Jacob 1-4

Jacob 1-4

This life is a test, and it’s full of pop quizzes.  We never know when life is going to surprise us with one, so we need to constantly study the gospel, follow the spirit, pray, and have the scriptures firmly implanted in our minds so that we have the knowledge and faith we need to pass each test.  Doing well on today’s pop quiz will result in a sweet reward.  Doing well in life’s pop quizzes (many of the questions and answers of which are the same as this one today) will result in much sweeter rewards.

Two ways you can administer this quiz:

1.      Put the questions in a jar and have students draw them out randomly.  Toss wrapped candies to those who answer the questions correctly.  Even adults like catching candy—it keeps them awake!  If you have class members who thoroughly study the reading assignments, they may be able to get the answers on their own.  If not, give them the scripture references so they can find them.  Discuss each answer as it is found.

2.      Print up the questions and scripture references on papers to hand out to the students and have them look up and fill out the answers individually, then check them together and give a treat for each correct answer and discussing it.

POP QUIZ

·         Will you ever be punished for someone else’s sins?  (Jacob 1:19.  If you had a stewardship and did not fulfill it, you are at least partially responsible for the sins of those you failed to help.)

·         Were the only scriptures familiar to the Nephites the Books of Moses?  (Jacob 2:23.  They also had the stories of Solomon and David at least.)

·         Is the Book of Mormon a complete record of the preaching of the ancient American prophets?  (Jacob 1:4.  It is “headlines” only.)

·         Did Nephi live to old age?  (1 Ne. 2:16; Jacob 1:1; 12.  “Very young” in ancient Hebrew days would have been early teens or even younger.  Add 55 years to that; he probably didn’t live to age 70.)

·         Were being prideful, seeking for riches, and persecuting the poor the worst sins of the early Nephites?  (Jacob 2:13; 22-23.  Sexual impurity was considered much worse by the Lord.)

·         Under what condition is it okay to seek for riches?  (Jacob 2:19.  As a secondary goal after seeking for Christ, for the purpose of following Christ in ministering to the needy.)

·         How does the Lord treat victims of infidelity?  (Jacob 2:35-3:2.  He will console them and provide justice for them.  He will fill them with his love if they receive the pleasing word of God and keep their minds firm.)

·         What made the Lamanites more righteous than the Nephites and kept them from complete destruction?  (Jacob 3:5-7.  Their commitment to their families.)

·         How powerful was Jacob the prophet?  (Jacob 4:6.  He could command the elements.)

·         Is it possible for those whose sins are worse than the Lamanites’ to rise in the first resurrection and attain Celestial glory? (Jacob 4:11.  Yes, if they repent and are reconciled through the Atonement.)

·         The gospel is simple.  If we desire to complicate it, how will the Lord respond?  (Jacob 4:14.  He will allow us to become confused by complications if we insist upon it.)

·         Can excessive anxiety, even over very important troubles, distance us from the Spirit?  (Jacob 4:18.  Yes.)

·         Was Jacob’s sermon effective?  (It must have been; there is no further indication of polygamy being practiced in the Book of Mormon record.)

The subject of polygamy has always been confusing and disconcerting to Latter-day Saints, since the early Saints and many Old Testament saints were commanded by God to practice it, and yet now we are commanded not to.  This year I came across the best treatise I have ever read on the subject, and I highly recommend it to anyone troubled by or curious about God’s commandments regarding polygamy: 

V.H. Cassler, “Polygamy,” SquareTwo, Vol. 3 No. 1 (Spring 2010) available at this link: http://squaretwo.org/Sq2ArticleCasslerPolygamy.html.

2 Nephi 31-33

THE DOCTRINE OF CHRIST

In Chapter 31 of 2 Nephi, Nephi tells us that he has written all that he feels necessary except for one thing:  the doctrine of Christ.  He wants to write plainly so that everyone can understand because it’s important (2 Ne. 31:2).

 Nephi reminds us that Christ would be baptized and receive the Holy Ghost.

