4/11/2017 - Section 10:35-70

April 11, 2017

Section 10:35-70

Christ as Judge, Christ as Guide, The Gates of Hell, Nedra, Endure to the End, Contention, The Lord’s Way, Hen Gathereth Her Chickens,

V 37 is Christ’s tender teaching to Joseph Smith after Martin Harris had lost the 116 pages of the Book of Lehi. “But as you cannot always judge the righteous, or as you cannot always tell the wicked from the righteous, therefore I say unto you, hold your peace until I shall see fit to make all things known unto the world concerning this matter.” The Lord not only sees into my heart, but He sees into everyone’s heart. He alone is the one who can truly judge. That brings me comfort, for most of the time I am trying hard to live up to His commandments. And if I keep in contact with Him and petition Him, He will lovingly direct my thoughts and actions in a way that will benefit me AND those around me whom I might be able to help.

It is so interesting to me that not only did the Lord know that the Book of Lehi translation would be stolen, but He also knew that “…there are many things engraven upon the plates of Nephi which do throw greater views upon my gospel: therefore, it is wisdom in me that you should translate the first part of the engravings of Nephi and send forth in this work.    And, behold, all the reminder of this work does contain all those parts of my gospel which my holy prophets, yea, and also my disciples, desired in their prayers, should come forth unto this people.” (v 45-46) I am grateful that we are—at this time-- able to have the more complete record.

V 50 “And thus they did leave a blessing upon this land in their prayers, that whosoever should believe in this gospel in this land might have eternal life.” This reminds me that obtaining eternal life is simple. We just have to believe and live according to that belief. He further defines it in v 67: “Behold, this is my doctrine—whosoever repenteth and cometh unto me, the same is my church.” The neatest part about that plan is that by living that way, we are so much happier and we have so much more help through the Holy Ghost and his influence and through our sweet relationship with Heavenly Father and our wonderful access to Christ’s atonement.

In v 63 Christ warns us of contention: “And this I do that I may establish my gospel, that there may not be so much contention, yea, Satan doth stir up the hearts of the people to contention concerning the points of my doctrine; and in these things they do err, for they do wrest the scriptures and do not understand them.  Therefore, I will unfold unto them this great mystery.” The gospel is of peace and love. It has room for everyone. Instead of arguing with each other, we need simply to kindly help each other. And what I don’t understand, I take to the Lord.

And the next thing Christ says of comfort and peace: “For behold, I will gather them as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if they will not harden their hearts.” V65

And then, after all that, comes the verse that includes the words from the Book of Mormon that my mother heard a voice repeat to her as she read: “And now, behold, whosoever is of my church, and endureth of my church to the end, him will I establish upon my rock, AND THE GATES OF HELL SHALL NOT PREVAIL AGAINST THEM.” (v 69)

And the very final words of this section are: “And now remember the words of him who is the life and light of the world, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Amen” How did I ever think of the D&C as harsh? It contains the Lord’s love….well, yes, and also His sorrowful frustration with us when we refuse to see His way…

2/1/2021 – D&C 10:34-70

We were taught about Satan’s power yesterday, but today we will be taught about the Lord’s power. 

The Lord explains to Joseph just how He is helping him: “…behold, here is wisdom [I feel like he’s saying ‘just listen up!] and because I show unto you wisdom, and give you commandments concerning these things, what you shall do [I feel like he’s saying, I’m talking to you and showing you the right way—put your efforts into listening to the things I’ve been telling you…in your mind & in your heart! And then the Lord makes it crystal clear] show it not unto the world, that you may be preserved. Behold I do not say that you shall not show it unto the righteous.” (v’s 34-35)

And then, in the next verse He explains WHY He is guiding Joseph to carefully: “But as you cannot always judge the righteous, or as you cannot always tell the wicked from the righteous,[Joseph is learning how to be a prophet] therefore I say unto you, hold your peace until I shall see fit to make all things known unto the world concerning the matter.” (v 37)

He knows Joseph wanted to translate what was on the plates of Lehi because he had lost all that valuable scripture. But now the Lord explains to him in v 38-39: “…I say unto you that an account of those things that you have written, which have gone out of your hands, is engraven upon the plates of Nephi; Yea, and you remember it was said in those writings that a more particular account was given of these things upon the plates of Nephi.” The Lord explains to Joseph “Behold, there are many things engraven upon the plates of Nephi which do throw greater views upon my gospel, therefore, it is wisdom in me that you should translate this first part of the engravings of Nephi, and send forth in this work.” (v 45) This makes me want to re-read the books of Nephi—and this time much more carefully. But it’s not JUST Nephi…for then the Lord explains “all the remainder of this work does contain all those parts of my gospel…” (v 45) And as we read, especially in 3 Nephi, we see how Christ made sure “all those parts of my gospel” were included in this book.

