#37 "whosoever will come, him will I receive"

3Nephi 8-11
*Darken windows with black paper, have someone flip lights off when I say complete darkness
*Pass out slips of paper with a place written on it to everyone (walmart, temple, job, grocery etc)
These Chapters are the whole climax of the B of M! The main event unfolds here-the whole reason the B of M was written surrounds this witness of Christ’s’ resurrected body coming to His people in the Americas. If history repeats itself, and it is prophesied that it will, keep in mind that all that the Nephites will experience in these chapters will be what we will someday experience.
Here in chapter 8 the huge storm has come, earthquakes abound, the land is in complete upheaval, cities are being destroyed, covered with mountains, burned by fire, sunk into the ground, covered by the sea.
Think about or picture an earthquake, Has anyone been in an actual earthquake? How frightening was it? We all have at least seen the devastation of an earthquake on the news or movies? Now let’s get into character, picture yourself a Nephite they don’t have TV’s, they’ve never experienced an earthquake up to this point, they have no idea of what is happening, This all happened on a regular day in April on a Thursday (3 days before Sunday the day Christ was resurrected) , what does a normal Thursday look like to you? If you can’t think of what you may be doing picture yourself in the place on your paper. Maybe you are at Walmart, perhaps grocery shopping, maybe you have a job you go to everyday, If you really want to get into character as a nephite picture yourself out hunting for food, picking berries, building a grass or cement home etc. If you have children or grandchildren where are they? School perhaps? Off playing in another Nephite child’s home?
*count 1 minute of them contemplating the destruction. That is only one minute-can you imagine 3 hours?
This devastation and destruction went on for 3 hours (8:19) If you are like me you try and get to your family right away, but with mountains popping up and Ogden sinking into the earth it’s not easy to get there. Finally, the storm calms and just as you think now is the chance to get home to my family the earth is plunged into complete darkness.(turn out lights) The darkness is so thick it’s described as a vapor (8:20) that you can feel, darkness so thick that you can’t see your hand in front of your face, so dark that when you go to get that flashlight with working batteries (because you have prepared so well, and your kids never play with them) or go to grab a candle, light a fire, etc. it is snuffed out before you can even light the match. Light is an impossibility. (8:21) So not only may you have a huge mountain, or hole between you and your children you now have complete darkness and you for sure can’t get to your family. For 3 days (8:23) you sit in darkness, not knowing where your family is or if they are even alive.
*How would you be feeling at this point? I believe I would be among those in 8:23 who were mourning, and weeping.
*Lets personalize this to us today?
*have you ever felt this way before? Hopeless, anxious, depressed, helpless, unknowing, desperate, felt like you just couldn’t go on or get out of bed in the morning? Not sure how to go on or move forward? Perhaps you’ve lost a close family member, job, house etc? If not, perhaps your day will come when all this destruction truly happens to us when Christ comes again the 2nd time.
We have all had storms to weather through, think back now what got you through those times? Would you be one of those that responded in (8:25) “oh-that we had repented and had our food storage, and spiritual provisions in place” like the prophet said? What would you be doing or saying in the darkest moments of your life?
*Let class respond-just have them yell out the answers, because you won’t be able to see them raise their hands.
Perhaps you would also be reviewing, now what did that Samuel the Lamanite say again? When we attend conference, like we just did, did you read between the lines? Did you take their counsel seriously? Did you make new goals, according to their counsel?
Then as the Nephites are reviewing, praying, repenting, they realize they are still alive, which is more than they (you) can say for many of the people they (you) saw dying. Why? You ask why am I still alive? Then out of that darkness and misery comes a voice!

