Opposition

"For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things." (2 Nephi 2:11)

Lehi now specifically starts talking to Jacob.  I think the concept that he shares with Jacob here is a very central part of God's plan that we don't talk about very often. We talk a lot about agency, or our freedom to choose, but there is a key point that Lehi makes here: if there was no opposition, our choices and our life experience would be meaningless.  If there wasn't ever a "bad choice" that could be made, have we really chosen good?  In addition to this, our experience would be limited because we couldn't comprehend the good without the bad.

"And men are instructed sufficiently that they know good from evil." (2 Nephi 2:5)

He starts out by first stating that we (mankind) have been given enough knowledge (from God) to know good from evil.  But how do you know good unless you've also been made aware of the evil?

Speaking about the need for opposition, Lehi said:

"If not so, ...righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness...Wherefore, all things must be compound in one;" (2 Nephi 2:11)

He then proceeded to explain that if there wasn't opposition, the earth would have been "..created for a thing of naught; wherefore there would have been no purpose in the end of its creation.  Wherefore, this thing must needs destroy the wisdom of God and his eternal purposes, and also the power, and the mercy, and the justice of God" (2 Nephi 2:12)

He goes on to explain that if there is no opposition, there is no God.  I think the idea of God creating an earth with no purpose is just ridiculous, and I think Lehi felt that way as well, so he was explaining that without these opposites, there couldn't be a God because of how ridiculous the idea really is.  He goes further to explain that "if there is no God we are not, neither the earth" (2 Nephi 2:13)

I think really Lehi is trying to drive home the point of how important this concept really is.  He sums it up nicely:

"Wherefore, the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself.  Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other." (2 Nephi 2:16)

If there weren't opposition, then our choices would be meaningless.  We wouldn't have any real test here on earth, because we couldn't choose wrong because there is no right. 

I am grateful to God for the opportunity to experience this life.  Sure there are ups and downs, and there are times when life gets kind of hard.  But the reality is, I couldn't know the good parts without seeing and experiencing the bad parts at least a little.  The joy and the peace that I have experienced wouldn't mean very much if I had not also experienced sorrow and turmoil in my own earthly experience.

I would like to add one caveat.  Some people take this concept and twist it a little to justify sin and wickedness because they need that experience to fully enjoy righteousness.  I'm not saying that you have to experience turning away and choosing wickedness in order to experience following God and choosing righteousness.  It is enough for me to see others who have gone before make those choices and see the results of them.  I also can experience more joy when I see other peoples' sorrow.  I don't necessarily have to have experienced the opposite myself.  Sure, it can be a little more poignant sometimes if I personally experience it, but the fact that this life has opposition doesn't mean I need to experience the full spectrum myself to appreciate the good.

Last Words

"Awake! and arise from the dust, and hear the words of a trembling parent, whose limbs ye must soon lay down in the cold and silent grave, from whence no traveler can return; a few more days and I go the way of all the earth." (2 Nephi 1:14)

This is Lehi talking to his sons.  He knows he's not long for this earth,  it is interesting to read the last words of a prophet to his children.  Someone who has so much insight into the mind and will of the Lord surely has some good advice.

"I desire that ye should remember to observe the statutes and the judgments of the Lord; behold, this hath been the anxiety of my soul from the beginning.

My heart hath been weighed down with sorrow from time to time, for I have feared, lest for the hardness of your hearts the Lord your God should come out in the fulness of his wrath upon you, that ye be cut off and destroyed forever;" (2 Nephi 1:16-17)

Is it really any surprise that he tells his children that he wants them to be righteous? It is something that as a parent, I am certain that had worried him his whole life. He was especially concerned when he had the vision of the tree of life, and some of his children wouldn't come and partake of the fruit. Here he uses phrases like "anxiety of my soul" and "weighed down with sorrow". He really felt strongly about this and has been trying to get his children to live the commandments,

"And now that my soul might have joy in you, and that my heart might leave this world with gladness because of you, that I might not be brought down with grief and sorrow to the grave, arise from the dust, my sons, and be men, and be determined in one mind and in one heart, united in all things..." (2 Nephi 1:21)

"Arise from the dust and be men".  That is a great quote.  It is such a good image of someone sitting/lying in the dust.  They rise up, brush off the dust, and face the world, Being a man is so much more than being a tough guy, or to be very strong or any of the things the world considers to be "manly" traits. It means so much more.  In fact, I think it often means being less of what the world looks to as the definition of a "man". More compassion and love.  More watchful care.  Less anger and violence. Less pride.  This is great advice to give to your children.

