Alma 40-51

Quotes of the Week:

One thing we should remember is that the Lord does not punish us for our sins.  He simply withholds his blessings and we punish ourselves.

--Theodore M. Burton, "The Meaning of Repentance," BYU Devotional, 3/26/85

Alma bluntly told his wayward son that "repentance could not come unto men except there were a punishment."  The punishment may, for the most part, consist of the torment we inflict upon ourselves. It may be the loss of privilege or progress. . . . We are punished by our sins, if not for them.

--Boyd K. Packer, Ensign, 11/95, 19

Further Reading:

Elaine S. Dalton, "A Return to Virtue", Ensign, Nov. 2008, 78–80
Robert D. Hales, "Christian Courage: The Price of Discipleship", Ensign, Nov. 2008, 72–75
Jeffrey R. Holland, "Because of Your Faith", Ensign, Nov. 2010, 6–8
Howard W. Hunter, "No Less Serviceable," Ensign, 4/92, 64
Boyd K. Packer, "“I Will Remember Your Sins No More”", Ensign, May 2006, 25–28
Eugene England, "Moroni and His Captains: Men of Peace in a Time of War", Ensign, Sept. 1977, 29

Handouts:

Alma 40:8--Measures of Time

Gerald Lund, as quoted in First Nephi, the Doctrinal Foundation, p. 158-59
Abraham was told that one revolution (or day) on Kolob equals a thousand of our years (Abraham 3:4).  If one were to carry the ratio down to smaller units of time we see some interesting implications.

Kolob Time        Earth Time
1 day            1,000 years
1 hour            41.67 years
1 minute            253 days
1 second            4.22 days
.25 second        1.1 days
.01 second        1 hour

Think of the implications of that.  While a person on Kolob takes a two-hour nap, a person on Earth is born, lives to the age of eighty and dies before the other awakens.  One blink on the part of a Kolobian and he misses one whole day of ours.

Alma 40:11-15--The Soul between Death and Resurrection

Discourses of Brigham Young, p. 376
When you lay down this tabernacle, where are you going?  Into the spiritual world.  Are you going into Abraham's bosom?  No, not nigh there but into the spirit world. Where is the spirit world?  It is right here.  Do the good and evil spirits go together?  Yes, they do.  Do the both inhabit one kingdom?  Yes, they do.  Do they go to the sun?  No.  Do they go beyond the boundaries of the organized earth?  No, they do not.  They are brought forth upon this earth.

Brigham Young, as cited in Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 309
Many wonder where people go after death.  In other words, where is the world of spirits?  It is here right now . . . It is incorporated within this celestial system.  Can you see it with your natural eyes? No.  Can you see spirits in this room? No. Suppose the Lord should touch your eyes that you might see, could you then see the spirits? Yes, as plainly as you now see bodies, as did the servant of Elijah. If the Lord would permit it, and it was his will that it should be done, you could see the spirits that have departed from this world, as plainly as you now see bodies with your natural eyes.

Alma 42:, 16--The Great Plan of Happiness

 Neal A. Maxwell, CR, 4/84, 29-30
The plan cannot bring true happiness to anyone whose life is grossly inconsistent with its standards. . . . It has no place of honor for one too concerned with losing his place in the secular synagogue.

Alma 42:11-31--Laws of Justice and Mercy

Book of Mormon Student Manual, p. 230
The two aspects of justice:
1.  Obedience to law results in blessings that bring joy.
2.  Disobedience to law results in punishments that bring sorrow.

The two ways to satisfy justice:
1.  Never violate the law.
2.  If you do violate the law, pay the penalty.
Problem:  No flesh is justified by the law; everyone has sinned.  Thus, a penalty must be paid.

Two effects of sin:
1.  By temporal law we are cut off--justice is violated.
2.  By spiritual law we perish.

Christ initiated the law of mercy.
1.  He kept the law perfectly and was without sin.  He was justified by the law.
2.  In the Garden of Gethsemane and on the cross, He suffered and paid the price for the penalty as though He was guilty of every sin ever committed.
3.  He is our advocate with the Father.

J. Reuben Clark, CR, 9/30/55, p. 24
I believe that our Heavenly Father wants to save every one of his children.  I do not think he intends to shut any of us off because of some slight transgression, some slight failure to observe some rule or regulation. . . . I believe that in his justice and mercy, he will give us the maximum reward for our acts, give us all that he can give, and in the reverse, I believe that he will impose upon us the minimum penalty which it is possible for him to impose.

C.S. Lewis, "The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment," as quoted in Neal A. Maxwell, One More Strain of Praise, p. 8
Mercy, detached from Justice, grows unmerciful.  That is the important paradox.  As there are plants which flourish only in mountain soil, so it appears that Mercy will flower only when it grows in the crannies of the rock of Justice.

Boyd K. Packer, Ensign, 5/00, 255
Each of us lives on a kind of spiritual credit.  One day the account will be closed, a settlement demanded.  However casually we may view it now, when that day comes and the foreclosure is imminent, we will look around in restless agony for someone, anyone to help us.
And, by eternal law, mercy cannot be extended save there be one who is both willing and able to assume our debt and pay the price and arrange the terms for our redemption.
Unless there is a mediator, unless we have a friend, the full weight of justice untempered, unsympathetic, must, positively fall on us.  The full recompense for every transgression, however minor or however deep, will be exacted from us to the uttermost farthing.
But know this:  Truth, glorious truth, proclaims there is such a Mediator.
"For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." (I Tim. 2:5)
Through Him, mercy can be fully extended to each of us without offending the eternal law of justice.
This truth is the very root of Church doctrine.
The extension of mercy will not be automatic.  It will be through covenant with Him.  It will be on His terms, His generous terms, which include, as an absolute essential, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins.
All mankind can be protected by the law of justice, and at once each of us individually may be extended the redeeming and healing blessing of mercy.

Victor Hugo, Les Miserables

And whatever he did, he always fell back onto this paradox at the core of his thought. To remain in paradise and become a demon! To re-enter hell and become an angel! (p. 235)

It's a pity the law doesn't allow me to be merciful.

"The bishop approached him and said, in a low voice, 'Do not forget, ever, that you have promised me to use this silver to become an honest man.' Jean Valjean, who had no recollection of any such promise, stood dumbfounded. The bishop had stressed these words as he spoke them. He continued solemnly, 'Jean Valjean, my brother, you no longer belong to evil, but to good. It is your soul I am buying for you. I withdraw it from dark thoughts and from the spirit of perdition, and I give it to God!" (105-6)

"The book the reader has now before his eyes - from one end to the other; in its whole and in its details, whatever the omissions, the exceptions, or the faults - is the march from evil to good, from injustice to justice, from the false to the true, from night to day, from appetite to conscience, from rottenness to life, from brutality to duty, from Hell to Heaven, from nothingness to God. Starting point: matter; goal: the soul. Hydra at the beginning, angel at the end." (1242)

Alma 42:29--Guilt and Repentance

Philip Allred, The Book of Mormon: The Foundation of Our Faith, 26
Guilt should lead to repentance.  Unfortunately, guilt can be like a two-edged sword--functional or dysfunctional.  Satan can pervert this divine tool by tempting the sinner to become discouraged rather than motivated. . . . Guilt, as a divinely designed consequence of sin, is meant to impel individuals to come unto Christ and repent.

