37h - Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ to Prepare the Book of Mormon for Future Translation. Moroni's Role #4

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From The End of This Post

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TODAY'S THEME

Painting: Del Parson                                                     Painting: Tom Lovell           

Jesus Christ Speaks with Moroni

Ether 12:23 And I said unto him: Lord, the Gentiles will mock at these things, because of our weakness in writing; for Lord thou hast made us mighty in word by faith, but thou hast not made us mighty in writing; for thou hast made all this people that they could speak much, because of the Holy Ghost which thou hast given them;


24 And thou hast made us that we could write but little, because of the awkwardness of our hands. Behold, thou hast not made us mighty in writing like unto the brother of Jared, for thou madest him that the things which he wrote were mighty even as thou art, unto the overpowering of man to read them.25 Thou hast also made our words powerful and great, even that we cannot write them; wherefore, when we write we behold our weakness, and stumble because of the placing of our words; and I fear lest the Gentiles shall mock at our words.


26 And when I had said this, the Lord spake unto me, saying: Fools mock, but they shall mourn; and my grace is sufficient for the meek, that they shall take no advantage of your weakness;27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.

28 Behold, I will show unto the Gentiles their weakness, and I will show unto them that faith, hope and charity bringeth unto me—the fountain of all righteousness.

29 And I, Moroni, having heard these words, was comforted, and said: O Lord, thy righteous will be done, for I know that thou workest unto the children of men according to their faith; (emphasis added)

The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ
Joseph Smith, who translated the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ, by the power of God, and those of faith who humbly read it, have (or will have) learned of its truthfulness and be guided in their lives by its great teachings. Thank you Dear Moroni! And Thank you Dear Mormon! Thank You most of all, Dear Lord!

Painting: Del ParsonJoseph Smith Translating the Plates

I, Neil Birch, am deeply touched by the words from Ether 12 quoted above. I love Moroni and his father, Mormon, for their great devotion to the Lord in bringing about this great book. The Book of Mormon was and still is a key part of the Lord's Latter-day Work in preparing a people to greet Him and the Hosts of Heaven as they descend from the sky on that great day!

Painting: Harry Anderson

The Second Coming

From the very beginning of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ, was a very powerful tool in the hands of missionaries called to serve in various places in the United States as it was constituted in that day.

By 1837 the Lord, through His Prophet, Joseph Smith, called several members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles to open missionary work across the Atlantic Ocean in England. Of course, the Book of Mormon became a very important part of the Lord's work there.

 

Photograph: Alex ander L. Baugh

The River Ribble Near Preston, England

On Saturday evening, 29 July, 1837 the Mormon missionaries agreed to baptize fifteen of the eager investigators the following morning in the River Ribble near the tram bridge. There the small but tempestuous rapids on one side of the river partly swirled into a quiet eddy, creating a beautiful pool, edged by a grassy slope. Farther back were large weeping willows and bushes.

Accounts are not clear as to how the missionaries would select the first person to be baptized in England. Elder Heber C. Kimball, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who led the mission, recorded this:

A circumstance took place which I cannot refrain from mentioning, for it will show the eagerness and the anxiety of some in that land to obey the gospel. Two of the male candidates, when they changed their clothes at a distance of several rods from the place where I was standing in the water, were so anxious to obey the Gospel that they ran with all their might to the water, each wishing to be baptized first. The younger, George D. Watt, being quicker of foot than the older, outran him, and came first into the water.

It so happens that the older of the two foot racers at that first LDS baptism in England was 53 year old Henry Clegg who became the second person baptized in England. He is one of my wife, Melva Giles Birch's ancestors. He remained faithful to The Lord and to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to the end of his life. Most all of his descendants know all about that footrace to become the first person baptized into the church in England.

You have just learned about the first baptism of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in England. Thousands upon thousands of members of the church moved to the United States of America, especially in the early years of the Church.

In this the Twenty First Century, the Church is very strong in England. One important indicator of that is that for a good number of years there have been temples there. This is an indication that the Church is firmly strong in that great nation. I'm sure the Prophets Mormon and Moroni are pleased that the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ has a an important role in the growth of the Lord's Church in that Land.

London England Temple

Preston England Temple

The scripture used as TODAY'S THEME of this post is, in my humble opinion, one of the greatest of all scriptures. Therefore, after haven given you the opportunity of reading seven of the forty one verses in that chapter, I'm now giving you the opportunity of reading and listening to all 41 verses of it. You won't regret choosing to do so!

