In my last post, I said I would talk about Abinadi's testimony as it relates to the verses from Isaiah and the result of Abinadi's bold testimony. As you recall, after silencing King Noah and his priests, Abinadi teaches them about the coming of Christ and bears testimony of the things he taught them.
Abinadi's testimony of Christ was magnificent, one of the most eloquent I have ever heard. There is no room for question about his beliefs; He states: "...I would that ye should understand that God himself shall come down among the children of men, and shall redeem his people." (Mosiah 15:1). Abinadi tells his captors that he foresaw that the Redeemer of men: "suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to the temptation, but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people...And after all this, after working many mighty miracles among the children of men, he shall be led, yea, even as Isaiah said, as a sheep before the shearer is dumb...Yea, even so he shall be led, crucified, and slain, the flesh becoming subject even unto death...And thus God breaketh the bands of death, having gained the victory over death" (Mosiah 15:5-8).
Abinadi's testimony, as powerful and pure as it was, did not end there. Abinadi proceeded to instruct these wicked men about the purpose of the Lord's mission on earth. Abinadi explains: "O how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that is the founder of peace, yea, even the Lord, who has redeemed his people; yea, him who has granted salvation unto his people; But behold, the bands of death shall be broken, and the Son reigneth, and hath power over the dead; therefore, he bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead" (Mosiah 15: 18-20)
I wish that my testimony could be so eloquent. I wish that, like Abinadi's words, my testimony of the Savior were this sure and strong. We probably all wish to have this kind of testimony, but it isn't wishing that makes it possible... We have control over whether our testimony is strong or weak. We alone can make the effort that such a testimony requires. May we each find the strength and desire come to believe and to testify convincingly of the truthfulness of the good news that Jesus is the Savior and Redeemer of mankind.
I wanted to address one of the things in these chapters that I have puzzled over for some time. We have all been taught that the Godhead is comprised of three separate and distinct beings: The Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Mosiah 15:2-4 tells us: "And because he dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son— The Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and Son— And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth."
I realized as I thought about these verses that they relate to something that Isaiah said in chapter 14: "He was taken from prison and from judgment; and who shall declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living; for the transgressions of my people was he stricken." (Mosiah 14:8 / Isaiah 53:8). Who shall declare his generation? Another way of saying this might be "and who shall be his children?". Abinadi explains this to the king's courtiers: "who shall declare his generation? Behold, I say unto you, that when his soul has been made an offering for sin he shall see his seed. Behold I say unto you, that whosoever has heard the words of the prophets, yea, all the holy prophets who have prophesied concerning the coming of the Lord—I say unto you, that all those who have hearkened unto their words, and believed that the Lord would redeem his people, and have looked forward to that day for a remission of their sins, I say unto you, that these are his seed, or they are the heirs of the kingdom of God. For these are they whose sins he has borne; these are they for whom he has died, to redeem them from their transgressions. And now, are they not his seed?" (Mosiah 15:10-12)
Am I a child of Christ? Are you a child of Christ? If we have learned of Him, believed in Him, and patterned our lives after Him, having hope and faith in His redemptive sacrifice, then we are his generation. He truly is the father of our redemption, making him the Father and the Son, and we are His children. I believe that coming to appreciate and accept this idea as truth opens the door for one to have a higher testimony of the Savior and His mission.
Does this make sense? To me it does, now that I've pondered it and then read and reread the scriptures. To me, this is the essence of scripture study - to have a question, to ponder what is said, to read and re-read, to pray and to be given an understanding. My hope is that all of us will partake in this spiritual opportunity.
Abinadi proceeded to warn the king and his priests about the sad fate awaiting those who will not hearken to the Lord's call. This serves to anger the priests, and they egg on the king to have Abinadi killed, even when the King becomes reluctant to do so after being told by Abinadi that "...if ye slay me ye will shed innocent blood, and this shall also stand as a testimony against you at the last day." (Mosiah 17:10). One of the king's priests, Alma, believes Abinadi's words and calls for his release, but he is ejected from the king's chambers and then chased to be slain. More about Alma in future posts. Abinadi then seals his testimony with his own life: "I say unto you, I will not recall the words which I have spoken unto you concerning this people, for they are true; and that ye may know of their surety I have suffered myself that I have fallen into your hands. Yea, and I will suffer even until death, and I will not recall my words, and they shall stand as a testimony against you." (Mosiah 17: 9-10). Abinadi was put to death by king Noah and his priests by fire.