"Rebel no more against your brother, whose views have been glorious, and who hath kept the commandments from the time that we left Jerusalem; and who hath been an instrument in the hands of God, in bringing us forth into the land of promise;" (2 Nephi 1:24)

And finally, his thoughts turn to Nephi, who had been faithful and righteous through all their afflictions in the wilderness, even though nobody else did. Nephi had been treated very poorly throughout this journey, and here is another plea from an aging father for his children to get along.  I'm sure these are all things that fathers want from their children. I know I do.

This Land

"Wherefore, this land is consecrated unto him whom he shall bring. And if it so be that they shall serve him according to the commandments which he hath given, it shall be a land of liberty unto them; wherefore, they shall never be brought down into captivity; if so, it shall be because of iniquity; for if iniquity shall abound cursed shall be the land for their sakes, but unto the righteous it shall be blessed forever." (2 Nephi 1:7)

This theme is pretty prevalent in the Book of Mormon: that the Americas are a choice land that has been given to several groups as a promised land, and that it would be a blessed and free place, depending on the righteousness of those that God led there.

It occurred to me, though, that this idea goes deeper than just the physical location of those that were led here. I was just thinking of how blessed I am, and the freedoms that I enjoy in my own mind as I try to be righteous.  If I serve God according to the commandments He has given, I can have liberty.  Liberty from the consequences of sin.  Liberty from the guilt that accompanies knowing that I'm not doing what I should.  Cursed be "the land" of my own life and mind if iniquity abounds.

But unto the righteous it shall be blessed forever,

Protection for the Righteous

"...he will preserve the righteous by his power, even if it so be that the fulness of his wrath must come, and the righteous be preserved...Wherefore, the righteous need not fear" (1 Nephi 22:17)

"...the righteous shall not perish..." (1 Nephi 22:19)

"And the righteous need not fear..." (1 Nephi 22:22)

I didn't really ever think about this before, but this is a quote by Nephi, speaking to his brothers.  He was just quoting the scriptures, teaching his brothers. But some of the things he was quoting makes me wondering if he really was really just trying to help them decide to take the path of righteousness.  In the course of just a few verses, he explains the protection and blessings that come to the righteous.

I think that even through Nephi had suffered at the hands of his brothers, he loved them and didn't want them to perish because of wickedness. Even though Lehi, in his dream, saw Laman and Lemuel choosing not to follow the iron rod, Lehi and Nephi weren't giving up on their family. Not just not giving up, but they continued to teach them and love them.

I think a lot of families can learn from this.  I have heard many people in a similar boat, where they have family members who fall away or whatever.  We should never give up. On them, on ourselves, or this life. It is an amazing thing that our loving Heavenly Father has given us so much. Imagine how He feels when we or others we know falls off the straight and narrow, and I'm sure He wants for everyone in that situation to get back on the straight and narrow, but He won't force them.  We need to be like Nephi and never give up, and continue to teach, testify and invite those people we know who need the gospel more fully in their lives.

My Strength

"...my God shall be my strength." (1 Nephi 21:5)

People don't really talk this way anymore.  This happened in the old days, when people relied on themselves less and on God more.  I'm speaking generally, of course. There are a lot of people who rely on God, but not enough.  See, when we start to rely on our own strength (the arm of the flesh) to get through, even the strongest will fail.  We are human, after all.

I think the problem lies in which target we are shooting for.  When the goal is to get wealth or fame, or even just get by from day to day providing the things we need, it is easy to start depending on our own strength. I mean, God is great, but I've got to get to work to earn a paycheck, right? When our goal is the eternities, it doesn't change the necessity of providing temporally for our families, but the purpose changes. We start trying to live better lives and we start to use our strength not only for our own good,  but also our families, and society at large. When God sees that we will do this with whatever strength we may have, He steps in and provides us strength that we didn't know we had (because we don't, at least not on our own).

