Notes: 1 Nephi 12-15 (Chapter4)

 The last two weeks we have covered 1 Nephi 1 - 11 and have seen some really amazing  manifestations of the Lords hand (tender mercies) at work with Lehi and his family. Today I want to  talk more about how the Lord works in our lives.  

Chapter 11 - 14 are basically a condensed version of The whole Book of Mormon.  

Chapter 11 starts out with Nephi’s praying to know the things that his father had seen and the cool  thing about that request is not only does God show Nephi all that his father saw but so much more.  He asked to see the dream of the Tree of Life but God shows him a panoramic vision of this world  to the end of time, the entire spiritual history of the earth all the way up to the Second Coming. 

When we diligently seek for truth from God, He’ll often gives us more than we ask for…  The Lord is very gracious with His truth if we seek with a sincere heart and real intent.  

Nephi’s vision is a little different than Lehi’s. In Nephi’s vision the Lord reveals events and truths  through a interactive lesson where the Lord will show Nephi an image and then ask Nephi to tell  Him what it is. What beholdest thou — knowest thou? This allows Nephi to use his agency and be  part of the revelatory process. I think this is one of the wonderful ways God teaches us.  

Where does God uses this method of teaching? 

In chapter 12 Nephi is going to see the imagery from his father’s dream play out in a vision of what’s  going to happen with his people, and what’s going to happen in the Americas later with Israel and  the Gentiles. He has already seen that his descendants are a multitude covering the face of the  land and they begin to fight and war with each other and in (12) V 4 he says “ And it came to pass  that I saw a mist of darkness on the face of the land of promise…now he goes on to define the mist  of darkness later but the event he’s talking about is actually both symbolic and literal because he  sees a darkness covering the land before a darkness literally covers the land, he goes on to say (4) “I  saw lightning, and I heard thunderings, and earthquakes, and all manner of tumultuous noises: and I  saw the earth and the rocks that they rent and I saw mountains tumbling into pieces….this is where  Nephi witnessed the destructions which happened in the land of promise after the crucifixion of the  Savior.  

There is a connection between the midst of darkness in the vision and the mist of darkness which  covered the land when  

Christ The LIGHT of the world was gone from the world and that we would be subject to darkness.  

At the crucifixion of Jesus on the other side of the world and the massive destruction on this side of  the world, there was thick darkness everywhere—total darkness, because there was no light (3  Nephi 8:20). The Light of the World had been extinguished, and until he came again—or at least until  his voice was heard again—there would be much less light. It seems only natural that the earth  should be in such tumult and turmoil after the death of Christ because it too is a living entity and was  mourning the suffering of its Creator (Moses 7:39–40, 48).  

When Christ was taken from the World there was darkness, 

When Christ is not in our lives there is a darkness.  

And the mists of darkness are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth  the hearts of the children of men…. 

3 Nephi 8:20. And it came to pass that there was thick darkness upon all the face of the land,  insomuch that the inhabitants thereof who had not fallen could feel the vapor of darkness. 

MIST- a cloud of tiny water droplets suspended in the atmosphere at or near the earth's surface that  limits visibility  

.VAPOR- a visible exhalation, such as fog, mist, steam, smoke, or noxious gas, diffused through or  suspended in the air:  

Notice how the darkness is described as a “vapor of darkness” that could be felt. (3 Nephi 8:20) 

So verse 17 tells us that… the mists of darkness are the temptations of the devil… When I think of  the temptations of the devil I think of an enticement or a pull to do something wrong but when I  apply or add the temptations of the devil (17) to this image of the mist of darkness, the imagery makes me think more broadly: I think it is the enticement to do something wrong but also the  temptations of the devil could be any distraction which prevents me or delays me from doing  what is right.  

Its also important to remember that The Savior visited Nephi’s descendants only when the mist of  darkness had subsided.  

This thought can also have a personal application.  

Is my life so full of distractions (mists, or vapors) that I’m missing opportunities to interact with  The Savior? 

1 John 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is  light, and in him is no darkness at all. 

Chapter 13  

Chapter 13 Nephi switches continents and is the history of our nation played out in scripture. It is  awesome to see the Lords hands in these events.  

The time period covered in this chapter extends approximately from the destruction of the Nephites,  in 385 AD, to the 20th century.  

The chapter starts off with Nephi being shown the Great and Abominable church. 

Over time there has been a great deal of debate and controversy about the Great and Abominable  church. 

