Ponderize 2 Nephi 9:10. “O how great the goodness of our God, who
prepareth a way for our escape from…the death of the body, and also the death
of the spirit.”
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2
Nephi 9 contains a discourse by Nephi's younger brother Jacob about the
Atonement. Regarding the word Atonement, Brother Nibley explained: Atonement “comes from neither a Greek nor a Latin word, but
is good old English and really does mean … ‘at-one-ment,’ denoting both a state
of being ‘at one’ with another and the process by which that is achieved. The
word atonement appears only once in the New Testament (KJV Rom. 5:11) … the
translators preferring the more familiar word reconciliation” which “means
literally to be seated again with
someone (re-con-silio)—so that atonement is to be reunited with God.” The sources of all the synonyms of Atonement
in the scriptures suggest a “return to a former state.” (See June
1990 Ensign).
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To understand the teachings in 2 Nephi 9, it is also helpful to know the meaning of temporal death and spiritual death: Temporal death is the separation of the spirit from the physical body. “Spiritual death is separation from the presence of God. We are all separated from God as a result of the Fall… We further separate ourselves from God when we sin.” (See Book of Mormon Gospel Doctrine Teacher’s Manual [BMGDTM], 34.)
Thus, unlike temporal death, spiritual death seems to be a matter of degree. D&C 76 teaches that, because of Christ's resurrection, all except sons of perdition will ultimately be saved from spiritual death to some degree. “[T]hey who shall come forth in the resurrection of the just .... whose bodies are celestial …. shall dwell in the presence of God and Christ forever…. And again, we saw the terrestrial world … These are they who receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the Father…. And again, we saw the glory of the telestial … These are they who receive not of [Christ's] fulness in the eternal world, but of the Holy Spirit...” (See D&C 76:65, 70, 61, 71, 77, 81, 88.)
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To understand the teachings in 2 Nephi 9, it is also helpful to know the meaning of temporal death and spiritual death: Temporal death is the separation of the spirit from the physical body. “Spiritual death is separation from the presence of God. We are all separated from God as a result of the Fall… We further separate ourselves from God when we sin.” (See Book of Mormon Gospel Doctrine Teacher’s Manual [BMGDTM], 34.)
Thus, unlike temporal death, spiritual death seems to be a matter of degree. D&C 76 teaches that, because of Christ's resurrection, all except sons of perdition will ultimately be saved from spiritual death to some degree. “[T]hey who shall come forth in the resurrection of the just .... whose bodies are celestial …. shall dwell in the presence of God and Christ forever…. And again, we saw the terrestrial world … These are they who receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the Father…. And again, we saw the glory of the telestial … These are they who receive not of [Christ's] fulness in the eternal world, but of the Holy Spirit...” (See D&C 76:65, 70, 61, 71, 77, 81, 88.)
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Regarding
2 Nephi 9:6-9, Elder Joseph Fielding Smith testified: "If it had not been for the death of our Savior, Jesus Christ, the spirit and body would never [be] united again ... and, as Jacob states ... our spirits would have been taken captive by Satan" (Oct 1962 CR). Samuel the Lamanite provides a third witness of this truth: “For behold … it behooveth
him and becometh expedient that he dieth, to bring to pass the
resurrection of the dead, that thereby men may be brought into the
presence of the Lord. Yea, behold, this death
bringeth to pass the resurrection, and redeemeth all mankind from …
spiritual death; for all mankind, by the fall of Adam [are] cut off
from the presence of the Lord … But behold, the resurrection
of Christ redeemeth mankind, yea, even all mankind, and bringeth them
back into the presence of the Lord.” (Helaman 14:15-17.)
Elder Smith explained that the term “corruptible,” as used in the scriptures to refer to our physical bodies, does not mean sinful or evil but mortal, subject to disease and decay. Unless they are resurrected, sanctified, transfigured or translated, our physical bodies cannot withstand the glory of the Father or the Son. (Doctrines of Salvation [DS] 2:286; see also D&C 101:23-24.) Why was the Savior's resurrection necessary for us to overcome spiritual death?
Elder Smith explained that the term “corruptible,” as used in the scriptures to refer to our physical bodies, does not mean sinful or evil but mortal, subject to disease and decay. Unless they are resurrected, sanctified, transfigured or translated, our physical bodies cannot withstand the glory of the Father or the Son. (Doctrines of Salvation [DS] 2:286; see also D&C 101:23-24.) Why was the Savior's resurrection necessary for us to overcome spiritual death?
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Elder Quentin L Cook has said: "[B]ecause of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, all spirits blessed by birth will ultimately be resurrected, spirit and body reunited, and [all except the sons of perdition will] inherit kingdoms of glory that are superior to our existence here on earth" (April 2009 Conference Report [CR]).
