Come Follow Me - Helaman 1-6: The Rock of the Redeemer

[Music] hello my friends welcome back to unshaken welcome back to the Book of Mormon and welcome to the book of Helman we finished the war chapters the so-called War chapters last week and I say so-called because the Book of Mormon is so filled with war chapters it's hard to confine them to the last 20 chapters of Elma in fact the first thing you'll see in the book of Helman is more wars and rumors of wars and so on that's actually an important thing because if you remember every once in a while I mention that The

Book of Mormon is a scale model of the last days that Mormon as a historian Propet took his history and turned it into prophecy took the the history of the nephite nation and chose those stories that would point to the last days and the preparation of the world for the second coming of Jesus Christ the most Clear Connection point is the first coming Among the Nephites that's third Nephi 11 and that coincides with the second coming of Jesus Christ whenever that time might come but if you think about Mormon's abridgment of the large plates of

Nephi starting in mosiah where the church is organized again think of the latterday parallel the church is organized we've got these missionary chapters well missionaries go forth to share the gospel you have these War chapters wars and rumors of wars the the wars were huge at the end of of of Alma the rumors of wars we're going to start seeing more of in helan again those signs of the times those those become Larger than Life In the book of helan especially with the help of Samuel the lonite and then you see the destruction of wickedness

all around kind of an Armageddon kind of a moment in thiri chapter uh 8 and nine and 10 and then the coming of Christ in chapter 11 you get his ministry you have a mini Millennium in fourth Nephi and then these final battles and the end of the book again perfect parallels to what we're going to fa what we have faced and what we will face in the last days and honestly as I read the book of Mormon and look at the evening news I as far as I can tell we seem to be somewhere

at the end of the book of helan or the beginning of third Nephi uh we're barreling toward third Nephi 11 and I can't wait right would to God that it might be in my day but be it sooner or later in it I shall rejoice I lay that all out to try to put in perspective what we're going to be studying for the next few weeks we get three weeks on the book of helan uh today we'll be spending most of our time with well the main things to be paying attention to today are the

pride cycle that's going to begin I mean it's it's been going on since since creation really but to see it very clearly spelled out in the book of Helman keep an eye out for that also huge addition are the gadianton robbers they are going to play a part from this point on and it's it's a negative part as Mormon is going to to give us a spoiler alert it's going to be because of the Gadi an and robbers or secret combinations in general that's going to spell disaster to the nephite nation again if there's a

parallel sounds like it might spell disaster to us as well so let's dive in and see how this all takes place again so many parallels by the way we're also going to see the lamanites begin to Blossom as a rose beautiful roll reversal the the Nephites are on the decline spiritually but the lamanites are on the incline and if you think about that prophecy that in the last days the day of the Gentiles will be fil fulfilled and the the those lamanites will Blossom as a rose the L shall be first the first shall be

last we're seeing the the the center of gravity of global Christianity begin to migrate to the global South so again we're following these same parallels in our day now to jump into Helman chapter 1 and chapter 2 the main thing here is going to be secret combinations but so much of it is you lead into it with some some major political problems and yeah sound familiar of course you'll see things in verse one for example serious difficulty among the people get a sense of social unrest turn on the news you'll see plenty of that in

verse two there are serious contention concerning who should have the Judgment seat and here we are in an election year yes political unrest and instability not just Divi divisions but actual contention and in verse three the contention among the the candidates leads to contention among the people it did cause the people to contend it says there you see start to see some militant partisan politics and that unfortunately seems to be the order of our day as well now I'm just going to sum up really quickly what chapter one is all about because you end up

pin who we met last week this amazing wonderful turn the other cheek give people the benefit of the doubt kind of leader he has gone the way of all the Earth and now it's going to be up to the people to choose which of his three sons is going to succeed him now they're all wonderful alliterative names uh starting with P just like their father but to to be as simple as possible one is elected a second joins the the the party it says okay I I'll honor that election the third fights against it and

so what you end up having is 2/3 against one3 in a battle for whose plan will proceed sound familiar it's actually pretty mind-blowing once you start to see the war in heaven played out in Helman chapter 1 with a defeated Le rallying troops rebelling fighting against and eventually being cast down uh killed in his case in in Helman but it is so I remember the first time I saw that it was almost Eerie like whoa okay there's the war in heaven with Lucifer being dispelled what's interesting there though is what from that moment on because

they cannot have control they're going to do everything within their power to try to insert influence into society to exercise some kind of influence that they don't want anyone to know about again there's the secrecy within secret combinations now I'm not a conspiracy theorist that's not what I'm getting at here but in terms of influences that are leading people away from the plan of God towards a self-centeredness a radical individuality at the expense of community uh the same kinds of issues that we fought over with this war of words and TL opinions that took place

in portality we're going to see that alive and well or in this case alive and not so well in the book of helan now with secret combinations again this idea of we can't let anyone know because if they knew what we were doing they'd more easily put it put it to to rest look at words like this in the OR phrases like this in the first several chapters of helan I'll just run through the list really quick tell no man not known among the people in disgu eyes they all could not be found no one

should know secret work secret plan secret murderers a secret way is it obvious enough yet they could nowhere be found it says of them these were secret combinations that were not known and yet and yet known to a degree known by those who joined them known by those who wanted to use leverage these kinds of Poss possibilities to be able to gain whatever it was they wanted and what did they want the clearest verse we've got on this in early Helman is chapter 2:4 it's here where we meet gadianton kishkumen was the kind of the

the initial leader that we meet in chapter one and it's Kish kumman that kills the chief judge kishkumen is then going to kill Helman when Helman replaces and becomes the chief judge himself and yet kishkumen is stopped by one of helman's trusty servants yeah gadianton then takes the Reigns of this band of kishkumen but notice the description in chapter 2:4 there was one gadianton who was exceedingly expert in many words sound a little like sheram sound a l a lot like Kore here is this rhetorical prowess if I can say things in in with a

power of persuasion then I can flatter you I can scratch those itching ears and get you to do whatever I want so here's this Gad Anon who was expert in many words who was also expert in his craft H we've talked about priest craft and lawyer craft and politician craft well here's secret combination craft and he's amazing at it what's the goal it's to carry on the secret works of murder and of robbery therefore he became the leader of the band of kishkumen now think about those two goals murder and robbery now on the one

hand we might Pat ourselves on the back and think oh I'm not even temped by those things but if you take them and kind of expand them out into overarching themes both of them have to do with power and they also have to do with prosperity we're going to talk about some peas today okay and when you think about power the ultimate example of power over someone else is the ability to take away their life itself so murder there is real power and then robbery is this this dishonest approach to gain Prosperity we're going to