“And he said unto the children of men: Follow thou me.  Wherefore, my beloved brethren, can we follow Jesus save we shall be willing to keep the commandments of the Father?  And the Father said: Repent ye, repent ye, and be baptized in the name of my Beloved Son.  And also, the voice of the Son came unto me, saying: He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father give the Holy Ghost, like unto me; wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do.” (2 Ne. 31:10-12)

So, the doctrine of Christ is basically the Fourth Article of Faith:

1.      Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ

2.      Repentance

3.      Baptism

4.      Receipt of the Gift of the Holy Ghost

Plus enduring to the end.

“And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done?  Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save. 

“Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men.  [Did you notice faith, hope, and charity in that sentence?]  Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

“And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God.  And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end.  Amen.”  (2 Ne. 31:19-21)

So the chapter begins and ends with the doctrine of Christ.  (The chapter is actually chiastic.)

It’s all very simple.  But I think we’re all like Nephi predicted we would be, and we say, “But how?”

“And now, behold, my beloved brethren, I suppose that ye ponder somewhat in your hearts concerning that which ye should do after ye have entered in by the way.”  (2 Ne. 32:1)

WHAT IS THE TONGUE OF ANGELS?

Read this carefully.  Remember Nephi has been writing about the first principles and ordinances of the gospel, the doctrine of Christ.

“Do ye not remember that I said unto you that after ye had received the Holy Ghost ye could speak with the tongue of angels?  And now, how could ye speak with the tongue of angels save it were by the Holy Ghost? (See 2 Ne. 31:13)  Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ.  Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do.” (2 Ne. 32:2-3)

So, the tongue of angels comes through the power of the Holy Ghost.

Angels speak the words of Christ. 

We are to feast upon these words and they will tell us everything we need to do.

Usually we look at this phrase and automatically assume that feasting upon the words of Christ means studying the scriptures, and that’s definitely important, but Nephi has actually said nothing about the scriptures here.  He has been writing about the Holy Ghost.

To speak the language of the angels is to speak what the Holy Ghost tells us.  When we read about heavenly beings, we discover that their words and their actions are the same.  God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.  Everything is done “by the power of his word.”  (See Jacob 2:9.) There is complete integrity between what God says and what He accomplishes, and it should be the same with us:  our actions should align completely with the words of Christ.  So to speak with the tongue of the angels is also to do what the Holy Ghost tells us. Feasting upon the words of Christ means to completely digest and make a part of ourselves everything that the Holy Ghost reveals to us—truths and actions. 

Nephi restated it to make sure we understood:

“Wherefore, now after I have spoken these words, if ye cannot understand them it will be because ye ask not, neither do ye knock; wherefore, ye are not brought into the light, but must perish in the dark.  For behold, again I say unto you that if ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do.  Behold this is the doctrine of Christ…”  (2 Ne. 32:4-6)

But we’re still confused.  “The words of Christ” sounds so much like the scriptures to us! So Nephi gives us an example.

“And now, my beloved brethren, I perceive that ye ponder still in your hearts, and it grieveth me that I must speak concerning this thing.  For if ye would hearken unto the Spirit which teacheth a man to pray ye would know that ye must pray.  For the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray, but teacheth him that he must not pray.”  (2 Ne. 32:8)

So if we are to communicate with Christ as the angels do (“speaking with the tongue of angels”), He will tell us His counsel for us (“the words of Christ”) through the Holy Ghost (“the Spirit that teaches us to pray”).

Of course, we want to study the scriptures!  Of course we want to listen to the prophets!  But it is the tongue of angels, the power of the Holy Ghost, that will tell us these things are true.

“…for when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men.  But behold, there are many that harden their hearts against the Holy Spirit, that it hath no place in them; wherefore, they cast many things away which are written and esteem them as things of naught.”  (2 Ne. 33:1-2)

THE SIMPLICITY OF THE WAY

So the doctrine of Christ is indeed simple, if not always easy:

1.      Exercise faith in the Lord Jesus Christ

2.      Repent of sin

3.      Be baptized and keep that covenant

4.      Receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost

5.      Endure, or “press forward continually,” until the end of our lives with faith, hope and charity, while following the constant guidance of the Holy Ghost, or “feasting upon the words of Christ”given  to us personally

And then we’ll have eternal life.  (See 2 Ne. 31:20.)

