Come, Follow Me – 2020 (Book of Mormon)

During the first week of 2020, we are studying the introductory pages of the Book of Mormon—all of the content which precedes 1 Nephi. What is in these pages? The Title Page of the Book of Mormon lays out the purposes of the book. The Introduction provides some background information about the book and an invitation for……

This week, we are studying the first seven chapters in the Book of Mormon, which describe the departure of Lehi’s family from Jerusalem and the retrieval of the brass plates. Key Events Lehi sees a vision in which he learns that Jerusalem will be destroyed (1 Nephi 1) Lehi and his family leave Jerusalem (1……

After Lehi’s dream and Nephi’s vision, the family was ready to resume their journey toward the promised land. The last seven chapters of 1 Nephi describe the rest of their journey and the subsequent teachings of Nephi to his brothers. Lessons from the Journey (1 Nephi 16-18) On the morning that they left their camp, Lehi found……

Nephi asked his younger brother Jacob to teach the people, using a passage from Isaiah as his text (2 Nephi 6:4). The sermon Jacob delivered is recorded in 2 Nephi 6-10. It focuses on two major themes: the gathering of Israel and the Savior’s Atonement. Here is my overview of the sermon: Jacob’s First Sermon……

In 2 Nephi 26-30, Nephi elaborates on the words of Isaiah which he has quoted in the previous chapters. The first and the last chapters (26 and 30) emphasize God’s desire to reveal all things. The second and fourth (27 and 29) are prophecies of the role of the Book of Mormon in the restoration….…

Zeniff was an inspiring leader with righteous goals, but he allowed his idealism to blind him to risks that he should have taken more seriously. Two generations later, Zeniff’s grandson, King Limhi, provided steady leadership to his people during a period of captivity. Eventually, they were found and led to safety by a search party……

Abinadi’s sermon was prompted by a question. Not a sincere, heartfelt question from an earnest seeker after truth, but an adversarial question from a priest who wanted to discredit him. The question was this: What is the meaning of Isaiah 52:7-10? Abinadi had been imprisoned because King Noah believed that his message of warning was……

At the waters of Mormon, Alma organized the people who believed his words into a church. More than 200 people were baptized in one day. Priests and teachers were selected. The people were instructed to meet together weekly, to love one another, and to share with one another. We can learn a lot about how……

Alma ended his sermon to the people of Ammonihah with an impressive elaboration on Psalm 95:7-11. Incorporating the topics of premortal life and priesthood authority, he explained how to enter into “the rest of the Lord” (Alma 13). Tragically, the sermon was followed by an atrocity. The citizens of the community who did not believe Alma’s……

Foolishness. That’s what many of the Nephites thought when they learned that the four sons of their king wanted to preach the gospel among their enemies (Alma 26:23-25). But Ammon and his brothers were determined, and God revealed to their father that they would be safe (Mosiah 28:7). God promised them that, if they would……

When Ammon and his brothers traveled to the land of Nephi to preach the gospel to the Lamanites, they hoped that some people would hear their message and accept the gospel. Little did they know that, during their 14 years of missionary service, thousands of people would embrace their message and would demonstrate extraordinary faith……

How do you respond when people challenge your faith? Korihor attracted a large number of followers by criticizing the church. He claimed that the members were naive and the leaders were exploitative. Alma tried to help Korihor recognize the truth, but it was only when he was overcome by the power of God that Korihor……

How do you grow spiritually when you can’t worship the way you’d like? What do you do when you can’t gather with other believers or enter houses of worship? That is the question the poor Zoramites asked Alma: “We have no place to worship our God; and behold, what shall we do?” they asked (Alma……

After leading the mission to the Zoramites, Alma returned to his home in Zarahemla. He was troubled about the spiritual health of his people, and he wanted his three sons to continue the work of the ministry. So, he met with each of them individually to give them a personal “charge” (Alma 35:15-16). These individual……

Alma loved his son Corianton. It is true that Corianton had disappointed and embarrassed him. But there is no hint of bitterness, frustration, or anger in Alma’s words to his son. Instead, Alma briefly (and somewhat reluctantly) provides needed correction (Alma 39:1-14), and then proceeds to answer some of Corianton’s questions. Alma makes it clear……

Twenty five—that’s how old Moroni was when he began commanding the Nephite armies. Thirteen years later, he stepped down to “spend the remainder of his days in peace” (Alma 62:43). What kind of man was he? Mormon makes it clear that Moroni “did not delight in bloodshed” but that he was committed to the liberty……

