After Alma and his brethren return from teaching the Lamanites, they set about re-teaching their own people. The Zoramites had become apostate, had built the Rameumptom, and the wealthy had kicked out the poor from the synagogues. When Alma met these poor, he saw they were sufficiently humble and he and Amulek began teaching them.
We’ve all read chapter 32 in Alma, most people probably recognize the teaching by recognizing the reference. Alma teaches a discourse on the topic of faith, “…not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true.” He then goes on to talk about the experiment. “…if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.”
“Now we will compare the word unto a seed.”
The word. Of course the word he was talking about just a minute ago was ‘faith’ so clearly he’s going to teach us about how to build our faith, right? He compares the word to a seed, teaches us to plant it, nourish it, no neglect it, not allow our ground to be barren…do these things and be diligent and patient, and we’ll pluck the fruit which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and we’ll feast on it until we are filled that we will never hunger or thirst.
He continues in chapter 33 telling us that prayer is crucial to growing this fruit. He quotes Zenos for 8 versus, relating to us Zenos’ experience with prayer. He then tells us to study the scriptures and asks a great question, “I would ask if ye have read the scriptures? If ye have, how can ye disbelieve on the Son of God?” He follows up a few verses later, “… begin to believe in the Son of God, that he will come to redeem his people, and that he shall suffer and die to atone for their sins; and that he shall rise again from the dead. which shall bring to pass the resurrection, that all men shall stand before him, to be judged at the last and judgment day, according to their works.”
“Plant THIS word in your hearts…and it will become a tree, springing up in you unto everlasting life. AND THEN may God grant unto you that your burdens may be light, through the joy of his Son.”
So the ‘word’ isn’t faith, the word is “The Word” as in, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (see JST to make more sense of that) and we know lots about the seed, and the tree, and the fruit that it bears…Lehi and Nephi both described it in detail in 1 Nephi, chapters 8 and 11. Go read them for a refresher.
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