The Prophet Joseph Smith said, “All beings who have bodies have power over those who have not” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 181).
The Prophet Joseph Smith said, “All beings who have bodies have power over those who have not” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 181).
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Elder
Joseph Fielding Smith also said: “We do not see Him now, but are we not in
[God’s] presence when we have the Holy Ghost, one of the members of the
Godhead, to lead and direct us?” (DS 2: 328; see also D&C 76:62, 77,
86.) Spiritually,
are we currently partly dead, mostly dead, totally dead, or . . . ?
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Elder
James E. Talmage testified that “the Holy Ghost has frequently operated for
good through persons who were unbaptized; indeed, some measure of His power is
given to all mankind … [T]he Holy Spirit is the medium of intelligence, of wise
direction, of development, of life. Manifestations of … the Spirit are seen in
the triumphs of ennobling art, the discoveries of science, and the events of
history; with all of which the carnal mind may believe that God takes no direct
concern.” (The Articles of Faith, 164 – 165: see
also D&C 88:7-13.)
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“Through
the Atonement of Jesus Christ, all people will be resurrected—saved from
temporal death” and “all people will be restored to Gods presence to be judged.
However, not all people will be permitted to dwell in God’s presence. According
to Jacob, what are some of the things we must do, and not do, to be able to be
‘saved in the [celestial] kingdom of God’?
[R]ead 2 Nephi 9:18, 21, 23, 39, 51-52 to find answers to this question.”
(BMGDTM, 34.)
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Regarding
2 Nephi 9:18, Elder Neal A. Maxwell
said: “To despise the shame of the world does not suggest contempt for others'”
or “a disdain for [mortal] life …. We
tend to think of the word despise as being synonymous with hate rather than as
an attitude in which something is regarded as of negligible importance…. [Saints]
who are looked down upon by the world…endure the contempt of others without
reciprocating that contempt…. the scorn and the shame that we must all come to
‘despise’ or care so little for that it does not deter us from doing that which
is right.” (See Things As They Really Are, 12-13; 3
Nephi 6:13.)
What does it mean to despise the
shame of the world?
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Regarding
2 Nephi 9:39, Elder Dallin H. Oaks has said, “To be spiritually minded is to
evaluate our experiences in terms of the enlarged perspective of
eternity…. [W]e who have a testimony of
the gospel of Jesus Christ should interpret our experiences in terms of our
know-ledge of the purpose of life, the mission of our Savior, and the eternal
destiny of the children of God.” (See Oct 1985 Conference Report [CR].) What
does it mean to be spiritually-minded?
.
. . Elder Neal A. Maxwell explained that “the carnal mind” involves “a
pessimistic philosophy” in which “human appetites are mistakenly viewed as the
only authentic reality and ‘now’ as the only moment that matters.” Elder
Maxwell also said that “unchecked” bad beliefs and behaviors can “harden into
the natural man” and that “unlike others you might carry, the natural man is
heavy and he is not your brother.” (April
1983 CR; Men and Women of Christ, 8; April 1991 CR.)
.
. . President Joseph Fielding Smith said, “It is just as easy to form good
habits as it is to form evil ones,” but “it is not easy” to change habits once
we have formed them (July
1972 New Era).
.
. . Elder Robert D. Hales has said that “when our outlook is dominated by
skepticism, cynicism, [or] criticism” we “then act in a way that the prophets
describe as the natural man” (Oct
2009 CR). What
does it mean to be carnally-minded?
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President
David O. McKay used to say: “Sow a thought, reap an act; sow an act, reap a
habit; sow a habit, reap a character; sow a character, reap an eternal destiny”
(as quoted by
President Spencer W. Kimball, in The
Miracle of Forgiveness, 115).
President
Kimball said, “There seems to grow upon us a film of worldliness… But when we pierce the shell, and humble
ourselves with sincere supplication, we can be partakers of the divine
nature.’” (See March
1978 Era.)
President
Hinckley said, “We can either subdue our divine nature … or we can bring it to
the front and let it shine through all that we do” (Oct 2002 CR).
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Regarding 2 Nephi 9:51, Elder Robert D. Hales has said: “When faced with the choice to
buy, consume, or engage in worldly things and activities, we all need to learn
to say ‘We can’t afford it’” but also, “‘We can afford it, but we don’t need
it’” and so “‘not spend money for that which is of no worth’” that “we could
have used to care for … others.” (See
April 2009 CR.) Can
you think of any examples of this in your own life?
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Regarding 2 Nephi 10:19, President Marion G. Romney testified: The Savior "repeatedly affirmed" to those He visited on this continent "that the Father had given them this land as a permanent inheritance (see 3 Nephi 15:3; 16:16; 20:14; 21:22)." (April 1963 CR.)
To whom has the Lord promised the Americas forever?
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