Come Follow Me - 3 Nephi 8-11: The Coming of Christ

[Music] good morning everybody or good afternoon good evening whatever time it is for you it is a great time to be in scripture especially this week yeah if you've been looking forward to this week's material as much as I have then we need to dive straight in we're covering third Nephi 8 through 11 today and as president Benson said third Nephi 11 is the greatest chapter in the entire Book of Mormon because Jesus finally comes in our parallel Book of Mormon last day is this is for us the second coming which means prior to that

event we have to endure Armageddon and that's what we're going to start today chapter 8 is where we see the massive destruction uh in I mean in some ways we've been we've been moving towards Armageddon for quite a few chapters by now we have seen the collapse of of governments we have seen the rise of secret combinations we've seen rampant wickedness and yet incredible righteousness through it all if you remember how we finished last week you've got Nephi teaching with such power that people hate him even more than usual because they can't disbelieve his words

he raises his brother from the dead right I mean this is some amazing stuff this is like the the two prophets in Jerusalem slain and then Rising after three and a half days some incredible parallels which means oh as much as as excited as I am to study these chapters I really would prefer to live through them despite the fact that that means we have to endure chapter 8 they're are going going to be some hard things to handle in the chapter where we start and in the lives that we will yet live but if

we want to be here for the second coming of Christ then then come what may and love it okay we have to learn to endure it well and there's some amazing lessons in today's material that are going to help us get there okay so let's let's dive in now like I said chapter8 we've already seen kind of the the political economic this Pride cycle all those kinds of things today it's natural disaster today we are seeing what was what Nephi prophesied way back in first Nephi 19 that there would be so much destruction at the

death of the Savior that the kings of the Isles of the sea would be wrought upon to exclaim the god of nature suffers that nature itself is is in upheaval kind of rending its own garments because of the death of its creator that's what we're seeing in chapter 8 these natural disasters and we see seem to be getting more and more of those earthquakes in diverse places and storms and tempests in our day so watch how they unfold in thiri chapter 8 let's start in verse 3 and 4 the people began to look with great

earnestness for the sign which had been given by the prophet Samuel the lonite yay for the time that there should be Darkness for the space of three days over the face of the land and there began to be great doubting and disputations among the people notwithstanding so many signs had been given if you remember oh last week yeah it's been only been a week last week in chapter 1 you saw people expecting hoping praying for the Fulfillment of the first sign the sign of Christ's birth they were watching for that sign as well do you

remember the adverb that they used they were watching steadfastly they had faith it would come well here they are watching earnestly with great earnestness they are looking to that day where the prophecy of Christ's death is fulfilled as scary as the darkness might be we know what that means that the light of the world has come and accomplished his saving Mission so here they are waiting and hoping but notice also the the the fact that there are both dis doubting on one side and disputations on the other and again that describes our day pretty well

what's interesting to me is those seem to be two opposites with the goldilock Zone somewhere in between these are the negative of the of contrary coins doubting seems to be there's not enough faith and you're just struggling and wondering I don't know if anything's going to happen whereas disputation seems almost like there's too much Faith bordering on kind of a naive claim to perfect knowledge to the point that you're willing to fight over your perspective on things I mean if we've got just right in the middle where there's no doubt but no disputation imagine too

cold there's the doubt I don't know if the sign's going to be f fulfilled and then too hot there's the disputation I'm so convinced I'm right about these things that I'm willing to shove it in your face and push you back again we live in a day of incredible doubt at the same time there's intense disputation and I just wish we could find middle ground where there is peace and calm that comes from faith that I have a testimony a witness of these things and yet I'm not so over the toop that I'm disputing violently

about it there's a humility that allows for those with doubt there's a humility that on that that understands those with disputation but tries to balance the two out okay let's prove countries in a better way than what they're doing from there oh well they don't have to wait long they don't have to watch with great earnestness very long before the signs begin to be fulfilled there is rampant destruction everywhere you look you'll see a great storm in verse 5 in verse 6 great and terrible Tempest terrible Thunder verse 7 exceedingly sharp Lightnings and then this

phrase shows up in both verse 5 and verse 7 as never had been known in all the land like yeah we've been through storms before but this is Once in a century in fact once in a millennium in fact once in history never anything like this something is happening that has never occurred before again the god of nature suffers the creator of all things is now being destroyed physically by his enemies and what does that mean for the rest of us in fact for the rest of chapter 8 I really want you to ponder the

symbolism here yes literally these things are occurring but symbolically what is life like without Jesus if you have rejected him if you have pushed him away if you have Cru crfi him as far as your own spirituality is concerned and that that's strong imagery but if Jesus is if we're living without God in the world to borrow a scriptural phrase what does life end up looking like especially in its hardest moments notice verse 13 the highways were broken up the level roads were spoiled and many smooth places became rough this is the exact opposite of

that prophecy in Isaiah that handle made famous in handle Messiah every Valley remember that song The Valleys will be brought up exalted the mountains will be made low the Crooked will be made straight and the rough will be made plain that's Highway construction we are trying to make the the path as easy and quick as possible for the Lord to come to us and for us to come to him this is the exact opposite taking place instead of the rough being smooth the now the smooth becomes rough mountains shooting up highways broken level roads now

spoiled I remember when when the Northridge Earthquake took place uh where I grew up and there was a freeway exchange that collapsed and as a result there was no way for people to get from my Valley the Santa corita Valley down into Los Angeles usually that commute takes half an hour and yet they would have to go north and then East out through the desert to hook into I15 and then bring that South to hook into I 10 and then bring that West to get into La I remember remember reading at the time some people's

commute went from 1 hour to 8 because a highway had collapsed if you do if we don't have Jesus in our lives it is so hard to get where we need to go it is such a difficult journey and it doesn't have to be that way Christ can come and smooth out our rough places but without him it's going to be much harder to get anywhere if you look at verse 16 again notice the symbolism there were some who were carried away in the Whirlwind and whether they and whether they went no man knoweth remember