talk more about those but if you think about power as a political aim and prosperity as an economic aim think about so much of what runs the show in our day our politics and economics how do I get ahead with power and how do I get ahead with Pro with prosperity materialism worldliness all of those things another cross reference you might want to write in the margin here is Moses 5: 29-31 here we see Cain and Abel that famous story but unlike the Genesis story Satan plays a more visible role in the Moses account so

notice this there'll be some parallels to what we just saw in the gadian and robbers Satan said unto Cain swear unto me by thy throat I mean there's this can kind of cross your heart and hope to die right poke a needle in my eye swear by your throat if thou tell it Thou shalt die sound like secrecy as in an important thing swear thy Brethren by their heads and by the Living God that they tell it not for if they tell it they shall surely die and this that thy father may not know it

last thing we can have is Adam finding out about this because he'll put it to he'll he'll put it all down and this day I will deliver thy brother Abel into thine hands now Satan swear unto Cain that he would do according to his commands and all these things were done in secret so all throughout those first few verses it's all about secrecy we don't want anyone to know especially not the prophet okay we don't want Adam to find out but what's the goal that they're trying to keep so secret last lines Cain said truly

I am Mahan the master of this great secret and what is the secret that I may murder and get gain later in the book of Helman it will become clear that it is that same being who planted those thoughts of power power and prosperity in Cain's mind that is doing the same thing in K in kumin and gadianton and everyone who's following them those were the goals of am malakiah and amaron over the last two weeks in the war chapters of Alma these still seem to be the goals of so many people today you remember

in the war chapters when we talked about cause versus cause and we talked about the P's versus the fs and the P's were power and prosperity Pride Prestige all of that the fs were Faith and family and freedom and Captain Moroni had a greater cause some of am malakiah and amar's followers doubted the justness of their cause sometimes you kind of wake up and realize am I climbing a ladder that's leaning against the wrong wall am I amassing Treasures that that I can't take with me where moth and rust do corrupt or am I putting

my Treasures in Heaven these are the questions that we need to wrestle with as we study the book of heilman notice by the way if you want to side by side I'll give you a quick chart if we take Politics on one side and economics on the other here they are side by side murder there's political and get gain there's economic or if we wanted to use the language of helan it's murder and robbery same thing power on the one hand Prosperity on the other ambition is what's driving the political side greed is what's driving

the economic and as we talked about in in our new testament Study last year in the Book of Revelation as Babylon is described in all of its different aspects we saw the Beast as the political aspect Dog Eat Dog survival of the fittest and there's this this hope for power and then we saw the merchant City buying and selling The Souls of men and there's the economic aspect of Babylon both of those by the way grow out of the ideological aspect of Babylon which was the the the red Harlot and again if you think about

all the false doctrines that have been taught by antichrists like sheram and neor and kahor Men of flattering words exceedingly expert like gadianton if I can convince you to accept the wrong beliefs then of course the wrong behaviors will come if I can secretly combine forces with other influences to convince you that the P's outweigh the fs that yet forget Faith and family go after pride and prosperity and power are we falling prey to those kinds of falsehoods well they were in The Book of Mormon the interesting thing by the end of chapter 1 and

into chapter 2 though you see all of these secret combinations from within but also some overt obvious challenges from without there is a denter named Cory animer strong and mighty man himself and he rallies the troops goes and fights the knites but unlike others in the war chapters of Alma where they're trying to pick off the periphery cor aner decides I'm going to go straight to the heart and that's an interesting word to keep in mind he aim GS straight for zarahemla in the center of nephite territory the capital city itself and he goes on

this blitz C basically as fast as he can to March there and he ends up defeating the capital city this would be a March on Washington DC for you Americans out there and all of a sudden the capital Falls what's going to happen a couple of verses to keep in mind look at chapter 1: 18 it came to pass that because of so much contention and so much difficulty in the government there's these internal problems that they had not kept sufficient guards in the land of zarahemla for they had supposed that the N lamanites dur

not come into the heart of the lands to attack that great City zarahemla I mean they wouldn't dare come there would he now think about this symbolically and what body part is the adversary aiming at more than anything else it seems to be the heart the center what matters most to us what do we place in pole position in the Fourth Article of Faith where do we place our faith what is our overarching ultimate concern and that's what the adversary is going after in verse 19 it says that cor anor's March was with such exceedingly

great speed that there was no time for the Nephites to gather together their armies again there's the blitz C I mentioned as president mon Monson used to say when the day of decision has come the day of preparation is passed and are we ready are we strong enough at our core is our heart placed on what matters most to the point how no how no matter how quickly things go south no matter how fast these influen I mean think about how quickly things have changed over the last few years technology rushes forward at at an

an incredible Pace social media springing up left and right outside influences working their way in secretly almost these algorithms how did they know what they what they think I want how are they pulling me towards the very Temptations I may be struggling with it's a fascinating thing and if we're not prepared if we're not ready for it then our heart can fall now good news morona the son of Captain Moroni had never crossed his mind that they'd ever go for that okay okay maybe a little bit more at West Point but what he ends up

realizing though is Cory animer you put yourself in a in a bad spot yes you conquered our heart but literally as far as Battlefield tactics are concerned that means you're surrounded we had fortified all the peripheral cities all along the border of the land and now all we have to do is come in and we've got you right where we want you it's exactly what ihad does cor anamur is defeated zarahemla is regained and things can move forward with some degree of peace from that point what's interesting to me though is this question of where

am I placing my troops what am I fortifying is it the peripheral or is it the core there I would say there needs to be a balance there right Pro some contraries but even when you think about your your strongest testimonies within the gospel are they peripheral things beautiful as they might be but still peripheral as Joseph Smith said what do we really believe what's the heart what's the core it's Jesus Christ how's your faith in him how's your testimony of the Savior everything else Joseph said in the gospel is just an appendage let's strengthen

the appendages fine but make sure you guard the core with that notice a verse I want to to wrestle with two of them actually from elsewhere in scripture because like I said it is Secret combinations that we're really starting to understand in the book of Helman and here's two verses to wrestle with Ephesians 4: 11-4 is world famous for Latter-Day Saints because its focus is on Apostles and Prophets but what is it that they do well they perfect the Saints they work the ministry they're trying to help us achieve the fullness of the stature of

