Testifying Out of the Dust (2 Nephi 27)

The Prophet Moroni buries the golden plates near Palmyra, NY about 450a.d.

The coming forth of the Book of Mormon was prophesied of in several places in the Bible, Old and New Testaments, but none so clear as the one in Isaiah Chapter 29.  Nephi throws this one last Isaiah chapter into the Plates of Nephi in 2 Nephi 27.  I bet it made old Nephi glad when he read this chapter and understood that Isaiah was talking about the very plates he was writing on, that his sore fingers weren't for nuttin'.

In 2 Nephi 27, Isaiah talks quite plainly about a book containing the "words of them who have slumbered in the dust" (dead people) coming forth in the last days, which will contain revelation from God (scripture).

2 Nephi 27: 6-7

6.  And it shall come to pass that The Lord God shall bring forth unto you the words of a book, and they shall be the words of them which have slumbered.

7.  And behold the book shall be sealed; and in the book shall be a revelation from God, from the beginning of the world to the ending thereof.

It would be pretty cool to flip to the end of the Book of Mormon and see how the world ends.  Too bad that part of the plates was sealed off, and therefore not translated by Joseph Smith into the BOM we have today.

I hope I didn't miss it!

It's probably a good thing we don't have the "sealed portion" yet.  We will have it some day, and then we'll read it on top of our house.  I guess that's a good place to be alone.

Moroni delivers the plates

Moroni delivering the plates to Joseph Smith in1827

Having buried the plates in the ground on a hillside close to the future site of Palmyra, New York sometime around 450 A.D., the Angel Moroni, now a resurrected being, delivered the golden plates to 21-year old Joseph Smith on Sept 22, 1827.  The miraculous work of translation from the ancient text (written in what the BOM calls "reformed Egyptian") into English commenced, but because of persecution and multiple attempts by evil men to steal the plates, it took Brother Joseph 2 years to get the first edition to the printers.  The actual translation took a combined total of only about 90 days.  

 Professor Anthon

In this chapter, Isaiah prophesied that when this book comes forth, the unsealed portion will be delivered to a "learned man", who will reject it. 

During the early days of translating the BOM, Joseph Smith wrote down some of the hieroglyphic characters from the BOM plates and their translation, and his buddy Martin Harris took them to New York City to a Charles Anthon, a professor at Columbia University, and who was known for his "literary attainments".  Anthon studied the characters, and wrote a certificate, certifying both the authenticity of the characters, saying that they were true characters from the Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyriac and Arabic languages, and the accuracy of the translation.  Anthon asked to see the entire set of golden plates.  He doesn't say anything about greed being his motive, but the BOM says so. 

2 Nephi 27: 15-18

15.  But behold, it shall come to pass that The Lord God shall say unto him to whom He shall deliver the book [Joseph Smith]:  Take these words which are not sealed and deliver them to another, that he [Martin Harris] may show them unto the learned [Professor Anthon], saying:  Read this, I pray thee.  And the learned [Professor Anthon] shall say:  Bring hither the book, and I will read them.

16.  And now, because of the glory of the world and to get gain will they say this, and not for the glory of God.

17.  And the man [Martin Harris] shall say:  I cannot bring the book, for it is sealed.

18.  Then shall the learned [Professor Anthon] say:  I cannot read it.

When Martin Harris said, "I cannot bring the book, for it is sealed," to the professor, Anthon replied, "I cannot read a sealed book."  He then tore up the certificate that he'd written, and said that angels do not appear to man in our day. 

But of course he now denies it; you'd expect that of a con.  But he couldn't run forever, not even Charles Anthon.

Joseph Smith

Isaiah then says that the book will be delivered to an "unlearned man", who will do the marvelous and wondrous work of God.

2 Nephi 27: 19-21

19.  Wherefore it shall come to pass, that The Lord God will deliver again the book and the words thereof to him that is not learned [Joseph Smith]; and the man that is not learned shall say:  I am not learned.

20.  Then shall The Lord God say unto him:  The learned shall not read them, for they have rejected them, and I am able to do mine own work; wherefore thou shalt read the words which I shall give unto thee.

21.  Touch not the things which are sealed, for I will bring them forth in mine own due time; for I will show unto the children of men that I am able to do mine own work.  

