36

What is the most glorious message ever given? We played hangman to find out.

As it says in the Bible Dictionary, “The resurrection of Jesus is the most glorious of all messages to mankind.” We read the whole dictionary entry together to learn more of why this is true.

In Luke 24:36-48 (36-39 are the scripture mastery scriptures) we read about when Jesus Christ appeared to His apostles following His resurrection. On the chalkboard, we listed many things we learn from these scriptures about resurrected beings. There is more great information about the resurrection in the Book of Mormon such as Alma 11:42-46, Alma 40:19-24, and 3 Nephi 11:12-15.

I know that because Jesus Christ was resurrected, every one of us will be resurrected to our proper and perfect form. This knowledge gives me a profound sense of peace and reassurance.

35

This morning, we sang, a'cappella, all seven verses of "A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief." It's a powerful song and perfectly introduced our lesson on Matthew 25:40.

We read Matthew 25:31-46 which tells the parable of the sheep and the goats. It was interesting to talk with one of our students who used to have goats to find out more about what they are like. "Sheep are dumb. Goats are smart," she said. I said, "But are goats obedient?" And she said, "If you train them to be." For the purpose of the lesson, we changed it to, "Sheep are submissive and obedient. Goats are overly independent and rebellious." I'm not sure how true that is. Maybe sheep just seem dumb to us outsiders. As far as this parable goes, we want to be like the sheep-- found on the right hand of Jesus Christ. We want to have served Him by serving others.

On the chalkboard, we listed the six ways that Jesus Christ mentions that we can help others. We found spiritual equivalents to those and talked about what we could do to serve. The students wrote down a personal goal of something they could do to help a family member, friends, leaders, or strangers. As it says in Mosiah 2:17, "When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."

34

We experienced our first snowfall of the season last night. There were predicted potentially dangerous driving conditions. As a precaution, I decided we would all do home study today. It looks like things weren't as bad as they could have been. I hope everyone appreciated not having a last-minute decision.

Everyone should have received the home study assignment through e-mail or otherwise. Those who come to class should bring their work to class tomorrow or as soon as they have completed it so I can give them credit.

The assignment was based on our scripture mastery Matthew 16:15-19. President Joseph Fielding Smith said that knowing Jesus Christ is God's Son and that He is our Savior “comes only through the testimony of the Holy Spirit. Men may believe Jesus to be the Christ, but to know it requires revelation from the Holy Ghost.”

Through the witness of the Holy Ghost, we can know (not just believe) who Jesus Christ is and what He truly has done for us.

33

Remember that day when I put "Worldly Things" on one wall and "Heavenly Things" on the window across from it? That was Day 21. We revisited those ideas today as we studied Matthew 6:24. We cannot serve Heavenly Father and the Devil at the same time.

After working on memorizing the scripture, we read several other scriptures that shed more light on the subject. Then we read parts of this excellent article, a First Presidency message from the Ensign in September of 1995, by President James E. Faust. I printed out exerpts from the talk, the students read them, and then they shared what they found that was particularly important or meaningful to them. Everyone made excellent contributions.

32

Imagine you are in a long, dark cave and the only way to find your way out is by the light of your flashlight. Then read Matthew 5:14-16. How is the light of the flashlight like these verses?

Jesus Christ is the source of the light we must follow. He will share that light with all those who follow Him and keep His commandments.

Our examples matter. We should let our light shine.

As the First Presidency said at the beginning of the "For Strength of Youth" pamphlet:

"Our beloved young men and women, we have great confidence in you. You are choice spirits who have come forth in this day when the responsibilities and opportunities, as well as the temptations, are the greatest. You are at the beginning of your journey through this mortal life. Your Heavenly Father wants your life to be joyful and to lead you back into His presence. The decisions you make now will determine much of what will follow during your life and throughout eternity."

He will lead us, and we can help others, if we choose to follow Him.

31

Jesus is the Bread of Life. If we come unto Him and believe on Him we will never be spiritually hungry or thirsty again.

We ate apple cider golden raisin bread and challah bread (the braided one) to help us think about the blessings of bread. In the Jewish tradition, eating challah commemorates the manna that fell from heaven when the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness. Jesus compares Himself to manna in John 6:32-51.

We read quotes about living bread and water. Elder Melvin J. Ballard said, "I am a witness that there is a spirit attending the administration of the sacrament that warms the soul from head to foot; you feel the wounds of the spirit being healed, and the load being lifted. Comfort and happiness come to the soul that is worthy and truly desirous of partaking of this spiritual food." It is a blessing that we can partake of the sacrament each week.

I am happy to say that most of the students memorized Matthew 5:14-16! Next week we will be studying the first five scripture mastery scriptures in depth, will memorize Matthew 6:24, and will begin memorizing Matthew 16:15-19.

