Moroni 10

“Moroni 10,” Book of Mormon Teacher Resource Manual (2004), 276–78


Introduction

President Ezra Taft Benson, then President of the Quorum of the Twelve, taught:

“The Book of Mormon brings men to Christ through two basic means. First, it tells in a plain manner of Christ and his gospel. …

“Second, [it] exposes the enemies of Christ” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1975, 94; or Ensign, May 1975, 64).

Throughout the Book of Mormon, the prophets encourage all people to come to Christ and gain salvation in the kingdom of God. The last prophet in the book to make this plea is Moroni. In the final chapter, he teaches “all the ends of the earth” how to know of the truthfulness of the record, and invites them to come unto Christ and be perfected in Him (see Moroni 10:4, 24, 32).

Some Important Gospel Principles to Look For

Additional Resources

  • Book of Mormon Student Manual: Religion 121 and 122, pp. 149–51.

Suggestions for Teaching

scripture mastery iconMoroni 10:4–5 (Scripture Mastery). We can know the truth of all things by the power of the Holy Ghost.

(30–35 minutes)

Ask a student to give a definition of the word promise. Ask the class how confident they are that the following people would keep a promise:

  • A prisoner at a penitentiary

  • A telephone sales representative

  • An acquaintance

  • A good friend

  • A person who has already lied to you

  • A parent

  • A prophet

  • The Lord

Tell students that Moroni 10:3–5 contains what is sometimes referred to as “the Book of Mormon promise.” Write on the board the headings God’s Promise and Our Duty. Have students read Moroni 10:3–4 and look for God’s promise and what we must do to obtain that promise. List their findings under the appropriate headings on the board. Use any or all of the following questions as you discuss these verses:

  • Why do you think we usually must read the Book of Mormon before we can receive a witness of its truth?

  • How can remembering the Lord’s mercy prepare our hearts to receive an answer through the Holy Ghost?

  • Nephi explained that one reason he wrote was to show the Lord’s tender mercies (see 1 Nephi 1:20). What are some stories from the Book of Mormon that remind you of the Lord’s mercy?

  • What do you think it means to ponder? (“Ponder means to weigh mentally, think deeply about, deliberate, meditate” [Marvin J. Ashton, in Conference Report, Oct. 1987, 23; or Ensign, Nov. 1987, 20].)

  • How does God promise to communicate the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon to you?

  • Why do you think it is important that this prayer be offered “with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ”? (Moroni 10:4).

  • How can we recognize the power of the Holy Ghost? How can you know which feelings are from God? (see Alma 32:28; D&C 6:22–23; 9:7–9).

  • How can we apply this pattern to learning other truths? (see v. 5).

  • What are some truths you have come to understand by the power of the Holy Ghost?

Share your testimony of the Book of Mormon. Help students understand that this promise applies to each of them and to all with whom they may someday share the Book of Mormon. Invite a few parents or teachers to come to class and share how they applied this promise and came to know that the Book of Mormon is true.

Moroni 10:8–25. Spiritual gifts come from God for the blessing of His people and are always found in the true Church.

(25–30 minutes)

Tell students that, now that they have spent several months together as a seminary class, they probably know one another fairly well. Ask them to think about each of the other students in class. Have them consider what talents, character traits, or abilities each of them has. Discuss:

  • Why is it important to recognize the strengths of every person in our class?

  • How has the combination of our talents helped make our seminary experience better this year?

  • How might our class be different if everyone had the exact same talents and abilities?

Read Moroni 10:8 and ask: What does Moroni begin to teach about in this verse? (The gifts of God.) Read Moroni 10:17–18; Doctrine and Covenants 46:11–12 and ask:

  • How many people have been given at least one spiritual gift?

  • From whom do these gifts come?

  • Why are these gifts given? (see Moroni 10:8; D&C 46:9, 12, 26).

Have students read Moroni 10:9–16, 20–23 and make a list of the spiritual gifts mentioned. Ask:

  • What evidence have you seen that these gifts exist in the Church today? (Discuss students’ answers.)

  • How can we use our individual gifts, together with the gifts of others, to bless our class? our families? the Church? the world?

  • What would the Church be like if everyone had the exact same spiritual gifts?

  • How have the gifts of others been a blessing in your life?