With only 3 or so years of formal education, Joseph Smith was an "unlearned man".  One of the criticisms against Joseph in his day was that he was an uneducated farmer, and yet professed to be a prophet of God.  Goodness knows, The Lord should never, would never, could never use a poor commoner to share His words...

Oh, except for David the shepherd

Oh, and Peter, James, John and Andrew; they were fishermen

Oh, and except for Jesus Christ; He was a carpenter

Twelve Witnesses

A certain number of people were given the chance to be witnesses of the plates of Nephi, which was talked about in this chapter as well.

2 Nephi 27: 12-13

12.  Wherefore, at that day when the book shall be delivered unto the man of whom I have spoken, the book shall be hid from the eyes of the world, that the eyes of none shall behold it save it be that three witnesses shall behold it, by the power of God, besides him to whom the book shall be delivered; and they shall testify to the truth of the book and the things therein.

13.  And there is none others which shall view it, save it be a few according to the will of God, to bear testimony of his word unto the children of men; for The Lord God hath said that the words of the faithful should speak as if it were from the dead.

The Three

The 3 witnesses testified to the world that they had seen the angel Moroni and the golden plates.  You can read their account in the first few pages of the BOM.  These 3 men all eventually left The Church, but none of them ever denied this witness.

Oliver Cowdery and Martin Harris both returned to The Church eventually.  David Whitmer did not return to The Church, but gave a strong testimony on his deathbed, swearing to the truth of his vision of the angel Moroni and the golden plates.

The Eight

The Eight Witnesses testified that they saw the golden plates.  These 8 did not see the angel Moroni, but they saw and "hefted" the plates.  The testimony of the eight witnesses is found at the beginning of the BOM.

The 8 witnesses were:  Christian Whitmer, Jacob Whitmer, Peter Whitmer Jr, John Whitmer, Hiram Page, Joseph Smith Sr, Hyrum Smith, Samuel H. Smith.

But, Three + Eight = Eleven

The 12th witness to whom I referred when I says there'd be 12 witnesses is yours truly.  I saw no plates, nor angels, but I know that there were angels in the room on January 24, 1987, when I had the light and warmth and love and gratefulness of the Holy Ghost drill a hole into my heart and deposit there, underneath untold layers of fat and cholesterol, a testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, and the marvelous and wonderful story of its coming about.  Tears sprung from my face like a shook up Sprite, and in that unforgettable and most important moment I received the following treasures:

• God lives
• God is my Father in Heaven
• Heavenly Father loves me
• I am worth Heavenly Father's time to answer
• Jesus Christ lives
• Jesus Christ loves me
• Joseph Smith was visited by Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ
• The angel Moroni appeared to Joseph Smith and delivered the golden plates to him
• Joseph Smith translated the golden plates into the BOM
• The Book of Mormon is the Word of God
• The Priesthood that was given to me by Richard Barney, and to him by Mike Barney, and to him by Dale Pelo, and to him by Alvin R. Dyer, and to him by Joseph Fielding Smith, and to him by Joseph F. Smith, and to him by Brigham Young, and to him by the 3 Witnesses, and to them by Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, and to them by Peter, James and John, and to them by Jesus Christ is real
• I'm glad I went on a mission

JB at the MTC, Jan 1987

And I'll here repeat what was and has remained the most important one to me on this list....

• I am worth Heavenly Father's time to answer!

Peace be with you...

Mountain of the Lord (2 Nephi 12)

My friend Frank Bojdo visiting the Salt Lake LDS Temple from North Carolina last Summer.

Lots of people visit the SLC Temple and Temple Square every year.  I got this following info from  Wikipedia.

Tourism

Attracting 3 million to 5 million visitors a year, Temple Square is the most popular tourist attraction in Utah, bringing in more visitors than the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone National Park. By comparison, Utah's five National Parks —Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, and Arches— had a combined total of 5.3 million visitors in 2005.^[5]

Pop Quiz:  Why do they come?

A.  'Cause they wanna.

B.  'Cause it's pretty.

C.  'Cause they're architecturally interested.

D.  'Cause there's nothing else to do in Utah.

E.  Religious reasons

F.  Led here by the Spirit of The Lord

G.  Other stuff.

Answer?  Yup.

What did Isaiah have to say about it?

2 Nephi 12: 1-3

1.  The word that Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:

2.  And it shall come to pass in the last days, when the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it.

3.  And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of The Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths; for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of The Lord from Jerusalem.

