A Study Guide Companion for The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ
ALMA
CHAPTERS 25 - 35
Chapter 25
Unbelieving Lamanites, who had killed so many righteous fellow-Lamanites, were angry with the Nephites, as though the Nephites had made them do such a terrible thing. Not accepting their own guilt, they swore vengeance upon the Nephites.
Ironically, it was the wicked Nephites of Ammonihah who felt the brunt of the Lamanites’ wrath. The armies of the Lamanites had come in upon the wilderness side, into the borders of the land, even into the city of Ammonihah, and began to slay the people and destroy the city…[and] they…destroyed [all] the people who were in the city of Ammonihah. The wicked people who were left in Ammonihah had tried to kill Alma and Amulek, had burned innocent women and children to death.
Terrible turmoil broke out in Lamanite territory. Although many Amulonites were killed by Nephites, those remaining usurped control of the Lamanite kingdom. But there were Lamanites who remembered the words of the Nephite missionaries, and began to see the Light of the true Gospel. That made Amulonites, the new rulers of the Lamanite nation, so angry that they burned these converted Lamanites to death for their beliefs.
Long ago Abinadi had seen that he was only the first martyr to die by fire. What a horrible legacy wicked Noah and his evil priests left their descendants. The first to burn a prophet—they set the precedence for this horrific practice of burning the saints of God.
The atrocity of burning the Lamanite believers was the last straw for many other Lamanites. They turned on the Amulonites and began to kill them. The Amulonites fled into the east wilderness, fulfilling more of Abinadi’s prophecy.
The Lamanites then experienced a time of comparative peace. With the wicked Amulonites and Amalekites rendered helpless for a time, and knowing they could not overpower the Nephites, many returned from the wilderness into their own land. Some drifted into Ishmael and into the land of Nephi.
The Anti-Nephi-Lehies set such a good example of happiness in the Lord that their fellow-Lamanites began to earnestly listen to the missionaries’ message of Christ. When people become righteous, the Holy Ghost spreads His Power. More Lamanites were converted and joined the Church of God and buried their weapons.
The group of commandments and statutes that the people in the Church of God kept at this time was the Law of Moses. The law had been handed down to Nephites from the time Lehi brought his family across the sea. It was maintained and remembered because of the Brass Plates. Every commandment and statute in the law symbolized Christ’s life, and His Sacrifice, and our Heavenly Father’s Plan of Salvation which Christ would fulfill.
The missionaries taught that Salvation comes from Christ. Many Lamanites, because of their great faith, were taught this truth directly by angels. They knew keeping Law of Moses would strengthen their faith in Christ.
Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner, and Himni, and their brethren did rejoice exceedingly, for the success which they had had among the Lamanites,
seeing that the Lord had granted unto them according to their prayers,
and that He had also verified His word unto them in every particular.
CHAPTER 26
Ammon made a comparison and contrast between the darkness and the Light—with the darkness coming from Satan and the marvelous Light coming from God. Thousands were converted to Christ.
Verses 5 and 7are full of wonderful metaphors that compare gathering souls to gathering a temporal harvest with the Lord the Lord of the Harvest.
The metaphor, “in the Hands of the Lord of the harvest” denotes the love and protection Christ gives those “harvested” as part of His own crop and put in His granary to feast on His words and His glory. They will not only be resurrected when He comes again, but they will have Eternal Life with Him.
Although there will be tremendous weather upheavals in the last days, including whirlwinds and fierce winds, Ammon used physical terms to represent the spiritual terms of being subject to wherever “the enemy,” Satan, would take them when they did not belong to the Lord’s fold (verse 6).
The metaphor of God being a Shepherd of the people who belong to Him and being part of His fold is also in many Bible and Book of Mormon scriptures.
All of Mosiah’s sons had once been part of the devil’s fold—out to destroy the Church of God. Having escaped these awful chains of hell, it is no wonder that they rejoiced when they realized thousands of others had also escaped those chains! In turn, it is no wonder that thousands of converts rejoiced to “be brought into the fold of God.”
Grateful, after unsuccessful trials over many centuries, that they were the ones God chose to help bring so many Lamanite souls to Him, Ammon recounted their experiences with wonder. Aaron was afraid that Ammon was getting carried away with boasting. Then Ammon told his brother that he knew it was the Lord’s doing; that he was not boasting about his own strength.
There is a state we can reach where we are so in tune with God’s will and the desire to help Him bring to pass the “Eternal Life of man,” that our entire focus in life is this goal. That is truly when His goals become our goals. Within this state, mighty miracles may occur. We are not thankful for those miracles because they prove we are wonderful—we are thankful because of the furthering of God’s goal—and ours.
Ammon had reached this joyous state. He was overjoyed by the rescue of thousands of Lamanite spirit children of God. He was joyful that God allowed the missionaries to have within them the great Power of His word. He was so grateful that the Lord shared His holy Power—including the ability to speak miraculously—fostering conversions of all those souls—that his feeling burst into praise for God.
Next, Ammon used the contrast of darkness and Light,Satan’s darkness and evil lasts because his nature will always be one of selfishness, greed, power-lust, and misery. Christ’s Light and goodness will also always be Everlasting because of who He is. Jesus Christ is so filled with love and purity that His great Light Eternally encompasses all who choose to come to Him.
Ammon was thankful to be a part of the Lord’s great work. Ammon said there was no way one could praise or glory in God too much, and he advised his brothers to let go of their restraints and be thrilled to bask in God’s great glory.
One reason Ammon was so overwhelmed with gratitude for his part in the Lord’s work was the realization that he was once close to being pulled into Satan’s “lasting darkness.”
Ammon was amazed at God’s compassion. Instead of destroying Alma, Ammon, his brothers, and the other companions when they were trying to destroy His Church, Jesus Christ pulled them into the Light of His love.
Ammon reminded his brothers that there is a “bridge” to Eternal Life that goes over the horrible “gulf of death and misery” and leads to the Salvation of Christ—and that Christ, in His great mercy, brought the brothers over that bridge rather than destroying them in their sins.
Ammon realized that it did take true repentance of the brothers to realize this great blessing from
For centuries, righteous Nephites who had been converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, had a desire to convert Lamanites. Yet none of them had been successful in achieving this goal on a large scale. Ammon reminded his fellow-missionaries that when they were inspired to embark on their missionary venture, fellow-Nephites in Zarahemla laughed them to scorn for thinking they could possibly be successful in giving the Gospel to “blood-thirsty” Lamanites.
Some fellow-Nephites had suggested instead they send an army to destroy the Lamanites before they overran Nephite territory, destroying Nephites. But the missionary brothers and their companions listened to the Holy Ghost and went forth with the hope of saving some few Lamanite souls. And the Lord comforted them and blessed them.
Ammon reflected that they had trusted in the Lord and did go forth in faith in Him, dependent on His mercies, rather than the “mercy of the world alone.” It had not been easy. They suffered afflictions and they suffered privations; their hearts were hurt with sorrow over tragedies. Yet they had faith in God, they were patient, and they continued to do the Lord’s holy will.
