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...
I didn't even make it into the actual text of Helaman chapter 5 before I noticed a line in the chapter summary: "Nephi and Lehi devote themselves to preaching." Their nation was at war and faced with obliteration, the Nephites had lost half of their sovereign territory, and they have seen years of internal political division and sedition. And yet in such dire times, their first impulse was to share the gospel. This approach hearkens back to the prophet Alma, who also sought to redeem his people by spreading the word of God; "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).
With so many demands on my time and so many desperate needs in the world, I sometimes wonder why I'm still writing this blog. Couldn't I more effectively use this time to volunteer in a center for the disabled, advocate for refugees, start petitions, build houses, serve soup, write congressmen, clean highways, or teach children? Of all the worthy causes I could support, I am choosing this one as my focus for now because I believe what Nephi, Lehi, and Alma believed. I believe that the teachings of Jesus Christ, when understood and applied, transform lives.
In addition to their faith in the transformative power of the gospel, Helaman's sons Nephi and Lehi were motivated by the counsel of their father. Helaman taught them, "I have given unto you the names of our first parents who came out of the land of Jerusalem; and this I have done that when you remember your names ye may remember them; and when ye remember them ye may remember their works; and when ye remember their works ye may know how that it is said, and also written, that they were good" (Helaman 5:6).
Helaman drew on the words of many prophets to teach his sons about the atonement of Jesus Christ:
- "there is no other way nor means whereby man can be saved, only through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ, who shall come - King Benjamin (Helaman 5:9)
- "he should not come to redeem them in their sins, but to redeem them from their sins" - Zeezrom (Helaman 5:10)
- "when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall" - Helaman (Helaman 5:12)
Knowing that Christ is the only way for us to permanently transform into better beings, that He has expectations for us, and that with Him we can overcome any obstacle is deeply motivating, and can help us become the best version of ourselves.
Application Questions
How is my understanding of Jesus Christ and the gospel changing me as a person?
How have I seen education (in the gospel or otherwise) transform my life and the lives of others?
What can I do this week to emulate Jesus Christ?
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Hey Sterling! Just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy this project of yours. I get the posts emailed to me. I don't read every one, but I get them at work and they come in handy often at work. I'm not always spiritually-minded at work, but whenever I can tell I just NEED a shot of positive spiritual energy at work, I will go to my inbox and find your most recent post and read it. Your examination of the Book of Mormon is very timely for me. I have felt my testimony of these scriptures has been battered (and even diminished) over the past few years as I've listened to friends criticize the Book of Mormon. I've listened to them out of love and concern, but I realized that I need equal and opposite positive input to keep my testimony strong. And I WANT my testimony strong. Thank you for helping me keep the faith!
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