He would like us to set a determined course and be steeled against the troubles to come. He would like us to “set our faces like flint” against the opposition of these last days. These will be the days in which every sort of false premise is argued; and every false doctrine will be urged. The image is clearly put:
Behold all ye that kindle fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks, walk in the light of your fire and in the sparks which ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand—ye shall lie down in sorrow.
Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath; for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment; and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner. But my salvation shall be forever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished. Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart I have written my law, fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be ye afraid of their revilings. (2 Nephi 7: 11; 8: 6-7.)
The great intellectual lights of our day will be like those little sparks flying about from a campfire. They are not even as bright as the campfire itself; they are only the sparks which shoot upward from the fire. These little lights are what pass in our day for intelligence and understanding. But there is nothing in this limited intellect that will save anyoNephi All those who prize the intellectual traditions of our day; the great educational falsehoods of our times; the great understandings we have inherited from Babylon, the Medes, and Persians, Greeks, Romans and modern science, in the end will “lie down in sorrow.” That is, when they die, they will sorrowfully realize the modesty of their intellectual accomplishments. They were offered the Gospel of Christ, with eternal, saving truths. Instead, they chose the learning of men. They will sorrow they did not seek for higher understanding and eternal truths, and sorrow over their choices.
In contrast to this image of the pitiful “sparks” by which modern thinkers will take their light, the Lord invites us to “lift up our eyes to the heavens.” The treasures you will find by looking heavenward will dwarf the sparks of your own fire. Indeed, unless it is nighttime you cannot see these sparks from your campfire. At noonday in summer, the light from heaven is so bright you cannot detect the light of your campfire. This is a compelling and accurate image.
Our limited ability to acquire “light,” here, through our own efforts, is almost laughable. The Lord offers something greater in lieu of this. He offers to light our minds with light from heaven, if we will but “lift up our eyes.” But, for the most part, we refuse to do so. We prefer the light we get from earthly sources. We want those who are scholars to reassure us. We want “bona fide” sources, with credentials we can trust. And so the methods used by fishermen, farmers, ploughboys and tent-makers to know God passes by us. We do not gather in the light of heaven. But we do have great admiration for the modest “sparks” of our day.
The Lord’s salvation will be forever. All that is here will pass away, but the salvation He offers will endure forever. Those few in whose heart the Lord’s righteousness is written do not need to fear men. Nor do they need to be ashamed of the opposition which will be railing against them in the last days. The “revilings” which will confront them should be expected, but ignored. For, as Elder McConkie reminds us, “persecution is the heritage of the faithful. As long as mortal conditions prevail among men, the saints may rest assured that ’all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.’ (2 Tim. 3:12.)” (Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed., p.569.)