CONVERSION

What happened to Peter between;
"when thou art converted"
and "such as I have . . . in the name of Jesus Christ"?

Henry B. Eyring October 2010
When you are consistently true to what you know-you are converted.

Alma 23:1-7, 16-18
See Book of Mormon seminary lesson
1 Behold, now it came to pass that the king of the Lamanites sent a ^aproclamation among all his people, that they should not lay their hands on Ammon, or Aaron, or Omner, or Himni, nor either of their brethren who should go forth preaching the word of God, in whatsoever place they should be, in any part of their land.

2 Yea, he sent a decree among them, that they should not lay their hands on them to bind them, or to cast them into prison; neither should they spit upon them, nor smite them, nor cast them out of their ^asynagogues, nor scourge them; neither should they cast stones at them, but that they should have free access to their houses, and also their temples, and their ^bsanctuaries.

3 And thus they might go forth and preach the word according to their desires, for the king had been converted unto the Lord, and ^aall his ^bhousehold; therefore he sent his proclamation throughout the land unto his people, that the word of God might have no obstruction, but that it might go forth throughout all the land, that his people might be convinced concerning the wicked ^ctraditions of their fathers, and that they might be convinced that they were all brethren, and that they ought not to murder, nor to plunder, nor to steal, nor to commit adultery, nor to commit any manner of wickedness.

4 And now it came to pass that when the king had sent forth this proclamation, that Aaron and his brethren went forth from ^acity to city, and from one house of worship to another, establishing churches, and consecrating ^bpriests 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.

5 And ^athousands were brought to the knowledge of the Lord, yea, thousands were brought to believe in the ^btraditions of the Nephites; and they were taught the ^crecords and prophecies which were handed down even to the present time.

6 And as sure as the Lord liveth, so sure as many as believed, or as many as were brought to the knowledge of the truth, through the preaching of Ammon and his brethren, according to the spirit of revelation and of prophecy, and the power of God working ^amiracles in them—yea, I say unto you, as the Lord liveth, as many of the Lamanites as believed in their preaching, and were ^bconverted unto the Lord, ^cnever did fall away.

7 For they became a righteous people; they did lay down the weapons of their rebellion, that they did not fight against God any more, neither against any of their brethren.

16 And now it came to pass that the king and those who were converted were desirous that they might have a name, that thereby they might be distinguished from their brethren; therefore the king consulted with Aaron and many of their priests, concerning the name that they should take upon them, that they might be distinguished.

17 And it came to pass that they called their names ^aAnti-Nephi-Lehies; and they were called by this name and were no more called ^bLamanites.

18 And they began to be a very ^aindustrious people; yea, and they were friendly with the Nephites; therefore, they did ^bopen a correspondence with them, and the ^ccurse of God did no more follow them.

Cross References Alma 26 all

Alma 26: 3, 31

3 Behold, I answer for you; for our brethren, the Lamanites, were in darkness, yea, even in the darkest abyss, but behold, how ^amany of them are brought to behold the marvelous light of God! And this is the blessing which hath been bestowed upon us, that we have been made ^binstruments in the hands of God to bring about this great work.

1. Alma 37: 19
   19 And now behold, one purpose hath he fulfilled, even to the restoration of ^amany thousands of the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth; and he hath shown forth his power in them, and he will also still show forth his power in them unto ^bfuture generations; therefore they shall be preserved.

Bible Dictionary
Denotes changing one’s views, in a conscious acceptance of the will of God (Acts 3: 19). If followed by continued faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism in water for the remission of sins, and the reception of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, conversion will become complete, and will change a natural man into a sanctified, born again, purified person - a new creature in Christ Jesus (see 2 Cor. 5: 17). Complete conversion comes after many trials and much testing (see Luke 22: 32; D&C 112: 12-13). To labor for the conversion of one’s self and others is a noble task, as in Ps. 51: 13; Dan. 12: 3; James 5: 19-20; D&C 18: 15-16. Cf. Alma 26.

1. Acts 3: 19
   19 ¶ ^aRepent ye therefore, and be ^bconverted, that your sins may be ^cblotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the ^dpresence of the Lord;
2. 2 Cor. 5: 17
   17 Therefore if any man be ^ain Christ, he is a ^bnew creature: ^cold things are ^dpassed away; behold, all things are become ^enew.
3. D&C 112: 12-13
   12 And pray for thy brethren of the Twelve. ^aAdmonish them sharply for my name’s sake, and let them be admonished for all their sins, and be ye faithful before me unto my ^bname.
   13 And after their ^atemptations, and much ^btribulation, behold, I, the Lord, will feel after them, and if they harden not their hearts, and ^cstiffen not their necks against me, they shall be ^dconverted, and I will heal them.

Labor for others

1. Ps. 51: 13
   13 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be ^aconverted unto thee.
2. Dan. 12: 3
   3 And they that be ^awise shall ^bshine as the ^cbrightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to ^drighteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
3. James 5: 19-20
   19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;
   20 Let him know, that he which ^aconverteth the sinner from the error of his way shall ^bsave a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
4. D&C 18: 15-16
   15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one ^asoul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!
   16 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the ^akingdom of my Father, how great will be your ^bjoy if you should bring many ^csouls unto me!