Moroni 1:1,4 I had supposed not to have written more
Much to his surprise, Moroni
finds himself alive decades after the battle at Cumorah. He may well have
expected to become a martyr for Christ as his father had before him (Mormon
8:3), for they put to death every Nephite that did not deny the Christ (v. 2).
It seems that Moroni had some preconceived notions about how his life would
turn out, or rather, how his life would end. Don’t we all?
Yet, the Lord’s plans for us
are often different. How many stories to we hear of fellow saints whose work
assignments took them to places they never imagined, only to find that the Lord
had a purpose and a mission for them there? How often do we find that
unexpected callings have a divine purpose which we could never have imagined or
predicted? The Lord, who knows the end from the beginning, does things
differently than we expect. Therefore, we should not narrow our possibilities
by our own narrow-mindedness, especially when the Lord is always whispering in
our ears, Be still, and know that I am God (Ps
46:10).
Moroni 1:4 that perhaps they may be of worth unto my brethren, the
Lamanites, in some future day
Moroni’s statement, “perhaps they may be of worth,” is quite an
understatement. How indebted are we for Moroni’s discussion on faith, hope, and
charity? How useful are the writings of Mormon included in chapters 8 and 9?
What would the Book of Mormon be like without the challenge given in Moroni
10:3-5? He says, “perhaps they may be of worth”—from
a latter-day perspective, there is no “perhaps” about it.
“These
words not only reveal to us Moroni's purpose in writing the book, but lay open
to our minds the magnanimous character of the man. A person who can love his
enemies so much that he contributes to the eternal welfare of their descendants
has a great soul.” (FARMS: Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, vol. 4,
no. 1, Spring—1995, p. 38)