3 Nephi 23-25

3 Nephi 23

I think Jesus is pretty much THE best and biggest endorsement a writer could get, don't you agree? ;) The past 3 chapters Jesus has been quoting Isaiah and expounding on it (which is why the past 3 chapters were particularly difficult to get through – Isaiah isn’t easy stuff). BUT even though Isaiah isn’t easy for us to understand, Jesus makes it clear that it is important.

1 And now, behold I say unto you, that ye ought to search these things. Yea, a commandment I give unto you that ye search these things diligently; for great are the words of Isaiah… 3 And all things that he spake have been and shall be, even according to the words which he spake.

Isaiah writing about the birth of Christ and other events to come

Jesus also teaches the importance of the scripture records when he calls out Nephi for not writing something important down. I can’t think of another time in scripture that Jesus basically says, “Hey this important thing was prophesied… Did it happen? Yes, well did you write it down? No, well… please do.” 

9 Verily I say unto you, I commanded my servant Samuel, the Lamanite, that he should testify unto this people, that at the day that the Father should glorify his name in me that there were many saints who should arise from the dead, and should appear unto many, and should minister unto them. And he said unto them: Was it not so?

10 And his disciples answered him and said: Yea, Lord, Samuel did prophesy according to thy words, and they were all fulfilled.

11 And Jesus said unto them: How be it that ye have not written this thing, that many saints did arise and appear unto many and did minister unto them?

12 And it came to pass that Nephi remembered that this thing had not been written.

13 And it came to pass that Jesus commanded that it should be written; therefore it was written according as he commanded.

3 Nephi 24

The Savior is quoting Malachi 3 (last book of the Old Testament) in this chapter – if you compare, they are pretty much identical.  There are a couple important passages I would like to highlight.

8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say: Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.

9 Ye are cursed with a curse, for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.

10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in my house; and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

11 And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the fields, saith the Lord of Hosts.

God is basically saying that when we don’t pay tithing, we are robbing him. In my church we pay 10% of our income back to the Lord. When I served as a missionary for the church, at first I was nervous to tell new investigators of the church about this law of tithing. How would they feel about giving money to the church? But it didn’t take long for my perspective to change, because I saw that they weren’t just giving money to the church—they were giving it to God, and He pays them back as he promises! Look at verses 10 and 11! Basically the Lord will pour down more blessings on you then you will have room to receive, and He will protect you from destruction and failure, which I saw fulfilled in so many different ways, over and over again. I’ve seen it happen for lots of people, and I’ve seen it happen for me. I am now a confident lover of the law of tithing. I’m excited for people to try it, so they can see how much more they have in their lives (both physically and spiritually) living on 90% then they used to on 100% --the Lord keeps His promises, always.

I’m not as familiar with these next verses, but they really impressed me while reading them this time:

 13 Your words have been stout against me, saith the Lord. Yet ye say: What have we spoken against thee?

 14 Ye have said: It is vain to serve God, and what doth it profit that we have kept his ordinances and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of Hosts?

 15 And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.

 16 Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another, and the Lord hearkened and heard; and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name.

 17 And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of Hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.

 18 Then shall ye return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

Many people have lost their faith because they can’t see the benefits of worshiping and following God, and it often appears that the proud & wicked are prospering and happy. But God is watching and listening to those who “fear him” and think of him. To fear God isn’t to worry that He is going to punish you or strike you down. It means to care more about what He thinks and what He says than what people think and say. Verse 18 says that God –and you—will be able to tell the difference between those that serve him and those that don’t. And He will “spare” those that serve Him. I think this is referring to the 2^nd Coming of Jesus Christ, but I see in so many ways how the Lord strengthens and delivers those who serve Him in the regular challenges of life. I know that the Lord watches over those who remember Him and serve Him.

3 Nephi 25

In this chapter the Lord is quoting Malachi 4.  The first 3 verses continue with the idea from the last chapter – that in the end, the proud & wicked will not prosper (and actually, at the 2^nd Coming of Christ they will be burned), but those who serve God will experience healing from the Son of Righteousness.