Ammon recounted consistency and
persistence as they went to temples and synagogues and to streets and hills to teach, even though they were often cast out and abused. He reminded them that although the Lord allowed them to suffer for His sake, He always watched over them, and they were at last delivered.
When the missionaries set out for the land of the Lamanites, they thought perhaps they would save one or a few souls. They had no idea of the tremendous blessing the Lord would pour out upon thousands of Lamanite souls. Ammon spoke of the great love the humble converts felt—toward both the missionaries and toward their fellow-Lamanites.
Ammon illustrated the love the Lamanites showed. They were willing to be killed rather than kill to defend themselves because of their great love of their “brethren” and because of their hatred toward sin. The Nephites had not reached that level of love.
Ammon was thankful that God watches over His people, and that He remembered those in the Promised Land. Although the descendants of Lehi had lived in the western continents for over 500 years, they considered themselves “wanderers in a strange land.” Ammon mentioned them having been a “branch of the tree of Israel…lost from its body in a strange land.” This metaphor shows how close to Israelite history, culture, and beliefs the Brass Plate scriptures and the “nourishment” of prophets had kept faithful Nephites.
Ammon reminded his brothers that God remembers all people in every land.
When Ammon said God “numbered His people,” he expressed the truth—God knows everything and everyone because He created them and they are His. Because Jesus Christ paid for our sins, He has the right to extend mercy to us if we reach out to take His holy offering. He offers this opportunity “over all the Earth.” No wonder Ammon, with his great love and compassion for others, gave thanksgiving to God forever!
CHAPTER 27
For many centuries Lamanites had rejected the truth of God, and they did not have prophets or scriptures teaching them that the traditions were lies.
At this point they stopped their useless war against the Nephites, and many who fought drifted back to the land of Nephi .
The Spirit of God touched them as they watched the goodness of their fellow-Lamanites, the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. Because of the example of their “brethren,” and through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, they were being converted to God by the thousands.
After finding failure in fanning a Lamanite-Nephite war, the devil turned to his old stand-by group where he always found success—apostate Nephites. Amalekites collaborated recently with Amulonites in stirring up war where many faithful Anti-Nephi-Lehies chose martyrdom rather than take up weapons of war against other Lamanites. But there were even more Lamanites converted—and Amulonites were almost wiped-out by unbelieving Lamanites.
The Amalekites, defeated in seeking war against the Nephites, decided to try again to punish the convert Lamanites. They persuaded unbelieving Lamanites to again war against the Anti-Nephi-Lehies.
The Amalekites reasoned it was safe to go after the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. Although this group could fight back, it was known that they would not fight back—so they could be killed easily without risk.
The missionaries had great compassion on the converts and did not like to see evil overcoming good.
Ammon approached king Anti-Nephi-Lehi with the idea of moving all of his people permanently to the land of Zarahemla to live with the Nephites rather than letting themselves be destroyed by their enemies.
Knowing the destruction they had caused to the Nephites before they were converted to God, king Anti-Nephi-Lehi was not sure that was a good idea. He thought that the Nephites would probably destroy them because of their previous behaviors. The king believed in the mercy of Jesus Christ. He knew Christ would save them from everlasting destruction in the Eternities. But he was not sure about the mercy of the Nephites. He thought he would just as soon be killed by Lamanites as by Nephites. But he was willing to put the destiny of his people in the Hands of the Lord.
The faith of these Anti-Nephi-Lehies was so strong they prepared their belongings and followed their king and the Nephite missionaries to that land although it was not out of the realm of possibility Nephites would take revenge on them.
Rather than marching straight into Zarahemla with thousands of Lamanites, Ammon had them stay in the wilderness near the borders of the land while he and his brethren went to address the situation to the Nephites.
In Alma 17, Mormon summarized the meeting when the sons of Mosiah met up with their friend, Alma, while both parties were traveling to Zarahemla. At this meeting, the missionaries recounted their fourteen years of teaching in the land of the Lamanites. Alma listened with great joy at the success of his dearly beloved friends—and at the Spirit of prophecy and Spirit of revelation with which they were blessed.
Ammon was so overcome with joy at the blessings of success the Lord gave him and his brethren that he opened his heart completely to the Holy Spirit. The strength of the Spirit overcame the strength of his body and he fell to the ground.
This happy meeting between Alma and the sons of Mosiah was not an accident. During the last fourteen years, Alma had served as a Chief Judge and as President of the Church in addition to serving as a great missionary. All these services to the people had left him in close contact with both the general population and the new Chief Judge. He took the sons of Mosiah into his own home, and then, likely after some much needed rest and refreshment from their journey, they went together to the Chief Judge to converse about the circumstances concerning the Anti-Nephi-Lehies.
Alma had much influence with the people of the Church and with other Nephites. Many Nephites may have remembered the four brave young princes who gave up their kingship and went as missionaries to the Lamanites. It is also interesting to note that after their conversion, Lamanite converts had a “correspondence” with some Neophytes.
The Chief Judge was not a dictator, but he was sympathetic to the Anti-Nephi-Lehies’ plight. He sent out a proclamation so people could vote on the matter.
The Nephites’ gave a positive answer to the proclamation, stating that they would give their converted brothers the land of Jershon for an inheritance and would guard them from their enemies. They only requested the Lamanites give them a portion of their substance to assist them with their armies. This answer speaks for the success Alma had wrought among them. The Church was strong and the people determined to serve the Lord. We do not know how much time elapsed between the Chief Judge’s proclamation and the answer of the Nephite citizens. It is possible that Alma and the sons of Mosiah traveled the land, lending their influence and relating the miraculous details of the conversions.
When Ammon and his brothers went back to the wilderness to tell the welcome news to the Anti-Nephi-Lehies, Alma went with them. He related specifics of his own conversion to these faithful Lamanites and told them about the conversion of the sons of Mosiah. Besides being faith promoting, this was a compassionate thing to do. It let the Anti-Nephi-Lehies know that we are fellow travelers on this Earth—in need of repentance and of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
Imagine the joy and thankfulness that the displaced Lamanites experienced when they knew they were being blessed with the love, as well as with the land, of their cousins, the Nephites.
CHAPTER 28
The sons of Mosiah’s mission, with all its accompanying miracles, is an
amazing event in Book of Mormon history. The Nephite population commendably voted a
commitment to protect the newly converted Lamanites.
Following these miraculous
occurrences, a horrible war began—the worst since Lehi brought his family to the
Promised Land.
The Lamanites realized they could not overpower the Nephites, so they
drifted back to the land of Nephi and many of them joined their brother Lamanites in the Gospel, as part of the Anti-Nephi-Lehi group. Not giving up their lust for wickedness, the Amalekites followed the devil’s evil inspiration and again convinced the unbelieving Lamanites to go after the Anti-Nephi-Lehies.
This time, however, the Anti-Nephi-Lehies, in an unexpected and unprecedented move,
escaped to live in Nephite territory—actually under the protection of the Nephites. Amalekite-led Lamanite armies followed the Anti-Nephi-Lehies
into the wilderness by Nephite territory, hoping for an opportunity to yet destroy
them.