Sometimes I forget. Getting caught up in the day to day makes it easy. However, I know that I am happier, and ultimately more successful when I remember this fact: that God loves me and wants me to succeed, and be happy. He is concerned with and aware of my worries and fears. He has provided strength for me in hard times in my life. I have felt Him there. I know that this is true, for I feel of His love through the Spirit even now as I write, testifying to me of these things. And for that I am grateful.  And that really does give me strength.

Peace as a River

"O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments--then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea." (1 Nephi 20:18)

I read this statement, and I'm picturing a loving father, expressing sorrow for a child gone astray. I'm imagining that this father has done what he can to teach and help the child. But the child must make their own decisions.

As a father, I can sympathize with this, if even on a much smaller scale. When my kids make poor decisions, especially regarding things I've cautioned them about, it is painful to watch them go through consequences that could have been avoided,

On a much larger scale, our Heavenly Father has laid out a plan for us.  He has given us everything we need to be able to return home to Him. However, many of us do not listen or obey. We do not hearken to His commandments, and we suffer needless consequences.

That's not to say that if we live righteously, we will have an easy life.  In fact, the above quote doesn't say anything about that. However, if we hearken to the commandments, our peace will be like a river, ever flowing, steadfastly and constantly.  Who doesn't want peace like that?

The Furnace of Affliction

"I have refined thee, I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction." (1 Nephi 20:10)

We have come to earth to be tested.  Everyone in this life has lots of challenges as well as blessings, and not only that, but we all experience things differently. Similar experiences for individual people might be perceived in very different ways.  But everyone passes through afflictions and hard times.

A refiner often separates impurities through a burning process. It gets super heated and that heat burns off all the impurities, until what you are left with is pure material.  This same thing happens to us.  We go through the often painful process called life. We all have afflictions and struggles, things that we don't really want to go through. However, if we endure them well, we come out of all of this refined, or purified.

I know I could use some refining, how about you?

The Book of Mormon is Sacred

"I do not write anything upon plates save it be that I think it be sacred." (1 Nephi 19:6)

This is pretty straight forward.  Everything that Nephi (and those after him) writes in the Book of Mormon is sacred. I think this is interesting because there are a number of things that don't seem all that sacred. But you can find meaning in even the most "mundane" parts.

I love the Book of Mormon, and I know it was written for these latter days for us. To help us in a world where things sometimes get out of control, we have these sacred writings to lean on, and I'm so grateful for that.

Watch Out for the Slippery Slope

"behold, my brethren and the sons of Ishmael and also their wives began to make themselves merry, insomuch that they began to dance, and to sing, and to speak with much rudeness, yea, even that they did forget by what power they had been brought thither; yea, they were lifted up unto exceeding rudeness." (1 Nephi 18:9)

So as I read this passage, I couldn't help but think that it seems to me that nobody just suddenly goes from good to evil.  More likely, a good person starts to make decisions that aren't great, and they go farther and farther off the straight and narrow.  This scripture to me illustrates this.  It doesn't specifically say this, but I think this verse represents a progression of getting worse and worse to the point where these people tied Nephi to the boat for several days, presumably to let him die. How do you go from humbling yourself and helping Nephi build a boat, to this, in a pretty short timeline? 

It is what I was describing before.  

It is easy to be led away by the small choices we make. Satan won't have an easy time convincing a righteous person to do something seriously wrong.  However, he might help them "forget" to read their scriptures and/or say their prayers.  He might convince them to stay home some weeks from church. Making these decisions drives away the spirit, which makes it progressively harder and harder to make good decisions.

It seems to me that we (meaning I, really) can't afford to be lax on the little things, or we might go further down the wrong path than we want.

Where Do I Find Ore?

"8 And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Thou shalt construct a ship, after the manner which I shall show thee, that I may carry thy people across these waters.

9 And I said: Lord, whither shall I go that I may find ore to molten, that I may make tools to construct the ship after the manner which thou hast shown unto me?

