Jacob 1 - That We Might Persuade Them to Come Unto Christ I'm taking an online economics class right now, which prompted me to think of the definition of economics in the context of the scriptures. Economics is the study of the allocation of scarce resources. In the case of Nephi and his successor Jacob, the plates upon which they engraved their record was a scarce resource. They were costly to make and difficult to engrave, and instilling a tradition of passing them through generations was surely cumbersome. Recognizing the great importance of spiritual things and the challenge of maintaining records, Nephi instructed Jacob to prioritize religious instruction saying, " if there were preaching which was sacred, or revelation which was great, or prophesying, that I should engraven the heads of them upon these plates, and touch upon them as much as it were possible, for Christ’s sake, and for the sake of our people" (Jacob 1:4). This priority was not only reflecte...
Nephi highlights the purpose his record by explaining what it will NOT include. He states that it will not include his genealogy or the things of his father, "for I desire the room that I may write of the things of God" (1 Nephi 6:3). He does not discount that his family history and his father's experiences are worthwhile, but he is satisfied that they have been recorded elsewhere by others. Instead of repeating things that have already been recorded, he chose to focus on the teachings, revelations and experiences that would help others come unto God, "for the fulness of mine intent is that I may persuade men to come unto the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and be saved" (1 Nephi 6:4).
As I read this verse, I thought about extrapolating this idea as a criteria to measure what I do on a daily basis. What is the "fulness of mine intent," and how is that reflected in the things I do and say and how I spend my time? From brushing my teeth, to checking my email, to working out, to scrolling through Facebook, what do I do that persuades men and women to come unto God? How much of my mental energy do I invest in things that are worthwhile, but do not really advance God's highest purpose "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39). (SPOILER ALERT: A lot.)
Elder Dallin H. Oaks captured this idea well in his October 2007 Conference address "Good, Better, Best" when he said, "We have to forego some good things in order to choose others that are better or best because they develop faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and strengthen our families" (Dallin H. Oaks, October 2007). Nephi carefully curated what he would allow in his record, and instructed his children who would inherit the record to do the same.
Today I'm feeling inspired to follow Nephi's example: "Wherefore the things which are pleasing unto the world I do not [say and do], but the things which are pleasing unto God and unto those who are not of the world" (1 Nephi 6:5). At times I feel stretched and overextended in my roles as a young father, employee, and member of the church. I'm also extremely aware of my friends of other faiths who might feel alienate or off-put if I come across as too churchy. I think I can make progress in both of these areas by curating my life as Nephi curated his record, and focusing on doing those things that are "best" and persuade others to come unto Christ.
Image Credit: Original image by ESA/Hubble (M. Kornmesser)
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