of Jesus Christ but what are they up against notice this verse we are facing the slight of men and cunning craftiness whereby they lie in weight to deceive sound like secret combinations there and then the other one look at section 89 of the Doctrine and Covenants the word of wisdom we think of that in terms of physical health but it's spiritual health all across the board and what are we up against ask that question again ver verse four of section 89 says that this this word of wisdom was revealed in consequence of evils and Designs

which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days there you have it secret combinations cunning craftiness slight of men lying in weight to deceive evils designs conspiring men out there trying to get power and prosperity for themselves at the expense of other people My Hope Is that we can coax out the combinations from behind their secrecy or at least us to get enough in the know that we can be aware of whatever things are tugging and pulling at us towards things that really don't matter I have shared this analogy

in the past I'll just hint at it again right now but if you were to redefine Victory on the football field and say points don't matter anymore it's only about time of possession then without changing in a single rule you have turned the entire sport on its head the strategies will completely change you're not going to throw the ball you don't want to go out of bounds you don't want to get to the end zone because then you have to pass the ball over the entire game would slow down it's a completely different sport again

without changing a single rule yep only by redefining Victory back to the causes in the war chapters if God has established the fs as our causes Faith Family Freedom then what would happen if conspiring men and women slight of hand cunning craftiness conspire ways to secretly influence us towards the peas instead toward Pride Prosperity power Prestige popul Clarity all of those things will spell disaster to us we've got to be ready for it if you look at Helman chap 2: 13 and 14 notice the chilling warning that Mormon gives us and behold In the End

of This Book ye shall see that this Gadi antin did prove the overthrow yay almost the entire destruction of the people of Nephi behold I do not mean the end of the book of hel that's not what he's talking about but I mean the end of the book of Nephi now known as The Book of Mormon from which I have taken all the account which I have written how's that for a spoiler alert how's that for a preview of coming destructions if you're a fan of the music man oh there's trouble with a capital T

and that t rhymes with p and the P isn't for pool the P is for all those other P's we talked about Pride power prosperity and all of the above that will spell disaster for the nephite nation as Mormon knows and because he's seen our day and is trying to prepare us to navigate it it will spell spell disaster in our day as well prepare for that well how do we prepare for it Chapter 3 of Helman to me gives us two options that well either one could be a successful one okay but as you

and your family wrestles with how do you navigate the last days when there so many influences pulling your children away from the faith for example pulling people apart well two options and really it boils down to do I stay or do I go I am in a place Pi picture this I grew up in Southern California okay and lately it's been it's become Almost Famous how many Californians are moving to Utah how many are moving to Texas how many moving to other places now some of that is economically driven some of it is politically driven

some of it is religiously driven in terms of people concerned about certain outside influences and wanting to find greener pastures where their children can be more safe spiritually now there are pros and cons to this and I had last time I was in California giv some firesides I heard that there are general authorities coming to California Stakes pleading with people to stay we'll build another Temple okay uh again as a as a Californian myself I was I was grateful to grow up there and at the same time I'm grateful my children aren't uh and so

it's this there's a challenge every time and I'm not here to tell you to move and I'm not here to tell you to stay but Helman 3 tells us there are pros and cons to either option I'll give you a few words to to settle down on for example in chapter 3: one and this you can almost go by year year by year by year okay we'll fly through the chronology this is the 43rd year of the reign of the judges and it says there was no content among the people of Nephi well I wish

the period were there it isn't save it were a little pride which was in the church which did cause some little dissensions among the people which Affairs were settled in the ending of the 40 and3rd year oh we were close uh we saw Pride starting to work its way in to the church towards church members but it was just a little and it caused a little dissension but laid it to rest we're good to go well unfortunately next year and next verse well actually this is still fortunately there was no contention among the people next

year 45th there was or neither was there much contention o that means at least there's a little and where there's a little it tends to grow into a lot and that's exactly what happens by the 46th year there was much contention and many dissensions later in that chapter in verse 19 where it speaks of the following year the 47th there were still great contentions in the land now with all of that what do I do do I leave and start over without those outside influences or do I stay and strive to make things better right

here now various people chose either one of those options and again they're both good the anti- the anti-i Lehi for example decided to leave it's like no we we we've left our territory plenty of times in the past we're going to do it again we're going to head up north and tried to start from scratch a better Society others decided to stay behind including Helman and his soon to be famous Sons Nephi and Lehi so options for us notice for example in chapter 3:3 there were an exceedingly great many who departed out of the land

or verse four they did travel to an exceedingly great distance in verse 7 they built houses of cement in the which they did dwell that's an interesting one metaphorically they used cement because there weren't any trees I'll see a verse I'll show you a verse about that in just a second but cement it almost feels like we're hunkering down this is like a bunker almost and no outside influences are going to penetrate our cement walls do we sometimes have that feeling almost Fortress family us against the world and we're going to cut off all contact

with the outside now again there's pros and cons there you are deciding not to be of the world that's good but to a certain degree are you not even in the world you won't let them influence you that's good but can you influence them at this stage probably not and that's not good so we're got to we got to strike a balance here and how strong are our defenses but are we putting up cement walls in every direction to the point that no good that we have is going out speaking of the wood by the

way this is verse 9 the they chose not to cut down any trees because they were so scarce that in time they might have Timber to build their houses yay their cities and notice the list their temples and their synagogues and their sanctuaries because if you're going somewhere else to start from scratch you don't have a you don't have any of those there back in zarahemla for example yeah we got problems of Plenty but we also have the potential for all the solutions right here here we have sanctuaries we have synagogues we have temples and

and please if you're if you're pondering this again this is going to have to be a family decision this is going to have to be seeking the will of the Lord to help you decide what you should do for the sake of your children I saw it so often when I first started teaching seminary in Utah so many transplants coming in hopes of saving their children from outside influences and yet if the children were looking for negative influences you can find those anywhere including in zarahemla itself right in Happy Valley Utah if you think about

it then what would the Lord have me do it takes time for trees to grow we're going to have to be patient either way and whether it's starting a new in someplace fresh creating new relationships and new friendships and so on pros and cons or whether it's staying right where you are and trying to make a difference those trees take time to grow to either way we must exercise patience and faith and strive in any way possible to grow up in God what kinds of trees should we be planting trees of life in every soul

if you want to see the stay and strive side it's also in chapter 3 start in verse 20 despite the fact that so many people are moving away the first word of verse 20 is nevertheless so despite all the wickedness all around them and some choosing to go to greener pastures nevertheless helan did fill the Judgment seat with Justice and Equity yay he did observe to keep the statutes and the judgments and the Commandments of God he did do that which was right in the sight of God and he did it continually he did walk

after the ways of his father good example there in so much that he did prosper in the land I'm great ful for the oh the stability of a helan deciding we're going to stand and strive we're going to stay right here and we are going to make a difference is there a potential for them to make a difference in US yes unfortunately Sons let's guard against that I named you Nephi and Lehi with that hope in mind but can we stay and make a difference here it may take time it did but notice chapter 3:

21 those wonderful sons of helan began to grow up unto the Lord despite the surroundings the negative influences the secret combinations all around them in verse 22 the word the wars and contentions began to cease in a small degree yes it's only a small degree but keep pushing at that keep working toward those righteous goals and a small degree can become a large one in fact that's exactly what happens in verse 23 there was Contin continual peace established in the land uh I'll say it were the secret combinations that's going to take some some more

concentrated effort but peace beginning to be reestablished such that verse 24 there is exceedingly great prosperity in the church thousands are baptized the high priests are shocked astonished at how well things are going despite all the opposition all around them in some ways man at least from my own experience whether it was in Texas as a little kid or California as an older kid or in Tennessee raising my own kids there's something powerful about being a religious minority you don't succumb to cultural Christianity you keep Covenant Christianity first and foremost you're up against something and

so you have to be able to stand on your own two feet you know what you're up against so you know who you are it's an amazing thing and that's what's happening with Lehi and Nephi growing up in this environment again shocking to the church leaders how well the church is doing in these difficult places and difficult times now that should tell us something in fact it told Mormon something and he wants to tell us he he's going to give us a handful of thus we see statements and I'm so grateful when he does President

iron has pointed out how generous that pronoun is since it's plural Mormon could have said well thus I see I don't know about the rest of you blind people out there but for me this is what's coming clear in the narrative well thankfully this is something we see once puts his arm around us and points out some of the detail well he's going to do that three times three takeaways based on what we've studied so far this is hman CH 3: 27 and then 28 and then 29 and 30 okay verse 27 thus we may

see takeway number one that the Lord is merciful unto all who will in the sincerity of their hearts call upon His holy name to which we might add no matter what they're up against that's a beautiful thing Mormon's watching this and he's seing those who chose to stand and try to make a difference God was merciful to them they called upon His holy name they were sincere they had righteous desires Heavenly Father how will I raise my children in such an environment by the way in our day because of Technology is there even anywhere to

run because of conspiring men and slight of hand and technological advancement and and ways that we there's nowhere to run nowhere to hide except Zion protecting the heart strengthening the appendages doing everything within our power to hold to the fs instead of the P's to not allow the world to redefine victory as God spelled it out to Simply decide I don't play the world's game I'm not interested in that and say what you will throw me to the to the to the Lions whatever it is I'm not I'm not concerned with what you think of

me I only care about God I will call upon him and he will be merciful there's takeaway number one takeaway number two verse 28 yay thus we see that the Gate of Heaven is open to all notice the the all inclusiveness of that of that the Lord is merciful unto all in 27 the Gate of Heaven is open to all in 28 even to those who will believe on the name of Jesus Christ who is the Son of God again to which we might add no matter what we're up against Jesus says in the Book

of Revelation I have set before thee an Open Door which no man can shut no matter how hard the world pushes on that the Gate of Heaven is open to all and will remain so president Iran once taught that no matter how Wicked the world all around us you will have agency to choose the right the world will never get so wicked that you cannot choose to be righteous in spite of the wickedness all around you that's comforting and again there's a promise that Mormon is seeing too the the third and in some ways best

in my opinion is in verse 29 and 30 yay we see and do we see this I hope so that whosoever there again all anybody who wants it whosoever will may lay hold upon the word of God there's the iron Rod piercing The Mists of Darkness the Gates of Heaven are open to all yes the tree of life is still available no matter what the Lord is merciful to anyone who calls remember High calls through the darkness and all of a sudden sees clearly the goal before him Tree of Life not great and spacious building

that great and spacious building there's wickedness in high places there's secret combinations they are floating above the air no Foundation upon upon the Earth pointing fingers mockery ridicule trying to convince you to come their way ignore it heed it not and just come and again how do we come we come with the iron Rod hand or hand the rod along toward that glorious goal and so here whoever wants to no matter how thick the mids of Darkness become you may lay hold upon the word of God which is quick and Powerful which shall divide us

under all the cunning and the snares and the Ws of the devil and lead the man of Christ in a straight and narrow course across that Everlasting Gulf of misery which is prepared to engulf the the wicked and land their souls yay their Immortal Souls at the right hand of God in the Kingdom of Heaven to sit down with Abraham and Isaac and with Jacob with all our holy fathers to go no more out again we could say no matter what you're up against I want you to keep an eye out for elements of lehi's

dream in the book of Helman and to see see there spelled out so clearly by Mormon our guide you lay hold of that iron Rod you'll get there there's Mists of darkness no matter where you go so prepare now with that there's going to be some good news and some bad news okay there is still peace and joy for several years that's the good news but then in verse 36 notice this yes there's still peace also save it were the exceedingly great pride which had gotten into the heart of the people it was because of

their exceedingly great riches their prosperity in the land and it did grow upon them from day to day how it sounds like a cancer and it is working its way within and then growing day by day this is a clear nod to the pride cycle which is going to be spelled out loud and clear in the book of Helman in fact we just saw some thus we see statements next week we'll see that the longest thus we see statement in the entire Book of Mormon it takes up an entire chapter basically is about the pride

cycle so here we're starting to see it clearly all this Prosperity that they were enjoying leading to Pride forgetting God thinking those blessings came from them instead of from him and that Pride leading to the kinds of self-destructive behaviors that lead to self-destruction it's in that point that you have a decision to make will we turn back to God and take the upswing of the pride cycle towards humility and repentance and then Prosperity or will we stay and stagnate with pride continuing to grow Upon Us day by day now if that's one group of people

notice an opposite group ites see it doesn't have to be that way no matter what the outside influences thus we see God can get you through it he's merciful the Gates of Heaven are open grab the rod you can still get to the tree notice verse 35 this is one of the most beautiful verses in helan chapter 3:35 nevertheless there's that word again so despite all that's around them nevertheless they and here we're talking about the faithful members of the church they did Fast and pray of it's going to take often that kind those acts

of worship to keep us grounded keep us focused but as a result they did wax stronger and stronger in their humility they've beat The Pride cycle they're they're they're swimming Upstream going against the rounds of this they are stronger and stronger than they've ever been in humility and as a result they are firmer and firmer in the Faith of Christ they're keeping their eye on the real goal Faith the fs not the P's I'm not I'm not playing that game don't change the the the definition of victory I'm not changing the rules I'm not definitely