that phrase that Paul uses about being carried about by every wind of Doctrine or another title for the adversary the prince of the powers of the air the great and spacious building was floating in it after all talk about being blown about well here with without Jesus as the rock remember in Helman 5 the rock of Our Redeemer when there are shafts in the Whirlwind and it's not an if it's a when when they come are you grounded or are you floating in a building built of Pride are we in a situation where there is

no connection to Mother Earth we are not built upon a foundation of prophets and apostles with Jesus Christ as the Chief Cornerstone no wonder we are whipped around by whirlwinds or look at Verse 18 Behold The Rocks were rent in Twain They were broken up upon the face of the whole earth in so much that they were found in broken fragments and in seams and in cracks upon all the face of the land think about how the repetition of that kind of imagery rent in Twain torn in half that the Earth itself was torn broken

up fragments seams cracks again as a southern Californian I've been through earthquakes and when we talk about the wise man built his house upon the rock that's supposed to be the ultimate example of stability the Earth itself that's what's so unnerving about earthquakes because the one thing you assumed would always be stable isn't think about things being torn apart the fabric of society being afraid and with the tribalism we saw last week with the collapse of governments now civilization Society itself is coming undone cracks and seams and broken fragments are we connected to each other

like like the Lord intends Zion to be are we connected to God or are we suffering some premature spiritual death oh the fragmentation of the family the the disolving of societal bonds that's exactly what happens when we don't have the Savior to bind us together to seal us to each other and to him or notice this one in verse 20 to 22 we start to see what the what was the most obvious sign that Samuel lonite prophesied of which were these three days of darkness this is what happens when you snuff out the light of

the world when Christ comes there's light when there should be Darkness without Christ there's darkness when there should be light and it lasts the the well first of the destruction that we've just described lasted 3 hours it must have felt like an eternity I remember a senior couple on my mission that were serving in St I can't remember if it was St Thomas or St Croy in the Virgin Islands and there was a hurricane that came through and they said they were in their concrete apartment huddled in the corner with the mattress from their bed

shielding them from the things that were flying all over the place shafts in the Whirlwind believe me that it I don't know how long that storm lasted but they were so traumatized by the experience that they didn't wonder how long will this thing last it was rather how long will we survive it before we succumb it wasn't a matter of will we make it it's how long until we die talk about a traumatic experience that's what these people there in Among the Nephites and lamanites this is what they are enduring and then Darkness settles upon

the land in verse it came to pass that there was thick Darkness upon all the face of the land in so much that the inhabitants thereof who had not Fallen could feel the vapor of darkness by the way Vapor sounds like Mist right Mists of Darkness we're living lehi's dream right now we've seen the great and spacious building floating in the air we're now feeling The Mists of Darkness suffocate our spirit there could be no light because of the darkness and try what you will there's nothing that's going to take its place neither candles neither

torches neither could there be fire kindled with their fine and exceedingly dry wood so that there could not be any light at all there was not any light seen neither fire nor glimmer neither the sun nor the moon nor the stars for so great were The Mists of darkness which were upon the face of the Land There Mormon makes it as obvious as he can here we are are we holding to the iron Rod we're about to see in chapter 9 and chapter 10 the rod materialize as God's word is heard from the heaven are

you holding it hand or hand the rod along are you coming to Christ the tree of life or have you wandered off in Forbidden paths and are lost have you strayed toward the great and spacious building are you caught in the these Mists of Darkness with no ability to illuminate your path to me well in some ways this is the message of the Book of Ecclesiastes Ecclesiastes is one of the most pessimistic books in the entire Bible and what it is is failed attempt after failed attempt to take the place of God St Augustine described

the human soul is having a god-shaped hole there and if God isn't occupying in that space nothing else will fit and we will go through life with a troubled heart because that heart is seeking rest and can only find it in God Ecclesiastes is I tried this didn't work tried that this that all these all these things no matter how fine and exceedingly dry my wood was there was not even a glimmer of hope without God in my life again there are some probably listening that or that know people who are thinking whatever I left

God and my life is great well again there might not be natural disasters right now if you're going to try an experiment of what's like of what life is like without God then make sure it includes both good times and bad as I've said before if you live in San Diego you might not miss your umbrella but if you live in Seattle that's a different story okay major storms major chaos major challenges and without Christ the light of the world nothing can possibly take its place his place well this Darkness lasts for 3 days and

it's accompanied by great mourning and Howling and weeping verse 23 says and then the voice comes in 24 and 25 oh that we had repented before this great and terrible day this is not the voice of Heaven this is the voice of Earth it's about to be responded to with the voice of Heaven that's chapter 9 and chapter 10 but notice the Weeping wailing nashing of teeth in terms of what these survivors say oh that we had repented before the great and terrible day then would our Brethren have been spared oh that we had repented

before this great and terrible day they repeated it again and had not killed and stoned the prophets and cast them out then would our mothers and our Fair daughters and our children have been spared I don't know if there's a more haunting feeling than regret of all the words of tongue and Pen the saddest are these it might have been and here these these men who survived the destruction of it all they must have been righteous enough to make it and yet what are they lamenting why didn't we repent why didn't we live better Liv

Liv maybe they weren't as guilty of sins of commission as those that that fell in the destruction but perhaps they were guilty of sins of omission that could have made a difference if they tried harder again I hope I'm not pushing anyone over the edge to scrupulosity and toxic perfectionism that's not the goal here but to Rouse us from our complacency our apathy at ease in Zion oh I hope that these verses do do that for us because what a tragedy to say at some point if only oh that we had fill in the blank

in some ways it's impossible to go through life without some twinges of regret great or small perhaps this is another thing we can add to the symbolism of life without God in the world without Christ there's no changing that there's no overcoming that regret and yet with him repentance is possible in fact repentance is guaranteed we simply need to come unto him without it no man is an island as they say right who are we affecting negatively and what's interesting according to this these verses it's society's most vulnerable people here are the the the surviving

