Book of Mormon Lesson
# 38—3 Nephi 12–15
Old Things Are Done Away, and All Things Have
Become New
Introduction
The title of today’s lesson always
makes me think of the parable of putting new wine into old bottles—it doesn’t
work. So you have to concentrate on the bottle first. To me that means changing
my thoughts and attitudes. The Sermon on the Mount/Temple found in the early
chapters of Matthew and here in Third Nephi is a discourse we are all familiar
with. But my/our reaction to it should be new each time we study it. And as we
allow the Savior’s words to change our hearts—make them new—we are prepared to
receive more encouragement, strengthen our steps on the path of discipleship.
The lesson manual has a thought-provoking challenge for us:
If someone asked
you to describe Jesus’ character, what would you say? President Harold B.
Lee spoke of one accurate description of Jesus’ character. “In His Sermon on
the Mount the Master has given us somewhat of a revelation of His own
character, which was perfect, or what might be said to be ‘an autobiography,
every syllable of which He had written down in deeds,’ and in so doing has
given us a blueprint for our own lives” (Stand Ye in Holy Places [1974],
342).
So if we look at the Beatitudes
especially as indications of the Savior’s character, do they help us modify our
own characters to be more like Him?
1. Jesus teaches the Beatitudes to the Nephites. 3 Nephi 12:1–12,
Unsurprisingly, perhaps, the Lord
teaches us first to listen to His ordained prophets. The corollary is obvious,
especially as we are just emerging, blinking, from a cumulative 12 hours nearly
of instruction from His ordained prophets. I was gratified to find that I could
almost immediately read the talks in the Gospel Library app. In our temple
preparation meetings, the Matrons are concentrating on one-sentence sermons. At
the end of this post, I have included some one-sentence sermons that were
distributed at the end of Conference—thoughts for the day really. The Lord
promises us that we will be blessed if we listen to, and act upon the words of
our living prophets. Here’s Elder Holland
The apostolic and
prophetic foundation of the Church was to bless in all times, but especially in
times of adversity or danger, times when we might feel like children, confused
or disoriented, perhaps a little fearful, times in which the devious hand of
men or the maliciousness of the devil would attempt to unsettle or mislead.
Against such times as come in our modern day, the First Presidency and Quorum
of the Twelve are commissioned by God and sustained by you as prophets, seers,
and revelators. … Such a foundation in Christ was and is always to be a
protection. … In such days as we are now in—and will more or less always be
in—the storms of life ‘shall have no power over you …’ [Helaman 5:12]” (Ensign,
Nov. 2004, 7).
Regarding the Beatitudes “The Bible
Dictionary explains that the Beatitudes “describe certain elements that go to
form the refined and spiritual character, and all of which will be present
whenever that character exists in its perfection. Rather than being isolated
statements, the Beatitudes are interrelated and progressive in their
arrangement” (“Beatitudes,”
620). The Guide to the Scriptures adds, “The Beatitudes are arranged in
such a way that each statement builds upon the one that precedes it” (“Beatitudes”).
The Institute Manual has a helpful chart:
President Harold B.
Lee taught that the Beatitudes embody the “constitution for a perfect life”:
“Four of them have to do with our individual selves,” and four “have to do with
man’s social relations with others” (Decisions
for Successful Living [1973], 57, 60). The following chart illustrates
that relationship:
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With Self
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With Others
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Blessed are the poor in
spirit.
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Blessed are the meek.
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Blessed are all they that
mourn.
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Blessed are the merciful.
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Blessed are all they who
do hunger and thirst after righteousness.
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Blessed are all the
peacemakers.
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Blessed are all the pure
in heart.
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Blessed are all they who
are persecuted for my name’s sake.
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Pres. Kimball helps us with meek:
If the Lord was
meek and lowly and humble, then to become humble one must do what he did in
boldly denouncing evil, bravely advancing righteous works, courageously meeting
every problem, becoming the master of himself and the situations about him and
being near oblivious to personal credit. Humility is not pretentious,
presumptuous, nor proud. It is not weak, vacillating, nor servile. … Humble
and meek properly suggest virtues, not weaknesses. They suggest a consistent
mildness of temper and an absence of wrath and passion. … It is not servile
submissiveness. It is not cowed nor frightened. … How does one get humble?
To me, one must constantly be reminded of his dependence. On whom dependent? On
the Lord. How remind one’s self? By real, constant, worshipful, grateful prayer
(The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball,
ed. Edward L. Kimball [1982], 232–33).
How are we doing? Maybe we should
take these one at a time as a goal to achieve in our daily interactions. Elder
Christofferson tells us that because of His Atonement, “We can choose to become
the kind of person that we will, and with God’s help, that can be even as He
is.”[1]
2. Jesus declares that His
followers are to be the salt of the earth and a light to other people. 3 Nephi
12:13–16
Elder Carlos Asay gave a masterful
explanation of the significance of salt that has lost its savor and what that
means. You can find it here: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1980/04/salt-of-the-earth-savor-of-men-and-saviors-of-men?lang=eng.