Jeffrey R. Holland, The Book of Mormon: It Begins with a Family, p. 96-97
To me, none of the many approaches to teaching repentance falls more short than the well-intentioned suggestion that "although a nail may be removed from a wooden post, there will forever be a hole in that post."
We know that repentance (the removal of that nail, if you will) can be a very long and painful and difficult task. . . .  But where repentance is possible, and its requirements are faithfully pursued and completed, there is no "hole left in the post" for the bold reason that it is no longer the same post.  It is a new post.  We can start again, utterly clean, with a new will and a new way of life.

Captain Moroni--Our Superhero

Book of Mormon Student Manual, p. 249
Captain Moroni blended his good judgment with his obedience to God's counsel.

Glimpses into the Life and Heart of Marjorie Pay Hinckley, 188
This man was a brilliant military commander, and he rose to be supreme commander of all the Nephite forces at the age of twenty-five. For the next fourteen years hew as off to the wars continuously except for two very short periods of peace during which he worked feverishly at reinforcing the Nephite defenses.  When peace finally came, he was thirty-nine years old, and the story goes that at the age of forty-three he died.  Sometime before this he had given the chief command of the armies of the Nephites to his son Moronihah.  Now, if he had a son, he had a wife.  I've often wondered where she was and how she fared during those fourteen years of almost continuous warfare, and how she felt to have him die so soon after coming home.  I am sure there are many, many stories of patience and sacrifice that have never been told.

Joe J. Christensen, Heroes from the Book of Mormon, p. 133
It is of interest to note that approximately one out of  every ten pages of the Book of Mormon deals with the loife and times of Captain Moroni, . . . Given the number of people and events described in the Nephite writings, have you ever wondered why so much of what we have in the Book of Mormon is dedicated to this individual and the experiences that surrounded his life?
Apparently, the prophet Mormon had many of the Nephite records available to him from which he made his abridgement.  With divine guidance he selected and included those portions of the records that would be most valuable to us in our day. What are the messages from Captain Moroni and his time that have applicability to us at the present time?
First, in Captain Moroni we are provided with an authentic hero. . . .
Our young people today need heroes who go beyond the popular musicians, comedians, great athletes, the rich, and the famous. They . . . need to know of people like Captain Moroni, whose influence will live long after the applause of those who are currently popular has faded away.

H. Dean Garrett, as quoted in Studies in Scripture, 70
In Alma 1-42, Mormon emphasized priestcraft, materialism, social-economic inequality, and other social problems. This period is followed in Alma 43-63 by a period of war and civil disruptions.  This dissension led to a corruption of civil government (Helaman) and to the eventual collapse of the government.  At this point, the Savior visited the people.
A similar pattern of social problems, priestcrafts, materialism, wars, government corruption, and disrupted  life is prophesied for the last days leading to the Savior's Second Coming (see D&C 45:16-48; D&C 87; Mormon 8:26-41).  As indicated, Mormon and his successor, Moroni, saw our day (see Mormon 8:27-31 and took from the history and prophecies of the Nephites those events that would best help the readers of their record in the day in which it would come forth.

Alma 46:9--The Power of One

Harold G. Hillam, Ensign, 5/05, 32, quoting a talk given by a young mother at a stake conference
"My great-grandfather left church one Sunday with his family, and they never returned--no indication why.
"In my research, I have found that my great-grandfather has over 1,000 descendants.
"Of those 1,000 descendants, I am the only one active in the Church today."
As she said these words, I found myself thinking, Is it only 1,000, or could it be more?
The answer is apparent.  The spiritual influence that family might have had on their neighbors and friends did not happen.  None of his sons nor any of his daughters served as missionaries, and those they would have touched with their testimonies were not baptized, and those were not baptized did not go on missions.  Yes, there are probably many thousands who are non in the Church today, and not in this very meeting, because of that great-grandfather's decision.
As I heard her talk, I found myself thinking, What a tragedy!

Alma 46:10--On Liberty and Agency

Ezra Taft Benson, as cited in Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 322
The war in heaven over free agency is now being waged here on earth. . . .
Moroni raised a title of liberty and wrote upon it these words:  "in memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children." Why didn't he write upon it "Just live your religion; there's no need to concern yourselves about your freedom, your peace, your wives, or your children"?  The reason he didn't do this was because all these things were a part of his religion, as they are of our religion today. . . .
Our stand for freedom is a most basic part of our religion; this stand helped get us to this earth, and our reaction to freedom in this life will have eternal consequences.  Man has many duties, but he has no excuse that can compensate for his loss of liberty.

Abraham Lincoln, as cited in Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 323
I believe in God, the Almighty Ruler of nations, our great and good merciful Maker, our Father in heaven, who notes the fall of a sparrow and numbers the hairs on our heads.  I recognize the sublime truth announced in the Holy Scriptures and proved by all history that those nations are blessed whose God is the Lord.  I believe that the will of God prevails.  Without him, all human reliance is vain.  With that assistance  I cannot fall.  I have a solemn vow registered in heaven to finish the work I am in, in full view of my responsibility to God, with malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives me to see the right.

Alma 46:23-27--Lost Prophecy of Joseph's Coat

Joseph Fielding Smith, The Way to Perfection, p. 121
We are told that there was a prophecy in the destruction of the coat of many colors worn by Joseph.  Part of it was preserved, and Jacob, before his death, prophesied that as a remnant of the coat was preserved so should a remnant of Joseph's posterity be preserved.
That remnant now found among the Lamanites shall eventually partake of the blessings of the Gospel.  They shall unite with the remnant which is being gathered from among the nations and they shall be blessed of the Lord forever.

Alma 47:11-18--Lehonti and Contention

Robert D. Hales, "Christian Courage: The Price of Discipleship", Ensign, Nov. 2008, 72–75
In the Book of Mormon, we read about Lehonti and his men camped upon a mount. The traitorous Amalickiah urged Lehonti to “come down” and meet him in the valley. But when Lehonti left the high ground, he was poisoned “by degrees” until he died, and his army fell into Amalickiah’s hands (see Alma 47). By arguments and accusations, some people bait us to leave the high ground. The high ground is where the light is. It’s where we see the first light of morning and the last light in the evening. It is the safe ground. It is true and where knowledge is. Sometimes others want us to come down off the high ground and join them in a theological scrum in the mud. These few contentious individuals are set on picking religious fights, online or in person. We are always better staying on the higher ground of mutual respect and love.

Lehonti and "by Degrees"

Elaine S. Dalton, "A Return to Virtue", Ensign, Nov. 2008, 78–80
. . . having embraced Amalickiah’s false promises, Lehonti was “poison[ed] by degrees” until he died. Not just poisoned, but “by degrees.” Could it be that this may be happening today? Could it be that first we tolerate, then accept, and eventually embrace the vice that surrounds us? Could it be that we have been deceived by false role models and persuasive media messages that cause us to forget our divine identity? Are we too being poisoned by degrees? What could be more deceptive than to entice the youth of this noble generation to do nothing or to be busy ever-texting but never coming to a knowledge of the truths contained in a book that was written for you and your day by prophets of God—the Book of Mormon? What could be more deceptive than to entice women, young and old, you and me, to be so involved in ourselves, our looks, our clothes, our body shape and size that we lose sight of our divine identity and our ability to change the world through our virtuous influence? What could be more deceptive than to entice men—young and old, holding the holy priesthood of God—to view seductive pornography and thus focus on flesh instead of faith, to be consumers of vice rather than guardians of virtue?