Sometimes when we talk about the Great and Terrible Day of the Lord we may say that it will be a  great day for some and a terrible day for others but this great and terrible is in no way meant to  mean this. Great here doesn’t mean wonderful or good but it means large or extraordinary or greatly terrible. So he is saying that it is really abominable or extra abominable. It is everything that it is  opposed to good and everything that is opposed to God. 

Read 13:4 & 6 

13:4. And it came to pass that I saw among the nations of the Gentiles the formation of a great  church. 

6: And it came to pass that I beheld this great and abominable church; and I saw the devil that he  was the founder of it.  

These verses go on to describe this great church.  

1. It must have formed among the Gentiles. (3) 

2. It must have edited and controlled the distribution of the scriptures (26-29) 3. It must have slain the Saints of God, including the Apostles and prophets. (5&9) 4. It must be in league with civil government and use their police power to enforce its religious  views. (5) 

5. It must have dominion over all the earth; (14:11) 

6. It must pursue great wealth and sexual immorality. (7-9) 

7. It must last until close to the end of the world. (14:17)  

“Because no religious denomination - Christian or non-Christian - has ever had “dominion” over all  nations of the earth or the potential to bring all the saints of God down into “captivity,” this great and  abominable church must be something far more pervasive and widespread than a single “church,”  as we understand that term today. It must be any philosophy or organization that opposes belief in  God. And the “captivity” into which this “church” seeks to bring the saints will not be so much  physical confinement as the captivity of false ideas. 

Nephi was told by revelation that there were only “two churches”: “the church of the Lamb of God”  and “the church of the devil (1 Nephi 14:10). This description suggests the contrast between those  who believe in God and seek to serve Him according to their best understanding and those who  reject the existence of God.” 

(Dallin H. Oaks Stand as Witnesses of God, Ensign, Mar 2015)  

“In relation to the kingdom of God, the devil always sets up his kingdom at the very same time in  opposition to God.” (JS, History of the church, 6:364) 

We sometimes do a great disservice when we think of Christianity divided. The Lord uses the spirit both within and without the church. He uses the spirit to communicate with his children. D&C 10:53-54 is a Revelation given in 1828-29 a year or two before the church was organized  (1830). As the Lord is speaking he’s talking about the restoration of His gospel and He says 

53: And for this cause have I said; If this generation harden not their hearts, I will establish my church  among them. 

54: Now I do not say this to destroy my church, but I say this to build up my church; 

He is saying He is going to establish the fulness of His Gospel But His church is still on the earth  and has been. The fulness of the Gospel was meant to add to the gospel that was already here.  

President Hinckley in a meeting at Nairobi Africa says: 

“Let me say that we appreciate the truth in all churches and the good which they do. We say to the  people, in effect, you bring with you all the good that you have, and then let us see if we can add to  it. That is the spirit of this work. That is the essence of our missionary service.” Nairobi, Kenya,  17 Feb. 1998 

…….  

13:12 - Christopher Columbus 

“Our Lord, sent me upon the sea… He bestowed upon me courage and understanding; knowledge  of seafaring He gave me in abundance. He gave me fire for the deed. Those who heard of my  enterprise called it foolish, mocked me, and laughed. But who can doubt but that the Holy Ghost  inspired me?” 

“God inspired ‘a man among the Gentiles’ who, by the Spirit of God was led to rediscover the land  of America and bring this rich new land to the attention of the people in Europe. Columbus testified  repeatedly that his voyage was for the glory of God and the spread of the Christian faith.  

Ezra Taft Benson - Student manual Pg 27 & 28  

13:13 - The Pilgrims suffered great persecution before they fled to America seeking religious  freedom. (Puritans). (Mayflower Compact) The Mayflower set sail on 16th September 1620 from  Plymouth, England, to voyage to America. They landed in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and settled the  first colony in New England, shaping the future of the American colonies. 

“Having undertaken for the Glory of God, and Advancement of the Christian Faith, and the Honor of  our King and Country, a Voyage to plant the first colony in the Northern Parts of Virginia; do, by these  presents, solemnly and mutually in the presence of God and one of another, covenant and combine  ourselves together into a civil body politick, for our better ordering and preservation, and furtherance  of the ends aforesaid;”  

13:14-15 - The Indian wars and the subsequent colonization of America by Western people 

READ - 13:16 & 19 - American Revolution. The mother gentiles gathering against those who had  come here to battle. When Great Britain the mother Gentiles came up against them to battle, they  were deliver out of their hands. 

"The disadvantageous circumstances on our part under which the [Revolutionary] war was  undertaken can never be forgotten. The singular interpositions of Providence in our feeble condition  were such as could scarcely escape the attention of the most unobserving; while the unparalleled 

perseverance of the armies of the United States through almost every possible suffering and  discouragement for the space of eight years was little short of a standing miracle.” 

