Inspiration
    The simplest questions can bring about the greatest revelations
    Trending Posts
    • The Whole Book of Mormon in 15 Verses via gentlyhewstone.com
    • 26 – What is the doctrine of Christ and the fulness of the gospel?
    • Joseph Smith on Truth
    Trending
    • 26 – What is the doctrine of Christ and the fulness of the gospel?
    • #25 – How Nephi leverages scriptures heroes to his advantage
    • “Whoso knocketh, to him he will open”
    • Lehi’s escape from a polygamist Jerusalem
    • #24 – The attributes of a Heavenly Mother?
    • #23 – Comfort is the thief of growth
    • #22 – Coyote, chickens, and an impenetrable fortress designed in wisdom and love
    • New Photo of Joseph Smith Discovered? (for real this time?)
    oneClimbs.comoneClimbs.com
    • Podcast
      • Apple Podcasts
      • Spotify
      • Anchor.fm
    • Topics
      • Atonement
      • Symbolism
      • Temple Prep
      • Temples
      • Notebook
      • Vlog
    • Study Tools
      • Etymology Dictionary
      • Lectures on Faith.com
      • LDSSymbols.com
      • LDS Architecture Blog
      • Number in Scripture
      • Interpreter Foundation
      • Isaiah Explorer
      • ScriptureNotes
      • Septuagint (English)
      • Strong’s Condordance
      • The Book of Isaiah (IIT)
      • Webster’s 1828 Dictionary
    • About
      • About oneClimbs
      • Contact
    oneClimbs.comoneClimbs.com
    Home»Articles»God Stepping Down
    Articles July 15, 20184 Mins Read

    God Stepping Down

    “Knowest thou the condescension of God?”

    This question was posed to Nephi in a vision by one he refers to as the Spirit of the Lord. (1 Nephi 11:16) I’ve read this verse many, many times and I’ve often heard young people mispronounce it as “condensation” which always cracks me up.

    I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately though as I’ve been hovering around the tree of life vision for several months now; I keep coming back to it and finding things that interest me.

    The wording of this question always struck me as somewhat awkward, and what is being implied by the word “condescension” isn’t clear. In fact, in all of scripture, we only find it 5 times and all of those occurrences are in the first three books of the Book of Mormon.

    Lately, I have been struck by how shocking this question may have initially been to Nephi. In the course of his vision, he is shown the same tree from his father’s vision, then a beautiful woman, and then he gets asked this question that at this point seems out of the blue an unrelated to anything else. First, let’s check out the meaning of the word condescension.

    “voluntarily waive ceremony or dignity proper to one’s superior position or rank and willingly assume equality with inferiors” [etymonline]

    Think about what the Spirit of the Lord is asking him. Imagine not knowing up to this point about Jesus Christ and his earthly ministry. To you, God is the Almighty, the Most High, the infinite and eternal being who created the earth, conversed with Adam, liberated his people from Egypt by the hand of Moses, and was now sending his family off into the unknown.

    Now, the Spirit of the Lord is asking you something to the effect of, “Do you know about how God will waive his superior position and assume equality to his inferiors?”

    No wonder Nephi humbly replies, “I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things.” (vs.17) Imagine having some wildly shocking information about God presented to you in such a way. What? God leaving his position of superiority and putting himself on the same level as his inferiors? Why would he ever do that? Can he do that? Should he do that? What a crazy idea to be presented with when there’s no precedent for such a thing!

    In divine encounters, it appears that learning something new and shocking is a common occurrence.

    After a great vision, Moses states, “Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.” (Moses 1:10)

    The brother of Jared after seeing the finger of the Lord confesses “I saw the finger of the Lord, and I feared lest he should smite me; for I knew not that the Lord had flesh and blood.” (Ether 3:8)

    A puzzled Enoch asks the Lord, “How is it that thou canst weep, seeing thou art holy, and from all eternity to all eternity?” (Moses 7:29)

    It is then revealed to Nephi that the woman was the mother of God (per the original translation) and that he would be born on this earth just like everyone else. The Spirit of the Lord then says, in effect “Look and behold God waiving his superior position and assuming equality to his inferiors!” (vs.26)

    Nephi then sees the mortal ministry of Jesus Christ from his baptism to his deeds and finally his crucifixion.

    No wonder Nephi understands what the Love of God is. Imagine for the first time realizing that God himself would be born on earth and live as we do with all of the challenges, hardships, and beyond that the false condemnation, suffering, torture, and wrongful execution. Today, almost everyone knows who Jesus is, even those that aren’t Christians or even religious.

