Abiding Precepts – Mosiah 20

Passage #1

And now the priests of king Noah, being ashamed to return to the city of Nephi, yea, and also fearing that the people would slay them, therefore they durst not return to their wives and their children.
And having tarried in the wilderness, and having discovered the daughters of the Lamanites, they laid and watched them;
And when there were but few of them gathered together to dance, they came forth out of their secret places and took them and carried them into the wilderness; yea, twenty and four of the daughters of the Lamanites they carried into the wilderness.

Mosiah 20:3-5

Precept #1

Do not let fear and shame keep you from doing what is right, from recognizing and acknowledging your mistakes, from repairing the wrongs you’ve done, from repenting, and from living righteously.

Can you think of something that you’re holding back on repenting of and making amends for because you’re afraid to do so or are ashamed of what you’ve done? Will you now have the courage to stand up and act on what you know you need to do?

Passage #2

And they took him and bound up his wounds, and brought him before Limhi, and said: Behold, here is the king of the Lamanites; he having received a wound has fallen among their dead, and they have left him; and behold, we have brought him before you; and now let us slay him.
But Limhi said unto them: Ye shall not slay him, but bring him hither that I may see him. And they brought him.

Mosiah 20:13-14

Precept #2

Seek not for vengeance. Seek understanding and the higher paths of virtue, honor, and justice.

In your relationships with those you feel wronged by is your focus on getting even? Or is it on living worthy of God’s blessings and treating everyone honorably and respectfully?

Passage #3

And Limhi said unto him: What cause have ye to come up to war against my people? Behold, my people have not broken the oath that I made unto you; therefore, why should ye break the oath which ye made unto my people?
And now the king said: I have broken the oath because thy people did carry away the daughters of my people; therefore, in my anger I did cause my people to come up to war against thy people.

Mosiah 20:14-15

Precept #3

Seek first to understand. Make decisions based on truth and facts, not on assumptions.

What situation do you currently face that could improve if you sought out the right information? How would you be making different decisions – better decisions – if you just had all the facts?

Passage #4

But Limhi said unto them: Ye shall not slay him, but bring him hither that I may see him. And they brought him. And Limhi said unto him: What cause have ye to come up to war against my people? Behold, my people have not broken the oath that I made unto you; therefore, why should ye break the oath which ye made unto my people? . . .
And now let us pacify the king, and we fulfil the oath which we have made unto him; for it is better that we should be in bondage than that we should lose our lives; therefore, let us put a stop to the shedding of so much blood.

Mosiah 20:14, 22

Precept #4

Make promises you can keep and then keep them.

Is there a promise you’ve made to someone – or even to yourself perhaps – that you have not yet kept? Have you made any promises you were not actually intending to keep? How can you go about rebuilding your integrity in these situations?

Passage #5

For are not the words of Abinadi fulfilled, which he prophesied against us—and all this because we would not hearken unto the words of the Lord, and turn from our iniquities?

Mosiah 20:21

Precept #5

Trust the prophecies from God’s servants. Seek to see, know, and understand their fulfilment.

Have you doubted the promises of the Lord? Has He ever fulfilled His promises in spite of the reasonable (or unreasonable) doubt you experienced? How will you change your faith and decision making because of the Lord’s promises through His chosen messengers?

Enjoyed this post? Read the original post defining the Abiding Precepts project or the post presenting Russty’s Daily Coat.