Scripture Commentary — Ether 12:27-28
Ether 12:27-28 — Weaknesses can become strengths:
Verse 27
- “If..” – the choice is ours, we have our agency.
- “..come unto me..” – we must develop the desire and make the first steps to approach Him.
- “..show unto them their weakness..” – perhaps we are not even aware that we have a particular weakness, it will take His love to reveal it, we will recognize the weakness.
- “..they may be humble..” – we begin to acknowledge our dependence on Him.
- “..my grace is sufficient..” – the Lord’s grace (divine help and strength we receive through the Atonement) becomes operative, and the power of the Atonement now begins to work in our souls.
- “..and have faith in me..” — we must surrender our will to Him!
- “..weak things become strong..” – true repentance begins, a change of heart ensues. The Lord doesn’t just remove the weakness – He replaces it with strengths and abilities.
Verse 28
- “..faith, hope, and charity bringeth unto me..” – godly traits literally carry us toward Him, and we become yoked with Him by possessing the traits He possesses.
- “..fountain of all righteousness.” – The Spirit can now be fully operative in our lives!
Lessons:
- Does this mean a weakness, essentially unchanged, will somehow become a strength? Probably not. The weakness (for example, use of sarcasm or disagreement with the law of tithing) will become a strength as we follow the process outlined above and feel the power of Christ and His atonement root out the weakness and replace it more Christ-like actions and with a testimony of His power and love. The weakness in one area is rooted out and strength is built in the soul.
- An example of this principle is found in the life of Sariah. In 1 Nephi 5:2 she accuses Lehi of being ‘a visionary man’ and of causing the death of their sons. Then in verse 8 she can state that she knows Lehi is being commanded of the Lord, and that the Lord protected their sons. Then in 1 Nephi 17:1-2 we read how the Lord blessed the women of Lehi’s group, with strength, with determination, with success in physical and spiritual concerns.
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