1 Nephi 15 - key messages

Quickly wanted to highlight some of the flow of topics in 1 Nephi 15 and 16.

1 Nephi 15

1) How to get revelation

11 Do ye not remember the things which the Lord hath said?—If ye will not harden your hearts, and ^aask me in ^bfaith, believing that ye shall receive, with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall be made known unto you.

2) Discussion on restoration of Israel to the gospel (olive tree)

14 And at that day shall the remnant of our ^aseed ^bknow that they are of the house of Israel, and that they are the ^ccovenant people of the Lord; and then shall they know and ^dcome to the ^eknowledgeof their forefathers, and also to the knowledge of the gospel of their Redeemer, which was ministered unto their fathers by him; wherefore, they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer and the very points of his doctrine, that they may know how to come unto him and be saved.

3) Explanation of key parts of the dream:

a) tree of life

b) iron rod (word of God)

24 And I said unto them that it was the ^aword of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would ^bhold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the ^ctemptations and the fiery ^ddarts of the ^eadversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction.

c) river of water (great gulf - hell - separating wicked from righteous)

28 And I said unto them that it was an awful ^agulf, which separated the wicked from the tree of life, and also from the saints of God.

These are fascinating thoughts to make it into the scriptures. How to be guided by God, the restoration of their seed to the gospel (important prophecy, important to understand how God works - over hundreds and thousands of years), key parts of plan of salvation and how to succeed in life.

Development of a Prophet/Guidance

The story of Lehi is one of successive revelations that guide him and his family in their journey. 1 Nephi 7 is a good example of this because Lehi has already received at least 4 revelations (2 in 1 Nephi 1, 1 in 1 Nephi 3, 1 in 1 Nephi 5), and then he gets a new one. The revelation in 1 Nephi 5 is about his seed and what they will do. Then the Lord reveals to him that his sons need to go get wives before they leave to the Promised Land. Therefore, they go back to Jerusalem and convince Ishmael and his 2 sons and 5 daughters to come with them. It's interesting to see the guidance of the Lord occur over time and piece by piece as Lehi fulfills previous commands. Revelation and life is a process that we receive help with as we do our best. Here's the verse explaining the revelation that came after Lehi prophesied about his seed.

1 And now I would that ye might know, that after my father, Lehi, had made an end of ^aprophesying concerning his seed, it came to pass that the Lord spake unto him again, saying that it was not meet for him, Lehi, that he should take his family into the wilderness alone; but that his sons should take ^bdaughters to ^cwife, that they might raise up ^dseed unto the Lord in the land of promise.

Also, consider the importance of one of the sons of Ishmael. He was one of the complainers that was going to return to Jerusalem. However, later it appears that he switched sides and helped convince Laman and Lemuel to release Nephi. We don't know how important that decision was to switch sides, but it's important to be flexible and be quick to learn. That can help accomplish so much as being stubborn only helps perpetuate mistakes, which can be so damaging. I admire the son for changing sides so quickly and helping out in this situation. Here's the verses:

6 And it came to pass that as we journeyed in the wilderness, behold Laman and Lemuel, and two of the ^adaughters of Ishmael, and the two ^bsons of Ishmael and their families, did ^crebel against us; yea, against me, Nephi, and Sam, and their father, Ishmael, and his wife, and his three other daughters.

19 And it came to pass that they were angry with me again, and sought to lay hands upon me; but behold, one of the ^adaughters of Ishmael, yea, and also her mother, and one of the sons of Ishmael, did plead with my brethren, insomuch that they did soften their hearts; and they did cease striving to take away my life.

Have a good day.

Revelation - Clear message that often makes sense in the moment and always makes sense at some point

Sometimes, often with those who are young in the gospel, people receive what they think is revelation but it is not. One of the traits of something that isn't revelation is that it makes little or no sense. The first few chapters of 1 Nephi help explain that it's important for revelations to make sense.

For example, by some standards people would say giving up your land and your riches to go out into the wilderness with your family makes no sense. However, if you've clearly seen in a vision that your home will be destroyed, it's important to know what to do. Lehi was told to have his family leave. This makes sense given the knowledge Lehi had. (Also, he'd had 3 revelations, at least, on this topic.)