The Anti-Nephi-Lehies, mostly called the people of Ammon, settled
into the land of Jershon with a protecting border of Nephite armies and soon
established a Church.
But then the wilderness around Nephite territory filled with a vast army of
unbelieving Lamanites, led by the Amalekites. They moved in to attack the
Nephites, beginning the bloodiest battle ever fought since “the time Lehi left
Jerusalem.”
The defending Nephites finally defeated the Lamanites in battle, driving them out of their land. The survivors were able to
return to their own homes in peace.
Even though the people were in great sorrow and mourning, they fasted and prayed to God for comfort and likely for
thanksgiving for finally driving the Lamanites out of their land. Nothing is said to indicate they were sorry they had voted to protect the people of Ammon.
During and following the mission of the sons of Mosiah and their
companions, life was mixed with sorrow and joy. During fifteen years since king Mosiah died and the government was ruled by judges there was much bloodshed and thousands died. This was not because the type of government was bad; it was because some Nephites abused the God-given privilege of freedom, trying to gain unrighteous power to enslave others.
The Lord promised to bless the Nephite nation if the people lived
righteously—and He kept this covenant. It was always the Nephites who broke
the sacred covenant. Because of the wickedness of greedy, selfish, power-
hungry Nephites, thousands of people—good and evil—were cut off from this life.
These thousands of souls did not leave their mortal lives on equal
standing. All people will face God and account for the way they choose to live
their lives—judged by God in His perfect judgment, but judged also by
themselves for whom they chose to listen to: God or the devil.
It is only when people choose darkness rather than the Light of Christ they jeopardize the salvation of their souls.
CHAPTER 29
Alma had lived both within the darkness of Satan and within the Light of
Christ. Alma wanted all mankind to be snatched from the jaws of hell; he knew
beyond any doubt that living within the Light of Christ and embracing His Gospel
was the way of joy, Redemption, and Eternal Salvation. To this end he dedicated his life to preaching the Gospel. In selfless yearning, he expressed his thoughts in beautiful words that praise God.
Alma wished he could have a voice of thunder to get people to repent so
there would be no more sorrow on Earth But after writing his wish, he
began to reflect. After all, God our Father would love to have His children all
come to Him. The “work and glory” of Heavenly Father and our Lord Jesus
Christ, is “to bring to pass the immortality and Eternal Life of [all humankind]. Jesus Christ has given immortality to every soul who has ever been born.
That was our reward for making the right choice in our pre-mortal lives. Christ’s
atoning Sacrifice in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the cross and taking up His life again guaranteed that everyone would someday be resurrected.
This infinite sacrifice also offered eternal life to everyone.
But—eternal life comes with a covenant between Christ and us. He suffered unimaginable agony as He took upon His pure soul every sin ever committed, and then He took the punishment for all of them. He also endured first hand every pain ever suffered. As He paid the ransom to justice for all sins and as He bore all possible pain, He fulfilled His part of the covenant.
In addition to infinitely sacrificing for us, our Savior has always shown
love for Heavenly Father and for us, His spirit siblings. With Heavenly Father’s
direction, He created this world for us and our very bodies from the elements of
the Earth. He taught us and showed us how to live—with His own perfect life as
the Example. He established His Gospel for us through dispensation after
dispensation ever since the world began.
Alma knew that he was a mortal who was given a particular task to perform
among his people—which he hoped would carry on for many generations. He
would talk with a voice of Power and with the Spirit of revelation and the Spirit of
prophecy. He did not need then to have a voice of a trump and of thunder. God’s
children on Earth are given the crucial gift of agency, and Alma knew that God
would grant them their reward depending on their own desires.
When Alma thought about the role the Lord gave him, he gloried in
this calling. He realized how thankful he would be if he brought even one soul to
repentance.
Even though Alma would have been thankful to be a partner with the Holy
Ghost as an instrument in saving one person, his soul is filled with joy because
he helped bring many to God. The Lord showed mercy toward Alma, saving him
from Satan’s clutches. Stretching out His holy Arm, the Lord reclaimed him. Alma
remained constantly thankful for his personal blessing of Salvation.
Alma thought back to how the Lord brought his father, Alma the Elder, and
his group out of captivity; and then the Church was eventually established in
Zarahemla. After that, the Church was established and strengthened throughout
all the land of the Nephites.
When Alma thought about the role the Lord gave him, he gloried in
this calling. He realized how thankful he would be if he brought even one soul to
repentance.
Even though Alma would have been thankful to be a partner with the Holy
Ghost as an instrument in saving one person, his soul is filled with joy because
he helped bring many to God. The Lord showed mercy toward Alma, saving him
from Satan’s clutches. Stretching out His holy Arm, the Lord reclaimed him. Alma
remained constantly thankful for his personal blessing of Salvation.
Alma thought back to how the Lord brought his father, Alma the Elder, and
his group out of captivity; and then the Church was eventually established in
Zarahemla. After that, the Church was established and strengthened throughout
all the land of the Nephites.
Alma studied the scriptures from the Brass Plates—and he also
experienced many manifestations of personal revelation. He knew that the God recorded in the Brass Plates—who delivered the Children of Israel from
captivity—was the same God who delivered Alma’s own father and his company of faithful followers.
Alma knew that this same God established His Church in the land, and
that He called Alma as a leader and a missionary. He also expressed
his great joy in the success of the sons of Mosiah.
CHAPTER 30
In the aftermath of the terrible war between the Nephites who were defending the Anti-Nephi-Lehies, as well as their own homeland, survivors mourned and fasted and prayed. Although sorrowing for their missing family members, friends, and fellow-countrymen, they had faith and were grateful for the end of the war and peace began again in the land.
The Law of Moses represented the coming of Christ, His life, and His mission. God’s people were commanded to live the Law of Moses until Christ would be born and had fulfilled this mission.
In the last part of the second year of peace, the devil again began to seriously stir up his evil forces. He found someone with a desire to exercise his carnal cravings and who spoke with persuasive power. This man, Korihor, listening to Satan, began preaching against prophets who had foretold the coming of Christ.
God’s law to let people choose for themselves whom they would serve, allowed equality in each person’s opportunity to choose and is part of the gift of agency.
It is anyone’s privilege to serve God, but people must be on equal grounds in order to fully have their individual agency.
.
The devil, used the good law of religious freedom to protect his lies as they came forth from the mouth of the Anti-Christ, Korihor.
1. Korihor used the false premise that the people who believed in Christ were “bound down” and “yoked”—both metaphors that suggest lack of freedom. It is actually Christ who makes people free—free to live forever in the Celestial Kingdom with the eventual promise of “immortality and Eternal Life!” It is the devil who binds his followers down in slavery of wickedness.
2. Korihor used the premise that “hope” is vain and foolish. Christ offers hope of Eternal Life! The devil offers hopelessness.
3. Korihor said that no man could know of anything which is to come.
4. God is all-knowing and gives revelation to His prophets. He knows His children and circumstances so well that He absolutely knows what they will do—He does not force them to do it, but He knows how different people will react under different circumstances.
