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Wednesday, February 17, 2010

The Rich Young Man

Last night, while studying the Book of Mormon, I read 1 Nephi 3:16. In this part of the chapter, Nephi is trying to convince his brothers to go back to Laban a second time and get the plates

“Wherefore, let us be faithful in keeping the commandment of the Lord; therefore let us go down to the land of our father’s inheritance, for behold he left gold and silver, and all manner of riches. And all this he hath done because of the commandments of the Lord.”
As I read that, my mind remembered the story of the rich, young man. You remember the young man. He approached the Savior asking Him what he could do to obtain eternal life. Since the young man already knew the commandments, the Savior invited him to sell everything – give it all up to he had, give it to those less fortunate – and only then could he really, truly follow Him. When the young man heard this, “he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.” Not only did this young man walk away from the Savior’s commandment, he walked away from eternal life!

Nephi was also a rich, young man. But unlike the young man in the New Testament, Nephi left everything to follow the commands of the Lord. It is no wonder then, why Nephi is capable to teaching us wholly and fully to “go and do,” “that many of us, if not all, may be saved in his kingdom at that great day.”

3 comments:

  1. ooooooH! I had not thought of that comparison before - thank you! What a rich lesson! Get it?! Get it?! hahahahahaha

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  2. I was thinking about the go and do and Nephi and how he just DID...always. I was reading in Ether and there was a passage that reminded me of Nephi's faith: Ether 6:4 "And it came to pass that when they had prepared all manner of food, that thereby they might subsist upon the water, and also food for their flocks and herds, and whatsoever beast or animal or fowl that they should carry with them—and it came to pass that when they had done all these things they got aboard of their vessels or barges, and set forth into the sea, commending themselves unto the Lord their God."
    After reading this, I thought, really, this is a perfect example for me...that they commended themselves to God. They packed everything they had in barges without windows...to be driven by the winds of the sea...literally...and they did it...commending themselves to God. Power!
    In the Strength of the Lord, WE CAN DO HARD THINGS!!!!!

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