2 Nephi 31:14-21

14  But, behold, my beloved brethren, thus came the voice of the Son unto me, saying: After ye have repented of your sins, and witnessed unto the Father that ye are willing to keep my commandments, by the baptism of water, and have received the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost, and can speak with a new tongue, yea, even with the tongue of angels, and after this should deny me, it would have been better for you that ye had not known me.
15  And I heard a voice from the Father, saying: Yea, the words of my Beloved are true and faithful.  He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.
16  And now, my beloved brethren, I know by this that unless a man shall endure to the end, in following the example of the Son of the living God, he cannot be saved.

2 Nephi 31:14-16 (Emphasis mine)

Nephi(1) continues writing about the Savior.  He teaches two additional principles we need to understand.

The first is that, after having gone through the process of accepting Christ and following His example, accepting Him as our Savior, if we deny Him, it would have been better had we never gone through this process. 

32  Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
33  But whosoever shall adeny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

Matthew 10:32-33 (Emphasis mine)

11  It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him:
12  If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:
13  If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

2 Timothy 2:11-13 (Emphasis mine)

4  For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
5  And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,
6  If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

Hebrews 6:4-6 (Emphasis mine)

26  For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
27  But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

Hebrews 10:26-27 (Emphasis mine)

The next principle is endurance.  After accepting Christ we must remain faithful until the end.  If we do, we are saved.

In the October 2007 General Conference, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf said:

"Through the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost, every member of the Church can receive “the words of Christ” directly (2 Nephi 32:3), at any time or place. This personal divine guidance helps us to remain valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ and endure to the end of our days. Isn’t this wonderful ...Enduring to the end, or remaining faithful to the laws and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout our life, is a fundamental requirement for salvation in the kingdom of God ... Therefore, enduring to the end is not just a matter of passively tolerating life’s difficult circumstances or “hanging in there.” Ours is an active religion, helping God’s children along the strait and narrow path to develop their full potential during this life and return to Him one day. Viewed from this perspective, enduring to the end is exalting and glorious, not grim and gloomy ... Enduring to the end is a process filling every minute of our life, every hour, every day, from sunrise to sunrise. It is accomplished through personal discipline following the commandments of God.  The restored gospel of Jesus Christ is a way of life. It is not for Sunday only. It is not something we can do only as a habit or a tradition if we expect to harvest all of its promised blessings ...Enduring to the end implies “patient continuance in well doing” (Romans 2:7), striving to keep the commandments (see 2 Nephi 31:10), and doing the works of righteousness (see D&C 59:23). It requires sacrifice and hard work. To endure to the end, we need to trust our Father in Heaven and make wise choices ... By doing our best to endure to the end, a beautiful refinement will come into our lives. We will learn to “do good to them that hate [us], and pray for them which despitefully use [us]” (Matthew 5:44). The blessings that come to us from enduring to the end in this life are real and very significant, and for the life to come they are beyond our comprehension .  "  (Emphasis mine) 

22  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

Matthew 10:22 (Emphasis mine)

7  Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

1 Corinthians 13:7 (Emphasis mine) 

 

12  Blessed is the man that bendureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

James 1:12 (Emphasis mine) 

 

 

 

17  Wherefore, do the things which I have told you I have seen that your Lord and your Redeemer should do; for, for this cause have they been shown unto me, that ye might know the gate by which ye should enter.  For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost.

18  And then are ye in this strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life; yea, ye have entered in by the gate; ye have done according to the commandments of the Father and the Son; and ye have received the Holy Ghost, which witnesses of the Father and the Son, unto the fulfilling of the promise which he hath made, that if ye entered in by the way ye should receive.

2 Nephi 31:17-18 (Emphasis mine) 

 

Nephi(1) tells us to do the things he has told us.  Why?  He has seen Christ to them. 

 

He then tells us we can only enter the gate through a number of actions.  Joseph Smith incorporated these four requirements in the 4th Article of Faith. 

 

We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. (Emphasis mine) 

 

As we enter through the gate, we are on the path that will lead us to eternal life.  We will eventually obtain the great promise to us because we "entered in by the way [we] should receive."

 

13  ¶ Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
14  Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Matthew 7:13-14 (Emphasis mine) 

 

We need to always be aware of the path we are following.  The way to destruction is wide and broad.  It is a very easy to get lost on this path.  We need to stay true to His gospel.  This will keep us on the proper path. 

19  And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done?  Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.
20  Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men.  Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.
21  And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the away; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God.  And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end.  Amen

2 Nephi 31:19-21 (Emphasis mine) 

 

Just getting on the strait and narrow path isn't enough.  Nephi(1) reminds us that we must constantly move forward having a faith in Christ.   

 

Then we are reminded that we are to feast upon the word of Christ.  Here's the etymology of the word feast.  

c.1200, "religious anniversary characterized by rejoicing" (rather than fasting), from Old French feste (12c., Mod.Fr. fête) "religious festival; noise, racket," from Latin *festa (fem. sing.; cf. It. festa, Sp. fiesta), from Latin festa "holidays, feasts," from neuter plural of festus "festive, joyful, merry," related to feriae "holiday" and fanum "temple," from Proto-Indo-European *dhes- "root of words in religious concepts" [Watkins]. The spelling -ea- was used in Middle English to represent the sound we mis-call "long e." Meaning "abundant meal" (whether public or private) is from late 14c.
Online Etymology Dictionary, accessed May 23, 2011, emphasis mine.

A feast is a very special meal.  It is a time of rejoicing.  It is far and beyond a normal meal.  It is given for a special purpose.  When Nephi(1) tells us to feast  on the word of Christ, he is telling us to something more than our everyday effort.  He expects that we will make a special effort in understanding and rejoicing in the words of Christ.  Remember, we are reading the small plates of Nephi which contain the sacred accounts and teachings. Nephi(1) was very selective about what he included.  These teachings, then, are very special and sacred.

The fact is, most of us don't do this.  We read our scriptures and that's it.  We need to spend time looking at the words of God.  These are essential for our salvation.  Most of us spend more time studying worldly things. 

When we study the scriptures, we need to study the scriptures.  Merely reading isn't good enough.  We need to dig into them.  We need to make sure we know what we are being taught.

In my previous post, I discussed the phrase "to fulfil all righteousness" in depth.  Why?  Frankly, I couldn't accurately explain what it means.  I can't count the number of times I've read or hear this phrase.  I've also used the phrase before, not knowing what I was saying.  I started this blog, in part to share my  thoughts about the Book of Mormon, but also to help  me to finally begin studying the word of God, understanding what it is I'm reading.  It takes time, it takes effort, but it's worth it.  In the short time I've been writing this blog, I have grown to better understand and love the Book of Mormon and its teachings about Christ more.  This is because I'm spending more time looking at it in bits and pieces.