Aaron and the King - Alma 22 - 23

As you may recall,  the last post was about Aaron's missionary success after experiencing multiple missionary rejections.  I would like to continue with the story of Aaron teaching king Laman (if that was his name; I'll call him that since we aren't told what his name really was.  Just know that I am referring to Lamoni's father who was the king of the Lamanite nation).

I think we can learn from king Laman and the way he embraced the word of God, which had been demonstrated by Ammon and taught and demonstrated by Aaron.

King Laman felt the prickings of the spirit after his encounter with Ammon.  "And I will also grant unto thee that thy brethren may be cast out of prison, and thou and thy brethren may come unto me, in my kingdom; for I shall greatly desire to see thee. For [I, the] king was greatly astonished at the words which [Ammon] had spoken, and also at the words which had been spoken by [the king's] son Lamoni, therefore [I, the king] was desirous to learn them" (Alma 20:27).  "I have been somewhat troubled in mind because of the generosity and the greatness of the words of thy brother Ammon; and I desire to know the cause why he has not come up out of Middoni with thee" (Alma 22:3).

Clearly,  the Holy ghost had been working on king Laman; don't his words make this evident?   This reminds me of similar instance that we read of in the Pearl of Great Price:  "During this time of great excitement my mind was called up to serious reflection and great uneasiness; but though my feelings were deep and often poignant, still I kept myself aloof from all these parties... I often said to myself: What is to be done? Who of all these parties are right; or, are they all wrong together? If any one of them be right, which is it, and how shall I know it?  While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties caused by the contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading the Epistle of James, first chapter and fifth verse, which reads: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.  Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine" (Joseph Smith History,  3, 10-12).

The spirit of the Holy ghost works on people the same way throughout the ages because God is unchangeable,  his word is unchangeable,  and his ways are everlasting.  "By these things we know that there is a God in heaven, who is infinite and eternal, from everlasting to everlasting the same unchangeable God, the framer of heaven and earth, and all things which are in them" (Doctrine & Covenants 20:17).  To me,  it is things like this - seeing that the Holy ghost is constant in his influence upon men and women - that prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Gospel is true.

King Laman was prepared for his conversion when Aaron and his companions arrived at the city Nephi.  The missionaries must have employed the Holy ghost to a remarkable degree in teaching the king and his household, for king Laman expressed his deep desire to know God: "What shall I do that I may have this eternal life of which thou hast spoken? Yea, what shall I do that I may be born of God, having this wicked spirit rooted out of my breast, and receive his Spirit, that I may be filled with joy, that I may not be cast off at the last day? Behold, said he, I will give up all that I possess, yea, I will forsake my kingdom, that I may receive this great joy" (Alma 22:15).  This has to be one of the most beautifully poetic expressions of yearning for God's love and forgiveness that I have ever read or heard.  Aaron replied to the king:  "If thou desirest this thing, if thou wilt bow down before God, yea, if thou wilt repent of all thy sins, and will bow down before God, and call on his name in faith, believing that ye shall receive, then shalt thou receive the hope which thou desirest" (Alma 22:16).

The king followed Aaron's instruction, and bowing himself to the ground, he prayed:  "O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day" (Alma 22:18).  The king's prayer, along with his expression of desire before it, are both sublime and instructive. Here are a couple of things I have learned from this event:  

--  The Lord prepares a way for those who will believe His words to be taught.  Aaron was led to king Laman's court when the king was spiritually ready.  As an indication of how ready the king was, think of what king Laman offered to Ammon to spare his life (up to half his kingdom), versus what he offered to the Lord to allow him to know God's love (all he possessed and the forsaking of his kingdom).  King Laman was definitely prepared for the spiritual feast he received.

--  The Lord is pleased with His children who have a great desire to feel His presence...  Both king Laman and his son Lamoni, after learning from their missionary teachers, were blessed to be carried away in the spirit.  There they received sure knowledge of the Gospel, assurance of the Lord's forgivness, and a sure testimony as a result of this great spiritual manifestation.

--  King Laman first offered to give up all of his material things to receive the Lord's countenance.  Then he offered to give away all of his sins to know God and be with Him.  Neither thing would be easy for any of us to do, but I think the hardest of the two would be to give away our sins - to literally refuse to sin any more.  We are human, and are subject to mortal desires and whims.  As Aaron's grandfather, king Benjamin explained: "I cannot tell you all the things whereby ye may commit sin; for there are divers ways and means, even so many that I cannot number them" (Mosiah 4:29).  It would take a great act of self control to be able to stop all sinful thoughts and actions, but fortunately we are given a lifetime to practice being obedient sons and daughters of God.  May we each take king Laman's expressions as our motto; may we each hold his example as our model.

What next followed was very much like what took place when Lamoni was converted; king Laman fell prostrate to the earth as if he were dead.  The servants, frightened by what happened, told the queen.  The queen, however, reacted differently than Lamoni's wife did:  She commanded the servants to slay Aaron and his companions, but when she saw they were afraid to do this (who wouldn't be, with what they had just witnessed), she sent them out to gather the people to come to her aid.  Aaron, sensing the danger, raised the king, and the king converted his wife, his servants, his household, and many of the people of his land.  King Laman proclaimed that the Nephite missionaries should have free access to teach his people, and as  a result, many Lamanites were converted to the Lord, gave up their sins and lived righteous lives thereafter (see Alma 23: 3-7).

