Jacob 5

“And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard wept, and said unto the servant: What could I have done more for my vineyard?” –Jacob 5:41

This scripture was quoted in the Sunday morning session of the October 2003 conference by Jeffery R. Holland. I love the insights he gives about Christ’s character in his talk. The servant of the vineyard (Christ) worked so hard digging and dunging, watering and weeding, trimming, pruning, transplanting, and grafting the olive tree, but the branch died. What this verse tells us is that God loves us and he will do everything in his power to help us understand the gospel, but in the end it is our choice to accept it or not. God weeps when we choose contrary to his will. He only wants what is best for us, but sometimes we have a hard time seeing that. We just need to trust him.

“But, behold, the servant said unto the Lord of the vineyard: Spare it a little longer.” –Jacob 5:50

This scripture, surprisingly enough, has never been mentioned in General Conference, but I want to mention it now. Christ never gives up on us. Never. How amazing is it that the one person in the entire universe who understands with exactness what we are going through and the temptations we face will never give up on us? It is so hard to comprehend Christ’s love, but it is real. In the talk by Brad Wilcox that was assigned as a challenge, Brother Wilcox describes judgment day in a very unique way. He doesn’t believe the unrepentant sinner will be begging God to stay, but that he will be begging to be let go. He knows he has sinned and that he doesn’t belong in the highest degree of glory. Brother Wilcox states that it will be Christ begging the sinner to use the atonement so that the sinner will want to stay. Christ will never give up on us, down to our darkest and last moments. It is so comforting to know that someone loves me this much!

“O be wise; what can I say more?” –Jacob 6:12

I have always loved this scripture because of how blunt it is. Just be wise. Just think before you act. This scripture has been quoted 5 times in General Conference. M Russell Ballard mentioned it in his conference talk in October 2006. He talks about how frustrating it is to be a parent and to wish so badly that your children will be wise and listen to the council of God. I think it is probably the same for Heavenly Father. Time and time again we mess up. But time and time again he forgives us. That is such an amazing thought.