt. 27:42).  What the mockers did not understand was that Christ did not come to save himself; he came to save us.  In order to save us, he had to die.  In order to remove our scars, he had to be scarred.  And he chose not to remove those scars when he was resurrected.  Why?  So that we would know that he always remembers us.

"I [will] not forget thee, O house of Israel.  Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands" (1 Ne. 21:15-16).

As Jesus also retains a scar in his side near his heart, we know that our hearts can be mended.  We all receive damage to our hearts here in this mortal existence, but another beauty of the atonement is that while our bodies are deteriorating, our spirits can become more perfect even before the resurrection.  The sins we commit, the wounds inflicted on us by others, the mistakes we make, even the knife wounds in our hearts as great loss comes to us, can all be healed as we travel through life by the power of the Atonement.  If we continually come to Christ, our spirits will become purer, younger, freer while our bodies become more scarred, aged and immobile.  The key is to choose daily to come to Christ.

THE IMPORTANCE OF AGENCY

Lehi explained in beautiful simplicity the importance of agency to our Heavenly Father's great plan for us.  (See 2 Ne. 2:11-30.)  Jacob had experienced a lot of opposition in his life, but his father explained that opposition is necessary; otherwise there would be nothing to choose.  Indeed this entire earthly existence was begun because of a choice.  It had to be so.

Why would God command Adam and Eve not to partake of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil when clearly He wanted them to, so that His children could be brought to the earth and experience their mortal probation?  Why didn't He just tell them to take it?  They would have done it!  They were really obedient people!  But to command Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit and fall from His presence would go against His very nature:

"Behold, doth he cry unto any, saying, Depart from me? Behold, I say unto you, Nay.  But he saith, come unto me all ye ends of the earth..." (2 Ne. 26:25).

"If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love" (John 15:10).

"And if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life" (D&C 14:7).

So, you see, God could not issue a commandment that would push Adam and Eve away from Him.  Keeping his commandments always brings his children closer to Him, eventually leading to eternal life, not to a temporary and fragile existence in a fallen state far from His presence.  So a commandment had to be issued to Adam and Eve to avoid the tree of knowledge.  They had to choose for themselves to take the step away from God and into mortal life.

Remember that in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve knew no opposition.  It wasn't until after their encounter with the devil that the Father put enmity between mortal man and Satan.  (See Gen. 3:15.)  So they did not know that someone could be evil and that someone could lie to them until after they took the fruit.  Fortunately, they were not the only ones lacking knowledge:  The devil did not know that he was actually pushing Adam and Eve in the direction that the Lord wanted them to go but could not command them to go, when he tempted them with the fruit. 

And so, once opposition and knowledge entered into the scene with agency, the plan of the Lord could progress.

AGENCY

"In years past we generally used the term free agency. That is not incorrect. More recently we have taken note that free agency does not appear in the scriptures. They talk of our being 'free to choose' and 'free to act' for ourselves and of our obligation to do many things of our own 'free will'. But the word agency appears either by itself or with the modifier moral: 'That every man may act in doctrine and principle … according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment' (D&C 101:78). When we use the term moral agency, we are appropriately emphasizing the accountability that is an essential part of the divine gift of agency. We are moral beings and agents unto ourselves, free to choose but also responsible for our choices..." (D. Todd Christofferson, "Moral Agency," Ensign, June 2009).

Satan thought that knowledge would be Adam and Eve's undoing.  But knowledge is of God.

"The beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ is that it pours knowledge into our souls and shows things in their true light. With that enhanced perspective, we can discern more clearly the choices before us and their consequences. We can, therefore, make more intelligent use of our agency..."  (ibid.).

We have to remember always, though, that when you choose one end of the stick (choice) you also choose the other (consequence).

"Freedom of choice is the freedom to obey or disobey existing laws—not the freedom to alter their consequences. Law, as mentioned earlier, exists as a foundational element of moral agency with fixed outcomes that do not vary according to our opinions or preferences" (ibid.).

Because we have opposition (things to choose between), law to link choices with consequences, and the power to choose, we can exercise agency and participate in God's great plan for our progression.

"It was necessary in God’s plan for our future happiness and glory that we become morally free and responsible. For that to happen, we needed an experience apart from Him where our choices would determine our destiny. The Fall of Adam provided the spiritual death needed to separate us from God and place us in this mortal condition, as well as the physical death needed to provide an end to the mortal experience...

"[But] if our separation from God and our physical death were permanent, moral agency would mean nothing. Yes, we would be free to make choices, but what would be the point? The end result would always be the same no matter what our actions: death with no hope of resurrection and no hope of heaven." (ibid.)

And so it was necessary that we have a Savior.

OUR SPIRITUAL BANK ACCOUNT

When I'm running my bank card at a checkout counter in a store, I wait for the card to process, and then I see a message flash on the screen:  "Approved."  I like being approved.  This experience often makes me think of the "pearly gates."  I imagine myself at the door of heaven, swiping a spiritual "bank card" and seeing that happy message:  "Approved."  But last night at the temple, I realized I had it wrong.  I am going to get to the entrance of heaven, the veil, and I am going to discover that I have "insufficient funds" in my spiritual bank account.  This is going to happen to you, too.  We are going to be asked to show identification--our glory and power--and we will have to answer that we do not have any.

Yet.

And here is the beauty of the Atonement: When we come unto Christ and admit that we do not have what is needed to enter that glorified existence, all we will have to do is ask, and it will be given to us through the power symbolized by those scars on Christ's hands and wrists--the Atonement!  If we repent continually, if we keep our covenants faithfully, and if we come to Christ and ask, the deficit will disappear, the glory will be bestowed upon us, and the veil into the Celestial Kingdom will part.

