47 And moreover, I say
unto you that it has thus been revealed unto me, that the words which have been
spoken by our fathers are true, even so according to the spirit of prophecy
which is in me, which is also by the manifestation of the Spirit of God.
48 I say unto you,
that I know of myself that whatsoever I shall say unto you, concerning that
which is to come, is true; and 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.
49 And now I say unto
you that this is the order after which I am called, yea, to preach unto my
beloved brethren, yea, and every one that dwelleth in the land; yea, to preach
unto all, both old and young, both bond and free; yea, I say unto you the aged,
and also the middle aged, and the rising generation; yea, to cry unto them that
they must repent and be born again.
50 Yea, thus saith the
Spirit: Repent, all ye ends of the earth, for the kingdom of heaven is soon at
hand; yea, the Son of God cometh in his glory, in his might, majesty, power,
and dominion. Yea, my beloved brethren,
I say unto you, that the Spirit saith: Behold the glory of the King of all the
earth; and also the King of heaven shall very soon shine forth among all the
children of men.
51 And also the Spirit
saith unto me, yea, crieth unto me with a mighty voice, saying: Go forth and
say unto this people—Repent, for except ye repent ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom
of heaven.
52 And again I say
unto you, the Spirit saith: Behold, the ax is laid at the root of the tree;
therefore every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be hewn down and
cast into the fire, yea, a fire which cannot be consumed, even an unquenchable
fire. Behold, and remember, the Holy One
hath spoken it.
Alma 5:46-52
Alma continues explaining how he knows what he preaches is
true. He has fasted and prayed and
received witness that what he teaches is the word of God. This was done through
“the manifestation of the Spirit of God.”
Whatever Alma teaches about what is to come is true. He knows Christ shall come and be full of
grace, mercy, and truth. He is the Only
Begotten son of the Father. He will “take away the sins of the world, yea, the
sins of every man who steadfastly believeth on his name.”
Alma preaches through the order which he was called to
preach.
Alma … uses the term
"order" to refer to a specific commission to preach repentance (Alma
5:49) and to teach certain commandments leading into God's rest (Alma 13:6).
Indeed, one of the great messages of Melchizedek for Alma (and he is the only
commentator to draw such a conclusion) was the success of Melchizedek as a
teacher of righteousness. For Alma, such teaching was the paramount
responsibility and calling of the priesthood (Alma 5:49; cf. Mosiah 6:3).[1]
He will preach to all in the land. Every person must repent and be born again.
Alma speaks with authority, telling the people, “thus saith the Spirit.” “Toward the end of the sermon as he continues
to use this phrase, Alma cleverly expands it from ‘I say unto you’ to ‘thus
saith the Spirit’ (Alma 5:50), ‘the Spirit saith unto me’ (v. 51), and ‘the
Spirit saith’ (v. 52), extending the authority of his words to that of the
Holy Spirit and ultimately to Christ…”[2]
The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Christ will come in glory, in power, majesty,
and dominion. David spoke of this day. “Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty
in battle” (Psalms 24:8). “And
blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with
his glory; Amen, and Amen” (Psalms 72:19).
Again telling the people “the
Spirit saith,” he tells them to behold the King of Earth and Heaven and His
glory. Again, David spoke of this
day. “For
God is my King of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth” (Psalms
74:12). “Let Israel rejoice in him that made him: let the children of Zion be
joyful in their King” (Psalms 149:2).
The Lord told the members of the Church, “But, verily I say unto you that in time ye
shall have no king nor ruler, for I will be your king and watch over you. Wherefore,
hear my voice and follow me, and you shall be a free people, and ye shall have
no laws but my laws when I come, for I am your lawgiver, and what can stay my
hand?” (D&C 38:21-22).
“Alma expands his reference to the tree by alluding to
ancient tree imagery, including the central tree at the heart of Eden and
Jesus's parable of the tree, as recounted in Matthew 3:10. Thus he includes two
contrasting tree images: the tree of life from Genesis (which alludes to the
primal gift of agency) and the tree of death…”[3]
If a tree does not bring forth good fruit, it will be cut
down and burned, being consumed. The
Savior taught, “And now also the axe is
laid unto the root of the trees: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth
good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire” (Luke 3:9). The Lord told Joseph Smith, “The ax is laid at the root of the trees;
and every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be hewn down and cast
into the fire. I, the Lord, have spoken
it” (D&C 97:7).
Jacob warned the Nephites, “For behold, after ye have been nourished by the good word of God all
the day long, will ye bring forth evil fruit, that ye must be hewn down and
cast into the fire?” (Jacob 6:7).
And the Savior taught the Nephites, “But
if it be not built upon my gospel, and is built upon the works of men, or upon
the works of the devil, verily I say unto you they have joy in their works for
a season, and by and by the end cometh, and they are hewn down and cast into
the fire, from whence there is no return. For their works do follow them, for
it is because of their works that they are hewn down; therefore remember the
things that I have told you” (3 Nephi 27:11-12).
“Like Alma of old, each of us, members and sincere
investigators alike, can know with surety that these things are true. It is our
great privilege to know. It is more than a privilege; it is our responsibility
to know. It is our enormous loss to not know when such a privilege is given.”[4]
[1] The
Melchizedek Material in Alma 13:13—19, John W. Welch, Maxwell Institute, accessed
February 18, 2015.
[2] Alma
the Younger's Seminal Sermon at Zarahemla, Robert A. Rees, Maxwell
Institute, accessed February 18, 2015.
[4] A
Still, Small Voice and a Throbbing Heart, Bishop Richard C. Edgley, April
2005 General Conference.
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