Men We in over their lost mothers and daughters and children who is out there that needs our influence that needs our example that needs the Light of Christ and may we avoid regret by sharing that light with them in every way that we can now like I said that end of eight is the voice of the people from below speaking upward they're about to be they're about to hear a voice speaking downward from the heavens and chapter n as it continues in chapter 10 is incredible again if we are thinking Armageddon is the dust of

Armageddon is beginning to settle Jesus is about to come what kind of message would God want to convey to us chapter N9 begins it came to pass that there was a voice heard among all the inhabitants of the earth upon all the face of this land crying wo wo wo woe unto this people woe unto the inhabitants of the whole earth except they shall repent remember how often Nephi son of helan repeated those words you remember how often Samuel repeated those words Samuel the lonite a benedi same thing this all could have been not all

so much of this could have been avoided through our own repentance and then this haunting description for the devil lath and his angels Rejoice because of the slain of the fair Sons and Daughters of my people and it is because of their iniquity and Abominations that they are Fallen the devil laugheth and his angels Rejoice seriously that verse gives me the willies makes me wonder what kind of have you have you ever practiced an evil laugh or you look at like Disney villains or you know people uh in movies and what is this evil laugh

sound like is it deep is it high pitched is is it a cackle what how much sarcasm how much scorn is there in the devil's laughter it's interesting because this is exactly the experience that Enoch had when he's having a vision of the kinds of things that will take place in in the future as far as he's concerned amazing prophecy and in it he has this vision of the earth and its adversary our adversary this is what he says in Moses 7: 26 Enoch beheld Satan and he had a great chain in his hand and

it veiled the whole face of the Earth with darkness and he looked up and laughed and his angels rejoiced same thing is what happened there in third Nephi chapter 9 Darkness oh there's a chain that's veiling the Earth in that kind of Darkness the devil laughing Angels Rejoice I pointed this out when we studied the Old Testament but when you meet Samson and when Samson who had the greatest potential to be the ultimate judge when he loses that that potential because he's broken his covenants what do the Philistines do they chain him they put out

his eyes and then they put him in the temple of the Philistine God packet full of Philistines who can then laugh and mock at their captured enemy it's the exact thing that Enoch saw it's the exact thing that we see in 359 bind blind Mock and particularly Target those with the greatest potential to prepare people to help deliver people through the help of God we samsons have to be careful and bring light into the world to penetrate any Darkness to bring Deliverance through Jesus Christ to break the chains rather other than the laughter of the

adversary oh how about songs of Joy among the righteous well they're not there yet but notice this the Lord begins to explain why all of this destruction in chapter 8 took place and in verse 5 the and the same idea is repeated in verse 7 and in verse 8 and in verse 11 he's trying to make this Crystal Clear for everyone the reason why all it all had to happen was to hide their iniquities and their Abominations from before my face that the blood of the prophets and the Saints shall not come anymore unto me

against them now take both halves of that to hide their iniquities on the one hand take this from Christ's side and what does he say in section one of the doctrine and Covenant I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance and so so much of this was to I mean the darkness was to hide I don't I can't see it no wonder this in Armageddon the sun will refuse to give its light stars will fall from Heaven I don't want to turn the light on in this scene keep your eyes

closed this is horrific turn away God himself had to that's his perspective and then from the wicked's perspective you remember what Elma prayed for back in Elma 36 it was I want to cease to exist I don't want to have to face God and back in Elma 12 it was I hope I wish that I could call the mountains to come and crush me to hide me from the allseen eye of God in a way in this cataclysmic destruction prior to the coming of Christ that's exactly what the people got what they were hoping for

I don't want to have to face my maker another side of it was because the blood of the prophets and the Saints is crying out to God for justice how long will you wait before you come to our rescue even from the grave they're crying will will will you forever leave us unavenged there's a actually a fascinating verse in the Book of Revelation where You' are you've just met the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse to describe what happens in the first four seals the first 4,000 years the fifth seal has a different symbol each horse

represents something that's going on in the first 4,000 years but then the 5th th000 years which in in our history coincides with the time of Christ for about a thousand years ad it was a period of martyrdom ask Jesus ask the apostles ask the the Christians that were burned by the by the by the Romans or thrown into the to fight Gladiators and animals and so on it was a period of mass martyrdom and the symbol that John places to describe that fifth seal is an alar and notice this verse Revelation 6: 9 and 10

and when he had opened the fifth seal I saw under the altar The Souls of them that were slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held they cried with a loud voice saying how long O Lord holy and true Dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth that's exactly what's happening in third Nephi 8 and here in nine the Lord explains that to hide and to judge the wicked then verse 13 and 14 he's speaking to the survivors you can picture them going okay

that's why they were slain why am I still alive and the Lord's answer oh all ye that are spared because ye were more righteous than they now right there stop right there and like oh wow Pat myself on the back okay yeah see I deserve this I was better than people o careful that kind of comparison is what launches us into the negative side of the pride cycle and so don't stop there Jesus doesn't stop there instead he says all ye that are spared because you were more righteous than they will ye not now return

unto me and repent of your sins and be converted that I may heal you yay verily I say unto you if you will come unto me you shall have eternal life behold mine arm of Mercy is extended towards you and whosoever will come him will I receive and blessed are those who come unto me oh what an interesting statement you were more righteous than they but that's only relative righteousness it's still not Perfect Purity you had less to repent of than others but you still have so much to repent of nonetheless remember we're all in

the same Sinking Ship Without Christ if we are guilty of the least we are guilty of all James teaches us there's no need to compare there's simply a need to repent and come unto Christ but what's the promise here you can whosoever will just come repent return be converted I will heal you I would so much rather take that invitation rather than the rather than the lamentation we saw at the end of chapter 8 if only we had repented well we are given the opportunity right here with the arms of Mercy outstretched towards us you

can repent now now next in verse 16 the Lord continues to or verse 15 he continues to introduce himself behold I am Jesus Christ the son of God I created the heavens and the Earth and all things that in them are I was with the father from the beginning I am in the Father the father in me and in me hath the father glorified his name right from the start the sun is connecting himself to the father what had he said hours before seriously just hours well I guess it's been 3 days of darkness so