"...And thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord shall name.  Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God" (Isaiah 62:2).

Returning to our opening scripture, we can see that even the great prophet Jacob, despite his righteousness, despite personally seeing Jesus Christ in vision, despite later enduring to the end, fell short and could only be saved the same way we will:  through the Atonement.

"Nevertheless, Jacob, my firstborn in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God...Wherefore, I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer."

As Christ, then, retained his scars so we could see proof that He remembers us always, we would be wise to remember those scars as well and daily and hourly make choices of obedience and repentance that will bring us greater spiritual progression, until that final day when Christ reaches out His hand and we feel those scars for ourselves.

As Lehi counseled,

"And now, my sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit" (2 Ne. 2:28).

If we do so, at the end of our lives we can say, as did Lehi,

"I have chosen the good part" (2 Ne. 2:30).


(For more on agency, see my Young Women's lesson, "Forks in the Road," available at this link.)

(For the wonderful talk by Brad Wilcox mentioned in the reader's comment below, "His Grace is Sufficient," follow this link.)THE PSALM OF NEPHI

In the middle of recording the story of his family and their journeying, Nephi offered an explanation about his record—that if we wanted more detail about the historical parts, they could be found in his other plates; these plates were for writing “the things of [his] soul” (2 Ne. 4:14-15).  The things of his soul were a delight in the scriptures and the things of the Lord.  This is what took up the focus of his thoughts continually, he wrote.

But then he surprised by launching into a lament about his inadequacies.

“Nevertheless, notwithstanding the great goodness of the Lord, in showing me his great and marvelous works, my heart exclaimeth: O wretched man that I am!  Yea, my heart sorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities.  I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily beset me.  And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins…” (2 Ne. 4:17-19)

Wait a minute!  This is Nephi talking here, right?  The ultra Good Guy of the Book of Mormon?  In what way could he be “wretched?”  What great sins and weaknesses could he possibly be writing about?  He always honored his dad as the patriarch, he got the brass plates against all odds, he interpreted revelations for his brothers, he built a ship aided directly by God, he had the power of God course through him so strongly that it sent an electrical shock through his brothers, angels came to his defense, he saw visions. 

Remember, he said that

1)      His heart sorrowed because of his flesh (weaknesses)

2)      His soul grieved because of his iniquities (sins)

If we skip ahead to 2 Ne. 4:26-27, Nephi itemizes the problems.

1)      “…why should my heart weep and my soul linger in the valley of sorrow and my flesh waste away, and my strength slacken, because of mine afflictions?”  His weakness was that he got discouraged, he got depressed, he wasted his energy on sorrow for the circumstances around him.

2)      “And why should I yield to sin, because of my flesh?  Yea, why should I give way to temptations, that the evil one have place in my heart to destroy my peace and afflict my soul?  Why am I angry because of mine enemy?” His sin was anger. 

Well, Nephi had good reason to be depressed!  In fact, wasn’t it a sign of his righteousness, and the love he had for his family that he found himself inconsolable about the waywardness of his brothers?  He was the birthright brother—a type of parent, really—and isn’t it a sign of a good parent to be deeply depressed about children who reject the gospel and choose paths that the parent knows will lead to misery?

Nephi also had good reason to be angry!  These brothers caused no end of trouble, they led their children astray, they disrespected their parents, they threatened to kill Nephi, they couldn’t even seem to be changed by the voice of the Lord thundering from heaven, or the personal appearance of an angel.  Wouldn’t anger against them be righteous indignation?

But the effect of this weakness and this sin on Nephi renders him less able to do God’s will.  The depression and anger make him physically ill (his flesh wastes away), sap his energy (his strength slackens), and destroy his peace. 

Yet with such huge challenges, how could Nephi have avoided these problems?  What did he do wrong along the way?  After expounding upon the greatness of God, he tells us.  Look for it here:

“…nevertheless, I know in whom I have trusted.  My God hath been my support…He hath filled me with his love…He hath confounded mine enemies…Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the nighttime…angels came down and ministered unto me.  And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away…and mine eyes have beheld great things… [Pay attention; here comes the reason:]

“O then, if I have seen so great things, if the Lord in his condescension unto the children of men hath visited men in so much mercy, why should my heart weep and my soul linger in the valley of sorrow, and my flesh waste away, and my strength slacken, because of mine afflictions?” (2 Ne. 4:19-26)

The Lord in his condescension has offered to his children the matchless, merciful gift of the Atonement.  Nephi saw his depression and anger as proof that his faith in the Atonement of Jesus Christ was not fully functional in his daily life.  He gave himself (and us, because we are like this, too) a pep talk before carrying on with his record:

“Awake, my soul!  No longer droop in sin.  Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul.  Do not anger again because of mine enemies.  Do not slacken my strength because of mine afflictions.  Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto the Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation.” (2 Ne. 4:28-30)

Nephi realized that, regardless of the circumstances around him, he had control over his own happiness.  If he increased his faith in the Lord, he would know that things would work out okay in the end because “the Lord in his condescension unto the children of men [had visited them] in so much mercy.”  Faith in the Atonement will conquer any sorrow of life.