Ether 12:1-41

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DISCLAIMER  
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.




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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access): After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ, Moroni's Role #3 and Mormon's Role #4 -37h. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To A Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetic Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.




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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.


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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you found very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch

37g - Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ to Prepare the Book of Mormon for Future Translation - Moroni's Role #3 And Mormon's Role #4

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From The End of This Post.

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TODAY'S THEME

The Brother of Jared Sees the Finger of the Lord -by Arnold Friberg

Ether 3:6 And it came to pass that when the brother of Jared had said these words, behold, the Lord stretched forth his hand and touched the stones one by one with his finger. And the veil was taken from off the eyes of the brother of Jared, and he saw the finger of the Lord; and it was as the finger of a man, like unto flesh and blood; and the brother of Jared fell down before the Lord, for he was struck with fear.

7 And the Lord saw that the brother of Jared had fallen to the earth; and the Lord said unto him: Arise, why hast thou fallen?

8 And he saith unto the Lord: I saw the finger of the Lord, and I feared lest he should smite me; for I knew not that the Lord had flesh and blood.

 9 And the Lord said unto him: Because of thy faith thou hast seen that I shall take upon me flesh and blood; and never has man come before me with such exceeding faith as thou hast; for were it not so ye could not have seen my finger. Sawest thou more than this?

10 And he answered: Nay; Lord, show thyself unto me.

11 And the Lord said unto him: Believest thou the words which I shall speak?

12 And he answered: Yea, Lord, I know that thou speakest the truth, for thou art a God of truth, and canst not lie.

13 And when he had said these words, behold, the Lord showed himself unto him, and said: Because thou knowest these things ye are redeemed from the fall; therefore ye are brought back into my presence; therefore I show myself unto you.

14 Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters. (emphasis added)

The Brother of Jared Sees the Finger of the Lord. Those are words of Great Doctrinal Significance! Please go back right now and read once again all nine (6 through 14) of those verses from Chapter 3 of the Book of Ether (From the Book of Mormon).

In verse fourteen (14) just above, The pre-mortal Savior, Jesus Christ sums up His great Plan of Salvation in just a few precise words. I repeat this verse so you can more carefully read and understand them:

14 Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters.

That which you have just read twice is very significant Gospel Doctrine which is clearly stated in that important passage from the Book of Ether, one of the sub-books within the Book of Mormon! In that one verse (14)The pre-mortal Jesus Christ told the Brother of Jared and each of the readers of the book (The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ) that which can give us much motivating hope in our lives, motivating us to live righteously while "believing on my (His) name".

I now invite you to read while listening to a clarifying eighteen verse section of the Book of Mormon entitled: The Words of Mormon which comes just before the Book of Mosiah.

The Words of Mormon

After you have read while listening to all that is contained in the Words of Mormon, I call your attention to several specific things that the Prophet Mormon told us in that important scripture:

 Words of Mormon: 4 And the things which are upon these plates pleasing me, because of the prophecies of the coming of Christ; and my fathers knowing that many of them have been fulfilled; yea, and I also know that as many things as have been prophesied concerning us down to this day have been fulfilled, and as many as go beyond this day must surely come to pass—

5 Wherefore, I chose these things, to finish my record upon them, which remainder of my record I shall take from the plates of Nephi; and I cannot write the hundredth part of the things of my people.

6 But behold, I shall take these plates, which contain these prophesyings and revelations, and put them with the remainder of my record, for they are choice unto me; and I know they will be choice unto my brethren.

7 And I do this for a wise purpose; for thus it whispereth me, according to the workings of the Spirit of the Lord which is in me. And now, I do not know all things; but the Lord knoweth all things which are to come; wherefore, he worketh in me to do according to his will.

8 And my prayer to God is concerning my brethren, that they may once again come to the knowledge of God, yea, the redemption of Christ; that they may once again be a delightsome people.

9 And now I, Mormon, proceed to finish out my record, which I take from the plates of Nephi; and I make it according to the knowledge and the understanding which God has given me.

 Dear Blog Readers, I have highlighted two verses above in order to call your attention to how the Prophet Mormon, by the Spirit of Prophecy and Revelation
knew that he was to include the writings of the early Nephite prophets which he found on those small plates. That happened in about A.D. 385 or about 351 years after our Resurrected Savior, Jesus Christ had visited the Nephite Nation, teaching and setting up his Church among them.