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HOLY GHOST

After he died, Joseph Smith came back to visit Brigham Young in a dream. The purpose of this visit was to urge President Young to give a vital message to the Saints. After Brigham Young died, he came back to visit John Taylor in a dream. The message he wanted delivered to the Saints was the same one President Smith gave to him, “Tell the people to get the Spirit.”  (See this link for references and more quotes from other prophets.) 

This is the same vital message that Nephi wanted to impress upon his readers in the last pages of his record.

(An interesting note about Nephi’s basic character:  His record begins and ends with his profession of obedience to the Lord—1 Ne. 3:7, and 2 Ne. 33:15)

Elder Richard G. Scott has written: 

“Your happiness now and for the eternities will unquestionably be determined by whether or not you follow the spiritual guidance of the Lord communicated through the Holy Ghost… 

“The counsel of others and the programs of the Church are useful aids but not the best source of fundamental direction in your life. That guidance comes from the Lord through the Holy Ghost.

“Spirituality yields two fruits. The first is inspiration, that is, to know what to do. The second is power—the power of God or the capacity to do what one has been instructed to accomplish.”  (Richard G. Scott, Finding Peace, Happiness, and Joy, p. 39-40)

It is absolutely essential to our mission on earth that we know what the Lord wants us to do through the Holy Ghost, and that we have the power to do it through the Holy Ghost.  This is feasting on the words of Christ, or communicating and living in the language of the angels.

(For more on following the Spirit, please see Listening to the Spirit.)

2 Nephi 26-30 with The Celestial Pyramid Game

Here's a little game to use as a springboard for discussion. 
Remember: there is no rule against having fun in scripture study!

CELESTIAL PYRAMID GAME

Some of you will remember the American TV show, "The $10,000 Pyramid."  To win $10,000, the contestant would have to guess the category of each box in the pyramid in order, while a partner slowly read to the person items in the category.  The Pyramid itself had a category which the player also had to guess after guessing each box's category.  And of course it all had to be done in a time limit.

This pyramid game won't earn anyone $10,000 but it has more important categories!  To prepare the game, make 10 numbered boxes out of paper.  On the back of each box list the category.  One member of the family or the teacher of the class reads the items in the category, and the other members guess the category.  (The entire group is on the same team.)  The reader can give clues to the page number or verse number in the scriptures if needed.  When the group guesses the category of Box #1, the reader turns the box over to reveal its category.  Commentary and discussion of the topic can take place, then the group moves on to guessing Box #2, and so on until they reach Box #9.  They then must look at all the categories and decide what the category of the entire "Celestial Pyramid" is, upon which Box #10 will be turned over and they will have won the game.

The game includes a slight review from last week's lesson--an important truth from Chapter 25.

BOX #1:  THE RIGHT WAY [TO LIVE] (2 Ne. 25:29; p. 100)

• To believe Christ
• To deny him not
• To bow down before him
• To worship him with all your might, mind and strength and your whole soul

BOX #2:  PRIESTCRAFTS (2 Ne. 26:29; p. 103)

• They preach
• They set themselves up for a light unto the world
• They seek gain
• They seek praise
• The seek not the welfare of Zion

BOX #3:  THINGS THE LORD GOD HAS COMMANDED NOT TO DO (2 Ne. 26:32; p. 103)

• Murder
• Lie
• Steal
• Take the name of the Lord in vain
• Envy
• Have malice
• Contend
• Commit whoredoms

BOX #4:  THOSE CHRIST INVITES TO COME TO HIM (2 Ne. 26:33; p. 103)

• Black people
• White people
• Slaves
• Free people
• Males
• Females
• The heathen
• The Jews
• The Gentiles
• All people

BOX #5: WAYS THE LORD OF HOSTS WILL VISIT THE WICKED IN THE LAST DAYS (2 Ne. 27:2; p. 104)

• With thunder
• With earthquake
• With great noise
• With storm
• With tempest
• With flame of devouring fire.