not changing the way I'm playing the game so firmer and Fir in the Faith of Christ notice what comes as a result of that unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation Joy despite the challenges all around them consolation there's the Lord visiting them with assurances like we talked about last week yay even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God God so powerful yielding their hearts Heavenly Father here's my heart now take and seal it seal it for thy courts above why

because I feel my heart pulled in worldly directions those peas have a certain attraction a certain persuasive power seek for power seek for Prosperity get ahead make more money live the American dream which might be best described as somewhat of an American Nightmare as I amass all these things for myself at the expense of things that matter most if the day comes where we wake up from that dream and realize we've lost the things that matter most then yeah it was a nightmare in that case are you with me on this are you are we

understanding what's going on in this case if I will simply yield to God and allow his opinion of me to matter more to allow the the fs to outweigh the PS and to be pulled in a direction where those are my areas of emphasis how's that for sanctification and purification because once you're Sanctified it's not a battle anymore your heart is given to God you've surrendered and this is an unconditional surrender that is a complete Victory it makes it so much easier despite surrounding influences to stay strong because no matter how hard you try you

can never penetrate to my heart if those are the first three chapters chapter 4 then gives us a clear nod toward the pride cycle which we're going to see that over and over in this book all that Prosperity all that pride in chapter 3 leads to destruction in chapter 4 you'll see words like dissension and contention Bloodshed Rebellion slain driven out War work of death major losses of life and of land among the the Nephites and notice this chapter 4: 11 I'm just going to give you a couple of verses from this chapter now this

great loss of the Nephites and the great Slaughter which was among them would not have happened had it not been for their wickedness and their abomination which was among them you see that it could have been avoided the whole thing it wouldn't have happened yay it was among those also who professed to belong to the Church of God and that's tragic are we members in name or In Deed have our hearts been yielded up to God are we fasting and praying of Are We becoming stronger and stronger in in humility are we becoming firmer and

firmer in faith or are we just going through the motions do we show up on Sunday and then like the like the zoramites climbing their Ram umum grateful that we're better than everybody else and then go back down and not not prove the point not live the Gospel of Jesus Christ the kinds of things that we're struggling with don't necessarily have to be that way yes there will always be opposition position in all things and yet we can choose we can yield we can surrender we can worship and God will bless us accordingly if you

look at verse 13 because of this their great wickedness and their boastings In Their Own Strength there's Pride obvious there in the pride cycle well you boast in your own strength fine you are left in your own strength as a result they did not Prosper but were Afflicted and smitten and driven before the lamanites until they had lost possession of almost all their lands Captain moronai is turning over in his grave and it's not because morona is not doing his job it's because the people are not yielding their hearts to God and so to think

about I mean I always think of Samson in situations like this talk about boasting in his own strength every time you see Samson doing something that's amazing it's because he put himself in a bad situation knowing he was strong enough to get out of it and yet once Delilah cut his hair and in other words once Samson broke his Covenant he' been kind of doing it all along but that was the the straw that broke the camel's back and it broke Samson's strength he was left to his own strength you thought it was you that

was this strong oh no that was the power of God within you and if you think you can do it on your own fine I'll let you try now I learned that the hard way as a missionary I've learned it unfortunately that's a class I've repeated over and over and I I I believe it's true anytime we think we can do things on our own God will give us the chance to correct ourselves he'll let us try oh you got this be my guest this is the apostles on the Sea of Galilee when it's stormy

and they're freaking out carest thou not that I perish and he probably wondered well you didn't care that I was sleeping you thought this is your comfort zone you got this you don't need Divine help well you want to see what mere human strength looks like no I've been with you so much you've started to think this was you doing it but you've got no Flesh on your arm so yeah go ahead and Trust in it well if those are the effects in verse 11 and in 13 those are the effects problems that didn't have

to happen and a loss of strength as they were limited to their own if those are the effects the cause is sandwiched right between them in verse 12 notice this it was because so here's the cause of the pride of their hearts because of their exceeding riches so Prosperity leading to Pride now he's going to get more specific if I'm not prideful because of my possessions I'm after power and prosperity okay it's the the political it's the economic that's what I'm after well how am I going to start treating other people and how am I

going to start looking to God well here's the list yay it was because of their oppression of the poor withholding their food from the hungry withholding their clothing from the naked smiting their humble Brethren upon the cheek well of course I'm going to do all of those things because that would get in the way of my Prosperity I need the poor to rise above them and I'm certainly not to give not going to give them of my wealth I need it for myself okay so now you have all these sins of omission against the poor

I'm not specifically doing anything against them kind of in their face but I've turned my face away okay that's a complete abdication of the Second Great commandment I don't love my neighbor as myself I only love myself at the expense of my neighbor from there keep reading they were making a mock of that which was sacred denying the spirit of Prophecy and of Revelation and think about that without a sense of the Sacred holding you keeping you from sliding further downhill then what happens the list continues murdering plundering lying stealing committing adultery rising up in

great contentions and deserting away into the land of Nephi among the lamanites oh interesting that ver the verse Started With Pride grown from Prosperity it led to sins of omission against against neighbor it led to a complete severing of the vertical connection with God I I don't want I don't want him looking down he's going to if I let him he's going to sanctify my and purify my heart I don't want to yield my heart to him I want to hold on to my worldly desires but as a result of that now I again it's

the cross it's the vertical and the horizontal coming together and I'm ignoring my horizontal responsibilities I'm severing my vertical connection to God and as a result my horizontal gets even worse than it started and the sins of omission that started the verse become sins of commission at the end and now I'm not just ignoring them I'm murdering and robbing and plundering and stealing and committing adultery and everything else oh this secret combination it's not so secret to me I'm a part of it by now Gad Anon kishkumen or not I have been persuaded to play

the world's game and it's waking havoc on me as a child of God now what's the solution again especially if you if there's nowhere to go uh where where where can we turn in the midst of the pride cycle well the fact it's a cycle should tell us something you ever been on the merrygoround and it's going so fast that you are completely dizzy and when you've been going around the pride cycle that often that quickly what do you do when you can't even see straight anymore you can't walk in a straight line along the

