2 Nephi 2 – A Lot of Logic and Doctrine!

Lehi is speaking to his son, Jacob.  Lehi knows his time on earth is limited and he wants Jacob to understand the things he has been taught as a prophet of God.  Consequently, there is a lot of meat in this chapter and a lot of it is in the things we learn in the temple. 

• The Spirit is the same yesterday, today and forever.   Does this even need to be expounded upon?  God doesn’t change; man does!
• The way was prepared from the fall of Adam that salvation is free.  This is through our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ.
• Men are instructed sufficiently to know good from evil (v5).  The Spirit spoken of in this verse is the Holy Ghost and the world knows it as a conscience.  “For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man that he may know good from evil. . .” (Moroni 7: 16)
• Redemption comes from Christ (v6), because he is full of grace and truth.  He loves us!  He wants us to return to our Heavenly Father. 
• In order to tap into that redeeming grace and love, we must have a broken heart and a contrite spirit.  What is a contrite spirit?  It is feeling or expressing remorse or penitence; affected by guilt (Dictionary definition).  What is penitence?  The action of feeling or showing remorse and the evil that we’ve done (Dictionary definition).
• It is important that those of us who have been taught these things make them known to the inhabitants of the earth.  Missionary work is what that boils down to.  Once we’ve been taught, we just teach our brothers and sisters.  Why?  So they can dwell in the presence of God as well (v8). 
• “He (Savior) 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. (v9)  In the dictionary is the first agricultural product.  So Christ is the first product of a finished life on earth?  So what does finished mean?  I’m going to say to have lived on earth, completed our mission on earth, die, and to rise again as the Savior did. 
• We will be judged of Christ (v10).  This judgment will answer the ends of the atonement.  We will be judged according to our works and the desires of our hearts. (The Living Christ)
• The is opposition in all things (v11).  Gospel truth.
• Adam fell that men might be (v25).  Gospel truth as well.

 There are blessings because of the Fall of Man (Adam and Eve).  

• We can act for ourselves, aka make our own choices and suffer the consequences. (16)
• We are as God, knowing good from evil (18)
• We are allowed to work – to enjoy the fruits of our labors (v19).
• Our days are prolonged so that we can repent when we do things wrong (21)
• We can repent (v21).
• We can have children, aka families (v23).

I could probably dig more logic and doctrine out of this chapter, but these are the main ones.  We are so blessed for the Fall of Adam.  As it says in verse 23, without the Fall we would have not been born and we would not have been allowed to have families. 

What do I know?

I finished reading The Book of Mormon today – Moroni Chapter 10.  As soon as I began to read the first verse, a feeling of gratitude, sadness and awe filled my soul.  It is hard to pray for a witness of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon when you already have been given that witness numerous times.  But I do so out of obedience.  I know the Book of Mormon is filled with truth and living in accordance with the principles of the gospel therein, we will find joy in our lives.  That doesn’t mean there won’t be sorrows, trials and heartache, but they are swallowed up in the knowledge we have of our Savior.  As we read the Book of Mormon, we can know of His love for us.  We will understand more fully the tremendous price He paid so we might know of our Heavenly Father and be able to return to them when we leave this earthly existence.

Chapter 10 teaches us some valuable things.  I think I want to make a bullet list:

• We must ponder and pray. (v3)
• We must ask Heavenly Father for this confirmation of truth. (v3)
• By the power of the Holy Ghost we can know the truth of all things. (v4)
• If it’s good, it comes from Christ. (v6 & v18)
• We have been given gifts. (v8)
• Our gifts are for the profit of all and come from Christ. (v8)
• God is the same yesterday, today and forever. (v19)
• There must be faith, hope and charity. (v20)
• Charity is the greatest gift of all. (v21)
• Despair comes because of iniquity. (v22)
• If we have faith we can do all things the Lord asks of us. (v23)
• If we lose our gifts, it is because we lost our faith. (v24)
• We will see Moroni at the judgment day. (v27)
• I can be perfected in Christ. (v32)
• We can believe in the uniting of our spirit and body. (v34)

I know these are truths.  I know God lives and loves each of us.  I know he is involved in the details of our lives.  I know I will see Him again.  I know for some reason I have been abundantly blessed with this knowledge and that I need to find ways to share it with others.  That is the hard part.  If I have anyone who reads my blog, I pray you will have the courage to read the Book of Mormon and watch it change your life for good as you apply its teachings in your life.  You too will know of its truth and be on a path that will leave you in awe at how carefully it has been crafted just for you.

Baptism

Moroni 8

Baptism – This is Mormon’s letter to Moroni on the Lord’s command on baptism of little children and those who have never heard the gospel. 

Little children are not capable of repenting because they have not learned good from bad and making choices yet.  It’s as simple as that.

I also like that those without the law will not be judged the same as those who have the law.  So to assume otherwise is to mock the Lord. 

I especially like v12 “But little children are alive in Christ, even from the foundation of the world; if not so, God is a partial God, and also a changeable God, and a respecter to persons; for how many little children have died without baptism!”  We know God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  Why then do so many people have problems with this doctrine?