    The weight of that question though – what must have been going through Nephi’s mind at that point? Then to see the answer clearly in front of you like that; it’s pretty amazing. I just really love the Book of Mormon.

    Book of Mormon Tree of Life
    Previous ArticleCovenants, Ordinances and Ceremonies
    Next Article Notes From the Climb: May – July 2018
    Steve Reed

      I created oneClimbs as a place to organize my thoughts and share my observations with anyone who might find the information useful. Though I may speak passionately or convincingly in some of this content, PLEASE don't simply take my word alone on anything. Always seek the truth of all things through study and prayer in the name of Jesus Christ.

      1 Comment

      1. Richard J. Nobbe III on December 5, 2018 3:42 pm

        I’m always struck with Nephi’s answer to the question. He answers with something that he knows and something that he doesn’t. Maybe not that big of deal to some, but if we know the true condescension of God then our hearts soften and our questions change. We realize that God loves his children, so we can put our trust in an omniscient God. It’s a simple truth taught in the beginning of the Book of Mormon that’s helped me when I don’t understand something about life and get frustrated.

        Reply

      Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

      Inspiration

      One may memorize much without learning anything. In this age of speed, there seems to be little time for meditation. - Hugh B. Brown

      New Post Email Notifications

      You can subscribe any time, and I will ONLY use your email to send you new post updates.

      Trending Posts
      • Atonement , Podcast
        26 – What is the doctrine of Christ and the fulness of the gospel?

        I don't know that there is anything else more important and timely that I c...

      • Articles
        Joseph Smith on Truth

        Receiving truth "One of the grand fundamental principles of Mormonism is to...

      • Atonement
        Repentance: a process of addition not subtraction

        I came across this post the other day that had some interesting perspective...

      • Articles , Symbolism
        White Cloth, Fire and the Glory of God

        It has occurred to me over the years that there is something significant ab...

      • Articles , Quotes
        Brigham Young on Truth

        The following quotes are from Brigham Young's discourses originally but I g...

      Recent Comments
      • Steve Reed on 26 – What is the doctrine of Christ and the fulness of the gospel?: “Hi Joel, thanks for your feedback and great questions. I think remarkable examples can come in many forms and people…”
      • Joel on 26 – What is the doctrine of Christ and the fulness of the gospel?: “Hey man, Thanks for doing this episode. I especially valued your sharing your experience with the baptism of fire. I’m…”
      • Steve Reed on A Proposed Reinterpretation of Jacob 2:30: “Thanks for your thoughts, Jeffery, it seems as though many people are starting to take a closer look at Jacob…”
      • Jeff on A Proposed Reinterpretation of Jacob 2:30: “Thank you for this! I had actually just finished writing out my thoughts on Jacob 2:30, which were almost identical…”
      • Jonathan on A Guide to Keeping Your Own “Small Plates”: “This is AWESOME! I’m going to be using some of these principles and sharing them with my seminary class tomorrow…”
      Blogroll
      • Academy for Temple Studies
      • Bruce Charlton's Notions
      • Conner's Connundrums
      • Gently Hew Stone
      • Hemlock Knots
      • Interpreter Foundation
      • Isaiah Explained
      • Isaiah Explorer
      • Junior Ganymede
      • Latter-day Saint Architecture Blog
      • Latter-day Saint Temples
      • LDSSymbols.com
      • Leading Saints
      • Number in Scripture by E. W. Bullinger
      • Sixty Symbols
      • Spiritual Arson Podcast
      • Strongs Concordance
      • TempleStudy
      • The Ancient Context of Joseph Smith's Egyptian Alphabet and Grammar
      • Webster's 1828 Dictionary
      New Post Email Notifications

      You can subscribe any time, and I will ONLY use your email to send you new post updates.

      Inspiration
      Christ is God's Forgiveness. - George MacDonald
      About this Site

      I created oneClimbs as a place to organize my thoughts and share my observations with anyone who might find the information useful. All content on this site is considered a work in progress that is often updated when new insights are obtained.

      oneClimbs.com

      LecturesOnFaith.com  //  LDSSymbols.com

      © 2023 oneClimbs. All content unique to oneClimbs is fair use. All other content is property of the respective copyright owner. oneClimbs.com is not owned, controlled, or affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. All views and opinions are of the authors here who are solely responsible for their content and should not be interpreted as official statements of Church doctrine, belief, or practice, unless specifically stated and correctly referenced.

      Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.