Covenant path well the best thing to do when you are dizzy is to hold on to something stable the iron Rod would be a good one the trunk and roots of the tree of life would be helpful or to borrow the metaphor that helan is going to give his sons and us how about building upon the rock of the Redeemer there's the center of things and yes the world can can rotate through its Pride cycle as often as it wants at the center of the marry go around at the core of it all is a

stationary and stable point of Faith firmer and firmer in that faith in Christ the most F that's chapter five in a nutshell very long magnificent chapter in some ways Helman chapter 5 is one of the most powerful and yet least appreciated missionary chapters in the entire Book of Mormon I mean you take what Ammon did you take what Aaron did you take what Alma the younger has done and I'd be hardpressed to say that was any more impressive than what Nephi and Lehi will do in in Helman chapter 5 again the most famous verse is

chapter 5:12 so let's start with that one okay 512 again here's the the I'm dizzy I can't even see straight we'll find hold on to something steady 512 and now my sons remember remember that it is upon the rock of Our Redeemer who is Christ the son of God that you must build your foundation that when not if that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds yay his shafts in the world Whirlwind yay when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you and that's describes your childhood Sons Nephi and Lehi

have grown up with all of these Wicked influences all around them the the mighty winds are swirling left and right and yet they're in the eye of the storm and they see it all around them but despite all of those influences what can you do when you build upon the rock here's dad's promise it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the Gulf of misery and endless woe why because of the rock upon which ye are built which is a sure Foundation a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall not

just that they won't not that they shouldn't they can't this verse is what it's all about the wise man built his house upon the rock not the shifting Sands of society not the culture the the the currents of culture now we found the eye of the storm and though the Winds of wickedness swirl all around us I'm at peace thus we see God is merciful if we call thus we see the Gates of Heaven are open thus we see I have an iron Rod that will take me to a tree that is so firm L

rooted in the rock that nothing will pull me away no pointing fingers from the great and spacious building I'm here for good and this is a good place to be as I've said before this is why I love the phrase hidden Rock Bottom because you're finally back in contact with the rock now you can really start building tear out the old Foundation if need be build here it's the only thing that will keep you from falling well that's the reality that helan is conveying to his sons with those marvelous names Nephi and Lehi specifically chosen

so they remember their ancestors and try to live like they did they'd been surrounded by wickedness they chose to leave for us there's nowhere to leave to okay but to have that kind of faith that kind of courage and then for Nephi and Lehi to then begin spreading that word everywhere they went like I said this is a missionary chapter oh on par with any other great missionary chapter in The Book of Mormon and if you'll slowly read it you'll see some incredible things now at the start of it this is chapter 5:4 it came

to pass that Nephi this eldest son of helan had become weary because of their iniquity all around him it can be tiring you you know it as well as I do what's he decided to do he yielded up the Judgment seat which is kind of a family tradition by now his great grandpa Alma the younger had done the exact thing now it took upon he took upon him to preach the word of God all the remainder of his days and his brother Lehi also all the remainder of his days interesting we talked about this back

in what was it Alma 4 when Elma the younger did the same thing that I've got I'm wearing a political hat and a religious hat and if I'm going to take one off I'm going to take off the political one especially in a day where the Gadi an and robbers seem to be seeping into society and exercising greater influence than the central government then what good is the Judgment seat anyway I will pass it on to someone that I hope will hold it well but the real solution is not going to be a political one

it's going to be a religious one in fact with all due respect to Captain Moroni and his wonderful son morona the solutions will not be military they will be spiritual and if I'll hold on to that hat I have no authority over people that's okay they weren't listening to my authority anyway this is not going to be about establishing better laws which can't be enforced anyway it's going to be about changing Hearts ah convincing people to yield them up to God and that will change everything instead of working from the outside in I'm going to

work from the inside out trusting what will happen well what will happen here quick summary of so much of what happens in chapter 5 they Lehi and Nephi begin preaching right where they are in nephite territory but from there they go to zarahemla which by that time was under the power of we got some more problems Cory aner had taken it then they took it I took it back now it's mostly in the hands of nephite dissenters those are always causing problems and and lamanites that those denters have joined so what's Nephi Lehi going to

do let's start right here at home and then start to spread in a way we're going to start to see enos's prayer be fulfilled remember way back in enus there's concentric circles he's praying for his own forgiveness and as soon as he receives it he sees what about my people please bless them and when when he gains that promise the circle expands again and well what about the lamanites well that's exactly the path that Lehi and Nephi are going to begin in uh they didn't have to change themselves they were doing awesome okay they yielded

their hearts to God and then it's B let's Bless the people right here at home let's go back to zarahemla the capital city and bless those dissenters and then from there let's even go to lonite territory it's amazing to see the mission unfold for example if you look at chapter 5:1 17 here we are in in zarahemla among the denters it came to pass that they did preach with great power in so much that they did confound many of those dissenters who had gone over from the Nephites in so much that they came forth and

had confess their sins and were baptized unto repentance and immediately returned to the Nephites to Endeavor to repair unto them the wrongs which they had done the r words in that verse are awesome they repented they returned they repaired they did everything within their power and these were dissenters that was elma's dream when he went among the the zoramites back in Elma 32 and 3 and four and five this was the hope of anyone who went off on these missions to reclaim this was the purpose of so many of the wars in the war chapters

what the dissenters were doing and yet so the word is mightier than the sword and Nephi and Lehi are trying the virtue of the word of God and it's working now from there they 've helped many of the nephite dissenters in zarahemla come back well how about the lamanites that are living there well there's the next goal they preached to them and 8,000 are baptized it was a miracle that the denters came home it's another miracle that these lamanites join the faith and then what do Nephi and Lehi do they go all the way back

down to the land of Nephi which hasn't been nephite land in a long time that's lonite territory and yet let's take the gospel all the way to them this is just like their ancestors friends Ammon Aaron Omar himni now Nephi and Lehi the sons of helan are doing that exact thing now problem here the lamanites didn't want them to come the lamanites they still oppositional and there's an enemy factor and so they grab them and throw them into prison and in fact Mormon points out interesting coincidence it happens to be the exact same prison that

King limhi threw Ammon into not Ammon son of mosiah but the earlier one remember this one that back in the book of mosiah with that I wonder if Mormon is giving us a a subtle foreshadowing because that Ammon wasn't in that prison for long he was misunderstood and misjudged and once they understood who he was where he was from what he was trying to accomplish not only did they free Ammon from that prison Ammon helped limhi and his people be freed from the prison of their own is this a foreshadowing of Deliverance well you're about

to see the story is absolutely beautiful there's all kinds of parallels between other places in scripture and sure enough Nephi and Lehi Nephi and Lehi quote all kinds of scripture from earlier in the Book of Mormon uh it's interesting is the lamanites plan to kill them let's just end things from the very start and yet Nephi and Lehi are encircled about by fire that fire protects them but does not burn them sound like Shadrach mishak Abednego meanwhile the walls of the prison are shaking as if they're about to fall sound a little like Elma and

