Mormon 4

(June 13, 2014)
This is certainly one of the most distressing periods of the Book of Mormon.  We see here the final turning point, where the people of the Nephites (once the more righteous part of the people) have become so overwhelmingly evil that they are about to be destroyed.  And we know the end result.

We likewise see around us today a similar societal decay that frightens us.  Even within the Church, we see the infection of false teachings, immorality, and wickedness slowly creeping over us and those we love.  We fight this as diligently as we can, but we cannot help but think that we are seeing a repeat of the destruction of the Nephites in our day.  Only our trust in the Lord and His plan affirm that we are not.

What does that mean for those of us who are struggling to follow the Lord in a time when others are turning from Him.  We cannot focus on a societal goal, because this is beyond our capacity.  Mormon, righteous man though he was, could not save his people in their wickedness.  So too we cannot hope to save a society that does not want to be saved.  And, like Mormon, we may find ourselves being destroyed in the calamities brought about by this wickedness.

No, our hope lies with Moroni (and presumably Mormon).  We know that Moroni, despite having been ultimately left alone as the world he knew collapsed around him (and, eventually, his death alone) was ultimately resurrected into his eternal reward.  If we seek for hope in the world around us, we may hope in vain.  But if we properly remain focused on the world hereafter, our hope is founded on a more solid foundation.