Power Given Unto Him

I believe that one of the messages of Helaman 5 for us today is that heavenly power comes to us from Jesus Christ through our repentance. Helaman taught his sons, “And remember also the words which Amulek spake unto Zeezrom, in the city of Ammonihah; for he said unto him that the Lord surely should come to redeem his people, but that he should not come to redeem them in their sins, but to redeem them from their sins. And he hath power given unto him from the Father to redeem them from their sins because of repentance; therefore he hath sent his angels to declare the tidings of the conditions of repentance, which bringeth unto the power of the Redeemer, unto the salvation of their souls” (v10-11). It is repentance which brings into our lives the power of the Redeemer.

We see this principle in action in the account of the Lamanites in the land of Nephi later in the chapter. Nephi and Lehi went to preach to them, and these missionaries were cast into prison. But then a darkness came over all those within the prison. The Lamanites there were filled with fear and did not know what to do. And they heard this voice from heaven saying this: “Repent ye, repent ye, and seek no more to destroy my servants whom I have sent unto you to declare good tidings” (v29). The voice came again, “Repent ye, repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand; and seek no more to destroy my servants” (v32). As they started to look to the missionaries, “there was power given unto them” to see more clearly, which was the start of their repentance (v37). They were still struck with fear and could not move, unsure of what to do, and said to the Nephite dissenter, Aminadab, “What shall we do, that this cloud of darkness may be removed from overshadowing us?” In other words, they were looking for power to get out of this situation in which they were paralyzed with fear and trapped in the dark. His answer echoed the voice they had already heard: “You must repent, and cry unto the voice, even until ye shall have faith in Christ, who was taught unto you by Alma, and Amulek, and Zeezrom; and when ye shall do this, the cloud of darkness shall be removed from overshadowing you” (v40-41). They would have power against the darkness as soon as they would start to repent. They did repent, and the darkness did disperse, and they gained power to not only leave the prison but to then go and declare what they had seen and heard to other Lamanites. Repentance brought them from darkness to light.   

            We learn from modern revelation what it means to repent: “By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins—behold, he will confess them and forsake them” (Doctrine and Covenants 58). We repent as we confess and especially as we forsake our sins, and from this we obtain the power of Jesus Christ to redeem us. We also gain power, even if it is not specifically part of our repentance, as we seek to forsake “the things of this world, and seek for the things of a better” (Doctrine and Covenants 25:10). I believe that Nephi in this chapter (Helaman 5) gained great power in part because of what he forsook to preach unto the people. At the beginning of the chapter, we have this introduction to Nephi’s missionary labors: “And it came to pass that in this same year, behold, Nephi delivered up the judgment-seat to a man whose name was Cezoram…. And it came to pass that Nephi had become weary because of their iniquity; and he yielded up the judgment-seat, and took it upon him to preach the word of God all the remainder of his days, and his brother Lehi also, all the remainder of his days” (v1, 4). Nephi could have kept his worldly power as the leader of the people, which likely was accompanied with significant wealth and prestige. But it was precisely because he was willing to give up those things in order to serve the Lord that he gained such incredible power as a missionary. We read, “And it came to pass that they did preach with great power…. And it came to pass that Nephi and Lehi did preach unto the Lamanites with such great power and authority, for they had power and authority given unto them that they might speak” (v17-18). With his brother Lehi, he was instrumental in bringing thousands of souls to repentance in Zarahemla and in the land of Nephi, he was visited by angels, and he was even encircled about by fire without being burned. Because he was willing to give up worldly power and possessions he was filled with the power of God. As we seek to repent and forsake the things of this world, we too can be brought to obtain “the power of the Redeemer” in our lives.