Book of Mormon - 3rd Nephi 11-25

These sections are probably some of the most powerful of the whole Book of Mormon for me and I'm excited that I get the honor to blog on them.

I love this part because it shows Christ coming to the Americas to teach his "other sheep". The same instruction, light and knowledge that we find in the bible for the Jews is now also found in the Book of Mormon for the Nephites. It shows that the Lord is no respecter of persons and he wants His message spread to everyone so that all may have the ability to worship and strive for eternal life.

These sections are so full of important topics that I can't blog on them all but I will do my best to recapitulate the highlights. Christ appears to the Nephites and allows them to see the marks left from his crucifixion so that they will know who He is.

He introduces them to the correct way to baptize (Chap 11), the Lords prayer (13), the correct way to bless and take the sacrament (18 & 20) and what tithes are (24). He talks about the how the Law of Moses has been fulfilled in Him and his sacrifice (15) and how he has other sheep such as the Lost Tribes that He is very aware of (16-17).

He also calls 12 disciples and gives another version of the Be Attitudes in Chapter 12. Basically these sections are a teaching of how Christ's church is to be organized and the manner of saint that he expects us to be as His followers.

I love the part in Chapter 21 about the restoration of the Gospel and the coming forth of the Book of Mormon in the Latter Days. I can't imagine how much information the Nephites were probably trying to digest and remember about all of the events that had not happened yet but were prophesied. I also like how Christ touches on events of the 2nd Coming and what to expect that will happen to the wicked at that time and what the righteous can expect as well.

Many of the words spoken mirrored words of Isaiah and Malachi in the bible. Although they are taught in the bible to the Jewish culture, Christ clarifies and provides added insight about many of those topics in an easier to understand way here in the Book of Mormon. The bible and the Book of Mormon go hand in hand to further explain each principle. Without both, many topics and ordinances could be confused or misinterpreted.

We have so much knowledge at our finger tips and we only have to spend a few precious moments each day reading to give ourselves information that so many in our world are so desperate to find. I'm grateful that we have the Book of Mormon and that Christ made it a point to again teach the basics to the Nephites so that would have a further testament of his Ministry. I hope we each understand how blessed we each are and how much our Lord and Savior loves us. We should try every day to use the light and knowledge that we have to be better people and to bless the lives of others we come in contact with. The Book of Mormon is true!