10 And it came to pass that the Lord told me whither I should go to find ore, that I might make tools."

 (1 Nephi 17:8-10)

Something that often happens when we receive direction from the Lord is that we expect Him to just hand to us everything we need to make it work.  Sometimes He does, but often it is more like this experience of Nephi's. The overall task is assigned, but the execution isn't spelled out.

So Nephi, with his faith, didn't wait for the Lord to provide him with all of the tools he needed to build a ship. He just went to the Lord and wanted to take the first step that he could see, which was gathering supplies. He knew he needed some tools that he didn't already have, so he figured he had to make them. Through his faith, the Lord was able to guide him to the ore.

In life, I know I'm quite frequently in the group that just expects things to be handed to them. I really see how important it is to just get moving on an assignment from God, and we need to be willing to do His work. He will provide a way for us to accomplish what he asks us to do, even if it's not necessarily the way that we would hve chosen for ourselves. We are definitely blessed for acting in that way.

Where to Turn for Direction

"And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did make out of wood a bow, and out of a straight stick, an arrow; wherefore, I did arm myself with a bow and an arrow, with a sling and with stones. And I said unto my father: Whither shall I go to obtain food?" (1 Nephi 16:23)

I've always been fascinated by this account of Nephi's. To set up the story, Lehi and his family were commanded to continue further into the wilderness, and they had just received the Liahona, which worked according to their faith, pointing the direction that they should go. Along the way, they hunted for food. At some point, their bows were all broken or worn out, so they were useless, and according to the account, everyone except for Nephi was murmuring, Lehi included! Nephi could very easily have just turned to the Lord, and I'm sure He would have received an answer. But he didn't do this.  He went to his father. He went to one who was murmuring about their lack of food.

And yet if you think about it the right way, it makes sense. Nephi had grown to respect and value his father's teachings and advice. So turning to him seems only natural.  Also, Nephi knew he needed the Lord's help to know where to go hunting, and Lehi wasn't just their father, he was their spiritual leader. Another way Nephi's actions make sense is that he knew his father to be a righteous man, and without rebuking him or calling him to repentance, Nephi still helped him choose a better way and trust the Lord instead of murmur against Him.

As it turns out, Lehi repents and finds out where Nephi should go, and Nephi ends up finding them lots of food.

This one act alone shows me how humble Nephi is.  In other accounts, we see how courageous or how faithful he is, but here we learn about his humility. How he was willing to go to someone else to get help and direction from the Lord, even though he clearly was as capable and experienced with getting help directly from the Lord.

I love Nephi.  He was a great man, and is a great example to me.

Look to the Lord

"And it came to pass that I beheld my brethren, and they were disputing one with another concerning the things which my father had spoken unto them.

For he truly spake many great things unto them, which were hard to be understood, save a man should inquire of the Lord; and they being hard in their hearts, therefore they did not look unto the Lord as they ought."

 (1 Nephi 15:2-3)

I wonder if Nephi ever stopped being surprised at his brothers' behavior.

Anyway, Nephi heard about his father's dream, and he wanted to understand it better and gain his own testimony of it, so he prayed.  It turns out, he was visited by an angel, who explained many things about Lehi's dream.  Nephi just finishes up having these things explained to him, when he hears his brothers whining about how difficult it is to understand the words of Lehi about the dream.

Such different approaches with such differing results! Laman and Lemuel just chose to complain and ultimately just ignore advice from their father.  They explain to Nephi that they hadn't asked God, and it was probably just as well because according to them, He probably wouldn't tell them anyway. Nephi on the other hand, was missing some knowledge, so he asked the Lord, and he gave Nephi a great vision, not only explaining what the dream meant, but also a great many other things regarding Nephi's descendents.  Nephi's eyes were opened because his heart was opened.

I like this concept because I wonder how much we do this.  I wonder how often we have questions, and yet we don't take the opportunity to ask God, or (as it says in the quote) we harden our hearts and don't look to the Lord as we ought. How often do I sit and spin my wheels, not sure of a decision to make, or because I'm being stubborn and won't get help? 

I know that God is there for me and will answer my prayers.  And I hope it can be said of me one day, that I "Looked to the Lord as I ought."