Book of Mormon Study Guide 15

Eternally indebted to your Heavenly Father

Mosiah 1:1-8
Remember
The Hebrew word zakar is almost always translated ``remember'' in the King James Version of the Bible
though in Hebrew it can also be translated into: ``think'', ``mention'', or ``record.'' Thus, from the Hebrew
point of view, to remember includes both thought and deed.
How can you remember (think of) Heavenly Father more often?

How can you remember (mention) Heavenly Father more often?

How can you remember (make records about) Heavenly Father more often?

Scriptures and the role of the living prophet

Hugh Nibley once expressed concern that the Latter Day Saints were neglecting their scriptures in
favor of simply listening to the living prophet. Their rationale is that, If it is important, the prophet will
let us know. In Mosiah 1:3 King Benjamin says, Were it not for these plateswe must have suffered in
ignorance, even at this present time, not knowing the mysteries of God. How is it possible to suffer in
ignorance in the presence of a prophet? Hugh Nibley explained, The Lord told Joseph Smith, if Ive told
you a thing once I wont tell you again; if its in the scriptures, dont ask me about it. Look it up yourself; Im
not going to repeat these things. If we dont take advantage of the revelations we have, we are not
going to have more.
Teachings of the Book of Mormon.

King Benjamins Speech

Mosiah 2:19-26
Gratitude doesnt come naturally. Self pity does. Murmuring does. No one has to remind us to
complain. Yet, murmuring and complaining do not mix well with all that we have been blessed with.
Remember the story of the ten healed lepers in Luke 17:11-18? Once they were healed Jesus
admonished them to go and show themselves unto the priests, and they obeyed. Jesus watched
them dance their way over the horizon. And then he patiently waited for their return. And he waited
and he waited and he waited. He wanted to hear the reunion stories. What did you wife say? How
did the kids respond? How does it feel to be healed? Jesus waited for the ten men to return and
say thanks, but only one of them came back. Even Jesus was astonished. You would think that
nothing would keep the newly cleansed from thanking their deliverer. And yet, they were nowhere to
be found. Perhaps they used the same excuses we do.
Maybe some were too busy to be thankful. They planned to express their gratitude to Jesus. Right
after they found their family members, their doctor, and said hi to the neighbors.
Maybe some were too careful to be thankful. They guarded against joy, kept their hopes down.
Waited for the other shoe to drop. Wanted to read the fine print first. Whats too good to be true,
usually is. Maybe others were too self-centered to be thankful. The sick life was simpler. Now they
had to get a job, were assigned a calling, had to participate in life. Thanks a lot Jesus.
Others might have been too arrogant. After all, they were never that sick. Given time, they would
have recovered on their own.
Too busy
Too cautious
Too self-centered
Too arrogant
Too close to home?
If this story is any indication, nine of ten people suffer from ingratitude. Epidemic proportions. Dont
be one of them.
Joseph F. Smith once said, "I believe that one of the greatest sins of which the inhabitants of the
earth are guilty today is the sin of ingratitude
What would be on your list of blessings for which you are grateful. In Mosiah 2:4 we find a list of the
blessings the Nephites gave thanks for at the temple. Name ten things that you are grateful for
today.
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)

Mosiah 3:3
The phrase glad tidings of great joy appears eleven times in the Book of Mormon and it
always refers to the coming of the Savior.
Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet
confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright, and the determined choice to
praise God in every situation. Youll find nothing in that definition about happy feelings,
because, as we all know, happiness is fleeting and temporary. We tend to think that life comes
in hills and valleys. In reality, its much more like train tracks. Every day of your life, wonderful,
good things happen that bring pleasure and contentment and beauty to you. At the exact
same time, painful things happen to you or those you love that disappoint you, hurt you, and
fill you with sorrow. These two tracks both joy and sorrow run parallel to each other
every single moment of your life.
Thats why, when youre in the midst of an amazing experience, you have a nagging realization
that its not perfect. And while youre experiencing something painful, theres the glorious
realization that there is still beauty and loveliness to be found. Theyre inseparable.
If you look down train tracks into the brightness of the horizon, the tracks become one. You
cant distinguish them as two separate tracks. Thats how it will be for us, too. One day, our
parallel tracks of joy and sorrow will merge into one. The day we meet Jesus Christ in person
and see the brightness of who he is, it will all come together for us. Then it will all make
complete sense.
This joy, the joy offered by God is different than the one offered at the car dealership or
shopping mall. God is not interested in putting a temporary smile on your face. He wants to
deposit a resilient hope in our heart. He has no interest in giving you a shallow happiness that
melts in the heat of adversity. But he does off you a joy: a deep-seated, heat-felt, honest to
goodness, ballistic strong sense of joy that can weather the most difficult of storms. That
joy comes from the gift of His son, a hope for our redemption and a relationship with our
Savior, Jesus Christ.
Mosiah 3:4
The Lord sent the angel to proclaim the coming of His son that we may rejoice. The Greek
meaning of this word reinforces the message of joy found in verse 3. The Greek word for
rejoice is xaris which literally means to experience Gods grace.
How does knowing about the Savior and His divine mission bring joy into your life?

