The first question Ammon asked king Lamoni was the same question that Aaron later asked Lamoni’s father (Alma 22:7): “Do you believe there is a God?” That is the first Article of Faith— “We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.” If an investigator does not believe in God—if you are dealing with an atheist, secularist, or whatever—it is very difficult to construct any kind of ethical theory or accountability for what we do. So, both Ammon and Aaron began their missionary discussion with that crucial question. They must have understood, or even agreed, that this was a good way to begin teaching the gospel: “Do you believe in God?”
I wonder if somebody read the missionary accounts of Ammon and Aaron when writing the Church missionary manual, Preach My Gospel. I imagine they did.
Teaching the gospel follows a logical flow of divine principles. First, “Is there a God?” “Yes.” Next, “Do you believe that he created all things?” “Yes.” Then, by having created all things, he understands all things. That is an important principle of faith. If you look at the world and suppose that all things are random, it is difficult to believe in God and accountability to him. But if God is the designer—the creator—he knows the world that he has created. That is the next step in having faith in God. God, the creator, knows what he is doing and has a plan. All these principles of faith followed logically as Ammon and Aaron presented their missionary discussion to two different kings. Ammon and Aaron then talked of the creation of the world and the creation of Adam. They both talked about man being created in the image of God. They both talked about the fall of Adam and Eve, the plan of redemption which was laid from the foundation of the world, the coming of Christ, believing in his name, and so on.
For a parallelistic schematic of Ammon’s words to Lamoni, see “Ammon’s Rehearsal,” BYU Studies 37, no. 1 (1997–1998): 205: