3 Nephi 28

This was an interesting chapter for me. I like to tell myself and others that I have a different viewpoint on death, that death isn't that bad, that death is all part of God's plan. I think that God thinks death is good because his plan is perfect and death is an important part, he also recognizes that we never really die, we just change modes of existence. But there were a couple things in this Chapter that have made me think twice about God's view of death.

3 Nephi 28:7-8

Therefore, more blessed are ye, for ye shall never taste of death... And ye shall never endure the pans of death.

Now I guess that I thought that God looked at death and pain as insignificant when seen in the larger view of things and it was confusing to think that someone who didn't die would be "more blessed" than someone who did, this seems like a mortal view of death. I thought that it would make little difference either way in the long run and I had even thought that death might be an important learning experience for all of us. I still am not sure if death is a good or a bad thing or if it is neither, but after thinking about this scripture I think that perhaps I don't know anything about death, maybe being separated from our physical bodies is a truly horrible thing. Or maybe God just knew that the Three Nephites did not want to die so from their perspective they were more blessed, Or maybe the lack of death or presence of death had nothing to do with the more or less blessed part, but instead that was all about living to continue the work.

The thing that I have learned from this, that now seems so obvious is that just because something like pain and death which are infinitesimal when compared with eternity does not mean that they are insignificant, even to God. Truly God is concerned with all of our affairs and the hairs on our head are numbered. Whether or not God views death as a negative, or a positive, he does have love and empathy for us and he cares about our feelings.