“how is it
that ye have forgotten"
-three
consecutive verses start with this interrogative. It is a key insight to Laman and Lemuel’s
spiritual lethargy. Could it be that the
reason they have forgotten is that they never learned it in the first
place. It is impossible to forget
something if it was never within our mental repetoir to begin with. Sure, they experienced the same events as
Nephi –events that had profound spiritual impact on Nephi- but the lessons of
those events seems to have entirely escaped Laman/Lemuel. So, initially, they never had a
conviction that “the Lord is able to do all things for the children of men”. Hence, how could they forget something for which they
never had a conviction? This is not
to make an excuse for them. It is, in
fact, a more desperate condition than to have had it and forgotten. They have seen things and yet refuse to see
them. How do you see an angel from heaven who instructs you as to the course
you should be pursuing and not be changed?
What are the forces countering and minimizing such an experience?
“the Lord is
able to do all things…”
-this
is a spiritually universal theme that runs through all scripture and permeates
God’s experience with man. This is a
fundamental divine truth that forms the foundation of our belief in,
relationship to and dependence on God. A
person who does not have this personal conviction walks through this life very differently than
one with it.
-the
truth of this statement is contrasted against a related one: man is not able to do all things. Here, clear as day, is one of the great
differences between God and man. God is
omnipotent; man is impotent. In moments of quiet reflection and absolute
self-awareness we recognize that we can do nothing of merit without God. He provides us the very air we need to
breath, he is the architect of the marvelous heart that pushes life through our
bodies. Its perpetual beating is a
mystery to us. This is a source of much
anger and vexation to many people. The
resent it and reject it. In fact, if
they were truthful they would admit that they hate God for it. Mostly, however, their defense mechanism is
to deny and dismiss its veracity. The
contrast ceases to exist if we dismiss God from the equation. A being who is able to do all things can’t
really do all things if He does not exist!
-compare
with Alma 26:12 --> “I can do all things”. When we are in concert with the Lord there is
nothing that is beyond our capabilities.
“according to his will…”
-the
critic of God will ask “Can God do anything?” To which we must answer –to
defend the omnipotence of God- “Yes!” The trap is tightened by the critic
tempting something like, “Can he commit sin?”
or “Can he make a boulder so big that he cannot lift it?” Well, the answer is “neither.” He does what He does as that thing is
according to His will. It is good to realize
that his will/work is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. He does not trifle with “feats of strength”
nor is he concerned with impressing mortal men.
To consider whether God can create a boulder big enough that he cannot
lift is to manifest a logic of thinking that is so trivial and so far below
godliness as to prove nothing but the natural man’s utter incongruity with
diety.
-this
fundamental statement of truth can be broken down into two parts:
“the Lord is able to do all things according to his will”
“the Lord is able to do all things according to his will”
Our problem with faith in God is often not in the first
part of Nephi’s declaration. Many of us
believe that “the Lord is able to do all things”. Our point of departure is in the second part,
“according to his will” since that is often at odds with what we really want: “the lord is able to do all things according
to OUR will…” That, in perfect honesty,
is what drives our prayers and our faith.
And when our will is not realized we are more often likely to question
the Lord’s ability rather than face the possibility that our will might not be
His will. To question the latter is to
summon a level of humility and submissiveness that is more difficult and
painful than the crisis of faith that is brough to bear when we think that God
may not be able because he may not even be there. If he is not really there then we are free to
pursue our own will and desires. The
real “problem” is if He is there and expects something different of us than we
want for ourself; a situation that is
not only a possibly but is an eternal verity.
“for the children of men”
-like a
good earthly parent, God does all with the motivation that it is for His
children’s well being and happiness.
From the perspective of the child, however, there are certain lessons
that, in their immaturity and lack of sophistication, appear to be painful or
senseless. A parent, not a child, is
able to judge what is best in a perspective that contemplates the full course
of life. How much more this must be the
case when considering eternal life.
-There are three qualifications Nephi puts here on the
Lord’s ability to do “all things”:
1. it has to be according to His will.
2. it (as is His will) is for the children of
men.
3. the children of men have to exercise faith in
God.
“if it so be
that they exercise…”
-here the
Lord lets us “call some of the rules”.
We control, to some degree, the extent of His hand in our lives. It is a blessing and a burden. By being “partners” we are expected to learn
what “all things” are (righteous vs. unrighteous desires) and the process of
achieving all things. In short, we are
expected to become familiar with God’s ways.
Although this might appear intimidating, all we are asked to do in the
beginning is to “have faith in him” –to believe that He can do what He says He
can do. Here we come full circle to the
truth: we cannot do anything of
ourselves. We are succored, leaning on
His strength until we begin to grow in understanding, ability and
righteousness.
“exercise
faith”
-this is
active, engaged faith. It is not merely
a cerebral or passive thing. The faith
required here and in all instances where great/high things are promised, is a
moving thing. It is shown in our
actions. “Exercising faith” is spoken of here as being synonymous with “be(ing)
faithful”. “Be” is an action word!
“exercise faith in him”
-the exercise of our faith must always be based on,
grounded in, built upon Jesus Christ. It
is not enough simply to have faith; that
faith must be in Him. Who or what are
the potential alternatives for our faith?
Ourselves: we can easily rely
upon our own strength especially against the backdrop of the doctrine of
self-reliance. We can have faith in
science, in systems, in others… all of which are important but all these root
back to Jesus Christ and can very easily grown inappropriately larger than
faith in Christ. Coincidentally, as we
have greater faith in Christ our faith in others –so long as those things are
based in truth- will also become greater.
“Wherefore,
let us be faithful to him”
-Now, you tell me, who has the
power here? Can we doubt that God can do
all things?
-to be faithful to another is
most oftenused in the context of a married couple, of one spouse being faithful
to the other. In that case we mean to be
loyal, to be chaste, to be devoted particularly in the most intimate expression
of love and affection. It might be
useful to consider our relationship to God in exactly the same way. This being said, what does being faithful to
a spouse have to do with the usual way we conceive of faith? That is belief that moves us to action in
something we cannot see but hope to be true.
To be faithful to a spouse is all about discipline of our own behaviors,
thoughts and actions. To have faith in
God is usually about things exernal to us that we believe in but cannot
see. Perhaps we should internalize faith
to be more like being faithful…
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