The first question is who do you “come near” to in this statement. If it is the Lord, then you need to obey Him or keep His commandments. Obedience was notably lacking in Nephi’s brothers’ lives and in many of our own lives as well.
They (and we) followed religious practices, but failed to participate in the saving faith offered through revelation and the power of the Spirit in their lives. They lacked real light and truth. Nephi writing this for us suggests we have a similar defect.
If “come near” refers to Nephi, (which is most likely given the preceding and following verses) then to “come near” to Nephi is to agree with him. It is to find common ground standing beside him and accepting his teachings as a prophet called of God. Nephi’s teachings have not been hidden from his older brothers, but have been given to them. Nephi has been on the Lord’s errand for some time before this statement, and his teachings should have been accepted by those hearing them as God’s words. His brothers rejected his testimony, and we do little better. God sends inspired teachers in every generation and to every people. As Alma 29:8 states:
“For behold, the Lord doth grant unto all nations, of their own nation and tongue, to teach his word, yea, in wisdom, all that he seeth fit that they should have; therefore we see that the Lord doth counsel in wisdom, according to that which is just and true.”
Now it is true enough “all nations” have different measures of “all that he seeth fit that they should have.” Some have more, some less. Nevertheless, this is not random. Every nation has some measure of truth. We are arrogant when we determine people with less of God’s light are less favored by Him. This verse assures us God does this “in wisdom, according to that which is just and true.” How He elects to teach His children, and when He elects to make more known to them is His prerogative and based upon things which are clear to Him but unclear to us. He does it wisely, and with the ultimate salvation of His children in mind. His work, after all, is the salvation and exaltation of His children. This does not mean the teachers sent are all General Authorities, for “all nations” have not had such authorities sent them. But all have “teachers” sent to them by God.
For generations, there were no teachers sent with authority to minister in the ordinances. Yet, the Lord was still watching over them and giving them a portion of the truth adapted to their circumstances. At the time of this writing, there are some nations who still will not receive ministers bearing authority for Gospel ordinances. Therefore, if “all nations” receive a portion of the truth, this verse means inspired teachers, sent from God, might and do come from outside the Church. Some may come from within the Church and yet not be called to preside in any particular way. This is the case with the inspired writings of Latter-day Saint sisters, whose authority to teach us truths come not from an official position, but from their inspiration drawn from the Gift of the Holy Ghost conferred upon them at baptism. The Spirit, and not office, is the source certifier of truth. We limit God’s power, but He does not agree with our narrow views.
Whether in Nephi’s time or in our own, the voice of inspired teachers should always be heeded, no matter the speaker. Inspired teachers of truth are a gift to us. We reject them at our peril. This verse was useful to Nephi in attempting to get his brothers to listen to him. It is equally useful to remind us to follow those inspired teachers sent to us. If we listen with the Holy Ghost, they are not difficult to identify. If we do not, then we are likely to fall into a ditch.