Alma 47:36--Dissention and Contention

Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, 11/01, 72
There are times when we must stand up for right and decency, for freedom and civilization, just as Moroni rallied his people in his day to the defense of their wives, their children, and the cause of liberty.


Ezra Taft Benson, Annual Boy Scouts Banquet, Commerce, Texas, 5/13/68
I do not believe the greatest threat to our future is from bombs or guided missiles.  I do not think our civilization will die that way.  I think it will die when we no longer care--when the spiritual forces that make us wish to be right and noble die in the hearts of men.

Alma 48:18--Heroes

Book of Mormon Student Manual
Find encouragement in the lives of Alma the Younger and the sons of Mosiah.  They were tragically wicked.  Yet their full repentance and service qualified them to be considered as noble as righteous Captain Moroni.

Alma 48:14-16--Justified to go to War

David O. McKay, CR, 4/42, 72
There are, however, two conditions which may justify a truly Christian man to enter--mind you, I say enter, not begin--a war:  (1) An attempt to dominate and to deprive another of his free agency, and (2) Loyalty to his country.  Possibly there is a third, viz., Defense of a weak nation that is being unjustly crushed by a strong, ruthless one.

Alma 48:19--No Less Serviceable

Howard W. Hunter, Ensign, 4/92, 64
Not all of us are going to be like Moroni, catching the acclaim of our colleagues all day every day.  Most of us will be quiet, relatively unknown folks who come and go and do our work without fanfare.  To those of you who may find that lonely or frightening or just unspectacular, I say, you are "no less serviceable" than the most spectacular of your associates.  You, too, are part of God's army.
Consider, for example, the profound service a mother or father gives in the quiet anonymity of a worthy Latter-day Saint home.  Think of the Gospel Doctrine teachers and Primary choristers and Scoutmasters and Relief Society visiting teachers who serve and bless millions but whose names will never be publicly applauded or featured in the nation's media.
Tens of thousands of unseen people make possible our opportunities and happiness every day.  As the scriptures state, the are "no less serviceable" than those whose lives are on the front pages of newspapers.
The limelight of history and contemporary attention so often focuses on the one rather than on the many.

Jeffrey R. Holland, "Because of Your Faith", Ensign, Nov. 2010, 6–8
. . . to the near-perfect elderly sister who almost apologetically whispered recently, “I have never been a leader of anything in the Church. I guess I’ve only been a helper,” I say, “Dear sister, God bless you and all the ‘helpers’ in the kingdom.” Some of us who are leaders hope someday to have the standing before God that you have already attained.

Alma 51:15--Internal Strife

Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 337
Where there is internal division, the body politic cannot stand with enduring strength.  Victory over the forces of evil requires unity of the faith and diligence in keeping the commandments of God.

Alma 30-39

Quotes of the Week:

"All of beauty in the earth bears the fingerprint of the Master Creator."

--Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, 5/78

"Real disciples absorb the fiery darts of the adversary by holding aloft the quenching shield of faith with one hand, while holding to the iron rod with the other.  There should be no mistaking, it will take both hands."

--Neal A. Maxwell, CR, 4/87

Further Reading:

Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "Of Things That Matter Most," Ensign, 11/10
Larry Lawrence, "Courageous Parenting," Ensign, 11/10

Handouts: 

Alma 30:12-28--Teachings of Korihor

Joseph B. Wirthlin, Ensign, 11/97
Societies structured by situational ethics--the belief that all truths are relative--create a moral environment defined by undistinguished shades of gray.

Joseph B. Wirthlin, Ensign, 3/93
Isn't it interesting that these groups consider it "freedom of expression" to profane the Lord's name and use obscenities, but oppose prayer in public places.

Alma 31:5--Power from the Word

Spencer W. Kimball, "What I Hope You Will Teach My Grandchildren and All Others of the Youth of Zion," CES address, 1966, p. 4

I find that when I get casual in my relationships with divinity and when it seems that no divine ear is listening and no divine voice is speaking, that I am far, far away.  If I immerse myself in the scriptures,  the distance narrows and the spirituality returns.  I find myself loving more intensely those whom I must love with all my heart and mind and strength, and loving them more.  I find it easier to abide their counsel.

Alma 32:6--Humility in Trial

Millet and McConkie, Doctrinal Commentary on the Book of Mormon, 3:224
It has been wisely observed that a blessing is anything that brings us nearer to God.  Thus our afflictions often become our greatest blessings.   It is in our extremities that most often we meet God, not in our comfort.  Thus any time conditions come to pass--even what at the time might be construed as tragic or unfortunate conditions--that lead us toward the truth or contribute to our eventual well-being, we have indeed been blessed.

Carlos E. Asay, Family Pecan Trees:  Planting a Legacy of Faith at Home, 193-94
Most of us seem to have the "Nephite cycle" as part of our character.  There is a point when we are teachable; our humility enables us to grow and to ride the crest of spirituality.  Then there are other times when we begin to feel self-sufficient and puffed up with pride. . . .  How much better it would be if we kept in remembrance our God and our religion and broke the cycle by consistent worship and righteous living.  How much better it would be if we were humbled by the word of the Lord and strong enough in spirit to remember our God in whatsoever circumstances we find ourselves.

Alma 32--Faith

Joseph Smith, Lectures on Faith, 1:24
Faith, then, is the first great governing principle which has power, dominion, and authority over all things; by it they exist, by it they are upheld, by it they are changed, or by it they remain, agreeable to the will of God.  Without it there is no power, and without power there could be no creation nor existence.

Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, 11/87, 54
Of all our needs, I think the greatest is an increase in faith.

Joseph B. Wirthlin, Ensign, 11/02, 83
Faith exists when absolute confidence in that which we cannot see combines with action that is in absolute conformity to the will of our Heavenly Father.  Without all three--first, absolute confidence; second, action; and third, absolute conformity--without these three, all we have is a counterfeit, a weak and watered-down faith.

New Witness, 191-92
Faith is not the power of positive thinking.  One does not have faith simply because he is positive or optimistic. Faith is based on the truth.

Richard G. Scott, Ensign, 5/03
Even if you exercise your strongest faith, God will not always reward you immediately according to your desires.  Rather, God will respond with what in His eternal plan is best for you. . . . Indeed, were you to know His entire plan, you would never ask for that which is contrary to it even though your feelings tempt you to do so.  Sincere faith gives us understanding and strength to accept the will of our Heavenly Father when it differs from our own.

Boyd K. Packer, "What Is Faith?" in Faith, 42-43
Faith, to be faith, must center around something that is not known.  Faith, to be faith, must go beyond that for which there is confirming evidence.  Faith, to be faith, must go into the unknown.  Faith, to be faith, must walk to the edge of the light, and then a few steps into the darkness.

