And now behold, I say unto you, my
brethren, if ye have experienced a
change of heart, and if ye have felt
to sing the song of redeeming love,
I would ask, can ye feel so now?
This verse takes place in Alma Chapter 5, which my seminary teacher called "The Self-Evaluation Chapter." The speaker is Alma the Younger.
Alma the Elder, his father, was converted by the words of Abinadi and converted and baptized many while these people lived in captivity. They were then delivered, built up the church, and became prosperous, after which they began to be prideful and have contention and sin among themselves.
Alma the Younger, after his own hard-won conversion, became the high priest of the church as well as the judge of the land. Seeing the state of the people of the Church, he left the judgement seat to Nephihah and devoted his energy to his calling as high priest and went from city to city speaking the words found in Alma 5.
It is a call to repentance for the members of the church.
He asks them to remember the physical captivity of their fathers and how they were delivered by the hand of the Lord. He then speaks of spiritual captivity and how they had experienced a mighty change of heart and came unto God.
He talks about what it means to be saved, and how it is impossible when they have not been cleansed of their pride and iniquity.
Insert verse 26.
He asks them to evaluate themselves whether they have kept themselves blameless before God, are stripped of pride and envy, and whether they mock or persecute their brethren. He calls them to repentance reminding them that they only have a short time in which to prepare.
He reminds them that the Lord is inviting them to come unto Him. Those who bring forth good works will be saved, and those who bring forth evil works will receive their wages from the devil.
He has been commanded to testify of these things and does so in plainness. He has a knowledge of these things for himself which he gained through the spirit of revelation after much prayer and fasting.
He testifies of Christ.
He has been called to cry repentance. He asks them if they will persist in their ways, in wearing costly apparel and setting their hearts upon riches and the vain things of the world. He asks them if they will persist in supposing they are better than one another and turning their backs upon the poor and needy. Will they persist in wickedness?
He commands them to come out and be separate from the wicked and that it doesn't matter if they speak against it "for the word of God must be fulfilled."
To the members of the church he speaks by command and to those not of the church, he speaks by invitation to come and be baptized unto repentance.
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