Come Follow Me for May 18-24 - Mosiah 25-28

05/16/20 • 62 min

Discussion of the role of Alma in establishing a church in the Land of Zerahemla. Prior to this time religion had been something that was more cultural, and one of Alma’s great contributions to Nephite history was setting up a church structure that was separate from the government. Having established a church, they now confront novel challenges, such as what to do about members that refuse to repent. Following the revelatory answer to this question, we get one of the greatest repentance stories in all of scripture: Alma the Younger.

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Come Follow Me for May 11-17 - Mosiah 18-24

This lesson recounts the stories of two different people that are each brought into captivity by the Lamanites and eventually delivered by the Lord. The people of Alma had welcomed Christ into their lives, even covenanting with Him and each other that they would bear one another’s burdens and stand as witnesses for God. As a result, when their enemies placed heavy burdens upon them they bore them together, continued to call upon God and were eventually delivered. The people of Limhi, however, were slow to allow Christ into their lives and tried to rely upon their own strength and methods to save themselves, and as a result they could not be delivered until they had been sufficiently humbled.

In addition to the covered chapters, this lesson also draws from (1) Eugene England’s essay “Why the Church Is As True As the Gospel,” and (2) Answers to Gospel Questions by Joseph Fielding Smith.

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Come Follow Me for May 25-31 - Mosiah 29-Alma 4

King Mosiah implements a system of judges to rule his people after his passing, and explains why this system will better secure their liberty. However, as we begin the Book of Alma right away Nephite society is confronted with a number of challenges, first from Nehor, an antichrist who taught that all would be saved, and Amlici, who sought to be king and take away the people’s liberty. By calling upon God, under Alma’s leadership the Nephites are successful in fighting off attacks from those that followed Amlici and the Lamanites. The church of God is also challenged by both persecution and worldly success. In the end, Alma steps down from his seat as the chief judge to focus on his role as high priest of the church. In addition to the covered chapters, this lesson also draws from (1) John W. Welch, Reexploring the Book of Mormon, FARMS/Deseret Book, 1992, pp 105-106, (2) 2 Nephi 26:29, and (3) Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld, The Triple Package, The Penguin Press, 2014, pp 33-34.