Sunday on Monday: 2024 Book of Mormon (2024)

Who out there likes to bake or cook? Is there a recipe that you are known for, and do you have to follow it to a T? Today’s study of Alma 5-7 contains a recipe for testimony that all of us can be known for and there is a guarantee of success which thankfully has nothing to do with actual culinary skills.

What is the foundation of a testimony? In Mosiah 29 through Alma 4 there are many reasons for the people to question what they believe–they have temporal trials, popular figures mixing lies with doctrine, and many of their friends and family leave the fold of God. Nevertheless the Nephites were strengthened by the Lord. And we can strengthen our testimonies through their stories of perseverance.

Have you been born again? A concept brought up to Nicodemus is still relevant today, and was especially relevant to Alma and the sons of Mosiah in this week’s Come, Follow Me reading Mosiah 25–28. It was also on the mind of President James E. Faust when he taught that “we cannot be fully converted until we ‘walk in newness of life’ and are at heart a new person, ‘purged from [our] old sins.’”

Mosiah 18-24 covers many groups of people and their interactions with each other. Despite contentions, the goal of the righteous is always unity. Elder Cook taught this in the April 2024 General Conference when he said “Oneness with Christ and our Heavenly Father can be obtained through the Savior’s atonement.” So this week we will be studying how the atonement of Christ will help us knit our hearts together in unity and love.

The Book of Mormon Art Catalog’s mission includes furthering scholarship on Book of Mormon art and increasing the ability for everyone to use a wide variety of images in our worship and study. We will look at several pieces depicting the events of this week’s Come, Follow Me study of Mosiah 11–17. Let the visuals bring the stories alive in new, detailed ways!

It’s been a month since the last general conference. The messages are available to go back and read, and we’ve had an opportunity to let their words soak in. The last two weeks in Come, Follow Me also cover a conference of sorts when King Benjamin spoke to his people. Now, along with our study of Mosiah 7–10, we’ll relate this message on the power of prophets to the most recent words from our living prophets and general authorities today.

There is a familiar refrain in King Benjamin’s address. It comes up like the chorus in a great hymn multiple times during this week’s Come, Follow Me lesson of Mosiah 4–6. He asks his people, and us, to believe. Believe on the name of Christ and all the things He can do. And hopefully, our reaction can mirror his people’s when they rejoiced and said, “Yea, we believe” (Mosiah 5:2).

The people of King Benjamin gathered, with tents pointed to the temple, to hear the words in this week’s reading of Mosiah 1–3. It was a time to give offerings, crown a new king, and hear the word of God from his mouthpiece. And that message starts with the Plan of Salvation, centered on the Atonement of Christ.

There are formative moments in all of our lives. Some can be funny stories to share at parties, while others are intensely personal—reserved for telling only those closest to you. The succession of prophets we will read about in Enos through Words of Mormon carried on the tradition of recording stories, even if these leaders had to distill their whole lives into just a few sentences. We can learn from their examples how writing and testifying can change the lives of generations.

This year’s theme on Sunday on Monday is to anticipate Jesus. In Jacob 5–7, we find one of the most poetic ways prophets have looked forward to His coming and return—the allegory of the olive tree. We will look for Christ in this parable, discussing where we are in the story and what we can do to anticipate Him in our lives every day.

The prophet Jacob in the Book of Mormon felt the weight of his calling, and the pains of his people. He uses a word that many of us can relate to today in describing his state of mind—anxiety. In reading Jacob 1–4 we’ll see if we can find out what is causing Jacob’s anxiety, how we can relate, and the advice he has for everyone who has felt like he has.

What do you think of when you hear the word cover? There are blankets that cover you when you’re cold, you can cover a friend’s tab when going out to eat, or law enforcement or military cover their partners when lives are on the line. The Come, Follow Me lesson this week gives more context to covering, and how that term connects to the ancient translation of atonement. Today we have a special Easter episode with multiple guests sharing their experiences of Jesus Christ covering them.

