The war chapters of the Book of Mormon are somewhat
neglected in our Sunday school discussions. The war chapters cover a total of 20 chapters from Alma 43
to 63, yet only two weeks of 45-minute lessons per week are spent discussing
the lessons of those chapters.
Thus, a lot of good material gets skipped for lack of time.
Fortunately, a favorite teacher and writer, John Bytheway,
has written a book, Righteous Warriors:Lessons from the War Chapters in the Book of Mormon, which gives these
chapters a closer look. His
approach is to go chapter by chapter through Alma 43-63, giving solid insights
into those intriguing stories to show how relevant they are in our daily life
and how the lessons from the war chapters can help us make better choices in
our daily battles against evil.
It’s just fun to
see how Bytheway livens up the serious topic of war, scriptures, and the
gospel. He writes specifically to
teenagers, but adults will also be pulled in. His goofy trademark sense of humor comes out in titles and
subtitles, such as “Kings Are a Royal Pain” and “Sharp Objects in Tents Can Be
Very Intense” and in little observations that will make you smile, such as the
following:
When the armies of
the Lamanites met the Nephites in the borders of Jershon, the Lamanite armies
were afraid. Why? Because the
Nephites were equipped with armor—breastplates, arm-shields, helmets, and thick
clothing. The Lamanites had plenty
of weapons but no armor—only a “skin which was girded about their loins” (Alma
43:20).
I doubt that any
of us would want to go anywhere in a loincloth, and I imagine that going into
battle would be one of the least desirable places to be caught in such attire.
Can’t you just see the Lamanites preparing for battle?
“Let’s see. I’m going to fight today. What should I
wear? Ah, the loincloth? And some sunscreen. And maybe some extra safety pins.”
Just one Nephite
with a handful of sharp rocks and a good arm could cause considerable physical
discomfort for the Lamanite armies. Predictably, when the armies of the
Lamanites saw the Nephites with their armor, the Lamanites had a sudden change
of plans and departed for the land of Manti instead. (p11-12)
I bought this book more than six years ago, even before I
started this blog (gasp) (so long
ago!!), and I felt like it really jumpstarted my ability to find valuable
lessons in the Book of Mormon war chapters. His lessons really stick in the mind too.
I recall that
I was very much struck by his explanation of how Amalickiah was a type of Satan
when Amalickiah was trying to get Lehonti to come down off his mountain in Alma
47:
Like
Amalickiah, Satan urges us to come down from our mountains, or to leave our
covenants. When we refuse Satan’s
invitations, “being fixed in [our] minds with a determined resolution” (Alma
47:6), he says, “Okay, bring your guards with you, and just come down a little.”
See how subtle he is? It’s
interesting that Amalickiah invited Lehonti down three times. Similarly, Satan tried to tempt Jesus
in three different ways when the Savior was “led up of the Spirit into the
wilderness,” set “on a pinnacle of the temple,” and taken to “an exceedingly
high mountain”—but Jesus never came down (Matthew 4:1-11).
Brother
S. Michael Wilcox commented on Amalickiah’s (and Satan’s) tactic of bringing
his prey to lower ground while deceiving him into thinking that he was still in
charge: “’You’re in control! I only want to talk! You have your
guards! You only have to come down
a little bit!’ Amalickiah assures
his victim. Lehonti, feeling secure although undoubtedly mistrustful, made his
first mistake: He descended from the heights of the mountain. In his own mind, however, he was still
safe, because he was in control.”
You’ll never read the war chapters in the same way again.
Righteous Warriors
can be found on Amazon at the above link, or you can find Righteous Warriors in CD form as a talk at Deseret Book and
enjoy Bytheway’s spirited delivery and charm.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I
have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no
material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have
mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade
Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of
Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
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