What spirit is being spoken of in Alma 34?

Question

Gramps,

My question is in regards to Alma 34:34 where it says “for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world”. Is this referring to our spirit or is it talking about the spirits that tempt us now? How would a spirit be able to tempt us after the resurrection?

Cale

Answer

Cale,

The verse you reference is specifically talking about the spirit of a person (“our spirit”).

In Alma 34, Amulek is exhorting the humbled Zoramites to repent and come to Christ. He is concerned that many will agree with this in principle but will not act on it. He then testifies that “this life is the time to prepare to meet God” (32), and they should not “procrastinate the day of [their] repentance” (33) because by then it will be too late. In the resurrection and the final judgment we will have already set our course. That same person (“spirit” in vs 34) who in this life familiarizes himself with the promptings of the devil will far more readily recognize him as master than the Savior he’s been fighting (35).

As an example, I had a roommate preparing for a mission who thought that once he was set apart he would suddenly be able to wake up early in the morning even though his current lifestyle was the opposite. He learned that if you want to report to the MTC keeping mission standards, you need to start before that day. Amulek is teaching the Zoramites a similar lesson.

Gramps