In our Book of Mormon we do not have the Book of Lehi. Either the Prophet Joseph Smith or one of the three main persons who wrote the words as he spoke them under the guidance of Heavenly means, tells us that is the name of the book which was translated first. We don't have that book in our present day Book of Mormon nor was it in any previous edition of the Book of Mormon.

It would have been recorded by Joseph's scribe (Martin Harris) on the 116 manuscript pages Joseph Smith dictated under inspiration from God.

As you may have learned previously from my blog posts or from your own reading, Martin Harris asked Joseph Smith for permission to take those pages (which were from the Book of Lehi) to show his wife who believed that her husband was waisting their time and money on an inconsequential matter. With that causing much tension in their marital relationship, Martin wanted to convince his wife that he was involved in a worthy effort!

Joseph inquired of the Lord three times and each of the first two times was told by the Lord that he shouldn't grant Martin Harris the request he had made. After the third request the Lord gave Joseph permission to allow Martin to take those manuscript pages back to Palmyra, New York which was about 65 miles North of Harmony, Pennsylvania where the translating had been taking place.

We can be sure that the Lord knew exactly what was going to happen, but allowed what the Prophet Joseph Smith had requested of him. One evidence of the truth of that is that which is written in verses six and seven in the Words of Mormon. I suggest that you scroll up ( like I just did without your seeing me do so) and read those two verses again and then scroll back down to this point.

From what you just read in those two verses I'm sure you can see that the Lord God knew that those records which contained such precious matters would be much needed in the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

But what about the Book of Lehi which covered the same time span as did the writings contained in the Small Plates of Nephi? The fact is that many centuries before while Mormon was deliberating what to do about those Small Plates of Nephi, the Lord knew even then by His all "knowing of the future ability" that the Book of Lehi would be lost! Here is Just a small aside of mine regarding the Prophet Mormon:

Such great dedication the Prophet Mormon showed in his assignment given him by the Lord! And again, he possessed and used the Spirit of Prophecy and Revelation which is something that every worthy member of the Lord's Church anciently and today was (and now is) entitled to access!

 I Continue relating to you that which occurred regarding the 116 manuscript pages that Martin Harris had written as the Prophet Joseph Smith dictated each of those words under the inspiration of Our God.

To sum up: the Prophet Joseph Smith, to his great dismay and disappointment was told by Martin Harris that those 116 manuscript pages were not in their family safe where he had put them. Most likely his wife, Lucy had given them to someone.

All of this was very upsetting to the Prophet Joseph Smith. The Lord chastised him for having given into Martin Harris's persuasions. Joseph did that even though the Lord had told him several times not to allow Martin to take those manuscript pages home to Palmyra. However, he did so only after the Lord finally gave him permission to do so!

Now each of us need to recall that the Lord knew there was a solution to the problem. Remember what the Prophet Mormon said in verses six and seven of the Words of Mormon!

It appears that the Prophet Joseph Smith repented of his having given in to the persuasions of Martin Harris and was allowed to continue translating under the inspiration of Heavenly Father until the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ was fully translated and subsequently published and continues to this day and way beyond to serve its very important role in the Lord's Latter-day work!

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 Mormon Message: Continue in Patience, Narrated by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.

____________

TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access): After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ, Moroni's Role #3 and Mormon's Role #4 -Post 37g. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To A Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetic Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)


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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.

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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you found very beneficial that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch

37f - Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ to Prepare the Book of Mormon for Future Translation. - Moroni's Role #2

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From The End of This Post

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TODAY'S THEME

Moroni Prays to the Lord as He Prepares to Bury the Golden Plates Which He, Many Centuries Later Would Deliver to the Latter-day Prophet, Joseph Smith as a Resurrected Angel.

Painting: Tom Lovell

I quote again from the Words of Mormon:

1:1 AND now I, Mormon, being about to deliver up the record which I have been making into the hands of my son Moroni, behold I have witnessed almost all the destruction of my people, the Nephites.

2 And it is many hundred years after the coming of Christ that I deliver these records into the hands of my son; and it supposeth me that he will witness the entire destruction of my people. But may God grant that he may survive them, that he may write somewhat concerning them, and somewhat concerning Christ, that perhaps some day it may profit them. (emphasis added)

I'm hoping that each of you readers are catching on to the marvelous, inspired teamwork that existed between Moroni and his father, Mormon.

Hopefully, very soon each of us, you and me can begin to really see all that they accomplished together to bring about the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ for full, earnest use in our time of the World's history to benefit their own posterity and the posterity of their brethren, the Lamanite's posterity who are living in our time by preparing them and us, the Gentiles, to be caught up into heaven to greet our Great Redeemer and the Hosts of Heaven who will come with Him.