I hope and pray that none of us will ever be faced with such a heavy burden as Abinadi was. But if we were so challenged, would we stand up to the task? You can't run a marathon without first being able to run a mile. We can't sacrifice for what we believe in until we believe in it. Let me repeat: We alone can make the effort that such a testimony requires.
May we make the opportunities we need to cultivate a strong testimony of Jesus Christ and His gospel. May we stand true when asked to sacrifice for the Lord. May we stand in His presence one day.
Don
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Abinadi Testfies: Mosiah 13 - 16
This is a very moving part of the Book of Mosiah. King Noah's society began to decay after he assumed kingship; after 10 years of downslide as a general society, the Lord sent Abinadi to call them to repentance. Abinadi flees when the people are angered by his words, but about 2 years later the Lord sends him back to finish the job... side-note: this is one of the world's worst blown covers; Abinadi goes back in disguise but the first thing that he says: "...Thus the Lord commanded me, saying - Abinadi, go and prophesy..." (Mosiah 12:1). Anyway, Abinadi is before the king, accused as one who is saying undesirable things to the people. What follows is one of the great testimonies of the Gospel and description of the coming Savior. Here are a few hi-lites.
King Noah's dismissal and Abinadi's Protection (13:1-5). The king tells his guards to take Abinadi away, saying "Away with this fellow, and slay him; for what have we to do with him, for he is mad." (Mosiah 13:1). As the king's wicked priests try to take Abinadi, he declares "Touch me not, for God shall smite you if ye lay your hands upon me, for I have not delivered the message which the Lord sent me to deliver... therefore, God will not suffer that I shall be destroyed at this time. But I must fulfill the commandments wherewith God has commanded me..." (Mosiah 13:3-4). This is very effective; not just the declaration, but that Abinadi's face is shining with the spirit of the Lord. Note that this isn't the first time in the Book of Mormon that such a declaration was made to wicked people; "...they [Nephi's brothers] were angry with me, and were desirous to throw me into the depths of the sea; and as they came forth to lay their hands upon me I spake unto them, saying: In the name of the Almighty God, I command you that ye touch me not, for I am filled with the power of God, even unto the consuming of my flesh; and whoso shall lay his hands upon me shall wither even as a dried reed; and he shall be as naught before the power of God, for God shall smite him... And it came to pass ... that they were confounded and could not contend against me; neither durst they lay their hands upon me nor touch me with their fingers..." (1 Ne 17:48,52). Lessons we can learn? Although this is an extreme case, we find that God will support his servants as they carry out His commands. I don't think I've ever seen a priesthood holder command another person to touch them not because the Lord will smite them, but I have seen people who were filled with the spirit of the Lord - almost to the point that their countenance seemed to be shining. I recall President Gordon B. Hinckley once saying that as he served the Lord as his modern day prophet that the Lord sustained him on a daily basis. We must trust the Lord as we do His work.
Abinadi reads and explains the 10 commandments to the king's court: Having king Noah and his priest's attention, this was a practical place to establish the message the Lord has sent him to give. Since the priests pretended to teach and keep the Law of Moses, Abinadi read them the actual commandments and then asks: "Have ye taught this people that they should observe to do all these things for to keep these commandments?" Abinadi answers for them: "I say unto you, Nay; for if you had, the Lord would not have caused me to come forth and to prophesy evil concerning this people" (Mosiah 13: 25-26).
Interesting point: The Lord loved these people enough to send a prophet to tell them to change their ways.... The alternative? Leave them to their own devices until they are "ripe" for destruction. Funny thing that they are angered by this act of love on the Lord's part.