30

A student shared an interesting scripture this morning for our devotional. She read Abraham 1:11 and said that she admired the courage of the young women who were sacrificed for their beliefs. Thankfully, we live in a country where we can live what we believe without harm.

For scripture mastery, we continued to work on Matthew 5:14-16. This picture shows the method we are using this time. The students drew the pictures, we repeatedly read through the scripture together, and then we erase more words each day. We are making progress.
We continue to study John 6. We read John 6:16-21 together and talked about how amazing it is that Jesus Christ walked on water and what we can learn from that. We didn't know what a furlong is, so a student looked it up in the dictionary for us. We figured out that the boat was about 3 1/2 miles away from the sea shore. Just like Jesus Christ helped bring his disciples to safety, He can help bring us safely to our eternal promised land.

Why did Jesus Christ do this miracle and other wonderful things? Why does He want to help us? I wrote the word "motivation" on the board and the students gave their ideas of what Jesus' motivations are. I was very impressed by their answers such as: humility, doing the will of His Father, doing what needed to be done, helping to teach the people, showing His power, and of course LOVE for the people.

We talked about the reasons people do what they do and listed them on the board. We ranked them according to the most pure motives to the least. We talked about whether or not we can change our motives and make them better or purer and more like our Savior's. One student said, "When I have to do something I don't want to do. I do it. Then I realize it wasn't that bad and it makes it easier to do the next time." I was very impressed by his answer. We had a lot of great participation today by everyone! I love days like that. It is a priviledge to teach these motivated and knowledgeable youth.

29

We had a small class today-- only three dedicated students. We miss everyone who misses seminary. I know one of our students is out because of a serious injury. We pray for a rapid recovery for her.

0n a cold, dark, rainy day like today, it can be difficult to get up and get going early in the morning. I appreciate the sacrifices the students make to come to seminary every school day.

Since we didn't have a devotional planned, we took turns reading from the article about the "For Strength of Youth" pamphlet in this month's "New Era." Today, we learned about agency and accountability on page 18 and how living the standards relates to flying above the clouds. Any time we don't have a devotional planned, we will read from this article until we finish it.

Our lesson today focused on how the story of the five loaves and two fishes that fed 5,000 (found in John 6:1-15) parallels the story of the Exodus in the Old Testament. These stories also remind us of the Plan of Salvation.

First we put the elements of the story of the Exodus in order. Then we filled out most of the chart below (the students only had the references in the right column). It shows interesting comparisons between the Exodus and John 6. You should be able to click on it to see a bigger view.

Just as Jesus Christ nourished the people in Galilee and delivered the Children of Israel, He can deliver us from physical and spiritual death.

28

We began memorizing Matthew 5:14-16 today. I wrote the scripture on the chalkboard then all the students drew pictures to replace certain words. We read the background information on the back of the scripture mastery card. Since we only have four days of seminary this week, we probably won't finish memorizing it, but we'll try.
To begin our lesson, I asked the students to compare an ordinary pencil to repentance. They came up with some interesting analogies. One said that repentance helps us sharpen our lives when they get dull and break. Another said, we write and make a mess and then need to erase our mistakes. Another said we go through ordinary, daily life and forget about the spiritual things. Jesus used parables to compare ordinary things with gospel truths.

In Matthew 13:13 we learn those who are spiritually in tune and who understand gospel principles will understand the parables. Those who are unwilling to accept the teachings only hear the analogy or story.

We watched the seminary New Testament DVD presentation about parables where a teen learns the three steps that help us understand them. These are 1) Outline the parable, 2) Look for clues to the interpretation, and 3) Make a comparison. Then I passed out a chart that helps explain the eight parables found in Matthew 13.

27

Today we finished marking the scripture mastery scriptures. The students should now have all 25 marked. If they don't, they have cards and bookmarks to help them know what to mark. On Monday, we will begin memorizing Matthew 5:14-16.

After our opening hymn, opening prayer, devotional (the student shared Matthew 17:1-9 and showed a picture of the mountain), and scripture mastery, we put away the seminary room tables and chairs and moved to the foyer by the bishop's office. Our lesson today focused on John 5:25-30. These scriptures are about when Jesus Christ taught about life after death. They are about the resurrection and show that there is preaching in the Spirit World.

After reading and pondering John 5:29, Joseph Smith also received a revelation about life after death that is recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 76.

We made a scripture chain-- reading the scriptures and writing the scripture references in the margins-- all about how those who have died have the opportunity to receive the gospel of Jesus Christ in the Spirit World. They are some powerful, uplifting, and reassuring scriptures, especially to those who have had loved ones pass on. The scriptures on the chalk board are those scriptures. We didn't mark all of them since we ran out of time, but I will put them on the chalkboard in the seminary room on Monday or the students can see them here so they can finish marking them.

Have a great weekend!

