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先要尋求獲得我的話

先要尋求獲得我的話

凱利‧郝斯

福音進修班及研究所助理行政主管

福音進修班及研究所衛星轉播，2015年•8月4日

導言

我很感謝今天能在這裡與你們同聚，我喜愛參與這事工。

我在為今天的演講作準備時，曾先對我的家人作了演講，請他們給我意見，……幾乎所有的意見都對我有幫助。但唯一讓我有點猶豫，不太敢說出來的，是我12歲的女兒安妮的反應，她聽到一半就睡著了，我相信各位應該沒有在課堂上看過這樣的反應。所以，她和我都希望今天的版本能有進步。

在過去的兩年裡，查德‧韋伯弟兄每年都邀請大家 ，協助學生獲得以能加深對救主信心的方法來研讀經文的經驗。1過去這一年閱讀經文的學生比往年多了許多。他們個人研讀經文的時間共計超過9百萬個小時2。我們感謝你們付出的努力！

今天我們想要更新那項邀請。能否請你們每天幫助每一位福音進修班及研究所的學生在研讀經文時，獲得有意義的經驗呢？舊約中肯定會有讓學生覺得難以讀懂和理解的部分，但是我真的相信我們不必偷偷溜到學生背後，「在〔他們〕耳邊低語談〔舊約〕」。3

韋伯弟兄也邀請我們討論過「如何能在教導時，更加把重心放在我們所教導的經文上」。4他提出一連串的問題，問到經文在我們的教學中所扮演的角色。在座有很多人已經認真思考過這些問題了。謝謝！今天，我們是否可以來探討一下經文在備課過程中所扮演的角色？

1829年5月，約瑟‧斯密和愛瑪‧斯密住在賓州的哈茂耐。海侖‧斯密去拜訪他們，希望了解自己在推動復興一事上有哪些任務。先知求問神後，想起「生動而有力，比雙刃劍更銳利」5這句話。救主接著在為教師設定了一個重要的先後順序時，教導了海侖和我們一項原則和重點，就是：「不要尋求宣講我的話，先要尋求獲得我的話，然後你的舌頭必被鬆開；那時，如果你渴望，你就會得到我的靈和我的話，是的，即神的能力，以勸服世人。」6

獲得神的話語：我們的內心必需感到火熱

我們的教學不是從備課、思考教學方法或複習課程時開始的。我們的教學其實是從拉丁文說的ad fontes，也就是源頭7開始的。墨林‧羅慕義會長說，教學最好的準備要從汲取地上的湧泉開始。8如果我們希望在教導經文時帶有力量，如果我們希望學生去感受經文的真理和重要，就必須從我們個人內心鮮活的熱情開始。9

羅慕義會長勸告說：「要成為成功的福音教師，……我們必須下功夫研讀，……直到〔主的〕教導變成我們的教導。這樣我們才能帶著力量和堅定的信念講課。如果我們選擇採用其他的準備方法，……最後會變成教導自己或者其他人的觀點〔，而且不保證會成功〕。」10

獲得神的話語：在研讀中要注意什麼

你我試著要從使內心感到火熱的經文中獲得神的話語時，我想提出兩個適用於經文研讀的簡單觀點。

第一，真理有不同等級，如果會區分這些等級將能祝福我們和我們的學生。

第二，經文中有關聯，有模式，有主題，11其中包含了指向救主的最重要的一些象徵和預兆。

真理當中的等級

首先，麥士維長老寫了一篇文章，「真理當中的等級」，談到有些真理值得我們為之披肝瀝膽，這句成語有忠信、服從或忠誠的意思。

「有些事可能是真實但不重要的。……我們不但要會分辨事實和猜想，還要知道哪些事實是值得效法的。

「耶穌的福音讓我們注意到一個事實，就是真理有不同等級；有些真理就是永遠比其他真理更加重要！」12

很多經文章節都涵蓋某種程度的細節，而其中蘊含的靈感細節則說明了所要闡釋的原則13。14

我們應該對經文裡的細節和教義都暸若指掌。脫離教義而教導的經文細節充其量只是在告知訊息而已，明白這點是非常重要的。這樣的教導，「有聖靈在，傷不了我們，沒有聖靈在，也對我們無益」。15另一方面，在教導中只講述個人的故事、見解和從討論中產生的想法，卻缺乏教導真理和靈感所必要的經文實質內容，也同樣是不夠的。對學生幫助最大的老師應該是通曉經文又明白聖靈的重要角色的人。16