James E. Talmage, Articles of Faith
Faith in Christ comprises belief in Him, combined with trust in Him.  One cannot have faith without belief; yet he may believe and still lack faith.  Faith is vivified, vitalized, living belief. . . .  Knowledge is to wisdom what belief is to faith, one an abstract principle, the other a living application.  Not possession merely, but the proper use of knowledge constitutes wisdom.

Alma 32:28--Planting the Seed

Joseph B Wirthlin, Ensign, 5/82
To soundly plant good seeds in your heart requires prolonged, intense, unremitting pondering.  It is a deep, ongoing, regenerating process which refines the soul.

Alma 34:18-27--Prayer

Joseph Fielding Smith, CR, 10/1919

No man can retain the Spirit of the Lord, unless he prays.  No man can have the inspiration of the holy Spirit, unless in his heart is found this spirit of prayer.

Alma 34:28-29--Service

Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 5:401
I love that man better who swears a stream as long as my arm yet deals justice to his neighbors and mercifully deals his substance to the poor, than the long, smooth-faced hypocrite.

Alma 34:32-33--Repentance after Death?

Richard G. Scott, Ensign, 5/97
You can progress much more rapidly here on earth with your mortal body in this environment of good and evil than you will as a spirit in the spirit world.

Alma 34:33--Procrastinating Repentance

J. Richard Clarke, Ensign, 5/93
I believe, to use an insurance phrase, we must pay the deductible.  We must experience sorrow enough, suffering enough, guilt enough so we are conscious and appreciative of the heavier burden borne by the Savior.  My soul pains when His Atonement is treated lightly, when the blessing of repentance is reduced to simply "taking care of it with the bishop," when there is brief confession without humility or godly sorrow.  . . .  Such indulgence in premeditated sin shows pitiful misunderstanding of repentance.

Alma 34:34-35--Attitudes after We Die

Teachings of the Presidents of the Church--Brigham Young, 279
The wicked spirits that leave here and go into the spirit world, are they wicked there?  Yes.

Alma 34:40-41

John H. Groberg, Ensign, 11/93, 26
Sometimes we pray for the strength to endure yet resist the very things that would give us that strength.  Too often we seek the easy way, forgetting that strength comes from overcoming things that require us to put forth more effort than we normally would be inclined to do

Alma 36:3--Supported in Their Trials

Neal A. Maxwell, Ensign, 5/04, 44
If various trials are allotted to you, partake of life's bitter cups, but without becoming bitter.

Alma 36:16-17--Racked, Tormented, Harrowed

Boyd K. Packer, Ensign, 5/01, 22-23
The prophet chose very graphic words.
Racked means "tortured."  Anciently a rack was a framework on which the victim was laid with each ankle and wrist tied to a spindle which could then be turned to cause unbearable pain.
A harrow is a frame with spikes through it.  When pulled across the ground, it rips and tears the soil.  The scriptures frequently speak of souls and minds being "harrowed up" with guilt.
Torment means "to twist,' a means of torture so painful that even the innocent would confess.

Alma 36:17; --Teachings of a Tender Parent

Jeffrey R. Holland, The Book of Mormon, It Begins with a Family, 97-98
The teachings and testimonies of parents and other good people have an inevitable, inexorable effect.  Those lessons are not lost on even the most wayward soul.  Somewhere, somehow, they get recorded in the soul and may be called upon in a great moment of need.
It was in such a moment that the young Alma "remembered also to have heard my father prophesy" (Alma 36:17).  That prophecy may have been uttered in a day when Alma was taunting his father, or jeering at those who believed, or willfully denying the reality of revelation.  It may have come at a time when his father assumed Alma did not care or hear or understand.  Or it may have come so early in life that his father might have thought he had forgotten. . . .  Now it was being called forth for the very protection it had intended to give. . . . There will always be a great power--even latent, delayed, residual power--in the words of God we utter.

Henry B. Eyring, Because He First Loved Us, 35-36
Some of you have invested months and years trying to offer people you love the gospel of Jesus Christ--to people who have not yet accepted it.  Take heart.  Alma the Younger, when he came to the point of extremity, remembered the words of his father and it saved his eternal life.  God may yet bless you with that greatest of all returns for the investment of your time, that the words of truth you spoke will be remembered in that moment of spiritual yearning by the person you loved enough to offer the most precious thing you ever received.

Christianson and Bassett, Life Lessons from the Book of Mormon, 79-80
(Alma 36:19) Notice the role of the father in the process of spiritual growth.  The Savior removed Alma's pain and stain of sin, but the words of the elder Alma lead his son to the fruits of Gethsemane.  The quality of spiritual example and instruction by parents illuminated the strait and narrow path for many of those who have become our heroes in the Book of Mormon.

Alma 37:32-37; 38:10-15; 39:9-14--To His Sons . . .

Larry R. Lawrence, Ensign, 11/10, 98-100
In these last days, what the world really needs is courageous parenting from mothers and fathers who are not afraid to speak up and take a stand. . . .  It is vital that parents have the courage to speak up and intervene before Satan succeeds.. . .
Our Church leaders have counseled us to establish righteous patterns in our homes. Consider five fundamental practices that have the power to fortify our youth: family prayer, family scripture study, family home evening, family dinner together, and regular one-on-one interviews with each child.
It takes courage to gather children from whatever they’re doing and kneel together as a family. It takes courage to turn off the television and the computer and to guide your family through the pages of the scriptures every day. It takes courage to turn down other invitations on Monday night so that you can reserve that evening for your family. It takes courage and willpower to avoid overscheduling so that your family can be home for dinner.
One of the most effective ways we can influence our sons and daughters is to counsel with them in private interviews. By listening closely, we can discover the desires of their hearts, help them set righteous goals, and also share with them the spiritual impressions that we have received about them. Counseling requires courage.
Try to imagine what the rising generation could become if these five righteous patterns were practiced consistently in every home. Our young people could be like Helaman’s army: invincible (see Alma 57:25–26).
Parenting teenagers in the latter days is a very humbling assignment.  Satan and his followers are striving to bring this generation down; the Lord is counting on valiant parents to bring them up.  Parents, "be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid" (Joshua 1:9).

Alma 37:6-7--Small and Simple Things

Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand a Little Taller, 13

The course of our lives is seldom determined by great, life-altering decisions.  Our direction is often set by the small, day-to-day choices that chart the track on which we run.  This is the substance of our lives--making choices.

Alma 37:35; 38:2--Youthful Obedience

Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, 5/95, 53

The decision we make, individually and personally, become the fabric of our lives.  That fabric will be beautiful or ugly according to the threads of which it is woven.  I wish to say particularly to the young men who are here that you cannot indulge in any unbecoming behavior without injury to the beauty of the fabric of your lies.  Immoral acts of any kind will introduce an ugly thread.  Dishonesty of any kind will create a blemish.  Foul and profane language will rob the pattern of its beauty.

Alma 38:12--Bridle Our Passions

Truman G. Madsen, Four Essays on Love, 36
What is a bridle for?  To kill, to diminish, or even to limit the spirit and power of the steed?  Never.  Once you have trained your pony you can direct him with the merest nudge.  Eventually you can give him his head and ride free, bareback like the wind.  We are given our bodies and our emotions not to destroy but to ride.  The bridle warns you that to get excited without listening to the voice of the Spirit (the rider) will bring a complaint, "Hey, wait for me!"  When the body is susceptible to the Spirit, it can always catch up to the Spirit.  But I defy anyone to get the Spirit in harmony with the runaway body.

