As I personally study The Book of Mormon, I have come across verses that I can swear were not there before, like I was reading them for the first time. Now, I have no idea just how many times I have read The Book of Mormon but I can say with some degree of certainty that it has been more than a few so when I get this feeling it catches my attention. The real kicker with this is that the verse that seems new to me is extremely timely with what is happening in my head, my heart, and/or the world around me. It’s almost like the verse has been “updated” to keep up with the latest headlines and breaking news.
Okay, this sounds crazy, I know. I can assure you that the text of my copy of The Book of Mormon remains unchanged but this thing that has happened to me is a real thing. Here’s an example...We know and love the powerful testimony that The Book of Mormon provides of the Savior and Redeemer of the world, Jesus Christ. We can read directly from the Title Page that the purpose of the book is to “the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations”. On two different occasions recently, I was reading in the book of Alma and I noticed a description of the Savior that I had not considered before. The first came in Alma 9:26 where the prophet Alma taught the people of Ammonihah this truth:
“And not many days hence the Son of God shall come in His glory; and His glory shall be the glory of the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace, equity, and truth, full of patience, mercy, and long-suffering, quick to hear the cries of His people and to answer their prayers.”
I had never noticed the word equity in that passage before. And then again we read in Alma 13:9 the prophet Alma teaching the people:
“Thus they become high priests forever, after the order of the Son, the Only Begotten of the Father, who is without beginning of days or end of years, who is full of grace, equity, and truth. And thus it is. Amen.”
Of course, it is true that our Heavenly Father and His Only Begotten Son are just, fair, and equitable but to my mind and in my heart in the context of the summer of 2020, that word equity jumped off the page. I felt a feeling of gratitude in my heart for the powerful reminder that through Jesus Christ and His gospel, we have the perfect model for equity. It reminded me of the powerful statement from the latter-day prophet Ezra Taft Benson who in 1988 said:
“Only the gospel will save the world from the calamity of its own self-destruction. Only the gospel will unite men of all races and nationalities in peace. Only the gospel will bring joy, happiness, and salvation to the human family.”
I know that that is true and it is my source of hope during these trying times. I am grateful for scriptures, words of ancient and modern prophets that serve as my guide. We are all like Nephi and his family, traveling by faith through this mortal life. Just as the Lord gave them the gift of the Liahona, the brass ball that served as a type of compass as they traveled to the promised land, he has given us The Book of Mormon. You might remember that the spindles of the Liahona pointed the direction that they should travel and it worked according to the faith and diligence that they gave to it. You might also remember what we read in 1 Nephi 16:29:
“And there was also written upon them a new writing, which was plain to be read, which did give us understanding concerning the ways of the Lord; and it was written and changed from time to time, according to the faith and diligence which we gave unto it. And thus we see that by small means the Lord can bring about great things.”
So it is with us today. As we prayerfully read and study The Book of Mormon, the Holy Ghost will give us insight and understanding that we need to withstand the challenges of our day and by small means the Lord can bring about great things in our lives, in our homes, and in our communities. I testify that this is true in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
-President Mike Freeman