我聽人說過 「靈修式的教學」缺乏學識，也聽其他人說過學術性的教學缺乏使人歸信的靈。只偏重靈修式的教學或純粹的學識，都無法滿足宗教教育的獨特需要。羅拔‧馬太弟兄曾說「『宗教』字面上的意思是『與之相連。』它和韌帶這個詞有關，韌帶使肌肉與骨頭相連。宗教也應該使人與神、聖靈和神聖的事物相連。」17而這就是宗教教育應當能為我們的學生做到的事。

經文的細節通常會指出寶貴的真理。我們用見證來教導真理時，就能邀請神給我們啟示，聖靈會讓贖罪在我們的生活中起作用18，加深我們對救主19 的歸信和實踐天父計畫的承諾。

當然，舊約中不乏「精彩的故事，奇異的習俗和優美的寫作風格」。20為了達到我們教學的效果，大家要記住，這些細節並不是經文的目的，這一點非常重要。正如我們被教導的那樣，「記寫經文的目的就是要保存原則。」21「這些福音原則是啟示的本質和目的。」22

根本上來說，這些原則之間也是有次序的，因為「我們宗教的基本原則是先知和使徒對救主的見證。」23

把細節從原則中區別出來，甚至學會辨別在原則中所存在的各等級，將是一輩子的功課。如果我們教導了歷史和律法的每個細節，教導了以色列人顛沛流離的每個環節，卻沒有教導舊約中天父的計畫和救主的贖罪所蘊含的信息，24那我們就等於沒有教導過舊約中的信息。25

保羅說帕子「在誦讀舊約的時候還沒有揭去」，那些被帕子蒙蔽的人說的正是我，可能也包括我們的一些學生。他接著提出了解決這個難題的關鍵，就是「這帕子在基督裡已經廢去了」，而且「〔我們的心〕幾時歸向主，帕子就幾時除去了。」26

如果我們教學的重點能集中在救主身上27，如果能幫助學生將心思意念轉向祂，帕子就會在他們誦讀舊約的時候揭去。也許更重要的是，當學生學會在自己研讀經文的過程中尋找救主，他們將學到類似的教訓並開始在生活中學會去留意救主和天父的影響力。

舉例說明這類等級

我要分享一項可以看出經文真理的建議。請挑一段經文閱讀，然後問自己：「這段經文有哪些細節？」在人名、地名、時間和故事軸下面畫線。查考更多有關這段經文的背景內容，並劃記下所有能找到的背景細節。正如手冊所建議的，要注意「自然的分段處」28，也就是語氣或內容有所改變的地方。

把經文段落再看一次，問自己：「其中蘊含了哪些可以運用的原則或真理29，只要懂了，就能叫人『服從』的呢？」30研讀更多這段經文段落中有關教義的背景內容。用異於標註細節的方法來劃記每項原則。如果有隱含31的原則，花點時間把它們寫下來。

特意做這件事可能一開始會有些困難。這需要專注力和時間。遵循這個方法的其中一些好處在於，它會使我們不斷地提問：「這段經文有哪些細節，它想要教導哪些原則？」

如同前面所講的，有些原則就是比其他原則重要，會帶來更多靈感、生命力和救恩，因為它們都指向救主。所以，請再次閱讀這段經文，這次從另一個角度來看：「這段經文打算32如何把我的注意力轉向救主？是什麼促使我對祂和天父的計畫產生更多的理解、感激和信賴？」

