Without Disclosing My True Identity
Had the people of the Book of Mormon simply accepted what Jesus was “commanded
of the Father to speak unto [them] at [that] time—nothing varying from the words which
Jesus had spoken,”^56 they would have been happy and at peace forever. Instead, their
human nature desired the same type of religious doctrines and precepts that have always
caused human misery and inequality.^57
Rejecting the “Fullness of the Gospel” for Religion
The Book of Mormon spoke in plainness, presenting a storyline to teach the people in
Joseph’s day what was expected of them from their Christ. But like the people before them,
and the majority of mortals throughout the history of the earth, the people rejected the
simplicity of the fullness of the gospel for tradition, religion, and their own desire to be
“chosen” and “special” above everyone else.
It was Joseph’s hope that those who read the Book of Mormon would “see” and “hear”
the wonderful truths that lay hidden within the parabolic presentation of its stories. He
knew it was not coming from a direct translation of the plates. He didn’t even need the
plates present when he received the text through the technology of the Urim and Thummim.
The plates played their role as an instrument of motivation to Joseph, helping him to endure
to the end, the same end for which he had made the plates and meticulously engraved them
as Mormon.
However, the advanced monitors overseeing his work had something else in mind
for the plates: they would be shown to three other mortals so that they could give their
personal testimony that Joseph was not imagining or making things up in his head. Without
the plates, there would have been no verifiable evidence that the actual text of the Book of
Mormon was not just coming from Joseph’s own mind as he peered into rocks, which, when
activated, no one other than himself saw. The presence of the plates inspired him and others
to support the presence of the Book of Mormon as a divine record.
In summary, the text of the Book of Mormon was given to Joseph by advanced beings
who knew how the people at the time thought, what they believed, and how they would
accept something new that would counter-balance the Bible—the only thing that most of the
people accepted as truth at the time. It was written to speak with power to those who
believed in the Bible. If one did not believe in the Bible, then the Book of Mormon would
never speak to them. It would be nonsense to one without “faith in Christ.” Some of the
most respected American authors and scholars have mocked the Book of Mormon and the
Bible.^58 But the book wasn’t meant for these people. It was meant for those who used
religion to justify the carnal appetite of their prejudices, biases, traditions, and feeling of
being “special” and more “blessed of God” than others. It was meant to give them another
choice in how they acted without taking away their free will to act as they chose to act.
The Three Witnesses to the Plates
The three men (Martin Harris, Oliver Cowdery, and David Whitmer) who would
be shown the actual plates by Moroni were specifically chosen for that purpose. They
were three of the first men who sought Joseph out and desired to become a part of
Joseph’s work, not for any sake of others, but for their own sake. Although an advanced
human (Moroni) appeared to them, just like Christ (an advanced human) did to the
ancient Nephite and Lamanite people, still, Oliver Cowdery and David Whitmer