Twelve

Today was all about baptism and John the Baptist. We learned from Luke 3 that John helped prepare the way for Jesus Christ by teaching the people about "fruits" of repentance and by baptizing them. The people wondered what they should do. John told them the fruits he expected: the people to share food and clothing; the Publicans to not exact more than they were due; and the soldiers to not be violent, to not accuse falsely, and to be thankful for their wages. Then we listed good fruits John might tell us to bring forth today such as serving others, not being violent, and being grateful.

We moved out to foyer around the painting representing Jesus Christ being baptized. I gave each student a worksheet with questions about John, about baptism in general, and about the baptism of Jesus Christ. The nature of the Godhead was revealed when Jesus Christ was baptized. We learn in Matthew 3:16-17 that Heavenly Father spoke from heaven and the Holy Ghost descended like a dove. This shows the Godhead is made up of three separate beings.

Because we know the nature of God, we also know we can have a personal relationship with Him. In Alma 34:38 it has a great list of things we can do to develop that relationship: not contend against the Holy Ghost (do things that help us receive it), take upon us the name of Christ (utilize the atonement), humble ourselves, worship God (not only through prayer and scripture reading, but also in other ways like appreciating good music and nature), and giving thanks.

We finished by discussing how our baptisms can matter to us today.