Alma 39:4-5--Immorality

Ezra Taft Benson, BYU Speeches of the Year, 1987-88, 51
Do not be misled by Satan's lies.  There is no lasting happiness in immorality.  There is no joy to be found in breaking the law of chastisty.  Just the opposite is true.

Alma 39:5-6--Denying the Holy Ghost

Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, 23
The eyes can be deceived, as can the other physical senses, but the testimony of the Holy Ghost is certain.  The sin against the Holy Ghost requires such knowledge that it is manifestly impossible for the rank and file to commit such a sin.  Comparatively few Church members will . . . .deny the Holy Ghost.

Alma 39:9--Cross Yourself

Joseph B. Wirthlin, CR, 1982, 33
It is not possible to have a free ride on the road to joy, and there is no real joy that does not involve self-denial and self-discipline.

Ezra Taft Benson, "A Mighty Change of Heart," Ensign, 10/89, 4
Godly sorrow is a gift of the Spirit.  It is a deep realization that our actions have offended our Father and our God.  It is the sharp and keen awareness that our behavior caused the Savior, He who knew no sin, even the greatest of all, to endure agony and suffering.  Our sins caused Him to bleed at every pore.  This very real mental and spiritual anguish is what the scriptures refer to as having a "broken heart and a contrite spirit."

Richard G. Scott, Ensign, 11/02, 87
The painful consequences of sin were purposely put in His plan of happiness by a compassionate Father in Heaven so that you need not follow that tragic path in life.

Alma 39:11--Example

Henry B. Eyring, Ensign 11/02
Just the way you smile or the way you offer to help someone can build their faith.  And should you forget who you are, just the way you speak and the way you behave can destroy faith.

Alma 17-29

Quotes of the Week:

Prepare well for  a mission all your life, not just six months or a year before you go. . .
We want young men entering the mission field who can enter "on the run," who have the faith born of personal righteousness and clean living so that they can have a great and productive mission.

--Ezra Taft Benson, Ensign, 5/86

Suffering can make Saints of people as they learn patience, long-suffering and self-mastery.  The sufferings of our Savior were part of his education.

--Spencer W. Kimball, BYU Speeches of the Year, 1955

Further Reading:

Neal A. Maxwell, "Content with the Things Allotted unto Us," Ensign, 5/00, 72
M. Russell Ballard, Ensign, 4/02, 66-73
Thomas S. Monson, Ensign, 1/11, 4

Handouts:

Alma 17:2--Searched the Scriptures Diligently

Preach My Gospel, p. x
Richard G. Scott taught, "Knowledge carefully recorded is knowledge available in time of need.  Spiritually sensitive information should be kept in a sacred place that communicates to the Lord how you treasure it.  This practice enhances the likelihood of your receiving further light" (Ensign, 11/93, 86). 
Your study journal may be a bound journal, a notebook, or a binder.  Record and organize your thoughts and impressions in a way that fits how you learn.  Develop your own system to easily access key information in the future.  Use it often to review, access, and apply what you have learned.  Use your study journal to take notes and record impressions.

Howard W. Hunter, Ensign, 11/79, p. 64-65
To understand requires more than casual reading or perusal--there must be concentrated study. . . . not only should we study each day, but there should be a regular time set aside when we can concentrate without interference. . . . The important thing is to allow nothing else to  ever interfere with our study. . . . There are some who read to a schedule of a number of pages or a set number of chapters each day or week. . . . It is better to have a set amount of time to give scriptural study each day than to have a set amount of chapters to read.  Sometimes we find that the study of a single verse will occupy the whole time.

Ezra Taft Benson, Ensign, 5/86
When individual members and families immerse themselves in the scriptures regularly and consistently, . . . other areas of activity will automatically come.  Testimonies will increase.  Commitment will be strengthened. Families will be fortified.  Personal revelation will flow.

Alma 17:2-3--Successful Mission Preparation

Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 251(summarizing 17:2-3)
1.  Be "in the Lord" by following our Savior and keeping His commandments.
2.  Wax strong in the knowledge of the truth.
3.  Be of a sound understanding.
4.  Search the scriptures diligently to know the word of God.
5.  Pray and fast.
Regarding this preparation, Gordon B. Hinckley said, "Our young people have an obligation to prepare themselves for missionary service. . . . Live for the opportunity when you may go out as a servant of the Lord and an ambassador of eternal truth to the people of the world."

Spencer W. Kimball, Regional Representative Seminar, 4/3/75
"Oh, our beloved Father in Heaven, bring about the time when we may be able to bring in large numbers as Ammon and his brethren did--thousands of conversions, not dozens, not tens or fives or ones, thousands of conversions.  The Lord promised it; He fulfills His promises.
"Please, Father, open the doors of the nations."

Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, 11/02
We must raise the bar on the worthiness and qualifications of those who go into the world as ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ.


Thomas S. Monson, Ensign, 1/11, quoting General Conference 10/10
Every worthy, able young man should prepare to serve a mission. Such service is a priesthood duty—an obligation the Lord expects of us who have been given so very much. Young men, I admonish you to prepare for service as a missionary. Keep yourselves clean and pure and worthy to represent the Lord. Maintain your health and strength. Study the scriptures. Where such is available, participate in seminary and institute. Familiarize yourself with the missionary handbook Preach My Gospel.
Sisters, while you do not have the same priesthood responsibility as do the young men to serve as full-time missionaries, you also make a valuable contribution as missionaries, and we welcome your service.

To the mature brothers and sisters of the Church, I remind you that the Lord needs many, many more of you to serve as full-time missionaries. If you are not yet at the season of life to serve a couples mission, I urge you to prepare now for the day when, as your circumstances allow, you and your spouse might do so. There are few times in your lives when you will enjoy the sweet spirit and satisfaction that come from giving full-time service together in the work of the Master.

Now, some of you may be shy by nature or consider yourselves inadequate to respond affirmatively to the call to serve. Remember that this is the Lord’s work, and when we are on the Lord’s errand, we are entitled to the Lord’s help. The Lord will shape the back to bear the burden placed upon it.

Richard G. Scott, Ensign, 5/06
All that I now hold dear in life began to mature in the mission field.  Had I not been encouraged to be a missionary, I would not have the eternal companion or precious family I dearly love.  I am confident that I would not have had the exceptional professional opportunities that stretched my every capacity.  I am certain that I would not have received the sacred callings with opportunities to serve for which I will be eternally grateful.  My life has been richly blessed beyond measure because I served a mission.
Now can you understand why I am so anxious to motivate every one of you young men to be a worthy missionary?
I urge you not to pray to know whether you should go; rather, ask the Lord to guide you in whatever may be necessary to become a worthy, empowered full-time missionary.  You will never regret serving a mission, but you most probably will regret not serving if that is your choice.

Alma 18:3-9--Service Softens Hearts

Henry B. Eyring, Ensign, 2/04
King Lamoni had been brought up with a belief that there was a God but that whatever the king did was right.  He had been specifically taught false doctrine that might have made him impervious to feelings of guilt.
. . .  Never underestimate the spiritual value of doing temporal things well for those whom you serve.

