Alma Believes the Words of Abinadi

The previous post "Misc Scriptures on By This Ye May Know" is an introduction to this post, which is one of my attempts to help others experience the importance of the words of God.

The setting is in the land of Nephi-Lehi and Zeniff had conferred the kingdom upon Noah, one of his sons. Noah did not keep the commandments of God, but he did walk after the desires of his own heart. In his wickedness he laid heavy taxes upon the people of one-fifth of all they possessed in order to support his wicked lifestyle. He consecrated new priests who lived off of the taxes collected from the people. 

The people also became idolatrous, being deceived by the vain and flattering words of the king and priests. A more complete description is found in Mosiah 11:1-19.

In this setting a man named Abinadi shows up and goes forth among the people and begins to prophesy, saying: "Behold, thus saith the Lord, and thus hath he commanded me, saying, Go forth, and say unto this people, thus saith the Lord--Wo be unto this people, for I have seen their abominations, and their wickedness, and their whoredoms; and except they repent I will visit them in mine anger" (Mosiah 11:20 emphasis added).

Again and again and again he says "except they repent and turn to the Lord their God" (Mosiah 11:21;23;25), this being the message from the Lord. Like Samuel the Lamanite, Abinadi just shows up, having been told what to say, and faithfully tells them what the Lord has told him. In other words he is armed with the word of God, and being armed with the word of God he spoke with power and authority.

How did these people respond to the words of Abinadi (the words of God)? "Now the eyes of the people where blinded; therefore they (the people) hardened their hearts against the words of Abinadi.... And king Noah hardened his heart against the word of the Lord, and he did not repent of his evil doings" (Mosiah 11:29 emphasis added).

However, one of the priests of Noah did believe the words of Abinadi. "There was one among them whose name was Alma, he also being a descendant of Nephi. And he was a young man, and he believed the words which Abinadi had spoken...." (Mosiah 17:2). This is significant because of what happens after Alma believes the words of God, and the fact that the word of God is the instrument used by the Lord to cause men to repent and turn to Him. But not only did Alma believe the words which Abinadi had spoken, but he "did write all the words which Abinadi had spoken" (Mosiah 17:4 emphasis added). 

Note: We can either harden our hearts against the word of God, or we can believe the word or God. There are only two choices.

How was it that Alma was able to write down all the words which Abinadi had spoken. For the answer we go to John 14:25 where the Lord told His disciples that the Comforter or Holy Ghost who was to be sent by His Father "would bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you." So with the Holy Ghost, it would be possible for Alma to write all the words of Abinadi, as the Holy Ghost would bring all the words spoken by Abinadi to Alma's remembrance.

After having believed the words of God, Alma repents and turns to the Lord, and begins to teach the words of Abinadi (Mosiah 18:1). Alma taught the words to as many as would hear them. Many did believe him and gathered in a place called Mormon to hear Alma teach the words which had been spoken by Adinadi. Remember that he had written all of Abinadi's words, and Abinadi's words now became his words because God had given them to him. 

Alma also ordained priests to teach the people, and "he commanded them that they should teach nothing save it were the things which he had taught" (Mosiah 18:19 emphasis added and note that he does not say the words which Abinadi had taught, but the words which Alma had taught. They are the same because they are the words of God). He specifically commanded them "that they should teach nothing save it were repentance and faith on the Lord, who had redeemed his people" (Mosiah 18:20 emphasis added).

Moving ahead in the record, Alma knew from the Lord that the armies of king Noah would come upon them and so he fled into the wilderness and came to a very beautiful and pleasant land. Once there Alma reminds the people that he himself "was caught in a snare, and did many things which were abominable in the sight of the Lord, which caused (him) sore repentance; nevertheless, after much tribulation, the Lord did hear (his) cries, and did answer (his) prayers, and made (him) an instrument in his hands in bringing so many of (them) to a knowledge of his truth" (Mosiah 23:9-10). The truth meaning the word of God which is truth, light, spirit, even the spirit of Jesus Christ (D&C 84:45).

As a result of king Noah and others hardening their hearts against the word, they suffered the Justice of God. Remember that Abinadi told them that Christ stands betwixt them and Justice" (Mosiah 15:9).  And if we refuse His mercy then we will suffer the judgment of God. The Church began to grow and King Mosiah gave permission to Alma to organize and establish churches throughout the land of Zarahemla. These churches met together so that they could "hear the word of God" (Mosiah 25:20). And there "was nothing preached in all the churches except it were repentance and faith in God" (Mosiah 25:22). There were many who would not believe and who therefore "could not understand the word of God; and their hearts were hardened" (Mosiah 26:3). Because of their unbelief these people "remained so ever after, even in their carnal and sinful state; for they would not call upon the Lord their God" (Mosiah 26:4).

The Lord thereafter spoke to Alma and told him: "Thou are blessed because of thy exceeding faith in the words alone of my servant Abinadi. And blessed are they because of their exceeding faith in the words alone which thou has spoken unto them" (Mosiah 26:15-16).