several days before as he turns to Phillip teaching the other Apostles about the father and the son and their relationship and when Philip says show us the Father and Jesus is like Philip have I been with you this long and you still don't get it like father like son there's never been a better example of that than this if you've seen me you you've seen the father if you understand me you understand your father in Heaven so actually pay attention as you study the rest of third Nephi once Christ descends it's amazing how much he

talks about his father in Heaven how much the spirit Bears wit in some way when I I remember once reading third Nephi in one sitting and I was blown away by how often the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit are invoked and I got this picture this mental image of the three of them standing together and if you were ask them collectively so which one of you is the most important I think all three would just go and point at the other two uh to see what the father does for Christ and the spirit

what the son does to exemplify the father and to make us worthy of the spirit what the spirit does to testify of the Father and Son the godhead is so perfectly unified and the Lord wants to clarify that from the very start he's not done clarifying he then says in verse 16 I came unto my own and my own received me not and that's painful because it's so fresh just last week they were crying hosana to the son of David during the triumphal entry and then later that same week they were crying crucify him I

came to my very own people they rejected me the king of the Jews and rejected by the very people he'd come to save they received me not and then he says and the scriptures concerning my coming are fulfilled as many as have received me to them have I given to become the sons of God and even so will I to as many as Shall Believe on my name for behold by me Redemption cometh and in me is the law of Moses fulfilled I am the light and the life of the world I am Alpha and

Omega at the beginning and the end this is a magnificent self-introduction so much of what the Lord wants us to know about him light and Life to replace darkness and death that's exactly what the people now realize they desperately need alpha and omega beginning and end the A to Z he covers everything the full spectrum of our sins he has encompassed and overcome he's answered the ends of the law he's the end of every hard thing and the beginning of every good thing to take its place that's why he's come it's so beautiful and the

way he puts it I've come so that you all can become the Sons and Daughters of God yes you're children of God by default but to become their children the children of heavenly parents by Family resemblance to have their image engraven upon your countenance to have this Mighty change of heart to be born again that's why I've come to adopt you into God's family welcome home now having just said that the law of Moses is fulfilled if you remember I don't think we covered this last week but when the sign of Christ's birth came a

bunch of people were so eager to end the law of Moses that they stopped it right then and had to be told by the prophets you clarified like how actually it yes he's come but the law of Moses isn't fulfilled at his birth it's fulfilled at his death sorry we still have 33 more years to sacrifice animals but now that it's fulfilled what's it going to be replaced with look at verse 20 ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit and who so cometh unto me with a broken

heart and a contrite spirit him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost even as the lamanites because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost and they knew it not which is fascinating dramatic changes baptism by fire can be so subtle we don't even recognize when it's happening oh we're we're going to need discernment to recognize the spirit at work on us typically it will come from an outside perspective to say wow you've changed a lot since I saw you last

perhaps that fire has been burning off the dross after all but I love this shift in some ways bringing an animal to sacrifice was just too easy I'm not trying to minimize that sacrifice but it was an object and what the Lord wants is for us to be agents and to choose as Elder Maxwell used to say to offer the animal within us on the altar and let it be consumed Here's My Heart Lord take and seal it seal it for thy courts above I'm humble I'm contrite my heart's been broken because I set it

on other things my spirit has been humbled by The Pride cycle and I'd love to get off the merrygoround will you take me with you take my heart and change it it's the transformation that Jesus is trying to affect in all of us and that's why he's in inviting them to come repent return be converted be healed be changed he then says in verse 21 and 22 behold I have come unto the world to bring Redemption unto the world it's the whole reason I'm here my mission was to save the world from sin therefore who

so repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child there's broken heart there's contrite spirit there's absence of pride a little child that decides to come and to say sorry to repent him will I receive for of such is the kingdom of God behold for such I have laid down my life and have taken it up again therefore repent and come unto me ye ends of the Earth and be saved it really is that simple childlike submission to the will of God brokenhearted Godly sorrow when we sin a recognition of How Far We've Fallen I

mean honestly what's it going to take to get us there if you remember the aftermath of 911 some people just went further a field and said well I mean we could die any moment so eat drink and be merry might as well live up our last few days and yet there was also a surge in church attendance across the board as people were realizing I have no guarantees on anything I need God in my life will it take an Armageddon for us will it take all the destruction we will it take a third Nephi 8

to get us where we need to be in third Nephi 9 where we finally are humble and submissive brokenhearted contrite spirit enough to come unto Christ that was his invitation from the beginning and in chapter 10 he repeats it chapter 10 in fact has some of my favorite language from the savior in the Book of Mormon notice there's a period of Silence okay I think the Lord is giving them some time to digest what they've just heard okay but then in verse 2 of chapter 10 it says that for so great was the astonishment of

the people that they did cease lamenting and Howling for the loss of their Kindred which had been slain now there's going to have to be something even more powerful than the destruction all around them to get them to stop and focus on something else think about what they just heard they went from the woe woe is me why didn't I Repent my mothers and children and and and daughters would have had a chance that lamentation to the invitation come unto me the devil laughs but I'm not laughing I'm inviting repent and come and because they

recog recogniz that opportunity the fact that God's arms of Mercy are still extended how can I weep now there is still hope for us all if you see in verse 4-6 notice what Jesus then says I love these verses oh ye people of these great cities which have fallen who are descendants of Jacob interesting he's going to root them in their identity their ultimate Old Testament identity you're the house of Jacob you repeats it yay who are of the House of Israel okay you're scattered Israel and you probably never felt more scattered than right now

but what do I do with scattered sheep I bring them back what do I do with huddled chicks that are so afraid of whatever's happening in the barnyard I cluck and call them to come that's what he says here you descendants of Jacob you House of Israel how of have I gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings remember he just mentioned the arms of Mercy in chapter n well now it's the wings of comfort and protection I'm extending those wings to you come and huddle under me for safety I have nourished

you he says and then he repeats it again how of would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings yay oh ye people of the House of Israel who are Fallen yay how oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens and ye would not oh ye House of Israel whom I have spared how of will I gather you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings if and here's the ultimate if you will repent and return unto me with full purpose of heart it doesn't get