Mosiah 3:7
Blood cometh from every pore
Many historians have doubted this account of the Savior bleeding from every pore. However, modern
revelation leaves no doubt that it did indeed occur. The JST of Luke confirms this part of the angels
Messianic prophecy. Describing Christ's agony in Gethsemane, Luke said that the Savior, sweat as it
were great drops of blood falling down to the ground (JST, Luke 22:44) The medical term for such a
condition is hematodrosis. Under extreme distress and pressure the capillaries burst and produce a
bloody sweat. Christs was the most sever instance of hematodrosis ever experienced.
Regarding the validity of the phrase blood cometh from every pore, we might look to the sacrifice of
the red heifer for answers. The sacrifice of the red heifer was a whole and symbolically perfect
sacrifice. To the Israelites, the color red was symbolic of not only blood but sin. If two white or black
hairs sprung from the same follicle the heifer was disqualified from serving as a sacrifice. If the
detail of the Mosaic law came down to every follicle, could not the detail of the atonement and King
Benjamins prophesy of the atonement also come down to every pore? I believe that it did. Moreover,
biblical evidence also demonstrates to us that the sacrificial symbolism of the red heifer was clearly
understood not only in New Testament times (see Hebrews 9), but in Old Testament times as well (see
Psalm 51:7). See Alan C. Miner, The Sacrifice and Purification Ritual of the Red Heifer,

Mosiah 3:10
As he shall rise the ________________ day from the dead and behold, he standeth to _________________
the world; and behold, all these things are done that a _________________ judgment might come upon
the children of men.
The word righteous here means moral. The judgment our Father in Heaven wants for us is not a just
judgment, for with that we would all be condemned. We deserve punishment, but He loves us enough to
ask for a moral judgment to be made. Moral in the sense that since Christ was punished without need
we should be forgiven without justification.
Mosiah 3:12
For salvation cometh to none such except it be through repentance and faith on the Lord Jesus
Christ
President Uchtdorff: It is not repentance per se that saves man. It is the blood of Jesus Christ that
saves us. It is not by our sincere and honest change of behavior alone that we are saved, but by
grace that we are saved, after all we can do (2 Nephi 25:23). True repentance, however, is the
condition required so that Gods forgiveness can come into our lives. True repentance makes a
brilliant day out of the darkest night

We need a strong faith in Christ to be able to repent. Our faith has to include a correct
idea of Gods character, perfections, and attributes (Lectures on Faith 1985, 38). If we
believe that God knows all things, is loving, and is merciful, we will be able to put our trust
in Him for our salvation without wavering. Faith in Christ will change our thoughts, beliefs,
and behaviors that are not in harmony with Gods will.
(Spencer W. Kimball, The Miracle of Forgiveness 1969, 362).
Mosiah 3:15
Yet they hardened their hearts and understood not that the Law of Moses availeth
nothing except it were through the atonement of his blood
The people in this chapter felt that they could earn Gods love through their righteous
actions. Sometimes, so do we. We feel that if we attend one more temple session, take
dinner to one more family, get one more month of perfect home teaching, we will be home
free, a celestial shoe-in. But the truth is God doesnt love us because of what we do, he
loves us because of who we are; or more specifically because of whose we are. We are
His. His idea. His face.. His eyes. His hands. We are His children. Look deeply in to the face of
every human being on earth and you will see His likeness. And though we nay not act like
our Father, there is no greater truth than this. We are His. Unalterably. He loves us.
Undyingly. Gods love is not what we are used to. It is not human love. It is not dependent on
our behavior. His loves sees your sin and loves you still. Does he approve of your error? NO.
Do you need to repent? Yes. But even in the face of this truth, He could not love you more
than He does right now.
How have you tried to earn you way to Heaven? To prove to your Father in Heaven that
you are worthy of His love? Why is it so hard for us to accept that our celestial parents
love us just the way we are?

Do you sometimes feel that Gods unending love is just too good to be true? That with all of your faults
and sins that Heavenly Father cant really love you? Read Romans 8:1-39. This chapter begins with no
condemnation and ends with no separation for those who are in Christ. Whenever you question whether
or not God can truly love you, exactly as you are right now, turn to the promises in this chapter.
Recognize that God is there whether you walk away from Him or not.
How do todays media describe love? How does our understanding and experience of love in our daily
lives affect our experiences of Gods love?

Mosiah 3:19
Becometh a saint The word saint is tied to the Hebrew word kadosh which means to separate from,
and to become sacred and holy.
How has your membership in the church and your testimony of the Savior Jesus, Christ caused you to
be separate or distinct from the world?