Christ’s Discourse on the Gospel and His Church
READ 3
Nephi 27:1-2
What were
the circumstances in which Christ visited the disciples?
Why did
Christ come to earth and show Himself unto them to answer their prayer?
Why does
Christ ask them what they want; doesn’t He already know?
READ 3
Nephi 27:3-10
What is
the name of Christ’s Church?
What if a
Church is named after a man, a group of men, or a principle of the gospel?
Does it
matter what the Church is called if it does not preach Christ’s doctrines in
truth?
Does it
matter what the Church is called if it does preach Christ’s doctrines in truth?
What is
the purpose of a Church if people are saved individually by coming unto Christ
anyway?
Why was
the name of the Church changed from the Church of Christ to the Church of the
Latter-day Saints (1834) and later to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints (1838)?
READ 3
Nephi 27:11-12
Which is
worse, for a church to be built upon the works of men or the works of the
devil?
Why would
a church of men or especially a church of the devil ever have “joy in their
works”, even for a season?
Anciently,
the word “gospel” meant “to preach the good news” instead of meaning the
doctrinal content of Christian preaching or even the accounts of Christ’s ministry. That means that verse 13 could be paraphrased
as follows: “Behold, I have preached my glad tidings to you, and these are the
glad tidings I have preached to you…”
READ 3
Nephi 27:13-18
What is
the first element of the “good news”?
What is
the reason Christ gives for His mission?
What
parallels are there between Christ being lifted up on the cross and mankind
being lifted up by the Father to be judged?
How does
this relate to Christ’s admonition to us to “take up our cross” and follow Him?
What does
the phrase “that I might draw all men unto me” imply?
What are
those who are baptized in Christ’s name filled with?
If being
“cast into the fire” from which one “cannot return” means experiencing “God’s
punishment” not “endless punishment” (see D&C 19), what is verse 17 saying?
READ 3
Nephi 27:19-21
Who
enters into the rest of the Lord?
How does
one “wash their garments” in Christ’s blood?
Are we
really to do the works we’ve “seen” Christ do and what are those works?
READ 3
Nephi 27:22
How will
we be “lifted up” at the “last day” if we do all these things?
READ 3
Nephi 27:23-27
If we are
to be judged against the books we write, why write them at all – that way we
won’t be condemned, right?
What kind
of judges are the 12 Nephite disciples?
READ 3
Nephi 27:30-31, 33
What
causes Christ, the Father and the hosts of heaven to have joy?
What is
the “night wherein no man can work”?
Why does
Christ use the analogy of “night” when in fact what is implied is coming back
into the presence of God, which is very light?
Christ
Grants the Disciples’ Desires
READ 3
Nephi 27:28-29 and 3 Nephi 28:1
Who gets
to ask the Father and Christ for anything they wish and receive it?
READ 3
Nephi 28:2-3
Why in
the world would these nine disciples (and all but one of the Jewish apostles –
see D&C 7) waste their “wish” on what they will receive anyway?
READ 3
Nephi 28:4-8
What did
the three Nephite disciples desire of Christ?
Why were
they hesitant to ask this?
READ 3
Nephi 28:9, 23
What is
their objective – why do they want to stay on earth?
What is
the downside of this desire?
READ 3
Nephi 28:13-17 and 3 Nephi 28:36-40
What does
it mean that they couldn’t tell if they were in the body or not, and what is
implied?
What is
the state of the bodies of the Three Nephites?
READ 3
Nephi 28:18-22
When were
they cast into prison or deep pits or fiery furnaces?
READ 3
Nephi 28:25-32
Among
whom will the Three Nephites minister?
READ 3
Nephi 28:33-35
Why would
it be better for those who will not hearken to the words of Jesus (or those He
has chosen to minister to) that they had never been born?
Why do we
not have all the scriptures that give an account of all the works of Christ?
Who are
those that Christ has chosen and sent among us to teach His words?
What will
these three Nephites (and John) receive that the other disciples and apostles
will not?
What are
the implications of their choices to stay on earth and minister?
