Ye know...

1 Nephi 17

This chapter is too amazing and perfect. I am tired and I would be here writing for days if I tried to put down all my thoughts about it. Maybe I'll post a few times. Honestly. It's that awesome.

The crux is this: Laman and Lemuel criticize Nephi for trying to build a ship at the Lord's command. They whine about how hard being in the wilderness has been. They say that Lehi is lame and that the folks in Jerusalem couldn't POSSIBLY have been wicked OR destroyed.

Man. I love what Nephi says in return. He lays down an incredible sermon, citing several examples of proofs of God's power in the scripture. He begins so many sentences with the words "Ye know" or "Ye also know", to hold L&L accountable for the knowledge they possess. They have spoken with angels. They have heard the voice of the Lord. They know the scriptures are true. They know. And Nephi knows that they know. And they hate it. Because they know that he knows that they know. And that just rankles.  (16:2)

Because, really, when you know that God had the power to have Moses part the Red Sea and drown a zillion Egyptians, or that it was by His power that a bunch of cranky Israelites traveled across the desert and were fed and healed and cared for, to the point of being able to clear out the Jericho squatters, you just have to understand that He has the power to help your brother build a ship. I mean, a ship. Compared to all that other stuff, a ship really isn't that big of a deal for the Lord. Nephi knows it. He asks "Ok, where do I go to get what I need?" And the Lord tells him. I love it.

Here's an interesting thought. A new one for me...L&L may really have believed in the scripture stories they'd been taught about how their people came to be in Jerusalem -- the original promised land. They may really have a testimony of those things and even of God's power to do the seemingly impossible. Did their main problem then lie in the fact that it was their completely uncool father and irritating little brother who received these great gifts from the Lord? Was their pride enough to quash any testimony they may have had? Ouch. That is extraordinarily terrifying. And I think it may just well be the case. Laman and Lemuel did know certain things to be true. But Satan took advantage of their weakness and pride, turning them into sulky doubters, and their pride eventually obliterated their testimonies of God's power.

Ouch. To think that it could very well happen to any of us. When you see members of your family blessed with good things or when a dear friend lovingly invites you to do better in your life...and instead of humbly accepting these things and asking the Lord for help to understand them (as Nephi did multiple times), you clench your fist, grind your teeth, and harden your heart. Yikes. It happens to all of us. To think that it could be the cause of a weakened (or even lost) testimony...it's scary.

You have to admire Nephi though. He tried. He never gave up on them. This sermon he gives is one of the original textbook examples of an excellent Gospel lesson. He used multiple scripture examples. He called attention to real life situations. He expressed love and then invited and called to repentance. Love love love it. And the whole point was this:

51 And now, if the Lord has such great power, and has wrought so many miracles among the children of men, how is it that he cannot instruct me, that I should build a ship?

How, indeed?
 
And honestly, the coolest part is when L&L (after Nephi zaps them with his awesomeness) are humbled for one of the final times and say "We know of a surety that the Lord is with thee, for we know that it is the power of the Lord that has shaken us." They knew all along, really. And Nephi knew that they knew. :)