The Lord then tells Alma that "he that will hear my voice shall be my sheep" (Mosiah 26:21). All the words that the Lord spoke to Alma he also "wrote them down that he might have them" (Mosiah 26:33). Alma did regulate all the affairs of the church and all those who were over the church did walk in all diligence, "teaching the word of God in all things" (Mosiah 26:38).

If we follow this thread of the word of God from God to Abinadi, from Abinadi to Alma, from Alma to the members of the Church, and from Alma to his son Alma, and from Alma the younger to his three sons, we see that the common thread throughout the Book of Mormon is the word of God, and our response to the word of God is to either believe them or harden our hearts against them. We harden our hearts against them when we set our hearts upon other things, and worship other gods. To those that hear the word of God and believe the word of God, they are to also teach the word of God. Which is what Alma the Younger did after his father prayed that Alma the Younger would "be brought to the knowledge of the truth" (Mosiah 27:14), or in other words, come to a knowledge of the truthfulness of the word of God. And after the angel visited Alma the Younger, he did come to a knowledge of the truth and spent his entire life teaching others the word of God.

Through a diligent study of the Book of Alma, we can see the power of God's word, and trust in the power for good in teaching the word of God. Mormon uses "the word of God" 47 times in the first 43 chapters of Alma, and also uses "the word," "his word," or "the word of the Lord," at least another 50 times. In each of the major episodes of the first 42 chapters, Mormon emphasizes a different aspect of the word of God. In the last 20 chapters, he recounts a long fourteen-year period of war both to accentuate the consequences of hardening our hearts against the word of God, and to the protection that comes from heeding it.

A brief summary of the Book of Alma will show us the thread of the word of God from God to Abinadi, to Alma, to Alma the Younger and to all those that heard the word of God from Alma the Younger and their reaction to it. In chapters 5-16 Alma seeks to reform the Churches in Zarahemla, Gideon and Amoniah by preaching the word of God. In these chapters we can also see the effect the word of God had on Zeezrom. In chapters 17-29, the sons of Mosiah convert thousands using the word of God. In Alma chapter 30, we see Alma using the word of God to silence Korihor and the word of the devil. This chapter is the focal point for the entire book of Alma. The word of God (see Revelations 19 for a description of the word of God as the only weapon used by the Lord to judge and make war, and also as the word of God as Christ himself) silences Korihor and all those who teach humanism and worship of the creature rather than the creator. The word of God triumphs over the word of satan (humanism--faring in this life according to our strength, genius and management.

In chapters 31-35, Alma and Amulek teach the Zoramite poor the process of conversion through planting the word of God in our hearts. In chapters 36-42 Alma teaches his sons the word of God and prepares them to teach the word of God. And in chapters 43-63 the power of the word of God is dramatized.

We are part of this thread having received these words from the Lord through Abinadi, Alma, Alma the Younger, and Mormon who recorded them. Will the power of His word be with us in its purity, or will it be a watered down version as Isaiah prophesied? Will we have armed ourselves with the sword of truth, which is the word of God? 

For example, in Mosiah 26 we read of those who were little children at the time that King Benjamin delivered to his people the words given him by the angel of the Lord. We are told that "they did not believe the tradition of their fathers. They did not believe what had been said concerning the resurrection of the dead, neither did they believe concerning the coming of Christ" (Mosiah 26:1-2). And "because of their unbelief they could not understand the word of God; and their hearts were hardened" (Mosiah 26:3 emphasis added).

Is this because they, or at least this group, had not been taught the word of God given by King Benjamin to their parents or grandparents? Or could it be that they were taught but did not believe the words? Could this have been the reason they did not believe in the "tradition of their fathers?" Could it be that because they had not been taught the word of God, or did not believe, when they were younger, that when they got older "they could not understand the word of God; and their hearts were hardened?" We do know that the sons of Mosiah were numbered among these unbelievers (Mosiah 27:8), and we have a hint that they, like Alma the Younger, choose not to believe the words they had been taught, and so their not believing was a choice. They had hardened their hearts against the word. 

Regardless of whether the children at the time of King Benjamin where not taught or just chose to not believe what they were taught, the result was the same--they did not heed the Lord's call to repentance, and remained in their lost, carnal and fallen state being subject to the Justice of God. We also know that after the visitation by the angel, Alma and the sons of Mosiah, while they had been taught the word of God by their fathers, still needed to be brought to a knowledge of the truth of the word of God, which only begins with a desire to believe the words. So reading the words or even hearing the words, must be followed up with receiving the words in our hearts with a desire to believe them. There the words can swell, enlighten and bring us to a knowledge of the truthfulness of the words. This is, after all, the message of Alma 32-34.

Note the pattern of how the word of God was taught from father to son.

From God to Abinadi

From Abinadi to Alma

From Alma to Alma

From Alma to Helaman

From Helaman to Helaman

From Helaman to Nephi

From Nephi to Nephi

What have we done with the word of God we have received? I think our pattern would be more like this:

The Word of God--

Stays in the scriptures

On our tables and

In our phones

Nibbled on

Left by the way side 

Choked by the cares

Seldomly searched

Not treasured up

Not feasted upon.

Replaced by talks,

Success in the world

From father to son 

From father to daughter,

From son to son,

From daughter to daughter.