"He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me."

This morning I was reading in John 13 and read the following verse.

John 13:20
20 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.

This truth is taught elsewhere in the scriptures and I have been thinking about it recently, so it stood out to me when I read it. Here are a couple of other places it is taught.

D&C 84:36-38 The oath and covenant of the priesthood includes this truth--that if we receive His servants we receive the Savior, the Father, and will receive eternal life.
Matthew 10:40-41 Jesus taught the Twelve that those who received them would receive Him and the Father who had sent Him, and that a person who received a prophet would receive a prophet's reward, which of course is eternal life.

The leaders of the Church (the apostles and prophets) recently updated Handbook 1 (the handbook for Bishops, Stake Presidents, and other priesthood leaders). These changes were leaked to the media and were presented in such a way that resulted in some interesting conversation in various media formats. I won't debate those issues here. But I will confirm what I said in a previous post (Will Ye Also Go Away), that I sustain those who lead us and have chosen to trust them and the things they teach and do as they lead the Church. This is not to say that I follow them "blindly." I believe in them and follow them because the Spirit has confirmed to me the reality of their call and has over and over again confirmed to me the truthfulness of what they teach.

When Jesus was among the Nephites He chose twelve disciples to lead the church and said to the Nephites, "Blessed are ye if ye shall give heed unto the words of these twelve whom I have chosen from among you to minister unto you" (3 Nephi 12:1). On the day the Church was organized the Savior renewed this charge when He taught that we should receive the words from the prophet as if from the Savior's own mouth, in all patience and faith. And that if we did the gates of hell would not prevail against us [and our families]. (see D&C 21:4-6). In verse one of this section the Savior identified Joseph Smith as "an apostle of Jesus Christ." This means to me that the Savior chose him. And since Jesus has asked me to receive their words "as if from [His] own mouth," I believe that the Savior holds Himself responsible to make sure that we are always led by those we can trust to represent the Savior as true apostles and prophets. One of the tenets of our faith is that men and women in positions of leadership are called by prophecy (see Article of Faith 5), that they, Aaron-like, are chosen by God (Hebrews 5:4; see also John 15:16) to serve Him and to teach us.

This has never meant that these servants of the Lord were perfect (or infallible). Nor has it meant that they would be without their critics. In fact one evidence of their calling is that they will (as Christ did) suffer abuse, persecution, and rejection (see for example Matthew 5:10-12; 10:22; 24:9; JSH 1:33). The Savior said, "it must be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom [they come]" (Matthew 18:7).

So one of the tests of life is if we will sustain, support, trust, and believe the words that come from those who have been chosen to lead us. To do so may require patience and faith. I think this is by design. Our perspective is not the same as God's. Our perspective will not be the same as the perspective of apostles and prophets. One of the tests of life is to see if we will trust in their words when they go counter to our pre-conceived ideas.

Paul taught the Hebrews that Jesus was "the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2). A couple of verses later Paul counsels, "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord ... For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth ... If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons ..." Compared to God I am a child. I can't know all that He knows. I want Him to correct and guide me. My life has been blessed when I have been corrected by those who love me. I hope my thoughts and ideas are in harmony with God's but when they are not I want Him to let me know.

In my experience, this correction has often come to me through the Lord's servants (and my parents). As a final thought, here are a couple of favorite verses from the Book of Mormon.

Mosiah 8:17-18

 17 But a seer can know of things which are past, and also of things which are to come, and by them shall all things be revealed, or, rather, shall secret things be made manifest, and hidden things shall come to light, and things which are not known shall be made known by them, and also things shall be made known by them which otherwise could not be known.

 18 Thus God has provided a means that man, through faith, might work mighty miracles; therefore he [the prophet] becometh a great benefit to his fellow beings.

I'm grateful to be led by prophets and apostles, who I believe were called by the Savior. I hope I can always have the faith to find out for myself the truthfulness of their words when they go counter to my ideas and feelings.

Ponder this in your heart.

Years ago Elder Howard W. Hunter taught that it was more important to study the scriptures consistently every day for a certain amount of time than to try to read a certain amount of chapters or verses. He said, “Sometimes we [may] find that the study of a single verse will occupy the whole time” (Reading the Scriptures, October 1979 General Conference [Nov. 1979 Ensign] the whole talk is excellent). I had that experience this morning.

