Gettin' all religious up in hurrr...

1 Nephi 5

Lehi rejoices as his sons return alive and with the brass records God commanded they retrieve from Jerusalem. He immediately offers sacrifices to God and almost immediately begins to read through this newly acquired scripture. Within the brass plates are the 5 books of Moses, a history of Lehi's family. He soon realizes he's a descendant of Joseph, son of Jacob, sold into slavery in Egypt. How amazing would that have been to find something like that out for the first time? These records would serve as a history and religious knowledge to the Nephite people in the years to come.
The Mulekite people, who were led out of Jerusalem 11 years after Lehi, were highly favored by God and seemed to be on the same path as Lehi and his family. But they did not have any brass records. They soon dwindled into apostasy and unbelief and lost their language, civilization, and religion (Omni 14-18). This is why these brass plates are so important and ultimately why scriptures mean so much for us.

All of this makes me so thankful for God trusting Joseph Smith, as well as the present human race, with the restored Gospel. Essentially, the Lord is doing the same thing as He did with Lehi. The Book of Mormon is our record, our history. Not only did God want to set up His true, restored church on earth, He wanted us to know truth for ourselves.
It makes me wonder if God will do anything similar to this in later years...
Though at the same time, it's silly to think this because God gives divine revelation to a modern day prophet. So if there ever was to be some big divine revelation, it would come through His living, breathing church.

That is such an amazing comfort to me.