Tag: Mosiah

I’m confident that Benjamin waited as he saw his people fallen to the ground in recognition of their need for Christ. In fact, I suspect that he had a similar reaction when the angel delivered the message to him. It’s not that he or they were wicked at the time—they had already gone to the…

Men naturally fall into a state opposed to God ever since the fall of Adam and they remain in such a state unless they shed that nature and become saints who are marked by a combination of mature service in the cause of righteousness and humble submission to the will of God who is shaping…

When Mosiah called the people to gather they came with sacrifices, prepared to offer thanks for having the privilege of having a righteous king for their leader. That’s a pretty solid indicator of how righteous they were even before this great sermon.

Mormon picks up his abridgement of the large plates of Nephi (after inserting the unabridged small plates) by saying that after all the labor of king Benjamin to establish righteousness among the people of his kingdom he had continual peace all the remainder of his days. Prior to that in the Words of Mormon he…

I can’t help thinking about how much strength comes from being part of a community where everyone is committed to righteousness. You could more easily forgive your neighbor for mistakes because you trust that they are doing their best. You would have more patience to endure challenges because you trust that those around you are…

When I read King Benjamin talking about how we respond to the beggar my thoughts turn to Alex who expects me to meet his every need even if he doesn’t ask and I feel condemned because I’ve been waiting to abandon him to himself. I don’t believe I can keep carrying him and he is…

Most of what Benjamin says to his people here was not new to them. They had been taught before—and he knew they had been taught before—about being indebted to God and the need to keep his commandments. Some of the specifics such as the name of His mortal mother were new to them but this…

I never noticed before that Benjamin taught his sons about the importance of the sacred plates long before he called Mosiah in to counsel him before giving him the kingdom. In other words, he taught his sons and they had time to hopefully practice implementing his counsel. Later, when he began to be old, he…

I wondered why the sons of Mosiah did not include their friend Alma among those who went to peach among the Lamanites. It occurs to me that they likely contemplated including him. In fact, they may very well have asked him. If so, he must have felt that his path lay in ministering among the…

Alma may not have noticed it at first but the message from the angel telling him “Marvel not that all mankind … must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters; And thus they become…