GIVING UP HAPPINESS

Let’s leave Nephi for a moment and talk about Laman and Lemuel.  We have to feel sorry for Laman and Lemuel.  They seem to fit the saying, “If you can’t be a shining example, at least serve as a horrible warning.”  One of the purposes of their lives seemed to be to show us how not to be.  And yet, we know that our period of probation extends beyond this life and so does theirs; temple work attests to this truth.  Now that they are in the Spirit World, Laman and Lemuel could very likely have finally understood and accepted the gospel, particularly bearing in mind that the sealing power would have been in effect for their righteous parents.  And yet they still have to suffer the consequence of their ill choices by being the bad guys in myriads of Sunday School and Primary lessons.  Hopefully they are glad to have us learn from them, even though it is in a negative way.

“Not all problems are overcome and not all needed relationships are fixed in mortality.  The work of salvation goes on beyond the veil of death, and we should not be too apprehensive about incompleteness within the limits of mortality.”  (Elder Dallin H. Oaks, October 1995 General Conference)

“Now, sometimes there are those that are lost.  We have the promise of the prophets that they are not lost permanently, that if they are sealed in the temple ordinances and if the covenants are kept, in due time, after all the correction that’s necessary to be given, that they will not be lost.”  (President Boyd K. Packer, Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, Feb. 9, 2008)

Don’t you think Laman and Lemuel ought to be on our list of people we want to meet when we get to the other side, because it’s going to be so great to see how they have changed?  But the Laman and Lemuel we have to read about in the Book of Mormon are the undeveloped ones who hadn’t accepted the gospel yet, and who hadn’t accepted responsibility for their own happiness.  So, my apologies to Laman and Lemuel as we use them, once again, as a “horrible warning.”

Laman and Lemuel had blamed all their problems on Nephi and Lehi.  So when Lehi died (2 Ne. 4:12) and Nephi left with his people (2 Ne. 5:5), all their problems should have been solved.  There was nobody to boss them around.  They didn’t have to do family scripture study anymore, they didn’t have to listen to General Conference, they didn’t have to pay tithing to build temples they didn’t want.  There would be no more crazy ship-building, wilderness-wandering, Isaiah-reciting, or anything else they hated.  They should have been free to be happy, right?

Wrong.  Throughout all the rest of the Book of Mormon, we still see them and their descendants blaming their misery on Nephi.  Their grudge defined their lives and even their civilization.  They had decided they were “picked on” and they tenaciously stuck to that attitude, no matter how circumstances changed around them.  They gave up all control of their own happiness.

CHOOSING HAPPINESS

One of the great truths of this earthly existence is that, by giving us agency, the Lord gave us the ability to choose happiness. 

“Happiness has its roots in obedience to the teachings of the Lord and in faith in his capacity to fulfill His promises.  It can be enjoyed in an environment of poverty or wealth, sickness or health, scarcity or abundance, serenity or challenge.  Happiness can and should be the general background in which life is lived.”  So wrote Elder Richard G. Scott.  Well, easy for him to say, right?  He’s an apostle.  He’s got it made.

But Elder Scott has endured trials like the rest of us (or worse), which could have taken away his happiness.  When Elder Scott and his wife were young, they were hit with a double-disaster that would have buckled anyone’s knees.  A baby girl they were expecting died just before birth, and six weeks later, their two-year-old son died during heart surgery.  Two children gone in two months!  But the Atonement of Jesus Christ made it possible for them to regain happiness. 

“I cannot [understand the Lord’s] power, his majesty, his perfections,” he said.  “But I do understand something of his love, his compassion, his mercy.  There is no burden he cannot lift.  There is no heart he cannot purify and fill with joy.  There is no life he cannot cleanse and restore when one is obedient to his teachings.”  (Ensign, November 1988, p. 77)

Pieter Vlam was a member of the Church who was also an officer in the Royal Dutch Navy in 1939.  When World War II began, he was called to serve as second counselor to the mission president.  His job was to help get the missionaries safely out of Germany.  While doing this, he was arrested by Nazi officers and put in a prison camp for the duration of the war.  He could have chosen to shake his fist at heaven, or to fill his soul with hatred for the soldiers, but he chose something better.  He had been on a mission when he entered the prison camp, and he stayed on that mission.  Many prisoners came to Pieter and wanted to talk to him about the Church.  Meetings were forbidden in the prison camp, however, so every day Pieter would take two people at a time and walk all around the camp, for miles and miles in circles, while he taught them the gospel.  He taught almost a thousand men about the Restoration.  Lives were changed, and people joined the church because Pieter chose to spread joy instead of misery.  (Robert C. Freeman, Dennis A. Wright, Saints at War, p. 203-205)

Bryan Burningham was 13 years old when a gun accidentally fired in his North Logan, Utah home, shooting him in the face.  He lost his mouth, his teeth, in fact his entire jaw, his nose, his cheekbones, his eye sockets.  He has endured over 65 surgeries to rebuild something that could work as a face.  Yet, in that moment when he nearly died, his mother said, “He felt this peace come over him, and he felt this love surround him, and it changed his life.  And he went from a kid who was pretty moody and negative, to this positive boy without a face.”  Because Bryan consistently chose joy and love, he became very popular at school.  He even won a basketball game for Sky View High School when in the last few seconds of a close game, his prosthetic nose was knocked off, all the players on both teams gasped and stopped playing, and he picked up the ball and sunk the winning shot.  He served a mission, graduated from Utah State University and married in the Logan Temple.  “Life is so wonderful!” is his mantra.  “I mean, there are a million things that happen every day…You take the good from it.  Just enjoy life!”  (Photo at Huntsman prosthetics site; stories on KSL TV and Fox News a partial transcript of one here,  various articles in the Herald Journal, a short video of news stories on YouTube.)

