Abiding Precepts – 2 Nephi 12

Read the full chapter here: 2 Nephi 12

Passage #1

And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths; for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

2 Nephi 12:3

Precept #1

Go to the temple and learn of God’s ways of working with and instructing His children.

What have you learned from your temple worship about how God works with His children?

Passage #2

And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plow-shares, and their spears into pruning-hooks—nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

2 Nephi 12:4

Precept #2

When the Lord chastises you humble yourself and stop trying to fight against Him.

Have you even been rebuked by the Lord? Did you fight against it? How did you feel? How did you respond?

Passage #3

Therefore, O Lord, thou hast forsaken thy people, the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and hearken unto soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.

2 Nephi 12:6

Precept #3

Don’t let the advice or ideas of other people be more important to you than those from the Lord. Let the Lord fill you, rejuvenate you, and be your Counselor to direct your life choices.

The last time you needed advice did you ask the Lord first before looking to others? Did you take His advice and counsel over that given by the people around you?

Passage #4

Their land is also full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.

2 Nephi 12:8

Precept #4

Don’t value the things we have invented or will invent to the point that you worship them instead of God.

Is your cell phone more important to you than the scriptures? How often do you pull your phone out in a day to see if you have new notifications?

Passage #5

And it shall come to pass that the lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.

2 Nephi 12:11

Precept #5

Choose to be humble before the Lord humbles you.

How frequently do you choose to be humble instead of thinking of yourself as something greater than you actually are?

Published by Russty

I remember my first truly sacred experience when I was 12 years old. The next was somewhere around 14. My teenage years after that - after beginning a life-long study of the LDS canon of scripture - was chalked full of sacred experience after sacred experience which have developed in me a love for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and a devotion to His teachings as taught in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Because of those experiences as a young man I can say for sure that Jesus Christ lives today and is the Son of the Living God. He atoned for me and has "redeemed my soul from hell." It was in those years that I learned for myself that the Book of Mormon is the true word of God. That came to be a huge social battle for one young as I was growing up in the Bible belt. I spent those years trying to live my life in such a way that people would know that I was a follower of Christ only to find out after years of hanging out with my friends that none of them believed I was Christian. This was devestating to me, a young man simply trying to show a good example as a follower of Christ. I felt like I had failed. It was only after serving my two year mission for the LDS Church that I realized the reason for their opinion was simply because our definition of what it meant to be Christian was drastically different. For me it had been about following Christ and living His teachings. For them it was whether or not my beliefs fell within their narrowly defined window of what they believed about God and Jesus Christ. I realize now that I was doomed to fail from the beginning! It was in those years while I was trying to show people that I was a follower of Christ - facing opposition from friend, minister, and teacher alike - that I began studying the scriptures not just to understand His Gospel, but to come to understand answers to the challenges I was being presented with. In short I became as much of a Mormon apologist as a teenage boy with little education could ever become. But I at least had the scriptures and and the guidance of truly devoted and inspired friends and teachers - and that was all I needed. It is this pattern of questioning and searching for answers which has informed all of my scripture study and learning over the years of my life since then. My research and understanding of the Gospel, the Church, The Book of Mormon, and Joseph Smith have all grown and expanded because of that constant and consistent devotion to studying. And they will all continue to do so - for the knowledge of God is infinite and there is no way in the life to learn it all. This blog is an outlet for all I have learned and considered over the years of my Gospel study. I have found - as many people who have come to know the teachings of Christ the way I have - that when the Word is a part of one's soul he or she cannot escape the desire to share It. So share it I do. There are imperfections and missing pieces in what I write, but all in all I truly feel the Lord has blessed me with the one thing I have desired more than almost anything else: a well rounded understanding of His doctrine and truth as He has given to us at this point. Please forgive my imperfections for this blog is as much about improving myself and my own knowledge and faith in God and Christ as it is for helping anyone else do the same.

Abiding Precepts, Russty's Daily Coat, The Book of Mormon

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