AMU back in amanah a cloud of Darkness descends upon the people and envelops everyone there in prison all the lamanites all the nephite denters everyone that's there including well everyone that's there are surrounding Nephi and Lehi cloud of Darkness sound like Mists of Darkness oh we're back to lehi's dream think about these people wandering about not knowing where they should go there is a straight and narrow path that leads to fruit like you've never tasted there's even an iron Rod if you could just get your hand on it but they are wandering about en enveloped

in darkness unsure of where they should be heading is there a way to get to a tree of life they don't know another way to look at this is not just looking back to the to lehi's dream but looking forward to the coming of Jesus Christ because what happens at the death of Jesus in The Old World New World enveloped in darkness three days so thick they could feel it so thick that there is no light possible because you have extinguished the light of the world and what will Jesus do he will speak through the

darkness to them and eventually descend among them a similar thing happens in Helman chapter 5 in some ways Helman five is not just an echo of first Nephi 8 it is a a preview of third Nephi 89 10 11 it's beautiful so what happens three times they hear a voice H that happens in third Nephi 11 as well uh the First Time The Voice asks them to repent the second time the voice repeats the call to repentance and the third time the voice says things that cannot be uttered by man I wish I knew what

those were but something absolutely glorious every time the voice comes the prison shakes the walls tremble and I imagine the people inside those walls are trembling too in chapter 5:3 notice this it came to pass when they heard this voice and beheld that it was not a voice of Thunder neither was it a voice of a great tumultuous noise but behold it was a still voice of perfect mildness as it had been a whisper and it did Pierce even to the very Soul sounds like Elijah on the Mountaintop when the voice of God was not

the the Thunder or the lightning or the Fire or the earthquake it was still and it was small that's exactly how it's described in thi 11 when they finally Focus they turn their hearts and ears and eyes to the source of the sound and they finally understand what it is it is God calling to them it is God introducing them to his son to have that kind of an experience notice what happens in verse 36 everyone is Frozen with fear can you blame them then there's this neite denter who knows better he he knew but

would not know kind of like AMU this man's name is aminadab at one point he' had the truth he turned away from it but now he's turning back to it literally he turns around remember the word for repent is a turning an about face I'm no longer going down toward destruction I've turned around I've I've flipped the pride cycle on its head and now I'm going back to God well he turns himself about and in verse 36 he saw through the cloud of Darkness oh forget those Mists that are obstructing your vision they see through

it and what's he see the faces of Nephi and Lehi and behold they did Shine exceedingly even as the faces of angels and he beheld that they did lift their eyes to heaven and they were in the attitude as if talking or lifting their voices to some being whom they beheld unfortunately to this point this cannot be a thus we see moment yet because only Nephi and Lehi are seeing it but what I love about this is aminadab sees them seeing something that he can't see directly he can't yet experience all that they've experienced but

he SE sees in them something he lacks to me that's profound there's something about have you ever been at a a Fireside a meeting a class a conference whatever and you can tell people around you are feeling the spirit and yet you aren't you ask them afterwards like uh so what' you think and they're just gushing with emotion and and gratitude for the experience they had and you're like uh were we in the same meeting well they're all in the same place they're all in the same prison and yet Nephi and lei Nephi and Lehi

don't seem imprisoned at all they're having the experience of a lifetime they are seen no Darkness for them and then a minab takes a step forward and sees that they're seeing something he can't at least he can't yet this this is kind of like Philo Dibble who was in the room in the Johnson farmhouse when Joseph Smith and Sydney Rigden have all these visions that are now in Doctrine Covenant section 76 he's like uh they're seeing something but I'm not seeing the thing I'm watching them watch some other video some other vision and that's what's

happening here as well I guess in some ways here I would just pause and ask myself what do what do some saints see that I'm still missing we speak of prophets seers and revelators what are they seeing can I align my vision with theirs in hopes of seeing similar sights am I prepared for that or will I continue going in blindness and fear and trembling when a voice is speaking to me if I'll just turn and look look I'll then I'll look and live turn repent change that's what the voice has been saying all along

well what's amazing here is verse 37 it came to pass that this man aminadab the the former dissenter did well still a denter but but on his way back he did cry unto the multitude that they might turn and look there's the key right turning is repentance so please do it turn look and beh there was power given unto them that they did turn and look and they did behold the faces of Nephi and Lehi I'm grateful for the detail that turn and look oh and they did no power was given them to be able

to do that we don't repent just because we chose to change we repent because God allows us to and enables us to he helps us turn and what do we see we see faces engraven with the countenance of Christ we see faces of Faith looks of light in their eyes and it convinces us there is light around even when we're surrounded by Darkness there are better Ways to Live we don't have to live without God in the world we can change no matter what the influences all around us and they choose to in the aftermath

of that look at 40 and 41 it came to pass that the lonit said unto him what shall we do that this cloud of Darkness may be removed from overshadowing us and aadab said unto them ye must repent and cry unto the voice even until ye shall have faith in Christ who was taught unto you by Elma and amch and zzam and when you shall do this The Cloud of Darkness shall be removed from overshadowing you which is exactly what happened once they accepted that invitation notice by the way the missionaries that aminadab cites Elma

who had been caught up in darkness was trying to put out the light of the church and then suddenly Saw The Light himself amch who knew but would not know until he finally surrendered yielded his heart to God and then zzam who also fought against things ask asking questions to spread darkness before he had a chance to see the light himself I love the missionaries that amended AB quotes because there're he's Cut From the Same Cloth I've got my own problems I want to change you've got your problems you can change that promise has been

made by people who have changed themselves in the past well they accept the invitation okay they take hold of the rod and beginning and begin moving toward the tree of life you remember what AM aminadab had said turn there's repentance call to the voice listen to the words recall the messages this is hand or hand the rod along and Elma has a segment and AMC has a segment and zzam has a segment so just grab a hold of the iron rod and pull yourself forward a tree of life and light awaits you if you'll just

come and then came in verse 44 as they did so they were filled with that Joy which is unspeakable and full of Glory you see what had happened to them is the cloud of Darkness was replaced with a pillar of fire a personal one for every individual in that prison who turned and looked enveloped in light instead of encircled in darkness because they turned because they called because they came this conversion experience is absolutely incredible 300 people within that prison have the experience they grab the the rod they get to the tree they partake of