The Second Coming -by Harry Anderson

The Second Coming will mark the beginning of the blessed Millennium. This may be coming much sooner than you or I have ever imagined!

Let me remind you, Mormon and Moroni did not do their assignments given them by our Lord Jesus Christ in preparing the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ to be translated in our day while living lives of luxury and ease. I doubt if you or I could ever even come close to adequately imagining the extremely difficult circumstances these two humble, dedicated and obedient servants of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ were in when they did what they did!

I hesitate when I allow you (down the page some) to be reminded what Mormon wrote in his second epistle to his son, Moroni regarding the extreme wickedness of their own people, the Nephites and their enemies, the Lamanites. (I quoted that several posts back also) However, why shouldn't I? You read the articles in today's newspapers. Things pretty awful are happening in increasing numbers in our day! Maybe it would be hard to find these exact kinds of things happening today, but I would have to say, it may not be long until we do!

In A.D. 34 Jesus Grants the Wish of the three Nephite Apostles -by Gary L. Kapp

In about 34 A.D. Jesus Grants the Wish of the Three Nephite Apostles

These two men, Mormon and Moroni had individually communicated with their (and our) resurrected Savior Jesus Christ and also with the Three Holy Nephite apostles who had been spared by the Lord from death so they could continue until the Second Coming helping to bring souls unto Him.

Mormon and Moroni were both, holy sanctified men and they had to endure the kinds of things described next, FOR THE SAKE OF THE LAMANITES OF OUR DAY AND FOR US! (This was written in a letter from Mormon to his son, Moroni. Between A.D. 400 and 421)

Now, please read and listen to Moroni 9:1-26

Oh, I Neil Birch, shudder whenever I read those words from Mormon's letter about the wickedness of their people, the Nephites and their relatives, the Lamanites! I have to ask, should I focus the attention of my blog readers on those awful things?

We have lots of terrible things happening in our world today that we read about constantly in the news, but we don't have to do the Lord's errand right in the middle of all of that like these two great spiritual giants, Mormon and Moroni did!

I had to quote those words to really help you realize what Mormon and Moroni were living through while faithfully doing what the Lord asked of them! I'm sure you noticed the great love Mormon had for his son!

Mormon didn't live through it all as this painting depicting Mormon just before his death, demonstrates.



Mormon Bids Farewell to a Once Great (and Righteous) Nation -by Arnold Friberg

Again, as Mormon said in verse 2 in the Words of Mormon (quoted above) about his son, Moroni,

"But may God grant that he may survive them, that he may write somewhat concerning them, and somewhat concerning Christ, that perhaps some day it may profit them."

You will now, at the end of this blog post gain evidence that Moroni's father's earnest wish and prayer as to that which he prayed for in the scripture above that his son would do for the Lamanites and for us was fully answered:

Here is something else you could do in preparation for reading these great words of Moroni, only if you really want to: You could find a note pad and a pen or pencil so as you read and listen to Moroni's words you could list each of the things he suggests that you can do to become more worthy as you prepare to stand before our perfectly worthy Judge, Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ to be judged for the life you have lived!

Moroni 10:1-34

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Mormon Messages

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I had already completed this blog post, but felt compelled to return to add a brief quote and some comments. This is not the first time I've quoted this comment from the PBS Video, the "Mormons," aired April 30, and May 1, 2007.



Alex Caldiero

No young unlettered schooled farm boy from Western New York in 1830 could have invented the text used above in Moroni 9:1-37 (or any other text in the Book of Mormon). No one in the U.S.A. at that time of history could have made up such a scenario as is found in that book of scripture! No great author of our time could have invented such a script as is found in the Book of Mormon.

Why? Because it is chock full of ancient verities that go way beyond most experts, with the exception of the experts found at the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship at the Brigham Young University at Provo, UT, U.S.A. and some other scholarly experts who most often are in agreement with those expert scholars at BYU's Maxwell Institute.

"I hear Joseph Smith's voice everytime I read it (The Book of Mormon). He was a farmer. He was young. He was unlettered and he put this all together. So you have this rough hewn kind of text..." Alex Caldiero, poet and scholar, Utah Valley University, (clarification added)

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.

____________


TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access): After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ, Mormon's Role #3 -Post 37f. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To A Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetic Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)


____________




"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.


