Book of Mormon 2020 - 2 Nephi 26-30

Please check out my original post on these chapters from 2016. This post can be found at: https://gospeldoctrine2016.blogspot.com/2016/03/book-of-mormon-10-he-inviteth-all-to.html

In 2 Nephi 26:24–28, and 33 are scriptures that tell us about the Lord’s love for each of us. In Come, Follow Me, we were asked to make a list of things that Jesus Christ has done for us that were motivated by love. I had a brainstorm and came up with the following list. The blessings He has given me include:

• Six remarkable children who are each intelligent, funny, caring, sensitive, and empathic.
• An amazing mother who struggles with pain (at 96 years of age), yet still hobbles to the kitchen every night to make me a hot Milo, because she loves me and wants to do something to show me that she loves me.
• A new part-time job and some redundancy money so that I can still support my family and pay my bills.
• A challenging calling that relies on the continual guidance of the Holy Ghost, so I can teach with the Spirit and my class members can listen with the Spirit.
• A roof over my head with protection from the elements. It may not be the best house, but it is home.
• The gift of love. I know the Lord loves me. I have been surrounded by love through my childhood and adolescence. I can give love easily and willingly.
• Eclectic skills and talents that allow me to study, apply what I learn, teach others, bring joy to loved ones through food, music, and creative expression.
• Opposition and trials through which I have learned and grown.
• The Atonement that provides for repentance, allows me to overcome my weaknesses, and provides me with hope for eternity.

The following video made from a slide presentation is called I am grateful for…. I originally constructed the PowerPoint in 2016, but I have since updated it.

I spent a while this week dwelling on the question, why does the Lord allow bad things to happen to us? I have often brought bad things into my own life, through not listening to Priesthood advice or not asking for the Lord’s guidance. My first marriage was to a returned missionary. I was 19 years old and he was 27 years old. My father, an honourable Priesthood holder, and my mother, both cautioned me about making an unwise decision. Neither of my parents liked him or felt comfortable around him. They believed there was something ‘fake’ about him. I was too trusting and, early in my marriage, I learned that I had, indeed, made a grave error in judgement. From the day before the wedding to the day after the wedding, he was two totally different people. For the first year, I pretended that everything was okay. In the second year, in my heart I felt tired, unloved, and unlovable. By the third year, I could not hide my pain from my family and friends. I gathered every inch of courage I possessed, and I left him after the fourth year. When I left, I had no self-esteem. I felt I was worth nothing. I had been told constantly that I was useless and worthless. I believed it. So, was it worth it? Without a doubt. I learned how important it is to give and express love. I learned to be strong. I learned to protect myself and my three beautiful, amazing, loving children. I experienced the joys of being a mother. It was worth every second.

I experienced a total lack of self-esteem. I felt hopeless, discouraged, and often depressed. At the time, I did not recognise these as Satan’s tools, but they are. There is a talk from the October 2018 General Conference, from Elder Neil A. Andersen, called Wounded, that really touched my heart. You can listen to it by clicking the link below.

Here are a few paragraphs from this brilliant talk.

My message today is especially to those who are keeping the commandments of God, keeping their promises to God, [yet] are confronted with trials and challenges that are unexpected and painful.

Our wounds may come from a natural disaster or an unfortunate accident. They may come from an unfaithful husband or wife, turning life upside down for a righteous spouse and children. The wounds may come from the darkness and gloom of depression, from an unanticipated illness, from the suffering or premature death of someone we love, from the sadness of a family member dismissing his or her faith, from the loneliness when circumstances do not bring an eternal companion, or from a hundred other heart-wrenching, painful sorrows that the eye can’t see.

We each understand that difficulties are part of life, but when they come to us personally, they can take our breath away. Without being alarmed, we need to be ready… Along with the bright colours of happiness and joy, the darker-coloured threads of trial and tragedy are woven deeply into the fabric of our Father’s plan. These struggles, although difficult, often become our greatest teachers.

Look forward. Your troubles and sorrows are very real, but they will not last forever. Your dark night will pass, because “the Son … [did rise] with healing in his wings.”

For you, the righteous, the Healer of our souls, in His time and His way, will heal all your wounds. No injustice, no persecution, no trial, no sadness, no heartache, no suffering, no wound—however deep, however wide, however painful—will be excluded from the comfort, peace, and lasting hope of Him whose open arms and whose wounded hands will welcome us back into His presence.

If you are experiencing troubles and sorrows, you never need to face these alone. Have you ever listened carefully to the words of Come Unto Jesus?

In 2 Nephi 27, we read a prophecy that speaks directly about the history of the Book of Mormon in this dispensation. In February 1828, Martin Harris took a transcript of some of the characters from the plates to show to scholars of ancient languages and ancient antiquities. Charles Anton, a professor of grammar and linguistics declared that the characters were authentic and then asked how Joseph Smith had obtained the plates. Charles Anton asked to see the plates and Martin Harris replied that it would not be possible. Anton replied, “I cannot read a sealed book.” In 2 Nephi 27: 15-18 we read, “Take these words which are not sealed and deliver them to another, that he may show them unto the learned, saying: Read this, I pray thee. And the learned shall say: Bring hither the book, and I will read them. And the man shall say: I cannot bring the book, for it is sealed. Then shall the learned say: I cannot read it.” The video below from KnoWhy (Book of Mormon Central) goes over this incident and its prophecy in scripture.

In 2 Nephi 28, we read a lot about how Satan leads people astray. A lot of Satan’s strategies are aimed at lulling people into mediocrity and complacence. This applies to members of the Church as well. In 2 Nephi 28:7 it states, “…there shall be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die; and it shall be well with us.” Then in verse 8 it talks about committing ‘a little sin’. “If it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God.” Verse 21 mentions the exact phrase, “And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.” Another strategy is mentioned in the next verse (verse 22), “others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none—and thus he whispereth in their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains, from whence there is no deliverance.” This second short video from KnoWhy (Book of Mormon Central) discusses how Satan leads us astray.

We receive guidance in these same scriptures as to how to avoid Satan’s traps. We need the Book of Mormon. We already have scripture from the Jews (the Bible), and from the Nephites (the Book of Mormon). We know we still have other scripture to come, the sealed section of the ancient American records and the scriptural accounts of the ten tribes. Surely we should work hard now to know and understand the scriptures we possess already. We have the guidance of Come Follow Me. We also have modern-day scripture in the words of the General Authorities. We have General Conference in a few weeks’ time. We need to be receptive and listen to the guidance during these sessions.