In my church we cherish verses 5 and 6:

5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord;

6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

We believe that families can be forever if they are “sealed” together in our temples –which is one of the primary purposes of our temples—and if they are faithful to God and each other. We believe that Elijah the prophet appeared to Joseph Smith in the first temple that they early members of the church built, and gave him the priesthood authority to seal families together and fulfill this prophecy in Malachi – to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to their fathers. For this reason, the church is BIG on family history and we have some of the best family history resources in the world that are available for people of any faith to use. This is because we believe in turning our hearts to our fathers, and that we can be together with our families (back generations and generations) forever!

And speaking of family history, I was just on familysearch.org tonight looking at my "Family Tree" and discovered that my mom's dad's mom's dad's mom's line goes all the way back to British Royalty, French Royalty, Roman Emperor Royalty, and finally stopped in the 100's --- no, not the 1100's, the 100's! and I'm related to Charlemagne, the first Holy Roman Emperor. COOL! Certainly I get some bragging rights for that somehow??

3 Nephi 19-22

3 Nephi 19

The crowd disperses and starts to spread the news that Jesus was there and will be back in the morning. “Even all the night it was noised abroad concerning Jesus…and there were many, yea, an exceedingly great number, did labor exceedingly all that night, that they might be on the morrow in the place where Jesus should show himself unto the multitude.” (vs. 3) I like to picture this – a family hearing life changing news, that they can see and hear Jesus tomorrow. And so they abandon sleep, drop everything, and travel all night to be there in the morning. 

In the morning the people are gathered in the place that Jesus said he would return. The 12 disciples that Jesus chose among the Nephites are leading out until Jesus arrives, and they split the crowd into 12 groups. They preach to their groups and pray with their groups, and they are baptized. The disciples are filled with the Holy Ghost and surrounded by fire, and all the people watch as angels come down to minister to the disciples. Wow! And then, Jesus appears in the midst of the crowd.

The first thing that Jesus does after He appears is to have the people kneel down and pray again. Then Jesus prays for the people, and the experience is so miraculous that no one can write or speak the words that Jesus spoke, and everyone was filled with the Holy Ghost. Jesus tells them that the experience is possible because of their incredible faith which was more than He had seen among the Jews.

 

3 Nephi 20-22

I’ll be honest – I’ve been stuck on these chapters for weeks. This is thick stuff, and I have no idea how to sum it all up briefly (and frankly I don’t fully understand it all anyway). Let’s just say that Jesus is quoting a lot of Isaiah and prophesying about the future, and in large part He is speaking about our time (or thereabouts – a little before our time and lots that hasn’t happened yet, either).

Here are a few highlights:

• The House of Israel -- i.e. the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob/Israel – were scattered & lost in Biblical times. The Lord has promised to gather them, and that promise will be fulfilled through the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ in our day as people from all nationalities and faiths unite in his restored church (hence, the emphasis on Missionary work in our church!). See 20:12-13, 29-31, 40, 21:22, 26-28
• When the words that Jesus is speaking to the Nephites in these chapters are available to read by the descendants of the Nephites, that is a sign the Lord has started gathering His people. In other words – when the Native Americans and the people of South America have the Book of Mormon given to them by the Gentiles, the gathering as begun! I think that’s so cool!! See 21:1-7, 26-28
• Note: Gentiles is a Biblical term for people who are not part of the House of Israel, or descendants of Israel/Jacob, or to put it more simply, people who are not Jews. When the Book of Mormon talks about Gentiles it usually/generally means the Christian people of North America and Europe. 21:2-3, 5-6
• Isaiah and ALL prophets have testified of Christ. See 20:23-24
• The spreading of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (and even Joseph Smith) are alluded to. In the “last days” the church will be established and the Lord will mercifully gather the House of Israel. See 21:9-11, 22, 26-28, all of Chapter 22

3 Nephi 17-18

3 Nephi 17

Jesus has been teaching the Nephites since chapter 11, and now he thinks the people need a break before they can absorb anymore.

 As Jesus is about to leave, he looks around and sees that everyone is in tears and wishing he wouldn’t leave yet. And then the Savior of mankind – probably the busiest person in the universe – has enough compassion to stay a little longer. And he heals them.

 7 Have ye any that are sick among you? Bring them hither. Have ye any that are lame, or blind, or halt, or maimed, or leprous, or that are withered, or that are deaf, or that are afflicted in any manner? Bring them hither and I will heal them, for I have compassion upon you; my bowels are filled with mercy.