26

A student gave a devotional on Sabbath Day observance. He read from Doctrine and Covenants 59 where it teaches us what we should and should not do on the Sabbath. The devotional blended perfectly with our lesson where Jesus healed the man at the pool of Bethesda on the Sabbath.

To begin the lesson, I introduced the students to the acai berry (pronounced a-sigh-ee). It is a small purple berry that comes from the Amazon rainforests of Brazil. In the U.S., you can only buy it as an ingredient in certain foods, as a powder, as a supplement, or in juice or puree form-- like these smoothie packets. The acai berry is reported to have many health benefits including: increasing energy levels; improving digestion, mental clarity, skin health, sugar levels, vision, circulation, and sleep; reducing inflammation, free radicals, aging, diabetes, and possibly cancer. It's one of the latest popular health and healing miracles. The students didn't really seem to like it. Without sweetener, it's a little bitter.
The people at the pool of Bethesda had a miracle healing tradition. The Student Study Guide says, "It appears that the pool of Bethesda came from a spring that occasionally bubbled up. The tradition was that unseen angels caused the water to bubble and whoever was first to get in the pool after the water was 'troubled,' or rippled, would be healed. This was just a superstition, but many seemed eager to try it, perhaps because they were hoping for an easy solution to their problem, or perhaps because they had tried everything else they knew of."

It is sometimes easier for us to trust miracle fruits and healing traditions than the Savior.

Jesus showed great compassion on the man who had been waiting by the poolside for 38 years for a chance to be healed. He can also heal us from our spiritual diseases and illnesses, our sins, if we repent and believe on Him.

We watched part of "Finding Faith in Christ" where it depicts this story and Jesus Christ healing in other ways.

We finished class by looking for and sharing scriptures on how the Savior can heal us.

25

Today we read and discussed Luke 7:36-50 where Jesus tells the parable of the debtors. We also watched two movies that show how we can repent and be forgiven of our sins through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Elder Ronald E. Poelman, a member of the Seventy, taught:

"The beginning and completion of repentance leading to forgiveness is faith in Jesus Christ, who is the 'author and the finisher of [our] faith.' Our faith in him as Savior and Redeemer engenders in us godly sorrow for our transgressions, a broken heart and a contrite spirit, and a sense of personal accountability. There follows a change in attitude and a turning toward God."

As we repent, we feel closer to Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. We should avoid sin and develop a love for Jesus Christ by keeping His commandments. At the same time, we can have confidence that we can be completely forgiven when we do sin if we repent.

24

A student did a beautiful job singing "Amazing Grace" this morning for our devotional. She had a lot of courage to share her talent with us. Then she shared a scripture from the Book of Mormon about how, through the atonement of Jesus Christ, we are saved by grace after all we can do. Great devotional!

For our lesson today, we read Matthew 9:10-12 where Christ says, "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick." We talked about how He can heal us spiritually. Then we ate apple cinnamon muffins and watched two movies from the New Testament seminary DVD. One shows a family that suffers from doubt, guilt, frustration, selfishness, feelings of being overwhelmed, and feelings of disunity when the mom is in the hospital with a serious illness. The movie shows how they exercise faith and are spiritually healed. The other movie reviews the story of Jesus Christ teaching Nicodemus about being born again. Both stories show how we can come to Him and be healed.
Remember, there will be no seminary Monday and Tuesday next week because of Colombus Day and Tuesday is a no-school day for some school districts. See you Wednesday!

23

Today we studied Matthew 8 and 9 where Matthew describes some of the miracles performed by Jesus Christ. The students filled out a chart by looking up the references at the bottom and figuring out whether the verses show power over sickness, power over the elements, power over devils, or power over death.

For the rest of class, we watched portions of "Finding Faith in Christ" where it depicts Jesus performing some of those same miracles.

22

Today was another great lesson taught by the students. I divided them into two groups. Then I gave them paper, markers, and verses from Matthew 7. They drew pictures of what is taught in their verses, pinned the pictures on the bulletin board, and explained them to the class. We learned about judging righteously, not casting our pearls before swine, asking and receiving, the golden rule, the strait and narrow way, judging by fruits, returning to Heavenly Father, and the story of the wise man and the foolish man. We finished off class by reading the essential scripture Helaman 5:12.

We also had an excellent, impromtu devotional by one of our students. She borrowed a picture from the bulletin board that shows Jesus Christ knocking at the door. She read some of the information on the back, explained what it means, and bore her testimony. We have some excellent teachers in our seminary class!

21

Making a show of righteous acts is like demonstrating letting air out of a balloon. In Matthew 6, Jesus teaches that we should not boast in our giving to the poor, when we pray, or when we fast. It is unpleasant to be around people who brag about their good works. This may seem to contradict the commandment to let our light shine as it says in Matthew 5:14-16. The manual reminds us, "We don't sin when others see our good works unless we do them hypocritically or pridefully, merely to be seen." Our motives matter.