I have been going through the Book of Mormon with the Online class I teach through BYU Idaho. Next week when the term ends we will finish Moroni. This morning I started to read Moroni 10. As I read Moroni 10:3 a light came on and I went to find my scripture journal so I could record some thoughts. In this verse Moroni “exhorts” us to read the Book of Mormon, to remember God’s mercy, and to ponder it in our hearts.

As missionaries we used this verse to encourage people to read the Book of Mormon and to ponder its truths as they prayed about its truthfulness (v. 4-5). Later the Church produced a set of flip charts for the missionaries. The caption that went with Moroni 10:3 encouraged investigators to ponder a specific question as they read—“Could any man have written this book?” Pondering is an important step in the process of receiving revelation (see 1 Nephi 11:1; D&C 76:19, and D&C 138:1). But just like “faith in Jesus Christ” is more important than “faith” (see 4^th Article of Faith), Moroni is teaching us more than the principle of pondering in this verse.

Later someone pointed out that this verse doesn’t just say to ponder, but it asks us to ponder something in particular—to “remember how merciful the Lord hath been … and ponder it in your hearts.” In this regard this verse can be seen as a “bookend” with 1 Nephi 1:20 where Nephi says he will show in his writings that “the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power deliverance.” And has been pointed out by Elder Bednar and others there are many examples of the tender mercies of the Lord in our lives and in the scriptures.

This morning the Spirit gave me a nudge as I read and I saw that these two ideas go together. Moroni is teaching us how to read the Book of Mormon and is telling us what to “look for,” so to speak.

You can read the Book of Mormon in many different ways. If you read it with a particular set of "glasses," looking for something in particular, that is probably what you will find. A colleague recently told us of some debates in the “blogosphere” about the historicity of the Book of Mormon. Are its stories to be taken literally or are they metaphorical? I read an essay once by one who had intellectualized himself out of the Church who thought he had found some anachronisms in the Book of Mormon that proved Joseph Smith was the author of its words. Others have carefully gone through it looking for geographic clues that will fit this or that hypothesis of the ancient setting of the Book of Mormon.

But here Moroni is exhorting us to look for and see examples in the Book of Mormon of how merciful the Lord has been “unto the children of men,” from Adam to our day, and ponder [that] in our heart. He is asking us to look for and to see God’s hand in the stories and teachings in the Book of Mormon. He is asking us to look for and see the miracles in its pages (“I will show unto you a God of miracles”—Mormon 9:11). He is asking us to look for and see the power and blessings of the Atonement in its stories and teachings. He is asking us to look for and see “how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men … and ponder it in your hearts.”

This calls to mind Alma’s discourse on planting the seed of God’s word in our heart to see if it will enlarge our soul, enlighten us, and be delicious to us (Alma 32:28). The Zoramites wondered if it mattered which words they planted in their hearts. Alma and Amulek responded absolutely! (see Alma 33-34) Alma taught them to believe in the Son of God and His redemption—to “plant this word in [their] hearts,” and promised them these words would become a “tree, springing up in [them] unto everlasting life” so that their burdens would be “light, through the joy of his Son.”

Years ago (35+??) we had 40 scripture mastery scriptures. One of them was D&C 59:21 which teaches that we offend God when we don’t acknowledge (“confess”) His hand in all things and when we don’t obey His commandments.

To read the Book of Mormon in the way Moroni is suggesting is to read it with an eye of faith. And if we will read it this way—remembering and pondering how merciful the Lord has been (and continues to be) and ask with sincerity and real intent, we will (we absolutely will) have its truthfulness manifest to us by the power of the Holy Ghost. What a tender mercy blessing this is. 

Love One Another

I'm teaching an Online Book of Mormon class for BYU Idaho this semester. Each week I write some Notes from Brother May to introduce what they will be studying that week and to give them some instructions about their assignments for the week. I thought I'd share what I wrote this week.

Welcome to Week 10!

This week we will study 4 Nephi and Mormon. This week you will see a great contrast between the righteousness of the people at the beginning of 4 Nephi and how wicked they become by the end of 4 Nephi and in Mormon.

