Doctrine and Covenants 38:27
"I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine."
After several years of prosperity among the Nephites, the Lamanites come against them again to take away their lands. And this time, the Lamanites start to succeed. You want to know WHY they succeeded? Because the Nephites were not unified.
Shortly before the Lamanites invaded, a group of Nephites (who came to be known as the king-men) decided that they did not agree with the leader of the land on a law and wanted to establish king instead to rule over the land. Having a king had serious consequences throughout the land, most of which had to do with removing the freedoms the people had.
As the Lamanites began marching into the land for war, the king-men said they would teach the Nephites all a lesson and not fight against the Lamanites. At that point, the Captain of the Nephite army, Moroni, had a choice to make. March to fight off the Lamanites or take care of the problems of dissenters within his own land. He opted for the latter. His army defeated and "humbled" those dissenters that did not lose their lives in the process.
Because Moroni was forced to take so much time, resources, and energy to fight this battle with the king-men, the Lamanites had time to take over several of the fortified Nephite cities. If the king-men would have been unified with the rest of the army, this may not have happened.
What can we learn from this in our lives? Well, I'm reminded of a recent conference talk by President Eyring in which we spoke about having our hearts knit as one. (You can read the full talk HERE.)
Although we all live in different circumstances and have different opinions and beliefs, it is very important that we remain unified and forgiving. Satan wants us to be angry. He wants us to hate others for their beliefs and perspectives that differ from our own. God wants us to seek for understanding in others, not hate. He wants us to serve and help others, even (and maybe ESPECIALLY) those whose beliefs differ from our own. As we are seeking to understand each other and find common ground, we WILL become more unified. Our lives will improve as will the lives of those around us.
