Mosiah 27:1–24

“He Has Prayed with Much Faith Concerning Thee”

an angel stopping Alma the Younger

Do you know what it’s like to see loved ones reject the truth? Alma and King Mosiah knew the heartache of watching family members rebel against the Savior and His Church. Through the mercy of Christ, they were eventually blessed to feel the joy of seeing these loved ones repent. This lesson can help you discover ways to help those who reject the teachings of Jesus Christ to return to Him.

Inviting learners to search their feelings. Ask questions that help students reflect on spiritual experiences and remember when they have felt the truthfulness of a gospel principle. Remembering these feelings can help students desire to live the gospel and let it into their hearts. Assure students that it is OK if they have not yet had or recognized experiences with a given principle.

Student preparation: Consider inviting students to prepare to share stories from the scriptures in which the Lord helped someone lost or rebellious to change.

Possible Learning Activities

There is hope through Christ

Invite students to silently ponder the following:

Is there anyone you are worried about because they are struggling spiritually or even rebelling against God? If so, keep this person in mind as you study today. Likewise, if you are struggling spiritually, you could keep your own situation in mind throughout the lesson.

Display the following self-assessment. Invite students to share their thoughts, including examples from the student preparation.

Ponder how accurately the following statements describe you:

1. I believe it’s not too late for those who are spiritually struggling or rebelling to be healed by Jesus Christ.

2. I have seen examples in the scriptures and in people around me that give me hope for people who are spiritually struggling or rebelling.

3. I know what I can do to help people who are spiritually struggling or rebelling.

As you study Mosiah 27 today, look for reasons to have hope and what you can do to help those who are spiritually struggling or rebelling.

Helping the spiritually lost

Read Mosiah 27:1, 8–10 to see who the prophet Alma and King Mosiah were worried about.

• How do you think these young men’s choices may have affected their parents, siblings, and friends?

Read Mosiah 27:11–16, 19 to see what the Lord did to help Alma the Younger change his life and why. You may also want to watch the video “Alma the Younger Is Converted unto the Lord” from time code 3:06 to 6:59.

• What phrases from the angel’s message do you think would have been most impactful to these young men?

• How could this experience show God’s love and desire to save these young men (as well as others who are spiritually lost)?

• According to Mosiah 27:14, why did the angel say he had come to Alma the Younger and the sons of Mosiah? (Consider marking the answer to this question in your scriptures.)

Take a moment to ponder what principles you can learn from these verses.

Invite students to share various principles. Consider writing on the board the principles they mention. If students do not naturally bring it up, consider writing the following principle on the board:

One principle we can learn is that praying with great faith for those who are spiritually struggling or rebelling invites the Lord to help them come to a knowledge of the truth.

Remember that the Lord will not override the moral agency of those for whom we pray. In spite of being visited by an angel, Alma and the sons of Mosiah could still have used their agency not to repent. Although Heavenly Father may not send an angel to our loved ones, He will answer our prayers in His way and time. We can trust Him to help. You will learn more about the Lord’s role in Alma’s change in the next lesson.

• What do you imagine Alma the Elder’s prayers may have been like? What do you think it means to pray “with much faith” (Mosiah 27:14)?

  These are other possible follow-up questions: Why do you think we can have faith that the Lord will do what is best for those who are struggling? Why might it be good to pray that they might “be brought to the knowledge of the truth” (Mosiah 27:14)?

• Why do you think the Lord wants us to pray for those who are spiritually struggling or rebelling?

  Encourage volunteers to share experiences in response to the following questions. You may also wish to share a personal experience.

• When have you felt that your prayers have made a difference in someone else’s life? When do you think someone else’s prayers have helped you?

Ponder specific things you might pray for when asking Heavenly Father to help someone who is spiritually struggling. You might even pause your study to pray for them now.

What more can I do?

Consider dividing students into pairs, with each partner studying one of the following scripture passages. Invite them to share with each other what they learn.

Read the following scripture passages, looking for what Alma and others did, in addition to praying, to help his son return to the Lord.

Mosiah 27:20–24

Alma 36:17–19 (Alma the Younger’s later description of what his father had taught and how it helped him)

• What did Alma do, in addition to praying, to help his son?

Consider allowing partnerships to choose which of the following they want to study together.