_____________


I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you found very beneficial that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch 

37e - Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ to Prepare the Book of Mormon for Future Translation. Mormon's Role #4

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From The End of This Post

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TODAY'S THEME

Dan Jones Awakens Wales -by Clark Kelley Price

Please listen to and read these words from the "Words of Mormon."

Native Welshman, Dan Jones was baptized into the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day in January 1843 while living in the Nauvoo, Illinois area (U.S.A.). He served several missions to his native Wales. Presiding over the mission there he was able to help bring about the baptisms of thousands of his former countrymen. It was said that when he was released from his assignment as leader of the Wales Mission that one out of every 272 people in relatively small Wales had become members of the LDS Church.

In the painting above, Dan is shown holding his key missionary tool up high in his left hand so all can see. It is:

The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ

The Prophet Mormon living in ancient Central America in about 400 to 421 A.D. knew full-well that the book he was writing (abridging-condensing) would be a very key part of the Lord's work in the latter days (our time on earth) in effectively preparing a people for the Second Coming of the Lord, Jesus Christ whose coming will begin the long-promised and awaited (By the Faithful) Thousand Year Millennium.

I'm focusing today on one very significant set of explanatory comments made by Mormon which are found relatively early on in the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

Now, I'll give you the helpful opportunity below of reading and listening to the "The Words of Mormon" for which I've provided for you to listen to and read on your computer screen.

Afterwards I've determined to print ten verses of that short book, which will allow me to then emphasize and clarify key points the Prophet Mormon makes in them.

The Words of Mormon, Chapter One

THE WORDS OF MORMON A.D. 385
1 AND now I, Mormon, being about to deliver up the record which I have been making into the hands of my son Moroni, behold I have witnessed almost all the destruction of my people, the Nephites.

2 And it is many hundred years after the coming of Christ that I deliver these records into the hands of my son; and it supposeth me that he (Moroni) will witness the entire destruction of my people. But may God grant that he may survive them, that he may write somewhat concerning them, and somewhat concerning Christ, that perhaps some day it may profit them.

3 And now, I speak somewhat concerning that which I have written; for after I had made an abridgment from the plates of Nephi, down to the reign of this king Benjamin, (It is my, Neil Birch's, opinion that Mormon started his abridgement of the writings of the Nephite prophets from the time of his own life, then going backwards in time until coming to the earliest records of his Nephite people) of whom Amaleki spake, I searched among the records which had been delivered into my hands, and I found these plates, which contained this small account of the prophets, from Jacob down to the reign of this king Benjamin, and also many of the words of Nephi.

4 And the things which are upon these plates pleasing me, because of the prophecies of the coming of Christ; and my fathers knowing that many of them have been fulfilled; yea, and I also know that as many things as have been prophesied concerning us down to this day have been fulfilled, and as many as go beyond this day must surely come to pass—

5 Wherefore, I chose these things, to finish my record upon them, which remainder of my record I shall take from the plates of Nephi; (I, Neil, believe those plates Mormon just mentioned are the Large plates of Nephi), and I cannot write the hundredth part of the things of my people.

6 But behold, I shall take these plates, (Small plates of Nephi) which contain these prophesyings and revelations, and put them with the remainder of my record, for they are choice unto me; and I know they will be choice unto my brethren. (The Lamanites of our Day)

7 And I do this for a wise purpose; for thus it whispereth me, according to the workings of the Spirit of the Lord which is in me. And now, I do not know all things; but the Lord knoweth all things which are to come; wherefore, he worketh in me to do according to his will.

8 And my prayer to God is concerning my brethren, (Mormon's brethren would be the Lamanites (American Indians of both North, Central and South America) of our modern day who he knows will be a mixture of his people, the Nephites and also the Lamanites - relatives of theirs - and also of the Gentiles) that they may once again come to the knowledge of God, yea, the redemption of Christ; that they may once again be a delightsome people.

9 And now I, Mormon, proceed to finish out my record, (Mormon was, I believe, referring to the continuation of the abridgement of the Large Plates of Nephi) which I take from the plates of Nephi and I make it according to the knowledge and the understanding which God has given me.

10 Wherefore, it came to pass that after Amaleki had delivered up these plates (the Small plates of Nephi) into the hands of king Benjamin, he took them and put them with the other plates, which contained records which had been handed down by the kings, from generation to generation until the days of king Benjamin.