The voice is Jesus Christ He, in 9:13, states that the ones who lived through that destruction were the MORE RIGHTEOUS ones, not perfectly righteous but more so than those who were destroyed. You are the ones, who did their best to heed the prophets and serve your neighbors, in home and visiting teaching, did your callings, learned to love everyone. Perhaps, you realize that there is still work that needs to be done and the Lord has chosen you to do it! Just like NOW in our day!
*Christ asks us again will ye return unto me now? Will ye repent? Will you allow me to heal you through the power of the atonement?
9:14 He is still extending His arm out to us!
Through our dark experiences through this experience we have to ask ourselves the question Christ posed to the Nephites? 9:20-21 Do you have a broken heart and a contrite spirit to offer? Are you humble enough to trust me? Are you willing to be baptized and keep your baptismal covenants?
Mormon intercedes his observations and comments here in chapter 10 He tells them that after the voice of Christ spoke there was “silence in the land for many hours” 10:1
Why silence? I thought that perhaps He’s giving the people a chance to make up their minds and hearts? Where am I going to go from here? What am I willing to do? This loving God still gives them their agency. No guilt trips, He didn’t say “well you’ve all survived now because of me so what is your choice now?” He just sets back and waits to see where their hearts lie?
Christ speaks again this time He tells them of some of the destruction and basically states I have wanted to gather you, wanted to help you, heal you, gather you under my protection. He compares that to a chicken gathering her young. After I read this part I thought, “of all the beautiful animals in the world why compare himself to a chicken?” That is until I heard this story and I just had to share it.
“As a Hen Gathereth Her Chickens Under Her Wings"Of all the creations of his hands, the Lord called upon a mother hen to symbolize his great saving work in the atonement. In 3 Nephi 10:4-6 Jesus refers to the loving safety of a mother hen's outstretched arms three times. A few years ago, a colleague of mine at Idaho State University related one of his student's experiences that help illustrate this mother hen symbolism. The student, a young man, had been helping inspect some fire damage just outside of town from a recent blaze. As he and the others volunteers were assisting one of the inspectors, they noticed several smoldering mounds across the scorched earth. Intrigued, he asked the inspector what these were. The inspector replied that he should kick one of the piles. He did. To his great surprise several baby Sage Grouse chicks ran out from under the upturned mound. He was fascinated. How ingenious he thought, these little chicks had known to run underneath this refuge. The young man asked the inspector how the chicks knew about this natural shelter. To his amazement, the inspector replied that they were not natural at all; instead this smoldering heap was none other than the remains of their mother. The inspector continued to explain that when a fire breaks out the mother hen calls out to her young ones and stretches out her arm so that they can run inside to her protective embrace. The young man was profoundly moved by this mother's loving and sufficient self-sacrifice. How fitting that the Lord would personify the mother hen in his words to the Nephites and Lamanites. How perfect is this example for us today! "O ye house of Israel whom I have spared, how oft will I gather as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings" (3 Nephi 10:6).
The peoples’ hearts rejoice and are joyful as they realize, all is not lost, they can still do good things and attempt to thank our Father in Heaven by serving.

My heart can relate with these rejoicings. As I heard conference and Elder Uctdorfs message of having hope amidst our troubled times and Elder Bednars talk on how we should be grateful in our prayers and focus on that, the spirit testified to me that those principles are true and I need to focus on those messages during my own struggles, relying on Christ to pick up the line where I am too weak.

**Turn on the light
Finally there was light, light that lit up inside the people as well as outside as they recommitted their lives to Him. Just as the light comes on again the people then notice the changes in the earth. 11:1 There is a group of them at the temple. This verse really hit me. The group of people were Nephi, and I’m guessing his family and friends in the gospel. How do you suppose they came to be here the very place Christ would come? Before the storm? And at the temple no less?I thought of a couple of things. 1-Just a few chapters ago Nephi and his family lived in Zarahemla, now they are in Bountiful. He being the patriarch of his family, and a prophet of God must have been in tune and guided by the spirit to take his family to the temple. Now he and his family will reap the benefits of that choice. 2-What a better place to be during hard, dark times- the temple. and 3- This is proof the Lord always comes to His temples and by us going there we can always seek refuge during hard times.

Again in verse 11:3 another voice comes, this time it is Heavenly Father. A voice they didn’t quite understand. It took 3 times (3=power of God) for them to understand the voice and only after they put their full attention to the voice-ears, eyes, faces turning to the voice, did they understand it. This wonderful voice introduces His Son to us, the world. Of course we know the magnificence of these verses(v7-17)
11:12 We will and can fall, the Nephite people fell, they felt His hands and feet, we too can feel His hands and feet as we relive it through these sacred scriptures. We can feel His Presence today just as they felt His body then. We can feel it as tangibly as they did. I believe we have felt it today-I know that as we rejoice in Christ, speak of Christ, learn of Christ, be grateful to Christ, Speak to Christ we can feel His love for us, we too can be recommitted to His kingdom here on earth. Of this I testify, in the name of JESUS CHRIST AMEN.