David Journal

Category: Scripture Notes

  • How did Alma know so quickly?

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    David
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    How could sins know that the people in Gideon were in the paths if righteousness. I have to assume that the Spirit helped him perceive the meaning behind their reactions to his words. Perhaps they were more receptive and attentive to his words and less combative when he spoke.

  • A regulation in the church

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    David
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    I wonder whether this regulation by Alma – as people joined our were removed from the records of the church in Zerahemla – saw the total number of church members grow out shrink.

  • Spiritual heritage

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    David
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    I have sometimes thought that when Alma the younger speaks to the people of Zerahemla about “their fathers” who were delivered from the armies of King Noah that many of those hearing him we’re not descendants of that group. I realized today that when those groups came together and shared their histories and reacted to…

  • Church and state

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    David
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    We can’t afford to forget that even when the authority of God is vested in an organization that doesn’t prevent that organization from becoming wicked – if it did there could have been no apostasy. Alma lived to see a time when the people of the church we leading unbelievers on to increasing wickedness. The…

  • Marking themselves

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    David
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    When people come out in rebellion against God they feel compelled to make clear their opposition to that which they once identified with.

  • Government by referendum

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    David
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    I’ve thought about the system of judges among the Nephites but I never really thought of the implications before. They were governed by existing law but the people could put anything up for a bit as they were to conduct their society “by the voice of the people.” Amlici used that to try to become…

  • Enforced priestcraft

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    David
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    Alma understood that the people could survive having priestcraft practiced among them but that if it were enforced the people would become corrupted and become fallen.

  • Prepared for self-rule

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    David
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    I’ve never before thought about the preparations that the people of Zerahemla had to rule by the voice of the people. They had already been established as a righteous people. This same preparation was needed before the United States could be founded and in any nation where we might wish to establish democracy we must…

  • Dual purposes

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    David
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    When the Lord answered Mosiah that his sons going to preach among the Lamanites would bring about the salvation of many He may also have been considering the value that their leaving would create the opportunity to end the monarchy in a peaceful and natural manner which itself would be a positive development.

  • They did publish peace

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    David
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    I get the impression that the grip who encountered the angel with Alma consisted of the sons of Mosiah but also others. Ask who were there began to preach the gospel and seek to make restitution for their former sins by preaching repentance and faith in Christ.