Saturday, February 8, 2020

The Word of God -- Part 2

I'm taking the liberty to make a part 2 of Lord Wilmore's post. Reading about the power of the word reminded me of an observation I made a while back in Alma 37. In verses 9-10 we read:
Behold, he is the word of truth and righteousness. And now, as ye have begun to teach the word even so I would that ye should continue
In this verse, Christ is equated with "the word". Then, Alma admonishes his son to teach "the word". This can easily be interpreted as admonishing his son to proclaim the Christ. This kind of reading is definitely consistent with other scriptures. John 1:16 (JST)
For in the beginning was the Word, even the Son, who is made flesh, and sent unto us by the will of the Father.
Moses 1:32
And by the word of my power, have I created them, which is mine Only Begotten Son
This lead to another observation from Moses 1: In verse 41, we read
And in a day when the children of men shall esteem my words as naught
This is in the same chapter that previously linked the "word" to Christ. Compare with 1 Nephi 19:6-9
Nevertheless, I do not write anything upon plates save it be that I think it be sacred...For the things which some men esteem to be of great worth, both to the body and soul, others set at naught and trample under their feet. Yea, even the very God of Israel do men trample under their feet; I say, trample under their feet but I would speak in other words—they set him at naught, and hearken not to the voice of his counsels. And behold he cometh, according to the words of the angel, in six hundred years from the time my father left Jerusalem. And the world, because of their iniquity, shall judge him to be a thing of naught
Notice how Nephi first is talking about words - the things he writes. Then, through the expression "at naught" (the same expression used in Moses 1), he links this to Christ. I wouldn't be surprised at all if  it turns out that the contents of the Book of Moses as we have it in the Pearl of Great Price were found on the brass plates.

I'm not trying to say that every time "word" is mentioned in the scriptures, it actually means Christ. I'm only saying that this can sometimes be an interpretation and there seems to be a strong link between the "Word of God" and Christ and his gospel. This helps explain why the "Word of God" in the scriptures often is associated with power, salvation, etc. and is more than just a string of letters.

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