Over the years I have learned some things because I have been studying more than one book of scripture at the same time. For me this has happened because I usually teach one book of scripture in seminary or institute and read/study a different book in Sunday school.

Currently I am teaching the Doctrine and Covenants in a couple of night classes. Recently we read the chapters where the Savior explained why the Saints were not able to establish Zion in Jackson County. Their goal and His goal for them was to establish a society like the one we read about in fourth Nephi. Earlier in D&C 38:25-27 He told them to “esteem [their] brother as [themselves]” and to “be one; [for] if ye are not one ye are not mine.”

Later, after the Saints had been kicked out of Jackson County, the Savior told them they were guilty of transgressions and then He listed the things He was concerned about. It's interesting to read His list. It starts out in D&C 101:6 this way. He says “there were jarrings (harsh, grating discord; clashing, disagreeing or quarrelling sharply), and contentions, and envying, and strifes (contention, competition, bitter fighting and quarreling, struggle and conflict), and lustful and covetous desires among them; therefore by these things they polluted their inheritances.”

By contrast we read a list in 4 Nephi of the things they did to establish Zion. Their list begins with “no contentions and disputations among them” (4 Nephi 1:2). It goes on to describe them in other ways and to list all the blessings they received by living this way, but the list begins with how they felt about and how they treated one another. 4 Nephi 1:15 makes this important connection. It says “there was no contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in [their] hearts.” Then later, when things began to fall apart after 200 years of peace and righteousness it says a small group revolted, others became lifted up in pride, they quit sharing with one another, and divided into “classes.”  So on the one hand they loved, served, and shared with one another and on the other hand they thought of themselves as “us” and others as “them,” held tightly to their own possessions, hardened their hearts toward God and towards one another, and hated one another.

One of my favorite scriptures on the law of consecration is in D&C 82:18-19 where the Lord asks us to “improve upon [our] talent, that every man may gain other talents, yea, even an hundred fold, to be cast into the Lord’s storehouse, to become the common property of the whole church—Every man seeking the interest of his neighbor, and doing all things with an eye single to the glory of God.”

That's the end of my instructions for my class. I won't share my assignment notes. But this topic is an important one and one place where it is really important is in our homes. King Benjamin counseled his people to teach their children to not "fight and quarrel one with another; and serve the devil," but to "teach them to love one another, and to serve one another." This can be a challenge. Of course we were perfect at this as parents. Our kids never fought or were selfish with one another :-). I think it is important to play together and to work together (you with them). Often in these settings we can help them learn to share and to support one another. It's something to work on. "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another" (John 13:35).

We receive the Holy Ghost from God and Christ

A couple of mornings ago I was reading and a light bulb turned on, so to speak, and I saw/learned things I had not seen before. I was reading in 3 Nephi 12 where the Savior gives the Nephites a sermon similar to the New Testament Sermon on the Mount. I only got through one verse. (slow reader :-).

I don't think I'll try to write a polished essay, but instead share some of the things I wrote in my study journal as I chased footnotes, found things in the Topical Guide (Holy Ghost, baptism of), had other verses come to mind, and wrote my thoughts about what I was discovering.

In 3 Nephi 12:1 the Savior says "Blessed are ye if ye shall give heed unto the words of these twelve whom I have chosen from among you." This is true today, both the blessings we receive by giving heed to the Twelve and the fact that He chooses them. Jesus says He has given the 12 power to baptize, then promises that He will baptize us "with fire and with the Holy Ghost."

After we are baptized we are confirmed and told to "receive the Holy Ghost." We receive the Holy Ghost later when we feel the influence of the Holy Ghost in our life.

John 14:26 The Father will send the Comforter in my name.
John 20:22 When Jesus appeared to His apostles, after His resurrection, He said, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost." (The same thing that is said when we are confirmed.)
Then in Acts 1:4-5 in His final instructions before His ascension, He commanded them to remain in Jerusalem until the promise of the Father was fulfilled, for John baptized with water, but they would be baptized with the Holy Ghost "not many days hence."
2 Nephi 31:12 Nephi heard the voice of the Son say, "He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father give the Holy Ghost."
1 Nephi 10:17 Nephi wants to see, hear, and know for himself the things his father Lehi saw in the vision of the tree of life. He knows he can by the power of the Holy Ghost which is the gift of God to all who diligently seek Him, yesterday, today, and forever.
Some of these verses say the Father sends the Holy Ghost, other say the Son sends it. Nephi called it the gift of God. I think this is a case where because the Father and the Son are "one,"--if either one of them sends it, it is the same. But of course the power of the Atonement, the "baptism of fire," that accompanies the reception of the Holy Ghost comes from the Savior.

