Laman and Lemuel are swift to do iniquity but slow to remember the Lord. This is depressing to Nephi, who tells them to repent. They are really angry at him, and are about to throw him off the boat, when Nephi says, "In the name of the Almighty God, I command you that ye touch me not, for I am filled with the power of God, even unto the consuming of my flesh; and whoso shall lay his hands upon me shall wither even as a dried reed; and he shall be as naught before the power of God, for God shall smite him."
I wanted to know if Nephi is referring to Jesus Christ or Heavenly Father in this verse.
'The Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith' cites this verse, which is interesting to me.
My hypothesis is that it is a reference to Jesus Christ because almost everything that we *do* is done in his name. Like, we address God the Father "in the name of Jesus Christ" in our prayers, for example.
I think would have to study this more to be totally sure. It would be interesting to compare the instances of the use of the word "Almighty God" throughout the scriptures. I am still not sure if it would lead to any definitive answers. Since this is basically the exercise that I have been engaged in for the past 4 months (disambiguation of references to God in the Book of Mormon and now in the New and Old Testaments), I am going to wait to truly answer this question with the depth it deserves.
What should you do when you have questions?
1. Seek understanding through divinely appointed sources. What higher source can you have than that of God himself?
2. Act in faith. Trust that the Lord will reveal answers when the time is right. Live by what you already know. Adam and Eve offered sacrifices after they were cast out of the garden of Eden. They did not know why. Later, it was shown to them. This is a recurring pattern throughout the scriptures: God requires obedience and then later explains why. Consider when Abraham was required to sacrifice his son Isaac on the altar in the same disgusting manner of the wicked people in the place where he grew up who frequently engaged in ritual human sacrifice of their children (!!! ughhh). Why is this the pattern? We are supposed to learn faith. Faith is an action verb.
3. Keep an eternal perspective. Look at things from a long-range eternal perspective, not a myopic what's-best-for-the-bottom-line perspective. Considering things from the point of view of Heavenly Father's plan of salvation, a whole lot more things make sense, like how ordinances that Christ requires of us (like baptism) can even work as the one way by which salvation can come when so many billions of people never had access to that ordinance. Cough cough temple work cough cough.
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