After a miraculous mission among the Lamanites and a frustrating mission among the Nephites in the north, Nephi returned to his home in Zarahemla. As the former chief judge, he was horrified by the corruption in their government and the rampant wickedness among the people. In frustration, he said a very public prayer on a……

The image of a prophet preaching to a people who are trying to kill him is a vivid one. Like Alma in the city of Ammonihah, Samuel the Lamanite was rejected by the citizens of Zarahemla but returned to preach again (Alma 8:8-18, Helaman 13:2-4). Why would he do this? Why did God send him……

How do you maintain hope during tumultuous times? In the years between the Savior’s birth, when the Nephites saw unmistakeable signs in the heavens, and His death, when natural disasters devastated the land, people of faith faced one crisis after another: The non-believers threatened to kill all believers if the sign of the Savior’s birth……

Thunderings, lightnings, storms, tempests, and earthquakes, unlike anything they had ever seen before—that’s what the Nephites and the Lamanites experienced at the time of the Savior’s crucifixion. At least sixteen cities were destroyed by fire, or buried, or covered with water. Many other cities were partially destroyed, and many people died. All of this happened……

“Hear ye him.” That is what our Heavenly Father said to a group of people just before Jesus Christ descended from heaven. They were therefore highly motivated to listen and receptive to His message. What was that message? After calling twelve disciples and teaching them how to baptize, He addressed the multitude. Here are the……

During the Savior’s ministry on the American continent, He taught the people, but He also served them in other ways, including: Healing the sick (3 Nephi 17:6-10) Blessing their children (3 Nephi 17:11-12, 21-24) Praying with and for them (3 Nephi 17:13-20, 3 Nephi 19:15-36) Administering the sacrament (3 Nephi 18:1-16) He also gave His……

On the second day of the Savior’s visit to the American continent, after praying for the people and administering the sacrament for a second time, He began again to teach them, beginning where He had left off the prior day. (See 3 Nephi 16:17-20, 3 Nephi 20:10-12.) Quoting the words of Isaiah, Micah, Moses, and……

Unity is important to the Savior. When He visited the American continent following His death and resurrection, He clarified how baptisms should be performed, “and there shall be no disputations among you,” He said (3 Nephi 11:22, 28). Sometime later, His twelve disciples were grappling with a question which had caused some disagreements: what to call the……

Jesus stands with open arms to receive us. The tragedy is that we fail to receive so many of the blessings He offers us. One reason we fail to receive them is because we take too much credit for our own accomplishments. Another is because we are unwilling to change. A third is because we……

After experiencing the annihilation of his people. Mormon wrote a final message of testimony and admonition to the descendants of his enemies, the Lamanites. He wanted them to know four things: You are part of the house of Israel. You must repent in order to be saved. You must lay down your weapons of war….…

President Russell M. Nelson said, “I urge you to stretch beyond your current spiritual ability to receive personal revelation, for the Lord has promised that ‘if thou shalt [seek], thou shalt receive revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge, that thou mayest know the mysteries and peaceable things—that which bringeth joy, that which bringeth life eternal’”……

For nearly a year, the first generation of Jaredites sat in eight small barges as storms and “mountain waves” moved them across the ocean. After arriving in the promised land, they and their descendants were afflicted by another kind of storm—political instability. Generation after generation of Jaredites lived under oppressive rulers, experienced coups and civil……

It’s not surprising that Moroni named his history of the Jaredites “the Book of Ether.” He must have felt a particular kinship with the last Jaredite prophet, who spent much of his life in hiding, and who witnessed the destruction of his people. As he introduces the prophet Ether to us, Moroni expounds on the……

Moroni thought he was done. He had appended his testimony to the end of his father’s book, as instructed (Mormon 8:1). He had subsequently added his own history of the Jaredite nation (Ether 1:1-2). Now, the book was complete, and his work was finished. “I had supposed not to have written more,” he tells us……

“I exhort you.” Eight times in his final chapter, Moroni uses this phrase or the related phrase, “I would exhort you.” He introduces the chapter as “a few words…of exhortation unto you” (Moroni 10:2). To exhort is to “strongly encourage or urge someone to do something” (Oxford English Dictionary). So Moroni’s final order of business……

The God of Israel, the Mighty One of Jacob was born as a vulnerable infant in the most humble of circumstances. “A tender plant,” Isaiah called Him, even “a root out of dry ground” (Isaiah 53:2, Mosiah 14:2). The angel who appeared to King Benjamin expressed the irony this way: The Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, who was, and is……