Jesus stands with open arms to receive us. The tragedy is that we fail to receive so many of the blessings He offers us. One reason we fail to receive them is because we take too much credit for our own accomplishments. Another is because we are unwilling to change. A third is because we feel enmity toward other people, which drives away the Spirit of the Lord.
Mormon 1-6 tells the story of a nation that was destroyed because they refused to repent. The tragedy is that their Savior, whom they rejected, “stood with open arms to receive [them]” (Mormon 6:17). If they had only been willing to follow him, they would have been “clasped in the arms of Jesus” (Mormon 5:11).
Still, through all their stubbornness, boasting, and ugly vengefulness, a clear-eyed and spiritually grounded prophet continued to work with them, to warn them, and even to lead their armies. Even as he compiled a history of his people for the benefit of future generations, Mormon participated meaningfully in the final chapter of that history. And even though he perceived that “the day of grace was passed with them” (Mormon 2:15), he continued to serve them, to fight with them, and to pray for them. Why? Because he “loved them…with all [his] heart” Mormon 3:12.)
And he knew that God loved them too. After chronicling the death of 23,000 people in a single battle and acknowledging that his civilization was gone, Mormon ends chapter 6 by looking ahead to the final judgment which each one of us will one day experience. But he doesn’t characterize it as a harsh judgment. He characterizes it as an accurate and a benevolent judgment. The final word in chapter 6 is “mercy.”
Here are some of the principles I’ve learned from Mormon 1-6:
God’s enduring love
- God is willing to help us overcome every challenge we face: With Open Arms – Mormon 6:17-20.
- The Atonement of Jesus Christ can be visualized as the embrace of a loving God: That They Might Have Been Clasped in the Arms of Jesus – Mormon 5:10-11.
- God will do almost anything to persuade us to repent, but He will not override our agency: What Are the Roles of Persuasion and Punishment in Motivating Good Behavior?
Three impediments to receiving God’s blessings
- When we speak of our accomplishments, we should not overstate our own contribution to our success. We should give appropriate credit to other people and to God: Is It Wrong to Boast?
- Repentance = change. Damnation = halted progress. Therefore, it is a simple statement of fact that those who refuse to repent will be damned: The Sorrowing of the Damned / They Began to Boast in Their Own Strength – Mormon 2:12-13, 3:9-11.
- We must overcome our instinctive desire to make other people pay for the harm they cause: What Is the Meaning of the Phrase “Vengeance Is Mine?”
Sobriety
- We should strive to be aware and responsive: I Perceive That Thou Art…Quick to Observe – Mormon 1:2-5.
- We will make wiser decisions if we choose to be governed by reason, not by emotion: What Does It Mean to Be Sober?
- When we are discouraged, we can reset our expectations and act upon what we can control: How Can I Teach My Children to Be Resilient?
- In a time of instability and insecurity, we must be spiritually anchored in order to survive: It Was One Complete Revolution – Mormon 2:8
“The Strength of the Lord” – Mormon 2:26
Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. Jeremiah 17:5 I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his…
“A Chance for Repentance” – Mormon 3:3
For ten years, from AD 350 to AD 360, the Nephites fought no battles. Their leader, Mormon, spent that decade preparing for the conflicts to come. Like Captain Moroni, he led his people “in preparing their lands and their arms against the time of battle” (Mormon 3:1). (See Alma 50:1-6.) But unlike Captain Moroni, Mormon…
Awareness
An important theme in the Book of Mormon is the importance of awareness. Here are a few examples: At the age of 10, Mormon was selected to be responsible for the plates. the prior caretaker, Ammaron, chose him because he was “a sober child” and “quick to observe” (Mormon 1:2). For Ammaron to identify these…
Tossed
As Mormon describes the annihilation of his people, he laments their rapid fall from grace: They were once a delightsome people, and they had Christ for their shepherd; yea, they were led even by God the Father. But now, behold, they are led about by Satan, even as chaff is driven before the wind, or as a vessel…
“Hid up unto the Lord” – Mormon 1:2, 4:23, 5:12
We don’t know much about Ammaron, the caretaker of the Nephite records who selected Mormon as his successor. We know that he was the brother of Amos, and therefore a descendant of Alma, who organized the church at the waters of Mormon about 450 years earlier. And we know that he was “constrained by the…
Cumorah
Mormon was 73 years old when he gathered his people for their final battle (Mormon 6:5). He had begun leading Nephite armies nearly 60 years earlier, at the age of 15 (Mormon 2:2). He had seen a lifetime of battles, and he knew the likely outcome of this conflict, but he believed that his people’s…
Pls this mail came late, can I be receiving it earlier than this? around 6:00am? Thank you for the constant update.
On Mon, Oct 26, 2020, 8:01 AM Book of Mormon Study Notes wrote:
> Paul Anderson posted: ” “Mormon, Age 10″ by Scott M. Snow Jesus stands > with open arms to receive us. The tragedy is that we fail to receive so > many of the blessings He offers us. One reason we fail to receive them is > because we take too much credit for our own accomplishment” >
I’m not sure what happened. It looks like the post was published at the usual time—3 AM ET. I’m glad you enjoy the posts, and I hope that timing works for you.