much more poignant than that this mother hen interesting that the Lord chooses maternal imagery later he'll talk about shepherding imagery that seems to be the father figure but here through the darkness the clucking of mother H come and let let me protect you I'm amazed that how often he repeats that image In this passage and the the metaphor doesn't change but the verb tense does how of have I gathered you past tense how of would I have gathered you conditional sense or tense and how of will I gather you future tense the Lord exhausts his

options every time I tried I would have tried other things how what more could I have done for my Vineyard there's no regret on his part as far as what he's done because he's done all only regret that people wouldn't receive him when he came unto his own and the fact he'll continue doing it as long as he as he can until the storm ultimately settles upon us all what's interesting to me is the imagery of the mother hen Gathering her chicks almost always is invoked in second coming contexts this is first coming context but

remember it's more like the second coming to the world than it was like the Babe in Bethlehem 33 years ago so if this is Second Coming context symbolically and I'm try tried to gather you I'm still there's still time come and run come unto me the other place it shows up is is Matthew chapter 23 Matthew 23 is well the way it ends and you got to get rid of the chapter break in this one chapter 23 of Matthew is supposed to bleed perfectly into chapter 24 which is the all of it discourse it's signs

of the times Central in the New Testament and what does Jesus do right before he describes the signs of his second coming he weeps over Jerusalem and speaks to them as a mother hen who tried to gather her chickens you'll see the same thing twice in the doctrine covenants one in section 29 and one in section 43 and guess what section 29 and 43 are both about yeah the second coming the signs of the times and in both instances the Lord repeats all over again how often would I have gathered you as a hen gathered

her chickens under her wings in the chapter section 29 version he talks about I just pray call on to me I'm here to help and in the 43 Revelation it's amazing that he tries every option he exhausts the possibilities to get our attention and yet in Matthew 23 and 3i 10 and Doctrine covenants 29 and Doctrine covenants 43 every time he repeats that imagery of the mother hen he also repeats the painful phrase but ye would not I came unto my own my own received me not I clucked to my chicks they wouldn't come running

and what a tragedy that is for all of us including him now I have shared this with you in years past I want to repeat it here because of the context that we're studying in chapter 10 When I Was An undergraduate at BYU way too long ago and spent a semester studying abroad in the Holy Land I came to know why it's called that and felt the Holiness that still abides there because of what Jesus Christ accomplished I spent long hours in the Garden of Gethsemane and at the Garden tomb walking as close as I

could to where Jesus walked but the phrase that always haunted me was but ye would not I spent time on the Mount of Olives reminiscing pondering studying the ol of it discourse and noticing the parallels that I just described to you from those other places in scripture now I'm no poet I'm envious of those of you who have that great gift but I tried to put into words what I was feeling and learning from all of these places where the mother hen laments over the loss of her chicks and this was the closest I could

come to capturing that feeling he looked upon Jerusalem where prophets long had vigil kept the tide of sin they'd failed to stem so Jesus raised his voice and wept oh city of iniquity who kills and Stones her holy men how often would I have gathered thee as chickens by their mother hen for when some danger prompts her cry the cover of her wings is sought Jerusalem with judgment nigh I called to you but ye would not the same was true of lehi's seed when they in sin by death were caught his plea to change they

did not heed so came his words but ye would not in modern times he calls again he beckons us to gather near to find protection from the hen we need but call in Mighty prayer he calls to us through men today who long the gospel truths have taught yet once again we hear him say I would have saved but ye would not the Lord will plead the Lord will call with love he'll raise a warning voice his Open Arms extend to all but we alone can make the choice what grief we'd feel to see the

face of him who the atonement wrought and hear from him to our disgrace the bitter words but ye would not there are a lot of things I would love to hear from my savior that is not one of them well done thou good and faithful servant that'd be a dream come true enter into my rest what a blessing that would be simply come unto me and I will heal you is sufficient invitation from one whose wings of Mercy are forever extended we would we can I pray we will come unto him verse 8 then notice

what happens now it came to pass that after the people had heard these words Behold they began to weep and howl again because of the loss of their kindreds and friends interesting the emotional roller coaster these people are on these survivors they went from weeping wailing nashing teeth over the loss of others to all of a sudden they're they're no longer in tears they're hearing this voice but then as soon as the voice is done speaking and he's not totally done they're back to their their te their tears again they're back to their lamentation and

Howling and anguish makes me wonder is there a difference between the two what's the salt content of those tears relatively speaking because to me what's interesting the first round of of Sorrow is so easily explained look around you well you can't it's all dark but to hear can you imagine being an earthquake and a storm and a whirlwind and everything and there's no light I wouldn't be able to move for fear of tripping over something falling into a broken seam upon the earth I can hear people nearby in agony that have perhaps not yet perished

but there's no way to come to them and help talk about desperation in those moments and being so scared fearful sorrowful that tears are flowing freely well now they've been reassured they've been reinvites and the tears come again I wonder if this is a different kind perhaps still regret but in a different way like I can't believe I underestimated the mercy of the promised Messiah my wives my mothers my children my daughters they could have been spared even at that late date when Nephi was preaching they could have listened they could have accepted the the

call to come is there are these tears of joy as well that the arms of Mercy are still extended that he's come to save the world from sin and that with broken hearts and contrite Spirits we really can offer him all that he asks of us and he'll receive it oh these tears well eventually they stop the quaking stops the darkness finally disperses and in verse 10 the mourning and the Weeping and the Wailing of the people who were spared alive did cease and then this beautiful language their mourning did turn into joy and their

