The Book of Mormon

The Book of Mormon is a gift from God to the entire world! It was written by ancient prophets for us who live in these latter days. It is the only book that the Lord Himself has testified to be true [see Doctrine and Covenants 17:6]. From its title page all the way through to the final testimonies of Mormon and Moroni, two main topics are mentioned over and over again: (1) Jesus Christ and (2) the gathering of Israel.

The more I study the Book of Mormon, the more I marvel at the miracle it is—how it was translated by the gift and power of God. Its central message is that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. It has converting power. Its truths draw every earnest seeker closer to God and fill each with a desire to know more about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Its truths fill each disciple of Christ with a conviction to repent, to leave the world behind, to follow the Savior into the waters of baptism, and then to make further covenants in His holy temple.

If you hold a copy of the Book of Mormon in your hand, you hold sacred text that came directly from God to mankind, through the instrumentality of those … plates of gold, and a gifted prophet of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I testify that Joseph Smith was and is the prophet of this last dispensation. It was he who, through the gift and power of God, translated this holy book. This is the book that will help to prepare the world for the Second Coming of the Lord.

Study of the Book of Mormon is most rewarding when one focuses on its primary purpose—to testify of Jesus Christ. …

When you read the Book of Mormon, concentrate on the principal figure in the book—from its first chapter to the last—the Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God. And look for a second undergirding theme: God will keep His covenants with the remnants of the house of Israel. …

… In a seemingly endless sequence of prophetic proclamations—testimonies of “all the holy prophets” [Jacob 4:4] for “a great many thousand years before his coming” [Helaman 8:18]—the Book of Mormon makes the solemn declaration that Jesus is the Christ, our Savior and Redeemer.

Resoundingly, the Book of Mormon affirms the existence of a living and loving Father in Heaven. It affirms the nature of our Heavenly Father’s plan of salvation, happiness, and mercy. It declares, as another testament, the generation and divinity of Jesus the Christ. It teaches of His mission and His ministry. The Book of Mormon stands as a global beacon of eternal truth. …

The Book of Mormon affirms the supreme status of man’s moral agency and sets forth eternal standards of accountability and responsibility for our choices. It affirms the reality and inevitability of our impending judgment, which will be done with a perfect blending of the justice and mercy of God [see Alma 12:15].

The Book of Mormon affirms that the people on the Western Hemisphere were among the “other sheep” to whom Jesus had earlier referred [see John 10:16]. And it affirms the existence of other societies to whom Jesus would minister—those we know as the lost tribes of Israel.

It affirms the reality of premortal life. It reaffirms the sanctity of and the necessity for the sacrament, as taught in the Bible. It reveals the state of the soul between death and resurrection.

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My dear brothers and sisters, I testify that the Book of Mormon is truly the word of God. It contains the answers to life’s most compelling questions. It teaches the doctrine of Christ. It expands and clarifies many of the “plain and precious” [see 1 Nephi 13:29–33] truths that were lost through centuries of time and numerous translations of the Bible.

The Book of Mormon provides the fullest and most authoritative understanding of the Atonement of Jesus Christ to be found anywhere. It teaches what it really means to be born again. From the Book of Mormon we learn about the gathering of scattered Israel. We know why we are here on earth. These and other truths are more powerfully and persuasively taught in the Book of Mormon than in any other book. The full power of the gospel of Jesus Christ is contained in the Book of Mormon. Period.

The Book of Mormon both illuminates the teachings of the Master and exposes the tactics of the adversary. The Book of Mormon teaches true doctrine to dispel false religious traditions—such as the erroneous practice of performing infant baptisms. The Book of Mormon gives purpose to life by urging us to ponder the potential of eternal life and “never-ending happiness” [Mosiah 2:41]. The Book of Mormon shatters the false beliefs that happiness can be found in wickedness and that individual goodness is all that is required to return to the presence of God. It abolishes forever the false concepts that revelation ended with the Bible and that the heavens are sealed today. …

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… I testify with my whole soul that in a most miraculous and singular way, the Book of Mormon teaches us of Jesus Christ and His gospel.

The Book of Mormon is a tangible sign that the Lord has commenced to gather His children of covenant Israel. This book, written for our day, states as one of its purposes that “ye may know that the covenant which the Father hath made with the children of Israel … is already beginning to be fulfilled. … For behold, the Lord will remember his covenant which he hath made unto his people of the house of Israel” [3 Nephi 29:1, 3].

Indeed, the Lord has not forgotten! He has blessed us and others throughout the world with the Book of Mormon. One of its purposes is for “the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ” [title page of the Book of Mormon]. It helps us to make covenants with God. It invites us to remember Him and to know His Beloved Son. It is another testament of Jesus Christ.

Not only does the Book of Mormon declare the advent of the gathering, but it is God’s instrument to bring it about.

