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Showing posts from December, 2010

"The Pleasing Bar of God," Jacob 6:13

Jacob 6:13 Jacob at the end of his record makes an interesting statement in reference to the final judgment. Moroni at the end of his record makes a similar statement. (see Moroni 10:34 ) To the reader they bid farewell until the next time that we shall meet them-- in the final judgment. There is something that strikes me as helpful in defining the wicked from the righteous in the verse in Jacob. The righteous look forward to the day of judgment, while for the wicked, it is a day of awful dread and fear. So it is the feelings that we have inside of ourselves towards the day of judgment, and appearing before our Maker, that define if we are among the righteous or the wicked. It is no group of people, it is not predicated upon a rote list of ritualistic acts. Judgment is individual.

"Cleave unto God as He Cleaveth unto You," Jacob 6

Jacob 6 In verse 5 , Jacob commands his brethren to "cleave unto God as he cleaveth unto you." The association illustrates a truth that I seldom would consider: God already has an intimate, personal relationship with me. I know that this goes along the lines of a supreme being who knows all my thoughts and actions, but something strikes me as exceptionally personal in that omniscience, not as a removed, observational unit. Really, it makes sense. Why would someone want to know everything about you or me, without being intimately concerned for your well being and safety. Footnotes on cleave lead to the account of Hezekiah , king of Judah, and his interactions with Assyria. Isaiah was prophet during the reign of Hezekiah. He offered spiritual strength to Hezekiah to withstand the tenacious cries of the messenger of the king of Assyria, who repeatedly came down from Assyria threatening Hezekiah with destruction if they did not submit to their rule. What was more, the messenger f