Wicked Weakness

Chapters 7 and 8 of Helaman are especially interesting to me. They so clearly show the difference between righteous leaders and wicked ones; so clearly in fact that I listed them out while I read. Nephi is a righteous leader, and a prophet among his people, the Nephites. The Gadianton robbers, at this point, have already taken over the judgment seats and now run the government as wicked judges. Nephi is so distraught over wickedness of the Nephites that he is crying (quite literally) unto the Lord. This shows his love for the people. (Point A: Righteous leaders love the people they lead.) The wicked judges on the other hand, were only concerned with two things: their own skins and the easiest way to get gain. (Point B: Wicked leaders don’t care about the people they lead, unless they can make their lives easier. This of course has nothing to do with the well-being of any individuals, but more the people as a whole. If one dies, that’s fine as long as another is there to take his place.) Nephi feared God, while the wicked judges feared the people. (Point C: Wicked leaders are weak. They will do anything to keep their coveted positions. Righteous leaders care about what the people want, but they care more about what the people need.) Nephi understood the power and abilities of God; that they were limitless. The wicked judges took pride in the work of men (which didn’t usually include the work of their own hands directly) and didn’t understand the power of God over the power of men. (Point D: Righteous leaders will call upon the Lord to help them and the people because they understand that He is capable of all things righteous.)

These chapters made me think of the weakness of the wicked. Weakness is something I can easily say I have always abhorred. It is important to be careful not to get weakness confused with humility. Humility is a Godly trait, and so is strength. Humility is almost always a sign of strength and confidence, while wicked pride is so often due to a person’s weakness. The wicked show their weakness in the fear they have towards other people. They are so easily swayed from on idea to another, as long as it’s not the one right idea, even if they’re off by only a little, it’s still wrong. They are “blown about by every wind of doctrine.”

Taken from my most recent journal for my Book of Mormon 122 class.