Mosiah 25

Introduction

Mosiah 25 provides a conclusion to the account of the people of Zeniff (see Mosiah 7–24). Limhi’s people and Alma’s followers returned to Zarahemla and were united safely under King Mosiah’s rule. After these groups arrived, Limhi and his people were baptized. King Mosiah gave Alma authority to establish churches throughout the land and to regulate the affairs of the Church of God among the people of Nephi.

Suggestions for Teaching

Mosiah 25:1–13

Those gathered in Zarahemla unite and become known as Nephites

Write the following question on the board:

When have you experienced God’s goodness in your life?

Ask students to write their answers to this question in their class notebooks or study journals. Explain that later in the lesson you will invite several of them to share their answers with the class.

As students study Mosiah 25 today, invite them to look for the blessings we can receive as we remember God’s goodness in our lives.

Summarize Mosiah 25:1–6 by explaining that after Limhi’s people and Alma’s people (all of whom were descendants of the people of Zeniff) escaped from bondage and united with the people living in Zarahemla, King Mosiah read their records to all the people.

Invite a few students to take turns reading aloud from Mosiah 25:7–11. Ask the class to follow along, looking for the general response of the people to the accounts of God’s dealings with the people of Zeniff.

Draw a simple happy face and a simple sad face on the board.

As King Mosiah was reading these records, what caused these people to be filled with joy and to give thanks to God? (List students’ responses on the board under the happy face. You may need to direct students specifically to verse 10.)
What principle can we learn from verses 7–11 about how we can benefit from learning about God’s dealings with other people? (Help students identify a principle such as the following: By studying the records of God’s dealings with others, we can feel joy and gratitude for the goodness of God.)
To what sources can we turn to learn of others’ experiences with the goodness of God? (Write students’ responses on the board. They might include the scriptures, general conference addresses, Church magazines, biographies of Church leaders and others, and family histories.)

Invite students to think of times when they have learned of God’s goodness to others from the sources listed on the board.

How have you benefited from learning of God’s goodness to others from the scriptures or one of these sources?

To further illustrate the principle students identified in Mosiah 25:7–11, invite several students to share the responses they wrote to the question you wrote on the board at the beginning of the lesson.

How does learning about God’s goodness in the lives of your classmates help you to feel joy and gratitude? (You may also want to share a response to this question.)

Invite students to apply the principle they identified in Mosiah 25:7–11 by encouraging them to take time on their own to choose one of the sources listed on the board and search for inspiring stories of God’s goodness.

Direct students’ attention to the sad face on the board. Invite students to review Mosiah 25:9, 11, looking for what caused the people of Zarahemla to feel sorrow.

What caused the people of Zarahemla to feel sorrow? (Write students’ answers on the board under the sad face.)

Explain that just as reading the scriptures can bring us joy and gladness, they can also make us aware of the sorrow that comes from poor choices. This awareness can be a blessing because we are able to see the negative effects of sinful behavior without personally committing sin.

Summarize Mosiah 25:12–13 by explaining that after King Mosiah read these records to his people, all of the people in Zarahemla (including those who had recently joined King Mosiah’s people) began to be identified as Nephites.

Mosiah 25:14–24

Alma establishes the Church of God throughout the land of the Nephites

To prepare students to study Mosiah 25:14–24, ask:

When have you attended a Latter-day Saint ward or branch other than your home ward or branch? What similarities did you notice between your home ward or branch and the one you visited?
How is it helpful to see that the organization and teachings of the Church are the same in every ward or branch of the Church?

Summarize Mosiah 25:14–18 by explaining that after Mosiah spoke and read to the people, he invited Alma to teach them. Then King Limhi and his people requested baptism. Alma baptized them and began organizing the Church throughout the land.

You might explain that this process of organizing the Church based on its growth among the Nephites could be compared to the process of creating wards and stakes in the Church today.

Invite a few students to take turns reading aloud from Mosiah 25:19–22. Ask the class to look for how the Church was organized and governed among the Nephites in Alma’s day. Invite students to report what they find.

What can we learn from these verses about why the Lord organizes His Church this way? (Students may identify a truth such as the following: The Lord organizes His Church so that all members may be taught and receive His word. Invite students to consider writing this truth in their scriptures next to verses 19–22.)

To help students understand this truth, ask the following questions:

How does the Church among the Nephites resemble the Church today? (We have wards and branches that are like the “different bodies” mentioned in Mosiah 25:21. Branch presidents, bishops, and stake presidents are like the priests and teachers who governed the Church in Alma’s day.)
How does organizing the Church this way help members receive the word of God?
In what ways have the leaders of your ward and stake (or branch and district) helped you receive God’s word?
According to Mosiah 25:22, what truths did the priests and teachers of the Church emphasize in Mosiah’s day? (You may want to point out that the Lord has given similar instruction to parents, Church leaders, and missionaries in the latter days [see D&C 15:6; 19:31; 68:25].)
Why is it important to continually teach repentance and faith in God?

Ask students to read Mosiah 25:23–24 silently, looking for phrases that describe the blessings received by those who joined the Church of God.

What did the Lord do for the people who joined the Church of God and took upon themselves the name of Jesus Christ?
What principle can we learn from these verses? (Help students identify the following principle: As we become members of Christ’s Church and take upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ, the Lord will pour out His Spirit upon us.)
What blessings have you received by being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ and having the Spirit of the Lord with you?

Testify to students that the blessings they have experienced as members of the Church can increase as they keep their covenants and receive the Spirit.

Commentary and Background Information

Mosiah 25:17–22. Priesthood authority among the Nephites

The Book of Mormon does not give specific details about the priesthood held by prophets and other brethren among the Nephites and Lamanites. However, the references to ordinances and the manner in which the Church was conducted provide sufficient evidence that they held the Melchizedek Priesthood. President Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972) taught that “the priesthood which [the Nephites] held and under which they officiated was the Priesthood after the holy order, the order of the Son of God [see Alma 13:1–20]. This higher priesthood can officiate in every ordinance of the gospel” (Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. [1956], 3:87).

For additional information about priesthood authority in the Book of Mormon, see the Commentary and Background Information for Mosiah 18.