How are we born of God? Alma is talking with his son, Shiblon on this very topic. Alma had gone through a refiner’s fire that lasted three days. He saw an angel and had been rebuked. He's sharing this information with his righteous son.
We can know these things for ourselves as surely as anyone when we are born of God. It is a process.
What exactly is the process?
- Verse 2: steadiness and your faithfulness unto God as well as enduring to the end. There is no need to stray and have an angel call us to repentance. We can know through our good works as the spirit testifies to us of our goodness.
- Verse 7: stop the work of destruction - stop fighting the truth if this is one of our weaknesses.
- Verse 8: Cry out to Jesus for a remission of your sins, AKA repent
- Verse 9: there is no other way or means whereby man can be saved, only in and through Christ.
- Verse 10: Be temperate in all things. I nearly missed this one. What is temperate? It is the ability to master oneself. When I look at the Topical Guide, it mentions wine, but it also mentions all physical excess. Hmmmm
- Verse 11: Here is that P word again - PRIDE. Do not boast of your own accomplishments.
- Verse 12: bridle all your passions - Again, temperance. What does it mean to bridle? The dictionary says: Bring something under control.
- Verse 14: acknowledge your unworthiness before God at all times. - Pray sincerely.
Shiblon was a good guy - a missionary for the Lord. Alma was giving him a father's blessing, with a warning and guidance. This chapter is one that could be shared with all our worthy missionaries.
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