The promised baptism of fire
Matthew 3:11 John the Baptist declared, "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance; but he that cometh after me ... he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire."
John said he would baptize them, which he did, but the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost that would come through the Savior would come later in a personal experience, known and felt by the one who received it.

D&C 33:15 Instructions to missionaries--confirm those who have faith [and are baptized, v. 11] by the laying on of hands, and "I will bestow the gift of the Holy Ghost upon them." Then I wrote, "This is so cool! How did I not know this?"

If you're still with me you might be wondering what I saw that was so cool. Of course I was familiar with all of these verses and understood these concepts. But somehow in this study experience the Spirit brought them together in a new way that was both edifying and uplifting. I have known since my mission that when we confirm someone we say "receive the Holy Ghost" then invite them to live in such a way so they actually do receive it. What I didn't realize was the personal involvement of the Savior in its reception. As a missionary, after humbling myself and paying the price of prayerfully reading the Book of Mormon I received an unforgettable outpouring of the Holy Ghost that let me know the Savior lives and that the Book of Mormon and the other truths of the Restoration are true. I have also felt God's love in a similar way and have come to realize that they go together--feeling His love and receiving a witness or inspiration from the Holy Ghost most of the time (maybe always) go together. When we feel the Spirit we will feel God's love and we feel God's love by way of the Spirit.

I guess what I didn't realize was the personal involvement of the Savior in this baptism of fire that comes with the reception of the Holy Ghost. It is a gift from Him, thus the phrase "the gift of the Holy Ghost." Elder McConkie taught that while eternal life is the greatest gift we can receive in eternity (D&C 14:7) the gift of the Holy Ghost is the greatest gift we can receive in mortality. Recently I have wondered about this and wondered if the gift of the Holy Ghost was a greater gift than forgiveness and the other blessings we receive from the Atonement. But in these verses I have learned how they go together. When I baptized by fire and the Holy Ghost I am being purified by the blood of Christ's Atonement through the sanctifying influence of the Holy Ghost.

3 Nephi 27:19 No unclean thing can enter heaven; only those can enter who are washed clean by the blood of Christ because of their faith, repentance, and faithfulness to the end.
3 Nephi 27:20 "Now this is the commandment: Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day."

So John was right (silly statement), though he or any other priesthood holder baptizes us, the reception of the Holy Ghost and the baptism of fire from the Savior will often come later as an incomparable gift from the Savior accompanied by His love. And through the continued outpouring of the Spirit we will be sanctified and become clean through the blood of the Atonement.

To return to where I began:
3 Nephi 12:1 Blessed are ye ... I have given power to the Twelve to baptize you with water. "And after that ye are baptized with water, behold, I will baptize you with fire and with the Holy Ghost."
3 Nephi 12:2 And others who haven't seen Me as you have, who (only) believe in your words, who come down in humility and are baptized "shall be visited with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and shall receive a remission of their sins."

I have received this baptism of fire. I understand better now that it is a gift from the Savior. I felt this gift in a quiet, sweet way yesterday when I partook of the sacrament. I hope to be able to endure in faith to the end so that through this continued baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost, I may be clean and worthy to be received back into the presence of God.

Will ye also go away?

“Will ye also go away?” This was the question the Savior posed to his Twelve Apostles. He had just given the Bread of Life sermon (see John 6:26-65). There were parts of it that were hard to understand. John records the reaction of some of Jesus’ disciples to the sermon. “This is an hard saying,” they said, “who can hear it?” This was followed by a short interchange between Jesus and his disciples, after which the record says, “From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. Then Jesus said unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?” (John 6:66-67)

I have thought of this question in the last few weeks when I have read or heard about some from our ranks who have chosen to leave the church, or who have been excommunicated. I don’t intend to address those issues here. They have been addressed elsewhere. But I would like to respond to the question, “Will ye also go away?” In my case the answer is, “No.” But why? What is it that holds me to the faith of my pioneer fathers and to the faith of my faithful mother?