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(I, Neil Birch, now insert this explanation of the special value of these small plates of Nephi, Mormon mentions):

Jacob 1: 2 And he (Nephi, son of Lehi, Jacob's brother) gave me, Jacob, a commandment that I should write upon these plates a few of the things which I considered to be most precious; that I should not touch, save it were lightly, concerning the history of this people which are called the people of Nephi.

3 For he said the history of his people should be engraven upon his other plates, and that I should preserve these plates and hand them down unto my seed, from generation to generation.

4 And if there were preaching which was sacred, or revelation which was great, or prophesying, that I should engraven the heads of them upon these plates, and touch upon them as much as it were possible, for Christ's sake, and for the sake of our people. (clarification and emphasis added)
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What eventually happened was that after having completed the translation of 116 manuscript pages of the Book of Mormon that he, Joseph Smith, had been making with the Lord's guidance and with the assistance of several different scribes, (one at a time), beginning in the large plates of Nephi from the earliest date in the Book of Mormon 600 B.C. and going to the time just before the reign of the Nephite king Benjamin in about between about 279 and 130 B.C., Martin Harris, a friend and close associate of the Prophet Joseph Smith asked Joseph's (or rather the Lord's) permission to show those 116 manuscript pages to his (Martin's) wife who evidently doubted that Joseph Smith was actually translating an ancient book.

11 And they were handed down from king Benjamin, from generation to generation until they have fallen into my hands. And I, Mormon, pray to God that they may be preserved from this time henceforth. And I know that they will be preserved; for there are great things written upon them, (those small plates of Nephi) out of which my people and their brethren shall be judged at the great and last day, according to the word of God which is written. (Now it is apparent to me, Neil Birch, author of this Blog, that which Mormon is telling us in these following verses: 12 through 18, is that he, (Mormon) was writing in the way of abridgement of the large plates of Nephi. I suggest then that the following verses of The Words of Mormon are a continuation of Mormon's abridgement of the Large Plates of Nephi) and are actually the very last of that abridgement that would appear in the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ because of something that occurred during Joseph Smith's translation which you will learn of before long here.)

12 And now, concerning this king Benjamin—he had somewhat of contentions among his own people.

13 And it came to pass also that the armies of the Lamanites came down out of the land of Nephi, to battle against his people. But behold, king Benjamin gathered together his armies, and he did stand against them; and he did fight with the strength of his own arm, with the sword of Laban.

14 And in the strength of the Lord they did contend against their enemies, until they had slain many thousands of the Lamanites. And it came to pass that they did contend against the Lamanites until they had driven them out of all the lands of their inheritance.

15 And it came to pass that after there had been false Christs, and their mouths had been shut, and they punished according to their crimes;

16 And after there had been false prophets, and false preachers and teachers among the people, and all these having been punished according to their crimes; and after there having been much contention and many dissensions away unto the Lamanites, behold, it came to pass that king Benjamin, with the assistance of the holy prophets who were among his people—

17 For behold, king Benjamin was a holy man, and he did reign over his people in righteousness; and there were many holy men in the land, and they did speak the word of God with power and with authority; and they did use much sharpness because of the stiffneckedness of the people—

18 Wherefore, with the help of these, king Benjamin, by laboring with all the might of his body and the faculty of his whole soul, and also the prophets, did once more establish peace in the land. (emphasis and clarification Added)

Those 116 manuscript pages were referred to by those close to Joseph Smith at that time as the "Book of Lehi." It was an abridgement or condensation by the Prophet Mormon from the Large Plates of Nephi of the Nephite record from Lehi's day down through the Nephite prophet, Omni's day. It never became a part of the Book of Mormon that Joseph Smith published.

The LDS Church history shows that at first, the Lord denied Joseph's allowing those 116 manuscript pages to be shown to Martin Harris' wife. After Joseph plead three times to the Lord for them to be shown as Martin Harris desired, the Lord gave His permission.