Study one of the following things Alma did and record your thoughts. As you study, you might keep in mind a loved one who is struggling spiritually or even rebelling:

1. Fasting—Learn more about fasting by searching ChurchofJesusChrist.org, the Gospel Library app, the Guide to the Scriptures, or other scripture passages such as Mark 9:17–18, 25–29. How could fasting help you or your loved one? Are there others you could invite to join you in fasting?

2. Testifying—Compare Alma’s experience described in Alma 36:17–19 to Enos’s experience in Enos 1:1–5. Ponder the Holy Ghost’s ability to remind people of what they have heard when they need it (see John 14:26). This can give us courage to share our testimony of Christ even with those who seem unreceptive. It can also help us remember what we know and believe about the Savior when we may need it most. How might you share your testimony of the Savior?

Invite partnerships to share with the class what they learned and to share experiences they have had with fasting or with the Holy Ghost reminding them of things when they needed it.

Consider displaying the following questions and giving students time to answer in their study journals.

• What did you learn from this account about how to help those who are struggling spiritually?

• What advice would you share with someone whose loved one doesn’t change quickly?

• What is the Savior’s role in helping those we love? Why can you trust Him to help them?

• What specific things do you feel prompted to do or say to help someone return to the Savior?

Commentary and Background Information

How does Heavenly Father feel about those who are lost or rebelling?

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught:

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

The tender image of [the prodigal son’s] anxious, faithful father running to meet him and showering him with kisses is one of the most moving and compassionate scenes in all of holy writ. It tells every child of God, wayward or otherwise, how much God wants us back in the protection of His arms. (Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Other Prodigal,” Ensign, May 2002, 62)

Why is the change in my loved one (or in myself) taking so long compared to Alma the Younger’s experience?

President Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994) explained:

President Ezra Taft Benson

The scriptures record remarkable accounts of men whose lives changed dramatically, in an instant, as it were: Alma the Younger, Paul on the road to Damascus, Enos praying far into the night, King Lamoni. Such astonishing examples of the power to change even those steeped in sin give confidence that the Atonement can reach even those deepest in despair.

But we must be cautious as we discuss these remarkable examples. Though they are real and powerful, they are the exception more than the rule. For every Paul, for every Enos, and for every King Lamoni, there are hundreds and thousands of people who find the process of repentance much more subtle, much more imperceptible. Day by day they move closer to the Lord, little realizing they are building a godlike life. They live quiet lives of goodness, service, and commitment. (Ezra Taft Benson, “A Mighty Change of Heart,” Ensign, Oct. 1989, 5)

What blessings come through fasting?

Elder Shayne M. Bowen of the Seventy taught:

Elder Shayne M. Bowen

What if there were a way to overcome our habits, addictions, and burdens? What if there were a way to gain sufficient confidence in the Lord that you could call down the powers of heaven? What if there were principles you could teach your loved ones that, if applied, would allow them to overcome personal weaknesses and draw closer to God?

As we properly understand and live the law of the fast, these desired blessings can be ours. (Shayne M. Bowen, “Fasting with Power,” Ensign, Apr. 2009, 64)

Supplemental Learning Activities

The power and authority of God

An angel was sent to Alma the Younger in part to “convince [him] of the power and authority of God” (Mosiah 27:14). There are many other ways to recognize God’s power and authority. Some may feel it through seeing His creations, others through answered prayers. Invite students to share ways they have come to recognize the power and authority of God.

Fasting

Invite students to share what they know about fasting and what blessings they have experienced through fasting. If needed, to help students better understand what fasting is and how it can bless us and those we fast for, consider showing the video “Fasting: Young Single Adult Ward, Amanda” from time code 0:00 to 1:35. This video is available at ChurchofJesusChrist.org.

Angels of God

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught: “I testify of angels, both the heavenly and the mortal kind. … There are those angels who come and go all around us, seen and unseen, known and unknown, mortal and immortal” (“The Ministry of Angels,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2008, 31).

Though an angel from heaven appeared to help Alma the Younger, God often sends His mortal servants to do His work. In a sense, these mortal messengers of God could be considered angels. Invite students to share whom God has sent to bless, correct, comfort, or deliver messages to them. You might also share a personal experience of someone who was like an angel in your life or an answer to a prayer that you or someone else offered.