Alma has told Corianton, if there is no law, there can be no
sin. If there is no sin, there can be no punishment.
But, Alma says, there is a law; there is sin; there is
punishment for our sins. “A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaketh lies shall perish” (Proverbs
19:9).
“And they shall bear the punishment of their iniquity: the
punishment of the prophet shall be even as the punishment of him that seeketh unto him” (Ezekiel 14:10).
“Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so
also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezekiel
18:4).
“Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you,
Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of
the least of these, ye did it not to
me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into
life eternal” (Matthew 25:45-46).
“Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be
thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted
the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and
hath done despite [GR insult] unto the Spirit of grace?” (Hebrews 10:29).
“The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations,
and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished” (2 Peter 2:9).
“And men are instructed sufficiently that they know good
from evil. And the law is given unto
men. And by the law no flesh is justified;
or, by the law men are cut off. Yea, by
the temporal law they were cut off; and also, by the spiritual law they perish
from that which is good, and become miserable forever” (2 Nephi 2:5).
In spite of the law and punishment, we have been given the
opportunity to repent of our since.
Should we repent, mercy will satisfy the demands of justice; still, the
law demands punishment for those who do not repent. “Christ hath redeemed us
from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed
is every one that hangeth on a tree” (Galatians
3:13).
“Wherefore, the end, the width, the height, the depth, and
the misery thereof, they understand not, neither any man except those who are ordained
unto this condemnation” (D&C 76:48).
The demands of justice had to be met. If God ignored these, he would cease to be
God.
This is quite a statement.
What did Alma actually mean?
Let’s go back in history a few years. There was a guy named Nehor. He taught a very attractive doctrine – “… all
mankind should be saved at the last day, and that they need not fear nor
tremble, but that they might lift up their heads and rejoice; for the Lord had created
all men, and had also redeemed all men; and, in the end, all men should have
eternal life” (Alma 1:4).
The gospel as taught throughout the Book of Mormon was
wrong, Nehor claimed. Regardless of how
people lived, they would be saved. As was mentioned in a previous post, we can
infer Corianton was, at the very least, influence by the teachings of Nehor, if
not wanting to embrace his teachings.
The basics Alma tells Corianton:
- God spoke to His prophets.
- He revealed His doctrine to the prophets.
- The prophets taught this doctrine to the people.
- The laws of heaven are God’s laws.
- One of God’s laws is justice.
- We must be punished for our sins.
- This means we cannot be saved in our sins.
- Through the atonement, mercy can meet the demands of justice if we repent.
If Nehor were right, then God would be violating His own
laws, which He is incapable of doing.
Should he violate His own law, He would have “sinned” and justice would
demand punishment for His “sin.” He
would no longer be God as he was now a “sinful man.”
This is the point Alma is making. Alma then states God is
still God and will remain so for eternity.
He is incapable of violating His own laws.
Mercy claims those who repent and follow Christ. “Remember,
O LORD, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old” (Psalms 25:6).
“But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his
righteousness unto children's children” (Psalms 103:17).
“Gracious is the
LORD, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful”
(Psalms 116:5).
“Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful” (Luke
6:36).
“Blessed be God,
even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of
all comfort” (2 Corinthians 1:3).
“Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy
hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ
from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).
“And not many days hence the Son of God shall come in his glory;
and his glory shall be the glory of the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace,
equity, and truth, full of patience, mercy, and long-suffering, quick to hear
the cries of his people and to answer their prayers” (Alma 9:26).
“But God did call on men, in the name of his Son, (this
being the plan of redemption which was laid) saying: If ye will repent and harden
not your hearts, then will I have mercy upon you, through mine Only Begotten
Son” (Alma 12:33).
“In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment, but
with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy
Redeemer” (3 Nephi 22:8).
Mercy comes because of Christ’s atonement. “All we like sheep
have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath
laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6).
“As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I
lay down my life for the sheep” (John 10:15).
“Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life:
he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live” (John 11:25).
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we
were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall
be saved from wrath through him” (Romans 5:8-9).
“And not only so,
but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now
received the atonement [GR reconciliation, restoration to favor]. Wherefore, as
by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed
upon all men, for that all have sinned” (Romans 5:11-12).
“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels
for [GR through] the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he
by the grace of God should taste death for every man” (Hebrews 2:9).