Lamentations into the praise and thanksgiving unto the Lord Jesus Christ their redeemer how's that for beauty from ashes literally or as the psalmist said weeping may endure for a night but joy cometh in the morning and capital J Joy capital J Jesus is about to come among them in fact the way Mormon ends this he's going to he's going to do a little bit more in chapter 10 giving you example a cloud of witnesses that had tried to prepare them for just this moment but he sums it up in this in verse 14 now who

so readeth so that's us he's talking to us now let him understand he that hath the scriptures let him search them and see and behold if all these deaths and destructions by fire by Smoke by tempests by whirlwinds by the opening of the earth to receive them all these things see if they are not unto the fulfilling of the Prophecies of many of the Holy prophets now I don't think that's an I told you so rather I think that's an I have told you this before I was trying everything within my power to prepare you

and some listened and some would not now at the close of chapter 10 it's almost like Mormon has to take a break it's been so hard what he's described it's going to be so incredible what he's about to narrate in chapter 11 but he pauses and at the end of chapter 10 he basically tells us okay I I got to take a breather for a minute but just you wait because Christ is going to fulfill every prophecy including the ones about his coming among the righteous here that's what's next on the scriptural agenda and I'll

be back in a minute to tell it to you well we just turn the page and begin chapter 11 which is such a magnificent scriptural Masterpiece this may be a chapter you know backwards and forwards inside and out how many times did you teach it to people in the mission field it's such a place of rejoicing but let's see what we can find in these last few minutes of our lesson this week chapter 11: one and two now it came to pass that there were a great multitude gathered together again that's what Christ has come

to do gather scattered Israel in fact he's going to emphasize that perhaps more than any other theme in the next couple of weeks as he teaches his uh his postmortal neite ministry so they're gathered and where are they gathered round about the temple which was in the land Bountiful h no better place to be to come to know the Savior let's go to a place of His bounous blessings let's go to his house let's flow upward to the mountain of the Lord and meet him there they were marveling and wondering one with another they were

showing one to another the great and marvelous change which had taken place makes me wonder what kind of changes they were most marveling about the geographic ones the top the topographical ones there's a mountain there where there used to be none there used to be a city there now it's an inlet in the sea or were it or was it the marvelous changes within them as they're beginning to offer broken hearts and contrite spirits to the Lord oh I'm sure it was a combination of the two but again do we come to the temple do

we try to connect with God and are we in awe of the changes he is is working in each of us It also says that they were also conversing about this Jesus Christ of whom the sign had been given concerning his death yeah what else would they be talking about what else would be on anyone's mind well in that moment verse three it came to pass that while they were thus conversing one with another they heard a voice as if it came out of Heaven they cast their eyes round about for they understood not the

voice which they heard and then notice the description of it it was not a harsh voice neither was it a loud voice which is interesting because that seems to be the only kinds of voices we hear anymore harshness and loudness and I can shout down my opponent oh no the Lord is much more humble peaceful than that I'll wait my turn if you don't want to listen no harshness no loudness nevertheless and notwithstanding it being a small voice it did Pierce them that did hear to the center in so much that there was no part

of their frame that it did not cause to Quake yay it did Pierce them to the very soul and did cause their hearts to burn this reminds us of Nephi and Lehi the brothers in prison back in Helman chapter 5 remember that and a voice that the people kept hearing inviting them to repent and change this reminds me of Elijah on the mountain where the voice of God was not in the fire or the Earth Quake It was in a still Small Voice just listen calm yourself and open your ears to hear lastly it reminds

me of the disciples on the road to Emmas Jesus was with them but they didn't recognize him but when they finally did it was recognizing that their hearts did burn within them when he taught them truth that's the experience these Nephites are having but again they don't understand it they don't understand it the first time they don't they don't get it the second time finally on the third notice verse five again the third time they did hear the voice and notice what they did differently they did open their ears to hear it that's interesting literal

how do you open your ears well think what that might mean Their Eyes Were towards the sound thereof and they did look steadfastly towards heaven from Once the sound came talk about attentiveness talk about laser focus talk about an eye single to the glory of God eliminate all distraction focus in and make sure put on the blinders so that the world disappears from your peripheral and as you open ears there's so much intentionality here so much agency proactivity I want to hear what God is telling me this is noticing a burning bush and turning aside

to see this is silencing any other distraction this is heeding not the voices from the great and spacious building this is only seeing the tree of life ahead of you and coming running to partake of its fruit well with this Focus they finally understand and what does it say oh verse 7 behold my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased in whom I have glorified my name hear ye him which is exactly what our beloved Prophet has been saying to us for years learn to hear him Focus look past your sins and your weaknesses

look up and rejoice at a savior with arms of Mercy extended this is the father bearing witness of the son that's what he comes to do so look and live hear listen understand and then the the microphone passes from father to son this is what happened in the fall this is now coming through the atonement the Sun is going to help us come back to the father and so he says verse 10 and 11 by way of introduction behold I am Jesus Christ you see they had thought assumed wondered is this an angel who is

this again the father had to clarify this is my beloved Son and sure enough the son descends and says I am Jesus Christ whom the prophets testified shall come into the world interesting right off the bat it's not just who I am but he's backing up the people who had backed him up against the odds time vindicates the prophets and here Jesus himself is vindicating them they defended me they testified of me I'm now testifying of them they tried to prepare you they were hens themselves trying to huddle us all toward the mother now notice

what else he says every detail of this self- inroduction is powerful behold I am the light and the life of the world just like he'd said in the previous chapter right no more darkness no more death but then focus on the atonement I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the father hath given me and that taste was still fresh in his mouth we don't know exactly how much time has passed uh time for the people to gather to Bountiful H this is not you know this is not crucifixion happens Friday and then this

and Resurrection Sunday and then now this is Monday morning no time has passed but here he's come among them remembering just how bitter the bitter cup really was I have glorified the father there he is pointing up Ward glorified the father in taking upon me the sins of the world in the which I have suffered the will of the father in all things from the beginning Elder Holland once gave a talk about this and said isn't it interesting that one of the first thing Jesus wants us to know about him is his absolute submission to

the father I said was never about me yes I partook of the bitter cup but it was the father's plan that made it all possible that made it all worth it to me and hopefully to you to God be the glory thy will be [Music] done and to honor him in that way Elder Holland then added in a kind of Haunting caution if that's the first thing Jesus wants us to know about himself that I was an A submissive son an obedient servant Elder Holland said I wonder if that's one of the first things he'll

want to know about us will we be able to say I submitted to the will of the father in all things drinking whatever cup he gave me whether sacramental or absolutely bitter I drank them all trusting the hand that was offering them to me then notice what happens he Jesus invites everyone to come I mean you'd think this would be dramatic enough that no I'm good I understand I believe okay I don't need any further witness and yet Jesus is offering it to them this is not a doubting Thomas moment but they get a doubting

