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What is the plan of salvation?

Heavenly Father prepared a plan to enable us to become like Him. The plan includes the Creation, the Fall, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and all the laws, ordinances, and doctrines of the gospel. This plan allows us to be perfected through the Atonement, receive a fulness of joy, and live forever in the presence of God.

Prepare yourself spiritually

Prayerfully study these scriptures and resources. What will help the young men understand the plan of salvation?

1 Corinthians 15:20–22 (All men will die)

Hebrews 12:9 (God is the Father of our spirits)

Revelation 20:12–13; 2 Nephi 9:10–11; Alma 5:15–21 (All men will be resurrected and stand before God to be judged)

2 Nephi 2:22–25 (The Fall of Adam brought about mortality)

Alma 34:32–33 (This life is the time to repent)

Alma 40:11–14 (The state of men after they die)

D&C 76:30–113 (Description of the kingdoms of glory)

Thomas S. Monson, “The Race of Life,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2012, 90–93

Dean M. Davies, “A Sure Foundation,Ensign or Liahona, May 2013, 9–11

Plan of Salvation,” True to the Faith  (2004), 115–17

Video: “Men’s Hearts Shall Fail Them”


Let the young men lead


Begin the learning experience


  • Invite the young men to write down one word or phrase that they remember from last week’s lesson and share their word or phrase with the quorum.
  • Show or describe to the young men a blueprint or architectural plan. Why is it important to have a blueprint before beginning a building project? Invite a young man to read two paragraphs from Bishop Dean M. Davies’s talk “A Sure Foundation” beginning with the phrase “Like the designers and builders of our time.” How is the plan of salvation like a blueprint for our lives?

Learn together

Each of the activities below will help quorum members learn about the plan of salvation. Following the inspiration of the Spirit, select one or more that will work best for your quorum:

  • Invite a quorum member to teach a portion of this lesson. He could do this as part of his Duty to God plan to learn and teach about the plan of salvation (see “Understand Doctrine,” page 18, 42, or 66).
  • A few days in advance, ask several quorum members to come prepared to teach the quorum about an aspect of the plan of salvation (such as premortal life, mortal life, spirit world, and so on) using Preach My Gospel or True to the Faith. Draw a representation of the plan of salvation on the board (for an example, see Preach My Gospel, 54), and invite each young man to teach his assigned topic. Ask the young men what difference it makes in their lives to know about the plan of salvation.
  • Assign each young man one or more of the scripture passages in this outline. Ask him to read his passage to determine what part of the plan of salvation the passage teaches about. Invite him to share what he learns from his passage. How does knowing about the plan of salvation affect the way we see ourselves? others? the world around us?
  • As a quorum, read Alma 12:30 and Alma 42:13–15. Invite the young men to look for the phrases that are used to describe the plan of salvation. What do these phrases teach about the plan? Show the video “Men’s Hearts Shall Fail Them,” and ask the young men to look for how a knowledge of the plan of salvation blessed Elder Russell M. Nelson. Invite the young men to share ways this knowledge has blessed them.
  • Ensure that everyone in the quorum has a copy of True to the Faith, and assign each young man a number between 1 and 3. Ask those who have been assigned number 1 to learn all that they can from True to the Faith about the premortal life (pages 115–16); ask those with number 2 to learn about mortal life (page 116); and ask those with number 3 to learn about life after death (pages 116–17). Allow them to work in groups with their numbers to prepare a short summary of what they learn, and have them present it to the rest of the quorum. Invite the young men to imagine what their lives might be like if they did not have this knowledge about the plan of salvation.
  • Ask the young men to use President Thomas S. Monson’s talk “The Race of Life” and the scriptures to prepare an answer to one of these questions: Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where do we go after we leave this life? Invite them to share their answers as if they were speaking to a friend of another faith. Why is it important to know the answers to these questions?

Ask the young men to share what they learned today. Do they understand the plan of salvation better? What feelings or impressions do they have? Do they have any additional questions? Would it be worthwhile to spend more time on this doctrine?

Invite to act


  • Lead a discussion about how understanding the plan of salvation inspires us to be better priesthood holders.
  • Ask quorum members to share their gratitude for the plan of salvation.