5. Certain things were foreordained to
happen in the future. At Korihor’s time, the birth, life, Atonement, and Resurrection of the Savior were in the future.
6. Hope of Eternal Life with Christ is the center of all of our lives and has been since the beginning. This is the hope in which we have faith and on which we base our abilities to repent. Faith in the mission of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the hope for which we are baptized in water and receive the baptism of fire—which is the gift of the Holy Ghost.
The scriptures represent God’s holy word; Satan taught Korihor to denounce them as “foolish traditions”
Korihor attacked the sanity of those who believed the prophets’ call to repentance for Salvation. He said they were crazy—that their minds were frenzied and deranged, both adjectives meaning that they were insane to believe, asserting that this craziness came from believing the scriptures.
Korihor declared there could be no Atonement because there was no sin or crime. He sought to persuade listeners that everything they accomplished was due to their own abilities and genius. He went further. He said man accomplished things due to his own strength, and then he used that false assertion as a premise to say that there was no such thing as a crime or sin.
Korihor promoted the devil’s propaganda. He said that there was no life after Earth life so there was no reward and no punishment. Many listened to him. It made a good excuse to those who harkened to the carnal appetites of their bodies. Korihor particularly convinced women, and then also men, to commit whoredoms, teaching them that sexual activity outside of the marriage covenant was a pleasure and that this was the time to enjoy that pleasure.
Korihor had so much success in the land of Zarahemla, that the devil inspired him to try to reclaim the converted Lamanites. Satan was obviously still upset over the sons of Mosiah and their companions’ success among the Lamanites, so he planned to rectify that success by turning the converts away from the truth.
The people of Ammon were living within the Light of Christ and they had no patience for the devil or his messenger. They bound him and took him before Ammon, who had been called as high priest over them.
People had a right to their beliefs, but others were not forced to listen to them, and the community claimed a right to establish its own standards. The people of Ammon did not hurt Korihor, but because he was an obscene public nuisance, spouting blasphemes in the ears of those who had no desire to hear him—they would not allow him to continue promoting his evil message. We do not know particulars of his expulsion, but according to Mormon, they basically kicked him out of their land. He then went to the land of Gideon. He did not have any more luck there. The people of Gideon bound him and carried him before their high priest and then to the Chief Judge of Gideon (verse 21).
It is interesting to note that although Alma established the Church in Zarahemla, it was after much struggle. Several years later, many people in Zarahemla listened to Korihor while no one in Jershon or in Gideon listened to him, and he did not “have much success."
Knowing Christ loves us and desires to lead us to Eternal Life brings us wonderful rejoicing. Preaching against Christ is an attempt to “interrupt” those rejoicings. Korihor, after having had some success in Zarahemla, began to spout false assertions.
The truth is that the leaders of the Church, then as now, sacrifice their own time, talents, and energy to help the people in and out of the Church. They encourage diligence in studying the scriptures and gaining one’s own knowledge of God and one’s own testimony.
The truth is that truth makes people free. The Light of Christ is the Light of Truth. God has always given people freedom of choice. It is Satan who wants to remove this choice and turn everyone into his puppets—as he desired even before Earth was formed.
The truth is that the people of Christ did not and do not believe that a child is guilty of sin because of the transgression of his or her parents. It is true that the choices made by Adam and Eve, which eventually allowed children to be born into the world, would have resulted in a fallen people forever—if it had not been that a Savior was part of the Plan from the first. That is because no unclean thing can enter the Kingdom of God.
The truth is that the scriptures Korihor called “foolish traditions” did testify of the coming of Christ. They plainly told that Christ would be the Savior of the world and would pay the price for our immortality and for our opportunity for Eternal Life through His atoning Sacrifice. This was the hope and the desire of the people; they were not led away because of it. They were led to paths of righteous living.
The truth is that the servants of God were the ones who sacrificed their time, their talent, and their energies to bring souls to Christ. They also helped people temporally and encouraged the people to help one another.
The truth is, although they were commanded not to be conceited, haughty, and unrighteously prideful, they were taught confidence in themselves and their Savior, because they were (as we are) beloved children of God.
They were encouraged to vote in their government. The same freedom—voice of the people—is encouraged in our time.
The truth is they could not only make use of what they had, the Lord prospered them further in their righteousness. Then, as now, they were encouraged to share their blessings with the poor.
The truth is that those “traditions” are the word of God—true scriptures. Dreams and visions are often revelations to prophets and other righteous people from God, and what Korihor called “whims” was the will of the Lord. Mysteries of God merely refer to what has not yet been revealed. There is nothing “pretended” about them.
The truth is when the people do not obey the commandments of God (which He gives them for their own benefit—their opportunity for Eternal progression!) they do offend Him. Evil always offends our righteous Lord! He is not unknown. That is an absolute lie. Those who believe in God know Him and strive to follow Him.
The truth is that God the Father certainly has been seen by righteous prophets and God, Jesus Christ, has also been seen several times—even visiting prophets before He was born, living among mortals during His Earthly life, introducing the Restoration of the Gospel and continuing to visit prophets after the Gospel was restored. He will yet be seen on Earth by all at His Second Coming—and if we follow His holy commandments, we will be with Him forever.
Gideon’s chief judge and Giddonah, the high priest, recognized the hardness of Korihor’s heart and they realized it would do no good to debate with him.
These good men sent Korihor “full circle”—back to where he first preached—into the land of Zarahemla—to be brought before the Chief Judge of all the land and also before Alma.
Korihor repeated his false assertions. His lies were foolish and easy to disprove, but he seemed to have a power of persuasion in his speech. Alma calmly dissolved each of Korihor’s assertions.
Very reasonably, Alma then asked Korihor why they would do this labor for no Earthly pay except “it were to declare the truth, that we may have rejoicings in the joy of our brethren?” With the “teaching to get gain” argument put to rest he then said, he asked Korihor if he believed in God. Korihor said “No.”:
Alma cautioned him to think carefully about his answer, telling him that he, Alma, knew there was a God. He asked Korihor what evidence he had that there was no God.
With insight that came from the Holy Ghost, Alma was able to know what was in Korihor’s heart. He knew that Korihor had opened himself up to the devil and closed his heart to the Holy Ghost. Just as the devil knows there is a Christ, although he lies and denies it, so did Korihor. Alma warned Korihor to think clearly and not deceive himself.
Often the devil accuses people of the things he is guilty of himself. Perhaps it is because he knows lying tricks so well. Korihor had said that the people of God were not free, but he had let himself become the slave of the devil and was being carried about doing the devil’s work.
Instead of answering Alma’s probing questions, Korihor realized that Alma had gone straight to the heart of the truth, and he countered with the Satan’s old “show me a sign” tactic.
In exasperation, Alma repeated that in the face of all evidence, Korihor went around persuading people to believe lies, testifying that there was no God. And now, the last straw was the old “except ye shall show me a sign” challenge.
On reflection, Alma realized it would be necessary to take the chance that Korihor’s soul may be lost to the devil; he had refused to listen to the Holy Ghost or any of God’s servants, and he was destroying other souls. Alma warned him with one last chance.
