What do you do when you feel like you're not being heard or understood? In the middle of a prophecy about the restoration of the gospel, just before introducing the symbolism of a sealed book, the prophet Isaiah shared an image which became meaningful to the writers of the Book of Mormon: Thou shalt be... Continue Reading →
Milk and Honey
I've been thinking about promised lands today. When God appeared to Moses on Mount Horeb, he promised not only to deliver the children of Israel from captivity but also to lead them "unto a land flowing with milk and honey" (Exodus 3:8). So before the Israelites even began their journey, they had a destination in mind. Lehi's... Continue Reading →
Abram and Lot: No Strife
The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with.Proverbs 17:14 As Abram and his nephew Lot returned from Egypt to the promised land of Canaan, there was a dispute among their people. Instead of letting the issue fester, Abram said to Lot, "Let there be no strife, I pray... Continue Reading →
“My Spirit Will Not Always Strive with Man”
There is a cryptic passage near the beginning of the book of Genesis. After listing ten generations from Adam to Noah, the author quotes the Lord as saying: My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.Genesis 6:3 What does that mean? It sounds like an... Continue Reading →
The Living Christ and the Book of Mormon
The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles is a proclamation published by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on 1 January 2000. The document speaks of the Savior's mission before birth, during His mortal ministry, and after His death and resurrection, including in our day. It also testifies that He... Continue Reading →
The Friend
At the Last Supper, Jesus urged His disciples to love each other as He loved them. He explained that we demonstrate that love by making sacrifices, and He gave an extraordinary example: Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.John 15:13 Earlier in the meal, Peter had vowed to lay down... Continue Reading →
The Healer
During the Savior's mortal ministry, He was known as a miraculous healer. And great multitudes came unto him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them:Matthew 15:30 Jesus also healed unseen wounds. To the man who was paralyzed, He first said,... Continue Reading →
“I Have Not Spoken in Secret”
Isaiah emphasized to his people that the Lord had communicated very clearly what they needed to know. "I have not spoken in secret," he said; "from the beginning, from the time that it was declared have I spoken; and the Lord God, and his Spirit, hath sent me" (Isaiah 48:16, 1 Nephi 20:16). Nephi added his own... Continue Reading →
Invite
The Savior has introduced Himself multiple times with a variation of the following statement: I came unto my own, and my own received me not.3 Nephi 9:16 (See also Doctrine and Covenants 6:21, 10:57, 11:29, 39:3, 45:8.) He knows what it is like to be rejected by the very people He is trying to help. He... Continue Reading →
Privilege
I've been thinking today about a passage from Alma's sermon to the people of Ammonihah. Speaking of people who receive "holy callings" from God, he said: And thus they have been called to this holy calling on account of their faith, while others would reject the Spirit of God on account of the hardness of... Continue Reading →
Book of Mormon Study Notes 