1 I, NEPHI, having been aborn of bgoodly
cparents, therefore I was dtaught somewhat in all the
learning of my father; and having
seen many eafflictions
in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my
days; yea, having had a
great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a frecord of my proceedings in
my days.
"...having been born of goodly
parents..."
-it is an
interesting point that Nephi makes us aware of in the very beginning of his record: He gives a marked degree of honor and respect
to his father and mother
-he also
identifies them (note the "therefore" -indicating a certain
cause-effect relationship between the two clauses. i.e. I
was taught and raised as I was because of my parents) as instrumental in
the development of his secular learning and related Christ-like character
development.
-how can
parents or a society expect the youth of today to become civil, moral, and contributing
members of society without the strong influence and direction of their parents?
Why should we wonder about the wayward trends
and unprecedented troubles now evident in the young (violence, immorality,
substance abuse, crime, etc.) when there are no parents at home to "train
them up" or, more importantly, to communicate through action what every
child needs to know more than anything:
"I love you," "you are important," and/or "I
value you more than anyone or anything else in this world."
-Nephi
identifies the source of his greatness –while certainly not in whole, in large
part at least-- in the nurturing, influence and example of his parents.
And what was the most important thing his
parents gave him?
A knowledge of the
goodness and mysteries of God.
There is
no more valuable thing a parent can give or facilitate in their children.
And lest we forget that a parent can ONLY
influence or lest we forget that the extent of a parents causation has bounds,
we would do well to remember that Laman and Lemuel were also born of the same
goodly parents.
"goodly"
- a
praise of utmost honor and respect.
-I
wonder if Laman and Lemuel would admit this high praise, how would they open
their record, were they obedient enough to keep one?
"parents"
-it has always
been God's design that every child be raised by a husband and wife, for each
spirit coming into the perilous fallen existence to have the protection of two
advocates –a father and a mother.
"therefore I was taught"
-Nephi
identifies goodly parents as parents who teach their children about the
"learning of (their) fathers"
-it is interesting to
see how incredibly important this is to a child or the future adult when you consider
Enos' experience and the parallels to these words of Nephi (Enos 1:1)
“I was taught
somewhat in all the learning of my fathers”
-of what
did this learning consist? We know that
it included basic cultural knowledge and skills including Lehi’s native
language, cultural intelligence, historical perspective and especially
religious fundamentals (doctrine, scripture, lineage, traditions, faith,
etc.).
-a later
phrase in this first verse sheds light on one of the important lessons Nephi
learned from his fathers: knowledge of
the goodness and the mysteries of God.
What “learning of my fathers” could be more important?
"having
been born of goodly parents... and having seen many afflictions"
-goodly
parents want the best for their children.
They are sad when their children are sad and have great pains when
watching their children go through pain.
A parent would give all they have and gladly assume the pain of a
child. Yet, Lehi and Sariah watched
their children endure great afflictions that neither their children nor they,
themselves, deserved. The sufferings of children through buffetings
brought upon them by poor choices or due to the processes of mortality are not
a measure of bad parenting. In fact it
is safe to say that Nephi saw a larger share of afflictions that most and yet
we are sure that his parents were likewise more “goodly” than most.
"...having
seen many afflictions..."
-indicates
that Nephi is writing after the fact. He
has been able to reflect upon and weigh the things he is going to share with
us. His employment of hindsight is a
great tool for us and we should accept his words with great credibility. He has "been there" and is giving us sound and proven advice/wisdom.
"...having seen many afflictions, nevertheless,
having been highly favored..."
-magnitude
of trials = magnitude of blessings (see
footnote "e")
-these two statements, coupled together, provide a
few interesting insights by looking at how the first clause relates to, follows
from, or creates the second clause:
-does the process of enduring
afflictions (in a proper manner) qualify one to be highly favored of the
Lord? When we pass through trials and
opposition and remain faithful we are more qualified for the Lord's
blessings... which are -as Nephi continues- an increased knowledge of the
goodness and mysteries of God. This is nothing
less than to know God; which is eternal life!
(John 17:3). Hence, the process
of encountering opposition in life is the
process of coming to know God, by our righteous reaction to and choices
emanating from those trials.
-or is the relationship of
"afflictions" and "being highly favored" the opposite of
what I have just supposed: those who the
Lord favors (has chosen), he tries with many afflictions? This would certainly be in accordance with
"whom the Lord loveth he chaseneth." By this logic, we should take
some peace and comfort in our afflictions knowing that we are worthy to be
tried and stretched.
-those whom the Lord favors highly
will receive afflictions (of a high magnitude)
i.e. Abraham, Joseph Smith, the
early saints, Spencer Kimball, etc.