Screenshot from link below

I learned as a youth, and saw in the video Mountain of The Lord, that the word Utah means "tops of the mountains".  I thought that was pretty cool.  Trouble is, it doesn't...

It isn't really known when this myth started, but I don't believe it was meant to mislead.  Myths are often just taken as truth, and were difficult to check on in the days before the internet.  The word Utah comes from the word Ute, an American Indian tribe located in the Colorado, Utah and Arizona area.  Ute came from the Spanish word Yuta, which I guess means "meat eaters".  The Ute's name for themselves was noochee, which, as is so often the case, means The People.  Are you disappointed?

So, I guess Isaiah didn't know what he was talking about.  

Oh, I wouldn't say that...

2.  And it shall come to pass in the last days, when the mountain of The Lord's house shall be established in the tops of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it.

I'd say that description fits. 

Anyways,

2 Nephi 12: 5-6

5.  O house of Jacob, come ye and let us walk in the light of The Lord; yea, come, for ye have all gone astray, every one to his wicked ways.

The scattering of Israel is always a big topic with Isaiah.

6.  Therefore, O Lord, thou has forsaken thy people, the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and hearken unto soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.

"They be replenished from the east":  Had babies with gentiles.  "Please themselves in the children of strangers":  Had babies with gentiles.

The promise is that the day of The Lord will come to everyone, everywhere, and all of these issues will be righted.

This is a painting of Jonah getting chucked off of the ship that is headed to Tarshish, right before the whale eats him.  Too bad he didn't speak whale.

Anyways,

I'll close this boring post with this Tarshish thing.  Most of the rest of chapter 12 talks about how the day of The Lord will happen everywhere.  I've just always thought this next verse was interesting.

2 Nephi 12: 16

16.  And upon all the ships of the sea, and upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures.

Taken alone, it ain't really that interesting, but if you look at the footnote, it's kinda cool.  Apparently the original Greek has this verse as:

16.  And upon all the ships of the sea, and upon all pleasant pictures.

The original Hebrew has this verse as:

16.  And upon all the ships of tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures.

This verse as quoted in the Book of Mormon, which was taken from the Brass Plates that Nephi took from Laben back in 1 Nephi 4, contained both phrases.  Don't you think that's interesting.  No?  Well, I do.  Either Joseph Smith really did some good research, or he was a true prophet of God.  Joseph Smith had only 3 years of formal education.  I believe he could not have written the BOM on his own, without the gift and power of God, but that is not why I believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet.  I believe Joseph Smith was a prophet because I asked Heavenly Father whether he was or not, and whether the Book of Mormon is true or not, and The Lord told me that he was and it is through the Holy Ghost in answer to that prayer. 

Anyways, see you next time when Isaiah talks about bald and stinky women.

Peace be with you...

I Witness of Christ (2 Nephi 11)

Eye-witness testimonies always weigh heavily in courts of law.  The believability of a witness is key to one side or the other of the debate.  And, the more witnesses one particular side has, the more groovy for them.

When the debate is over which religion is true, or whether there is even a God or not, opinions and beliefs can really heat up, even become violent (a weird paradox to me).

Jesus Christ carries our burdens to Golgotha, -by Angela Johnson

My personal belief is centered in Christianity as a member of and a believer in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or Mormon.  Now, when I say I respect others, their religion or lack thereof (as long as it is based in good principles), I am telling the truth, but my belief in my own beliefs precludes any belief in other beliefs which are contrary to mine.  But, why are my beliefs my beliefs, and how did I arrive at them?

I wanted to talk about witnesses of truth in the Book of Mormon, specifically, witnesses of Jesus Christ.

Christ in Gethsemane, -by Angela Johnson

I'm in 2 Nephi chapter 11.  It's a short chapter (yippee!!!), just 8 verses.  We have several witnesses of Christ in this little chapter.

Verse 2, Isaiah and Nephi:

2.  And now I, Nephi, write more of the words of Isaiah, for my soul delighteth in His words.  For I will liken His words unto my people, and I will send them forth unto all my children, for he verily saw my Redeemer, even as I have seen Him.

Verse 3, Jacob:

3.  And my brother, Jacob, also has seen Him as I have seen him; wherefore, I will send their words forth unto my children to prove unto them that my words are true.  Wherefore, by the words of three, God hath said, I will establish my word.  Nevertheless, God sendeth more witnesses, and He proveth all His words.