“Wherefore, beloved brethren, be reconciled unto him through
the atonement of Christ, his Only Begotten Son, and ye may obtain a resurrection,
according to the power of the resurrection which is in Christ, and be presented
as the first-fruits of Christ unto God, having faith, and obtained a good hope
of glory in him before he manifesteth himself in the flesh” (Jacob 4:11).
“And even if it were possible that little children could sin
they could not be saved; but I say unto you they are blessed; for behold, as in
Adam, or by nature, they fall, even so the blood of Christ atoneth for their
sins” (Mosiah 3:16).
“I say unto you, if ye have come to a knowledge of the
goodness of God, and his matchless power, and his wisdom, and his patience, and
his long-suffering towards the children of men; and also, the atonement which
has been prepared from the foundation of the world, that thereby salvation
might come to him that should put his trust in the Lord, and should be diligent
in keeping his commandments, and continue in the faith even unto the end of his
life, I mean the life of the mortal body” (Mosiah 4:6).
The atonement also brings the resurrection of the dead. “Wherefore,
how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the
earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence
of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy
Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again
by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the
dead, being the first that should rise” (2 Nephi 2:8).
“And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the
bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their
infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh,
that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to
their infirmities” (Alma 7:12).
“And we see that death comes upon mankind, yea, the death
which has been spoken of by Amulek, which is the temporal death; nevertheless
there was a space granted unto man in which he might repent; therefore this
life became a probationary state; a time to prepare to meet God; a time to
prepare for that endless state which has been spoken of by us, which is after
the resurrection of the dead. Now, if it had not been for the plan of
redemption, which was laid from the foundation of the world, there could have
been no resurrection of the dead; but there was a plan of redemption laid,
which shall bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, of which has been
spoken” (Alma 12:24-25).
Ponder how Jesus was and is the
Lord of the universe. Yet His ministry, as we all know, was accomplished in a
very tiny geographical space. His ministerial travels were very limited. Yet
therein the Savior accomplished the Atonement for all of mankind! There were
certainly much more prominent hills than Golgotha and much more resplendent
gardens than Gethsemane. No matter; these were sufficient to host the central
act of all human history!
We can draw upon that glorious
Atonement by repenting. We can learn to serve and to forgive within our sample
of humanity, including settings no larger than the family or
friendships.
The justice and mercy of God will
have been so demonstrably perfect that at the Final Judgment there will be no
complaints, including from those who once questioned what God had allotted in
the mortal framework).[1]
The resurrection brings man back into the presence of
God. “For I know that ye have searched
much, many of you, to know of things to come; wherefore I know that ye know
that our flesh must waste away and die; nevertheless, in our bodies we shall
see God” (2 Nephi 9:4).
“Therefore the wicked remain as though there had been no redemption
made, except it be the loosing of the bands of death; for behold, the day
cometh that ball shall
rise from the dead and stand before God, and be judged according to their
works. Now, there is a death which is called a temporal death; and the death of
Christ shall loose the bands of this temporal death, that all shall be raised
from this temporal death. The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in
its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame,
even as we now are at this time; and we shall be brought to stand before God, knowing
even as we know now, and have a bright recollection of all our guilt. Now, this
restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both
male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so
much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its
perfect frame, as it is now, or in the body, and shall be brought and be
arraigned before the bar of Christ the Son, and God the Father, and the Holy
Spirit, which is one Eternal God, to be judged according to their works,
whether they be good or whether they be evil. Now, behold, I have spoken unto
you concerning the death of the mortal body, and also concerning the resurrection
of the mortal body. I say unto you that
this mortal body is raised to an immortal body, that is from death, even from
the first death unto life, that they can die no more; their spirits uniting
with their bodies, never to be divided; thus the whole becoming spiritual and
immortal, that they can no more see corruption” (Alma 11:41-45).
When we return to God, we will be judged according to the
law and justice, the atonement bringing mercy which will meet the demands of
justice, allowing us to return to the presence of God. “But whether it be at
his resurrection or after, I do not say; but this much I say, that there is a space
between death and the resurrection of the body, and a state of the soul in happiness
or in misery until the time which is appointed of God that the dead shall come
forth, and be reunited, both soul and body, and be brought to stand before God,
and be judged according to their works” (Alma 40:21).
“But the LORD shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his
throne for judgment.
And he shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall
minister judgment to the people in uprightness” (Psalms 9:7-8).
“For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to
the Son to have life in himself; And hath given him authority to execute judgment
also, because he is the Son of man” (John 5:26-27).
“And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to
testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead” (Acts 10:42).
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