Vaughn J. Featherstone, New Era, 1975
"Would that our Father, our Heavenly King, could say this about his children--that we remembered all of his commandments to execute them.  What would our Heavenly King have us do as his children?  We should be faithful in filling every assignment.  We ought to be virtuous and pure and trustworthy.  We ought to stand steadfast in our callings, filling them in the same dedicated and loyal fashion in which Ammon filled his assignments as a servant of the king."

Alma 18:24-28--Building on Common Beliefs

Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, 11/02, 81
We say in a spirit of love, bring with you all that you have of good and truth which you have received from whatever source, and come and let us see if we may add to it.  This invitation I extend to men and women everywhere.

Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 255
While president of the Central States Mission, Elder Alvin R. Dyer conducted a mission-wide research poll among all of the converts of the mission, asking them to declare when they first knew that the gospel was true.  Several thousand participated in the project.  Elder Dyer learned that 82% of the converts knew the gospel was true the first time they heard the missionaries bear witness of it.  Thus, in most cases, the transforming witness came not after a period of experience with the Church, but immediately upon hearing the message for the first time as the missionaries spoke with the power of the Spirit.  Elder Dyer testified that this phenomenon was a substantiation of the Savior's statement:  "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me" (John 10:27).

Alma 19:16-36--Abish, A Believer In the Savior's Hands

M. Russell Ballard, Ensign, 4/02, 66-73
When God asked who would come to earth to prepare a way for all mankind to be saved and strengthened and blessed, it was Jesus Christ who said, simply, “Here am I, send me” (Abr. 3:27).
Just as the Savior stepped forward to fulfill His divine responsibilities, we have the challenge and responsibility to do likewise. If you are wondering if you make a difference to the Lord, imagine the impact when you make commitments such as the following:“Father, if You need a woman to rear children in righteousness, here am I, send me.”
“If You need a woman who will shun vulgarity and dress modestly and speak with dignity and show the world how joyous it is to keep the commandments, here am I, send me.”
“If You need a woman who can resist the alluring temptations of the world by keeping her eyes fixed on eternity, here am I, send me.”
“If You need a woman of faithful steadiness, here am I, send me.”
Between now and the day the Lord comes again, He needs women in every family, in every ward, in every community, in every nation who will step forward in righteousness and say by their words and their actions, “Here am I, send me.”
My question is, “Will you be one of those women? And will you men who hold the priesthood answer the same call?” Now, I know most of you want to. But how will you do it? How, in a world filled with deceptive messages about women and the family—and the significance of both to the Lord—will you perpetually respond to the Lord, “Here am I, send me”?
For those who really want to live up to who you are, for those who at all costs want to repent if necessary and who want to see through Satan’s deceptions, I have two suggestions: First, listen to and follow those whom we sustain as prophets, seers, and revelators. Second, learn to hear the voice of the Spirit, or the voice of the Lord as communicated by the power of the Holy Ghost.
  

Alma 22:18--Give Away All Sins

Neal A. Maxwell, Ensign, 11/02
We cannot know the meaning of all things right now. But we can know, right now, that God knows us and loves us individually!
But, brothers and sisters, what keeps us from knowing and loving Him more?  Our reluctance to give away all our sins, thinking instead that a down payment will do.

Alma 23:17-18--Anti-Nephi-Lehies

Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 268
The Lamanites converted by the four sons of Mosiah and their missionary companions took upon themselves the name of "Anti-Nephi-Lehies."  The "Nephi-Lehi" part of the title probably had reference to the lands of Nephi and Lehi (or the people living in those lands) rather than to the descendants of Nephi or Lehi.
However, Dr. Hugh Nibley has found "a Semitic and common Indo-European root corresponding to anti that means 'in the face of' or 'facing,' as of one facing a mirror, and by extension either 'one who opposes' or 'one who imitates.'"  Thus the term "Anti-Nephi-Lehies" might refer to those who imitate the teachings of the descendants of Nephi and Lehi.

Alma 24:17-19--Burying Our Weapons Deep

Spencer W. Kimball, The Miracle of Forgiveness, 171-72 (emphasis added)
In abandoning sin one cannot merely wish for better conditions.  He must make them.  He may need to come to hate the spotted garments and loathe the sin.  He must be certain not only that he has abandoned the sin but that he has changed the situations surrounding the sin.  He should avoid the places and conditions and circumstances where the sin occurred, for these could most readily breed it again.  He must abandon the people with whom the sin was committed.  He may not hate the persons involved but he must avoid them and everything associated with the sin. . . . He must eliminate anything which would stir the old memories.

Alma 26:5,11--Instrument in the Lord's Hands

Thomas S. Monson, To the Rescue, p. 4

I firmly believe that the sweetest experience in mortality is to know that our Heavenly Father has worked through us to accomplish an objective in the life of another person."

Alma 26:30--Humility

Ezra Taft Benson, as cited in Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 275
The Lord has said that no one can assist with this work unless he is humble and full of love. . . . But humility does not mean weakness.  It does not mean timidity; it does not mean fear.  A man can be humble and also fearless.  A man can be humble and also courageous.  Humility is the recognition of our dependence upon a higher power, a constant need for the Lord's support in His work.

Alma 29:3--Be Content

Neal A. Maxwell, "Content with the Things Allotted unto Us", Ensign, May 2000, 72
A significant spiritual journey is thus reflected in but nine soliloquy-like verses.
The same contentment awaits us if our own desires can be worked through and aligned.
Being content means acceptance without self-pity. Meekly borne, however, deprivations such as these can end up being like excavations that make room for greatly enlarged souls.
Some undergo searing developments that cut suddenly into mortality’s status quo. Some have trials to pass through, while still others have allotments they are to live with.
Thus, developing greater contentment within certain of our existing constraints and opportunities is one of our challenges. Otherwise we may feel underused, underwhelmed, and underappreciated—while, ironically, within our givens are unused opportunities for service all about us. Neither should we pine away, therefore, for certain things outside God’s givens, such as for the powerful voice of an angel, because there is so much to do within what has been allotted to us (see Alma 29:3–4). Furthermore, varied as our allotted circumstances may be, we can still keep the commandments of God!
We need not be situated in prime time with prime visibility in order to work out our own salvation!
Ponder how Jesus was and is the Lord of the universe (see D&C 45:1; D&C 76:24; Moses 1:33; Moses 2:1). Yet His ministry, as we all know, was accomplished in a very tiny geographical space. His ministerial travels were very limited. Yet therein the Savior accomplished the Atonement for all of mankind! There were certainly much more prominent hills than Golgotha and much more resplendent gardens than Gethsemane. No matter; these were sufficient to host the central act of all human history!
The Lord knows our circumstances and the intents of our hearts, and surely the talents and gifts He has given us. He is able to gauge perfectly how we have performed within what is allotted to us, . . . Thus, yearning for expanded opportunities while failing to use those at hand is bad form spiritually.
What we could and have done within our allotted acreage, therefore, is known perfectly by the Master of the vineyard.