Verse 4, Moses:

4.  Behold, my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ; for, for this end hath the law of Moses been given; and all things which have been given of God from the beginning of the world, unto man, are the typifying of Him.

These men of long ago gave accounts of seeing and hearing The Savior, and bore their sacred witnesses that they were speaking the truth.  I never met Nephi, Jacob, Isaiah or Moses, so why should I believe them? Why do I believe the Book of Mormon and The Bible to be the word of God?

In an earthly court of law where one witness says so and so did it, and another says he didn't do it, we may not know who to believe.  In the debate about whether God is real and Jesus is The Christ, there is a way to know the truth.

It's the Holy Ghost, or Holy Spirit.  A dove is a symbol of peace, and is often used to represent the Holy Ghost, because of the New Testament accounts of Jesus' baptism....

Matthew 3: 16-17

16.  And Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw The Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:

17.  And lo a voice from heaven saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Anudder from The Bible:

John 14:26

26.  But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

And...

John 15:26

26.  But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

Christ walks on water, by Angela Johnson

So, when Nephi says this...

2 Nephi 11: 6

6.  And my soul delighteth in proving unto my people that save Christ should come all men must perish.

7.  For if there be no Christ there be no God; and if there be no God we are not, for there could have been no creation.  But there is a God, and He is Christ, and He cometh in the fulness of His own time.

... I don't believe Nephi thinks the argument he presented in verse 7 is so strong that the debate is over and done with, I think he is bearing his strong testimony about The Savior, and expects the Holy Ghost to teach us what The Lord would have us know.


A sculpture of the visitation of The Father and The Son to Joseph Smith in 1820, -by Angela Johnson

It is how I feel, in my chest, in my lungs, in my toes, in my mind, when I read the Book of Mormon and The Bible, when I hear the speakers at The Church's semi-annual General Conference, and they testify that God lives, Jesus is His Christ, and that They together visited a young Joseph Smith and restored the Gospel of Jesus Christ again to the earth, that gives me my belief.  When I looked at these sculptures yesterday at a Thanksgiving Point garden exhibit, I felt peace, love, joy, purpose, meaning, sense, strength, burning in my chest.  Angela Johnson's sensitive artistry really touched me.  That and many other experiences are why I believe in the existence of God the Father, in His Son, Jesus Christ, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true. The Holy Ghost has told me that it is true, and I believe deeply.

Someone Hath Touched Me, -by Angela Johnson

 Amen.





Stay tuned for Isaiah.  And remember Nephi's purpose in putting Isaiah in the BOM:  to prove to us that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the World.

Peace be with you...

The Covenant of Father Abraham (2 Nephi 8)

To prepare for this posting on 2 Nephi chapter 8 (compare Isaiah 51 and 52: 1-2) I read the chapter several times, and I still pretty much look like this...

Isaiah is just a difficult fellow to understand, and that's all there is toot.  This chapter is basically about The Lord's promises to Israel that, though they are being scattered at that time, and will continue to be, He is still mindful of them, and they will be redeemed and brought back into His presence where they will be happy.  I'll mention a couple verses, K?

2 Nephi 8: 2

2.  Look unto Abraham, your father, and unto Sarah, she that bare you; for I called him alone, and blessed him.

3.  For The Lord shall comfort Zion, He will comfort all her waste places; and He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of The Lord.  Joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving and the voice of melody.

Abraham is very important to the house of Israel, as well as all people everywhere, the world over.  The wilderness and the desert are symbolic of apostasy, where the people are cut off from the word of their God.  The Garden of Eden was a place where Heavenly Father and Christ had a personal and face to face relationship with Adam and Eve.  Making the wilderness like Eden and her desert like the garden of The Lord is like unto returning from being a lost and wandering loser to that blessed state.  When Jesus Christ says in verse 1, "...for I called him alone, and blessed him," this is referring to the covenants that The Lord made with Abraham and his descendants.

The Abrahamic Covenant is of paramount importance in understanding the gospel of Jesus Christ.  In a profoundly inadequate nutshell, this covenant is basically God's promise to Abraham that he would father a great nation, and that this nation, though they'll be kicked around a lot, will bring everlasting salvation to all of God's children.  This was (again, humungously dumbed down because I don't understand it well enough to explain it) and will be brought to pass through some of these things:


The Prophets of the Old Testament were descended from Abraham.

The Savior Jesus Christ was descended from Abraham.

