I have wondered why this sermon had this particular effect on the people and especially on Zeezrom. It seemed like a pretty awesome talk on the Atonement and the judgment. I'm sure the truths of the judgment and remembering our guilt were impactful but I'd think Alma would already have taught them that they would be judged by their works. I think the effect of this sermon is a result of multiple factors. I think there are at least three reasons why this sermon astonished them and made them tremble. 1) what was said 2) who said it and 3) how he said it.
Like I mentioned, I could see how this content would be meaningful in this situation since the people are wicked and Amulek speaks of the judgment and the Atonement. But also like I mentioned, I don't think this information was new or that it hadn't already been taught or told to them by Alma.
I think that part of the powerful effect of this sermon was due to who gave it. Amulek was one of the people of the city. He was not a stranger or a foreigner. He was not a general authority of the church. He was a local business man. He knew the ways of Ammonihah and was a part of that culture. I believe that part of the power in his message came from the fact that he was just some guy who people knew that was now speaking with power and conviction. The people had known Amulek before Alma showed up and this new Amulek was different. He was powerful, knowledgeable and courageous.
The biggest part of his power came from the way he delivered his sermon. This story has mentioned over and over again that Alma an Amulek taught only that which the Spirit directed them to teach. Amulek's message was exactly what The Lord wanted to be said. He was speaking by the spirit and so he spoke in the name of Christ and the people could feel it. This, combined with the fact that Amulek was a local businessman astonished the people. They could not believe that they were being taught with such power by one with so little formal spiritual training and gospel knowledge. It is interesting that Amulek took on Zeezrom first. Alma didn't jump in and say "hey I'm the prophet, I've got a bit more experience, maybe I should take this guy on and you can do some street preaching later or something."
Alma didn't jump in and help, he let The Lord show the people that their strongest most learned man couldn't outsmart the weakest and commonest man when he had the spirit of God with him.
This is what I think astonished the people, a weak and common man speaking by the Spirit could not be tricked, bribed or deceived by their greatest and most knowledgeable and talented lawyer. Something impossible had happened before their eyes and they could not deny it. They had no choice but to reevaluate their beliefs about the world because it was so obvious that what they believed was absolutely incompatible with reality. What had just happened was incompatible with "what they knew", but because they couldn't deny that it had happened, they had no choice but to question "what they knew."
Alma could not teach these people before because the fact that they didn't know him and that he was the leader of the church (a fact which they reminded him of and used as a source of anger towards him earlier) made it easy for them to dismiss his testimony and ignore his spirit.
When Amulek joined the cause, he made it impossible for them to deny. His conversion was indisputable. Amulek, a common man, a local, and one who had previously been uncommitted to the cause of the gospel had now become the gamechanger. He did something Alma could not do, not because Alma wasn't good enough, but ironically because he wasn't weak enough. Amulek's weakness is exactly what showed the people God's strength. Because his weakness was a stark contrast with the power of his words, the people were astonished.
I believe there are things that can only be done by the Lord's weakest servants. His greatest, strongest, most refined and learned servants sometimes cannot do what a weak, young, inexperienced yet converted servant can do. For no fault of the servant himself, the experience and wisdom of the refined servant can make it easy for people to dismiss his words because wisdom and experience are too closely tied to the way men view strength from a mortal perspective. It is too similar too the way the worldly persuade. God's way of persuading is much different than the worlds, He needs fools and weaklings so that the world cannot so easily deny the miracles done in His name.
Fools and children like Moses, Samuel, Daniel, Joseph Smith, Enoch and Amulek. People who the world calls weak. That is the Lord's way. Weakness is His strength.
I saw this recently in stake conference. Over two days I heard many talks from powerful leaders in our stake. They gave inspiring and wonderful messages. The one that moved me most though was given by a humble, ordinary looking member of our stake. He had no calling of importance that I know of, he had no special training or mode of speaking. His entire talk was really more of a testimony. He spoke of how how after hearing a talk by our stake president, he felt inspired to transform his casual approach to scripture study into a passionate quest. He spoke of the way he had changed. He had created a study room and a study process that he used to feast on the word of God. His testimony was powerful but it was humble. It was direct and to the point and it was honest. It was not eloquent, just true. I particularly remember him taking about how he had been an avid fly fisherman before and since the change in his study he said that this hobby had pretty much disappeared. He lost interest in it, he didn't need it anymore. For some reason this was one of the most interesting parts of his talk. I think when he talked about fly fishing, I may have felt about him similar as some people felt about Amulek. I thought "this is such an ordinary guy." This gave his testimony the power I felt.
While I loved all the messages at conference, it was this modern day Amulek who touched me deepest.
I had not considered, but now I can see, that my weakness is my greatest strength. It is what allows the Lord to show His strength. As Paul said, "when I am weak, then I am strong."