In the course of time it was found that Martin Harris was unable to retrieve those 116 manuscript pages, or what was known to be the translation of the Book of Lehi from the Large Plates of Nephi. You can now read and listen to what the Lord told Joseph Smith in a revelation which is found in the Doctrine and Covenants of the LDS Church, regarding this matter:

D. and C. 10: 1-70

You now should understand why the Prophet Mormon did as he was prompted to do many centuries ago through the Spirit of Prophecy and Revelation as he explains in these 2 verses I quote again from above:

Words of Mormon 6 But behold, I shall take these plates, (The small plates of Nephi) which contain these prophesyings and revelations, and put them with the remainder of my record, for they are choice unto me; and I know they will be choice unto my brethren. (The Lamanites of our Day)

7 And I do this for a wise purpose; for thus it whispereth me, according to the workings of the Spirit of the Lord which is in me. And now, I do not know all things; but the Lord knoweth all things which are to come; wherefore, he worketh in me to do according to his will. (clarification and emphasis added)

I would now like you to view paintings of various events that are described in the first part of the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ which we now know came from the Small Plates of Nephi, the specially inspirational parts of that section of the inspired Book:

The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ



Lehi's Dream of the Tree of Life -by Jerry Thompson







Lehi Preaching in Jerusalem -by Del Parson

Lehi's Family and Relatives Crossing the Desert and Moving Towards Their Promised Land. (Focusing on Nephi with the Sheep They are herding -by Scott Snow





Nephi Rebuking His Rebellious Brothers While Building a Ship -by Arnold Friberg



Examining the Liahona Which Will Guide Them on Their Journey. It was Found in the Morning Outside Lehi's Tent. -by Arnold Friberg



Lehi and His People Arrive at the Promised Land (Central America) -by Arnold Friberg

 

And My Soul Hungered -by Al R.Young

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  Mormon Messages

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DISCLAIMER

This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.

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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access): After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ to: . . -Post 37e. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To A Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)
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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.

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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you found very beneficial that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch  

37d - Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ to Prepare the Book of Mormon for Future Translation. Mormon's Role #3

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From The End of This Post

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TODAY'S THEME



The Prophet Mormon with the Golden Plates -by Tom Lovell



This is the third post in a series on the subject:

"The Prophet Mormon's role in bringing about The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ."

The painting above is the only one of Mormon, of the two of him to which I have access, that I've used in my blog thus far. This second painting of him portrays him in, perhaps, the final hour of his life.



Mormon Bids Farewell to a Once Great Nation -by Arnold Friberg

 That touching scripture along with my having just viewed that painting, brought tears to my eyes and an even greater love for Mormon. What a man he was! He testified of Christ! His love and great concern was extended to his people in our day whom Latter-day Saints (and Mormon himself) refer to as:  Lamanites

22 O that ye had repented before this great destruction had come upon you. But behold, ye are gone, and the Father, yea, the Eternal Father of heaven, knoweth your state; and he doeth with you according to his justice and mercy. (emphasis added)

Mormon 6:17 O ye fair ones, how could ye have departed from the ways of the Lord! O ye fair ones, how could ye have rejected that Jesus, who stood with open arms to receive you!

18 Behold, if ye had not done this, ye would not have fallen. But behold, ye are fallen, and I mourn your loss.

19 O ye fair sons and daughters, ye fathers and mothers, ye husbands and wives, ye fair ones, how is it that ye could have fallen!

20 But behold, ye are gone, and my sorrows cannot bring your return.

21 And the day soon cometh that your mortal must put on immortality, and these bodies which are now moldering in corruption must soon become incorruptible bodies; and then ye must stand before the judgment-seat of Christ, to be judged according to your works; and if it so be that ye are righteous, when are ye blessed with your fathers who have gone before you.

However, he knew very clearly by the Spirit of Prophecy and Revelation which was a constant guide to him, (even through all of the awful battles in which he participated even as a physically large teenager, I'm sure that although it may seem impossible to you that the Holy Ghost could be with him during battles.) I'm grateful that we, to whom he refers to as Gentiles, (people of the future in the Western Hemisphere, were much loved and prayed for by Mormon.

I know he sought to prepare us to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Lamanites of our day especially by bringing that which he wrote which was to become: which he, Mormon, knew would be a great and an eternal blessing to those of us who believe in what he wrote and especially when we live by what is taught in it!

The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ



Captain Moroni and the Title of Liberty -by Arnold Friberg



Mormon, himself, as you know by now, had been an officer since age sixteen and perhaps even before as a sodier of no rank. He was much like a Moroni who lived in about 75 B.C. whose life's story he knew because he read the record written by Helaman about him and etched those accounts onto the golden plates.

Captain Moroni had much success against very hostile Lamanite armies led by a Nephite traitor, Amalakiah, who cunningly and by evil means had become the king of the Lamanites who considered the Nephite Nation to be enemies.

Here are Mormon's own words he wrote during the abridgement of the records from the Plates of Nephi concerning one of the battles in which that Captain Moroni was leading the Nephite army of that day through to victory. These words were written by the Prophet Mormon many centuries after these events took place:

Alma 48: 7 Now it came to pass that while Amalickiah had thus been obtaining power by fraud and deceit, Moroni, on the other hand, had been preparing the minds of the people to be faithful unto the Lord their God.