Explanation of why salvation doesn't come by the Law of Moses:
Abinadi explained to the so-called priests, who should have known the law of Moses if it truly was their theological basis, about salvation. He told them: "...it is expedient that ye should keep the law of Moses as yet....the time shall come when it shall no more be expedient to keep the law of Moses" (Mosiah 13:27).
Abinadi explained the reason for the Law of Moses: "...it was expedient that there should be a law given to the children of Israel, even a very strict law; for they were a stiffnecked people ... therefore there was a law given them... a law of performances and of ordinances...which they were to observe strictly from day to day to keep them in remembrance of God and their duty towards him" (Mosiah 13:29-30).
Abinadi testified to them that, although this strict law was needed, it would not ultimately lead to salvation: "...there could not any man be saved except it were through the redemption of God" (Mosiah 13:32).
This redemption was foretold by prophets of all ages. Each prophet prophesied that "...he should bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, and that he, himself, should be oppressed and afflicted" (Mosiah 13:35).
Quoting Isaiah to establish the coming of the Savior:
Abinadi quoted Isaiah's writings to the king and his priests as he delivered his message. Chapter 14 of Mosiah quotes verses found in Isaiah chapter 53 of the Old Testament. Some of my favorite verses, which appear in the wonderful oratorio "The Messiah" by George Freidrich Handel, can be found in this chapter:
"For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not." (Mosiah 14 and Isaiah 53: v.2-3).
"Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities... and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken." (Mosiah 14 and Isaiah 53: v.4-6,8)
"He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities." (Mosiah 14 and Isaiah 53: v.11)
I can hear the strains of Handel's Messiah as I read these words. Abinadi uses these words, those of the great prophet Isaiah, to establish his testimony of the coming of a Savior for mankind. All of the prophets had testified of the Savior's coming, and Abinadi also testified of that. In short, Abinadi's testimony to the king and his minions leaves them no excuse for their actions and behavior. Do we search the scriptures - the writings of the prophets - for their testimony of the Savior? We can improve our spiritual lives by reading their words. We can strengthen our testimonies by receiving their testimonies. That is what they recorded them for.
Next post I will talk about Abinadi's testimony as it relates to the verses from Isaiah and the result of Abinadi's bold testimony.
Don
King Noah's dismissal and Abinadi's Protection (13:1-5). The king tells his guards to take Abinadi away, saying "Away with this fellow, and slay him; for what have we to do with him, for he is mad." (Mosiah 13:1). As the king's wicked priests try to take Abinadi, he declares "Touch me not, for God shall smite you if ye lay your hands upon me, for I have not delivered the message which the Lord sent me to deliver... therefore, God will not suffer that I shall be destroyed at this time. But I must fulfill the commandments wherewith God has commanded me..." (Mosiah 13:3-4). This is very effective; not just the declaration, but that Abinadi's face is shining with the spirit of the Lord. Note that this isn't the first time in the Book of Mormon that such a declaration was made to wicked people; "...they [Nephi's brothers] were angry with me, and were desirous to throw me into the depths of the sea; and as they came forth to lay their hands upon me I spake unto them, saying: In the name of the Almighty God, I command you that ye touch me not, for I am filled with the power of God, even unto the consuming of my flesh; and whoso shall lay his hands upon me shall wither even as a dried reed; and he shall be as naught before the power of God, for God shall smite him... And it came to pass ... that they were confounded and could not contend against me; neither durst they lay their hands upon me nor touch me with their fingers..." (1 Ne 17:48,52). Lessons we can learn? Although this is an extreme case, we find that God will support his servants as they carry out His commands. I don't think I've ever seen a priesthood holder command another person to touch them not because the Lord will smite them, but I have seen people who were filled with the spirit of the Lord - almost to the point that their countenance seemed to be shining. I recall President Gordon B. Hinckley once saying that as he served the Lord as his modern day prophet that the Lord sustained him on a daily basis. We must trust the Lord as we do His work.