the fruit it blows them away and just like Lehi what do you do as soon as you've tasted it oh you turn around and beckon with a loud voice call to anyone around you come and partake with me and that's exactly what they do these 300 go forth and begin to share the gospel you have now Lehi and Nephi have multiplied themselves by 150 okay these two have now become 300 and in verse 50 to 52 the more part of the lamanites were convinced of them because of the greatness of the evidences which they had

received what kind of evidences look at my face see what I see rejoice in the light that I'm rejoicing in there's evidence enough as many as were convinced did lay down their weapons of war and also their hatred and the tradition of their fathers talk about laying the whole thing down not just the weapons of war physical but the weapons of rebellion spiritual a change of heart not just a change of of action okay everything's different here and it came to pass that they did yield up unto the Nephites the lands of their possession and

that's mind-blowing that's what Captain Moroni had fought for the all those War chapters were about that everything that morona has been trying to do is try to regain the lands of their possessions and two missionaries did what armies of tens of thousands of soldiers had been unable to accomplish oh yeah the word is mightier than the sword try its virtue and what cuts through the Mists of Darkness the word of God which is quick and Powerful chapter 5 is that word that leads you to the tree and its roots in the rock of the Redeemer

Feast upon that love and they did well at least some did faithful Nephites reclaimed denters converted lamanites but unfortunately the rest of the Nephites the bulk of the nephite civilization continues to fall down downhill The Pride cycle is still pulling them in that direction right here as we shift from chapter 5 to chapter six and I'll just be super brief here is a major pivot point in the Book of Mormon the last are becoming first and the first are becoming last The Chosen are un choosing themselves and the so-called unchosen are now chosen because they've

chosen Christ NE es on the decline lamanites on the on the incline in two weeks we'll meet Samuel the lonite okay a magnificent lonite Prophet but notice the the moral of the story that Mormon is beginning to pull out chapter 6 ver 1 and 2 the lamanites had become the more part of them a righteous people can you imagine that lamanites are majority faithful that's amazing in so much that their righteousness did exceed that of the Nephites because of their firmness and their steadiness in the faith for behold there were many of the Nephites who

had become hardened and impenitent and grossly Wicked in so much that they did reject the word of God and all the preaching and prophesy and which had come among them why should I partake why should I grab the iron Rod when it only seems to lead to some tree whose fruit I am not interested in I want to go to that building over there it looks amazing well careful about that there is a gulf of misery and endless woe between you and that's what you'll fall into if that's the path you choose the Nephites by

and large are choosing that path the lamanites by and large are choosing a better one for the rest of this chapter chapter six look for the pride cycle it's Crystal Clear look for the gadianton robbers and their effect those are things that you can clearly see in chapter 6 that you'll need as we move into seven next week and then at the end of the chapter notice this ending verse 34-36 and thus we see there's Mormon giving us his moral of the story thus we see that the Nephites did begin to dwindle in unbelief and

grow in wickedness and Abominations while the lamanites began to grow exceedingly in the knowledge of their God yay they begin to to keep his statutes and Commandments and to walk in truth and uprightness before him and thus we see that the spirit of the Lord began to withdraw from the Nephites because of the wickedness and the hardness of their hearts and thus we see that the Lord began to pour out his Spirit upon the lamanites because of their easiness and willingness to believe in his words now Mormon here is doing us a favor as historian

and editor literarily the he's an incredible writer literarily he is juxtaposing Nephites and lamanites as clearly as if he were creating a chart for us so I'll build off Mormon and give you the chart on one side are Nephites the other side is lamanites and then just put the phrases side by side Mormon is jux opposing them to make the choice as clear as he possibly can Nephites dwindle in unbelief lamanites grow exceedingly in the knowledge of their God Nephites grow in wickedness and Abominations lamanites walk in truth and uprightness Nephites the spirit of the

Lord began to withdraw from them whereas lamanites the Lord began to pour out his Spirit upon them and why because Among the Nephites it was the wickedness and the hardness of their hearts while among the lamanites it was their easiness and willingness to believe in his words oh the condition of the heart like we've seen so often throughout the Book of Mormon receiving the greater portion of the word or the Lesser portion until they know nothing oh Nephites it didn't have to be this way God set you up for success and yet you've succumbed to

the pride cycle and it's leading to your own self-destruction a good friend of mine Kim burky has written a beautiful book on the book of Helman and she has drawn all kinds of these parallels to lehi's dream and at this point she makes an incredible observation that if we really are re enacting lehi's dream the cast of characters has changed Direction because now it's Layman and Lemuel who are holding to the rod and coming to the tree and partaking of the fruit while they look in shock and horror as Nephi drops the fruit and begins

to wander in Forbidden paths in search of the great and spacious building can you imagine how Lehi and Sarah feel now so relieved that Layman and Lemuel have finally come to their senses and come but distraught that their son of righteousness is now becoming a son of wickedness instead again historically that's what we're up against and we will see that continue through the remainder of this book so much because of the secret combinations that are pulling us to the peas at the expense of the fs now here's a list of homework for you phrases to

consider to ponder upon the these chapters are full of them had not kept sufficient guards remember that the secret work of murder and of robbery a little pride and some little ascensions in time they might have Timber right in the sight of God continually grow up unto the Lord the Lord is merciful unto all who will call the Gate of Heaven is open unto all who will believe lay hold upon the word of God across that Everlasting Gulf of misery to go no more out lifted up in Pride stronger and stronger in their humility firmer

and firmer in the Faith of Christ yielding their hearts unto God making a mock of that which was sacred left in their own strength the judgments of God did stare them in the face weak like unto their Brethren his miraculous and matchless power cleave unto the Lord Lord in the space of not many years ripening for Destruction they could not be governed by the law nor Justice remember your names remember them remember their Works lay up for yourselves a treasure in heaven only through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ the Rock of Our Redeemer a

sure Foundation repair the wrongs encircled about with a pillar of fire a still voice of perfect mildness marvelous Words which cannot be uttered turn and look Joy which is unspeakable and full of Glory speak forth marvelous words peace because of your faith in my well beloved firmness and steadiness in the faith The Humble followers of God and the lamb walk in truth and uprightness easiness and willingness to believe oh that easiness the way really is easy well compared to the difficulties we bring upon ourselves by following the wrong path even when it doesn't feel easy

it does certainly seem simple it's simply turn and look and with helman's help I can promise you that if we will turn and look what we see will be glorious the faces of the faithful with fruit juice dripping from their mouths an extended hand with the fruit of the Tree of Life held out in our direction if we will simply come and partake if we do we are on the Rock we are at the root we are with the [Music] Redeemer 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