Elder Scott wrote, “Challenge, when faced within the framework of the gospel of Jesus Christ and in recognition of the beauties around us, is a path upward to help us grow and earn peace with happiness.”  (Richard G. Scott, Finding Peace, Happiness, and Joy, p. 167)

Nephi appears to have followed his own counsel and “given place no more for the enemy of his soul.”  Being warned of the Lord of a plot to kill him, he and his family and all that were followers of Christ left Laman and Lemuel.  They also left their homes, their crops, their “Promised Land,” all of their hard work behind for the Lamanites.  They moved out into the wilderness again and they built another Promised Land.  They kept the Law of Moses, they had the plates of brass as their scriptures, the Liahona as their guide, the sword of Laban after which they fashioned a military defense.  Their new Promised Land provided them with timber, iron, copper, brass, steel, gold, and silver.  They used these things to build a temple, like Solomon’s temple but not so fancy, Nephi wrote.

And they lived, as Nephi said, “after the manner of happiness.”

We also can live after the manner of happiness, regardless of our circumstances, if we can choose to be hopeful and not discouraged, to trust in the Lord and his mercy both for us and for those we care about, and to forgive offenses even if the perpetrators are not repentant.  If we lose one “Promised Land,” we can build another, always keeping the scriptures and revelation as our guides.  This is the way to peace.

“No formula can prescribe how every individual can be assured of continual peace with happiness and joy in this mortal life,” wrote Elder Scott, “[But] I am a witness that with patience, some long-suffering, and the help of the Lord, coupled with obedience to His commandments, those blessings can be enjoyed most of the time.”  (Scott, p. 4-5)

2 Nephi 1-5

THE IMPORTANCE OF TEACHING OF CHRIST

In chapter 2 of 2 Nephi we learn something remarkable about Nephi's younger brother Jacob:  He had seen Jesus Christ personally in a vision--when he was very young!

"Nevertheless, Jacob, my firstborn in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God...Wherefore, I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer; for thou hast beheld that in the fulness of time he cometh to bring salvation unto men.  And thou hast beheld in thy youth his glory; wherefore thou art blessed even as they unto whom he shall minister in the flesh" (2 Ne. 2:2-4).

It's interesting that even though Jacob had seen the Lord himself, his father Lehi still wanted to teach him about Jesus Christ.

"Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah; for he is full of grace and truth.  Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered" (2 Ne. 2:6-7).

And here we find the reason why Lehi taught someone who already knew--to make sure that that someone understood how important it was to teach others:

"Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise.

"Wherefore, he is the firstfruits unto God, inasmuch as he shall make intercession for all the children of men; and they that believe in him shall be saved" (2 Ne. 2:8-9).

Jacob took the lesson to heart, and later wrote,

"For this intent have we written these things, that [our beloved brethren and our children] may know that we knew of Christ, and we had a hope of his glory many hundred years before his coming; and not only we ourselves had a hope of his glory, but also all the holy prophets which were before us" (Jacob 4:4).

RESURRECTED TO PERFECTION

As we pass through this mortal life, we receive wounds, we become ill, our bodies age, we get gray hair and stiff joints.  We slowly deteriorate from the day of our birth until the day we die.  But dying is not the end but the beginning, because Christ provided the way for us to be resurrected to perfection.

Alma taught,

“The death of Christ shall loose the bands of this temporal death, that all shall be raised from this temporal death.  The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame, even as we now are at this time; …

“Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame” (Alma 11:42–44).

So after the resurrection, all our diseases will be gone, all our wrinkles will be smooth, amputated limbs will be restored, minds will be young, and scars will just disappear.  Whether celestial, terrestrial, or telestial, all the inhabitants of heaven will have perfect bodies.

All, that is, except for one.  There is one resurrected person whose scars remain. 

As Jesus Christ hung on the cross he was taunted, "He saved others; himself he cannot save" (Matt. 27:42).  What the mockers did not understand was that Christ did not come to save himself; he came to save us.  In order to save us, he had to die.  In order to remove our scars, he had to be scarred.  And he chose not to remove those scars when he was resurrected.  Why?  So that we would know that he always remembers us.

"I [will] not forget thee, O house of Israel.  Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands" (1 Ne. 21:15-16).

As Jesus also retains a scar in his side near his heart, we know that our hearts can be mended.  We all receive damage to our hearts here in this mortal existence, but another beauty of the atonement is that while our bodies are deteriorating, our spirits can become more perfect even before the resurrection.  The sins we commit, the wounds inflicted on us by others, the mistakes we make, even the knife wounds in our hearts as great loss comes to us, can all be healed as we travel through life by the power of the Atonement.  If we continually come to Christ, our spirits will become purer, younger, freer while our bodies become more scarred, aged and immobile.  The key is to choose daily to come to Christ.

THE IMPORTANCE OF AGENCY

Lehi explained in beautiful simplicity the importance of agency to our Heavenly Father's great plan for us.  (See 2 Ne. 2:11-30.)  Jacob had experienced a lot of opposition in his life, but his father explained that opposition is necessary; otherwise there would be nothing to choose.  Indeed this entire earthly existence was begun because of a choice.  It had to be so.

Why would God command Adam and Eve not to partake of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil when clearly He wanted them to, so that His children could be brought to the earth and experience their mortal probation?  Why didn't He just tell them to take it?  They would have done it!  They were really obedient people!  But to command Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit and fall from His presence would go against His very nature:

"Behold, doth he cry unto any, saying, Depart from me? Behold, I say unto you, Nay.  But he saith, come unto me all ye ends of the earth..." (2 Ne. 26:25).