Abinadi reads and explains the 10 commandments to the king's court: Having king Noah and his priest's attention, this was a practical place to establish the message the Lord has sent him to give. Since the priests pretended to teach and keep the Law of Moses, Abinadi read them the actual commandments and then asks: "Have ye taught this people that they should observe to do all these things for to keep these commandments?" Abinadi answers for them: "I say unto you, Nay; for if you had, the Lord would not have caused me to come forth and to prophesy evil concerning this people" (Mosiah 13: 25-26).
Interesting point: The Lord loved these people enough to send a prophet to tell them to change their ways.... The alternative? Leave them to their own devices until they are "ripe" for destruction. Funny thing that they are angered by this act of love on the Lord's part.
Explanation of why salvation doesn't come by the Law of Moses:
Abinadi explained to the so-called priests, who should have known the law of Moses if it truly was their theological basis, about salvation. He told them: "...it is expedient that ye should keep the law of Moses as yet....the time shall come when it shall no more be expedient to keep the law of Moses" (Mosiah 13:27).
Abinadi explained the reason for the Law of Moses: "...it was expedient that there should be a law given to the children of Israel, even a very strict law; for they were a stiffnecked people ... therefore there was a law given them... a law of performances and of ordinances...which they were to observe strictly from day to day to keep them in remembrance of God and their duty towards him" (Mosiah 13:29-30).
Abinadi testified to them that, although this strict law was needed, it would not ultimately lead to salvation: "...there could not any man be saved except it were through the redemption of God" (Mosiah 13:32).
This redemption was foretold by prophets of all ages. Each prophet prophesied that "...he should bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, and that he, himself, should be oppressed and afflicted" (Mosiah 13:35).
Quoting Isaiah to establish the coming of the Savior:
Abinadi quoted Isaiah's writings to the king and his priests as he delivered his message. Chapter 14 of Mosiah quotes verses found in Isaiah chapter 53 of the Old Testament. Some of my favorite verses, which appear in the wonderful oratorio "The Messiah" by George Freidrich Handel, can be found in this chapter:
"For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not." (Mosiah 14 and Isaiah 53: v.2-3).
"Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities... and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken." (Mosiah 14 and Isaiah 53: v.4-6,8)
"He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities." (Mosiah 14 and Isaiah 53: v.11)
I can hear the strains of Handel's Messiah as I read these words. Abinadi uses these words, those of the great prophet Isaiah, to establish his testimony of the coming of a Savior for mankind. All of the prophets had testified of the Savior's coming, and Abinadi also testified of that. In short, Abinadi's testimony to the king and his minions leaves them no excuse for their actions and behavior. Do we search the scriptures - the writings of the prophets - for their testimony of the Savior? We can improve our spiritual lives by reading their words. We can strengthen our testimonies by receiving their testimonies. That is what they recorded them for.
Next post I will talk about Abinadi's testimony as it relates to the verses from Isaiah and the result of Abinadi's bold testimony.
Don
Thursday, July 7, 2011
King Noah and Abinadi: Mosiah 11 - 12
Here is the setup in a nutshell: Zeniff, the leader of the Nephites who returned to the land of Lehi-Nephi, gets old and annoints his son Noah to be king. Noah doesn't live up to the standards set by his father and walks the road of sin and temptation. Noah's debauchery leads many of his people to embrace his lifestyle and the Lord sends the prophet Abinadi to warn them of their fate, should they fail to turn from the path they are on. Noah and his people take exception to this prophet, reject him from their society and even try to kill him. He flees from them, but after a couple of years, the Lord sends him back to cry repentance to them again. Abinadi is taken by the people to Noah, and the king and his priests question him, trying to trip him up.