The devil had such a strong hold on Korihor that even though he believed Alma was telling the truth, Korihor continued to demand a sign.
At that point, the most appropriate sign for Korihor was one that would stop him from doing any more harm. He was struck dumb.
Korihor confessed (in writing) that he had listened Satan because that devil had told him what he wanted to hear—excuses to live carnally. Then, when he had so much success in converting others to the devil, he shut the truth from his heart.
Korihor then asked that his sign be taken away, but the Lord knew Korihor would go back to his evil ways and lead more people astray if his sign was taken from him. God knew the heart of Korihor. His wicked desires had not changed dramatically, but only his power to carry them out.
The Chief Judge then sent a severe proclamation throughout the whole land aimed at Korihor’s recent converts telling them what happened to Korihor. Those who listened eagerly to Korihor’s evil message, convincing themselves that they could live in wickedness without consequence to their own souls, now realized that Korihor’s rhetoric was false and wicked—and so they repented.
Korihor went about begging for food. There was a large fringe group, the Zoramites, who were led by Zoram, another of the devil’s disciples. Perhaps feeling safer with them, Korihor went over to the area of the land where they lived. Like their master, Satan, his wicked disciples do not care about even their cohorts in wickedness. They threw Korihor down and trampled him to death.
CHAPTER 31
Alma was the presiding High Priest of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Western Hemisphere. He made Church assignments, including ordaining other high priests to preside over different areas. Ammon was called as high priest over Jershon, and Giddonah was high priest over Gideon. Amulek and Zeezrom, who remained faithful disciples of Christ, were called from Melek to come with Alma to be part of a missionary team, although we are not told in what capacity they were serving at the time.
Because Mormon selected mostly saving doctrinal examples to record on the Plates, we know only few details of the civil organization of the Nephites; we do know that since king Mosiah’s time the people were governed by judges—and those judges were voted in office by the citizens. We also are not told many details about the organization of Church at that time, except that Alma, as presiding High Priest, appointed various teachers and priests to preside over different precincts.
We get a glimpse of his family in Chapter 31, finding that he had three sons.
Many Nephites were anxious that because the Zoramites were often wicked and unpredictable, they would band with the Lamanites and start more trouble against the rest of the Nephites.
The greatest loss that concerned Alma was the loss of souls from Christ. Many years ago, when he was Chief Judge over the land, he gave up this highest civil position in the country to devote his life to preaching the Gospel. Because he recognized the Power of the Holy Ghost when he directly bore his testimony as he taught the people, he assembled a missionary team to go preach to the Zoramites who were perverting the ways of God. Alma did not want this perversion to spread.
Alma gave up the highest judgeship position in the land in order to preach repentance and Salvation to people throughout the entire land of the Nephites, because he knew the efficacy of verbally and personally bearing one’s testimony and teaching the word of God, witnessed by the Holy Ghost. For the mission to the Zoramites, Alma consolidated an impressive team:
Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner (sons of Mosiah).
Amulek and Zeezrom
The younger two of his three sons, Shiblon and Corianton.
Before he left, he put Himni, another of Mosiah’s sons, in charge of the Church in Zarahemla. He did not take his oldest son, Helaman, with him, but likely left him to help Himni keep things going well in the main body of the Church.
The Zoramites once had the true Church and then they had fallen away, embracing false doctrine.
Although the missionaries were somewhat prepared from reports they had received that the Zoramites had begun to worship idols and were distorting God’s truth, they were totally astounded with the evil and twisted way with which the devil had taught the people to mock Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
God has always commanded His people to build sacred houses of worship. Zoramites built synagogues but misused them, building a strange place in the middle of the synagogue to go up and shout to God, one person at a time.
The Zoramites proceeded to perform a weird form of worship from this stand, stretching their hands high into the air and crying out their blasphemes in loud voices.
A deceptive trick of the devil is to mingle the “philosophies of men” with scripture, making them polluted and twisted. God certainly is holy. God is not a spirit alone, but God the Father is a resurrected Being of perfected flesh and bone and Spirit) who wants us, His children, to also obtain a body. This is one of the reasons for us being here on Earth. It is though the Zoramites were praying to Satan.
God did not separate the Zoramites from other Nephites; by apostatizing from the true Gospel, they separated themselves and followed the devil under the mortal leadership of Zoram.
The scriptures are the written word of God. The devil does everything possible to keep all of us from reading and understanding them. He taught his Zoramite followers to mock them, calling them “childish traditions.”
God is the God of all the people in the world. He chose the Children of Israel to be His assistants in spreading the Gospel to the world. The devil taught the Zoramites to make the same error as many other Israelites, namely, to think that because the Lord chose them, they were better and more beloved than other people.
Ever since Heavenly Father chose His wonderful, loving, and perfect Son, (Jehovah—Jesus Christ), to be our Savior, (Lucifer—Satan), who is prideful and warped in jealousy, has tried to defeat our Lord. One nefarious method he uses is to teach his followers that Christ does not even exist.
The Lord is the same yesterday, today, and forever—but the rest of the doctrine is patently false. Contrast the smug and uncaring attitude of these Zoramites with the compassion and caring of the Lord’s true servants. The Zoramites delighted in the idea that others would be cast down to hell! This is consistent with the devil’s thinking; he certainly wants us to be miserable.
The devil convinced these Zoramites they were “saved” by going through the evil ceremony one day a week. They went about in great pride and self-aggrandizement, lusting for and accumulating false gods of gold and other riches, mistreating their fellows who were less prosperous than they—for the rest of the week. Watching this experience made Alma grieve over its wickedness.
The devil used sacred things of God and mocked Him. Satan was in every phrase of blaspheme that came from the mouths of those Zoramites. It promoted an atmosphere of evil that surrounded the whole land.
Alma and his companions immediately recognized the evil hand of Satan in the worship service and in the lives of the people. These good missionaries were sensitive to the poisonous atmosphere created by the father of lies. They heard our Lord and Savior being denied and His holy word being mocked. They saw the pride and the boasting and cruelty of the people. As this blatant wickedness touched their souls, it actually made the missionaries sick.
Alma cried out to the Lord for relief from being encircled by such wickedness and asked for relief from the dark cloud of evil besieging them.
Most wicked of all was their denial of Jesus Christ. The complete evilness that he could feel among the Zoramites so appalled him that that he was sick from it.
Alma prayed for Christ to comfort his soul. He knew that the Light of Christ was much stronger than the dark evil of the devil and that he and his fellow missionaries could be healed and strengthened and comforted. He knew that they could be blessed to perform their tasks if this hallowed Light poured into their souls, banishing the darkness.
Alma’s prayer was not only for his own comfort or for only the comfort of his missionary companions; he prayed for the strength of mind, body and spirit to perform the daunting missionary task according to the will of the Lord.
After heart-felt prayer, offered in great faith, Alma was inspired to use his Priesthood Power to bless his companions. Putting his hands on them, he gave them each a special blessing. Satan’s darkness was banished as the Holy Spirit filled these missionaries with intense Light.
