The Crowd Prepares
After Jesus ascended into heaven, the crowd scattered. Each person took their family and headed home.
Before darkness fell, word spread everywhere that the crowd had seen Jesus, that he’d ministered to them, and that he promised to appear again the next day. All through the night, news about Jesus traveled from person to person. So many people worked through the darkness preparing themselves to be there in the morning when Jesus would come.
The Twelve Disciples Lead
The next day, when the crowd gathered, Nephi and his brother Timothy—the one he’d raised from the dead—stepped forward. With them came Timothy’s son Jonas, along with Mathoni, Mathonihah, Kumen, Kumenonhi, Jeremiah, Shemnon, Jonas, Zedekiah, and Isaiah. These were the disciples Jesus had chosen. They came and stood in the middle of the crowd.
The crowd was so massive that they divided everyone into twelve groups.
The twelve disciples taught the people. Then they had everyone kneel down on the ground and pray to the Father in Jesus’ name. The disciples also prayed to the Father in Jesus’ name. Then they stood up and continued teaching the people. They taught exactly what Jesus had taught—not changing a single word. Then they knelt down again and prayed to the Father in Jesus’ name. They prayed for what they wanted most: that the Holy Spirit would be given to them.
Baptism by Water and Spirit
After praying, they walked down to the water’s edge. The crowd followed. Nephi walked into the water and was baptized. When he came up out of the water, he began baptizing others. He baptized everyone Jesus had chosen.
When all of them had been baptized and come up out of the water, the Holy Spirit fell on them. They were filled with the Holy Spirit and with fire. They were surrounded by what looked like fire. It came down from heaven, and the crowd saw it all and testified to what they witnessed. Angels descended from heaven and ministered to them.
Jesus Appears
While the angels were ministering to the disciples, Jesus appeared and stood among them. He spoke to the crowd and told everyone to kneel down on the ground again—both the people and his disciples. When they’d all knelt down, he told his disciples to pray.
They began praying to Jesus, calling him their Lord and their God.
Jesus Prays to the Father
Jesus left them and walked a short distance away. He knelt down and said:
“Father, thank you for giving the Holy Spirit to these I’ve chosen. I chose them from the world because they believe in me. Father, I pray you’ll give the Holy Spirit to everyone who will believe their message. Father, you’ve given them the Holy Spirit because they believe in me. You see they believe in me because you hear them praying to me. They pray to me because I’m with them. Father, I pray for them, and for everyone who will believe their message. May they believe in me, so I may be in them as you are in me—so we may be one.”
After Jesus finished praying, he returned to his disciples. They were still praying to him without stopping. They didn’t use many words, because they’d been shown what to pray. They were filled with longing. As they prayed, Jesus blessed them. His face shone with joy as he looked at them, and his light fell on them. They became as white as Jesus’ face and clothing—a whiteness beyond anything on earth. Jesus told them, “Keep praying.” And they didn’t stop.
The Second Prayer
He turned away again, walked a short distance, and knelt down. He prayed to the Father:
“Father, thank you for purifying these I’ve chosen because of their faith. I pray for them, and for everyone who will believe their message—that they may be purified in me through faith in their words, just as these are purified in me. Father, I don’t pray for the world, but for these you’ve given me from the world because of their faith. May they be purified in me, so I may be in them as you are in me, Father—so we may be one, and I may be glorified in them.”
When Jesus finished speaking these words, he returned to his disciples. They were still praying steadily, without stopping. He smiled at them again, and they were white—just like Jesus.
The Unspeakable Prayer
He walked a short distance away again and prayed to the Father. No tongue can speak the words he prayed. No one can write them down. The crowd heard him and testified to it. Their hearts were opened, and they understood in their hearts what he prayed. But the words he prayed were so profound and marvelous that they can’t be written or spoken by human words.
When Jesus finished praying, he came back to the disciples and said, “I never saw faith like this among the Jews. Their unbelief kept me from showing them miracles this great. I tell you the truth: none of them have seen or heard things as great as what you’ve experienced.”