Matthew 6:24 teaches us that we can't serve God and riches, or worldliness. To demonstrate this, I put the words "Worldly Things" and "Heavenly Things" on opposite walls. We can't focus on both at the same time. If we focus on Worldly Things, that's all we see. If we focus on Heavenly Things, as the words on the window demonstrate, we have a greater perspective on the worldly things and we are blessed with what we need. (In the window, you can barely see the "Worldly Things" on the wall opposite, to the right of the bulletin board.) The Joseph Smith translation of Matthew 6:33 says, "Wherefore, seek not the things of this world but seek ye first to build up the kingdom of God and to establish his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."

Twenty

Today was Day 1 of three days of studying the Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew 5-7.

Matthew 5:48 says, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." The word "perfect" in this verse comes from the Greek word "teleios" which can also be translated as "whole" or "complete." In Matthew Chapter 5, we learn some of the pieces in the puzzle of becoming perfect like Heavenly Father.

The students looked up the scripture references from Matthew 5 that they found on seventeen pieces of a puzzle that says "Becoming Perfect Like Heavenly Father" on the back. They wrote words that summarize the teachings found in the verses. Then they put the puzzle together. If you remove pieces of the puzzle, it is no longer "whole" or "complete." The puzzle of becoming like Heavenly Father becomes more perfect as we learn to keep each of the commandments.

In our quest for perfection, we should always remember what it says in Moroni 10:32-33, which says in part: "Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ..." We need Christ to become perfect.

Note: Students should remember to show me their General Conference notes. If they haven't taken them yet, they can watch or read recorded versions. Not only does this count toward the Stake President's Award, but each session counts as one day of make up work for days missed.

Nineteen

A present was left on one of the seminary tables this morning: raspberry lemonade muffins! One of our students was so excited she danced on a chair. Thank you!!! We enjoyed them.

We studied the rest of Matthew 10 today, verses 34 to 42. Instead of me finding the principles and doctrines and teaching them to the students, the students filled out a worksheet and taught them to each other. They did a good job sharing what they learned. Among other things, they read quotes and verses about sacrifice and about following the prophet. The Prophet Joseph Smith said, "Let us here observe, that a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation." The students learned that to really get something from the scriptures they need to put forth effort to find, to understand, and to apply the principles.

I reminded the students that one of the requirements for obtaining the Stake President's Award (see the bottom of this blog) is to take notes on eight Conference sessions throughout the school year. They are invited to watch Conference this weekend. If they are unable to watch every session, they may take notes from watching taped versions or reading printed versions of the talks. To get credit, they just need to show their notes to me when they are done.

Eighteen

Can you name the First Presidency and all members of the current Quorum of the Twelve? We started class today looking at their pictures and trying to name them all. Many students recognized their faces. Remembering names is more challenging. With General Conference coming up this weekend, it will be a blessing and an opportunity to learn their names and hear them speak.

Today we learned the names of the original Twelve Apostles called by Jesus Christ. We looked at a chart that tells more about each of them. Matthew 10:1 and 5-8 tell us that Jesus Christ gave them power against unclean spirits, the power to heal the sick, to cleanse the lepers, to raise the dead, to cast out devils, as well as the charge to gather the lost sheep and to preach. These responsibilities and powers come from our Heavenly Father through the Melchizedek Priesthood.

We know that the priesthood was taken from the earth after the death of the Apostles. We know it was restored again through the Prophet Joseph Smith. As the 5th Article of Faith says, "We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands, by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof." We are very blessed to have that authority on earth today.

We moved to the foyer near the bishop's office, talked more about the priesthood and the Twelve, and watched a clip on the computer of a conference talk given by Elder Holland in the October of 2000. He tells the story of a boy who was struck by lightning. The boy stopped breathing. A newly ordained elder was inspired to give him a blessing. Just after the blessing, the boy began breathing again. This story vividly portrays how the priesthood power is on the earth again today. You can read the entire story here in Elder Holland's talk.

Seventeen

The material we covered today is found in Luke 4:14-32. Jesus told the people in the synagogue in Nazareth that He is the Messiah. The people had seen Him grow up as the son of a carpenter. They saw Him as ordinary. They didn't believe He is the Son of God. They even tried to kill Him because they thought He was committing blasphemy.

We talked about how our leaders here on earth are ordinary people with weaknesses. President Faust said, "Perfection in men is not found on the earth. But almost without exception these leaders sincerely, humbly, and prayerfully render great and dedicated Christian service to the best of their ability. More important, they hold a divine warrant and commission through which great and eternal blessings come to those who sustain and follow them. They are God's servants."

I know that Heavenly Father blesses those who serve Him faithfully with power beyond their own abilities. When His servants speak, like it says at the end of D&C 1:38, "Whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same." We are very blessed to have the opportunity to hear their words this coming weekend.