BOX #6: CHURCHES BUILT UP AND NOT UNTO THE LORD (2 Ne. 28:3-14; p. 107-108)

• Those who contend one with another
• Those who teach with their learning but deny the power of the Holy Ghost
• Those who say there is no God today
• Those who say God has finished his work and there are no more miracles
• Those who say, "Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die"
• Those who say, "God will justify in committing a little sin"
• Those who have gone out of the way and become corrupted
• Those who rob the poor to build fine sanctuaries and to wear fine clothing

BOX #7: WAYS THE CHURCHES HAVE BECOME CORRUPTED (2 Ne. 28:12; p. 107)

• Pride
• False teachers
• False doctrines

BOX #8: WAYS THE DEVIL WILL GRASP SOULS AND DRAG THEM DOWN TO HELL (2 Ne. 28:19-22; p. 108)

• Stirring up to anger against good
• Saying "All is well in Zion"
• Flattering
• Telling them there is no hell
• Telling them he is no devil for there is none
• Whispering in their ears

BOX #9: THOSE WHO WILL WRITE THE WORD OF GOD (2 Ne. 29:12; p. 110-111)

• The Jews
• The Nephies
• The other tribes of Israel
• All nations of the earth

BOX #10 (ENTIRE PYRAMID): PROPHECIES ABOUT THE LAST DAYS

Check out reader Aaron's fun "bonus round" in the comments below.  Thanks, Aaron!

2 Nephi 11-25

(If you haven't used it already, here is a link to a previous post on Isaiah.)

NEPHI’S INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH

“And now I, Nephi, write more of the words of Isaiah, for my soul delighteth in his words.  For I will liken his words unto my people, and I will send them forth unto all my children, for he [Isaiah] verily [truly] saw my Redeemer, even as I have seen him.  And my brother, Jacob, also has seen him as I have seen him; wherefore, I will send their words forth unto my children to prove unto them that my words are true.  Wherefore, by the words of three, God hath said, I will establish my word.  Nevertheless, God sendeth more witnesses, and he proveth all his words.”  (2 Ne. 11:2-3)

Nephi taught the law of three witnesses to all of us, and particularly to Joseph Smith, although it wasn’t until Joseph got to Ether 5 that he prayed for three witnesses to the Book of Mormon.

We also see in this chapter of the Book of Mormon why the Nephites did not have such trouble accepting Christ when he came:  They had retained a clear understanding of the purpose of the Law of Moses and had not allowed it to become an end in itself, unrelated to Christ:

“Behold, my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ; for, for this end hath the law of Moses been given; and all things which have been given of God from the beginning of the world, unto man, are the typifying of him.”  (2 Ne. 11:4)

Whereas we often look upon 2 Nephi as the place we get stuck when reading the Book of Mormon because of the dreaded “Isaiah chapters,” Nephi offered us the option of rejoicing in them.

“And now I write some of the words of Isaiah, that whoso of my people shall see these words may lift up their hearts and rejoice for all men.  Now these are the words, and ye may liken them unto you and unto all men.”  (2 Ne. 11:8)

Probably none of us understand all of the Isaiah passages yet, but all of us understand some of them.  (Our reading assignment is so huge, probably the writers of the manual didn’t expect us to understand them all, either.)  Those of us who live to be 100 can perhaps eventually have a comprehensive understanding of these scriptures.   For now, though, rather than worrying about the details and interpretations of so many specific prophecies, we can simply search for and mark those which cause our hearts to “rejoice for all men.”  I’ll share some of my favorites here:

THE WORK OF THE LATTER-DAY SAINTS

The very first passage of Isaiah that Nephi included here is one of the most beautiful and encouraging.  Whereas we often hear reports of evil, of war, of crime, of abuse in the media input we receive every day, Nephi offers us a most heartening view of the latter-days which could cause even the most cynical heart to rejoice.

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, when the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it.  And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths, for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”  (2 Ne. 12:2-3)

Well, that is definitely cause to rejoice:  the distinguishing feature of the latter-days will be the temple.  And not just a single temple in Salt Lake City, although the scripture uses the singular:  all nations will flow unto the temple, so it is a single type of building Isaiah refers to, located in all nations.  And many people, not just a select few, will invite each other to come to the temple and learn of God.  The law that will go forth from Zion includes both the spiritual laws of the Church of Jesus Christ and the temporal laws of free governments established by God.

And if that wasn’t great enough news, look what comes next:

“And he [the Lord] shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people; and they shall beat their swords into plow-shares, and their spears into pruning-hooks—nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” (2 Ne. 12:4)

Wow!  People who were formerly enemies will work together to nourish and strengthen each other!  But that has already happened in many instances.  And always, it is due to the actions of Christlike individuals.

