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. . . MODERN REVELATION . . .
The Doctrine and Covenants contains revelations from God.
In November 1831, Church leaders decided to put Joseph Smith’s revelations in a book for everyone to read. Today those revelations are printed in the Doctrine and Covenants.
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Tell the children about how Joseph Smith’s revelations came to be printed in a book (see “Chapter 23: The Doctrine and Covenants,” Doctrine and Covenants Stories, 90–92, or the corresponding video on ChurchofJesusChrist.org). SEE VIDEO BELOW. Share your testimony that the Doctrine and Covenants contains revelations that can help us today. Share one of your favorite verses from the Doctrine and Covenants
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Show the children each of the standard works one at a time, and as you hold each one up share a little about how we got it (see each book’s entry in Guide to the Scriptures). When you hold up the Doctrine and Covenants, share with the children what makes this book of scripture unique (for example, it contains revelations given in our day).
Doctrine and Covenants 67:4, 9
The revelations given through Joseph Smith are true.
Much of the instruction in Doctrine and Covenants 67–70 has to do with the Saints’ efforts to publish Joseph Smith’s revelations. This could be an opportunity to help the children recognize that in these revelations, now published in the Doctrine and Covenants, we can find the voice of the Lord.
As you prepare to teach, you might review Saints, 1:140–43 or “Chapter 23: The Doctrine and Covenants” (Doctrine and Covenants Stories, 90–92).
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Show the children the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. Help the children make a list on the board of what makes each book of scripture different and what makes them similar. If they need help, share with them the descriptions of these books in Guide to the Scriptures. Ask the children how we can know that the scriptures are true. What do we learn from Doctrine and Covenants 67:4, 9 about the revelations the Lord gave to Joseph Smith?
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Share a verse from the Doctrine and Covenants that strengthens your “testimony of the truth of these commandments” (verse 4). Give the children opportunities to share a favorite verse of their own. Explain to the children that the Church leaders at this time decided to publish their testimony of the revelations Joseph Smith had received. When they did, one of the leaders, Levi Hancock, wrote next to his name, “Never to be erased” (see “Testimony, circa 2 November 1831,” Revelation Book 1, 121, josephsmithpapers.org). Why might Levi Hancock have wanted his name “never to be erased” from the published testimony? Give the children an opportunity to write their testimonies of what they’ve learned so far in the Doctrine and Covenants.
DOWNLOAD matching activities and song visuals below.
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Chapter 23: The Doctrine and Covenants: August-November 1831
Tell children they can place this bookmark in their scriptures to remind them that the teachings of Jesus are a great treasure! Each time they read the scriptures it’s like going on a treasure hunt. Joseph Smith received continued revelation from Jesus Christ to create the Doctrine & Covenants (latter-day scripture), revealing to him how His Church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was to be restored.
. . . BAPTISM AGE OF ACCOUNTABILITY . . .
Doctrine and Covenants 68:25–28
I can be baptized when I am eight years old.
In Doctrine and Covenants 68:25–28, the Lord told Joseph Smith that children should learn to have faith in Jesus Christ, repent, and be baptized when they are eight years old. He also said that they should learn to pray and keep God’s commandments.
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Invite the children to count to eight using their fingers. What is special about being eight years old? Help the children recognize that when they are eight years old, they can be baptized. Using words and phrases found in Doctrine and Covenants 68:25–28, share with them some of the things the Lord wants them to learn about before they are eight (see also Articles of Faith 1:4) DOWNLOAD HERE or below. Help them understand concepts that might not be familiar to them.
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Sing with the children a song about baptism, such as “Baptism” HERE (or below) or “When I Am Baptized” HERE or below (Children’s Songbook, 100–101, 103). Ask the children to share how they feel about being baptized and what they can do to prepare.
DOWNLOAD lesson-match activities and song visuals below.
. . . LISTEN TO THE LORD’S WORDS . . .
When our Church leaders speak by inspiration, they speak “the word of the Lord.”
When the Lord’s servants speak by the power of the Holy Ghost, their words are the will, mind, word, and voice of the Lord (see verse 4). Knowing this truth can help the children want to listen to and follow their teachings.
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Invite the children to read Doctrine and Covenants 68:3–4 in small groups and share with each other what they learn from these verses. Invite the children to write something they learned on the board. Why is this an important truth to know?
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After reading Doctrine and Covenants 68:3–4 together, give the children copies of several recent messages from general conference. Invite them to find in the messages truths that the Lord taught us through His servants.
DOWNLOAD lesson-match activities and song visuals below.
. . . A FAITHFUL SAINT . . .
I can be “true and faithful.”
When Oliver Cowdery needed to travel to Missouri, the Lord called John Whitmer, someone who was “true and faithful” (verse 1), to go with him. How can the children be true and faithful like John Whitmer?
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Tell the children that when the Lord sent Oliver Cowdery to Missouri, He said that someone “true and faithful” (verse 1) should go with him, so He also sent John Whitmer. What does it mean to be true and faithful? How can we make sure we are true and faithful so that the Lord can use us to bless others?
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Invite a few children to tell about someone they know who they think is “true and faithful.” How do they know that person is true and faithful? Help them see that the Lord trusted John Whitmer because he was, at this time, true and faithful (see Doctrine and Covenants 69:1–2). Sing together a song that encourages the children to be true and faithful like the Savior, such as “I’m Trying to Be like Jesus” (Children’s Songbook, 78–79). DOWNLOAD song visuals (HERE or below)
DOWNLOAD lesson-match activities and song visuals below.
. . . SEEKING MISSIONARY OPPORTUNITIES . . .
Inspiration from the Holy Ghost reflects the will of the Lord.
The words in these verses were spoken as Orson Hyde and others were called “to proclaim the everlasting gospel, by the Spirit of the living God, from people to people, and from land to land” (verse 1). How might the declaration in verse 4 help someone who is being sent to preach the gospel? How do these words apply to you? Think of a time when you were “moved upon by the Holy Ghost” (verse 3) to say or do something. What do you find in these verses that can give you confidence to follow spiritual promptings?
DOWNLOAD lesson-match activities and song visuals below.
. . . LEARNING GOSPEL THROUGH PARENTS . . .
Doctrine and Covenants 68:25–28
Parents are responsible to teach their children.
President Joy D. Jones, Primary General President, taught, “[A] key to helping children become sin-resistant is to begin at very early ages to lovingly infuse them with basic gospel doctrines and principles—from the scriptures, the Articles of Faith, the For the Strength of Youth booklet, Primary songs, hymns, and our own personal testimonies—that will lead children to the Savior” (“A Sin-Resistant Generation,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2017, 88).
According to Doctrine and Covenants 68:25–28, what are some of the “basic gospel doctrines” that President Jones mentioned that parents should teach their children? Why is this important responsibility given to parents? What would you say to a parent who doesn’t feel qualified to teach these things to his or her children?
See also Tad R. Callister, “Parents: The Prime Gospel Teachers of Their Children,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2014, 32–34.