VISIONS 3, PART 4 - THE WEAK & THE POOR

After this great vision of the kingdom, Elisha is rightfully overwhelmed and concerned that he might not be fully cut out for the task, primarily due to his socioeconomic status; he is neither rich nor powerful. However, the Lord's reply is something that is applicable to all of us in our own personal endeavors and spiritual callings. As we walk in faith, the way is prepared, and we are given what we need to accomplish the task at hand (see 1 Nephi 3:7; 4:6). We are more often than not given spiritual help and guidance, not worldly riches. In fact, like the rich man in Jerusalem who went away sorrowing (Matt 19, Mark 10, Luke 18), the Lord commands Elisha to sell all that he has and give it to the poor. In this way, he will, in essence, be forced to follow the Spirit and rely upon God even for his daily sustenance, just as Christ and His apostles did (Matt 6, Luke 12). If Elisha can't follow through with this, the work will be given to another. God's plan and foresight are perfect enough to bring about His purposes on our behalf--our immortality and eternal life (Moses 1:39)--while still allowing for man's agency in choosing to serve and follow Him.

Elisha is also commanded not to make any money from his endeavors, solely charging publishing costs for the translated record. (The current 2013 version is $18.25 in paperback on Lulu.com. Comparing that to the 1829 Book of Mormon, EB Grandin agreed to print 5000 hardback copies for $3000--almost $65,000 today. The first copies sold for $1.50 each, or about $32 in today's money; however, many of them were just given away.)

As for power and influence, the Lord tells Elisha that he will have no power over others except it's given from God. The agency of other's is not to be removed, controlled, or trampled upon. Again, he is not to rely on his own strength nor trust in the arm of flesh, which are weak and will fail, but to trust in the arm of God, which will never fail. He is to spread the work first among weak and poor in the Philippines, and the field is white and ready to harvest there (see HERE). But even though they might seem weak to others and even in their own eyes, they will gather together in great strength because of the Gospel and this work. Then, after this, the pure in heart among the rich will be gathered in.

Once the work has moved forward, Elisha is commanded to appoint leaders over the kingdom from among the believers. However, they should not desire the position or seek power over others; this is a sure sign of wickedness and pride. But they should be humble, meek, and strong in the ways of God; they also shouldn't walk to be seen or praised of men but walk uprightly before God.

This whole section is another lesson on pride and setting our hearts on worldly riches and glory and what it takes to be a humble follower of Christ. We are commanded to seek first the kingdom of God, but much of the time Mammon becomes our master (Matt 6). Jacob echoes the words of Christ as he pled with his people:

Let not this pride of your hearts destroy your souls!

Think of your brethren like unto yourselves, and be familiar with all and free with your substance, that they may be rich like unto you.

But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God.

And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good--to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted. (Jacob 2:16-19)

How often are the rich humble and the poor proud? Alma the Younger taught that poverty often helps to soften those who might've otherwise been quite hardened.

I say unto you, it is well that ye are cast out of your synagogues, that ye may be humble, and that ye may learn wisdom; for it is necessary that ye should learn wisdom; for it is because that ye are cast out, that ye are despised of your brethren because of your exceeding poverty, that ye are brought to a lowliness of heart; for ye are necessarily brought to be humble.

And now, because ye are compelled to be humble blessed are ye; for a man sometimes, if he is compelled to be humble, seeketh repentance; and now surely, whosoever repenteth shall find mercy; and he that findeth mercy and endureth to the end the same shall be saved.

And now, as I said unto you, that because ye were compelled to be humble ye were blessed, do ye not suppose that they are more blessed who truly humble themselves because of the word?

Yea, he that truly humbleth himself, and repenteth of his sins, and endureth to the end, the same shall be blessed--yea, much more blessed than they who are compelled to be humble because of their exceeding poverty.

Therefore, blessed are they who humble themselves without being compelled to be humble; or rather, in other words, blessed is he that believeth in the word of God, and is baptized without stubbornness of heart, yea, without being brought to know the word, or even compelled to know, before they believe. (Alma 32:12-16) 

As Christ mentions to Elisha (and just as Joseph Smith recorded), it is pride and worldly aspirations that disqualify one for authority and service in His kingdom.

Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen?

Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson--

That the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness.

That they may be conferred upon us, it is true; but when we undertake to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain ambition, or to exercise control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, behold, the heavens withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the Lord is grieved; and when it is withdrawn, Amen to the priesthood or the authority of that man.

Behold, ere he is aware, he is left unto himself, to kick against the pricks, to persecute the saints, and to fight against God.

We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.

Hence many are called, but few are chosen.

No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned;

 By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile--

Reproving betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy;

That he may know that thy faithfulness is stronger than the cords of death.

Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.

The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth; and thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion, and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever. (D&C 121:34-46) 

These are the qualities of a true disciple of Christ, a righteous leader in His kingdom, or a humble bearer of His priesthood.