The Lord tells us that he knows the past, the present and the future. That is something that we don’t have here on the earth. How could this earth life ever be a testing of, and growth of, our faith if WE could know the past, the present and the future? The Lord assures Joseph that he will be helped: “I will not suffer that they shall destsroy my work; yea, I will show unto them that my wisdom is greater than the cunning of the devil.” (V 43)

The Lord continues to speak and to assure us that our prayers, and our faith can make a huge difference – not just in our lives, but in the lives of those who come after us. And the thing that we all must beware of is that we “harden not their hearts”. (v 53) 

In v’s 57-70, Christ beautifully explains His purpose and His goals and our opportunities. And in v 64-65 He assures us, and warns us: “…I will unfold unto them this great mystery; For, behold, I will gather them as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if they will not harden their hearts” [I’d like to put an exclamation mark after that!] 

I love the fact that I SAW how this works when we were in Thailand on the back of an elephant on a tiny pathway through the jungle. What I saw is truly engraved into my heart, and at that moment I understood as never before how a little brown hen could provide complete safety for all of her chicks from a multi-toned elephant that was sure to smash them into oblivion. And all they had to do to be safe was to listen and then take immediate action.  The Christ assures us He is always watching out for us: “behold, this is my doctrine—whosoever repenteth and cometh unto me, the same is my church…” v 69

This section ends with a statement that is repeated in many of his scriptures when He promises us that as we follow Him to the best of our ability, “…him will I establish upon my rock, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against them.” (v 70) That is the verse that my mother heard repeated by an audible voice as she first read the Book of Mormon while trying to decide if this church was truly the true church. And that is a verse that I find repeated again and again in the Lord’s scriptures. It touches my heart every time I read it, and I am always, and ever thankful for the foundation my mother built and lived by—for it taught me to do the same, and that truly brings deep happiness to me each day of my life.

2/3/2021 – D&C 10

The study manual brought up this thought: “Satan would prefer that we forget he exists—or that we at least fail to recognize his attempts to influence us.” Satan is real. Satan is clever. Satan is trying, at every turn, to walk us further away from the Lord. In the BofM, Nephi warns us of Satan’s tactics: “ For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good. And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell. And behold, others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none—and thus he whispereth in their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains. Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion! (2 Nephi 20-22,24). Spencer W Kimball said that Satan “will use his logic to confuse and his rationalizations to destroy. He will shade meanings, open doors an inch at a time, and lead from purest white through all the shades of gray to the darkest black.” 

This is a reminder to me, that I need to be alert to the evil that exists, as well as the good. Christ is certainly alert to Satan’s efforts. Christ promises us in section 10 that he will bring light through his gospel: “And this I do that I may establish my gospel, that there may not be so much contention…I will unfold unto them this great mystery…I will gather them as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings.” (v’s 62-65)

I love my morning scripture study because it brings peace to my soul, even…no, especially…in difficult times. 

I think another wonderful help to me is that I always begin, and end my scripture study with a prayer of helping me to find greater understanding, to apply the things I read to my daily life, and to help me draw closer to the Lord. This morning I found a quote from President Joseph F. Smith opened my eyes a little further: “It is not the words we use particularly that constitute prayer. Prayer does not consist of words, altogether. True, faithful, earnest prayer consists more in the feeling that rises from the heart and from the inward desire of our spirits to supplicate the Lord in humility and in faith, that we may receive his blessings.” That certainly indicates a true closeness to the Lord. What could be better than that? Maybe that’s what the Lord meant when he encouraged us to “pray always”. Wasn’t it that type of prayer that overpowered the darkness that Satan used in trying to keep Joseph from his fervent prayer that morning in the sacred grove? Prayer works.