What is this spiritual rebirth that Jesus is talking about? The reading this week in Alma 5-7 gives us a longer and more specific definition. We learn that this spiritual rebirth is a mighty change of heart. We read, “Behold, he changed their hearts; yea, he awakened them out of a deep sleep, and they awoke unto God. . . they were in the midst of darkness; nevertheless, their souls were illuminated by the light of the everlasting word. . .” This mighty change of heart is one that expands our souls. Our souls “sing [of] redeeming love.”
When we experience this mighty change of heart, or spiritual rebirth, we “should be humble, and be submissive and gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long-suffering; being temperate in all things; being diligent in keeping the commandments of God at all times; asking for whatsoever things ye stand in need, both spiritual and temporal; always returning thanks unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive. And see that ye have faith, hope, and charity, and then ye will always abound in good works.”
How do we come to feel this change of heart? This feeling of the expansion of our soul, our souls singing the song of love? Alma gives us some introspective questions we can ask ourselves. Have we kept ourselves blameless before God? If we were called to die at this time, could we say that we’ve been sufficiently humble? Are we stripped of pride? If we aren’t, he says, we’re not prepared to meet God and we must prepare quickly. Have we been stripped of envy? If not, we aren’t prepared. Do we mock others, our brothers and sisters, or heap persecutions on them? If so, we aren’t prepared and we need to change.
But beyond that, he says, we need to “bring forth works of righteousness. . .” It’s not enough to just avoid doing bad things. To follow Christ means to actively be doing good things. “. . . 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?” Matthew 6:24 says that we cannot serve two masters. If we aren’t following Christ and bringing forth good works, who are we following instead? “For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?” (Mosiah 5:13)
“For I say unto you that whatsoever is good cometh from God, and whatsoever is evil cometh from the devil. Therefore, if a man bringeth forth good works he hearkeneth unto the voice of the good shepherd, and he doth follow him; but whosoever bringeth forth evil works, the same becometh a child of the devil, for he hearkeneth unto his voice, and doth follow him.” This change of heart isn’t permanent. It takes work for us to maintain it. Alma says, “if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?” Because we have a tendency to revert back to our old ways, or the “natural man”, we have to work to maintain this change. I’ve heard repentance defined as “turning back” which would indicate that repentance is more of a return to this higher spiritual state when we recognize we’re sliding back into the ease of the natural man, rather than begging for forgiveness for the bad things we’ve done.
“. . . can ye withstand these sayings; yea, can ye lay aside these things, and trample the Holy One under your feet; yea, can ye be puffed up in the pride of your hearts; yea, will ye still persist in the wearing of costly apparel and setting your hearts upon the vain things of the world, upon your riches? Yea, will ye persist in supposing that ye are better one than another; yea, will ye persist in the persecution of your brethren, who humble themselves and do walk after the holy order of God, wherewith they have been brought into this church, having been sanctified by the Holy Spirit, and they do bring forth works which are meet for repentance— Yea, and will you persist in turning your backs upon the poor, and the needy, and in withholding your substance from them? And finally, all ye that will persist in your wickedness. . .?” Alma rebukes us for pretty much all of the bad behaviors we still see around us today. We are grappling with the same issues humanity has always struggled with, and change begins on an individual level.
He continues, “. . . now I say unto you, all you that are desirous to follow the voice of the good shepherd, come ye out from the wicked, and be ye separate. . . Come and be baptized unto repentance, that ye also may be partakers of the fruit of the tree of life.” The tree of life he references here is best explained in 1 Nephi 11:22 where it says, “[The tree of life] is the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the most desirable above all things. . . and the most joyous to the soul.”
We’re told that Christ, “the good shepherd doth call after you; and if you will hearken unto his voice he will bring you into his fold, and ye are his sheep; and he commandeth you that ye suffer no ravenous wolf to enter among you, that ye may not be destroyed.” We are warned again about pride in our hearts, having set our “hearts upon riches and the vain things of the world.” We aren’t supposed to worship idols, but the “true and the living God. . .” This is so interesting, because when we look up the word worship it means to idolize, adore, or love. When we look up the word idols, it says icon, hero, or superstar. Basically we’re told not to idolize, adore, and be in awe of movie stars or athletes or anyone but God. That’s an interesting perspective because I usually think of graven images from the bible or things that people make with their own hands when considering the meaning of idols in this context.
The Bible and Book of Mormon teach us that we should revere, adore, or love Christ. Why? Because “he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people. 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. Now the Spirit knoweth all things; nevertheless the Son of God suffereth according to the flesh that he might take upon him the sins of his people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance . . .” Why should we love Christ? Because he has suffered our pains, sicknesses, and infirmities for us already so that we don’t have to. Our pains and burdens and worries and fears can all be taken away and we can have love and peace instead. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” (Matthew 11:28-29)
What does Christ want from us in return for lifting the burdens of our heavy hearts, erasing the effects of our suffering and pain? He wants us to “come and go forth, and show unto your God that ye are willing to repent of your sins and enter into a covenant with him to keep his commandments, and witness it unto him this day by going into the waters of baptism. . .” Alma has said, “these things unto [us] that [he] might awaken [us] to a sense of [our] duty to God, that [we] may walk blameless before him. . .”
In his talk Return and Receive, Elder Ballard said, “. . . those who accomplish the most in this world are those with a vision for their lives, with goals to keep them focused on their vision and tactical plans for how to achieve them. Knowing where you are going and how you expect to get there can bring meaning, purpose, and accomplishment to life. . . When we can reduce a goal to one clear image or one or two powerful and symbolic words, that goal can then become part of us and guide virtually everything we think and do.”
Our goal should be to change our hearts and to encourage others to change theirs. “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26) If we could encourage ourselves and others to change from our hard-hearted default state to a higher spiritual state where our hearts are full of empathy and love, the whole world would change from the bottom up. The future often seems scary and uncertain, but the scriptures repeatedly tell us to fear not. We've also been told that the future is as bright as our faith.
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