(July 26, 2016)
In reading
the scriptures (as in life), sometimes there is a lot to be gained by considering
the times the Lord doesn’t intervene. Here,
of course, is a perfect example of this.
This moment
represented the split between the Nephites and the Lamanites. Now the Lord reaching down and killing Laman and
Lemuel wouldn’t have resolved everything (the Nephites split thereafter several
times, and they continued to have tensions between themselves and the Mulekites)
but it certainly would have made a big (and, to our modern and temporal sensibilities,
a positive difference). It even seems consistent
with the Lord’s principles He taught earlier that it is better that one man should
die than that a nation should perish in unbelief.
And yet,
despite being able to intervene He chose not to. Why? I think
He answers that later in this chapter. The
Lamanites were to become a scourge to the Nephites – not as a punishment but as
a blessing. The Lamanites aren’t the villains
of the Book of Mormon – they are a tool that the Lord uses to bless the lives
of the Nephites.
We would
do well to remember that when we face challenges in our lives. When those around us seemingly are setting out
to destroy us, are they a blessing from the Lord to us? If the Lord could resolve this conflict immediately
and chooses not to, is it because He knows more than we do and knows how everything
will ultimately work for our good?
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