Read: 1 Nephi 13-14
Mark: 1 Nephi 14:14
"This great American nation the Almighty raised up by the power of his omnipotent hand, that it might be possible in the latter days for the kingdom of God to be established in the earth." --President Joseph F. Smith
To ponder:
Nephi saw that 'other books' would come forth through the gentiles. What important things would the 'other books' do? What' are those 'other books'?
I loved 1 Nephi 13:37, it gave me goosebumps! I also like how god is so fair in saying in 1Nephi 13:42 ,"That the last shall be first & the first shall be last.". Now in 1 Nephi 14:17 when it said , " fulfill his covenants", was he referring to doing temple baptisms of the dead or all covenants?
ReplyDeleteThe books I found were "Record of the Jews" (Bible) - it contains the covenants of The Lord, which he had made unto the house of Isreal & many prophecies of the Holy Prophets, but the mother church looses the prescious parts of the gospel & keeps Gentiles in a state of blindness (lost).
The 2nd book I found was "Book of the Lamb of God". (The Book of Mormon) - it reveals all things from the foundation of the world unto the end thereof. (The last records)
The third set of books were the sealed books that were given to Joseph Smith at the time that he received the plates for translation of the Book of Mormon, but wasn't allowed to view all of them because God wanted to be able to show children of men that he was able to do his own work, 2 Nephi 27:6-26.
Jenny, I love that scripture too! I thought too about the 'other books' and the 'records'--I think you are absolutely right, to me, this is reference to the Book of Mormon, the Pearl of Great Price, and the Doctrine and Covenants--which all work together to testify of the truthfulness of the Bible.
DeleteThe Book of Mormon was one of the books to come forth, but I also like how it talks about other scriptures and some of these are the conference talks from the Prophet and other general authorities and the Doctrine and Covenants and Teaching from the Prophets, we are truly blessed with continued revelations.
DeleteI love how Heavenly Father remembers us all
As I read tonight, I kept getting caught up in the words "plain and precious" and the fact that many plain and precious words had been removed (or deleted, or whatever) and these words were 'plain unto the understanding of the children of men' that this has caused many to stumble and fall, and allows Satan to have 'great power over' them. It seems that this thought is repeated throughout Chapter 13. I love the scripture that it is suggested to mark with today's reading, 1 Nephi 14:14, I love that those who believed in the Lord and kept the commandments were "armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory." We can have this righteousness and power as we read, study and keep the commandments of our Heavenly Father.
ReplyDeleteI love that, too. God truly wants all of his children to understand the gospel in it's plainness and simplicity. It isn't rocket science. You don't need a degree to interpret it. Yet before the Bible was published for all to read you had to go to church to hear the liturgy, and even then you could only understand it if you were rich enough to afford to learn Latin, since many preachers only preached in Latin. I know that council of men who gathered to make decisions on the content of the Bible probably didn't mean to do harm, but they did! I'm so glad that through the Book of Mormon and the restored gospel that the gospel is available to all men in simple terms. The Spirit truly testifies to each of us in the manner we understand.
DeleteThere were a lot of amazing things in today's reading, but as I neared the end something stuck out to me. Nephi saw way more than what he could write about in the scriptures. I'm so curious as to what exactly he was able to see that he couldn't tell us about.
ReplyDeleteMuch of what Nephi saw has been shared with us. He was commanded choir to share because another was called to bear that witness. John the revelator. Revelations shares much if what I believe Nephi saw. The other records are sealed up. Remember there were many people scattered when Jesus died and was resurrected. He visited the people in America, but I think we address safe to assume he visited all people. We should not be so naive to think he visited only the Jews and the Nephites/Lamanites. Joseph once had a vision of a room in a hill that was filled with many sealed records. Part of the gold plates were sealed until a time that we were ready. I'm grateful to know that I have all that is necessary for my happiness and salvation but I'm curious to know what the other books hold!
ReplyDeleteI am also very curious about the sealed books, but I take comfort in knowing that it will all be revealed to us in time. Heavenly Father is teaching us patiences!
ReplyDelete