“Lift Up Your Head and Be of Good Cheer”
In some ways, it was an exciting time to be a believer in Jesus Christ. Prophecies were being fulfilled—great signs and miracles among the people indicated that the Savior would soon be born. On the other hand, it was also an anxious time for believers because, in spite of all the miracles, unbelievers insisted that “the time was past” for the Savior to be born (3 Nephi 1:5). These people caused “a great uproar throughout the land” (3 Nephi 1:7) and even set a date to kill all the believers if the sign prophesied by Samuel the Lamanite—a night without darkness—did not appear.
In these trying circumstances, the prophet Nephi “cried mightily to his God in behalf of his people” (3 Nephi 1:11). The Lord’s response is inspiring to anyone who faces persecution or doubt and needs to know that light will overcome darkness: “Lift up your head and be of good cheer; … I will fulfil all that which I have caused to be spoken by the mouth of my holy prophets” (3 Nephi 1:13).
Click the link below to listen to Shelby’s podcast about writing down our experiences.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/karlis-burden-is-made-light/id1493754847
Um. I think last week’s podcast fiasco may have partly been my fault. I was supposed to teach Sunday School (via zoom) and life got busy and I thought ‘that’s okay – I’ll just listen to Melanie and base my lesson off of that’ and then got a little panicky the longer the week went without one. I’m pretty sure the Lord was teaching me a lesson about the importance of doing my own work and seeking direction from the Spirit and not counting on someone else to do all the heavy lifting. I’m pretty sure there’s a lesson in there about oil and borrowed light. Sigh. Anyway, the lesson got done, I learned some things, and I love your podcast. Thank you for all that you do!
Phew. At least we all now know why!
You were asking how someone could just forget the truth when it was so clear like a day and a night and a day of straight light. I think there is a difference between forgetting and remembering no more.
God DOESN’T say “He forgets our sins” when we repent. He says 3 times in scripture “I remember their sin no more” (Hosea 8:13, Jer. 31:34, Heb. 8:12; 10:17). What’s the difference between forgetting and choosing to remember no more? Forgetting isn’t a choice but remembering no more is. When god looks at our sins for example, he is perfect so he literally can’t forget. He can choose not to see the sins we repented of and he does.
I think Satan uses this principle to make us forget Christ. He gets us to take the truth we know and cast it out when it was once perfectly bright in us. We would have to literally choose to remember the truth no more. That’s because it is not a hope or a belief but it is KNOWLEDGE! It’s not like all the ingredients of the cake mixed up in a bowl, it’s the frosted cake sitting in front of you decorated in it’s glory. Knowledge is truth. Its the gift from God.
So we would have to kill that truth inside which is what Alma referred to when he was talking to his son Corianton when he said, “…murdering against the light is unforgivable.” If you kill a truth god put’s inside of you by choosing to not hear it so frequently that it dies, then you have killed an eternal part of you, for truth is eternal and you are in effect committing spiritual suicide by killing that part of your spirit god has placed there to shine forever.
D&C 93: 28 He that keepeth his commandments receiveth truth and light, until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things.
29 Man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be.
30 All truth is independent in that sphere in which God has placed it, to act for itself, as all intelligence also; otherwise there is no existence.
31 Behold, here is the agency of man, and here is the condemnation of man; because that which was from the beginning is plainly manifest unto them, and they receive not the light.
32 And every man whose spirit receiveth not the light is under condemnation.
So remembering the truth no more is eternal death.