Thomas experience they're not wondering and questioning like no I don't know this is is this kind of light playing off tricking my eyes optical illusion here no this is crystal clear but though I didn't ask to know even more personally the Lord res responded and rewarded to their faith or responded to and rewarded their faith with a personal experience unlike any other it was not just stay at a distance and hear and see no it was come and see it was come and feel it was come and know for yourself as clearly as doubting Thomas

could have asked for you didn't ask for it so just come verse 15 it came to pass that the multitude went forth and thrust their hands into his side and did feel the prince of the nail in his hands and in his feet and this they did do going forth one by one until they had all gone forth and did see with their eyes and did feel with their hands and did know of assurity and did Bear record that it was he of whom it was written by the prophets that should come now I've seen

some people do the math on this counting up the thousands that were there and then pick in how much time would Jesus have spent with each individual in that one by one process this could have taken most of the rest of that day this is one of the most inefficient moments and yet Perhaps the most effective moment of all as one who's super busy with a lot of people reaching out for help I'm constantly battling the tug-of war between efficiency and effectiveness those those are those tend to be mutually exclusive at least to their best

degree and the most efficient way of doing things is typically the least effective because it's just hurting the multitudes through me trying to meet the needs of the masses whereas the most effective thing tends to be the least efficient thing because one by one that's why I am hundreds of requests behind and I am so sorry for that you who have reached out and just please help my son help my missionary help my spouse help me I wish I could pause time and just do one by one because that's the most effective way I know

how it's that's how we do ordinances it's how we do work for the dead we don't baptize continents or centuries we dig through the records of the past to find an individual name and then perform every ordinance individual for them it's incredible speaking of the temple that's another place where we can have an experience like this one of feeling the marks in the savior's hands and coming to know him personally by what he did for us one of the best ways to come to know Christ is to come and feel the evidence of his atonement

to come and know in a personal way that he bled and died for me individually not just for the collective how many drops of blood were shed for me president fa used to ask that wound in hand foot SED on my account I said earlier that we have a god-shaped hole in our heart well Christ has an us shaped hole in scars that were not reversed through the resurrection he has engraven us on the palms of his hands the hen's Wing the furthest feather stretching out to invite us to come so will we come you

don't have to hesitate you don't have to think it's someone else that's being invited let open your heart soften it break it if need be and give it to him he will take it and bind it up as only he can this is the I I don't I'm not doing it justice I know that much but to ponder what it would have been like to be standing in the multitude waiting for your turn my brother-in-law was an Elders cor president in Boston and there was a friend of his that was in in less active in

the ward and Elder Holland was going to come and do a a YSA Fireside so my brother-in-law just begged this friend at least come and meet Elder Holland well Elder Holland so kindly so inefficiently said to them this young adult group I'd love to meet you if you want to stick around after the Fireside I'd love just to come and shake hands and you better believe they waited a long time as this line snaked around the chapel and in the cultural Hall and throughout the building and Elder Holland just came one by one to meet

people when he came to my brother-in-law my brother-in-law was so much more focused on his friend than on himself I like ELD Holland you got to meet my friend he's awesome he's amazing he's had some struggles and and just I wanted him to meet you and and here he is and and Elder Holland I don't know everything that he said but by the end of that conversation with this solitary individual Elder Holland had his had the the young man's face in his hands like cupping his cheeks holding him close and expressing God's love for him

that would be life-changing it would have been life-changing for these Nephites standing there at the temple in Bountiful when the Savior came oh if this is preview of second coming then endure Armageddon Bring It On would to God it might be in my day to have that kind of experience thankfully be it sooner or later I can have these kinds of of experiences myself maybe not feel with my hands but yes feel with my heart maybe not see with physical eyes but see with the eye of faith and to know and then yes to Bear

witness to testify to others the effect that Jesus Christ and his atonement has had on us such a moment from there Jesus Oh goes from soteriological to ecclesi ecclesiological right soteriology study of atonement ecclesiology the study of churches and he pivots and turns to Nephi and says come forth I want you're you're in charge here uh well second in command and I want the multitudes to know that I also want you and them to know the right way to baptize let me confirm before them all that you Nephi and these other disciples that I will

choose 12 of them I like that number I will clarify and confirm that they do have a Authority from me to baptize I'm sure that's been happening already but to confirm it to clarify it to commission you so that these baptisms can continue to take place he explains what these baptisms should entail I won't read the verses but you can and it's everything the way we do it ourselves to this day we learn from Jesus well it's repent it's come it's be childlike it's immersion it's in the name of the father and the Son and

the Holy Ghost it's by the authority of Jesus Christ himself that it is that it happens this is the right way to baptize and then he says this in verse 22 he said unto them on this wise shall ye baptize and there shall be no disputations among you no disputations please remember that because we're going to see it again in a few weeks when we get to chapter 18 we're going to see it again later on a third time there are these rounds of disputation that are going on and it's among good people discussing good

things they're trying to establish Orthodoxy they're trying to say this is how things are supposed to be done and God wants them done right we're just trying to submit to the will of the father in all things just like Jesus did okay good good good good I'm glad it's awesome goal but your approach is all wrong love the destination but if you get there in such a way that everybody gets thrown off out of the wagon along the journey then what was the point in getting there nobody got there so remember this because we're going

to have to repeat it several more times through third Nephi that Jesus says from the get-go good people with good goals you have to have a good approach and that is an approach devoid of disputation contention is not allowed no doubting no disputations we got to find the goldie luck zone here okay we got to agree and may even even when we disagree do it agreeably compromise prove contraries figure this out turn to me don't turn against each other notice what he says as he repeats all of this verse 28 through3 according as I have