The perfect example of the influence of one Latter-day Saint to “beat swords into plowshares” is found in the story of Gail “Hal” Halvorsen, a.k.a. “The Candy Bomber .” 

At the end of WWII, the U.S. Air Force pilot, a Latter-day Saint from northern Utah, flew unauthorized missions of mercy over blockaded Germany, dropping candy to the starving German children in little parachutes made of the many handkerchiefs he brought along when he shipped out from the U.S. because he had had a bad cold at the time.  He had been a perfectly obedient military man, so no one suspected him of disobeying orders. 

But by the time his superiors found out who was flying these unauthorized missions (a press photograph caught the number on his airplane tail), the benefit of the missions was being realized and he was not court-martialed as expected, but sent to a press conference instead (Andrei Cherny, The Candy Bombers, p. 352).  The U.S. military and many U.S. citizens joined in his efforts and dropped hundreds of pounds of candy and food to the starving Germans below.  “Halvorsen, the ordinary young pilot, would almost single-handedly transform how the citizens of defeated Germany’s capital saw the United States.” (ibid., p. 8)  (An excellent ABC news report about Halvorsen can be found at this link.  You may notice in the report that Brother Halvorsen credits the gratitude of the Germans as the factor that changed the countries’ relations, rather than his own heroism.  Additional video footage and the story narrated by Brother Halvorsen himself can be found on YouTube at this link .)

THE DEVASTATION OF THE WICKED

After reading the joyous actions of the Saints in the latter days, Isaiah wrote warnings against the wicked—they will desire to hide, all those material possessions they worshiped will be worth nothing to them, and “The Lord, the Lord of Hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem, and from Judah, the stay and the staff, the whole staff of bread, and the whole stay of water.”  (2 Ne. 13:1)  Because they have refused it, they will starve spiritually; they will give up the knowledge and comfort of Jesus Christ.  They will be easily overcome and humiliated.

But, back to more joyful prophecies about world-wide temples:

“When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion [through the ordinance of baptism and the application of the Atonement]…, the Lord will create upon every dwelling-place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for upon all the glory of Zion shall be a defence.” (2 Ne. 14:4-5)

Back and forth go the prophecies, with warnings to the wicked, followed by wondrous miracles for the righteous.

“The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light; they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.  Thou hast multiplied the nation [the nation or House of Israel—the Church], and increased the joy—they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.  For thou hast broken the yoke of his [Israel’s], and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor…For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.  Of the increase of government and peace there is no end.”  (2 Ne. 19:2-7).

This is a government we won’t mind seeing increased—a theocracy which will bring endless peace.

“And it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord shall give thee rest, from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou waste made to serve.” (2 Ne. 24:3)

OUR CHOICE

In the end, after all these prophecies, we read,

“And now, my brethren, I have spoken plainly that ye cannot err…there is none other name given under heaven save it be this Jesus Christ, of which I have spoken, whereby man can be saved.” (2 Ne. 25:20)

“And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.”  (2 Ne. 25:26).

Nephi and Isaiah have given us a choice:  Do we seek after worldly things, do we put our trust in men, do we struggle against the commandments, do we follow secret evil ambitions expecting them never to be uncovered?  If so, we are choosing a wild course, a foundation sure to crumble, an outcome that will not be as we expect.  We are choosing the “waters of the river, strong and many,” the glory of worldliness that will eventually “come up over all his channels, and go over all his banks.” (2 Ne. 18:7)  The mighty Euphrates River is the reference here, a wild river, often out of control, flooding its banks, ruining the vegetation, drowning the creatures.

Flooding Potomac River

Or do we choose to turn to Christ and let him heal us, free us, and nourish us (2 Ne. 25:20)?  Do we help to build the temples of Mount Zion, do we beat swords into plow-shares, do we stand against evil?  If so we are choosing the softly rolling, predictable, controlled, life-giving River Shiloah (2 Ne. 18:6).

If we make the choice each day to trust in God, and let Jehovah be our strength and salvation, “Therefore, with joy shall [we] draw water out of the wells of salvation.”  (2 Ne. 22:3)

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)