So why do I stay? I stay because I am fed spiritually here. I stay because of a testimony that burns in my heart that I try to renew every day. I stay because I know that the Book of Mormon is true and because I know the Brethren who lead us are God’s Apostles and Prophets. I stay because of what I feel when I attend church and partake of the sacrament. I stay because of what I feel and how I am edified when I go to the temple. I stay because of thousands of witnesses I have received—spiritual confirmation that the truths we teach are true. I stay because of sacred covenants I have made before God not just to “stay,” but to be true to those covenants. And I stay because I have felt God’s love here. I have partaken of the fruit of the tree of life. I have tasted living water. I have been lifted and edified so that I have faith and hope in my heart, both of which are born of, and confirmed by the witness of the Spirit. And how could I not stay? I have been born anew by the cleansing, purifying, sanctifying fire that comes with being born of the Spirit. I am not the same person I was and I don’t want to become what I would become if I chose to turn away from my covenants and from the supernal gift of the Holy Ghost.

When Jesus asked the Twelve if they would also go away, Peter responded, “Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life? And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.” (John 6:68-69) This is what I believe also. I believe that the words of eternal life, and the covenants and ordinances that will lead us there are found in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And I believe that Jesus is the Christ and that He leads the church through chosen Apostles and Prophets. My prayer is that I will be true to my convictions—that I will endure in faith to the end. Then I expect to have the same experience my mother had when she stepped into the next world, firm in the faith and clean before God. I believe I will be welcomed by the Savior into the Paradise of God where I will "rest from all [my] labors here, and shall continue [my] works" (D&C 124:86)--there I hope to be able to continue the work of bringing souls unto Christ (see D&C 138:57).

Line upon line

In my last post I explored what the Savior may have meant when He taught the Samaritan woman about living water that could be in her a “well of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:10, 14). I concluded that it meant coming unto Christ, feeling His love, and developing a testimony and being converted by and through the power of His matchless Atonement.

I am grateful when heaven teaches me “line upon line.” Last Sunday was our Ward Conference and the Bishop in his talk referred to a BYU Devotional he had listened to on the BYU Podcast app that interested me so I downloaded it to my phone and listened to it as I traveled earlier this week. The talk was Lost and Found by Mark Alden Callister (Oct. 7, 2014). It’s a great talk that explores the question of why it is important to serve out of charity. I will not try to summarize his thoughts but will just share this excerpt from his comments.

“I have learned that as we strive to follow the Savior and as we fervently pray for charity, our service undergoes a remarkable change. We begin to feel His love more keenly for those we serve, and we feel His love for us as we serve. The outcome can be marvelous. When our Heavenly Father bestows His love upon us, it is not meant to simply pool within us. As it flows through us to others in Christlike service, we are transformed. Like a river flowing over rough stones that with time become smooth, polished, and beautiful, as His pure love flows through us, it transforms our nature and blesses those we serve.”

I was intrigued by this idea, that God’s love was “not meant to simply pool within us,” but should flow through us in Christlike service to others. What an interesting concept. Several things have come together for me this week as I have thought about this idea—that God’s love should flow through me to bless other’s lives.

One time Elder Ballard compared the cardinal virtues of faith, hope, and charity to the legs of a three-legged stool. He taught that they were interconnected and that each was essential. Alma taught the Zoramites (Alma 32-33) about planting the word of Christ in their hearts and told them it would change them. In the next chapter (Alma 34) Amulek taught them about exercising faith unto repentance and that a beginning step was to cry unto the Lord in all their circumstances (for mercy, for their families, for their enterprises-flocks, herds, crops, etc., and for the welfare of those who were around them). Certainly they would feel the love of God as they pursued these steps of coming unto Christ. But then Amulek told them if that was all they did it wouldn’t be enough. They must also reach out to others in service—they must remember to be charitable (see Alma 34:28).

Here are some other things I thought about this week.

Lehi partook of the fruit of the tree of life (he tasted of the love of God) then immediately turned his attention to his family so he could share the fruit with them.

