The Book of Mormon Keystone of Our Religion

The Book of Mormon Keystone of Our Religion ~ Lesson 4 Student Readings: • Doctrine & Covenants 17: 6; 19: 26; 20: 5 -12 • Jeffrey R. Holland, “Safety for the Soul”, Ensign, Nov. 2009 1

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What do you notice from this chart? 1820 First Vision received 1823 Moroni’s visits began 1829 Priesthood restored June 1829 Book of Mormon translation completed April 6, 1830 Church organized 3

Look for what the Book of Mormon contains and proves: D&C 17: 6 D&C 19: 26 -27 D&C 20: 8 -12 4

Doctrine & Covenants 20: 8 -12 What does the Book of Mormon contain? What does the Book of Mormon prove to the world? 5

Doctrine & Covenants 17: 6 and 19: 26 What do these two verses have in common? Of what value is it to you to know that the Lord and declared His testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon? 6

By the Lord’s own voice He bears testimony of The Book of Mormon: Pres. Ezra Taft Benson • that it is true (D&C 17: 6), • that it contains the truth and His words (D&C 19: 26), • that it was translated by power from on high (D&C 20: 8), • that it contains the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ (D&C 20: 9, D&C 42: 12), • that it was given by inspiration and confirmed by the ministering of angels (D&C 20: 10), • that it gives evidence that the holy scriptures are true (D&C 20: 11), and • that those who receive it in faith shall receive eternal life (D&C 20: 14). 7

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Three great reasons why Latter-day Saints should make the study of the Book of Mormon a lifetime pursuit: 1. The Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion Pres. Ezra Taft Benson 1. It is the keystone of our witness of Christ 1. Jesus Christ Himself is the cornerstone of everything we do. 2. It bears witness of His reality with power and clarity. 2. It is the keystone of our doctrine 1. It provides the most complete explanation of the doctrine of the Atonement and the Resurrection. 2. It teaches with purity and plainness the doctrines of salvation. 3. It is the keystone of our testimony 1. The truthfulness of the gospel and Church stand or fall with the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. 2. The Book of Mormon was written for our day 1. 2 Nephi 25: 21 2. Jacob 1: 3 3. Enos 1: 15 -16 4. Mormon 7: 1 -5 5. Mormon 8: 34 -35 3. The Book of Mormon draws us nearer to God. 1. “I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book. ” – Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 4: 461 9

If the Book of Mormon is true, then: Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley 10

If the Book of Mormon is true, then: • God lives Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley 11

If the Book of Mormon is true, then: • God lives • Jesus is the Son of God, the Only Begotten of the Father Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley 12

If the Book of Mormon is true, then: • God lives • Jesus is the Son of God, the Only Begotten of the Father • Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley 13

Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley If the Book of Mormon is true, then: • God lives • Jesus is the Son of God, the Only Begotten of the Father • Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer • America is a choice land provided the inhabitants worship Jesus Christ 14

Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley If the Book of Mormon is true, then: • God lives • Jesus is the Son of God, the Only Begotten of the Father • Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer • America is a choice land provided the inhabitants worship Jesus Christ • Joseph Smith was a prophet of God 15

If the Book of Mormon is true, then: • The successors to Joseph Smith are prophets of God Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley 16

If the Book of Mormon is true, then: • The successors to Joseph Smith are prophets of God • The Church is true and established with priesthood authority Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley 17

If the Book of Mormon is true, then: • The successors to Joseph Smith are prophets of God • The Church is true and established with priesthood authority • The Church is the restored organization established by Christ Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley 18

Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley If the Book of Mormon is true, then: • The successors to Joseph Smith are prophets of God • The Church is true and established with priesthood authority • The Church is the restored organization established by Christ • The Bible is true as far as it is translated correctly 19

“…let us testify of the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon complements the Bible in giving us a greater understanding of the doctrines of our Savior’s gospel. The Book of Mormon is the convincing Elder L. Tom Perry evidence that Joseph Smith is truly a prophet of God. If the Book of Mormon is true, there was a restoration of the priesthood. If the Book of Mormon is true, then with the power of that priesthood, Joseph Smith restored the Church of Jesus Christ. 20

I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book. 21

Take away the Book of Mormon and the revelations, and where is our religion? We have none. 22

For [more than 180] years this book has been examined and attacked, denied and deconstructed, targeted and torn apart like perhaps no other book in modern religious history—perhaps like no other book in any religious history. And still it stands. Failed theories about its origins have been born and parroted and have died… Elder Jeffrey R. Holland 23

None of these frankly pathetic answers for this book has ever withstood examination because there is no other answer than the one Joseph gave as its young unlearned translator. In this I stand with my own great-grandfather, who said simply enough, ‘No wicked man could write such a book as this; and no good man would write it, unless it were true and he were commanded of God to do so’. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland 24

In moments of … doubt or troubling times, hold the ground you have already won, even if that ground is limited. When those moments come and issues surface, the resolution of which is not immediately forthcoming, hold fast to what you already know and strong until additional knowledge comes. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland 25

Principle: When we face questions or doubts about the gospel, we should hold fast to what we already know to be true and trust that we can either find an answer through further study or that God will reveal the answer at a future time. 26

…search the Scriptures—search the revelations which we publish, and ask your Heavenly Father, in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, to manifest the truth unto you, and if you do it with an eye single to His glory, nothing doubting, He will answer you by the power of His Holy Spirit. You will then know for yourselves and not for another. You will not then be dependent on man for the knowledge of God. 27

Moroni 10: 4 -5 4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things. 5 28

Next week: The Restoration of the Priesthood ~ Lesson 5 Student Readings: • Joseph Smith – History 1: 68 -72 • Doctrine & Covenants 13: 1; 84: 18 -22; 107: 1 -19 • Thomas S. Monson, “The Priesthood-A Sacred Gift”, Ensign, May. 2007 29

Pres. Ezra Taft Benson I would like to speak about one of the most significant gifts given to the world in modern times. The gift I am thinking of is more important than any of the inventions that have come out of the industrial and technological revolutions. This is a gift of greater value to mankind than even the many wonderful advances we have seen in modern medicine. It is of greater worth to mankind than the development of flight or space travel. I speak of the gift of the Book of Mormon… 30

Pres. Ezra Taft Benson Latter-day Saints should make the study of the Book of Mormon a lifetime pursuit… There is a power in the book which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of the book. You will find greater power to resist temptation. You will find the power to avoid deception. You will find the power to stay on the strait and narrow path. . When you begin to hunger and thirst after those words, you will find life in greater and greater abundance. 31

The Book of Mormon proves to the world that • the scriptures are true, • that God inspires and calls people to do His work in our day, • and that God is unchangeable. When we face questions or doubts about the gospel, we should hold fast to what we already know to be true and trust that we can either find an answer through further study or that God will reveal the answer at a future time. 32