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...
Alma commands his son Helaman to keep the records of their people, and prophesies that after Christ comes, the Nephites will become wicked and be destroyed. Before entrusting Helaman with the task of keeping the sacred records of the Nephites, he interviewed him.
- Believest thou the words which I spake unto thee concerning those records which have been kept? (Alma 45:2)
- And Helaman said unto him: Yea, I believe. (Alma 45:3)
- And Alma said again: Believest thou in Jesus Christ, who shall come? (Alma 45:4)
- And he said: Yea, I believe all the words which thou hast spoken. (Alma 45:5)
- And Alma said unto him again: Will ye keep my commandments? (Alma 45:6)
- And he said: Yea, I will keep thy commandments with all my heart. (Alma 45:7)
- Then Alma said unto him: Blessed art thou; and the Lord shall prosper thee in this land (Alma 45:8)
Alma asked him if he believed the scriptures, if he believed in Jesus Christ, and if he was willing to keep the commandments, and promised Helaman that if he did these things he would be blessed. Likewise, when we internalize the teachings of living and ancient prophets, believe in Jesus Christ, and strive to seek His commandments we will enjoy peace, certainty, and love.
When Alma had finished instructing his son, "he blessed him, and also his other sons; and he also blessed the earth for the righteous’ sake ... and when Alma had said these words he blessed the church, yea, all those who should stand fast in the faith from that time henceforth." (Alma 45:15, 17). Earlier in his ministry, Alma taught that we cannot be saved in our sins, but must repent and allow Christ to save us from our sins (Alma 11). We must do our part for the promised blessings of the Gospel to affect our lives. Alma's prayer for the righteous of the world echoes the plea of the Savior during His intercessory prayer. "I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine" (John 17:9). As King Benjamin taught, we become children of Christ by making and keeping covenants. “Because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters. become We enjoy the blessings and salvation of God when we are trying out best to be obedient to his commandments" (Mosiah 5:7).
Helaman took his father's charge and continued preaching the Gospel after Alma's death. What stands out to me about Helaman's ministry is that he viewed the preaching of the word of God as the most powerful antidote to the ills and vices of his world. "For behold, because of their wars with the Lamanites and the many little dissensions and disturbances which had been among the people, it became expedient that the word of God should be declared among them, yea, and that a regulation should be made throughout the church" (Alma 45:21). His father Alma shared this view and had used a similar strategy to great effect. "And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them—therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God" (Alma 31:5). Such an approach may seen oversimplified and ineffective, and I am not suggesting that preaching the Gospel cannot be coupled with advocacy, social programming, community organizing, fund raising, or any number of other important and positive activities, but the love of God must be at the core of these efforts, and reflect a commitment to help ourselves and others follow Him.
Application Questions
What blessings and counsel have you received from your parents and patriarchal blessings? How are you working to realize the promises that have been made to you?
How can you share the word of God in a way to bless your family and heal your world?
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