Mormon ended his discourse on faith and hope by teaching that even if a person had faith and hope, if they did not have charity they were “nothing” (Moroni 7:44). And he taught how we could be given this pure love of Christ—we must “pray unto the Father with all the energy of [our] heart” then the Father would “bestow” this love upon us. Then we would become like the Savior.

I listened to another BYU devotional talk this week by Sheri Patten Palmer titled “Convenient Service.” In her talk she talked about how opportunities to serve are often “inconvenient.” She said, by contrast, for the Savior opportunities to bless lives were always "convenient" for Him. That is an attitude we could seek to emulate. Her talk reminded me of how hard it was, as a young father, to drag myself out of bed in the middle of the night to help our children when they were little. I don’t remember praying for an attitude change but I knew I wanted to get to the point where such calls to serve did not annoy me. It’s a work in progress.

Sister Palmer shared the following: “President Thomas S. Monson taught Brigham Young University students that their student days should include ‘the matter of spiritual preparation,’ including service to others:

An attitude of love characterized the mission of the Master. He gave sight to the blind, legs to the lame, and life to the dead. Perhaps when we [face] our Maker, we will not be asked, ‘How many positions did you hold?’ but rather, ‘How many people did you help?’ In reality, you can never love the Lord until you serve Him by serving His people.” [“Great Expectations,” BYU devotional address, 11 January 2009]

I have been taught (and have taught) about service my whole life. And I have served and have at times felt God’s love while doing so. A couple of years ago our ward was asked to join other Latter-day Saints to go to the Rockaways to help them dig out of the destruction left from hurricane Sandy. I was asked by the Bishop to be a team leader. Later in the day, when we were done, I was walking back to the buses with a young man from our ward. He asked, “Why do I feel so good?” I don’t remember my response, but of course he was feeling God’s love because he had been serving His children.

President Kimball once told of a monk who in his monastery sought with all his heart to get closer to God. He prayed. He fasted. He read the scriptures all day. And he was lifted but he knew there was something missing. He even tried praying up in a tower, perhaps to be closer to God. Then one day in frustration, in the tower he lifted his hands toward heaven and cried out “Oh God where art thou?” He heard a soft, quiet voice. It said, “I’m down here among the people.”

This then is an important piece in the puzzle of trying to understand how the Savior's love can be a living spring of water in me. The key is for His love to flow through me to others. As Brother Callister said, this love from God was not meant to pool within us, it was meant to flow through us to others.

This changes the way I think about the purpose of my life. It changes my prayers. It changes the way I serve. Actually I’m not completely sure all that it means, but I am glad to be taught line upon line. I hope I can learn better how to serve others and help them feel the Father’s love.

Living Water

You may have wondered like I have what the Savior meant when He taught the Samaritan woman about living water that could be in her a “well of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:10, 14) and the importance of worshiping the Father in spirit and in truth (see John 4:23-24, including JST). You may have asked questions such as, “What is this water?” “How do I obtain it?” “How can it be ‘in [me] a well of water [that springs] up into everlasting life?’” “What does this water have to do with worship?”

It has been said that one thing we can do with things we wonder about in the scriptures is put those questions on the shelf, so to speak, then go about our life and perhaps later in another scripture we will find an answer for that question.

Here are some teachings in the Book of Mormon that help me understand this living water.

In Lehi’s dream he partook of white, sweet fruit that filled his soul with “exceedingly great joy.” (1 Nephi 8:10-12) Later in his dream he saw multitudes “pressing forward” toward the tree, “continually holding fast to the rod of iron” who “fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree.” (1 Nephi 8:30) In a similar vision Nephi saw the advent of the Savior and learned that the tree represented the love of God that sheds itself in the hearts of men and was “most joyous to the soul.” He saw many “fall down” at the feet of the Savior “and worship him” and learned that the rod of iron (the word of God) “led to the fountain of living water, or the tree of life,” both of which represented “the love of God.” (1 Nephi 11:18-25)

