Skip to main content

1 Nephi 1:19

"And it came to pass that the Jews did mock him because of the things which he testified of them; for he truly testified of their wickedness and their abominations; and he testified that the things which he saw and heard and also the things which he read in the book, manifested plainly of the coming of a Messiah, and also the redemption of the world."

This one seems deep to me, but we will see how far we get. There is a chance that I might stretch this one over two days but I will try my best to get what I can from it. So, surprise surprise, the Jews mock Lehi. Not surprising right? I know it is easy to think about people laughing, pointing fingers, or throwing things at Lehi, but I honestly don't think that is how these things happen. I know when I was younger when it talked about them mocking and rejecting the prophets, I thought it was blatant and rude. I thought it was something to indicate how wicked they were because they were openly mocking and laughing at those who were prophesying. I don't think that is the case any more. While some might, there is a different kind of mockery. You can mock someone by just treating what they say extremely lightly or ignoring it. I will be the first to say that I have probably at one time or another mocked the prophet. I sit there, I listen, and then I go about my day as if nothing happened. Lets just not assume that we are better than they were just because we are trying to go about our lives undisturbed.

Lehi was testifying to them of their wickedness and all the things that they had to change. At the same time though, he was testifying to them of the birth of a Messiah, and the redemption of the world. What an awesome message. I think it is interesting that they would come together. Sometimes I think it is better to tell people all about the greatness of the Gospel. Talk about the peace and security it brings as well as the plan of salvation and how much we learn about where we are and where we are going. Then the commandments can be slid is as an oh, by the way, if you want all of this stuff you need to keep these commandments. I'm not sure that there is a right or a wrong way but it is interesting to see that Lehi was preaching all of these things at Jerusalem.

Super interesting too that he would mention the book. I mean, you can kind of see why they called him a visionary man and thought he was crazy right? I mean, Joseph Smith got the same reaction and he wasn't even saying that he was potentially asleep or laying in bed. We are generally accustomed to revelations and the idea of a book that he can flip through things that are going to happen in the future is pretty fantastic. Long story short, the message has always been the same: The Redemption of the World. That is what this is all about. Christ came to redeem the world. Redeem as in compensate for the shortcomings or faults of all people. We have been redeemed, now we simply need to accept it and take advantage of it.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

O How Great the Plan of Our God!

I decided to take a day and listen to a Conference talk from Dieter F. Uchtdorf while taking notes on here. After we use something amazing and take advantage of it for so long, we consider it common-place. He uses the term soul-expanding doctrine which I love. The doctrine of Jesus Christ is to expand our souls. Not make it more annoying to be tied to this mortal body, but to amplify the connection. Make our bodies more in tune with our spirits. He asks us to consider and remember how we felt when we first comprehended that we were truly children of the almighty God. I don't know how well I remember that moment. I recall some instances where I knew, but the first time I realized would have been a very very long time ago. But if I describe the way I felt, there was an overwhelming sense of importance. Not in the sense that I was better than others, but I felt proud. I felt like God was proud of me and that I had unlimited potential. I felt as though I was deeply loved by someone...

1 Nephi 1:10

I believe I have met my test with this one. There is one footnote and it is the word twelve...and it sends me to the topical guide on apostle. "And he also saw twelve others following him, and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament." So, if you read yesterday's post it is very interesting that it describes them with a different light word than they did Jesus. They have brightness, he has luster. It may not be anything like I am saying and a complete coincidence, but I think it is interesting to think about nonetheless. I thought it was interesting that it compares it to exceeding the stars in the firmament. This is where I start to think that the vision that Lehi saw was far less literal and more symbolic. If I saw something bright...bright at ALL, then I wouldn't compare it to the stars. The stars give off little to no light for us. They are beautiful, but a night without the moon is dark . The stars help a little but it is negligible. He ...

1 Nephi 1:5

"Wherefore it came to pass that my father, Lehi, as he went forth prayed unto the Lard, yea, even with all his heart, in behalf of his people." There is something about living in the gospel that I have yet to experience consistently. I think it comes back to being in the world but not of the world. Doing the everyday things is a surprisingly spiritual way. From yesterday we understand that there was new management un Jerusalem and there was great prophesying of the city's destruction. I felt kind of embarrassed about it, but I actually looked up the word "wherefore." I just wasn't really sure if it was an actual 'because of this that this' kind of a thing and it turns out that it is! Makes this verse so much better to know that what comes next is actually in response to what he understands to be happening. The verse goes on to say that " as he went forth prayed unto the Lord." I think I always put another 'and' in there unneces...