With Unshaken Faith

One of the great lessons we learn from Nephi in the Book of Mormon is that through faith in God we can do all things that we need to.  In perhaps his most famous statement he declared, “I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them” (1 Nephi 3:7).  What incredible faith he subsequently showed to back up those words as he refused to return to the wilderness from Jerusalem until he and his brothers had accomplished the task of obtaining the plates.  He declared with boldness to his brothers when they wavered, “Therefore let us go up; let us be strong like unto Moses; for he truly spake unto the waters of the Red Sea and they divided hither and thither, and our fathers came through, out of captivity, on dry ground…. ? Let us go up; the Lord is able to deliver us, even as our fathers, and to destroy Laban, even as the Egyptians.”  He had just nearly been killed by Laban and then again by his brothers, and yet his faith in the Lord’s ability to empower him did not waver.  In a show of incredible faith, he “crept into the city” in the dark of night, “not knowing beforehand the things that [he] should do” (1 Nephi 4:2, 5-6).  How he must have trusted in the Lord to be able to step into the dark to find a man who had just tried to slay him and his brothers!  It reminds me of the famous Leap of Faith scene from Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade where he had to step into empty air over a deep chasm before the bridge would appear below him.  Nephi similarly took that incredible step into the unknown at the peril of his life, relying wholly upon the Lord to save him.

               There are several other moments recorded in the Book of Mormon when Nephi similarly stepped forward into the unknown, “relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save” (2 Nephi 31:19).  One of those is depicted in one of the new Book of Mormon videos in which Nephi broke his bow and the family was on the brink of starvation in the wilderness.  But Nephi was unflappable, making a new bow and asking his father where to go to slay beasts.  He then set off alone as the video portrays it, and I believe he was indeed by himself as he described: “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did go forth up into the top of the mountain, according to the directions which were given upon the ball. And it came to pass that I did slay wild beasts, insomuch that I did obtain food for our families” (1 Nephi 16:30-31).  I imagine the rest of the company were simply too weak to join him because of the lack of food, and Nephi pressed on to the top of a mountain alone when he was likely famished and perhaps even unsure if he could survive.  His faith in Jesus Christ was such that he could once again step into the dark knowing the Lord would provide the way, and He did.  Nephi showed this faith again and again as he built a boat, crossed an unknown ocean, and ultimately separated from his brothers at the peril of his life. 

Nephi testified of God’s great power to help us in whatever our challenges are if it so be that we have faith in Him: “The Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to him” (1 Nephi 7:12).  Nephi showed us what it means to truly exercise faith in Jesus Christ and his life and words invite us to keep moving forward “with unshaken faith” in the Savior (2 Nephi 31:19).