 9 And it came to pass that when he had thus spoken, all the multitude, with one accord, did go forth with their sick and their afflicted, and their lame, and with their blind, and with their dumb, and with all them that were afflicted in any manner; and he did heal them every one as they were brought forth unto him.

 10 And they did all, both they who had been healed and they who were whole, bow down at his feet, and did worship him; and as many as could come for the multitude did kiss his feet, insomuch that they did bathe his feet with their tears.

There were about 2,500 people in the crowd (see vs. 25) so this wasn’t a brief delay for Jesus – but He felt the people were worth the extra time. And after Jesus healed the people, He prayed for them. The prayer was so powerful that it wasn’t even possible to write it down. The people later recalled that, “the eye hath never seen, neither hath the ear heard…and no tongue can speak, neither can there be written by any man, neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvelous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak; and no one can conceive of the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father.” (vs. 16-17) 

Then Jesus had the little children all brought to him, and he blessed them, one by one, and prayed again for the children. He loved them so much that he wept – Jesus wept! The Savior of mankind loved these people so much that he cried. I love that. 

Jesus tell the crowd to “Behold your little ones” (vs. 23) and when they looked, “they saw the heavens open, and they saw angels descending out of heaven as it were in the midst of fire; and they came down and encircled those little ones about, and they were encircled about with fire; and the angels did minister unto them.” (vs. 24) Pretty cool!

3 Nephi 18

After healing the people and blessing their children, Jesus stays a little longer and introduces the Sacrament to the Nephites, like he did with his 12 disciples before he was crucified. He breaks bread and passes a cup of wine. He gives authority and commandment to the leadership of the church to continue to give the Sacrament to the members of the church after Jesus leaves. 

Jesus tells the people that when they partake of the bread and wine, it will remind them of his body and his blood, and they are demonstrating to God that they will always remember Jesus (vs. 7 and 11) and are willing to follow His commandments (vs. 10). In return, Jesus promises that that they will always have his spirit to be with them (vs. 7 and 11).

Jesus instructs the church to not forbid anyone from coming to meet and worship with them, but that they should welcome everyone and pray for those who need extra help (vs. 22-23). He says, “ye see that I have commanded that none of you should go away, but rather have commanded that ye should come unto me, that ye might feel and see; even so shall ye do unto the world.” (vs. 25)

One of the most-repeated promises in the scriptures is given in this chapter:

“And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.” (vs. 18)

Do you believe that? Why or why not?

3 Nephi 15-16

3 Nephi 15-16

In John 10:14-16 in the New Testament, Jesus told the Jews:

“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep… And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”

Jesus tells the people in the Americas that they are the “other sheep” he was speaking about! He says the Father never commanded Him to tell the Jews about the Nephites/Lamanites in the Americas… except for this small phrase. He also says that other believers exist in other lands, too, who we don’t have a knowledge of, and Jesus is going to visit them as well!

15:21 And verily I say unto you, that ye are they of whom I said: Other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

22 And they understood me not, for they supposed it had been the Gentiles; for they understood not that the Gentiles should be converted through their preaching.

23 And they understood me not that I said they shall hear my voice; and they understood me not that the Gentiles should not at any time hear my voice—that I should not manifest myself unto them save it were by the Holy Ghost.

When the Book of Mormon talks about Gentiles, it basically means anyone who is not a Jew. So in vs. 22 Jesus says that the Jews in Jerusalem thought he was talking about the Gentiles when he said other sheep would hear his voice. But Jesus didn’t appear to a large group of Gentiles (or non-Jews) to convert them. After Jesus’ mortal ministry, he gave that responsibility to his apostles and disciples to spread Christianity to the Gentiles (see Acts 10). 

I love these verses because they show us that Jesus Christ speaks to anyone who will hear and follow Him, anywhere in the world—not just the Jews, as recorded in the Bible…and not just the Nephites, as recorded in the Book of Mormon. Apparently there were even more that we don’t have records about. That’s pretty cool! – and makes sense to me.