Neal A. Maxwell, BYU Devotional, 10/10/78
"The truth about foreordination also helps us to taste the deep wisdom of alma, when he said we ought to be content with things that God hath allotted to each of us.  If, indeed, the things allotted each of us have been divinely customized according to our ability and capacity, then for us to seek to wrench ourselves free of our schooling circumstances could be to tear ourselves away from carefully matched opportunities.  To rant and to rail could be to go against divine wisdom, wisdom in which we may have once concurred before we came here.  God knew beforehand each of our coefficients for coping and contributing and has so ordered our lives."

Alma 6-16

Quote of the Week:

"Pray for me to learn quickly what I need to learn."

--Neal A. Maxwell

"The Savior knows what it's like to die from cancer."

--Neal A. Maxwell

Further Reading:

JST Genesis 14:25-40
Jairo Mazzagardi, "Avoiding the Trap of Sin," Ensign, 11/10
Silvia Allred, "Steadfast and Immovable," Ensign, 11/10
Dennis A. Wright, "“None Were Greater”: A Restoration View of Melchizedek", Ensign, Feb. 1998, 30
LDS Attorneys:  Approaching the Modern Era

Handouts:

Alma 7:12--Succor His People

Jeffrey R. Holland, CES fireside for young adults, 3/2/97

 [Succor] is used often in the scriptures to describe Christ's care for and attention to us.  It means literally "to run to." What a magnificent way to describe the Savior's urgent effort in our behalf.  Even as he calls us to come to him and follow him, he is unfailingly running to help us.

Alma 7:22-24--Responsibilities of the Melchizedek Priesthood

Boyd K. Packer, Ensign, 11/81

The priesthood is very, very precious to the Lord.  He is very careful about how it is conferred, and by whom.  It is never done in secret.

I have told you how the authority is given to you.  The power you receive will depend on what you do with this sacred, unseen gift.

You authority comes through your ordination; your power comes through obedience and worthiness.

Alma 8:10--Mighty Prayer

Joseph B. Wirthlin, "Improving Our Prayers," BYU Speeches [2003], p. 160

May I ask you today to consider the effectiveness of your prayers? How close do you feel to your Heavenly Father? Do you feel that your prayers are answered? Do you feel that the time you spend in prayer enriches and uplifts your soul?  Is there room for improvement?

There are many reasons our prayers lack power.  Sometimes they become routine.  Our prayers become hollow when we say similar words in similar ways over and over so often that he words become more of a recitation than a communication.  This is what the Savior described as "vain repetitions" (Matt 6:7).  Such prayers, He said, will not be heard. . . .

Do your prayers at times sound and feel the same?  Have you ever said a prayer mechanically, the words pouring forth as though cut from a machine?  Do you sometimes bore yourself as you pray?

Prayers that do not demand much of your thought will hardly merit much attention from our Heavenly Father.  When you find yourself getting into a routine with your prayers, step back and think.  Meditate for a while on the things for which you really are grateful.

Alma 8:10-15--To Missionaries

James E. Faust, Ensign, 5/96
[To missionaries] . . .  you must know that Lucifer will oppose you, and be prepared for his opposition.  Do not be surprised.  He wants you to fail.  Discouragement is one of the devil's tools.  Have courage and go forward.  Recognize that the gospel has been preached with some pain and sorrow from the very beginning of time.  Do not expect that your experience will be other wise.

Alma 9:14-23--Great Blessings Bring Great Responsibilities

Sheri L. Dew, Ensign, 11/99
"Unto whom much is given much is required" (D&C 82:3), and at times the demands of discipleship are heavy.  But shouldn't we expect the journey towards eternal glory to stretch us?  We sometimes rationalize our preoccupation with this world and our casual attempts to grow spiritually by trying to console each other with the notion that living the gospel really shouldn't require all that much of us.  The Lord's standard of behavior will always be more demanding
than the world's, but then the Lord's rewards are infinitely more glorious--including true joy, peace, and salvation.

Alma 10--Amulek

Henry B. Eyring, Heroes from the Book of Mormon, p. 109-11
The life of Amulek teaches us not only that obedience brings the inspiration of God, but that with that inspiration will come the power to accept the testing and the trials it will take to sanctify us.  Amulek  could not have foreseen the testing and the sacrifice ahead of him. . . .  He says in his first sermon that the angel's promised blessing on his house and family had already been delivered.  He seemed to think the blessings were delivered and assured (Alma 10:11).

We don't know what Amulek thought those blessings had bee, but we do know what became of his house and his family.  He lost them all.  We know that after he taught with such power as the companion of  Alma in his own city, Ammonihah, his father and kindred repudiated him . . . .(Alma 15:16.)

Amulek may have lost even his wife and his children . . . .

If they had rejected the gospel of Jesus Christ they would have been killed in the prophesied destruction of Ammonihah.  An invading army took the life of every soul in a single day.  If Amulek's wife and children made and kept covenants of the gospel, they would have been among the martyrs Alma and Amulek were forced to see die in the flames (Alma 14:10-13)

Amulek was delivered by God from the powers of the adversary as a blessing for his obedience, but God would not compel his loved ones to obey.

Alma 11:43--A Bright Recollection of All Our Guilt

Russell M. Nelson, Conference Report, 10/85
Although your spirit had a veil of forgetfulness placed over it at the time of your birth into mortality, it retained its power to remember all that happens--precisely recording each event of life.  Indeed, scriptures warn "that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment" (Matt 12:36).  Prophets refer to our "bright recollection" (Alma 11:43) and "perfect remembrance" (Alma 5:18) at that day of decision.

George Q. Cannon, Gospel Truth, p. 60-61
There will be no scenes or incidents in our lives that will be forgotten by us in the world to com. . . . The human mind . . . when quickened by the power of God, will make men and women recall not only that which pertains to this life, but our memories will stretch back to the life we had before we came here, with the associations we had with our Father and God and with those bright spirits that stand around His throne and with the righteous and holy ones.

Alma 12:12-14--Judged According to our Words, Works and Thoughts

Dallin H. Oaks, Ensign, 11/00
Judgment is not merely a review of actions taken in mortality, but is instead an assessment of who and what we have become as a result of our actions.
"From such teachings we conclude that the Final Judgment is not just an evaluation of a sum total of good and evil acts--what we have done.  It is an acknowledgment of the final effect of our acts and thoughts--what we have become."

Alma 12:14--Our Thoughts

Joseph F. Smith, as cited in Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 238
In reality a man cannot forget anything.  He may have a lapse of memory; he may not be able to recall at the moment a thing that he knows or words that he has spoken; he may not have the power at his will to call up these events and words; but let God Almighty touch the mainspring of the memory and awaken recollection and you will find then that you have not even forgotten a single idle word that you have spoken!

Alma 13:3-5--Agency in the Premortal World

Joseph Fielding Smith, The Way to Perfection, p. 50-51
During the ages in which we dwelt in the pre-mortal state, we not only developed our various characteristics and showed our worthiness and ability, or the lack of it, but we were also where such progress could be observed.  It is reasonable to believe that there was a Church organization there.  The heavenly beings were living in a perfectly arranged society.  Every person knew his place.  Priesthood, without any question, had been conferred and the leaders were chosen to officiate.  Ordinances pertaining to that pre-existence were required and the love of God prevailed.
Under such conditions it was natural for our Father to discern and choose those who were most worthy and evaluate the talents of each individual.  He knew not only what each of us could do, but what each of us would do when put to the test and when responsibility was given us.  Then, when the time came for our habitation on mortal earth, all things were prepared and the servants of the Lord chosen and ordained to their respective missions.