最後，仔細思考現近代先知曾就這段經文講過的話和提出過的見解、領悟和靈感。

用這種方式研讀经文後，當我們回到課程時，教材中額外提供的知識、建議和方向將會與我們從經文和及先知的話語中獲得的見解、靈感和體驗相結合。課程就會讓我們進一步確認、改善並加強我們為能有力宣講神的話作準備。

舉例來說，我們今年讀路得記的時候，讀到一個和失去、忠誠有關的溫馨故事。或者，在思考真理等級的這個問題時，我们會注意到路得死了丈夫後，來到伯利恆33，在那裡遇到了波阿斯。波阿斯照顧路得，給她餅吃，又給她一杯醋〔譯註：紅酒醋〕喝，34又在城門作她的調解人，35後來以她親屬的身分，（字面上也譯作「贖主」36），贖了路得37，娶她為妻38，直到事情辦成39才肯休息。了解這些後，我們對這個教導愛與救贖的見證會開始有所體認，理解到偉大的救贖主40也為我們做了同樣的事，進而得到啟發和靈感。

這只是查考經文的一個簡單的例子。細心的教師會在每個學生靈性自立的過程中幫助學生學習去擁有同樣的個人研讀經驗。41

弟兄姊妹，在每一頁經文中，我們都要作出對課堂教學與學習能力有重要影響的選擇。這個選擇是：我們要把學生的心思、意念和信心轉向哪些真理？這個選擇對他們會在思想和生活中接受哪一部分的話語具有非常大的影響力。42 假如我們在這方面不夠明智，萬一選擇了較小的真理來「主導教學」，那就會像艾寧會長所教導的，「我就幾乎已經抽離戰場，無法再幫助學生抗拒那如大海汪洋般的邪惡污穢。」43

關聯、主題和象徵

除了認識到真理有等級外，還有一個簡單的觀點可能可以幫助我們獲得神的話語，那就是經文裡充滿著關聯、主題和象徵。我以舊約為例，簡單說明一下。

關聯

大衛‧貝納長老說「關聯就是想法、人物、事情或事件之間的關係或連結。」44

我們會看到一種關聯，就是舊約中有很多成功與失敗的故事，被拿來作對比教學：該隱和亞伯、約瑟和他的哥哥們，雅各和以掃，亞比該和拿答等等。

艾寧會長注意到這個重點：「在描述……失敗時，也隱約透露了如何邁向成功。……靈性衰微與恢復的反覆循環」可以給你的學生帶來希望和啟發。45

主題

貝納長老也說明：「主題是主要、一再出現及統合的特質或想法，就像是編織整篇內文的線一樣。」46我們今年會注意到的一個主題是：「你們要知道我是耶和華——你們的神。」47

面對獲救之前的災難，以及隨之而來的種種奇蹟，以色列的兒女們被教導：通過這些事，「你必知道我是耶和華。」48

哥利亞被殺、49 乃縵獲治癒、50 以利亞及巴力的祭司、51 還有但以理與尼布甲尼撒王神秘而莊嚴的經歷52，這些事被記載的目的都是要「使普天下的人都知道以色列中有神。」53

在詩篇54、以賽亞書55 、以西結書56，和舊約中的十七部書中，有超過八十個不同的年代，耶和華都重複、強調和保證，以色列家族和我們會在舊約中的教導和事件當中看到祂和祂手所作的工，使我們和我們的子孫「從日出之地到日落之處使人都知道除了我以外，沒有別的神。」57

我們在新的房角石研究所課程中學習經文主題時58 ，經文將會被「交織在一起，讓〔我們〕在閱讀時互相吸引」59。如果經文是這些課程的學習重心，它們將會「一同成長」，使我們的學生「知道〔他們〕的聖約。」60貝納長老說：「尋找及辨識經文的主題可引導我們認識……那會邀請聖靈來證實的永恒真理。運用從經文蓄水池中取得活水這種方法，是最不容易且最嚴峻的，但它也能夠帶來最大的啟迪。」61這對我們身為教師的要求只會增多，不會減少。62

