The Time is at Hand
Book of Mormon Notes - Wednesday, December 13, 2023, 3 Nephi 1
Would you like to guess what happened after the Nephites rejected Samuel the Lamanite and Nephi, and Nephi’s son Nephi became the prophet and record keeper? Were the words of the prophets fulfilled? Mormon records that the words of the prophets weren’t just fulfilled, they were fulfilled exactly:
And it had come to pass, yea, all things, every whit, according to the words of the prophets. (3 Nephi 1:20)
Even though the prophesies of the prophets were fulfilled on time and exactly as they had prophesied, there was much opposition against the believers who awaited those signs of the birth of Jesus Christ.
The three methods of time keeping among the Nephites come together in the first verse of this chapter:
Now it came to pass that the ninety and first year had passed away and it was asix hundred years from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem; and it was in the year that bLachoneus was the chief judge and the governor over the land. (3 Nephi 1:1)
Thus, even time and time keeping pointed directly to Christ. Just as prophesied, Christ was born six hundred years after the time that Lehi left Jerusalem. Christ was born in the 92nd year of the reign of the judges. The third method of time keeping was to measure time from the moment of Christ’s birth onward. Jesus Christ descended from eternity into our mortal realm of time, and He announced his coming to the faithful Nephi, son of Nephi, who had, like Enos before him, poured out his soul in earnest prayer all day long.
Nephi’s father Nephi had departed from the land and, like other prophets before him such as Alma, he basically disappeared. The young Nephi was entrusted with the sacred records and relics, including the brass plates. He watched as the wicked among his people planned to put to death all those believers who awaited the sign of Christ’s coming, and like his father before him, his heart sickened and he turned to God in prayer.
I find it interesting, and probably not coincidental, that the Lord allowed young Nephi to pray all day long before he responded to him. I also find it interesting, and probably not coincidental, that the Lord allowed the opposition to become so fierce that the wicked were ready to put to death the believers right before the sign was given and Jesus came. The wickedness of the wicked and the faith of the righteous, the darkness of evil and the light of the sign that was given, the departure of the prophet and the rise of his successor, the time and the timing of the prophesies… everything was gathering momentum and flowing toward this unforgettable event, the birth of Jesus Christ. The entire Book of Mormon has been preparing us for this moment, and the moment finally arrived.
How did the Lord announce his coming to Nephi?
Lift up your head and be of good cheer; for behold, the time is at hand, and on this night shall the asign be given, and on the bmorrow come I into the world, to show unto the world that I will fulfil all that which I have caused to be cspoken by the mouth of my holy prophets.
Behold, I acome unto my own, to bfulfil all things which I have made known unto the children of men from the cfoundation of the world, and to do the dwill, eboth fof the Father and of the Son—of the Father because of me, and of the Son because of my flesh. And behold, the time is at hand, and this night shall the sign be given. (3 Nephi 1:13-14)
But remember, these things took place about 400 years before Mormon recorded them, and Mormon recorded them for us. Thus when Nephi prayed all day long, we combine our prayers with him, looking forward to the event that these ancient events foreshadow. Nephi anticipated Christ’s birth. We anticipate the celebration of Christ’s birth every Christmas, but more importantly, we anticipate Christ’s Second Coming.
When we consider world events and the way in which the opposition is mounting and everything is coming to a climax, we know that we can be of good cheer because the time is at hand that Jesus Christ will return. Furthermore, we have it on good authority that more of the signs of Jesus Christ’s Second Coming will be given soon:
Experiencing Their love is vital, as it seems that we are accosted daily by an onslaught of sobering news. You may have had days when you wished you could don your pajamas, curl up in a ball, and ask someone to awaken you when the turmoil is over.
But, my dear brothers and sisters, so many wonderful things are ahead. In coming days, we will see the greatest manifestations of the Savior’s power that the world has ever seen. Between now and the time He returns “with power and great glory,”1 He will bestow countless privileges, blessings, and miracles upon the faithful.
We may feel like the faithful among the ancient Nephites who were distraught with the rising tide of evil and persecution, and we may pray like Nephi in order to know the time of Christ’s coming. Even the Prophet Joseph Smith prayed in this way:
I was once praying very earnestly to know the time of the acoming of the Son of Man, when I heard a voice repeat the following:
Joseph, my son, if thou livest until thou art eighty-five years old, thou shalt see the face of the Son of Man; therefore alet this suffice, and trouble me no more on this matter.