3 Nephi 12-14

3 Nephi 12

Jesus Christ’s teachings in 3 Nephi 12–14 are sometimes referred to as the “sermon at the temple” because they resemble the Savior’s well-known “Sermon on the Mount” in Matthew 5–7 in the Bible. 

Sermon on the Mount

Christ begins His sermon by teaching the blessings that come to those who develop “Beatitudes” –a phrase coined for these “attributes of the faithful” when Jesus taught them in Matthew 5. I like to look at each Beatitude along with its promised blessing. - Who wouldn’t want these blessings? And then of course I have to ask myself the hard question – how am I doing with developing these Beatitudes? 

BLESSED ARE…	FOR…
The poor in spirit who come unto me	Theirs is the kingdom of heaven (3 Nephi 12:3)
They that mourn	They shall be comforted (12:4)
The meek	They shall inherit the earth (12:5)
They who do hunger and thirst after righteousness	They shall be filled with the Holy Ghost (12:6)
The merciful	They shall obtain mercy (12:7)
The pure in heart	They shall see God (12:8)
The peacemakers	They shall be called the children of God (12:9)
They who are persecuted for my name’s sake	Theirs is the kingdom of heaven (12:10)
You when men shall revile you and persecute, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake	Ye shall have great joy and be exceedingly glad, for great shall be your reward in heaven (12:11-12)

It might be helpful to know that poor in spirit (3 Nephi 12:3) means to be humble and dependent on the Lord, to mourn (3 Nephi 12:4) refers to feeling a sorrow for our sins that leads to repentance, and to be meek (3 Nephi 12:5) can mean to be humble and gentle, to be submissive to God’s will, or to be patient in enduring injury without resentment.

In the remainder of 3 Nephi 12, Jesus referred to parts of the law of Moses and then taught a higher law. For example, He said that in the law of Moses it was commanded “thou shalt not kill” and “thou shalt not commit adultery.” But Jesus taught them to be a level better—that they shouldn’t be angry or entertain lustful thoughts in the first place. God gives us commandments to help us be happy. Think of all the heartache that would be spared if people didn’t kill or cheat on their spouses? Now take that to the next level, and how much MORE heartache would be spared if people didn’t get angry, or if they weren’t driven by lustful desires.

But I think the highest law is this one – one I’ve read over and over in my life, and yet I still seem to need it each time I read it (perhaps it’s a life-long journey for me):

38 And behold, it is written, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth;

39 But I say unto you, that… whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also;

40 And if any man will sue thee at the law and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also;

41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

42 Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn thou not away.

43 And behold it is written also, that thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy;

44 But behold I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you and persecute you;

3 Nephi 13-14

I love these chapters – probably because I love the Sermon on the Mount!  There are so many powerful teachings/principles/truths in this sermon from the Lord. I can’t say anything better than He did, so I’ll just let you read His words. Here are my favorite excerpts, and I’ve added headings to organize/introduce the topics.

Doing good for praise or attention

13:1 Verily, verily, I say that I would that ye should do alms unto the poor; but take heed that ye do not your alms before men to be seen of them; otherwise ye have no reward of your Father who is in heaven.

2 Therefore, when ye shall do your alms do not sound a trumpet before you, as will hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.

3 But when thou doest alms let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth;

4 That thine alms may be in secret; and thy Father who seeth in secret, himself shall reward thee openly.

Forgiving others

13:14 For, if ye forgive men their trespasses your heavenly Father will also forgive you;

15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Priorities

13:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and thieves break through and steal;

20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.

21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

You can’t please God and man

13:24 No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon.

Judging others

14:1 …Verily, verily, I say unto you, Judge not, that ye be not judged.

2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother: Let me pull the mote out of thine eye—and behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

*Note: a mote is a tiny sliver, and a beam is…well, a 2x4 or bigger! 

Seek God and you will find Him; Trust that God will give you good things

14:7 Ask, and it shall be given unto you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

8 For every one that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.

9 Or what man is there of you, who, if his son ask bread, will give him a stone?

10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?

11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

The Golden Rule

14:12 Therefore, all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.

Don’t assume the majority of people have it right 

14:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, which leadeth to destruction, and many there be who go in thereat;

14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

How to identify if a prophet is false or true 

14:15 Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

16 Ye shall know them by their fruits…

17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

Faith without obedience is not sufficient

14:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven.