Flooding My Life with the Book of Mormon 2.0

2 Nephi 9:15 And it shall come to pass that when all men shall have passed from this first death unto life, insomuch as they have become immortal, they must appear before the judgment-seat of the Holy One of Israel; and then cometh the judgment, and then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God. Jesus told His Old World disciples that the Father had delivered all judgment into the Son's hands (see John 5:22 ). The Holy One of Israel is Christ. Thus, the Bible and the Book of Mormon agree. Why is Christ to be my judge? Who better to determine my worthiness than the One who paid for my sins to free me from them? The Father could certainly deliver a true and righteous judgment on me, for He knows all things, but He invites me to stand face to face before my Savior and Redeemer, the very One who has pleaded for me and interceded for me with the Father all along. Jesus has already met the demands of justice for me. He knows firsthand the very worst of my sins and has al...

2 Nephi 9:5 Yea, I know that ye know that in the body he shall show himself unto those at Jerusalem, from whence we came; for it is expedient that it should be among them; for it behooveth the great Creator that he suffereth himself to become subject unto man in the flesh, and die for all men, that all men might become subject unto him. Behooveth is an old word meaning necessary, proper, or advantageous.   Jehovah necessarily had to become mortal to work out the atonement and become the Redeemer. It was proper for Him to fill that role because He had volunteered and been appointed to do so in the great council in heaven. It was advantageous to Him so that He could know firsthand according to the flesh how to succor His people and eternally advantageous to me because He would answer the ends of the law and bring about my salvation. We are all subject unto Christ in that we owe Him. He has purchased us with His blood and His death. Sooner or later we all must acknowledge tha...

2 Nephi 8:13 And forgettest the Lord thy maker, that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth, and hast feared continually every day, because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? And where is the fury of the oppressor? Through the words of Isaiah, Jacob reminds his people that Jehovah, their God, is the Maker, Creator, and Organizer of all things. The temple teaches that God the Father is the celestial Architect, and Jehovah, His Firstborn Son, is the Prime Contractor to bring about all things in the universe. Living in constant fear is a terrible way to live. God can free me from fear and liberate me from anxiety. The Great Oppressor cannot destroy me if I have faith in God.

2 Nephi 2:8 Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise. The message of the Book of Mormon is that Jesus is the Messiah, Redeemer, and Savior. The resurrection is both my hope and my sign that Jesus is, in fact, the Savior. If He could bring Himself back to life, He can do everything else He promises, including bringing me back to life, washing away my sins, and delivering me whole and worthy before the Father. The Resurrection is the proof of the Atonement. The two must go hand in hand, however. Redemption without resurrection would be incomplete, because I would be an incomplete being. A physical ...

2 Nephi 2:6 Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah; for he is full of grace and truth. To be redeemed has many meanings, all positive and beneficial:  To be bought back so we can be returned to our rightful owner To be freed from something detrimental, such as freed from captivity or extricated from something detrimental To receive help in overcoming a problem To be released from blame or debt  To change for the better To restore or repair To be freed from a lien or debt To make good on a promise To redeem always involves an exchange of value and recovering from a worse state to a better state. In every one of these ways, Christ is my Redeemer. He is the one who returns me to God, frees me from the captivity of hell and death, helps me overcome my weaknesses and mortal nature, releases me from the guilt of sin, changes me into a better person fit for God's presence, restores my lost relationship with the Father, releases me from the demands of justice, an...

1 Nephi 22:25 And he gathereth his children from the four quarters of the earth; and he numbereth his sheep, and they know him; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd; and he shall feed his sheep, and in him they shall find pasture. Christ is the Good Shepherd who builds the fold and guards the flock. We can find many folds in the world, but only one is the true fold of the True Shepherd. It is important that Christ numbers His sheep, for He does not want to lose a single one. He knows every one of us, and He knows when even the least among us goes astray. One lost sheep is just as important to the Good Shepherd as the ninety and nine that are safe in the fold. 

1 Nephi 19:17 Yea, and all the earth shall see the salvation of the Lord, saith the prophet; every nation, kindred, tongue and people shall be blessed. To "see the salvation of the Lord" is to witness and experience it. After the gathering of Israel, in the Millennium, when the wicked have been destroyed, and only the righteous are left to inhabit the earth, all will indeed experience the saving power of Christ and His atonement, for only those who are willing to accept Christ will be left alive. Not everyone must be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, at least not at first, but all must be willing to accept Christ as their Savior and the rightful Ruler of the earth.

1 Nephi 11:25 And it came to pass that I beheld that the rod of iron, which my father had seen, was the word of God, which led to the fountain of living waters, or to the tree of life; which waters are a representation of the love of God; and I also beheld that the tree of life was a representation of the love of God. We typically interpret the "word of God" to be the scriptures. In Lehi's dream, the rod led to the fountain or source of the living waters. Christ declared Himself to be the living waters. God the Father is the source of Christ's living waters. The Apostle John wrote that Christ is the Word of God. So, we could also interpret the iron rod to be Christ and His words, both in the scriptures and in personal revelation, which lead us to the Father. 

1 Nephi 10:18 For he is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and the way is prepared for all men from the foundation of the world, if it so be that they repent and come unto him. God planned all things from the very beginning. He knew exactly how earthlife would play out for His family. He knew Adam and Eve would transgress His law and bring about the fall of mankind. In fact, He needed it to be so, so that mortality would have meaning.  We had to have choices, and so we needed opposition. At the same time, God planned for the way for us to return to Him. The atonement and resurrection of Jesus Christ were planned as well. Jesus would be the way that we could follow to return to our Father in heaven. To paraphrase Elder Holland, Jesus was not Plan B or even Plan A, He was and is the ONLY Plan .

1 Nephi 10:6 Wherefore, all mankind were in a lost and in a fallen state, and ever would be save they should rely on this Redeemer. My lost and fallen state is spiritual death. Until I return to the presence of Christ, I am spiritually dead. Only Christ can reclaim me from this condition.   Being lost and fallen are states of inattention or apathy. I get lost when I don't pay attention to where I am or where I'm going. I fall when I don't watch where I step and lose my balance. When I pay attention to the words of the scriptures and the living prophets, and balance myself with constant prayer and obedience, I can avoid being lost and falling while I wait for Jesus to raise me up.

1 Nephi 10:4 Yea, even six hundred years from the time that my father left Jerusalem, a prophet would the Lord God raise up among the Jews—even a Messiah, or, in other words, a Savior of the world. The primary mission of every prophet is to prophesy about Christ. In fact, the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (see Revelation 19:10 ). The prophets of the Old Testament and those among the Nephites prior to Jesus's birth prophesied of the coming of the Messiah, His life, atonement, death, and resurrection. The prophets of the New Testament, in the Book of Mormon after Christ's appearance, and in modern times, prophesy of Christ's Second Coming to destroy the wicked and usher in the Millennium of peace and righteousness. If any prophet in our records has not spoken of the Messiah or Christ, it is most likely because we do not have a full record of all he taught. The immediate role of every prophet is to bring the people of his day to Christ. Secondarily, he may leave...