Tag: Book of Mormon

The Book of Mormon through the eyes of an American

Understanding the Book of Mormon from the perspective of an American is impossible. It is a Hebrew book, written by prophets from a Jewish culture. The words, insights, analogies, stories, and experiences need to be understood through the eyes of a Jew.

For example, remember the story when Lehi and his family took off into the wilderness and dwelt in a tent? Trying to comprehend this from an American standpoint is not possible. None of us make a living travelling with camels and tents in the wilderness. Lehi probably did and his boys did too.

The Prophecies are Fulfilled (5 BC – birth of Jesus Christ)

And so things continued in the land about as they were. The wicked hardened their hearts and the righteous looked for the sign. The wicked rationalized the signs and the verity of a Savior saying, “…it is not reasonable that such a being as Christ shall come…[1]”

If He were to really come, why in Jerusalem? What are we, the “B” team? If He’s going to come, He should come here as well and prove to us that He is God. The more they thought about it, the angrier they became. Since there were more wicked people than righteous they made very wicked laws, and the most startling law of all time came as the five years were about to expired.

Samuel the Lamanite (5 BC)

The scene is now set for Samuel the Lamanite who comes into the land of Zarahemla and delivers his message of repentance along with a specific timeline of events. He indicates that Zarahemla would already be destroyed by fire if it were not for the righteous within the city.

Now if you’re among the wicked, at whom do you turn your wrath? A wicked mind accepts no blame, therefore, the righteous are going to get the consequences. To those who repent he gives them an out, but to those not willing to change Samuel says that their days of probation are over. Imagine a prophet of God telling you that your mortal probation is over while you are still alive.

The Nephite Disease (41 BC – 7 BC)

Around 41 BC we read: “And so great was the prosperity of the church, and so many the blessings which were poured out upon the people, that even the high priests and the teachers were themselves astonished beyond measure[1].”

Seven years later (34 BC) Nephite dissenters join forces with the Lamanites and take the land of Zarahemla. In other words, they overthrow the capital in a military coup[2]. In 30 BC we read the following: “For as their laws and their governments were established by the voice of the people, and they who chose evil were more numerous than they who chose good, therefore they were ripening for destruction, for the laws had become corrupted.”[3]

The Nephite Roller Coaster Ride (559 BC – 53 BC)

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.”

In the Book of Mormon, this prophecy is recorded between 559 and 545 BC. About 20 years earlier the anger of Laman and Lemuel had come to a boil and

A Type of Christ

Jesus Is The Christ

Have you ever wondered how you’d respond had you lived during the days of the restoration? If a Mormon missionary bearing the news that the heavens were no longer sealed were to offer you a new bible bearing the unfamiliar name of Mormon, would you have listened?

I testify that the Book of Mormon was true before it was ever translated. The Lord teaches His children through many different methods, one of which is through symbolism called types. A type is a person or thing that exemplifies something or somebody else.