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TODAY'S THEME
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At God's Command Father Lehi Preached to People in Jerusalem -by Del Parson |
There is no doubt about it, if Lehi had not made the decision that he made regarding following the very challenging commandment the Lord gave him to preach in Jerusalem, there would never have been a Book of Mormon.
If there were no Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ, there would never have been the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, because as the Prophet Joseph Smith said:
"The Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion."This is the way it is regarding good outcomes, whether it is with a whole nation such as the Nephite-Lamanite nation or with you and me. It all starts with someone (even though that person has imperfections) making right decisions (even though they might be very difficult to make.)
Hasn't that been your own personal experience? Think of positive things that have taken place in your life that came about because you made right decisions. Now don't let those wrong decisions you might have made keep you from remembering those right decisions you also made.
Now you will have the opportunity of reading Lehi's faithful son, Nephi's record of the circumstances his father found himself in. Please read: I Nephi 1:4-15
I hoped that you noticed in verses 8-11 that Father Lehi saw the pre-mortal Jesus Christ. (by the way, we all had a pre-mortal life where we lived as spirit children of our Heavenly Father).
Please now read: I Nephi 1:18-20
Please note that the other Jews mocked Lehi's prophesying which included the coming of a Messiah (Jesus Christ), and also of the redemption of the world.
From what you have just read you have seen clear evidence of the Book of Mormon being truly Another Witness of Jesus Christ with Lehi being the testator.
You will now read what the Lord commanded Father Lehi to do and that Lehi, true to form, did what the Lord commanded him. I Nephi 2:1-18
I encourage you to read through all of the Book of I Nephi in your own personal copy of the Book of Mormon.
When you do so you will find that Father Lehi, after his great faith and courage, being human, found himself angry at the Lord because being out in a desert on the Arabian Peninsula he and all those with him were starving. Please click on this link: I Nephi 16:17-25
Through this difficult experience, Lehi repented and again, like perhaps each of us, learned from his difficult experiences. I am personally very grateful that the Lord, Jesus Christ has opened the way by atoning for my sins thus enabling Him that He has forgiven me.
Now skipping over many chapters which I hope you will read before long, I want to focus on some of Father Lehi's words that were recorded by Nephi that he spoke not too long before his death. First, please read this: II Nephi 2: 26-30
Then there were additional statements that Nephi recorded of the words of his father, Lehi. These show the great spiritual insights this great and good man developed.
II Nephi 2:11 For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my first-born in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility.
II Nephi 2:15 And to bring about his eternal purposes in the end of man, after he had created our first parents, and the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and in fine, all things which are created, it must needs be that there was an opposition; even the forbidden fruit in opposition to the tree of life; the one being sweet and the other bitter.
II Nephi 2:27 Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator (Jesus Christ) of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself. (highlighted words in parenthesis added)
28 And now, my sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit;
29 And not choose eternal death, according to the will of the flesh and the evil which is therein, which giveth the spirit of the devil power to captivate, to bring you down to hell, that he may reign over you in his own kingdom.Those statements of Lehi from Nephi's record are great evidences that Lehi stayed faithful unto the end of his life.
His son, Nephi, after Lehi's death became the patriarch of the family. However, two of Nephi's older brothers, Laman and Lemuel chose not to follow their father's clear counsel and caused a significant division in the family. Nonetheless Father Lehi was a very significant factor in leading his family onward and upward, keeping careful records that would ultimately provide information the Prophet Mormon could record in his record which ultimately became "The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ" which is playing a very very important role in preparing the world for the Second Coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
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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 BlogPost, (Or To Search The Index For Any Other Blog Post You Desire To Access), After You Have Read All of This Paragraph, Please Scroll Back Up And Click on the Following: (The) Keystone of Our (LDS) Religion - Post 26) When The Picture of Our Savior, Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy Comes Onto Your Screen, 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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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.
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Neil Birch