"If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love" (John 15:10).

"And if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life" (D&C 14:7).

So, you see, God could not issue a commandment that would push Adam and Eve away from Him.  Keeping his commandments always brings his children closer to Him, eventually leading to eternal life, not to a temporary and fragile existence in a fallen state far from His presence.  So a commandment had to be issued to Adam and Eve to avoid the tree of knowledge.  They had to choose for themselves to take the step away from God and into mortal life.

Remember that in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve knew no opposition.  It wasn't until after their encounter with the devil that the Father put enmity between mortal man and Satan.  (See Gen. 3:15.)  So they did not know that someone could be evil and that someone could lie to them until after they took the fruit.  Fortunately, they were not the only ones lacking knowledge:  The devil did not know that he was actually pushing Adam and Eve in the direction that the Lord wanted them to go but could not command them to go, when he tempted them with the fruit. 

And so, once opposition and knowledge entered into the scene with agency, the plan of the Lord could progress.

AGENCY

"In years past we generally used the term free agency. That is not incorrect. More recently we have taken note that free agency does not appear in the scriptures. They talk of our being 'free to choose' and 'free to act' for ourselves and of our obligation to do many things of our own 'free will'. But the word agency appears either by itself or with the modifier moral: 'That every man may act in doctrine and principle … according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment' (D&C 101:78). When we use the term moral agency, we are appropriately emphasizing the accountability that is an essential part of the divine gift of agency. We are moral beings and agents unto ourselves, free to choose but also responsible for our choices..." (D. Todd Christofferson, "Moral Agency," Ensign, June 2009).

Satan thought that knowledge would be Adam and Eve's undoing.  But knowledge is of God.

"The beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ is that it pours knowledge into our souls and shows things in their true light. With that enhanced perspective, we can discern more clearly the choices before us and their consequences. We can, therefore, make more intelligent use of our agency..."  (ibid.).

We have to remember always, though, that when you choose one end of the stick (choice) you also choose the other (consequence).

"Freedom of choice is the freedom to obey or disobey existing laws—not the freedom to alter their consequences. Law, as mentioned earlier, exists as a foundational element of moral agency with fixed outcomes that do not vary according to our opinions or preferences" (ibid.).

Because we have opposition (things to choose between), law to link choices with consequences, and the power to choose, we can exercise agency and participate in God's great plan for our progression.

"It was necessary in God’s plan for our future happiness and glory that we become morally free and responsible. For that to happen, we needed an experience apart from Him where our choices would determine our destiny. The Fall of Adam provided the spiritual death needed to separate us from God and place us in this mortal condition, as well as the physical death needed to provide an end to the mortal experience...

"[But] if our separation from God and our physical death were permanent, moral agency would mean nothing. Yes, we would be free to make choices, but what would be the point? The end result would always be the same no matter what our actions: death with no hope of resurrection and no hope of heaven." (ibid.)

And so it was necessary that we have a Savior.

OUR SPIRITUAL BANK ACCOUNT

When I'm running my bank card at a checkout counter in a store, I wait for the card to process, and then I see a message flash on the screen:  "Approved."  I like being approved.  This experience often makes me think of the "pearly gates."  I imagine myself at the door of heaven, swiping a spiritual "bank card" and seeing that happy message:  "Approved."  But last night at the temple, I realized I had it wrong.  I am going to get to the entrance of heaven, the veil, and I am going to discover that I have "insufficient funds" in my spiritual bank account.  This is going to happen to you, too.  We are going to be asked to show identification--our glory and power--and we will have to answer that we do not have any.

Yet.

And here is the beauty of the Atonement: When we come unto Christ and admit that we do not have what is needed to enter that glorified existence, all we will have to do is ask, and it will be given to us through the power symbolized by those scars on Christ's hands and wrists--the Atonement!  If we repent continually, if we keep our covenants faithfully, and if we come to Christ and ask, the deficit will disappear, the glory will be bestowed upon us, and the veil into the Celestial Kingdom will part.

"...And thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord shall name.  Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God" (Isaiah 62:2).

Returning to our opening scripture, we can see that even the great prophet Jacob, despite his righteousness, despite personally seeing Jesus Christ in vision, despite later enduring to the end, fell short and could only be saved the same way we will:  through the Atonement.

"Nevertheless, Jacob, my firstborn in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God...Wherefore, I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer."

As Christ, then, retained his scars so we could see proof that He remembers us always, we would be wise to remember those scars as well and daily and hourly make choices of obedience and repentance that will bring us greater spiritual progression, until that final day when Christ reaches out His hand and we feel those scars for ourselves.

As Lehi counseled,

"And now, my sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit" (2 Ne. 2:28).

If we do so, at the end of our lives we can say, as did Lehi,

"I have chosen the good part" (2 Ne. 2:30).


(For more on agency, see my Young Women's lesson, "Forks in the Road," available at this link.)

(For the wonderful talk by Brad Wilcox mentioned in the reader's comment below, "His Grace is Sufficient," follow this link.)

1 Nephi 16-22

(If you have access to an old airline ticket and a copy machine, you may want to "white-out" the destination and arrival time on the ticket and then photocopy and cut out one for each class member.  Start class by passing out the tickets and offering them all to go on an amazing adventure with you.  Answer all questions about the destination or the itinerary or the travel route with "It's a surprise!")

SURPRISE JOURNEYS

Imagine being given an airline ticket with a departure date and a gate number, but no destination printed on it.  Let's suppose you have just retired and so you have no work obligations, and you can take your immediate family with you.  Would you take the flight?  What things might you be worried about?  Are there any conditions under which you would take the flight?  (If you knew and trusted the person who planned the trip.)

