Self-Reflection Questions from Alma Chapter 5

Applying the Marvelous Work and Wonder to Me Personally

Isaiah 29:14-14

Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:

Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.

Isaiah 29:13 could not be more true than it is today. In most of the world, including the United States and in most other countries, people carry what they call their Christian faith out in the open, but then they take great pride in going directly against what Jesus taught in many things they do. They follow leaders or mobs far from what the Lord would have anyone do. They use their religion to separate families and put children in cages; they use it to justify a government that takes away freedom for those who do not believe as they do or look like they do; they use their God to justify violence and hatred; they blindly follow sinful leaders, and openly mock all that is good, and many have become openly racist. Their "fear of God" has become a fear of people and is based on what preachers say will make them rich, get revenge on others, or stop that person who is not like them from succeeding or finding refuge.

I need to search myself and find where I may be drawing close to the Lord with my mouth, but my heart or actions are directly in contrast to those words. We all have weaknesses we are working on, but are there other things we hold on tightly to and to which we are hiding? Do we think the way we treat others is either no big deal or something that, if we repent of, we may feel weaker or have lost something? I must continually search myself to find where I can draw nearer to God with my soul and not only my mouth. When I do, then verse 14 can become real to me personally. The Lord can and will do a marvelous work and a wonder for me personally. He will give me his wisdom rather than the worldly ideas I naturally seem to gravitate to, which are all around us today. But, I must be willing and humble to listen and hear.

Today, I was reminded of a great source of questions to help me assess myself and ensure that I’m not removing my heart from the Lord.

Self-Reflection Questions from Alma Chapter 5

In Chapter 5 of Alma, Alma preaches to the church in Zarahemla. They are not doing as well as they should be doing, and Alma is called by the Lord to command them to repent. In the process, he asks many questions throughout his sermon. It was suggested in a Sunday School Class that these could be used for self-reflection and pondering. The quotes below are close to direct quotes from Alma, but I have changed a few words. For example, I changed "ye" to "you" and slightly simplified very small parts of the language. I did my best not to change the meaning of any of the questions. My goal was to make them easier to read in a list like this.

• Have you sufficiently retained in remembrance the captivity of your fathers?

• Have you sufficiently retained in remembrance His mercy and long-suffering towards them?

• Have you sufficiently retained in remembrance that He has delivered their souls from hell?

• I ask of you, my brethren, were they destroyed? (Alma answers himself that they were not)

• Were the bands of death broken, and the chains of hell which encircled them about, were they loosed? (Alma also answered this, saying they were loosed.)

• 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?

• As an answer to the above question, Alma adds, "Behold, I can tell you—did not my father Alma believe in the words which were delivered by the mouth of Abinadi?"

• Was he not a holy prophet?

• Did he not speak the words of God, and my father Alma believe them?

• I ask of you, my brethren of the church, have you spiritually been born of God?

• Have you received His image in your countenances?

• Have you experienced this mighty change in your hearts?

• Do you exercise faith in the redemption of Him who created you?

• Do you look forward with an eye of faith, and view this mortal body raised in immortality, and this corruption raised in incorruption, to stand before God to be judged according to the deeds which have been done in the mortal body?

• Can you imagine to yourselves that you hear the voice of the Lord, saying unto you, in that day: Come unto me you blessed, for behold, your works have been the works of righteousness upon the face of the earth?

• Or do you imagine to yourselves that you can lie unto the Lord in that day, and say—Lord, our works have been righteous works upon the face of the earth—and that he will save you?

• Can you imagine yourselves brought before the tribunal of God with your souls filled with guilt and remorse, having a remembrance of all your guilt, having a perfect remembrance of all your wickedness, and a remembrance that you have set at defiance the commandments of God?

• Can you look up to God at that day with a pure heart and clean hands?

• Can you look up, having the image of God engraven upon your countenances?

• Can you think of being saved when you have yielded yourselves to become subjects to the devil?

• How will any of you feel, if you shall stand before the bar of God, having your garments stained with blood and all manner of filthiness?

• What will these things testify against you?

• Will they not testify that you are murderers, yea, and also that you are guilty of all manner of wickedness?

• Do you suppose that such an one can have a place to sit down in the kingdom of God, with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob, and also all the holy prophets, whose garments are cleansed and are spotless, pure and white?

• I say unto you, my brethren, if you have experienced a change of heart, and if you have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can you feel so now?

• Have you walked, keeping yourselves blameless before God?

• Could you say, if you were called to die at this time, within yourselves, that you have been sufficiently humble?

• [Could you say] that your garments have been cleansed and made white through the blood of Christ, who will come to redeem his people from their sins?

• Are you stripped of pride?

• Is there one among you who is not stripped of envy?

• Is there one among you that doth make a mock of his brother, or that heap upon him persecutions?

• Can you withstand these sayings; can you lay aside these things, and trample the Holy One under your feet; can you be puffed up in the pride of your hearts; will you still persist in the wearing of costly apparel and setting your hearts upon the vain things of the world, upon your riches?

• Will you persist in supposing that you are better one than another?

• Will you persist in the persecution of your brethren, who humble themselves and do walk after the holy order of God?

• Will you persist in turning your backs upon the poor, and the needy, and in withholding your substance from them?

• For what shepherd is there among you having many sheep doth not watch over them, that the wolves enter not and devour his flock?

Alma then asks even more questions to teach them how he knows what he preaches to them about. He answers them himself (his answers are in the paratheses.)

• Do you not suppose that I know of these things myself? (Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true.)

• And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety? (Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me.)

All of these questions are meant to lead you to the sacrifice and atonement of Jesus Christ through whom we are saved. We must decide to follow Him and work to become more like Him. Simply continuing evil and selfish ways and then waiting for the end to come is what Alma is trying to have us change through these questions. He is calling the people of Zarahemla and us to repentance.

"I say unto you, ye will know at that day that ye cannot be saved; for there can no man be saved except his garments are washed white; yea, his garments must be purified until they are cleansed from all stain, through the blood of him of whom it has been spoken by our fathers, who should come to redeem his people from their sins." (Alma 5 verse 21)

"Behold, I say unto you, that the good shepherd doth call you; yea, and in his own name he doth call you, which is the name of Christ; and if ye will not hearken unto the voice of the good shepherd, to the name by which ye are called, behold, ye are not the sheep of the good shepherd.

"And now if ye are not the sheep of the good shepherd, of what fold are ye? Behold, I say unto you, that the devil is your shepherd, and ye are of his fold; and now, who can deny this? Behold, I say unto you, whosoever denieth this is a liar and a child of the devil." (verses 38-39)

"I say unto you, that I know that Jesus Christ shall come, yea, the Son, the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace, and mercy, and truth. And behold, it is he that cometh to take away the sins of the world, yea, the sins of every man who steadfastly believeth on his name." (verse 48)

A Little Word Counting to Close

For those of you counting - in this wonderful sermon about repentance about 28% of the total words Alma uses are in the form of questions to the people listening. That includes us.