How many times has the Book of Mormon been rejected by those who should have recognized its worth? Many Christians have reviled against the Book of Mormon and said that it is of no worth. Most of the time this occurs because they have made their minds up before reading the book that it cannot be true. Therefore, they don't read with an open mind and humble heart. Rather, they read to find fault, to find cause to reject the book. They have not followed the promise contained in Moroni 10:3-5.
I once spoke with a preacher who had just read first and second Nephi of the Book of Mormon. He couldn't bring himself to say anything nice about the book. He claimed that these two books had three faults. 1) there was no such thing as brass plates in the days of Zedekiah, 2) there was no way that the Book of Mormon prophets could have used the language of the New Testament prior to the coming of Christ, and 3) why was it that no one in Jerusalem knew of the departure of Lehi's family (all three of these contentions can be easily addressed but need not be done here). He concluded by saying that the Book of Mormon did not carry the same spirit as the Bible. I asked him what he thought of the Isaiah section, anticipating that if he read the book with an open mind, he should have said that the book contained no spirit except for those passages of Isaiah which were quoted. That was not his response demonstrating that he had made up his mind that the book was false before he read the first page. Humble students of the Book of Mormon have no difficulty feeling the spirit of the book. It practically jumps out of the pages. That this preacher could not feel this spirit is evidence that he had not the sincere heart, real intent, or faith in Christ spoken of in Moroni 10:4. Rather he effectively turned aside the just for a thing of naught, reviled against that which is good, and said that it is of no worth.