8 Yea, he had been strengthening the armies of the Nephites, and erecting small forts, or places of resort; throwing up banks of earth round about to enclose his armies, and also building walls of stone to encircle them about, round about their cities and the borders of their lands; yea, all round about the land.

9 And in their weakest fortifications he did place the greater number of men; and thus he did fortify and strengthen the land which was possessed by the Nephites.

10 And thus he was preparing to support their liberty, their lands, their wives, and their children, and their peace, and that they might live unto the Lord their God, and that they might maintain that which was called by their enemies the cause of Christians. 

11 And Moroni was a strong and a mighty man; he was a man of a perfect understanding; yea, a man that did not delight in bloodshed; a man whose soul did joy in the liberty and the freedom of his country, and his brethren from bondage and slavery;

12 Yea, a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God, for the many privileges and blessings which he bestowed upon his people; a man who did labor exceedingly for the welfare and safety of his people.

13 Yea, and he was a man who was firm in the faith of Christ, and he had sworn with an oath to defend his people, his rights, and his country, and his religion, even to the loss of his blood.

14 Now the Nephites were taught to defend themselves against their enemies, even to the shedding of blood if it were necessary; yea, and they were also taught never to give an offense, yea, and never to raise the sword except it were against an enemy, except it were to preserve their lives.

15 And this was their faith, that by so doing God would prosper them in the land, or in other words, if they were faithful in keeping the commandments of God that he would prosper them in the land; yea, warn them to flee, or to prepare for war, according to their danger;

16 And also, that God would make it known unto them whither they should go to defend themselves against their enemies, and by so doing, the Lord would deliver them; and this was the faith of Moroni, and his heart did glory in it; not in the shedding of blood but in doing good, in preserving his people, yea, in keeping the commandments of God, yea, and resisting iniquity.

17 Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men. (emphasis added)

After reading that, we all know now that the Prophet Mormon strongly identified with Captain Moroni! Anybody willing to dispute my guessing where he, Mormon got the name for his son, Moroni?

In Post 37b I helped you understand how it was that Mormon was selected to do things that prepared him to actually write the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

In Post 37c I told you that Mormon besides being told at age ten of the assignment by a Prophet of God to write the record of His people on what are named The Plates of Nephi at the age of twenty-four, was also assigned to produce after that, that which came to be named:

The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Mormon was also the father of at least one child, Moroni. His wife's name isn't mentioned. However, in his writings we learn that family is very important to him and I'm sure she was too. We are also told that he had been serving, since age sixteen, as a top leader in the Nephite Army. Perhaps he served even before then as what we perhaps would call, in the U.S.A., "an enlisted man."

In Post 37c, the just previous post, I got you involved in several serious matters regarding Mormon's early work with sacred records. If you read (and listened to Chapter 12- of the Book of Helaman)Also in Post 37c, I alluded to how Mormon, throughout the entire Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ, on many occasions, including his writing of Helaman, Chapter 12, had written words of explanation and encouragement and even of admonishment, while pursuing his course of teaching key principles and about special spiritual events throughout his assignment of abridging the records found on the Plates of Nephi from Father Lehi's day whose history begins in about B.C. 600, and then down to Mormon's own day in the mid A.D. 300 years.

Your soul should have been deeply touched and you would have recognized that the Lord God through His faithful and obedient servant, Mormon, was reaching out to each of us to prepare us for that day when when we stand before the Lord Jesus Christ/or His apostles in great humility to be judged by Him for how we lived our lives!

I expect, that in an upcoming post I will consider some more of Mormon's written words of explanation and encouragement and even words of admonishment as mentioned above in the previous paragraph. Those words will show you how important it was to Mormon, through the Lord's guidance, to assist you in your quest for a happy life and for living in the Lord's presence in the afterlife and in the resurrection!

In the next post, 37e, which I will publish on about July Twelfth, I will delve into a very interesting and crucial step which Mormon was guided by the Lord to take regarding his abridgement, or using another word, condensation of the Nephite records, to bring us The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ, in its present form!

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Mormon Messages

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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access): After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: Mormon and Moroni Were Assigned by Jesus Christ, Mormon's Role #3 -Post 37d. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To A Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetic Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)


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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch

_____________

I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you found very beneficial that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.


Neil Birch