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
Abinidi explains how Christ's atonement heals and redeems the righteous, while the wicked remain in their sins to be judged. The remarkable thing to me about Abinidi's teachings, and the teachings of all the Book of Mormon prophets who lived before Christ, is their level of conviction in what where, at the time, future events. Christ had not come yet. They looked forward to the ministry and atonement of Christ and were fully persuaded of its reality and the eternal impact it would have. It is hard enough to believe in Christ and follow His teachings after the fact, even with records of His life, and hundreds of millions of people who share a belief in Christ's divinity. But all that Abinidi and other prophets of his time had were their own revelations and inspiration from the Spirit.
Abinidi also alludes to Christ's own faith saying, "now if Christ had not come into the world, speaking of things to come as though they had already come, there could have been no redemption" (Mosiah 16:6). All things are present before God and because of his foreknowledge there is no significant difference between things that have already happened and those that will yet happen. They all just are. Christ spoke as one having authority about the future destiny of the world and God's children, and because He faithfully fulfilled the will of the Father, we can repent and change and become worthy to live with God again.
We can apply this same principle of faith to our own aspirations and righteous desires. When we are convinced of the inevitability of our goals, we work harden for them, we take initiative, and we meet obstacles with determination. We pull our dreams into reality not because they are inherently predestined, but because our actions make them so.
Even the full influence of the atonement is contingent on our actions. While all people will be resurrected and receive a perfect body, our spiritual cleansing and ability to return to live with God hinges on our willingness to repent. Abinidi taught, "But remember that he that persists in his own carnalnature, and goes on in the ways of sin and rebellion against God, remaineth in his fallen state ... Therefore he is as though there was no redemption made" (Mosiah 16:5) The prophet Alma taught this principle another way by explaining the difference between being saved in our sins and being saved from our sins. "And I say unto you again that [Christ] cannot save them in their sins; for I cannot deny his word, and he hath said that no unclean thing can inherit the kingdom of heaven ... Therefore, ye cannot be saved in your sins" (Alma 11:37). We cannot be saved in a wicked state, we can only be saved from our sins by becoming new creatures through the grace, mercy, and power of Christ.
God allows for a radically high level of self-determination for His children. Not only does He imbue us with our intellect, our will, and our procreative power, He also gives us exactly what we most desire. In a sense he does not judge us, we judge ourselves through the choices we make. As revealed in a revelation received by Joseph Smith, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, even as you desire of me so it shall be unto you; and if you desire, you shall be the means of doing much good in this generation" (D&C 6:8).
Application Questions
What thoughts do you have about your future and the goals you have set for yourself. Are you convinced that the things you want will definitely happen? How can you increase your confidence that you will realize your most important goals?
What do you most desire? How can you partner with God to obtain it?
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