基督的象徵和預兆

在舊約的許多模式中63，有一種尤其需要我們關注和努力。當然，那就是尋找對天父及救主的見證。布司‧麥康基長老說過：「這樣……尋找基督在各處的共通點，然後重複不斷地將主和祂的律法放在我們思想中的至高處。」64

要把基督的象徵和預兆列出來，幾乎就像計算河流中的水滴或陽光中的粒子一樣。總括來說，「從世界開始以來，神睗予人類的一切，都象徵著基督。」65

創造、66銅蛇、67嗎哪、68在門框上塗羔羊的血使以色列人脫離埃及的奴役、69還有整個摩西律法及其附帶的犠牲和記念的制度，都是特意和明顯地用來當成「我們訓蒙的師傳，引我們到基督那裡。」70

亞伯拉罕71願意犠牲以撒72；麥基洗德的頭銜73，包括「和平之君」74；約瑟搭救賣他的兄弟75；還有摩西解救以色列兒女76，這些都令他們成為「以後要來之人的預象。」77

在伊甸園中的亞當是無罪之人78 ，但他自願選擇79 放棄生命，使我們得以活在世上。80

國王認為但以理有美好的靈性，想立他治理通國。81 那些在位的「總長和總督」82 都憎恨但以理，想「尋找但以理誤國的把柄，……只是找不著他的錯誤過失。」83 於是那些邪惡者「聚集，……[並]彼此商議」84 就在這個時候，但以理回到他自己家裡，禱告感謝85 ，與素常一樣。86當他知道一切的時候，王「一心要救但以理」。87 後來，但以理被判死刑，「有人搬石頭放在坑口……封閉那坑。」88 「次日黎明，王就起來，急忙往獅子坑那裡去」，89得知有神的使者來過90，「但以理從坑裡被繫上來，身上毫無傷損。」91

阿爾弗雷德‧愛德生說過，整部舊約的「目的就是要指向基督。……不只是律法、象徵或預言指向祂──律法對〔祂〕來說是良師，象徵是有關〔基督的〕預兆，預言預示〔基督〕──；而是整本舊約歷史都充滿了有關基督的信息。……隨之而來的一件事就是：只有……研讀經文才能充足或有餘地讓我們學習去認識救主。」92

請各位在課堂中，甚至是在我們家中和家人之間，花點時間問問學生和子女，他們學習到什麼？這些事情如何幫助他們明白並仰賴天父和救主？從上課的第一天起，可否也請你們教導學生特別留意受靈啟發的作者們用心寫下的這些偉大的見證？

結論

弟兄姊妹，經文在我們的教學和備課過程中具有無可取代的角色！請記住羅慕義會長的提醒：

「我們被任命去把從主（經文）那裡獲得的傳達給我們所教導的人。有時候，〔我們可能〕會在還沒有獲得以前就試圖去教導。 

……〔我們可能〕還沒有〔給〕主機會來準備〔我們〕，就想要……出去宣講。」93

本著這種精神，我要在韋伯兄弟去年所提的問題後面多加幾個問題，邀請大家在備課過程中加以思考。

  • 我是否以查考經文來開始準備課程？

  • 我是否因為今天所教導的經文而感到喜悅？94這些經文是否有如「燒著的火閉塞在我骨中」？95

  • 我是否明白受靈啟發的作者希望我看到和明白的細節和教義？

  • 我是否查考了先知們的話語，了解他們對某段經文強調的重點、見解和見證？

  • 我是否每一次都尋找並找到經文為救主和為其贖罪作見證的方法呢？96

願各位在課堂中說的話比兩刃劍97還鋒利，因為經文在我們裡面燃燒！願我們都有決心去把細節和值得服膺的教義區分出來！願我們也能幫助學生學會在經文中找出為天父的計畫和祂愛子所作的美好見證！98

我要向各位作見證，特別是見證天父99透過救主奇妙的贖罪而彰顯出的愛。我感謝有這個美好的機會能夠成為這奇妙復興事工中的一份子，祂的名將因這事工而在世上永遠傳揚100，奉耶穌基督的名，阿們。

Intellectual Reserve, Inc. © 2015 版權所有。英文核准日期：6/15。翻譯核准日期：6/15。“First Seek to Obtain My Word.”譯文Chinese.PD10054335 265

註：

  1. See Chad H. Webb, “An Invitation to Study the Doctrine and Covenants” (Seminaries and Institutes of Religion satellite broadcast, Aug. 5, 2014), lds.org/broadcasts.