A five-year-old would take that plane trip with his family, if a close relative he loved gave him the ticket.  He would not have to know where the plane was going, and he would have total confidence that everything about the trip would be great.  Five-year-olds are used to being dragged here and there without knowing the destination.  They get a kick out of the bugs and garbage trucks and dandelions that they see along the way.  Sometimes they complain, but they are actually much more accommodating than any of us adults would be.  "Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matt 18:4).  Little children really have great faith in their parents, and we should have faith in our Parent and the trips He plans for us.

Most of us, at some point in our lives, experience a journey in which we thought we knew the destination, but when we got off the plane, we were in an entirely different place.  Do we spend our time indignantly asserting our rights and shaking our fist at the Lord, or do we leave the airport and enjoy the sights?  You'll see examples in your own life, but here are couple from mine:  Just as I filled out admittance forms to attend college since all my children would now be in school, I found out another baby was coming--major destination change!  It was eleven years before I got back to college.

A couple of years after that baby, my husband and I saved up to go on a romantic trip to Paris for our 20th wedding anniversary; instead we spent that time and money (plus a home equity loan) to travel to Russia to adopt our daughter Marisha. This was one of the most challenging "journeys" of our lives, and took two years to complete. We never made it to Paris, but the Lord's plans were better than ours, and those two children have greatly enriched our lives. I thank the Lord every day for these precious souls.

Today our lesson is all about journeys.  Lehi and his family were given "tickets" with a somewhat hazy destination and no arrival time posted at all.  Even the mode of transportation was not listed, and it changed enroute.  The journey went on for years.  They had marriages, births and deaths before it was over.  At times they thought they had arrived, only to find they had to move on again.

(Just for fun, if it's not Fast Sunday, you may offer small packages of peanuts and disposable cups of soda to the class like the airlines do.)

THE JOURNEY OF THE LEHITES

Here is some interesting research from the Neal A. Maxwell Institute regarding the journey from the Valley of Lemuel:

"After traveling for 'the space of four days' Lehi's group camped at a place they called 'Shazer,' [1 Ne. 16:13] which by normal traveling distance (about a hundred miles) would correspond to the prominent ancient oasis now called Wadi Al Azlan. Here they began to hunt wild game with bows and arrows and continued to do so after traveling for 'many days' in the 'same direction,' which would have taken them into the general area of modern Jiddah.

"This area, midway down the eastern shore of the Red Sea, is known for a combination of heat, humidity, sand, and salt that rusts car fenders in a few months and turns limber any dry wood brought from other areas. Here Nephi broke his steel bow [1 Ne. 16:18] and the wooden bows 'lost their spring,' but Nephi found wood for new bows [1 Ne. 16:23] and then found wild game nearby at the top of a mountain [1 Ne. 16:30]. Around Jiddah grows the pomegranate tree, excellent for bowmaking, and to the east, as there are farther north, are mountains with wild asses, gazelles, grouse, partridge, etc., which are still hunted with 'slings,' as Lehi's group hunted.

"After again traveling 'many days' in 'nearly the same course,' Lehi's group stopped 'for the space of a time' in a place 'which was called Nahom' [where they buried Ishmael; 1 Ne. 16:34], evidently a well-established oasis on the route, and then turned and traveled 'nearly eastward from that time' [1 Ne. 17:1]. The ancient Trail did indeed take exactly such a turn (because of the interruption of high mountains coming directly to the seacoast) at modern Al Kunfidah, then going up the wadi system to the ancient caravan city of Najran and branching there. The main route then went south to ancient San'a, which by 600 B.C. had developed into an alternate source of frankincense, and the other route continued east, through the southern edge of the desolate sand desert known to modern explorers as 'the Empty Quarter,' until it came out to the fertile Qara Mountains in Dhofar, the original ancient source of frankincense and the only such spot (about twenty miles long) on the entire fourteen-hundred-mile southern coast. Joseph Smith's account got the turn exactly right and also the area of increased desolation and 'much affliction,' including the interesting detail that the emigrants lived on raw meat [1 Ne. 17:2], not being allowed 'much fire,' in this the one area of the trail where we now know they would have been in greatest danger of Bedouin raiders.

"Most startling, the Book of Mormon provides exactly all the details (now proven, but which no one knew in the 1820s) of Salalah [which Lehi called "Bountiful;" 1 Ne. 17:6]: This small, unique spot is favored six months of the year by southwest monsoon winds that cloak the mountains in mist and produce the anciently precious frankincense which brought the caravan trail there—and also produce flowers, honeybees, fruit, and huge 'sycamore-figs' [which] can produce long timbers of strong hardwood, remarkably free from knots and resistant to sea water and used even today to make ocean-going [vessels]. There is also iron ore in the mountains [1 Ne. 17:16], a beach where Lehi's emigrants could 'pitch . . . tents by the seashore' but one which terminates abruptly on the west in cliffs that drop a hundred feet 'into the depths of the sea' [1 Ne. 17:48]. And the seasonal monsoon winds that produce the fertility of this unique area also provide a unique source of power that we now know opened up trade across the open sea to India in the first century A.D. and by which Nephi's ship would have been 'driven forth . . . towards the promised land' of America [1 Ne. 18:8]. In Joseph Smith's time, as we have seen, neither the shipbuilding skills and materials nor the favorable winds on this desert shore of Arabia were known about in the west."  (Eugene England, Through the Arabian Desert to a Bountiful Land: Could Joseph Smith Have Known the Way?, Maxwell Institute BYU Publication)

The beach at present-day Salalah

It's fascinating to know exactly where the journey took place, but it is more important to learn what the journey can teach us about our own lives.  Nephi gives us the point of the story:

"AND THUS WE SEE, that the commandments of God must be fulfilled.  And if it so be that the children of men keep the commandments of God he doth 1) nourish them, and 2) strengthen them, and 3) provide means whereby they can accomplish the thing which he has commanded them; WHEREFORE, he did provide means for us while we did sojourn in the wilderness" (1 Ne. 17:3).

