7 Behold, he changed their hearts; yea, he awakened them out of a deep sleep, and they awoke unto God. Behold, they were in the midst of darkness; nevertheless, their souls were illuminated by the light of the everlasting word; yea, they were encircled about by the bands of death, and the chains of hell, and an everlasting destruction did await them.
8 And now I ask of you, my brethren, were they destroyed? Behold, I say unto you, Nay, they were not.
9 And again I ask, were the bands of death broken, and the chains of hell which encircled them about, were they loosed? I say unto you, Yea, they were loosed, and their souls did expand, and they did sing redeeming love. And I say unto you that they are saved.
I love this kind of doctrine. I'm grateful for reminders that even people who have eternal punishments in store for them, even those that deserve such punishments, can be forgiven and saved. I find it absolutely wonderful how open the arms of God's mercy are.
But that doesn't mean that everyone will be forgiven, just because God loves them. Just saying, "I'm sorry," isn't enough. There are conditions to being saved.
10 And now I ask of you on what conditions are they saved? Yea, what grounds had they to hope for salvation? What is the cause of their being loosed from the bands of death, yea, and also the chains of hell?
The answer is in verse 13, but 11 and 12 help to set the stage.
Taking that last verse in the context of yesterday's blog post, one phrase stands out in particular: "and they humbled themselves and put their trust in the true and living God." This makes me think that they were wise enough to choose God's path rather than their own. And yes, that takes humility. It takes humility to acknowledge that you don't know what's best, even for yourself. I'm grateful that God does know what's best, and He's willing to guide us out of darkness, away from our sins and the consequences to which they would lead us, and unto the path of light.
11 Behold, I can tell you—did not my father Alma believe in the words which were delivered by the mouth of Abinadi? And was he not a holy prophet? Did he not speak the words of God, and my father Alma believe them?
12 And according to his faith there was a mighty change wrought in his heart. Behold I say unto you that this is all true.
13 And behold, he preached the word unto your fathers, and a mighty change was also wrought in their hearts, and they humbled themselves and put their trust in the true and living God. And behold, they were faithful until the end; therefore they were saved.
Taking that last verse in the context of yesterday's blog post, one phrase stands out in particular: "and they humbled themselves and put their trust in the true and living God." This makes me think that they were wise enough to choose God's path rather than their own. And yes, that takes humility. It takes humility to acknowledge that you don't know what's best, even for yourself. I'm grateful that God does know what's best, and He's willing to guide us out of darkness, away from our sins and the consequences to which they would lead us, and unto the path of light.
1 comment:
How great the goodness and the love of God, our Father!
Yet some of us still seem to have a hard time acknowledging His wisdom and humbling ourselves before Him. Silly, foolish, stubborn us. I know that peace, forgiveness, and happiness come from following God, and yet I often wander off on my own - what? looking for an easier way? We know there isn't one.
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