We’ll be looking at 1 Nephi 12, today.
As with the previous chapter, I feel a need to get to the meat of the scriptures contained herein rather than just rehashing everything that is usually addressed in Sunday School. So I’ll just shove out the stuff that gets rehashed and then get right to it.
- Filthy River – Depths of Hell
- Dark Mists – Temptations of the Devil
- Building – (clarification) Vain Imaginations and Pride of Mankind
There were also three words used in this chapter that I felt should be looked up for greater understanding of the meaning given. All definitions given here come from Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary. “Multitude” is defined as “a great number of people.” So, I rather think that when Nephi says multitudes (plural) he means specific large groups of people. There were two definitions for the word “tumultuous” that I liked. The first is “marked by tumult : loud, excited, and emotional.” That speaks, in my opinion, to the human response to the disaster taking place as the Judgments of God are enacted. The second definition I liked was “marked by violent or overwhelming turbulence or upheaval.” That, to me, speaks more to the actions of the earth herself. In short, there was a lot of noise as the earth rent herself in agony at the death of her creator and, in that destruction, there was also a lot of screaming and yelling as people died in the disasters that followed. Finally, the word “dwindle” was one that I felt needed to be defined. Merriam-Webster’s says it means “to become steadily less.” This calls to my mind the image of a dying candle flame. In this case, I think it’s a reference to their belief in God and the Savior, basically saying that, as their unbelief grew, their belief and, by extension, their faith in Christ was growing steadily less as the candle flame of their faith shrank and died. The people themselves didn’t get any less, but their belief did.
The last thing I felt impressed to discuss here was the idea of people’s garments being made white in the blood of the Lamb (v 10 & 11). Anyone who’s ever worn white clothing for any length of time has probably noticed how they tend to gray with time. A comparison with newer whites tends to reveal this graying. What’s more, I’ve noticed that no amount of bleach is able to return these whites to their former glory. Now, with this in mind, imagine dipping these grayed whites in the blood the Savior shed for us in the Garden of Gethsemane and, later, on the cross and having them come out as sparklingly white as they were when they were first bought. This is a reference to repentance, quite obviously, but the comparison is very interesting. Think about it for a minute. All of us have made mistakes and we’ve all been taught to do what we could to make things right. However, we all know that there’s nothing on the face of this earth that will ever make everything about our mistakes completely right. So, using the provided allegory, it doesn’t matter how many times we wash our whites, they’re never going to look as white as they did when they were new…unless we turn to the Lord and wash our whites in the blood of His sacrifice for us. This is a free gift. It is given to all, regardless of our current level of righteousness or wickedness. It is a gift of love, and love doesn’t have anything to do with deserving it and isn’t it a good thing it isn’t. If it was, none of us would go home. We’d all languish under the devil’s thumb as he proceeded to make us so miserable that we spent the rest of our existence eternally wishing we no longer existed. It is a gift that is already bought and paid for. All we have to do is take it and use it.
Applying the Scriptures to My Life
I know that I’m one of those who has, to my mind, stupidly thought myself unworthy of the Lord’s atonement. This, as I understand it, is a weird kind of pride. It’s like I’m telling the Lord that the stains on my whites are two stubborn for his blood to take out. It’s like I’m telling the Lord that I’d rather live in darkness and misery instead of taking His gift and using it to unlock my chains and brighten my whites. He loves me more than words can conveniently express and He’s shown it to me on many occasions. All I have to do is drop my burdens at His feet and take up the gift he has left me. Why is that so hard? I think it’s because my sins and pain are both so familiar that giving them up, which I must do before I can take the offered gift, is hard to do at first. However, I’ve experienced the pure joy that comes from walking the path of the Lord. So, no matter how familiar those things are, I am willingly striving to leave them in the street for the cars to drive over. That joy is so precious. I want to capture it and keep it forever. What about you?
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