George Washington Farewell Orders to Continental Army, Nov 2, 1783 

1 Nephi 13:20-23 Bible 23: from the mouth of a Jew 1 Nephi 13: 27-29 Plain and Precious things  lost  

Coming forth of the Bible. How could we ever question the fact that God inspired the coming forth  of the Bible. We sometimes take for granted the sacrifices that were made to make it possible for  the Bible to placed in the hands of the common man in his own language.  

So the really interesting part about each of these major scenes is what they have in common?  There was something similar in the description of each one….. 

13:12 I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man 13:13 I beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles 

13:14 I beheld the wrath of God, that it was upon the seed of my brethren 

13:15 I beheld the Spirit of the Lord 

13:16 and the power of the Lord was with them 

13:18 the power of God was with them, and also the wrath of God was upon all those that that were  gathered together against them to battle. 

13:19 delivered by the power of God out of the hands of all other nations. 

13:23 The book…which contains the covenants of the Lord (the Noahic Covenant, the Abrahamic  Covenant, The Mosaic Covenant, the Davidic Covenant and the New Covenant)  13:39 came forth by the Power of the Lamb 

God played a major role in each of these events. He inspired or helped each of these events to take  place.  

Gods role and presence and influence has been stripped from their pages. These Scriptures teach  us a profound truth….that God established America and its government.  

We see the hand of God in each of these events. These events are called Providential History by  some scholars because they were orchestrated by God.. so we could ask the question…  1 Nephi 13:34-36. Why was God so involved with the establishment of America and in these  particular circumstances? 

God needed a place to restore his gospel and that could only happen under the right circumstances.  

8. A place to do it 

9. Religious Freedom  

10.A free Government 

11.The Bible 

So if we look at this list we can see why Nephi was shown the events that he was shown.

Christopher Columbus made it possible for the restoration to occur. It really couldn’t have been  done anywhere in the old world. If Joseph Smith would have tried to restore the church in Germany,  or Italy, or England it would have never survived. He would been burnt at the stake as a heretic and  the restored church would have died as soon as it was born so it had to be a new place far from  the governments and influences of the old world. Columbus made that happen. The Pilgrims came to the new world for one reason…religious freedom. The colonies were  established on that principle so when the government was formed here religious freedom and the  separation of church and state was a non-negotiable element. 

The revolutionary war - George Washington There needed to be a type of government that  allowed for the protection and flourishing of a new church. The rights and liberties provided by the  Constitution and the Bill of Rights made it possible and continue to make it possible for the church to be established and grow. 

The Bible - The bible needed to be in the hands of the common man, in his own language. That’s  the only way to make it possible for a 14 year old farm boy from upstate New York to read James  1:5 which is going to inspire him to walk into a grove of trees and seek wisdom on which  church to join.  

William Tyndale quote 

“If God spare my life, ere many years pass, I will cause that the boy that driveth the plough to know  more of the scriptures than thou dost.” (Foxers Book of Martyrs) 

And so it was that God established America for the restoration.  

1 Nephi 15:1-11 

(4) Grieved 

(5) afflictions 

(9) Laman and Lemuel try to shift the responsibility to The Lord  

(11) Ask, Faith, believing, keep the commandments 

President Boyd K. Packer spoke of Heavenly Father’s desire to give us the righteous desires of our  hearts: “No message appears in Scripture more times, in more ways than ‘Ask, and ye shall receive”.  President Boyd K. Packer Conference Report Oct. 1991  

President Murdock “The Lord provides our own set of parables in everyday life”. 

President Murdock taught me this years ago at a youth conference where he challenged us to see  and pay attention and apply the different parables in our lives and see what we could learn from  them.  

August Story (Parable)

