Reflection

As I was reading through what are commonly referred to as the “war chapters” I read about how many of the people were slain of both the Nephites and the Lamanites. According to the account given by Mormon, there were in total approximately 230,000 Nephites slain. In his account, Mormon mentions that they were mourning; however, they were not mourning unto repentance. They were instead mourning for their losses and for hatred toward their brethren. As I was contemplating this, I thought of the scripture in Matthew 5:44 that instructs us to love our enemies. I put myself in the shoes of the Nephites and thought about what I would do. I believe that I would tend towards taking care of the ones I love even if that means to be vengeful. It would be very hard for me to know that there was a man that brutally murdered my friend and left his family without a father, husband, and provider. If I really cared about him as a friend I would make sure that I did everything I could to make sure that the murder would not walk away from his crime. Then I began to think about what Jesus Christ would do. I can picture Jesus caring for the murderer while teaching him that he must pay for his sins. While it is very hard for me, it is more important for me to become more like Jesus and live by the teachings that He has asked me to live by.