The Apostles of Jesus Christ of the New Testament were descended from Abraham.

The Prophets of the Book of Mormon were descended from Abraham.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ was restored to the earth after centuries of apostasy to a modern day prophet, Joseph Smith, who was a descendant of Abraham.

Part of the restoration of the Gospel was a restoration of the Priesthood to the earth.  The Priesthood is the authority to act in God's name, and is vital in administering the saving ordinances.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is now going forth to all nations.  Those who join The Church are either already part of the house of Israel and are being found and gathered back in, or they are not a part of the house of Israel and are being adopted into it.

That's me on the right in Danville, KY in 1987

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints builds Holy Temples, in which the work is done vicariously for those that are deceased, that they too may come unto Christ, or into the house of Israel. For the billions of folks who have lived on the earth and have passed on into the next realm of existence, they can learn of Jesus Christ and gain a testimony of His saving Atonement there, and then the necessary saving ordinances (baptism, endowment, eternal marriage) are done in their behalf here on earth.

The LDS Temple in Washington D.C.  It's my favorite.

Here's a passage from the Doctrine and Covenants about Priesthood, handed down from the days of Abraham until the Great Apostasy following the deaths of Christ's Apostles, and restored to Joseph Smith in 1830 by the Apostles Peter, James and John.

D & C 84: 19-22

19.  And this greater priesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth the key of the mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the knowledge of God.

20.  Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest.

21.  And without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the priesthood, the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh;

22.  For without this no man can see the face of God, even the Father, and live.

Well, like my old pal Albert used to say...

So, I'll leave it at that.  Just know that Heavenly Father loves all of His children.  Here comes a
Therefore...

2 Nephi 8: 11

11.  Therefore, the redeemed of The Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy and holiness shall be upon their heads; and they shall obtain gladness and joy; sorrow and mourning shall flee away.

That's good enough for me.

Peace be with you...

Nephi's Soul, Saved By Grace (2 Nephi 4, part 2)

A scene from Mr. Holland's Opus

Play The Sunset

There is a scene from the movie Mr. Holland's Opus where Mr. Holland is trying to encourage a high school girl who wants to quit the clarinet because she just can't get it, despite lots of practice, to keep trying.  She's wants to play Theme From A Summer Place.  After many mistakes, Mr. Holland has the idea to take her music away from her (because she knows the notes) and have her try to play the music while she envisions what she likes most about herself.  I really like this scene; I think most people do.  She says that she likes her red hair the most because her Dad says it reminds him of the sunset.  Mr. Holland says, "Play the sunset."  The girl closes her eyes and plays the song without a mistake. Mr. Holland was trying to teach her to play, not from the notes on the page, but from her heart, from her soul.

Anudder scene from Opus

I like a Gershwin tune; how 'bout you?  Then there's this udder scene where Mr. Holland advises anudder girl how to sing a Gershwin song.  He explains that she needs to know what the song is about.  She needs to know what the subject in the song is feeling in her gut, and then sing from her gut.  Her rendition made Someone To Watch Over Me one of my favorite songs.

Nephi has just buried his Dad.  His brothers got ticked at him again.  Nephi preached to them again, 'cause that's what Nephi does, but Laman and Lemuel ain't having none of it.  We don't have details of this conversation, but I think it's safe to assume it wasn't pretty.  Nephi wrote down the details, but on his other plates, which were part of the lost 116 pages of translation that Joseph Smith loaned to Martin Harris.

2 Nephi 4: 14-16

14.  For I, Nephi, was constrained to speak unto them, according to His word; for I had spoken many things unto them, and also my father, before his death, many of which sayings are written upon mine other plates; for a more history part are written upon mine other plates.

15.  And upon these I write the things of my soul, and many of the scriptures which are engraven upon the plates of brass.  For my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them, and writeth them for the learning and the profit of my children.

16.  Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of The Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard.

So, what does Nephi write when he sings from his guts?  2 Nephi 4: 15-35 is known as "The Psalm of Nephi".  I was going to only quote a few verses of this chapter 'cause I figured don't have to write it all down when you can read it for yourselves, which I exhort you to do, but I couldn't not do it.  My heart delights too much in some of these chapters, and chapter 4 is a big one for me.  It teaches such  beautiful truth.

