1 Nephi 11:31

31 And he spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the Lamb of God going forth among the children of men. And I beheld multitudes of people who were sick, and who were afflicted with all manner of diseases, and with devils and unclean spirits; and the angel spake and showed all these things unto me. And they were healed by the power of the Lamb of God; and the devils and the unclean spirits were cast out.

It’s interesting and significant to note that healing illness and possession by devils or unclean spirits not only is a trait of Christ’s ministry, but of those who serve Him as well. So powerful is Christ’s influence that through His authority, mere mortals have the same power through His name.

• Mormon 9:24

1 Nephi 11:30

30 And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the heavens open again, and I saw angels descending upon the children of men; and they did minister unto them.

The angels who descended and ministered unto the children of men were most likely charged with preparing them for Christ’s ministry, so that they might have their hearts softened and they might believe in Christ when He ministered to them. I think this was necessary because even miracles can be dismissed by the faithless.

1 Nephi 11:29

29 And I also beheld twelve others following him. And it came to pass that they were carried away in the Spirit from before my face, and I saw them not.

Clearly the organization of the Church is not established on a whim; the twelve apostles were not organized as a last minute idea that Christ came up with during His mortal ministry. This vision of Nephi’s occurred nearly 600 years before that time.

• 1 Nephi 14:20

1 Nephi 11:28

28 And I beheld that he went forth ministering unto the people, in power and great glory; and the multitudes were gathered together to hear him; and I beheld that they cast him out from among them.

Christ’s ministry obviously had a polarizing effect on people, which this verse points out. Multitudes gathered together to hear him, and possibly, but not necessarily, the same people cast him out. I don’t think there was much indifference where Christ’s teaching or ministry were concerned. The people either worshipped him or hated him, or were in the process of going one way or the other.

• D&C 138:26

1 Nephi 11:27

27 And I looked and beheld the Redeemer of the world, of whom my father had spoken; and I also beheld the prophet who should prepare the way before him. And the Lamb of God went forth and was baptized of him; and after he was baptized, I beheld the heavens open, and the Holy Ghost come down out of heaven and abide upon him in the form of a dove.

The baptism of Christ begins His mortal ministry, which is itself a form of condescension. To think that God himself would come and live among men, suffering the same hardships, is amazing. On the one hand, this fallen earth life is well beneath Him. On the other hand it is a comfort to know that the rules for one are the rules for all. In other words, in order for Christ to attain all the glory of His potential, He still needed a body. He still needed to keep the commandments, including baptism. That tells me that this ordinance is more than simply washing away sins. Conditions of godhood are the same for everyone, and Christ didn’t exclude himself from meeting those conditions. In fact, He met them perfectly. His is the example we should strive to live up to.

• Matthew 3:13–17
• Matthew 11:10 (7–11)
• 1 Nephi 10:7 (7–10)
• 2 Nephi 31:4 (4–18)

1 Nephi 11:26

26 And the angel said unto me again: Look and behold the condescension of God!

The angel teaches more about the condescension of God. Elder Bruce R. McConkie suggests that the first one (vs. 16–19) could refer to God the Father condescending to father a child by a mortal woman, while this one could refer to the condescension of Christ through submitting himself to the hardships of mortal life (see Mormon Doctrine, p. 155). I think, however, that another point of His condescension was his baptism, as will be described hereafter. To think that a perfect person needs to be cleansed from non-existent sin is in itself a form of condescension.

1 Nephi 11:24–25

24 And after he had said these words, he said unto me: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the Son of God going forth among the children of men; and I saw many fall down at his feet and worship him.

25 And it came to pass that I beheld that the rod of iron, which my father had seen, was the word of God, which led to the fountain of living waters, or to the tree of life; which waters are a representation of the love of God; and I also beheld that the tree of life was a representation of the love of God.

Nephi is shown the ministry of Christ, His teaching and healing. His attention then goes back to Lehi’s vision, specifically the iron rod. This sequence leads Nephi to the interpretation of the iron rod being the word of God. This rod of iron acts like a banister. If we hold to it, we a re led to the Tree of Life. In other words, as we adhere to the teachings of Christ, we will be led to partake of the love of God. Verse 25 also gives the fountain of living waters as the love of God.

I would like to focus on the relationship between the rod of iron and the Tree of Life. I think the rod of iron is evidence of the Fall of Adam and mankind. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were allowed to partake of any fruit freely (Genesis 2:16–17), including the fruit of the Tree of Life. The single exception to this permission was the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The day they took that fruit was the day they would die, or be separated from freely eating the Tree of Life fruit. In other words, they would have to make some other effort to partake of the Love of God.

Adam’s Tree of Life may well be an actual tree with actual fruit, but I don’t think we should lose sight of the symbolism. Partaking of Lehi’s Tree of Life was the same as dwelling continually in the Love of God. Adam had that freely because he was clean and pure, without sin. Once he fell by transgressing God’s commandment, he had to earn the right to re-enter the benefits of God’s love. So he has the gospel preached to him (Moses 5:5–7) — the iron rod — to bring him back to the full benefit of God’s presence and love. So God’s love (Tree of Life) is offered to all, but no longer freely, as it was to Adam and Eve before the Fall. In order to experience the full benefit of God’s love, each person must make their way to it. We must adhere to the word of God (iron rod) that leads us to His love. The more strictly we adhere to the Word, the more sure our path will be.

• John 1:1–14
• Revelation 2:27, See especially JST
• 1 Nephi 8:19