I Beckoned Unto Them

Yesterday I had the opportunity to go to the open house for the Saratoga Springs Temple with my family. As we watched an introductory video about temples in the adjoining church building, a clip from President Nelson talking about temples was shown. As soon as that came on my five-year-old jumped out of his seat and ran to me exclaiming, “That’s President Nelson!” I was touched by his excitement, and I was relieved to see that I had actually taught him something of importance that he at least partially understood: there is a prophet on the earth. This is the boy who rarely comes to family scripture study because he is just too busy to sit still in one room, but if there is any truth I would want him to know and hang on to his whole life it is that the Lord has given us a prophet in our day who will teach us the truth and lead us in the way that we should go. There are so many young people today who fit the description of Lehi in his vision of the tree of life: “And it came to pass that there arose a mist of darkness; yea, even an exceedingly great mist of darkness, insomuch that they who had commenced in the path did lose their way, that they wandered off and were lost.” Others “fell away into forbidden paths and were lost” while still others were “wandering in strange roads” (1 Nephi 8:23, 28, 32). There is no doubt that he was really seeing our day in this vision. So many today indeed are wandering in forbidden paths, lost, and traveling strange roads far away from the path the Lord has set for His children here on earth. I hope that my son will always know that we don’t have to wander aimlessly throughout life, “tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men.” No, because the Lord “gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers” to us in these latter days, we know where to go for truth and direction and the word of the Lord to guide us (Ephesians 4:11, 14).

                I think that one of the lessons that we don’t typically associate with the vision of the tree of life is that the prophet knows the way. The story was of course told by a prophet, Lehi, and in the vision he was taken by a heavenly messenger to the tree of life. After he had partaken for himself of the fruit, he saw his family. He recounted, “And it came to pass that I beckoned unto them; and I also did say unto them with a loud voice that they should come unto me, and partake of the fruit, which was desirable above all other fruit.” Sariah, Sam, and Nephi followed his call and came to the fruit; Laman and Lemuel, on the other hand, would not come to him when he likewise beckoned to them to come: “they would not come unto me and partake of the fruit” (1 Nephi 8:15, 18). The prophet today, like Lehi, beckons to us to come and partake of the fruit of the tree of life, the fruit of gospel living and faith in Jesus Christ. Like Lehi, he too calls unto us with a loud voice, a bold voice, an inspired voice telling us the path to take to find peace in this life and eternal life in the world to come. There are indeed so many “strange roads” that one might go down today, and many are “in the attitude of mocking and pointing their fingers” at the prophet and those who follow him. But if we keep our eyes fixed on the Lord’s servant who figuratively stands at the tree of life we will be guided to partake of the fruit of the tree of life, the love of Jesus Christ. I hope that my son will never lose the excitement he expressed yesterday when he saw the prophet on the screen, for the prophet will guide him and all of us in the covenant path back to the Savior. The Lord gave us this magnificent promise if we would keep our eyes fixed on the prophet and receive his words in faith: “For by doing these things the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name’s glory” (Doctrine and Covenants 21:6).