Mormon’s
Warning to the Latter-Day Gentiles
READ 3
Nephi 29:2-3
Mormon is
referencing Christ’s prophesy about the Gentiles rejecting the fullness and the
gospel going again to the Remnant of Israel; what is Mormon’s testimony and how
does he know?
READ 3
Nephi 29:4-7
What does
it mean to “spurn” at the “doings” of the Lord?
Why does
denying the power of Christ enable those who do it to get gain?
Why are
those who deny Christ’s power to get gain like or similar to the son of
perdition?
READ 3
Nephi 29:9
What does
it mean to “turn the right hand of the Lord unto the left” with regards to His
covenant with Israel?
READ 3
Nephi 30:1-2
Again,
who are the Gentiles?
How
adamant is Mormon in what he is telling us in this verse?
Where
does this list of latter-day Gentile Church sins come from?
So can we
actually accept the fact that our Church and its members have these “wicked
ways” that we must repent of?
What is
Mormon’s message of hope to us?
What
unbelief must we awake from?
The
Establishment of Zion Among the Nephites
READ 4
Nephi 1:1
Did the
people come unto the Church to be baptized or unto the apostles to be baptized
and what is the difference?
READ 4 Nephi
1:2
Is there
a progression to conversion, lack of contention, and dealing justly?
How do
most churches attempt to come to an unanimity of belief or end contention about
doctrine?
Why do
all Churches that are not Zion have contentions and disputations among them?
What does
it mean that they dealt “justly” with one another?
READ 4
Nephi 1:3
What does
it mean to have “all things in common”?
Where can
we find a successful model of people having “all things in common” today?
What
analogy does a family provide for a “Zion” community?
How does
the “Golden Rule” relate to having all things in common?
Why is
equality among the people – i.e. no rich or poor – required for Zion?
What is
the “heavenly gift”?
READ 4
Nephi 1:4-5
How can
we tell that these disciples were partakers of the heavenly gift?
Why was
it Christ’s will that the sick, injured and afflicted among the Nephites be
healed but today the Lord seems to have a different agenda?
READ 4
Nephi 1:10-12
What is
the main priority of the Nephites in this Zion community?
What does
“meeting together oft” mean and what are they doing?
READ 4
Nephi 1:13-18
How many
times does Mormon say there was “no contention” and why does he repeat it over
time?
Why was
Zion effectively established among the Nephites but it failed among the Saints
in Jackson County?
Why does
Mormon tell us Gentiles in 3 Nephi 30:2 to repent of the exact things he’s just
told us the Nephites have rid themselves of?
What
constitutes Zion?
Do people
come together to establish Zion or does the Lord prepare “Zion-people” who then
gather together?
How does
the Lord prepare a “Zion people”?
Will the
latter-day Zion follow the Enoch Model or the Nephite Model?
READ 4
Nephi 1:19
What does
this verse teach us about the Three Nephites?
The Fall
of Zion
READ 4
Nephi 1:20
What
began the fall of Zion?
READ 4
Nephi 1:23
Why had
the people become exceedingly rich?
READ 4
Nephi 1:24-25
Why did
“exceeding” wealth lead to pride, especially because of the circumstances under
which the people had gained the money?
Is it not
possible to be exceedingly rich and also righteous enough to live in Christ’s
presence in mortality – how would this work?
How many
years did it take from having pride in riches to separating into tribes and
what can we learn from this?
READ 4
Nephi 1:26-27
Why are
churches the first thing the Nephites build up after they have separated their
goods?
At this
point in their departure from Zion, how would the Nephites’ righteousness stack
up against ours today?
How can a
Church profess to KNOW Christ, not just know about Christ, and yet deny the
more parts of His gospel?
What are
the “more parts” of Christ’s gospel?
READ 4
Nephi 1:28
If narrow
is the gate that leads to Christ and few there are that find it, what can be
said of a Church with massive growth numbers and lots of prosperity?
READ 4
Nephi 1:29-34
Why did
the priests try to kill the Three Nephites?
How could
people choose to harden their hearts in the face of miracles like these?
READ 4
Nephi 1:38-39, 43-45 and 3 Nephi 27:32
What is
the difference between “dwindling in unbelief” and “willfully rebelling”
against the Gospel of Christ?
Ultimately,
why did the Nephite Zion fail?