I was left thus, without being able to decide whether this coming referred to the beginning of the millennium or to some previous appearing, or whether I should die and thus see his face.
I believe the coming of the Son of Man will not be any sooner than that time. (D&C 130:14-17)
As we know, the Prophet Joseph Smith did not live to the age of eighty-five. Perhaps if Joseph Smith had survived Carthage and lived until he was eighty-five, the Second Coming may have been at that time when Joseph Smith reached the age of eighty-five. My main point is that just as Nephi prayed earnestly to know the time of Christ’s birth, Joseph Smith prayed earnestly to know the time of Christ’s Second Coming. I believe that both of God’s answers, to Nephi and to Joseph Smith, are instructive for us. The time is at hand, and also the Lord will come when He will come, so don’t worry about it.
Both answers are also instructive because of the way in which the Lord begins: Lift up your head and be of good cheer, my son. In other words, yes, the time of Christ’s Second Coming is at hand, and that is good news. So many wonderful things are ahead, including the greatest manifestations of the Savior’s power that the world has ever seen, and countless privileges, blessings, and miracles for the faithful.
The Lord’s response to Nephi was filled with hope, hope that Nephi and his people needed in the midst of their very trying circumstances. The pre-mortal Jehovah was prepared to condescend to us, to come into the world, to come unto His own, to fulfill everything that He inspired His prophets to prophesy and all things that He had made known unto the children of men from the foundation of the world.
That the Mighty Jehovah spoke these words to Nephi just before He came to earth is something marvelous to consider. His mission was very clear, and He was ready to accomplish exactly what He had promised. One moment, the Mighty Jehovah spoke to and reassured his servant Nephi that the sign would be given and that He would come into the world, and the next moment, on the morrow, the same Great Jehovah was born to Mary in Bethlehem, His Mighty Spirit housed in the tiny tabernacle of a baby.
Imagine the Lord and the hosts of heaven as they watched all of the signs that were given - the day and the night and the day as one day, and the new star - but the Lord Himself entered time and mortality as a newborn baby - the Light of the World amidst all of the lights and the angels of heaven - in the arms of his angel mother Mary and under the protection of his noble father Joseph.
The time was at hand, and the Lord announced His mission to His servant Nephi. He came to fulfill all things that had been prophesied, all things that He had made known, and to do the dwill, eboth fof the Father and of the Son—of the Father because of Him, and of the Son because of His flesh.
These are great verses to study in preparation for Christmas, and they are great verses to study in preparation for the Savior’s Second Coming.
The sign was given. The wicked Nephites who had planned to kill the righteous were astonished and fell to the earth. The afflicted, faithful Nephites were relieved. Everything had come to pass, every whit, according to the words of the prophets. But even with the signs given and the new star shining above, Satan sent forth his lies among the people in an attempt to destroy their faith. Obviously Satan was furious that Christ had come and that the people saw the signs and were beginning to believe in Him. Mormon records that notwithstanding these lyings and deceivings the cmore part of the people did believe, and were converted unto the Lord.
Many people were converted. Many people repented, were baptized, and received a remission of their sins. Some misunderstood the scriptures and the law of Moses, but they too were soon converted. It was a joyful, peaceful time, a time of glad tidings. Jesus Christ was born. But it wasn’t long before the Gadianton robbers who dwelt in the mountains and infested the land began to cause trouble again. Jesus Christ had been born in Bethlehem, in the Old World, but in the New World the Gadianton robbers continued to slaughter the innocent. There were even Nephite dissenters and Lamanites who fled and joined the Gadianton robbers. Both the Nephites and the Lamanites experienced much sorrow because of the wickedness of the rising generation. Even the Lamanites who had generally been more faithful began to decrease as to their faith and righteousness, because of the wickedness of the arising generation.
How could this happen when the signs of Christ’s birth had been so obvious and so spectacular? The signs were given in order to confirm and increase faith in Jesus Christ and to bless the righteous. But the necessary element is faith in Jesus Christ, and no amount of signs can compensate for lack of faith or a decrease as to faith.