Read Moroni 10:24–25 and Doctrine and Covenants 46:8. Testify that spiritual gifts come to those who earnestly seek them, but are taken away from those who disbelieve. Encourage students to seek for spiritual gifts and to use them to benefit others.

weekly iconMoroni 10:30–34. If we come unto Jesus Christ, we can be cleansed from sin and become perfect and sanctified through His Atonement.

(20–25 minutes)

Show students the picture Moroni Hides the Plates in the Hill Cumorah (Gospel Art Picture Kit, no. 320). Ask:

  • What do you imagine Moroni was thinking at that time?

  • How do you think he felt about the gold plates? Why?

  • Why was this such a significant event for people today?

Show the picture The Gold Plates (Gospel Art Picture Kit, no. 325). Invite students to imagine the period of time right before Moroni buried the plates. Discuss the following questions:

  • What do you think Moroni might have wanted to say as he concluded this record?

  • Why are someone’s final words or testimony so important?

  • How do you imagine Moroni must have felt as he wrote Moroni chapter 10?

Read Moroni 10:28–34 to the class. Have students stop you at each word or phrase they think is a significant part of Moroni’s final testimony. Before you continue, discuss why that word or phrase is significant and how we can apply it in our life.

Stress to students how strongly Moroni wanted them to “come unto Christ, and be perfected in him” (v. 32). Have a student read the following statement by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland:

“Moroni’s last appeal, expressed on behalf of every prophet who ever wrote in this other testament of Jesus Christ, is for us to be cleansed from the blood and sin of our generation [see D&C 88:75, 85]. ‘Come unto Christ,’ he says, ‘and be perfected in him …’ [Moroni 10:32].

“… Purity. Holiness. Character and conscience without blemish. All these through the grace of Christ, which cleanses our garments, sanctifies our souls, saves us from death, and restores us to our divine origins.

“With his last recorded breath Moroni bore witness of his own firm faith in such divine redemption. To his fallen Nephites, to the warring Lamanites, to those tragic Jaredites, and to us, Moroni wrote:

“‘And now I bid unto all, farewell. I soon go to rest in the paradise of God, until my spirit and body shall again reunite, and I am brought forth triumphant through the air, to meet you before the pleasing bar of the great Jehovah, the Eternal Judge of both quick and dead. Amen’ [Moroni 10:34].

“Thus the Book of Mormon ends, flying as it were with Moroni, on the promise of the Holy Resurrection [see Revelation 14:6]. That is most fitting, for this sacred testament—written by prophets, delivered by angels, protected by God—speaks as one ‘crying from the dead,’ exhorting all to come unto Christ and be perfected in him, a process culminating in the perfection of celestial glory. In anticipation of that triumphant hour, God has set his hand for the last time to gather Jew, Gentile, Lamanite, and all the house of Israel.

“The Book of Mormon is the New Covenant memorializing that grand latter-day endeavor. All who receive it and embrace the principles and ordinances it declares will one day see the Savior as he is, and they will be like him. They will be sanctified and redeemed through the grace of his innocent blood. They will be purified even as he is pure. They will be holy and without spot. They will be called the children of Christ” (Christ and the New Covenant, 338–39).

weekly icon1 Nephi–Moroni. Review of the Book of Mormon and the year in seminary.

(30–35 minutes)

Display as many Book of Mormon pictures as you have available. Also display other pictures, handouts, or other items from lessons you taught during the year. Invite students to think about some of the experiences they had studying the Book of Mormon.

Share the following statements by the Prophet Joseph Smith:

“I spent the day in the council with the Twelve Apostles at the house of President Young, conversing with them upon a variety of subjects. … 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” (History of the Church, 4:461).

“Take away the Book of Mormon and the revelations, and where is our religion? We have none” (History of the Church, 2:52).

Share with students how studying the Book of Mormon and living by its teachings have helped you grow nearer to the Savior this year. Review some of your favorite lessons and some of the significant experiences you had with your class. Bear testimony of the love that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have for the students, and express your gratitude for the students’ efforts.

Invite those students who would like to share their testimony of the Book of Mormon to do so. Encourage them to tell how their lives have changed as a result of their studies. Invite them to share some of the important doctrines they learned and how those doctrines have helped them draw nearer to Jesus Christ.

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