commanded you thus shall ye baptize I mean that there's a Clarion call for Orthodoxy if I ever saw it this is how it has to be done but then notice there shall be no disputations among you as there have hitherto been you get it I yes I want the the good destination you've got to have the right approach neither shall there be disput disputations among you concerning the points of my Doctrine as there have hitherto been oh yeah I've been paying attention you guys are fighting over this stuff for verily verily I say unto you

he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me but is of the devil who is the father of contention and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger one with another behold this is not my Doctrine to stir up the hearts of men with anger one against another but this is my doctrine that such things should be done away amazing how many times he repeats Doctrine at the end of chapter 11 and to those doctrinaires out there those who prioritize Doctrine I got to be right and even if I'm wrong

with other people by golly I'm GNA be right with God that's all that matters the I love that the Lord takes their favorite word Doctrine and says yeah I've got a doctrine of Orthodoxy but I've also got a doctrine of Harmony how's that and if you're going about establishing Doctrine in the wrong way then you've just done false Doctrine you haven't preached false Doctrine you're trying to establish true Doctrine but you've lived a false Doctrine lack of Harmony is unorthodox how's that sit with you I I love that he takes their word and just kind

of pushes it right in front of them one of the doctrines that allows us to love God is to love our neighbor and to disagree without becoming disagreeable to compromise instead of contend to love each other toward Jesus that's how we're going to get people there without it nobody's going to come least of all us okay super important to understand I learned this the hard way on my mission where when you Bible bash you lose even when you win that's not the Lord's approach has never has been he repeats it again verse 31 through 33

if you jump a if Jump Ahead here clarifying what his Doctrine really does boil down to behold verily verily I say unto you I will declare unto you my Doctrine that's really what you want right this is my Doctrine and it is the doctrine which the father hath given unto me and then this triangle all pointing in the other directions I bear record of the Father the father beareth record of me the Holy Ghost beareth record of the father and me and I bear record that the father commandeth all men everywhere here it is to

repent and believe in me that's what it boils down to what I was calling people to do in 8 and 9 and 10 just come put the Dukes down lower the defenses bring a broken heart and a contrite spirit let me change you let me heal you if you do whosoever believeth in me and is baptized the same shall be saved and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God he's going to bring up the Holy Ghost again in a moment but there you see in rough outline actually rough as crystal clear as

you can get the Fourth Article of Faith the doctrine of Christ faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that's why we come unto him repentance baptism by immersion for the remission of sins the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost that's it that's the Fourth Article of Faith that's the doctrine of Christ and that is what he is clearly establishing as his inviting words for us to come he repeats it in 37 and 38 with a slight variation notice it again I say unto you ye must repent and become as a little

child and be baptized in my name or you can in no wise receive these things and again I say unto you ye must repent and be baptized in my name and become as a little child or you can in no eyes inherit the kingdom of God did you catch the change so so subtle so slight just order both times they start with repentance which assumes a a faith that leads to it right faith into repentance but then it's be a little child and get baptized oh let me say that again get baptized and be a

little child and what I love about that is our childlike nature needs to both precede and follow our covenant commitment we don't outgrow the need to be like little children and if it was that kind of humility that broken heart and contrite spirit submission if that's what brought us to the Waters of baptism it's what's going to continue to bring us back to the sacrament table week after week after week where one by one all men and women everywhere are invited to make covenants with Christ he then ends it all verse 39 verily verily I

say unto you that this is my Doctrine let me clarify it again and who so buth upon this buth upon my rock no cracks and SE seams and broken fragments here the rock of the Redeemer is right before you come and build if you do the gates of hell shall not Prevail against him and who so shall declare more or less than this and establish it for my Doctrine the same cometh of evil and is not built upon my rock but he builth Upon A Sandy foundation and the Gates of Hell stand open to receive

such when not if the floods come and the winds beat upon them and yeah I have a feeling that floods and winds are recent enough memories for you that I hope this metaphor motivates the wise man built his house where as opposed to the foolish man where will you build there is an invitation here for us all to decide where our foundation will lie in true Doctrine which is Faith repentance baptism Holy Ghost loving neighbor helping us all to collectively come unto Christ one by one so beautiful next week we will dive into the sermon

at the temple which is his nephite version of The Sermon on the Mount we'll see people wrestle with well okay what does this mean with the law of Moses I don't know what to do here and then we'll see Jesus get into the real meat of his message uh starting at the end of chapter 16 that will follow him through the rest of his postmortal ministry here great things ahead I'm so excited to study third Nephi with you I'm grateful for what we've been able to study today and if I can jog your memory with

a handful of amazing phrases here's a good list to reflect upon cleansed every wit great earnestness doubting and disputations such has never had been known great and terrible carried away in the Whirlwind broken fragments there could not be any light at all oh that we had repented the devil laugheth and his angels Rejoice to hide their iniquities none righteous among them return unto me be converted that I may heal you my arm of Mercy is extended blessed are those who come unto me become the sons of God the light and the life of the world

Alpha and Omega the beginning and the end a broken heart and a contrite spirit and they knew it not to save the world from sin come unto me ye ends of the Earth and be saved saved cease lamenting how of as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings and ye would not repent and return unto me with full purpose of heart mourning was turned into Joy who so readeth let him understand round about the temple one great and marvelous change cause their hearts to burn look steadfastly towards heaven hear ye him the will of

the father in all things one by one know of assurity no disputations among you the spirit of contention all men everywhere as a little child oh will see some little children coming unto Christ in two weeks that's one worth waiting for as well but to be here to be at the time of his coming to see a mini Millennium extend out this is the Tree of Life he's grown up before them and his word is extending outward piercing Mists of darkness in every direction iron rods trying to pull us in to the arms of Mercy

I pray that we will come that ye would not never enters into the vocabulary but that we trust in a lord who wants to come unto us so that we can come unto him [Music] thanks so much for listening to unshaken a proud member of the faith matters podcast Network you can learn more about faith matters and check out our other shows at Faith matters.org