Come Follow Me Alma 13-16: Insights By Gogo Goff

I hope you enjoy some insights from my Come Follow Me Alma 13-16 (If you missed last week’s insights for Come Follow Me Alma 8-12 click here). Save this pin to read later.

Videos, articles, and insights for this weeks study of Come Follow Me Alma 13-16: by Jeremy Goff, aka Gogo Goff

Overcoming Sin.

“Now they, after being sanctified by the Holy Ghost, having their garments made white, being pure and spotless before God, could not look upon sin save it were with abhorrence; and there were many, exceedingly great many, who were made pure and entered into the rest of the Lord their God.”
Alma 13:12

What does abhor mean? To loath, look at with disgust or horror.

When I was a missionary I would read this verse, and wish I had an abhorrence for sin. As I’ve learned more about the gospel, I learned that abhorrence is not an “event” but a process. A sin at a time we are taught and learn to abhor.

Most of us already abhor a few sins. Take for example murder and rape. These sins are so extreme that we have don’t even think of them as something that we would even entertain the taught of doing.

The key is to add sins to this list. A list of things we don’t even consider an “option” when we look at our choices.

We must learn to add sins like: Abuse, adultery, breaking the sabbath day, stealing (not just direct, but indirectly also), viewing porn, lying, lusting, covering to the list of sins that we are not even willing to consider as an option because we abhor them.

How do we do that? Only through Jesus Christ and His grace. So what do we do? First, repent if we are doing a sin, and second make a promise to God we will never do these things. And then work on daily prayers and repentance to overcome temptations and abhor sin one sin at a time!

For more on this topic see this article: You Don’t Need To Be Perfect To Be A Good Latter-day Saint.

"The great burden of our work in the ministry of the Lord is to teach repentance, to encourage people to resist sin and to walk uprightly before the Lord. This is the gospel of repentance, and yours is the responsibility and the authority under the priesthood which you hold to teach this gospel of repentance. You recognize, of course, that if you are to do so effectively, your own life must be an example." Gordon B. Hinckley — “The great burden of our work in the ministry of the Lord is to teach repentance, to encourage people to resist sin and to walk uprightly before the Lord. This is the gospel of repentance, and yours is the responsibility and the authority under the priesthood which you hold to teach this gospel of repentance. You recognize, of course, that if you are to do so effectively, your own life must be an example.”
Gordon B. Hinckley

Patience in suffering.

“And Alma cried, saying: How long shall we suffer these great afflictions, O Lord? O Lord, give us strength according to our faith which is in Christ, even unto deliverance. And they broke the cords with which they were bound; and when the people saw this, they began to flee, for the fear of destruction had come upon them.”
Alma 14:26

Alma and Amulek were abused. They had their clothing taken away, they were being starved, they watched as their converts were burned alive. They were bound with strong cords, and they even had water denied them.

Truly they were suffering both physically and emotionally. But, they were not alone, just as we are not alone. Christ suffered alone so He could comfort, and help us! The promises are sure, the Lord delivered them and He has promised to deliver us! If we are but faithful and patient.

“In sickness, with its attendant pain, patience is required. If the only perfect man who ever lived—even Jesus of Nazareth—was called upon to endure great suffering, how can we, who are less than perfect, expect to be free of such challenges?” Thomas S. Monson — “In sickness, with its attendant pain, patience is required. If the only perfect man who ever lived—even Jesus of Nazareth—was called upon to endure great suffering, how can we, who are less than perfect, expect to be free of such challenges?”
Thomas S. Monson

For more on this topic see this article I wrote: The Most Important Reason For Trials That Latter-day Saints often Forget.

We came to this earth to be tested. Yet often times when God us/others with trials we think it is not the result of being tested, but a punishment for sin.

Converted unto the Lord Jesus Christ.

“And Alma baptized Zeezrom unto the Lord; and he began from that time forth to preach unto the people.”
Alma 15:12

Zeezrom was one of the vilest of sinners. But when he found Christ he pursued discipleship with the same seal he persecuted with!

One of the chief characteristics of a truly repentant disciple is his desire to share the gospel with others. One can not truly partake of the Atonement (The fruit of the tree of life) and not seek to help others come and partake as well.

“A most significant evidence of our conversion and of how we feel about the gospel in our own lives is our willingness to share it with others.” M. Russell Ballard — “A most significant evidence of our conversion and of how we feel about the gospel in our own lives is our willingness to share it with others.”
M. Russell Ballard

The race of life.

And now after the church had been established throughout all the land—having got the victory over the devil, and the word of God being preached in its purity in all the land, and the Lord pouring out his blessings upon the people—thus ended the fourteenth year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi.”
Alma 16:16

Often times in life we treat it like we are in a race against each other; if someone is doing good, that means we are doing poorly.

But that is not the case. There is not one winner in the race of life. We are in a race together, we have one enemy, that is Satan; because of that, this race is a matter of “How many can I bring with me home to heaven.” Not how am I doing compared to others!

In the race of life will we choose to follow God and bring people with us? Or to follow Satan and bring people with us?