Some of the best parts of the Book of Mormon tell stories of love and friendship. Heroes of the Book often show how to courageously love their neighbors, even those who may want to hurt or even kill them.
In general, when the Nephites were most righteous, there were no divisions among the people. The love of God dwelt in their hearts and therefore there were no rich and poor. No Lamanites, Nephites or other tribes, no "-ites." The people were unified, not divided by class or ethnicity.
One of the biggest heroes in the Book of Mormon is the missionary Ammon. When Ammon and his brothers began their mission to the Lamanites, some Nephites told him that it was useless. The Lamanites were too savage and that the Nephites should just wage war against them and slaughter them. Ammon responded that the Lamanites were their brothers and they couldn't bear the thought of their brothers dying without the gospel.
Ammon, in humility, requested that a king of the Lamanites allow him to be his servant anto serve him, maybe the rest of his life. After converting thousands of Lamanites, the king and other converts loved Ammon and Ammon loved them.
So great was the love of these people, that when the Lamanites who were not converted came to war against them, they refused to defend themselves. A thousand were slaughtered rather than take the life of one of their brothers. In the Bible, Jesus said that no one has greater love than he who lays down his life for his friends.
Later in the Book of Mormon these Lamanites' sons would save the Nephites in a great war a generation later. One wonders if any of the Nephites who discouraged Ammon and his brethren were ever aware how they could have led to their country's downfall by their prejudice against the Lamanites.
A generation or two later, Jesus visits the Nephites and when He prays for the people and blesses their children, He tells them, with tears in His eyes, that His joy is full.
This is reminiscent of his prayer in John 17:3 where He prays that the world will experience "my joy."
A joint message from the Bible and the Book of Mormon is that God wants His children to be happy. To have His joy. And everything He asks of us is motivated by that desire.
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