Although it is directed to the priesthood, there are lessons for all of us to
learn. What do Doctrine
and Covenants 101:39–40 and D&C
103:9–10 tell us that helps us understand this concept? Elder Oaks
sums it up, “We must change all elements of our behavior that are in conflict
with gospel commandments, covenants, and culture.”[2]
I grew up on an island and therefore
understood the perils of the sea. Coastlines are unpredictable, and approaching
at night or in a storm, only light can guide you in safely. A couple of years
ago I was delayed in San Diego and arrived at the airport in Salt Lake in thick
fog at two in the morning—as you know it is in a valley, and as I made my way
toward I-215, the fog became impenetrable. I thought I knew where I was, but I
couldn’t be sure. I couldn’t see the exit. I was frankly terrified and was
crawling at 4 or 5 mph, knowing I couldn’t pull over because there wasn’t a
verge with the exit approaching. Suddenly a car whipped past me (well it felt
like it whipped past me—he was probably only doing about 20) and there was a
light for me to follow. I hung to his rear bumper until we came up onto I-215
and the fog cleared. When our friends are in a seemingly impenetrable fog of
confusion, we can be the pinpoint of light that leads them to understanding.
3. Jesus declares that He has
fulfilled the law of Moses. He teaches the people a higher law. 3 Nephi
12:17–48; 15:1–10
The manual has a chart for us to
contrast the law of Moses with the higher law
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The Law of Moses
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The Higher Law
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The commandment is that we “be
perfect.” It is a lifelong pursuit and our way is lit with His light. Pres.
Kimball said, “Now, that is an attainable goal. We will not be exalted, we
shall not reach our destination, unless we are perfect, and now is the best
time in the world to start toward perfection. I have little patience with
persons who say, ‘Oh, nobody is perfect,’ the implication being; ‘so why try?’
Of course no one is wholly perfect, but we find some who are a long way up the
ladder” (Teachings of Spencer W.
Kimball, 165).
4. Jesus teaches the Nephites how
they must live to be His true disciples 3 Nephi 13–14
I know we haven’t a hope of covering the material in class, because in
this sermon, the Lord covered every aspect of our lives, but since He teaches
us how to pray in these chapters, here is a quote from Elder Aceda from the
most recent conference
At the very moment
we say, “Father in Heaven,” He hears our prayers and is sensitive to us and our
needs. And so His eyes and His ears are now connected to you. He reads our
minds, and He feels our hearts. You cannot hide anything from Him. Now, the
wonderful thing is that He will see you with eyes of love and mercy—love and
mercy that we cannot fully understand. But love and mercy are with Him the very
moment you say, “Father in Heaven.”[3]
For those of you who take the time
to read our blog before the lesson, Thank You! May I ask you to pick one
admonition from these chapters and come to class prepared to talk about the
impact it had on you?
Chapter 14 ends with the parable of
the two houses that Primary children love to sing about. We are constantly
building our spiritual house—our character as alluded to at the beginning of
this lesson. Perhaps it is better to say that we are constantly reinforcing the
foundation for that house. But if the foundation starts off as sand, then
whatever we do on top cannot improve its strength. It is this Sermon, delivered
to us by a loving, caring Savior, that will help us ensure that our foundations
are rock solid so that as the Lord tells us in Helaman 5:12,
“It is upon the
rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your
foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his
shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat
upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of
misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a
sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.”
One-sentence
sermons from the recent General Conference
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"In our lives we experience
trials, but if we are ambitious for Christ, we can focus on Him and feel joy
even in the midst of them. Our Redeemer is the ultimate example. He
understood His holy mission and was obedient to the will of God the Father. What
a choice blessing it is to bring His wonderful example to our remembrance
each week as we partake of the sacrament"
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"To abide in God’s love in
this sense means to submit fully to His will. It means to accept His
correction when needed. … It means to love and serve one another as Jesus has
loved and served us."
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"So how can we apply the
doctrine of Christ more fully in our lives? One way would be to make a
conscious effort each week to prepare for the sacrament by taking some time
to prayerfully consider where we most need to improve. We could then bring a
sacrifice of at least one thing that keeps us from being like Jesus Christ to
the sacrament altar, pleading in faith for help, asking for necessary
spiritual gifts, and covenanting to improve during the coming week. As we do
so, the Holy Ghost will come into our lives to a greater degree, and we will
have additional strength to overcome our imperfections."
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"Within the book’s pages, you
will discover the infinite love and incomprehensible grace of God. As you
strive to follow the teachings you find there, your joy will expand, your
understanding will increase, and the answers you seek to the many challenges
mortality presents will be opened to you. As you look to the book, you look
to the Lord. The Book of Mormon is the revealed word of God."
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"How, then, can we claim that
joy? We can start by “looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our
faith” [Hebrews 12:2] “in every thought” [D&C 6:36]. We can give
thanks for Him in our prayers and by keeping covenants we’ve made with Him
and our Heavenly Father. As our Savior becomes more and more real to us and
as we plead for His joy to be given to us, our joy will increase."
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"Essential to the plan is our
Savior, Jesus Christ. Without His atoning sacrifice, all would be lost. It is
not enough, however, merely to believe in Him and His mission. We need to
work and learn, search and pray, repent and improve. We need to know God’s
laws and live them."
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