Nephi knows what it’s like to feel deeply discouraged and alone. He even wrote that he “watered [his] pillow by night” because of his fears for his people (see 2 Nephi 33:3). But as he trusted in the Lord, he found true joy, peace, and belonging. In this week’s readings from 2 Nephi 31–33, we’ll study this faithful prophet’s final words about how we can partake of God’s goodness.

God will do whatever He says He is going to do. This is a promise we can trust. Keep that in mind as we read through the prophecies of the last days contained in this week’s Come, Follow Me reading from 2 Nephi 26–30. There are marvelous miracles in store as we come unto Him “line upon line” (see 2 Nephi 28:30).

The September 2021 publication of the Friend magazine included the song “Peace in Christ” by Nik Day. The first verse reads: “There is peace in Christ / When we learn of Him. / Feel the love He felt for us / When He bore our sins. / Listen to His words. / Let them come alive. / If we know Him as He is, / There is peace in Christ.” Keep this song in mind while studying 2 Nephi 20–25 because the words of Isaiah about Christ can bring us peace in a world of division, captivity, sorrow, and destruction. And if there’s one thing we could all use a little bit more of now in the world, it’s peace.

A theme song on TV immediately clues you in on what you are about to watch. There are themes in the scriptures, too, that hint at what you’ll read in the following chapters—especially the words of Isaiah. This week’s Come, Follow Me study focuses on 2 Nephi 11–19, which quotes much of the early chapters of Isaiah. And by starting at the beginning, we can find a clear theme in these passages: symbols of the Savior, Jesus Christ.

In 2 Nephi 6–10, Jacob encourages the covenant people always to remember God, just as He always remembers us. Jacob teaches from the words of Isaiah to help his people learn about God’s promised blessings and glorify His name. Today, as we study these passages, we’ll discuss how we can fulfill those words as well.

Even after experiencing loss and trials in the wilderness, Nephi says his family lived “after the manner of happiness” (2 Nephi 5:27). What does that look like for us, and how can we learn from Nephi and his people’s examples? As we study 2 Nephi 3–5, we can hopefully reaffirm, as Nephi did in his psalm, that despite temptation and conflict, our hearts rejoice—and we can trust in God forever.

This week’s Come, Follow Me section is relatively short—but not at all short on doctrine. The prophet Lehi’s final words are packed with so much eternal truth. We'll focus on listening and learning by the Spirit as we study together from 2 Nephi 1–2.

With all the heartache, suffering, and devastation going on in the world, it’s easy to wonder why bad things happen to good people. But instead, what if we consider how good people respond when bad things happen? This is the approach we’ll take as we study and learn from 1 Nephi 16–22. Looking at it this way helps us realize challenges can bring us to a place where we’re most likely to meet God. And if bad things happening help us get to know God better, then many of you have met him 100 times over.

Last week, we left off with 1 Nephi 10:17 when Nephi told us he was desirous that he might see, hear, and know of the things in his father’s vision. That’s a big ask—to see, hear, and know. So, what are you desirous to learn? As we go over 1 Nephi 11–15, we’ll explore what Nephi found out and how to apply these things in our lives.

This week, we get to study 1 Nephi 6–10 and focus on Lehi’s dream. If you have read these chapters many times, the Come, Follow Me manual challenges us this time to think about the vision the way Lehi did—within the context of our families and those we love. This approach will help us see symbols like the iron rod, the great and spacious building, and the tree of life in a new light, revealing deeper lessons that apply to our daily lives.

In last October’s general conference, Sister Tamara W. Runia challenged us to “zoom out to view family relationships as a powerful vehicle to teach us the lessons we came here to learn as we turn to the Savior.” Many of us are familiar with the story of Lehi and his family leaving Jerusalem and going back to get the plates. Today, our challenge is to zoom out and view the family relationships in this story, exploring how the lessons in 1 Nephi 1–5 can turn us to God and the Savior.

Christmas is over—did everyone get what they were hoping for? Well, there is one more gift to open. We are told in the introduction to the Book of Mormon that it was given by the “gift and power of God.” Our gift for all of 2024 is the Book of Mormon, and we will accept and unwrap that gift as we spend all year anticipating Jesus.