Also, Nephi killing Laban is an excellent example. Once again, killing someone would generally be something you wouldn't have a revelation to do. However, consider the circumstances and specifically what Nephi was told.

1) They had to get the plates.

2) Laban had already tried to kill them after their second attempt to get the plates through legitimate means (asking for them and offering to trade for them).

Here's the dialogue between the Spirit and Nephi:

10 And it came to pass that I was ^aconstrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban; but I said in my heart: Never at any time have I shed the blood of man. And I shrunk and would that I might not slay him.

Nephi doesn't want to kill him.

Then Nephi considers the context on his own and why the Lord might want him to be killed.

11 Yea, and I also knew that he had sought to take away mine own life; yea, and he would not hearken unto the commandments of the Lord; and he also had ^ctaken away our property.

Then Nephi is told to slay him again and is also told that his posterity would dwindle in unbelief if they didn't have the plates (Nephi's taught a consequence he didn't realize would occur without the plates.)

12 And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me again: Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands;

13 Behold the Lord ^aslayeth the ^bwicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is ^cbetter that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in ^dunbelief.

Then Nephi thinks about why his posterity would falter without the plates as the Spirit told him:

14 And now, when I, Nephi, had heard these words, I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that: ^aInasmuch as thy seed shall keep my^bcommandments, they shall ^cprosper in the ^dland of promise.

15 Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the ^alaw of Moses, save they should have the law.

16 And I also knew that the ^alaw was engraven upon the plates of brass.

17 And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause—that I might obtain the records according to his commandments.

Therefore, after being told 2 times to slay Laban, and considering himself why that might be necessary, and then being told again to slay Laban and also being told an additional reason why it was necessary (without the plates his posterity would lose faith), he finally decides to do it. It actually made sense to do it.

Now, I realize that sometimes we need to do things that don't make sense at the time, but generally when revelation is given, it is told us in our minds and our hearts. (D.C. 8:2-3) In other words, it is logical in some way and feels right. Getting supposed revelation to do something that just doesn't make any sense probably isn't revelation. If it is important or necessary, God will give us some idea about why it's important.

1 Nephi 2: Relationship with the Father - Continual Instruction

In 1 Nephi 1 we see that Lehi had 2 recorded revelations. Then 1 Nephi 2 starts out with another revelation to Lehi in which Lehi is told to leave Jerusalem with his family.

1 For behold, it came to pass that the Lord spake unto my father, yea, even in a dream, and said unto him: Blessed art thou Lehi, because of the things which thou hast done; and because thou hast been faithful and declared unto this people the things which I commanded thee, behold, they seek to ^atake away thy ^blife.

2 And it came to pass that the Lord ^acommanded my father, even in a ^bdream, that he should ^ctake his family and depart into the wilderness.

3 And it came to pass that he was ^aobedient unto the word of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded him.

Later in the chapter we read of Nephi receiving revelation from the Lord 2 times.

16 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the ^amysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did ^bvisit me, and did ^csoften my heart that I did ^dbelieve all the words which had been spoken by my ^efather; wherefore, I did not ^frebel against him like unto my brothers.

Also, in this verse he receives additional instruction about his future:

19 And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Blessed art thou, Nephi, because of thy ^afaith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart.

20 And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall^aprosper, and shall be led to a ^bland of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands.

21 And inasmuch as thy brethren shall rebel against thee, they shall be ^acut off from the presence of the Lord.

It appears clear that the Lord is willing to continually instruct us as we have questions about what to do in life or questions about certain doctrinal issues. He wants us to learn and is willing to communicate to us. He is our Father, and Father's want their children to learn (as we find out that's a good definition of a great Father based on 1 Nephi 1 and Mosiah 1).

1 Nephi 1:1

I, Nephi, having been ^aborn of ^bgoodly ^cparents, therefore I was^dtaught somewhat in all the learning of my father;

Mosiah 1:2

2 And it came to pass that he had three ^asons; and he called their names Mosiah, and Helorum, and Helaman. And he caused that they should be ^btaught in all the ^clanguage of his fathers, that thereby they might become men of understanding; and that they might know concerning the prophecies which had been spoken by the mouths of their fathers, which were delivered them by the hand of the Lord.