This is a summary of the happenings in Mosiah chapters 11 and 12. As I read and re-read this part I was impressed by Abinadi's willingness to serve the Lord as asked in spite of any consequences. There are several things that came to my mind as I read these chapters; allow me to elucidate:
I know I'm always harping about how things in the Book of Mormon fit in a time line; please bear with me... I'm not sure I have ever fully appreciated that Noah was king for 10 years before Abinadi was sent to prophesy. It makes sense, though. King Noah's corruption (seduction?) of his people couldn't have happened overnight; flattery takes time to properly apply and do it's work. During thise 10 years (just a little longer than a U.S. president's 2 terms of office), Noah managed to turn the people's hearts away from the Lord. He managed to levy a tax upon the people. At the same time he did this, he managed to win their loyalty. I can imagine Noah building spacious buildings at the taxpayers expense and labeling it as social programs. I can imagine Noah's priests preaching the need for a palace for their beloved king. I can see the people justifying his taxation because the "programs" are in the public's interest. My point is that the people allowed themselves to be taxed and support Noah because he convinced them that it was for their good (sound familiar?). What a seducer! I can also imagine Noah and his priests telling the people that they shouldn't be subservient to their father's religion, that they can boldly do what their ancestors considered wrong because the old people didn't live in these times (an oldie but goodie, as far as lies go).
This brings to mind the scripture: "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" (2 Nephi 28:21). As I said, these things take time.
Question: Did Noah do these things willfully? Or was he deceived himself? I don't know the answer, read the chapters and tell me what you think.
While we're speaking of time, consider this time-line: It was 10 years from when Noah became king until Abinadi first appeared to cry repentance. Abinadi fled and was not heard from for 2 years. Abinadi delivers his scathing message to Noah and his followers and is then slain about 148 B.C. It is about 3 years later that Noah is driven out and slain by fire, and Limhi, Noah's son, is recognized as the new king. Limhi leads his people during their bondage to the Lamanites for the next 24 years, when Ammon and his band is dispatched from Zarahemla to find them. I guess I always thought of these events happening in a shorter period of time, but in reality we are talking about the span of almost 40 years. Pretty interesting, don't you think? Consider this: Noah managed to lead the people astray in the space of 10 years. The Lord made them suffer in bondage for 24 years before He provided them a way of escape. It reminds me of the children of Israel going to Egypt and then being held slaves to the Egyptians for 400 years before being led out of Egypt.
So Abinadi came among the people to give them the Lord's message: "...for I have seen their abominations, and the wickedness...and except they repent I will visit them in mine anger. And except they repent and turn to the Lord their God, behold, I will deliver them into the hands of their enemies..." (Mosiah 11:20-21). The people were angry with the message and tried to take Abinadi to the king for judgement but Abinadi escaped. This is how we know that the people's hearts were hardened to the Lord's word: "Now the eyes of the people were blinded; therefore they hardened their hearts against the words of Abinadi..." (Mosiah 11:29).
The Lord's message, delivered by Abinadi, angered the people. It seems to always be true that a person (or people) who are doing something wrong are greatly offended when they are called out about it. These people were no different; they denied any wrongdoing on their part and on the part of the king: "...they took him and carried him bound before the king, and said unto the king: Behold, we have brought a man before thee who has prophesied evil concerning thy people, and saith that God will destroy them. And he also prophesieth evil concerning thy life, and saith that thy life shall be as a garment in a furnace of fire....And he pretendeth the Lord hath spoken it. And he saith all this shall come upon thee except thou repent...And now, O king, what great evil hast thou done, or what great sins have thy people committed, that we should be condemned of God or judged of this man?" (Mosiah 12:9-10,13).
It is so easy to justify ourselves when we are confronted; I believe that is human nature, maybe even part of the flight part of the fight or flight response mechanism that people seem to have (a.k.a the natural man). But easy isn't what opens the doors of God's heavenly kingdom. Even though it is our nature to excuse ourselves of wrongdoing, it is God's desire that we acknowledge wrongdoing and then try to change the offensive behavior. The steps of repentance include acknowledging sin in order to repent. We should constantly have repentance in our hearts and minds, take the high road by admitting to our foibles, seek for the Lord's guidance as we seek to become more in tune with Him. This is not the easy way but it IS the Lord's way. May we do so continually.
More in the next post about Abinadi's confrontation with king Noah and his so-called priests.
