Feb 1, 2025

Family Reading the Book of Mormon, ChurchofJesusChrist.org

The Importance of the Book of Mormon

In his journal on November 2, 1845, Wilford Woodruff wrote a heading for the day’s entry: “Book of Mormon o sacred treasure who knoweth the value.” He then bore his testimony of the Book of Mormon: 

I Wilford Woodruff, son of Aphek Woodruff, have read the Book of Mormon much during the last twelve years of my life, and my soul delighteth much in its words, teaching and prophesyings. . . . It teaches the honest and humble mind the great things of God. . . . The plates containing the Book of Mormon were revealed to Joseph Smith and delivered unto him by an angel of God in the month of September 1827 and translated through the Urim and Thummim into the English language by Joseph Smith, the prophet, seer, and revelator.1 

So, why is the Book of Mormon so important and why did Wilford Woodruff testify so boldly of it? In Doctrine and Covenants 5:4, the Lord told Joseph Smith, “And you have a gift to translate the plates.” The Book of Mormon was translated in the range of 60 to 90 days by the Prophet Joseph Smith, an unlearned farm boy, from gold plates that were buried then brought forth and translated by the power of God.

The Book of Mormon teaches us about Jesus Christ, His gospel, the way to return to live with God and our families, and the eternal life promised to the faithful. The purpose of the Book of Mormon, as explained by the Lord in Doctrine and Covenants 3:16, is to bring the “knowledge of a Savior” to the whole world. The plates were preserved “for this very purpose . . . that the promises of the Lord might be fulfilled which he made to his people” (Doctrine and Covenants 3:19).

In addition to the knowledge of the Savior that is contained in the Book of Mormon, we are given answers to our questions through the experiences of others, which invite us to apply those lessons in our own lives. For example, while we may not find direct answers to whom we should marry, we can learn the qualities of a worthy spouse. We also learn how to handle challenging situations in marriage—such as how Lehi loved and helped Sariah when she feared for their sons’ safety as they were retrieving the plates of brass. 

 Speaking of the importance of the Book of Mormon, President Ezra Taft Benson stated: 

It is not just that the Book of Mormon teaches us truth . . . [or] bears testimony of Christ. . . . There is something more. There is a power in the book which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of the book. You will find greater power to resist temptation. You will find the power to avoid deception. You will find the power to stay on the strait and narrow path. . . . When you begin to hunger and thirst after those words, you will find life in greater and greater abundance.2 

The Book of Mormon is important because it provides a roadmap back to our Father in Heaven and a way of living that will enable us to be with our families forever. It empowers us, through knowledge and personal revelation, to make choices that will bring us happiness, even when those choices are difficult. Through the experiences of others, the Book of Mormon helps us strengthen our faith, assuring us that God will bless us as He has blessed others. “Ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you” (3 Nephi 27:9).

In a conference address in 1990, Elder Boyd K. Packer (1924–2015) said the following: 

The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ . . . affirms both the Old and the New Testaments. Here, more details of the doctrines of salvation, lost from them, are revealed. 

In its pages justice and mercy, the Fall and the Atonement, mortal death and spiritual death are explained. You learn of the frailties and the consummate goodness of men and of peoples. 

You are taught of the still, small voice of personal revelation. 

You read of the appearance of the Lord to his other sheep. And you are promised that he will ‘manifest the truth of [this sacred book] unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.’ (Moroni 10:4.)3

Wilford Woodruff was able to testify boldly of the Book of Mormon because he had personal experience with it. He read it and lived by the precepts he found in its pages. His testimony of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ was strengthened by its teachings.

Michelle graduated from Utah State University–Eastern in 1995 with an associate degree in Graphic Design. After serving in the Guatemala, Guatemala North Mission from 1996 to 1998, she continued her education at Utah Valley University, graduating in 1999 with an associate degree in Paralegal Studies and in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in Technology Management and an emphasis in Graphic Design. She worked as a paralegal for two years before having her children and becoming a full-time stay-at-home mom. Her two children are now in college. Not wanting to let her children suffer through college alone, Michelle went back to school and is now attending Utah Tech University, working on her master’s in Technical Writing and Digital Rhetoric. Michelle loves the gospel, family history, and the temple. She and her husband enjoy camping, hiking, and spending time together. She is excited to be a volunteer with the Wilford Woodruff Papers. 

The Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation’s mission is to digitally preserve and publish Wilford Woodruff’s eyewitness account of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and make his records universally accessible in order to inspire all people, especially the rising generation, to study and to increase their faith in Jesus Christ. For more information, please explore wilfordwoodruffpapers.org.