  2. An estimated 200,000 seminary students read the Doctrine and Covenants last year.If they read for 15 minutes per day and read for 180 school days, that equals 9 million hours of personal scripture study.

  3. J. Reuben Clark Jr., The Charted Course of the Church in Education, rev. ed. (1994), 9.

  4. Chad H. Webb, “An Invitation to Study the Doctrine and Covenants,” lds.org/broadcasts.

  5. Doctrine and Covenants 11:2.

  6. Doctrine and Covenants 11:21.

  7. Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught that the first key to understanding the Bible is to read the Bible:

    “Could any key be more obvious than this?Simply read the book itself.Unless and until we do, nothing else will fall into place.We cannot do other than rate this key as a ten on our scale.All biblical scholarship and understanding begin with reading the basic source material.

    “One of our problems is that we read what others have said about the Bible. …

    “Read the book itself.‘Search the scriptures’ (John 5:39).Treasure up the Lord’s word.Go to the source” (“The Bible, a Sealed Book” [Church Educational System symposium, Aug. 17, 1984] 4, si.lds.org).

  8. President Marion G. Romney said, “When I drink from a spring I like to get the water where it comes out of the ground, not down the stream after the cattle have waded in it.… I appreciate other people’s interpretation, but when it comes to the gospel we ought to be acquainted with what the Lord says” (from an address to religious educators, quoted by J. Richard Clarke, “My Soul Delighteth in the Scriptures,” Ensign, Nov. 1982, 15).

  9. President Harold B. Lee taught:“You cannot lift another soul until you are standing on higher ground than he is.You must be sure, if you would rescue the man, that you yourself are setting the example of what you would have him be.You cannot light a fire in another soul unless it is burning in your own soul” (“Stand Ye in Holy Places,” Ensign, Oct. 2008, 47).Elder Neal A. Maxwell said:“Part of what may be lacking, at times, in the decent teacher is a freshening personal excitement over the gospel which could prove highly contagious.Since we can only speak the smallest part of what we feel, we should not let that ‘smallest part’ shrink in its size” (“Teaching by the Spirit—‘The Language of Inspiration’” (Church Educational System symposium on the Old Testament, Aug. 15, 1991, 5, si.lds.org).

  10. Marion G. Romney, “The Message of the Old Testament” (Church Educational System symposium on the Old Testament, Aug. 17, 1979), 1, si.lds.org.

  11. See David A. Bednar, “A Reservoir of Living Water” (Church Educational System fireside for young adults, Feb. 4, 2007), speeches.byu.edu (text), LDS.org (video).

  12. Neal A. Maxwell, The Smallest Part (1973), 4; see also Neal A. Maxwell, “The Inexhaustible Gospel,” Ensign, Apr. 1993, 69.

  13. Elder Richard G. Scott said, “Principles are concentrated truth, packaged for application to a wide variety of circumstances” (“Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge,” Ensign, Nov. 1993, 86; see also Gospel Teaching and Learning:A Handbook for Teachers and Leaders in Seminaries and Institutes of Religion [2012], 5–7).Brother Chad Webb has suggested that to determine if something is a principle, we might ask ourselves, “Is it always true?Is it applicable in every condition, every time, every circumstance, and to every people?”

  14. Elder Scott also taught:“As you seek spiritual knowledge, search for principles.Carefully separate them from the detail used to explain them” (“Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge,” 86; see also Gospel Teaching and Learning, 26–31).

  15. Boyd K. Packer, Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled (1991), 15.

  16. See C. S. Lewis, “Meditation in a Toolshed,” in God in the Dock:Essays on Theology and Ethics, ed. Walter Hooper (1970), 212–15.