But not everyone on the trip felt so positive about the journey, and no one felt so positive about it all the time.  Let's look at this story to see how we can be better travelers and find joy in our journeys.

HOW TO BE A HAPPY CAMPER DURING LIFE'S TRAVELS

1. Trust that the destination is a land of promise

Lehi and Nephi constantly affirmed their complete trust in the Lord that the end of the journey would be worth it.  If we can learn to do this, everything will go a little easier.

2. See the blessings in every part of the journey

"...And we did travel and WADE THROUGH MUCH AFFLICTION in the wilderness; and our women did bear children in the wilderness."  (Don't you expect the next sentence is going to be a complaint about that?  Nope, it's Nephi, remember?)  "And SO GREAT WERE THE BLESSINGS of the Lord upon us, that while we did live upon raw meat in the wilderness, our women did give plenty of suck for their children and were strong..." (1 Ne. 17:1-2)

3. Be patient in delays, side-tracks, or extentions to the journey

"And it came to pass that we did pitch our tents by the seashore; and notwithstanding we had suffered many afflictions and much difficulty, yea, even so much that we cannot write them all, we were exceedingly rejoiced when we came to the seashore; and we called the place Bountiful, because of its much fruit." (1 Ne. 17:6)

When they stopped at the shore of the Red Sea, they called the place Bountiful.  When they got to America, they called that land Bountiful, too.  There is never any indication that Lehi knew that the promised land would be across the sea until Nephi was told to build a ship; they were already living in a wonderful location.  It seems very likely that the travelers thought that the Bountiful by the Red Sea was their final destination, their promised land.  Was it possibly a little disheartening to find out that they had only just begun their journey at that point, eight years after leaving Jerusalem, and the most treacherous part lay ahead? [1 Ne. 17:4]  When we find that a difficult life journey has yet another twist to it, can we calmly load up our bags and keep going?

4. Have faith even while having questions

When the Lord commanded them to leave this beautiful and fruitful land Bountiful by crossing a treacherous sea in a homemade ship, everyone had questions.  But Nephi's questions were useful.  "Lord, whither shall I go that I may find ore to molten, that I may make tools to construct the ship?"  Do the questions we ask when we are in challenging positions reflect our faith?  Instead of asking "Why me?" as Laman and Lemuel did, can we ask "What do you want me to do?" as Nephi did?

5. Don't waste effort looking back or thinking what might have been

Laman and Lemuel chose to whine and complain.  "It would have been better" to have died in Jerusalem, they said.  However, they didn't really think they would have died in Jerusalem, because the next thing they said was that instead of suffering in the wilderness, "we might have enjoyed our posessions," "we might have been happy." (1 Ne. 17:20-22)  But the destruction of Jerusalem really did happen and their "afflictions in the wilderness" were mighty blessings compared to the real "might-have-beens." 

Do we complain about our blessings?

6. Recognize the Lord's hand in the journey

As the Lord said to Nephi, "I will also be your light in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before you, if it so be that ye shall keep my commandments; wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the promised land; and ye shall know that it is by me that ye are led." (1 Ne. 17:13)

Look for "the light in the wilderness."  Keep track of it in your journal.  Give thanks for it in your evening prayers.

7. Use the scriptures as a map

Nephi wanted his brothers to see that they were being guided by the Lord, and that they would reach their destination, so he likened their journey unto another journey they were familiar with from their scriptures, the Brass Plates:

"Do ye believe that our fathers, who were the children of Israel, would have been led away out of the hands of the Egyptians if they had not hearkened unto the words of the Lord?" (1 Ne. 17:23) 

He reminded them of what they knew about this trip ("ye know"), and that the hand of the Lord did it all ("by his words").

• YE KNOW  that the children of Israel were in bondage
• YE KNOW  that they were laden with [grievous] tasks.
• YE KNOW  that it must needs be a good thing [for them to be freed].
• YE KNOW  that Moses was commanded of the Lord to do that great work.
• YE KNOW  that   BY HIS WORD  the waters of the Red Sea were divided...and they passed through on dry ground.
• YE KNOW  that the Egyptians were drowned in the Red Sea.
• YE KNOW  that they were fed with manna in the wilderness.
• YE KNOW  that Moses  BY HIS WORD  smote the rock...to quench their thirst...[despite being led by the Lord] they hardened their hearts and blinded their minds and reviled against Moses and against...God.
• ACCORDING TO HIS WORD   he did destroy them.
• ACCORDING TO HIS WORD   he did lead them.
• ACCORDING TO HIS WORD   he did do all things for them.
• And there was not any thing done save it were   BY HIS WORD.
• YE KNOW  that they were led forth BY HIS MATCHLESS POWER in the land of promise.
• YE KNOW  that  BY THE POWER OF HIS ALMIGHTY WORD he can cause the earth that it shall pass away.
• YE KNOW  that  BY HIS WORD  he can cause the rough places to be made smooth, and smooth places shall be broken up. (1 Ne. 17:25-31, 42, 46)

Similarly, as we study the scriptures, there are many things we can learn about the Lord's dealings with his people over centuries of time that will help us see and understand that by His word, everything will work out in the end for us as well.

