Blogging Through the Book of Mormon

After casting out the demon from the man’s only son, Jesus and his disciples slip out of wherever they are and head back to Capernum, as Mark says, “and he would not that any man should know it. For he taught his disciples.” JTC speculates that Jesus probably took lesser known roads so that he could have private time with the apostles that would be taking over the ministry in just a few short months. Also let’s remember that many of his apostles were from Capernum and they were probably anxious to get home and see their families. The main message that he taught them on the way home is, “The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men.” Matthew is the only account where Jesus is recorded as foretelling his betrayal. I don’t know why it bothers me so much, but there is a thought process that I go through because the fate of Judas Iscariot. I have heard it said that Judas is a son of perdition, and that really bothers me because of what I k...

I’m going to have to use some creative license here to understand exactly what happened next. We know that Jesus, Peter, James, and John were all transfigured on a mountain and that they went alone, leaving the other disciples at the bottom of the mountain while they went up. Walking back down the mountain, Jesus, P,J,J all talked about what happened and Jesus taught his chosen disciples gospel doctrine. However, when they reached the disciples that had been left at the bottom of the mountain, they were surrounded by a group of people, some of whom were scribes. They had apparently not been expecting him to arrive at that time and when the people saw Jesus approaching, they left the disciples and “running to him saluted him.” JTC gives an excellent description of the scene, “at or near the base of the mountain the party found the other apostles, and with them a multitude of people, including some scribes or rabbis. There was evidence or disputation and disturban...

Let’s get an overview of what happened during the transfiguration. 1. Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up into a mountain. 2. Jesus prays and P,J,J fall asleep. 3. When they wake up they see Moses, Elijah, and John the Baptist talking to a transfigured Jesus about His upcoming atonement, death, and resurrection. 4. P,J,J are also transfigured, meaning that their bodies experiences a temporary change in cellular structure of a higher level so that they could physically receive angels, and an increase in spiritual learning and capacity. Though many others have experienced spiritual events without being transfigured, I think it’s important to point out the exhausting effect that high level spiritual encounters have on one’s body. To wake up and see three transfigured beings might not warrant one being transfigured themselves, it is possible that because they were going to have the hands of translated beings placed on their head, it was necessary for P,J,J to physic...

When Peter has boldly testified that Jesus is the Christ, he had been promised the “keys of the kingdom of heaven,” and sealing power. He had later been rebuked for contradicting Jesus’ prophecy of his own death. Six days after all this, “Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, and was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.” I’ve always really struggled with what it means to be transfigured, this is going to sound stupid, but at the end of the Beauty and the Beast cartoon movie, when the beast is lifted up and is swirled around by magic light beams and changes back into human, that’s what comes into my mind when I think of transfiguration. Also in Harry Potter there is a magic class called transfiguration and it’s where the kids learn how to change on thing into another. These are the references I have for what transfig...

The next event is recorded by Matthew, Mark, and Luke and with the JST of these sections we can see that the content of all the recordings are almost identical, but there is enough variation in the wording and speech pattern that we can tell that these were written by different authors. Peter has boldly testified that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, but now the Savior prepares his disciples for his upcoming appointment with death. Jesus speaks plainly about how it will go down, “He must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.” The IM quotes Elder Robert D. Hales as teaching, “Jesus knew who He was- the Son of God. He knew His purpose- to carry out the will of the Father through the Atonement. His vision was eternal- ‘to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.’” Jesus was very clear on what his mission was, he learned it thro...

Jesus takes his disciples to Caesarea Philippi to teach them privately. Many times, the places themselves are just as important in teaching the Master’s lesson as the words he says. The importance of this place is pointed out by the IM by quoting Elder Russell M. Nelson as teaching, “The modern-day scene in Caesarea Philippi is  unique. There is a mountain at the base of which is a mighty rock from which water seems to be flowing. These cascades comprise one of the three major headwaters of the River Jordan, literally the liquid lifeline of this country. As Jesus was preparing to conclude His mortal ministry (His Crucifixion took place six months later), here He trained future leaders of His Church. Could it be that the Savior brought His disciples to this spot to teach the lesson that this majestic mountain symbolized the rock of Christ from whom revelation would flow?- revelation to bring light and life to them, just as that flowing water of the River Jordan nourishe...

Coming to Bethsaida, the people brought to Jesus “a blind man… and besought him to touch him.” Jesus doesn’t just heal him automatically like he had with many others. First, Jesus takes him by the hand and leads him out of the city, then out spit on his eyes, then laid healing hands on him. But unlike all the other healings that we have learned of, when this man was first healed, he told Jesus “I see men as tree, walking.” This is a really interesting description of things, some of it indicating to me that this man probably wasn’t born blind, I think that he had been able to see for at least some of his formative years because he knew what people looked like, how they looked when they walked, and the normal appearance of trees. My guess is that what this man is describing is a lack of depth perception. I had a teacher point out once that there is a huge difference in recovery after vision restoration surgery between someone who had lost their s...

After feeding the 4,000, Jesus and His disciples went into a ship “and came into the parts of Dalmanutha. And the Pharisees (and Sadducees) came forth, and began to question with him, seeking of him a sign from heaven, tempting him.” What kind of sign do you think they want? It doesn’t say so specifically, but I think adequate signs out be something like turning bread into stones or leaping from a great height and being caught by angels. Interestingly, those are the same signs that Satan asked Jesus to perform, “if” he was the Son of God. What comparison does that make between the Pharisees, Sadducees, and the Prince of Darkness himself? Jesus “sighed deeply in his spirit,” which indicates to me, just how tired he is of all their crap, but he doesn’t turn hostile, he doesn’t get violent, he answers them in a way that demonstrates that he is full of love, but that they are acting inappropriately. I know that when I get snotty with th...

Leaving the Decapolis area, Jesus and his followers “came nigh unto the sea of Galilee.” Great multitudes of people followed Him, “having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them.” The people are astonished at these miracles, “and they glorified the God of Israel.” Apparently these people had been following the Savior for the last three days when Jesus told his disciples, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way.” Something that I think is interesting is that the Savior isn’t just concerned about how they feel in that moment, whether or not they are hungry, He is concerned with the journey that they still have to take. I guess that that is a fitting commentary on our lives as well, Jesus isn’t just concerned ...