Submerged within God’s Holy Spirit, Alma and his companions now were able to go forth to serve their mission among the difficult Zoramites.
CHAPTER 32
Alma’s missionary team was filled with the Spirit and went boldly forth to preach the word of God to the Zoramites.
Having first observed the rich and proud, the missionaries then began to know another group of Zoramite society—the poor. Because they lived in poverty—without hope—they were more receptive to the Gospel message.
The rich Zoramites treated the poor of their land in badly. All Zoramites, rich and poor, had fallen away from the true Gospel, yet the poor indicated a sincere desire to worship. The more powerful rich, however, did not allow the poor of society to even come into the synagogues. They called those in poverty filthy because they wore pitiful clothes and lacked other worldly goods.
Satan inspires cruel proud groups to observe others with a view clouded with deception. Much racism, ethnic elitism, and prejudice in the world comes from a puffed up sense of importance taught by the devil to the perpetuators. This has led to wars, brutality, and terrible crimes of humanity against humanity. In the Zoramite area, the poor were not only downtrodden, they were “esteemed,” meaning thought of, as filthiness and dross.
Often, when people are thought worthless by others, they begin to perceive themselves worthless. These underprivileged Zoramites were impoverished, but they were also “poor in heart”; their hearts were empty because they yearned to worship God but did not feel able to do so.
This destitute group of people flocked in great multitude to hear Alma preach on a hillside.
One man, who seemed to be a leader among them, bravely went up to Alma and asked him how they could worship God, since they were not allowed in the synagogues. These poor people had actually built the synagogues, and then after the buildings were complete, they were not allowed in them to worship.
Alma immediately recognized the worth in this assembly and he knew why they were in poverty. The Holy Spirit inspired Alma that their indigence saved them from becoming like the wicked priests and rich Zoramites who were perverting the word of God. It prepared them to accept the Gospel. Alma stopped trying to teach the rich and proud in the land
Alma asked them two important questions:
Did they think they could only worship God in synagogues?
Did they think they could only worship God one day a week?
Alma told them that their poverty was a blessing; it had prepared them to be lowly in heart. Humility is necessary for one to be willing to accept the word and graciousness of God in saving us and will help learn wisdom.
Poverty is not a prerequisite for accepting the Gospel, but love of riches, more than spiritual blessings, and living one’s own will rather than submitting to God’s will, makes accepting the Gospel—God’s will—harder than a “camel going through an eye of a needle.”
Alma taught that repentance was requisite for Eternal Life, and that when people are compelled to be humble, they sometimes seek repentance. There is still choice. If unfortunate circumstances foster bitterness rather than humility, it is less likely that repentance will occur.
Repenting allows us to receive Christ’s mercy; if we continue to follow Christ, embracing our part of His infinite Atonement, striving to live righteously, we will become “perfect in Christ,” and we will be saved in the Kingdom of God.
Alma did not judge the people—saying they were only humble because they were compelled. He said some of them would be humble no matter what their circumstances. Alma spoke about four categories of people:
1. Those who are compelled by circumstances—mostly poverty—to be humble.
2. Those who are humble without being compelled, but who have receptive hearts.
3.Those who refuse to live by faith and, instead, ask for signs.
4. Those who know the truth but refuse to live it.
Alma asked the people to examine themselves to decide in which category they would put themselves (see verse 20).
Next Alma gave a great sermon on the principle of faith, teaching the people in allegory to help them understand the abstract concept of faith and how to acquire it.
first have faith—without physical proof—in the word of God;
next do the will of God;
next nurture the faith so it will grow into true knowledge.
Aspects of this procedure are interactive; when perfect knowledge is gained in one thing, it will then lead to faith in the next thing—and continuing to do God’s will increases faith in the next thing until that thing reaches perfect knowledge—and so forth. But if we reach perfect knowledge in anything but refuse to do God’s will, the knowledge, which comes from the Holy Ghost, will be covered by darkness of the devil.
Although Alma was preaching these things to poverty-stricken Zoramites centuries ago, they were preserved for us so that we may also learn more of belief, faith, attaining knowledge, and doing the will of God.
Christ desires to extend His mercy to us. Because all who believe in Jesus Christ can begin to know His mercy, to start with, Christ wants us to believe His word, which is His holy Gospel. So even though we may not know at first, we should extend ourselves to believe.
God gives us His word through angels. In the beautiful words of Alma, angels give the word of God to men, to women, and to little children.
Alma realized, that because faith precedes perfect knowledge, they needed first to believe in his words before they would know that they were true. He challenged his listeners to experiment with his words, using a particle of faith—a desire to believe; then they could let the desire lead to a belief in at least some of his words.
Alma used an appropriate metaphor as he compared a seed, something that has the potential to grow into something larger, to the word of God; he did this in allegory length.
He called on the people to “experiment” with the teachings he was giving them like planting a seed. He challenged them to find if the word he was giving them was good.
Alma explained that the good feeling was the beginning of faith—but it was not yet perfect knowledgethat the word was true.
This spiritual experiment brings us from belief, to faith in one aspect of God’s word to a finally a perfect knowledge in that one thing.
Alma touched on the concept of a great force and Power, the Light of Christ. The Light of Christ fills the immensity of space and quickens the understanding. The Holy Ghost works within this Light. He gives “gifts of the Spirit” gifts as the witness to Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ; also with His Power within this Light, He blesses us with health of body, expansion of the mind, and spiritual enlightenment. The Light of Christ gives Light and Life, and whatever is Light is good.
Alma cautioned them that they still had a long way to go as they built their faith, step by step. The “experiment” would exercise their faith to see if the seed—this part of the word of God—was good, and they would have gained a perfect knowledge that it was good.
Gaining knowledge in one area, they must use faith to continue gaining and strengthening testimonies of Jesus Christ and His Gospel.
Conversely, Alma said if they neglect the tree (or the word of God), it would wither away. Alma continued the allegory, saying the tree would not grow on barren ground, even though the seed and the tree and the fruit of the tree would have been good if it had the proper nourishment.
Alma gave the allegorical endings to two possible scenarios. It would either be neglected or it would be nourished with faith, diligence, and patience.
When embracing the Atonement of Jesus Christ we are partaking of the love of God the Father—“God so loved the world that He gave His Only Begotten Son…” (John 3:16). It is also the love of Jesus Christ, who offered Himself—the infinite Sacrifice—to give us the opportunity of eternal life.
CHAPTER 33
Alma gave a comforting and enlightening sermon to the Zoramite poor, who had been worried because they were not allowed to worship in the synagogues.
The people were willing to listen, but Alma’s teachings were strange to them and many things they did not understand. They asked:
Should they believe in one God so they could obtain the precious fruit?
How should they plant the seed, or the word, in their hearts?
How should they begin to exercise their faith?
Alma decided to address a major concern first—their worry of not getting into the synagogues to worship. The answers to some of their concerns were basic to what Nephites had always been taught from the scriptures, originating with the Brass Plates. And the Zoramites were Nephites—who had dissented.
