“Have you spiritually been born of God? Have you received his image in your own countenances? Have you experienced this mighty change in your hearts? (LDS Alma 5:14)”

This topic of being born of God, is absolutely critical to the plan of salvation. This is embedded in the rock, the foundation, which is the doctrine of Christ. It can be called a lot of things, like being born again, or being born of the Spirit or receiving the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost. What is vital, is not what it is called, but that it is received. It is something that all who are accountable before God must experience, or be damned.

Since it is so vital, many people who recognize its importance, look at the spiritual experiences that they have had and automatically think, “yep, I’ve received it!”. But if that is not actually true, that error is damnable. This can be the kind of idea where Jesus says, “if the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” In other words, if you think you’ve received it, but you haven’t, how great of an error it is that you’ve embraced!

How can a person tell if they’ve genuinely had this experience of being born of God or not? A person can have genuine spiritual experiences and not yet be born of God. So how is one to know if they really have been born of God?

Alma

Some examples from the scriptures help us understand what a genuine experience of being born of God is like. Alma, who is quoted above asking this question of his audience, shares his own experience of being born of God when he says:\

“I was racked with Eternal torment, for my soul was harrowed up to the greatest degree and racked with all my sins. Yea, I did remember all my sins and iniquities, for which I was tormented with the pains of hell. Yea, I saw that I had rebelled against my God and that I had not kept his holy commandments. Yea, and I had murdered many of his children, or rather led them away unto destruction. Yea, and in fine, so great had been my iniquities that the very thought of coming into the presence of my God did rack my soul with inexpressible horror. Oh, thought I, that I could be banished and become extinct, both soul and body, that I might not be brought to stand in the presence of my God to be judged of my deeds. And now, for three days and for three nights was I racked, even with the pains of a damned soul.”
“And it came to pass that as I was thus racked with torment, while I was harrowed up by the memory of my many sins, behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world. Now as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart, O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death. And now behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more. And oh, what joy and what marvelous light I did behold! Yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pains. Yea, I say unto you, my son, that there can be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as was my pains.”
“Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy. Yea, and methought I saw, even as our father Lehi saw, God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God; yea, and my soul did long to be there. But behold, my limbs did receive their strength again, and I stood upon my feet, and did manifest unto the people that I had been born of God. Yea, and from that time even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance, that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste, that they might also be born of God and be filled with the holy ghost.” (LDS Alma 36:12-24, NC Alma 17:3-5)

Alma’s experience came as a result of being rebuked by an angel of God. So striking is this rebuke that Alma falls “unconscious” for a time. During this “unconscious” experience, he sees himself in the terrible, fallen state he is in. In this torment, he cries out to Jesus for mercy. His prayer is answered and his soul is filled will a marvelous light that fills his soul with joy as exquisite as were his pains. His interaction with God includes something he merely describes as “methought I saw … God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God; yea, and my soul did long to be there.“

If you have been born of God, you have had an experience that is on par with what Alma describes here. Can you relate to what Alma is describing because you’ve had a similar experience yourself? Does his reading his experience remind you of your own?