VISIONS 3, PART 3 - THE ISLAND KINGDOM

In the next segment, Christ shows Elisha a vision of the kingdom he will help to establish; He lists the islands and defines the borders. When reading how this vision unfolds, all I could picture was some huge sweeping IMAX-3D helicopter shot of the Philippines : )

In any case, I love maps and geography, so this part was fun--putting the pieces of this kingdom together. So as not to bore all the rest of you, this island kingdom includes the Philippines, Taiwan, Borneo, and all the other small islands in the South China and Philippines Seas, and even farther out into the Pacific. Its borders are the small islands between the Philippines and Indonesia in the south, Taiwan in the north, Micronesia in the east, and the Asian coastal islands in the west. Basically the borders of the island kingdom look pretty much something like THIS.

If you're matching islands to their descriptions in the text:

~ In the Kingdom ~
Luzon = "this land", "this large island"
Taiwan = "large island in the north"
Batan & Babuyan islands = "small islands between these two large islands"
Mindanao = "large island in the south"
Visayas = "many islands between this land and that one"
Palawan = "long thin island in the west"
Spratly & Paracel islands = "many small islands in the west"
Every other small island in the South China Sea = "every small island between the long island and the large island in the north, even every one which is near unto the shore of the Asian Continent"
Borneo = "very large island in the southwest"
Every other Philippine island = "all the islands between this land and the south island"
Talaud & Sangihe islands = "small islands south of the southern island"
Ponape (Pohnpei) = eastern "island where there is an ancient ruin" (Nan Madol, check it out HERE)

~ Not immediately in the Kingdom (may be, if desired) ~
Indonesia & New Guinea = "larger islands in the south"
Also, Christ says that any other land can join if they desire but don't really need to since He will establish many kingdoms in many lands according to the different people there, and they will all be united anyway after He returns.

Christ finishes this segment with a curse upon anyone who keeps the people of this kingdom down, that they will lose their power and be cast down and trodden upon, for all these lands are given to Christ by the Father and preserved as an inheritance for the Gentiles who are bound through the remnant of the Tribes of Israel. God remembers His covenants to Israel and promises to the Gentiles. I think there's a definite distinction between those last two phrases--covenants to Israel and promises to the Gentiles. God has always made personal covenants with His chosen people, but there are none, necessarily, to the Gentiles until they are adopted into the House of Israel and choose Him as their God. At the same time, this was one of the main purposes of the scattering of Israel, that those remnants might become God's salt, light, and leaven to flavor, enlighten, and raise up all the peoples of the earth (see Matt 5, 13). This will also be a theme in the early parts of the Aklatan, as they recount the two primary waves of ancestors arriving in the islands.

VISIONS 3, PART 2 - A SPECIAL APOSTLE

Elisha doesn't understand why he is in the presence of Christ and is told that he is being called on a special mission like Paul, who was called as an apostle to the Gentiles separate and apart from the Twelve in Jerusalem. But in this case, Elisha will be an apostle to the isles of the sea. (As an aside, the word "apostle" comes from the Greek apostolos, meaning "a messenger or one sent forth"--in the case of Christianity, to proclaim the Gospel of Christ. It's related to epistle, from epistolos, meaning "a message, letter, etc. sent to someone else".)

I think it's also interesting that Jesus warns Elisha to not claim more authority than he's given and to beware of pride. I can imagine that having seen Christ and been called by Him, one might feel they have carte blanche and potentially overstep their bounds or claim a greater stewardship than they've been given. Paul, it seems, also had to walk this fine line in fulfilling his divine mission to the Gentiles and not overstepping the authority of the Church in Jerusalem. Though he was in contact with the Twelve and sent them aid, Paul's apostolic and missionary efforts throughout the region were almost completely independent from those of the greater Church. Reading between the lines, this also suggests that if Elisha is like Paul with a special mission, then there must be others (i.e., twelve apostles) with authority over Christ's established church.

Christ then tells Elisha that throughout his life he has been and will continue to be prepared for the great work of bringing forth a record of the people of the isles of the sea. In the past, the Spirit has inspired him, and in the near future, special servants will minister to and prepare him (Visions 4). Oleeha will also return to help him translate this ancient record (Visions 5).

Jesus then relates two familiar parables, "Not everyone who says Lord, Lord, shall enter the Kingdom" and "The wise man who built his house upon a rock". Throughout the Aklatan, Christ continues to speak in parables, most of them familiar from the record of His ministry in the Gospels, but often with added meaning. The principle remains with His parables: he who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Elisha's mission is to prepare the isles of the sea to become a great and prosperous people according to the Lord's covenant with their ancestors to remember them and make them mighty. He will also establish a kingdom in the islands, and His people will be gathered by the book Elisha will bring forth and his preaching from the Bible and the Lord's other Holy Words. (A short while later, Christ will address Elisha's confusion and teach that the Bible doesn't contain all of God's word.)

[Addendum: 10/13/14]
Early in the history of the LDS Church, the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon were also called as special apostles, or witnesses of Christ, apart from the Quorum of the Twelve, as Paul was:

And now, Oliver Cowdery, I speak unto you, and also unto David Whitmer, by the way of commandment; for, behold, I command all men everywhere to repent, and I speak unto you, even as unto Paul mine apostle, for you are called even with that same calling with which he was called. (D&C 18:9)