8. Know the Lord can be trusted because he 1) loves, 2) covenants, 3) remembers

This is the most important thing to keep in mind, and will make all the other things easier to do.  After re-telling the story of the exodus from Egypt, Nephi reminded his brothers of the character of God--that He is the Creator of the earth and of each of them, that He raises up the righteous and destroys the wicked, that He leads the righteous into promised lands, that He rules high in the heavens...

"And he loveth those who will have him to be their God.  BEHOLD, he 1) loved our fathers, and he 2) covenanted with them, yea, even Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and he 3) remembered the covenants which he had made;  WHEREFORE,  he did bring them out of the land of Egypt.

FINDING HOPE IN ISAIAH

After Nephi taught his brothers from the scriptures about the exodus, he read to them from another scripture.  (Ask your students to identify it from 1 Ne. 19:23--Isaiah.)  There were two reasons that Nephi gave for reading from Isaiah in verses 23 and 24.  Each of them is begun with the word THAT.

1. "THAT  I might more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer."
2. "THAT  ye may have hope."

Isaiah is a great place to find hope for the journey expressed in beautiful ways.  If you are a "beginner" at Isaiah, don't worry about understanding every detail--just listen to the beauty of the words and phrases, and try to get a feeling about what is being said.

"All ye, assemble yourselves, and hear; who among them hath declared these things unto them?  [That would be the prophets, specifically Isaiah.]  The Lord hath loved him; yea, and he will fulfil his word which he hath declared by them...

"...I have sent him--the Lord thy God who teacheth thee to profit, who leadeth thee by the way thou shouldst go, hath done it." (1 Ne. 20:14, 17)

We can trust that the words of the prophets will be fulfilled for our journey because the Host of our tour, the Lord Himself, has sent them.

No matter how things are right now, everything will come right, because...

"Thus saith the Lord: In an acceptable time have I heard thee, O isles of the sea, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee; and I will preserve thee, and give thee my servant for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages;

"That thou mayest say to the prisoners; Go forth; to them that sit in darkness: Show yourselves.  They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places.

"They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor the sun smite them; for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.

"And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted." (1 Ne.21:8-11)

No matter where we live (even the remotest places, the isles of the sea), we will have a prophet to deliver the Lord's promises to us.  If we are in a prison of sin or circumstance, we will be allowed to escape.  If we are in darkness, we will be led into the light.  We will be led to a high place (mountains, which generally mean temples in the scriptures) where we will be nurtured by the Lord.  There we will be sheltered from the vicissitudes of life (heat and sun).  All the mountains will become a way.  (Temples the world over lead us to God.)

Even when times come that we think the Lord has forgotten us, we can be sure He hasn't and His promises will eventually be realized,

"For can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? [Even if she is a neglectful mother, a nursing mother will be reminded by her body that she has a baby to feed--it is impossible for her to forget!]  Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee, O house of Israel.

"BEHOLD, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me."  (1 Ne. 21:15-16)  What is on the palms of Christ's hands?  The scars of His crucifixion, His atonement for us.  Even though He was resurrected to glory and to a perfect body, those scars remained as eternal symbols of His love and sacrifice for us!

But it is not just the House of Israel whom the Lord remembers:

"Thus saith the Lord God:  BEHOLD, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard [a banner, rallying troops or groups of people together] to the people; and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.

"And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens their nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their face towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me."  (1 Ne. 21:22-23)

It is the spread of the true gospel restored in the United States (1 Ne. 22:7-9) to all those who do not have it, anywhere in the world and in any way, that is described by Isaiah.  It is the fulfillment of the covenant to Abraham that in his seed all the kindreds or families of the earth should be blessed.  Their thanksgiving will be great, and those who labored for the Lord will be gratified and not sorry for their service.  Who are these people?

• Those who have the gospel are as "kings and queens," and if they spread the gospel through missionary service, they are "nursing fathers and nursing mothers" to those whom they bring to Christ, whether those people are next-door or in their Sunday School class or in a remote village in Africa. 
• Those who live in circumstances equivalent to kings (with both spiritual and material blessings fit for royalty) become "nursing fathers and nursing mothers" by mentoring, fostering, or adopting children from situations which lack the light of the gospel, into an environment where they can learn of Christ. 
• Those who, through their military or civilian service to less-privileged peoples, nurture and protect them and elevate their circumstances are "nursing fathers and nursing mothers".
• Can you think of others?  There are many specific examples of "nursing fathers and nursing mothers" in the world around us.

As people's basic needs are met and they are then able to accept the gospel, they are brought out of captivity, they are brought into light, and they will KNOW that the Lord is their Savior.  What greater cause can we unite in?

Once we are underway on our own journey with the Lord as our Guide, it is our responsibility to bring others to find their way and follow the Light as well, until we reach the happy ending of all our travels when,

"He gathereth his children from the four quarters of the earth and he numbereth his sheep, and they know him; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd; and he shall feed his sheep, and in him they shall find pasture.  And because of the righteousness of his people, Satan has no power; wherefore, he cannot be loosed for the space of many years; for he hath no power over the hearts of the people, for they dwell in righteousness, and the Holy One of Israel reigneth...

"But behold, all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people shall dwell safely in the Holy One of Israel if it so be that they will repent."  (1 Ne. 22:25-26, 28)