-we can
be both highly favored (i.e. chosen) of the Lord and yet experience many
afflictions. In fact, the one may be
essential for the other. Afflictions are
opportunities to grow; to learn about godliness. Therefore one who is given many opportunities
to grow in character and to learn about godliness is one who will experience
many afflictions. When we finally see
our progression within and among the various estates we will see that the word
affliction or adversity is a positive rather than a pejorative. These are the requisites for the
glorification of the soul.
"...having had a great knowledge of..."
-We would
be wise to recognize that great knowledge about the character and deeper things
of God are the product of trying experience and afflictions. Beds of gold and marvelous gems of diamonds
are not easily discovered or obtained.
The Lord is pleased and rewards the diligently faithful with the
peaceful knowledge of who He is as they, through the painful tests of life,
begin to act like him. In this way not
only does a knowledge of God increase but so also does the character of God
emerge and develop. Truth and wisdom are
the hard earned prizes of adversity to him who loves God.
-the Lord
loved (favored) Nephi enough that He led his child into and through the experiences
(afflictions) that were necessary for learning who God is and enabled Nephi to become
such himself.
"mysteries"
-what are
the mysteries of God? Are we to find
them? How are we to discover the answers
or solutions to these mysteries? Who are
they mysteries for? What advantage does
"knowing the mysteries" provide a person? It appears that one of the largest
differences between Laman/Lemuel and Nephi is that Laman and Lemuel did not
know how God operates, could not fathom Him (i.e. after a visitation by an
angel: "how is it possible that the
Lord will deliver Laban into our hands?").
But this situation is avoidable with some effort (and humility) on our
part: “for how knoweth a man the master
whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the
thoughts and intents of his heart?” (Mosiah 5:13). Laman and Lemuel’s lives were, up to this
point and beyond, completely bereft of the serving, thoughts and intents that
re required if we are to know and understand God.
-This lack of knowledge of God
and his ways is not only inexcusable but the destination of their lives
provides a perfect illustration of how dangerous it is to be unacquainted with
God. The responsibility for our
relationship with God rests firmly on us… God is completely aware of who we are
and what his relationship is to us. He
respects that relationship of father to sibling and will not overstep his place
even when he might want to force us into the correct course of action.
-what is our knowledge base
concerning the “mysteries of God”? What
“mysteries” have we discovered through the course of our lives? How does this knowledge translate into behavior
different than others who do not possess this same knowledge? Does our knowledge of the mysteries of God
satisfactorily translate into our actions according to the likeness of
God? If we possess his knowledge we had
better display his behavior!
"...therefore..."
-"therefore"
is always a key word that indicates something important, something that follows,
an insight a result, etc. The authors
are saying: "listen up!" and "notice this!"
-because
of these things that have been manifest in his life, Nephi feels it important
to write them down, to make a record.
Perhaps we don't understand how important it is to make records of
important events. Alma 37:6
"...therefore I make a record..."
-Why does
Nephi make this record?
a. He
was taught by his father to do so (by example)
b. He
has seen many afflictions (a journal of "survival")
c. He
has been highly favored of the Lord by
1.
has been given knowledge of :
the goodness of God
the mysteries of God
2.
has been delivered time and again from the threats of mortality
-Why does
Nephi make this record? So that,
perhaps, it can help you and I with the same: with gaining a knowledge of and
knowing the mysteries of God. This
desire to know God and his mysteries is a common thread that runs through the
lives of the greatest men and women who have walked the earth: Adam and Eve, Abraham (Abraham 1:2), Enoch,
Nephi, Joseph Smith, etc. There is
something about possessing the knowledge or the process of attaining it that
makes mortals great –a correlation that was alluded to in the Garden of Eden
(Genesis 3:5, Moses 4:11).
-where is
Laman and Lemuel’s record, why didn’t they think to write down their
experiences? Because life, to them, was
not memorable, special or holy…
Summary of verse 1
-this
first verse appears to be a summary of Nephi’s life as he looks back upon
it. The things he mentions then are the
things that “life boils down to”. He
tells us how life is: it is full of adversity, heartache, pain and
suffering. But he tells us that we are
never alone in facing these scary realities:
“I have been favored” -taken care
of , sheltered, led, loved, protected- “by the Lord in all my days.” He tells us what the most important things in
life are: to obtain great knowledge of
the goodness and the mysteries of God.
Why? Because life eternal is to
know God!
-this summary can also be used to answer
the question: Why does Nephi make this
record? Which has strong bearing/heavy
implications on why we should read it.
Nephi writes this record because:
1. He has been taught by his father.
2. He has seen many afflictions.
3. He has been highly favored of the Lord
a. been given knowledge of the goodness of God.
b. been given knowledge of the mysteries of God.
These, then, are his qualifications –the things he is
going to share with us and tell us about.
These are the things we should look for, learn from and seek to achieve
in our own lives.