I want to share a fun story with you…This summer my grandson August started his baseball career  on his 1st T-Ball team. This was a team of 3 year olds. They showed up for their first game so  excited to be there. They had their new gloves and had just been given their team shirts and hats.  Some of the kids were quiet and shy, some were pretty confident but most were bouncing around  with excitement showing off their new equipment and meeting their new friends. The parents were  also excited and a little anxious, wondering if this was going to be a good experience..and How their  child was going to do. It was an exciting time. So the coach (and as far as I could tell there was  only one coach) started by trying to teach the basics. He started by throwing (rather rolling) the ball  to each of the kids and having them try to throw it back then He tried to teach them about the field.  This is home base, when you hit the ball you run to 1st base, second base and so on.. He had each  of the kids one by one run to 1st base then 2nd, 3rd and back to home. When I say he tried to teach  them it is because the kids were just excited to be there with their new friends and not really paying  attention to what he was saying. So after this very short intro into the world of baseball the 1st batter  is up. They don’t know how to stand or swing or exactly what to do when they hit the ball and those  in the outfield are even more confused because they haven’t had any instruction in the outfield. So  the 1st child hits the ball and just stands there looking bewildered and the kids in the field are  standing frozen just looking at the ball…… SO at about this time 50 Parents and grandparents and  siblings and spectators kick in and start hollering out instructions… So the kids in the outfield  immediately all dog pile on top of the ball and somehow the 1st batter manages to get to 1st base.  So after 1 or 2 more batters and still complete chaos it is clear they need more help so they put a  parent on 1st base, another on 2nd another on home base. And now it is my grandsons turn.  August gets up and like most of the kids hasn’t played the game so has very limited understanding  of what is supposed to happen and to make matters a little more confusing he is a lefty so that took  a little more instruction but after a few tries he hits the ball and with the direction of several helpers  he makes it to 1st base. Then another child bats and he is directed to 2nd base. Then another child  bats and this is where things got a little crazy. When the child hits they point for August to run to  third base but what August saw was the direction they were pointing and he took off running toward  3rd base, past 3rd base, through the spectators and almost to the fence before someone finally  caught up to him. So they bring him back to 3rd base and the next child hits the ball and again all  these voices start hollering for August to run home so he does exactly what his 3 year old mind is  hearing and he takes off running towards home - His home with all his little heart… He was headed  HOME! It was seriously mass chaos. The kids didn’t know what was going on and didn’t know  what to do and the parents were all shouting instruction from every direction. So Augusts gets a  little ways through the outfield and suddenly stops. He knew he needed to go home but knew he  couldn’t get there on his own so he was desperately trying to find mom or dad or grandma,  someone that would help him get home…Finally his Dad catches up to him, turns him around and  guides him to home base where he sits down and out of confusion and frustration just starts  crying… Well, needless to say the 2nd round went a little smoother.  

Life Lessons?

1. (Coach) We can’t do it on our own. 

2. (Outside voices) The outside voices can be loud. 

3. (Take turns)  

4.(Home) Keep our goal in sight.  

The lesson I want to focus on for a minute is Home. 

Home: the place where one lives permanently, especially as a member of a family or household. (Verb) move or be aimed toward (a target or destination) with great accuracy. 

What are words that you would use to describe HOME?  

Protection, family, love, refuge, peace, beauty (mountains, rivers, greenery, snow…) So if we look back on Nephi’s dream  

There are lots of descriptions of the fruit and of the Tree of Life throughout the scriptures and one  thing they have in common is that they are all superlatives. They refer to something that is better  than anything else like it.  

The Love of God…the most desirable of all things 1Nephi 8:10-12; 11:8,9,22,23; 15:36; Alma 32:42;  Sweet above all (8:11) 

Beauty…far beyond…exceeding of all beauty (8:11) 

White to exceed all whiteness (8:11) 

Filled my soul with exceedingly great joy (8:12 

Desirable above all other (8:12) 

Precious above all (11:9) 

Most desirable above all things (11:22) 

Most joyous to the soul (11:22) 

Pure above all that is pure (Alma 32:42) 

Exceeding joy (Alma 36:24) 

Healing Power for the nations (Rev 22:2) 

Greatest of all the gifts of God (The Gift of Eternal Life) (1 Nephi 15:36)  

Lehi’s vision starts filled with worry and a dark and dreary wilderness. He travels in darkness and  prays to God for mercy. There are lots of symbols and groups and there is a lot going on…. Nephi  vision starts on a high mountain with the Spirit of the Lord speaking. The centerpiece of the dream  seems to focus on the tree of life (see 1 Nephi 11:2–10) The fruit and rod of Iron and the large and  spacious building, the mist of darkness and all the other symbols lead to or away from the tree but  the tree is the goal, the purpose, the objective, ect…. 

So I would like to add a description to The Tree of Life. 

HOME our Eternal Home… The Greatest of all the gifts of God.  

This world is not our permanent home, it is our pathway home! 

Just like the image in the game…We may run off course now and then, we may fail and have  miscommunications from time to time. We may have times when the voices are so loud and it is so  hard to choose. We may want to just sit down and cry but that’s OK as long as we don’t give up and  We always, always, always keep our Eternal home in our sight. 

SONG