Later in the Book of Mormon (Alma 32) the prophet Alma taught some poor, humble Zoramites about worship. He taught them of faith and invited them to “experiment” upon his words (v. 27). He challenged them to plant the word of God in their heart, much like you would a seed. And he promised them that if they would do this sincerely, with faith and humility they would learn the truth of those words because of how they felt and because of what those words would do for them (enlarge their soul, enlighten their understanding, and taste delicious) (v. 28). Then they would know those words were true. They would have a testimony. And then if they would “nourish the word” by their faith, diligence, and patience the seed (which had become a tree) would take root in their heart and provide them precious, sweet, white, pure fruit that would fill their heart and be a “tree springing up unto eternal life.” (v. 41-43)

The Zoramites weren’t quite sure what words (seed) they needed to plant in their heart and still wondered about worship so Alma explained in Alma 33 that one form of worship is prayer (v. 2). Then he taught them about the Savior and His Atonement and challenged them to “plant this word” in their hearts and nourish it by their faith, promising them it would “become a tree, springing up in [them] unto everlasting life.” Then Alma promised them that God would lighten their burdens “through the joy of his Son.” (v. 23)

The Book of Mormon Institute Student Manual includes this important explanation of the symbolism of the Tree of Life that Lehi and Nephi saw in their visions.

1 Nephi 8:10–12; 11:8–25. The Tree of Life as a Symbol of Jesus Christ and His Atonement

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught that the tree of life represents the Savior and His Atonement: “The Spirit made explicit that the Tree of Life and its precious fruit are symbols of Christ’s redemption” (Christ and the New Covenant: The Messianic Message of the Book of Mormon [1997], 160).

Elder Neal A. Maxwell (1926–2004) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles further emphasized that partaking of the love of God means partaking of the blessings of the Atonement. The tree of life is a symbol of God’s love and Christ’s Atonement: “The tree of life … is the love of God (see 1 Nephi 11:25). The love of God for His children is most profoundly expressed in His gift of Jesus as our Redeemer: ‘God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son’ (John 3:16). To partake of the love of God is to partake of Jesus’ Atonement and the emancipations and joys which it can bring” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1999, 6; or Ensign, Nov. 1999, 8).

So what is this “living water” that can be a well of water in me, springing up unto everlasting life? It is the same thing as the tree of life that can grow in my heart until it is a tree springing up unto eternal life. It is the same thing that Alma spoke of when he awoke from his three day conversion experience. Here is a description of that.

Mosiah 27:23-26

 23 And it came to pass after they had fasted and prayed for the space of ^atwo days and two nights, the limbs of Alma received their strength, and he stood up and began to speak unto them, bidding them to be of good comfort:

 24 For, said he, I have repented of my sins, and have been ^aredeemed of the Lord; behold I am born of the Spirit.

 25 And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be ^aborn again; yea, ^bborn of God, ^cchanged from their carnal and ^dfallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his ^esons and daughters;

 26 And thus they become new creatures; and unless they do this, they can in ^anowise inherit the kingdom of God.

Elder David A. Bednar, and others have taught that gaining a testimony is not the same thing as being converted. (see Converted unto the Lord, October 2012 Conference) Alma taught the Zoramites that they needed to do more than just find out that the word/seed was good/true. They needed to nourish the tree through their faith, diligence, and patience—they needed to repent and obey and experience the fruits of the Atonement in their lives. Or to use his earlier words, they needed to be born again.

In Alma 34 Amulek bears testimony of Alma’s words and explains in further depth how they can experience the Atonement in their lives. Two things they would need to do would be to exercise “faith unto repentance” (v. 15-17) and be charitable (v. 29). Amulek promised them the redemption of Christ was available to them “immediately” if they would repent sincerely (v. 31).

So the Samaritan woman was being invited to come unto Christ and be perfected in Him (Moroni 10:32-33). She was being invited to receive the blessings of the Atonement in her life, to plant His word in her heart, to grow in faith, to be born again and to develop an anchor-like hope in Christ (Ether 12:4). Then with this hope she would be assured that “through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection [she would] be raised unto eternal life … because of [her] faith in him according to the promise.” (Moroni 7:41)

That’s what I want—an unshakable tree in my heart from which I can partake of the satisfying, nurturing, joyful fruits of the Atonement, and living water that will sustain me, assure me, and lead me home where I can experience eternal life with my family and our Father in Heaven.