We assume from what Alma said to the people that, even though they were poor, they were literate, and they had access to scriptures. He told them that if they thought the scriptures taught they could only worship in synagogues, they didn’t understand the scriptures. He first referred to the prophet, Zenos, and how he prayed in the wilderness, in his field, in his house, in his closet, and also in the midst of the congregations.
God is God over the entire world, and He hears His children when they sincerely pray to Him, no matter where they are.
Then Alma answered their first question, testifying powerfully of the Savior, Jesus Christ, who would come to redeem believers.
Because of Jesus Christ’s infinite Sacrifice, God’s mercy is over all people if they repent and accept Christ’s Gospel. Zenos recognized God’s judgment (punishment for sins) can be abolished if we strive to live righteously, because Jesus Christ took all sins upon Himself and, with infinite agony, suffered the punishment for all of them. If we show our sorrow for our sins and sincerely repent of them, and then continue to strive to live righteously, we are left only with joy!
Alma appealed to his listeners as fellow-Nephites who had had the scriptures with them for centuries. If they believed the scriptures, they could not doubt that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, would come to redeem them; He would pay for all sins with His anguish.
Every law and principle that Moses set forth (under the direction of God) was a representation, or type, of Christ—His miraculous birth, His life, His ministry, His infinite atoning Sacrifice in Gethsemane and on the cross, and then His subsequent glorious Resurrection, His Second Coming, and the final Judgment.
Under God’s direction, Moses taught the Children of Israel, who had lived hundreds of years in idol-worshiping Egypt and picked up many blasphemous practices, what came to be called the Law of Moses. That law was given by the Lord Himself as a preparation for the higher law. It was first, last, and exclusively, a representation of Jesus Christ, our true Lord. Moses testified of Christ.
As Nephi earlier told his people and Alma now told the Zoramites, Moses taught the Israelites of Jesus Christ—who was to come into the world and save all mankind of their spiritual wounds—to heal them, if they would simply repent and turn their eyes to Him, following what He, their Redeemer, showed them and told them to do. Then they could live—Eternally—with God.
With Alma, review the fundamentals of building faith, keeping in mind that belief is the foundation or beginning of faith; after building a foundation with our belief, we must continually use active faith, diligence, and patience, so that our path back to Eternity is carefully marked on solid and sure ground.
Begin to believe in the Son of God.
Believe Christ will come to redeem His people.
Believe that He will suffer and die to atone for their sins.
Believe that He will arise from the dead.
Believe that His rise from the dead will bring about the Resurrection.
Believe that men will stand before Him to be judged at that last Judgment Day.
Believe that men shall be judged according to their works in this life.
Alma again stressed to these poor Zoramites to plant the word of the Savior in their hearts and then to nourish it with faith. He told them of wonderful blessings they would receive if they did this, and assured them that they could do this if they so chose.
CHAPTER 34
After Alma bore his testimony to the poverty stricken Zoramites, his good friend and missionary companion, Amulek, rose and reviewed what Alma had said and also gave them additional information.
Amulek knew that the Zoramites, who were also Nephites, had already been taught of Christ.
Amulek reviewed the experiment Alma had asked all of them to try. He reminded them that the experiment was to help them prepare their minds to embrace the truth with faith and patience.
Alma and Amulek had been taught by angels. They lived within the Light of Christ. They were filled with the Power of the Holy Ghost. With this great Power, they were able to discern the most pressing concern that the people had. The devil told them there was no Christ. Alma told them Christ was the Center of existence. The great question for this people was whether or not to believe Alma.
Amulek summarized proving points that the word of God was “in” Christ, and that all the scriptures encompassed and testified of Christ (verse 6). He reiterated that Zenos, Zenock, and Moses all testified of Christ.
Christ, the Son of God, would come into the world to save all who would repent of their sins.
Amulek knew Christ would come because God said so. God has always spoken to His prophets; we have the opportunity to read their testimonies in the Holy Scriptures. He taught that the mission of the Savior was expedient to the Salvation of all people. When our Eternal Father presented the great Plan of Salvation to us in the pre-mortal world, He told us that the only way we could return to Him was to be completely cleansed of our sins.
We are only allowed to repent and be cleansed on condition that Someone completely and absolutely perfect takes punishment for us. The Sacrifice, in order to meet the demands of justice, must be infinite and Eternal. Therefore the God, Jesus Christ, Son of God the Father, would have to make the infinite Eternal sacrifice to save us all.
Christ completed this great, last, infinite, and Eternal Sacrifice, and so He fulfilled the law He had given to Moses—the law intending that the sacrifices the Children of Israel made would keep His forthcoming atoning Sacrifice in minds and hearts of His people.
This Sacrifice was the greatest because Christ Himself, the Son of God, is the greatest of us all and the effect of His Sacrifice had the greatest possible outcome—to overcome death and open the prospect for Eternal Life. It would be last, because following Christ’s Sacrifice, the purpose for which other sacrifices had been made for centuries was fulfilled—and no longer necessary.
Because all mortals have sinned and because with only mortal heritage, no human is capable—in purity or physically—of making an infinite Sacrifice. Because none of us are God, we are not capable of making an Eternal Sacrifice. Amulek pointed out that even in Earthly law, people had to take their own punishment for crimes they commit (verses 11 & 12).
God alone could make the great and last Sacrifice. And not only did God make the great and last Sacrifice—He was the great and last Sacrifice.
Amulek explained the reason for the Atonement. In the universal law of justice, if a crime is committed, a price must be paid. If a Savior would go through the incomprehensible agony to pay for all the sins of mankind, we mortals may then partake of His mercy by repenting of our sins and always striving to keep His commandments.
The only way mercy could “satisfy the demands” of justice was through the Sacrifice of the Savior.
There could be no repentance had Christ not paid the demands of justice, taking upon Himself all of our sins and then taking punishment for them. But because He did atone for all sins, infinitely, as our God Eternal, we are allowed to repent. Christ paid the price, but we also have a price to pay in order to fully embrace His Atonement.
The gift of immortality is given to everyone through the grace of Christ our Savior because of His Atonement and Resurrection, but to fully participate in His Atonement for remission of our sins, we must:
Have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Show our true belief by humbly repenting of our sins,
Strive to obey God’s commandments, beginning with baptism (which are for our own good!). Otherwise, we will assume entire punishment for our own sins. Without repentance, justice prevails over mercy.
(verse 16)
After telling the Zoramites what needed to be done, Amulek told them how to do it—beginning with the great principle of prayer. He reminded them they could pray anywhere and at any time. They were to pray for both spiritual and temporal blessings and in all circumstances.
Amulek stressed praying for others as well as for ourselves. Mormon passed the important message down through the years. We need to carry a prayer for ourselves and for others in our hearts continually. And not only were they to pray for others, they were to help those in need.
Amulek cautioned that when poor Zoramites converted to Christ, they should not fall into the same trap as the rich Zoramites—who thought they were better than others.
Amulek again reminded the Zoramites of the many witnesses to the truth they already had—and He called on them to “bring fruit unto repentance.” Qualities denoted in the metaphor, “fruit” are “humble hearts and faith in Christ with willingness to partake in His Atonement through their repentance”.