2 Nephi 4: 17-18

17.  Nevertheless, notwithstanding the great goodness of The Lord, in showing me His great and marvelous works, my heart exclaimeth: O wretched man that I am! Yea, my heart sorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities.

18.  I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily beset me.

Wait a minute, this is Nephi we're talking about, right?  "The temptations and sins which do so easily beset me"?  Nephi? 

Not my favorite style of scripture art, but...

Nephi is pretty upset in these verses.  He must have done something awful.  What did he do?

2 Nephi 4: 26-29

26.  O then, if I have seen so great things, if The Lord in His condescension unto the children of men hath visited men in so much mercy, why should my heart weep and my soul linger in the valley of sorrow, and my flesh waste away, and my strength slacken, because of mine afflictions?

27.  And why should I yield to sin, because of my flesh?  Yea, why should I give way to temptations, that the evil one have place in my heart to destroy my peace and afflict my soul?  Why am I angry because of mine enemy?

28.  Awake, my soul!  No longer droop in sin.  Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul.

29.  Do not anger again because of my enemies.  Do not slacken my strength because of mine afflictions.

Sounds like Nephi's sin is anger.  Who is he angry at?  His enemy.  Who is his enemy, his brothers?  No, I think he's talking about Satan.  Right?  "No longer droop in sin.  Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul."  Maybe his original sinful behavior was reacting in anger to his brothers bitter aggression towards him, but I think his regret is that he allowed Satan room in his heart, to bring him down to their level and push the Spirit of The Lord away.

Man, Nephi is such a tower above me.  Yet, we all could be saying this stuff, couldn't we?  Nephi has such a clear understanding of the plan of Salvation, and the pivotal role of The Savior, Jesus Christ in his life.

• Nephi understands the struggle between his flesh (natural man, subject to the effects of the fall of Adam) and his spirit (that part of him that desires nothing but holiness), and does such a masterful job with the struggle over the flesh.
• Nephi acknowledges his weaknesses, and knows he is not above temptation and sin, even though he has had such powerful spiritual witnesses and experiences.
• Nephi knows that Christ will come in less than 600 years, and will, at that time, pay for his sins.  
• Nephi strives not to be perfect, but to be continually forgiven and sanctified by the atonement of Jesus Christ through faith on His name.

These verses, I think, are some of the most profound scriptures we have when it comes to what it means to be Saved By Grace.  Read some more with me...

2 Nephi 4: 19-21

19.  And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins; nevertheless, I know in whom I have trusted.

20.  My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep.

21  He hath filled me with His Love, even unto the consuming of my flesh.

Obviously, Nephi does not forget to remember not to forget The Lord's blessings.

2 Nephi 4: 30-35

30.  Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto The Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise Thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in Thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation.

31.  O Lord, wilt thou redeem my soul?  Wilt thou deliver me out of the hands of mine enemies?  Wilt thou make me that I may shake at the appearance of sin?

32.  May the gates of hell be shut continually before me, because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite!  O Lord, wilt thou not shut the gates of Thy righteousness before me, that I may walk in the path of the low valley, that I may be strict in the plain road!

33.  O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of Thy righteousness!  O Lord, wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine enemies!  Wilt thou make my path straight before me!  Wilt thou not place a stumbling block in my way -but that thou wouldst clear my way before me, and hedge not up my way, but the ways of mine enemy.

34.  O Lord, I have trusted in Thee, and I will trust in Thee forever.  I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh.  Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm.

35.  Yea, I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh.  Yea, my God will give me, if I ask not amiss; therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto Thee, my God, the rock of my righteousness.  Behold, my voice shall forever ascend up unto Thee, my rock and mine everlasting God.  Amen.

Yeah, that's me, having a sandwich on top of Mt. Timpanogos, right after I died.

Me

I love the hope in Christ and the Love for my Savior that fills my soul when I read this chapter.  I love how Nephi shows his weaknesses and confesses that he has sins too, so he's someone I can actually relate to, and yet, despite his own perceived challenges, his faith in Jesus, and that He will walk out of that tomb, causes his hope of salvation in God's Kingdom to never diminish.

I've said before that I wish I could be a man like unto Nephi.  While I was talking about Nephi's strength, spirituality, and commitment to obedience as well, what I really admire is his hope in Christ, and how he really gets it; he gets it in his soul.

I say the words of Nephi's prayer along with him:

Wilt Thou make me that I may I shake at the appearance of sin?

Peace be with you...