The Lord has a mission for us to do.  We may not be asked to leave our homes and be missionaries for 14 years, but we may be asked to share our beliefs, to live as examples, and to provide loving service to people who are ready for the gospel.  We may be asked to serve our neighbors in ways that stirs, awakens and intensifies spiritual feelings in their hearts.  Decide now that you will follow the promptings when they come.  Pray for the Lord to give you opportunities to touch other people's lives.  Ask the Lord to open the hearts of your friends and neighbors.

This part of the Book of Mormon always touches my heart.  I hope you feel the spirit of the Lord as you read along.

Don

Aaron's disappointments and successes - Alma 22 -23

It's not easy to be a missionary.  Any missionary will tell you that for every success he or she has had there were many rejections and disappointments.   While Ammon, the exception to this generalization,  was successfully teaching in the city of Ishmael, his brother Aaron was experiencing the rejections and disappointments that I have been referring to.   Aaron had little or no success during the first part of his mission...  Consider these rejections:
At the city of Jerusalem they contended with the Amalakites and Amulonites, who were of the order of Nehors.  They mocked them, spit upon them and utterly rejected their teachings.   In Ani-Anti, they met up with Muloki, Amman and their companions.  There they contended with the people who rejected their message of gospel truth.  In Middoni they taught but were put into prison where they suffered terrible treatment until Ammon and Lamoni rescued them.  After being released "they went forth again to declare the word, and thus they were delivered for the first time out of prison" (Alma 21:15).  They were persistent and the Lord blessed their efforts: "And they went forth whithersoever they were led by the Spirit of the Lord, preaching the word of God in every synagogue... And it came to pass that the Lord began to bless them, insomuch that they brought many to the knowledge of the truth" (Alma 21:16-17).  I haven't been very persistent in missionary work during my life,  but I hope I can learn from Aaron's example.   I hope each of us will be able to emulate Aaron's dedication.

Aaron and his companions were then "led by the Spirit to the land of Nephi, even to the house of the king which was over all the land save it were the land of Ishmael; and he was the father of Lamoni" (Alma 22:1).  There Aaron used the technique that Ammon had employed to serve the king: He offered to be the king's servants.  The king would not have it : "Arise, for I will grant unto you your lives, and I will not suffer that ye shall be my servants; but I will insist that ye shall administer unto me" (Alma 22:3).

The old king told Aaron that Ammon's words and actions had haunted him.  When Aaron explained that Ammon had been called by the spirit to another way,  the king said  "What is this that ye have said concerning the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, this is the thing which doth trouble me.  And also, what is this that Ammon said—If ye will repent ye shall be saved, and if ye will not repent, ye shall be cast off at the last day?" (Alma 22:5-6).  In response, Aaron asked the king a basic, yet important, question:  "Believest thou that there is a God?" (Alma 22:7).  This was indeed a fundamental question to ask of the king, for everything that Aaron could teach him depended upon his acceptance of a supreme Being.  This is also true in our lives.  Do we believe with all our hearts in the existence of God, not as a tradition of our parents and ancestors, but a true belief in a literal being?  In order to love Heavenly Father and obey His commandments we must believe in Him.  In order to fully receive His blessings in our lives, we must believe in, love and obey Him.  In order to truly be His faithful sons and daughters, we must believe He exists, loves us and wants us to know Him.  It starts with truly believing in Him.

Aaron, who must have carried the spirit of the Lord with him during this interview, received the kind of answer he had hoped for from the king:  "I know that the Amalekites say that there is a God .... And if now thou sayest there is a God, behold I will believe" (Alma 22:7).

Aaron proceeded to teach the king about God, the creation and the fall of man and need for the atonement.  These truths moved the king greatly, who exclaimed "What shall I do that I may have this eternal life of which thou hast spoken? Yea, what shall I do that I may be born of God, having this wicked spirit rooted out of my breast, and receive his Spirit, that I may be filled with joy, that I may not be cast off at the last day? Behold, said he, I will give up all that I possess, yea, I will forsake my kingdom, that I may receive this great joy" (Alma 22:15).

Any missionary will tell you that this expression of desire is what they hope for when they begin to teach an investigator - an expression of their desire to come to know God the Father and their willingness to do anything to feel His presence in their lives.  Through Aaron's teachings the king and his whole household became converted to the Lord.  The king sent a proclamation throughout the land that the Lamanite people "...should not lay their hands on [Aaron and his brothers and companions] to bind them, or to cast them into prison; neither should they ... cast them out of their synagogues ... but that they should have free access to their houses, and also their temples, and their sanctuaries" (Alma 23:2). The result of this unprecedented proclamation was that "Aaron and his brethren went forth from city to city, establishing churches, and consecrating priests and teachers throughout the land among the Lamanites, to preach and to teach the word of God among them; and thus they began to have great success.  And thousands were brought to the knowledge of the Lord" (Alma 23:4-5).

Aaron, after rejections, disappointments, sorrows and trouble, finally found a golden teaching moment.  May we each be able to experience a similar moment.  It may come from introducing a friend, a newly moved-in neighbor or a long time acquaintance to the Gospel.  The "golden" moment may spring from teaching a sibling, aunt or uncle.  It may come from meeting a stranger and striking up a conversation.  The spirit moved Aaron to go to the land of Nephi, and that same spirit moves us to speak up when the opportunity arises.  No matter how our golden moment comes, may we each follow Aaron's example and be bold at that moment of opportunity.

Don