Come, Follow Me
January 25–31. 1 Nephi 12–14: ‘Armed with Righteousness and with the Power of God’

“January 25–31. 1 Nephi 12–14: ‘Armed with Righteousness and with the Power of God’” Come, Follow Me: For Sunday School (2015), 10–11

“January 25–31. 1 Nephi 12–14: ‘Armed with Righteousness and with the Power of God’” For Sunday School, 10–11

1 Nephi 12–14

January 25–31

“Armed with Righteousness and with the Power of God”

Preparing to Teach in Sunday School

Begin your preparation to teach by reading 1 Nephi 12–14 before studying any supplemental material. Prepare your teaching plan, and record your thoughts and impressions. You might also use some of the ideas on the next page or in Come, Follow Me for individuals and families.

Encourage Sharing

  • How can you encourage class members to share insights they had as they studied these scriptures individually and with their family?

  • What experiences have class members had as they acted on what they learned?

Teach the Doctrine

  • As you teach gospel principles from these scriptures, what verses, quotations, experiences, questions, and other materials might you share?

  • How might you use these resources to help class members ponder the gospel principles?

  • How can you encourage class members to record and act upon the impressions they receive?

Encourage Sharing and Learning at Home

  • Encourage class members to read 1 Nephi 16–22 during the week. Invite them to think about how the story of Nephi building a boat can inspire and help them when they are required to do hard things.

My Teaching Plan

Additional Ideas

1 Nephi 12–14. God will help us resist Satan’s influence.

  • What impressions did we have about our place in God’s latter-day work as we read Nephi’s vision?

  • In the vision recorded in these chapters, Nephi saw that the adversary would have great influence over the earth. He learned that the mists of darkness in his father’s dream represented the temptations of the devil. Why are mists a good symbol for temptations? Why is the great and spacious building a good symbol for the world? To understand these symbols better, you could divide these chapters among class members and invite individuals to search for verses that teach us how God will help us overcome the mists of darkness and the great and spacious building. For example, 1 Nephi 14:14 teaches that our covenants arm us with power.

1 Nephi 13–14. The Restoration overcame centuries of apostasy.

  • As we read these chapters at home, what key events of the Restoration of the gospel in the latter days did we see? Which of these events have already taken place? Which events are happening now?

  • People of other faiths may wonder why the Restoration of the gospel was necessary. How could we use 1 Nephi 13–14 to answer this question? (For example, see 1 Nephi 13:26–29, 35–42.) How has the Restoration blessed the world? What other scriptures could we use to help other people understand why the Restoration was necessary? (See also Isaiah 24:5; Daniel 2:44; Acts 3:20–22; Ephesians 1:10.)

1 Nephi 13:20–41. The Book of Mormon teaches us plain and precious truths.

  • Class members could share verses from their reading of 1 Nephi 13:20–41 that answer the question, “Why do we need the Book of Mormon?” (See also 2 Corinthians 13:1.)

  • How does 1 Nephi 13:20–41 help us understand why we need the Book of Mormon? Elder Tad R. Callister illustrated one way to help answer this question (see the “Optional Resource”). Consider inviting a class member to draw it on the board. What are some of the “plain and precious” truths that were lost from the Bible and restored by the Book of Mormon? (for some examples, see verses 26 and 39).

  • The video “The Book of Mormon—A Book from God” (LDS.org) can help us find answers to the question, “Why do we need the Book of Mormon?” How could we answer this question?

Optional Resource

Counsel from Elder Tad R. Callister

“The Bible is one witness of Jesus Christ; the Book of Mormon is another. Why is this second witness so crucial? The following illustration may help: How many straight lines can you draw through a single point on a piece of paper? The answer is infinite. For a moment, suppose that single point represents the Bible and that hundreds of those straight lines drawn through that point represent different interpretations of the Bible and that each of those interpretations represents a different church.

“What happens, however, if on that piece of paper there is a second point representing the Book of Mormon? How many straight lines could you draw between these two reference points: the Bible and the Book of Mormon? Only one. Only one interpretation of Christ’s doctrines survives the testimony of these two witnesses” (“The Book of Mormon—a Book from God” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2011, 75).