Lehi used the Biblical story of Adam and Eve to teach his sons about opposition 2 Nephi 2:15–25. Before they partook of the forbidden fruit: 1) They could act for themselves (2 Nephi 2:15–16), but they did not do good “for they knew no sin” (2 Nephi 2:23). 2) They did not have to till the ground in order for food to grow in the garden (2 Nephi 2:19; see also Moses 2:29). 3) They knew no misery or joy (2 Nephi 2:23). 4)They would have remained “in the same state … forever, and had no end” (2 Nephi 2:22).
After they ate the fruit, Adam and Eve experienced opposition: 1) They could do good, and they could also commit sin (2 Nephi 2:23). They were commanded to repent of their sins (2 Nephi 2:21). 2) They had to work to obtain food (2 Nephi 2:19). 3) They experienced misery and joy (2 Nephi 2:23). 4) They became fallen and mortal—subject to physical death (2 Nephi 2:22; see also Moses 6:48).
“Just when all seems to be going right, challenges often come in multiple doses applied simultaneously. When those trials are not consequences of your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared to grow more Proverbs 3:11–12. He therefore gives you experiences that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain” Richard G. Scott, Ensign, Nov. 1995, 16–17.
After they ate the fruit, Adam and Eve experienced opposition: 1) They could do good, and they could also commit sin (2 Nephi 2:23). They were commanded to repent of their sins (2 Nephi 2:21). 2) They had to work to obtain food (2 Nephi 2:19). 3) They experienced misery and joy (2 Nephi 2:23). 4) They became fallen and mortal—subject to physical death (2 Nephi 2:22; see also Moses 6:48).
“Just when all seems to be going right, challenges often come in multiple doses applied simultaneously. When those trials are not consequences of your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared to grow more Proverbs 3:11–12. He therefore gives you experiences that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain” Richard G. Scott, Ensign, Nov. 1995, 16–17.
The Fall of Adam brought both physical (separation of body and spirit) and spiritual (separation from God) death into the world, which allowed the plan of redemption to begin. Opposition allows us to have children, experience joy, know good, and choose to follow Jesus 2 Nephi 2:23–27; Moses 5:10–12. Thus opposition helps us progress toward one side or the other. Father in Heaven wants us to choose goodness, joy, liberty, and eternal life but will never take away our choice. He provided a Savior, Jesus Christ, to make this possible, since He knew we would not always choose correctly 2 Nephi 2:26–27; John 14:6. The adversary wants us to choose misery, captivity, and eternal spiritual death. 2 Nephi 2:18, 27, 29. Our choice to follow Jesus and accept His atonement or not determines the reward: joy, liberty, and eternal life or misery, captivity, and eternal spiritual death.
“The Lord has given you the gift of agency (Moses 7:32) and instructed you sufficiently to know good from evil (2 Nephi 2:5). You are free to choose (2 Nephi 2:27) and are permitted to act (2 Nephi 10:23; Helaman 14:30), but you are not free to choose the consequences. With absolute certainty, choices of good and right lead to happiness and peace, while choices of sin and evil eventually lead to unhappiness, sorrow, and misery” Joseph B. Wirthlin, Ensign, Nov. 1989, 75.
The Creation (2 Nephi 2:14–15), the Fall (2 Nephi 2:4–5, 8, 18–25), and the Atonement (2 Nephi 2:3–4, 6–10, 26–27) are central to Heavenly Father’s plan of redemption. “It is not possible to believe in Christ and his atoning sacrifice, in the true and full sense required to gain salvation, without at the same time believing and accepting the true doctrine of the fall. If there had been no fall, there would have been no need for a Redeemer or Savior. And it is not possible to believe in the fall, out of which immortality and eternal life come, without at the same time believing and accepting the true doctrine of the creation: If there had been no creation of all things in a deathless or immortal state, there could have been no fall, and hence no atonement and no salvation. The Father’s eternal plan called for the creation, for the fall, and for the atonement, all woven together into one united whole” Bruce R. McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith [1985], 82).
“The Lord has given you the gift of agency (Moses 7:32) and instructed you sufficiently to know good from evil (2 Nephi 2:5). You are free to choose (2 Nephi 2:27) and are permitted to act (2 Nephi 10:23; Helaman 14:30), but you are not free to choose the consequences. With absolute certainty, choices of good and right lead to happiness and peace, while choices of sin and evil eventually lead to unhappiness, sorrow, and misery” Joseph B. Wirthlin, Ensign, Nov. 1989, 75.
The Creation (2 Nephi 2:14–15), the Fall (2 Nephi 2:4–5, 8, 18–25), and the Atonement (2 Nephi 2:3–4, 6–10, 26–27) are central to Heavenly Father’s plan of redemption. “It is not possible to believe in Christ and his atoning sacrifice, in the true and full sense required to gain salvation, without at the same time believing and accepting the true doctrine of the fall. If there had been no fall, there would have been no need for a Redeemer or Savior. And it is not possible to believe in the fall, out of which immortality and eternal life come, without at the same time believing and accepting the true doctrine of the creation: If there had been no creation of all things in a deathless or immortal state, there could have been no fall, and hence no atonement and no salvation. The Father’s eternal plan called for the creation, for the fall, and for the atonement, all woven together into one united whole” Bruce R. McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith [1985], 82).