Because this life is the time to prepare to meet God does not mean we will be perfected in this life. We are asked to have faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, to repent, to be baptized, witnessing to our Savior, and prepare for and accept a baptism of fire, the great gift of the Holy Ghost (verses 31 & 32).
As we continue in our faith, as we continue in our repentance, as we continue to witness to Jesus Christ by worthily partaking of the sacrament, by constantly striving to better ourselves, by following the example of our Savior and obeying His commandments, then through the Power of the Holy Ghost, we will gradually become sanctified and purified—and be true to our part of the Atonement.
Looking to Christ to bridge the gap of our imperfections, we will reach the state we must obtain to be judged ready to meet God. Thus we will be redeemed.
Many of God’s spirit children listened to Satan in the pre-mortal life. They were cast out of Heaven—but continued with their master, the devil, to recruit many to the awful side of misery. Many who did not chooseSatan in pre-mortality turn a willing ear to him in mortality. Mormon summarized Amulek’s warning to us all—if Satan is desirable to us in Earth life, we will continue to be on his side in eternity.
For centuries, until Christ came to Earth and completed His great and Eternal Sacrifice, and was resurrected—the unrepentant went to spirit prison to dwell after they died. No one preached the Gospel to them and they were without hope of Salvation. Without their bodies they were unable to follow the basic Gospel principles—no labor could be performed. Although some may have felt sorry for their wickedness on Earth, repentance is tied to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and baptism. Ordinances of baptism and those made in the temple are necessary for Eternal progression, and can only be performed on Earth. It was truly a “night of darkness”.
The spirit that possesses our bodies could refer to the essence of ourselves that is the same when we die as when we are alive. It could also mean the spirit or evil influence of the devil—if his influence is the spirit we choose in this life. His ideas and his lying reasoning will still possess the hearts of those who have made the choice to listen to him in this life—after they die.
If we choose darkness over the Light of Christ, the influence of the Holy Ghost will not dwell with us. The Holy Ghost is so pure that He will not dwell side by side with evil darkness; He will not dwell in unholy places—including in us if we are unholy. We can choose. Christ’s Light is stronger than darkness. We can choose to embrace it. But we are not forced to live in the Light.
Amulek contrasted the state of the wicked with the condition of the righteous who choose to commit to their part in the Atonement of our Lord. These are the souls who:
will have the Holy Ghost dwell in their hearts; will sit down in the Kingdom of our Lord and “go no more out,” will have their garments made white through the blood of the Lamb [will have their sins dissolved through the Atonement of the Lord].
Keep our hearts open
to the Holy Ghost’s influence and witness of Christ
and live so that His influence will dispel the darkness of Satan.
Joyfully receive the gift of testimony
and Light of Jesus Christ.
Our bodies were made of the “dust,” the elements of Earth,
by Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Be humbly thankful to Christ and Heavenly Father
for our chance of mortality and our blessing of immortality
when our bodies will join forever with our spirits.
Do not just go through the motions,
seeming to worship as we follow “form only.”
Let our spirits truly and thankfully come close to our God
and worship Him.
Sundays are not enough;
to keep the Holy Ghost in our hearts, we need to:
Witness to Christ in our every day living,
Realize always that He is the only Source of our Salvation
and opportunity for Eternal Life;
Never forget the great and infinite and Eternal price Christ paid
as the great and last Sacrifice—to obtain our mercy.
Recognize that Christ is the Source of the blessings
we receive constantly on a daily basis.
Amulek went on to advise the Zoramites how to achieve these qualities in their lives, specifically stating prayer, patience, and hope of Eternal Life. He reminded them that the devil rewards “no good thing.”
CHAPTER 35
After Alma, Amulek, and their fellow missionaries preached to the Zoramites, all of the missionaries went to Jershon, the land where Ammon served as high priest over the Lamanite Anti-Nephi-Lehies. This faithful group of people is now referred to as “Ammonites,” or “the people of Ammon.” It is probable that the missionary servants of God—with the Spirit of prophesy—were laying groundwork for an exodus of many converts from the land of the Zoramites.
Alma and Amulek had taught the Zoramite poor. We are not told to which classes of Zoramites the other missionaries preached. We know their message made a large stir throughout the land. The “popular,” or powerful, Zoramites, including rulers, priests, and teachers, were angry because of the truths the missionaries taught. The beautiful message of the Gospel destroyed the evil “crafts” of the powerful group.
Satan saw the missionaries’ success and he rallied his wicked troops to fight back and fight dirty. He inspired the leading Zoramites to call a meeting of inhabitants of the land, the purpose supposedly to hear the will of the people concerning the missionaries’ message. These deceitful leaders did not tell the people they were angry about the words that were preached and how they planned to use the information that they gathered at the meeting.
The evil leaders then drove out all the believers from the land. These “cast-outs” sought refuge in Jershon, the Ammonites’ land. Alma and the other missionaries were there, waiting to give them relief and comfort.
The convert Zoramites were much better off with the Ammonites than they ever had been with their cruel and evil fellow Zoramites. The Zoramite chief ruler was a chief follower of Satan. Wanting the “cast-outs” to feel rebuffed and rejected, he and other wicked Zoramites were angry at how, ironically, things turned out well for the converts. They did not want the people of Ammon to offer the Zoramite converts asylum.
The faithful people of Ammon did not pay attention to the threats of the Zoramites. The Ammonites were not afraid of death and they would give up their lives willingly—rather than kill anyone. They certainly were not going to give up the refugees—fellow-believers of Christ—to the less than tender mercies of evil Zoramites—because of the Zoramite chief’s threats.
The Lamanites were still a large group to be reckoned with—especially if they were reinforced. They had nursed grievances with both the Ammonites and the Nephites since the tragic war (even though they started it). Satan saw an opportunity to join forces of two wicked groups. When the Ammonites dismissed the Zoramites’ threats, the Zoramites turned to the Lamanites and the combined group began preparations for war.
The coming war looked to be so serious that a decision was made to have the Ammonites transfer from Jershon to Melek. The Nephite army would be quartered in Jershon.
Many Zoramites believed in Jesus Christ. These converts had repented and were cast out of their land. Now living in Jershon, they chose to join the army against other Zoramites and the Lamanites.
Alma rejoiced as people were brought into the fold of Christ. However, it was discouraging to him to see many Nephites turn so easily back to wickedness after he had helped strengthen them in the faith. Returning to Zarahemla, he saw many Nephites in that prosperous city becoming wicked again. Too often they refused to break the tragic cycle, reverting to wickedness, and showing extreme lack of gratitude when the Lord prospered them for their righteousness.
It grieved Alma to see the iniquitous attitude of the Nephites and to have to go from city to city, preaching repentance again and again. He knew the wickedness of the people was causing the protection of God to withdraw, bringing about their wars and contentions.
To bolster up the testimonies of his sons,
Alma called each one to him separately,
to speak to them of righteousness.
The next seven chapters are
Alma’s recorded heartfelt messages to his sons.