3 Nephi chapter 2 is a fascinating and important part of the Book of Mormon. It’s especially important to our day. There’s a chance our moment in history could be parallel to this time in the Book of Mormon record.
The start of chapter 2 tells us that despite many signs, wonders, and prophesied events coming about, the people continued to harden their hearts and scoff at the idea of a being like Jesus Christ, the Son of God, ever visiting them.
Verse 8 reads:
“Now the Nephites began to reckon their time from this period when the sign was given, or from the coming of Christ; therefore, nine years had passed away.”
There are two important points I want to make here.
First, many miraculous signs happened. This resulted in an extremely short-lived conversion.
3 Nephi 1:22 in part reads:
“the more part of the people did believe, and were converted unto the Lord.”
A mere 3 years (3 years!) and we have 3 Nephi 2:1:
“the people began to forget those signs and wonders which they had heard, and began to be less and less astonished at a sign or a wonder from heaven, insomuch that they began to be hard in their hearts, and blind in their minds..”
We see here how an outward sign can have a bolstering effect on faith, but ultimately signs create temporary faith. The people didn’t do the necessary work to grow, strengthen, and develop their faith. Within 3 years those signs were a distant memory. Their day to day deeds and thoughts were what shaped them. Those who continued to pray, look for Christ, and study the words of the prophets looked forward to a miraculous day. Those who saw a sign and only momentarily changed their thinking or habits soon fell back into their disbelieving and hard-hearted ways.
Terrance Szink says, “the conversion was the result of an outward sign and required no work on the part of the people. They had seen the sign but, for the most part, they did not sustain their faith.”
Faith must be practiced daily. If not, it will die like a flower without water. We are entering a time just like this time in the Book of Mormon. We are entering a time when signs will become common. Miraculous events will happen around us. How many around us will harden their hearts and not see what is right in front of them?
There will come a time when Biblical prophesies will start to be more obvious. There are already signs around us that have been prophesied for centuries. These signs will become more obvious. This will only temporarily make people look to God, if it does at all. Soon people will scoff at believers. People will speak of science and coincidence. Many will say Christ is not coming because He doesn’t come in their expected timing. Christ will come exactly when He intends to.
The second point I want to make is more just an interesting thought.
How funny is it that a vast majority of the people in the Book of Mormon quickly forgot the signs they’d seen? Yet, as a whole, the people changed how they kept track of time. They started to speak of years in terms of the time since the sign appeared. How ironic is that? These people that didn’t believe the sign still acknowledged it was important enough that they changed how they tracked time.
It’s reminiscent of today. As a society we use the year 2020 as the time since Christ’s birth. Yet, how many people among us today don’t even believe in Jesus Christ? How many don’t believe He was the Son of God? He was important enough for us to mark our calendar by Him but not important enough to actually believe in Him.
I believe many will have to answer for this hypocrisy one day. The signs of Christ are obvious. The impact He had on the world are so profound, and yet many still deny. One day we will all have to stand before God and either accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, or reject Him. I hope on that day our hearts are not hardened and we don’t deny the grace and love that will be right before us.
No Coincidences 