It was God’s love for us that prompted Him centuries ago to command Nephite prophets to keep a sacred record of their people. Lessons from that record relate to our salvation and exaltation. These teachings are now available in the Book of Mormon. This sacred text stands as tangible evidence of God’s love for all of His children throughout the world.

It was Christ’s love for His “other sheep” that brought Him to the New World. …

The glorified and resurrected Lord descended from heaven and ministered among the people of the New World.

“I am the light and the life of the world,” He told them, “and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world” (3 Nephi 11:11).

Then He provided one of the most intimate experiences anyone could have with Him. He invited them to feel the wound in His side and the prints of the nails in His hands and feet, that they would know for certain that He is “the God of Israel, and the God of the whole earth, and [had] been slain for the sins of the world” (3 Nephi 11:14).

Jesus then gave His disciples the authority to baptize, to bestow the gift of the Holy Ghost, and to administer the sacrament. He gave them the power to establish His Church among them, led by twelve disciples.

He delivered to them some of the foundational teachings He had given His disciples in the Old World. He healed their sick. He knelt and prayed to the Father in words so powerful and sacred they could not be recorded. So powerful was His prayer that those who heard Him were overcome with joy. Overcome by His love for them and by their faith in Him, Jesus Himself wept. He prophesied of God’s work in the centuries leading up to the promised advent of His Second Coming.

The Bible and the Book of Mormon are both witnesses of Jesus Christ. They teach that He is the Son of God, that He lived an exemplary life, that He atoned for all mankind, that He died upon the cross and rose again as the resurrected Lord. They teach that He is the Savior of the world. …

Love for the Book of Mormon expands one’s love for the Bible and vice versa. Scriptures of the Restoration do not compete with the Bible; they complement the Bible. We are indebted to martyrs who gave their lives so that we could have the Bible. It establishes the everlasting nature of the gospel and of the plan of happiness. The Book of Mormon restores and underscores biblical doctrines such as tithing, the temple, the Sabbath day, and the priesthood.

My beloved brothers and sisters, we love the Holy Bible. It is the word of God. And we love the Book of Mormon. It is the great clarifying scripture, provided to us, as a gift, by the power of God. Indeed, it is “Another Testament of Jesus Christ.” These two books are companions. We hold them together—bound as one—as foretold long ago by prophets of God.

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My brothers and sisters, how precious is the Book of Mormon to you? If you were offered diamonds or rubies or the Book of Mormon, which would you choose? Honestly, which is of greater worth to you? …

I have invited various groups … to consider three related questions that I urge you to think about today:

First, what would your life be like without the Book of Mormon? Second, what would you not know? And third, what would you not have? …

Immersing ourselves regularly in the truths of the Book of Mormon can be a life-changing experience. …

When I think of the Book of Mormon, I think of the word power. The truths of the Book of Mormon have the power to heal, comfort, restore, succor, strengthen, console, and cheer our souls.

My dear brothers and sisters, I promise that as you prayerfully study the Book of Mormon every day, you will make better decisions—every day. I promise that as you ponder what you study, the windows of heaven will open, and you will receive answers to your own questions and direction for your own life. I promise that as you daily immerse yourself in the Book of Mormon, you can be immunized against the evils of the day.

Study of the Book of Mormon is most rewarding when one focuses on its primary purpose—to testify of Jesus Christ. By comparison, all other issues are incidental.

When you read the Book of Mormon, concentrate on the principal figure in the book—from its first chapter to the last—the Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God. And look for a second undergirding theme: God will keep His covenants with the remnants of the house of Israel. …

In a seemingly endless sequence of prophetic proclamations—testimonies of “all the holy prophets” [Jacob 4:4] for “a great many thousand years before his coming” [Helaman 8:18]—the Book of Mormon makes the solemn declaration that Jesus is the Christ, our Savior and Redeemer.

My brothers and sisters, how precious is the Book of Mormon to you? If you were offered diamonds or rubies or the Book of Mormon, which would you choose? Honestly, which is of greater worth to you? …

I have invited various groups … to consider three related questions that I urge you to think about today:

First, what would your life be like without the Book of Mormon? Second, what would you not know? And third, what would you not have? …

Immersing ourselves regularly in the truths of the Book of Mormon can be a life-changing experience. …

When I think of the Book of Mormon, I think of the word power. The truths of the Book of Mormon have the power to heal, comfort, restore, succor, strengthen, console, and cheer our souls.

My dear brothers and sisters, I promise that as you prayerfully study the Book of Mormon every day, you will make better decisions—every day. I promise that as you ponder what you study, the windows of heaven will open, and you will receive answers to your own questions and direction for your own life. I promise that as you daily immerse yourself in the Book of Mormon, you can be immunized against the evils of the day, even the gripping plague of pornography and other mind-numbing addictions.