You
can read the entire chapter at the following link: https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/mosiah/2?lang=eng
The
first thing that stands out in this chapter is a fairly obvious one. The people
respond to their leader. Though this may seem almost too elementary to mention,
experience and history teach that it is rarer than we probably initially think
for societies to submit to governance without some kind of compulsion. But here
we sense that the Nephites joyfully come when called to the temple by King
Benjamin’s son Mosiah. It clearly says something both about their leadership
and about the widespread inculcation of virtue among families.
As
they bring the firstlings of their flocks for sacrifice, they don’t just do it
out of habit or sheer obedience, they do it out of gratitude for coming to the
New World, being delivered from their enemies, and having “just men” serve as
their teachers and their king, “who had taught them to keep the commandments of
God, that they might rejoice and be filled with love towards God and all men”
(verse 4). There is clear symbolic power in the detail that every man pitched
his family’s tent with the door pointing toward the temple, signifying where
they looked for guidance and direction (verse 6).
We
sense that, over his lifetime, King Benjamin had inspired his people on many
occasions. Yet, the only address Mormon chooses to preserve in his abridgment
is this one. There’s this great line at the beginning where Benjamin tells his
people that he wants them to really hearken to what he has to say. He wants
them to be ready to receive revelation and to be willing to bring their lives
into alignment with the message from the Lord he has to share, not to “trifle
with the words which I shall speak” (verse 9).
Benjamin
first recounts to the people that he has served them selflessly and without
enriching himself at their expense. He is quick to say that he does not share
these things to boast, but he understands two key truths.
First
is that when we serve others, we are really serving God. Perhaps even more
accurately, given all we have received from God despite our own imperfections,
part of the way back to His presence—to show Him our real love for Him—is to
serve the people around us who are also His children. We owe Him that, and it
is the least we can do. One of the most-cited scriptures in the Book of Mormon
is verse 17:
And behold, I tell you these things
that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of
your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.
It’s
important to understand the context around this verse so that we do not
misinterpret its meaning. In some sense, yes, by understanding whom we’re
actually serving when we help others, it elevates our vision of that effort.
But the word “only” signifies the importance of avoiding an exaggeration of our
own virtue. Because of our relationship with our God, it follows that we should
be serving each other. Period. That’s the plan and we need not overstate (or
understate) the significance of our actions in line with it.
The
second truth ties into the first one, and is encapsulated in verse 21 where
King Benjamin tells the people if they should serve God “with all their whole
souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.” It might seem a little startling,
but in his last opportunity to speak to his beloved people King Benjamin is
focused like a laser on telling them what is true and not what is comfortable
to hear. Righteous action is important, and it is service to God, but let’s not
fool ourselves into thinking that he’s getting more from us than we get from
Him.
Once
we accept this vision, hopefully it becomes easier to focus on the immense
blessings that it communicates. God does not expect us to be profitable. He just
expects us to give all we can in keeping His commandments. If we do it, there
are temporal blessings that follow, paralleling the covenant promise to the
Nephites that is tied to the New World land they inhabit (verse 22).
Beyond
that, verses 23 and 24 tell us why we remain indebted to the Lord. First, He
gave us life. Yes, it’s really that simple. Second, when we do something right,
we are immediately blessed. Wow. Do we really comprehend this?
We
may ask, how are we immediately blessed? My feeling is that two things take
place. First, we know that we have made a good choice, and that knowledge is a
blessing in itself. Second, we invite the Holy Ghost to dwell with us and to
comfort and teach us (in the words of an 1830 revelation
to Joseph Smith) the “peaceable things of the kingdom.” Those who have any
comprehension of how the Holy Ghost makes you feel when He enters your life
will appreciate the magnitude of this blessing. There’s really nothing sweeter
on this earth.
Keeping
with Benjamin’s intent to speak very straightforwardly to his people, he tells
them that he has called them together for one last act of service to them that
will allow him to die with a clear conscience that he has done all in his power
to protect them from sin and has pointed them in the direction of how to access
the Lord’s strength in their lives.
Very
literally, Benjamin points them to Mosiah as their new king and teacher. Then
he warns them: Don’t choose the way of contention. Don’t follow the misleading
call of the “evil spirit.” If you do, you will be in a state of “open rebellion
against God” and will withdraw yourself from the Spirit of the Lord, because the
Lord “dwelleth not in unholy temples.”
But
Benjamin knows that the teaching that truly inspires focuses more on the
promise of righteous living than the perils of contention with God and others.
So he presents a vision for his people to ponder (verse 41):
And moreover, I would desire that ye
should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the
commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal
and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven,
that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness.
No comments:
Post a Comment