Good Tidings to Wicked People (05/18/2014)

Repent You Sinners

I was raised in a home with enough old world paradigm and enough frustration from the struggles of the depression in the 1930s and enough other personal struggles that "you've been bad" was an easier theme than "I appreciate you."

My sister and I would, I recall, use a phrase in our play that was "repent you sinners!" The movies I saw growing up often had preachers condemning the sinners, urging people to repent, and threatening them with damnation if they didn't.

So then one day as I was reading the Book of Mormon I was stunned by a phrase that Samuel the Lamanite says. Now Samuel came and said very much the stereotypical thing I had become used to: Repent or God will destroy you!

Helaman 32:6:
Yea, heavy destruction awaiteth this people, and it surely cometh unto this people, and nothing can save this people save it be repentance and faith on the Lord Jesus Christ, ...

But Wait!

He finishes his sentence with the good news of the atonement and its purpose.

Helaman 13: 6
...faith on the Lord Jesus Christ, who surely shall come into the world, and shall suffer many things and shall be slain for his people.

He continues with stating clearly that the advent of Christ and the atonement is a happy thing, as it is what can free us from our sins.

Helaman 13:7
And behold, an angel of the Lord hath declared it unto me, and he did bring glad tidings to my soul. ...

So we know that the news of Christ is a good thing.

Good News to Bad People

Then Samuel gave the profound thought - at least it is the part that hit me profoundly. He didn't come to condemn them because they were bad:

Helaman 13:7
...and he did bring glad tidings to my soul. And behold, I was sent unto you to declare it unto you also, that ye might have glad tidings ...

Now we know the people had been told of Christ before. So possibly that exciting part of the news that Samuel had to share was the revelation of the timing that (Helaman 14:2) "..five years more cometh, and behold, then cometh the Son of God to redeem all those who shall believe on his name."

Unfortunately, these people rejected his message and wouldn't listen to him the first time he came. (Helaman 13:2 "...One Samuel, a Lamanite, came into the land of Zarahemla, and began to preach unto the people. And it came to pass that he did preach, many days, repentance unto the people, and they did cast him out,..." and Helaman 13:7 "but but ye would not receive me.")

My focusing point is what he says in Helaman 13:7, that he came originally to "bring glad tidings".

There It Is Again

Today I am reading in Helaman 5. The brothers, Nephi and Lehi, have been teaching the people throughout the country. Many are converted and repent. They then travel to the Land of Nephi. They are put in prison. After three days, the Lamanites and Nephite descenters come to kill them, but they are stopped because Nephi and Lehi are encircled about by fire. They tell the people (Helaman 5:26) "Fear not, for behold, it is God that has shown unto you this marvelous thing, in the which is shown unto you that ye cannot lay your hands on us to slay us."

Then there is an earthquake and the walls of the prison shake, but do not fall. A cloud of darkness comes over them and they feel (Helaman 5:28) "an awful solemn fear".

In Helaman 5:29 the Lord's voice speaks to them.

"Repent ye, repent ye, and seek no more to destroy my servants whom I have sent unto you to declare good tidings."

There it is again.

They were sent to declare good tidings, not condemnation.

Rephrasing It All

So my childhood paradigm of 'repent you sinners' is clearly never the paradigm the Lord has had. I would voice his more as:

'I've got good news. There is a way to come back home."