Don
This is a summary of the happenings in Mosiah chapters 11 and 12. As I read and re-read this part I was impressed by Abinadi's willingness to serve the Lord as asked in spite of any consequences. There are several things that came to my mind as I read these chapters; allow me to elucidate:
I know I'm always harping about how things in the Book of Mormon fit in a time line; please bear with me... I'm not sure I have ever fully appreciated that Noah was king for 10 years before Abinadi was sent to prophesy. It makes sense, though. King Noah's corruption (seduction?) of his people couldn't have happened overnight; flattery takes time to properly apply and do it's work. During thise 10 years (just a little longer than a U.S. president's 2 terms of office), Noah managed to turn the people's hearts away from the Lord. He managed to levy a tax upon the people. At the same time he did this, he managed to win their loyalty. I can imagine Noah building spacious buildings at the taxpayers expense and labeling it as social programs. I can imagine Noah's priests preaching the need for a palace for their beloved king. I can see the people justifying his taxation because the "programs" are in the public's interest. My point is that the people allowed themselves to be taxed and support Noah because he convinced them that it was for their good (sound familiar?). What a seducer! I can also imagine Noah and his priests telling the people that they shouldn't be subservient to their father's religion, that they can boldly do what their ancestors considered wrong because the old people didn't live in these times (an oldie but goodie, as far as lies go).
This brings to mind the scripture: "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" (2 Nephi 28:21). As I said, these things take time.
Question: Did Noah do these things willfully? Or was he deceived himself? I don't know the answer, read the chapters and tell me what you think.
While we're speaking of time, consider this time-line: It was 10 years from when Noah became king until Abinadi first appeared to cry repentance. Abinadi fled and was not heard from for 2 years. Abinadi delivers his scathing message to Noah and his followers and is then slain about 148 B.C. It is about 3 years later that Noah is driven out and slain by fire, and Limhi, Noah's son, is recognized as the new king. Limhi leads his people during their bondage to the Lamanites for the next 24 years, when Ammon and his band is dispatched from Zarahemla to find them. I guess I always thought of these events happening in a shorter period of time, but in reality we are talking about the span of almost 40 years. Pretty interesting, don't you think? Consider this: Noah managed to lead the people astray in the space of 10 years. The Lord made them suffer in bondage for 24 years before He provided them a way of escape. It reminds me of the children of Israel going to Egypt and then being held slaves to the Egyptians for 400 years before being led out of Egypt.
So Abinadi came among the people to give them the Lord's message: "...for I have seen their abominations, and the wickedness...and except they repent I will visit them in mine anger. And except they repent and turn to the Lord their God, behold, I will deliver them into the hands of their enemies..." (Mosiah 11:20-21). The people were angry with the message and tried to take Abinadi to the king for judgement but Abinadi escaped. This is how we know that the people's hearts were hardened to the Lord's word: "Now the eyes of the people were blinded; therefore they hardened their hearts against the words of Abinadi..." (Mosiah 11:29).
The Lord's message, delivered by Abinadi, angered the people. It seems to always be true that a person (or people) who are doing something wrong are greatly offended when they are called out about it. These people were no different; they denied any wrongdoing on their part and on the part of the king: "...they took him and carried him bound before the king, and said unto the king: Behold, we have brought a man before thee who has prophesied evil concerning thy people, and saith that God will destroy them. And he also prophesieth evil concerning thy life, and saith that thy life shall be as a garment in a furnace of fire....And he pretendeth the Lord hath spoken it. And he saith all this shall come upon thee except thou repent...And now, O king, what great evil hast thou done, or what great sins have thy people committed, that we should be condemned of God or judged of this man?" (Mosiah 12:9-10,13).
It is so easy to justify ourselves when we are confronted; I believe that is human nature, maybe even part of the flight part of the fight or flight response mechanism that people seem to have (a.k.a the natural man). But easy isn't what opens the doors of God's heavenly kingdom. Even though it is our nature to excuse ourselves of wrongdoing, it is God's desire that we acknowledge wrongdoing and then try to change the offensive behavior. The steps of repentance include acknowledging sin in order to repent. We should constantly have repentance in our hearts and minds, take the high road by admitting to our foibles, seek for the Lord's guidance as we seek to become more in tune with Him. This is not the easy way but it IS the Lord's way. May we do so continually.
More in the next post about Abinadi's confrontation with king Noah and his so-called priests.
Don
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