Scripture Challenge: Over 2,200 Ways to Get to Know the Savior

An in-depth study of the Savior in the scriptures will bring us closer to him this Easter season. 

Are you looking for a way to come to know the Savior a little better this Easter? President Russell M. Nelson has not only challenged young adults do that, but he has also done it himself and shares how his testimony has grown because of it.

In a Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults in January 2017, President Nelson extended a challenge to young adults all over the world. He asked that each week, we spend some of our time doing the following:

1. “Study everything Jesus said and did as recorded in the Old Testament.”
2. “Study His laws as recorded in the New Testament.”
3. “Study His doctrine as recorded in the Book of Mormon.”
4. “Study His words as recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants.”

In his LDS.org blog article, President Nelson shares that he “looked up and marked over 2,200 citations” in the scriptures in six weeks, and that his testimony of the Savior and of Joseph Smith’s divine work as a translator were strengthened in the process. President Nelson says, “Joseph Smith wouldn’t have possibly had time to correlate and cross-reference with the Bible at the rapid rate at which he was translating the Book of Mormon—but it’s all here!”

What will this challenge look like in your own study? Here are some ideas that you can gain from President Nelson’s experience:

• Make a goal. President Nelson understands that six weeks of intense study sounds almost impossible in our busy lives. But to call it impossible is “not a faith-promoted comment.” He counsels us, no matter what goal we make, to “make time for it.”
• Use a new set of scriptures. President Nelson used a brand new, unmarked set of scriptures for his study. Doing the same may help us focus on the challenge and read the scriptures with fresh eyes.
• Use the Topical Guide. In his article, President Nelson includes a picture of his scriptures open to the entry “Jesus Christ” in the Topical Guide. He used this scripture resource as a tool to find the 2,249 citations in the four books of scripture.

Read President Russell M. Nelson’s LDS.org blog article, “I Studied More Than 2,200 Scriptures about the Savior in Six Weeks: Here Is a Little of What I Learned.”

Source: lds.org/blog

—Sophia Parry, Mormon Insights 

feature image courtesy of lds media library

Find more insights

Read or watch President Russell M. Nelson’s worldwide devotional address, “Prophets, Leadership, and Divine Law,” about how to become a true disciple of Jesus Christ.

Read the Mormon Insights article “What’s the Secret to Scripture Study?” by Alison Brimley to learn how to make scripture study more meaningful.

Read the Mormon Insights article “Understanding the Book of Mormon’s Translation” by Tacy LeBaron to discover more about the translation of the Book of Mormon.