David O. McKay, Home Memories of President David O. McKay, p. 228-30
Now if none of these spirits were permitted to enter mortality until they all were good and great and had become leaders, then the diversity of conditions among the children of men as we see them today would certainly seem to indicate discrimination and injustice. . . .

. . . Our place in this world [is] then determined by our own advancement or condition in the pre-mortal state, just as our place in our future existence will be determined by what we do here in mortality.

When, therefore, the Creator said to Abraham, and to others of his attainment, 'You I will make my rulers,' there could exist no feeling of envy or jealousy among the million other spirits, for those who were 'good and great' were but receiving their just reward.

Bruce R. McConkie, Doctrines of Salvation, 1:58-59
The spirits of men had their free agency. . . .  The spirits of men were not equal.  They may have had an equal start, and we know they were all innocent in the beginning; but the right of free agency which was given to them enabled some to outstrip others, and thus, through the eons of immortal existence, to become more intelligent, more faithful, for they were free to act for themselves, to think for themselves, to receive the truth or rebel against it.

Alma 13:10-13--Foreordained

Harold B. Lee, Decisions for Successful Living, 169
. . . I fear there are many among us who because of their faithfulness in the spirit world were "called" to do a great work here, but like reckless spendthrifts they are exercising their free agency in riotous living and are losing their birthright and the blessings that were theirs had they proved faithful to their calling.  Hence as the Lord has said, "there are many called but few are chosen."

Alma 13:11-12--Sanctification

Brigham Young, cited in Ludlow,  A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon, 2:248-49

I will put my own definition to the term sanctification, and say it consists in overcoming every sin and bringing all into subjection to the law of Christ.  God has placed in us a pure spirit; when this [the spirit] reigns predominant, without let or hindrance, and triumphs over the flesh and rules and governs and controls . . . , this I call the blessing of sanctification.  Will sin be perfectly destroyed?  No, it will not, for it is not so designed in the economy of heaven.

Do not suppose that we shall ever in the flesh be free from temptations to sin.  Some suppose that they can in the flesh be sanctified body and spirit and become so pure that they will never again feel the effects of the power of the adversary of truth.  Were it possible for a person to attain to this degree of perfection in the flesh, he could not die, neither remain in a world where sin predominates.  Sin has entered into the world, and death by sin.  I think we shall more or less feel the effects of sin so long as we live, and finally have to pass the ordeals of death.

Alma 13:17--Melchizedek

Dennis A. Wright, "“None Were Greater”: A Restoration View of Melchizedek", Ensign, Feb. 1998, 30

It is almost impossible to imagine a greater tribute that the Lord could bestow upon another than to lovingly direct that the very order of the Son of God’s own priesthood be known by the name of one of his cherished servants. What a model, what an example the Lord has said is in Melchizedek! He stands as a type or example to all who accept the priesthood or who seek the peace and blessings it offers. All who honor the priesthood of God can join this ancient follower of Christ in declaring—as Melchizedek’s name indicates—“My king is righteousness.”

Alma 13:28--Temptation Above that Which We can Bear

Spencer W. Kimball, The Miracle of Forgiveness, p. 117
Sin is intensely habit-forming and sometimes moves men to the tragic point of no return. . . . As the transgressor moves deeper and deeper in his sin, and the error is entrenched more deeply and the will to change is weakened, it becomes increasingly near-hopeless, and he skids down and down until either he does not want to climb back or he has lost the power to do so.

Alma 14:8-11--Suffering of the Righteous

Spencer W. Kimball, Improvement Era, 3/66
Now, we find many people critical when a righteous person is killed, a young father or mother is taken from a family, or when violent deaths occur.  Some become bitter when oft-repeated prayers seem unanswered.  Some lose faith and turn sour when solemn administrations by holy men seem to be ignored and no restoration seems to come from repeated prayer circles.  But if all the sick were healed, if all the righteous were protected and the wicked destroyed, the whole program of the Father would be annulled and the basic principle of the gospel, free agency, would be ended.

If pain and sorrow and total punishment immediately followed the doing of evil, no soul would repeat a misdeed.  If joy and peace and rewards were instantaneously given the doer of good, there could be no evil--all would do good and not because of the rightness of doing good.  There would be no test of strength, no development of character, no growth of powers, no free agency, no Satanic controls.

Should all prayers be immediately answered according to our selfish desires and our limited understanding, then there would be little or no suffering, sorrow, disappointment, or even death; and if these were not, there would also be an absence of joy, success, resurrection, eternal life, and godhood.

Richard G. Scott, Ensign 11/ 95
Trials, disappointments, sadness, and heartache come to us from two basically different sources.  Those who transgress the laws of God will always have those challenges.  The other reason for adversity is to accomplish the Lord's own purposes in our life that we may receive the refinement that comes from testing. . . . If you are suffering the disheartening effects of transgression, please recognize that the only path to permanent relief from sadness is sincere repentance with a broken heart and a contrite spirit. . . .

When those trials are not consequences of your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared to grow more (see Prov 3:11-12). . . . when you face adversity, you can be led to ask many questions.  Some serve a useful purpose; others do not.  To ask, Why does this have to happen to me?  Why do I have to suffer this now?  What have I done to cause this? will lead you into blind alleys. . . . Rather ask What am I to do?  What am I to learn from this experience? What am I to change?  Whom am I to help?  How can I remember my many blessings in times of trial?  Willing sacrifice of deeply held personal desires in favor of the will of God is very hard to do.  Yet, when you pray with real conviction, "Please let me know Thy will" and "May Thy will be done," you are in the strongest position to receive the maximum help from your loving Father.


Joseph Fielding McConkie and Robert Millet, as cited in Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 244
God is not the author of evil, yet within limits and bounds he allows it to exist.  This is done so that the righteous might merit the fulness of his glory and that the wicked, the workers of evil, might in like fashion merit the fulness of his wrath. . . .

There is a great principle demonstrated in trials.  Recall that when Nephi was bound by his brothers he prayed for strength to burst the bands.  Likewise did Alma pray for strength; also, like Nephi, Alma and Amulek were freed according to their faith.

This is a great lesson in life: pray for strength to overcome, not necessarily for the challenges and problems to go away.  Remember: in the strength of the lord we can do all things.

Alma 16:17--The Rest of the Lord

Unlocking the Book of Mormon, p. 249

The "rest" of the Lord has several different meanings:  1) Physical rest is a blessing, and sleep is more peaceful for the righteous who have peace of mind.  2) The Sabbath is a day of rest, a time set aside to glorify God.  3)  Spiritual rest--also known as peace--comes from the Lord (as an example, consider Joseph Smith's calm as he went to his martyrdom).  4) Ultimate rest, overcoming physical and spiritual death, is gained by entering the presence of the Lord, but true saints can enter it in this life as well.  To enter the rest of the Lord in this life, wrote Elder Bruce R. McConkie, we must know and love God, have faith in His purpose and plan, know we are right, not spend our effort searching for something else, and not be disturbed by people who are trying to deceive us.