  17. Robert J. Matthews, “What is Religious Education?”(unpublished address to religious educators, Aug. 31, 1989), 2.

  18. Elder D. Todd Christofferson taught, “The gift of the Holy Ghost … is the messenger of grace by which the blood of Christ is applied to take away our sins and sanctify us” (“The Power of Covenants,” Ensign, May 2009, 22; see also Area Directors’ Convention, 2011, session on “The Role of the Holy Ghost”).

  19. See Alma 23:5–7.

  20. Henry B. Eyring, “Teaching the Old Testament” (Church Educational System symposium on the Old Testament, Aug. 10, 1999), 5, si.lds.org.

  21. Marion G. Romney, “The Message of the Old Testament,” 3, si.lds.org; see also Gospel Teaching and Learning, 26–28.

  22. Boyd K. Packer, “Principles,” Ensign, Mar. 1985, 8; see also Gospel Teaching and Learning, 26–28.

  23. Joseph Smith, in History of the Church, 3:30.Expanded quotation:“The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it.”

  24. President Marion G. Romney taught, “The message of the Old Testament is the message of Christ and his coming and his atonement” (“The Message of the Old Testament,” 4, si.lds.org).

  25. See 1 Nephi 6:4; D&C 76:40–43.President Ezra Taft Benson defined the gospel in “The Gospel Teacher and His Message” ([address to religious educators, Sept. 17, 1976], si.lds.org).President Henry B. Eyring defined “two views of the gospel” in “Eyes to See, Ears to Hear” ([Church Educational System symposium on the New Testament, Aug. 16, 1984], si.lds.org; also quoted in Teaching and Learning, 54).See also the use of the word gospel in J. Reuben Clark Jr., “The Charted Course of the Church in Education.”

  26. 2 Corinthians 3:14, 16; see also Joseph Smith Translation, 2 Corinthians 3:14, 16.

  27. President Boyd K. Packer taught that the Atonement “is the very root of Christian doctrine.You may know much about the gospel as it branches out from there, but if you only know the branches and those branches do not touch that root, if they have been cut free from that truth, there will be no life nor substance nor redemption in them” (“The Mediator,” Ensign, May 1977, 56; also quoted in Gospel Teaching and Learning, 1).

  28. Gospel Teaching and Learning, 52.

  29. Richard G. Scott, “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge,” 86; see also Gospel Teaching and Learning, 26.

  30. Henry B. Eyring, “Converting Principles” (remarks at an evening with Elder L. Tom Perry, Feb. 2, 1996), 1, si.lds.org; also quoted in Gospel Teaching and Learning, 54.

  31. See Gospel Teaching and Learning, 26–27.

  32. The Prophet Joseph Smith taught, “We may conclude, that though there were different dispensations, yet all things which God communicated to His people were calculated to draw their minds to the great object, and to teach them to rely upon God alone as the author of their salvation” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church:Joseph Smith [2007], 49).

  33. See Ruth 1:19.

  34. See Ruth 上午 02:14.

  35. See Ruth 4:1.

  36. “The word here rendered ‘redeemer’ we translate literally from Hebrew go’el and this is its proper translation.It is rendered merely ‘kinsman’ in the King James English translation.The function of a go’el was to make it possible for a widow who had lost home and property to return to her former status and security and to have seed to perpetuate her family.

    “It is easy to see why the later prophets borrowed this word from the social laws of Israel and used it to describe the functions of Him who would become the Divine Redeemer: Think of what He does to restore us to proper status with God, and to give us future security and eternal ‘seed’” (Ellis T. Rasmussen, An Introduction to the Old Testament and Its Teachings, Part 1 (syllabus for Religion 301, 1972), 157; and Old Testament Student Manual:Genesis–2 Samuel (Church Educational System manual, 2003), 263.

  37. See Ruth 4:10.

  38. See Ruth 4:13; see also Ruth 4 chapter heading.

  39. John 19:30; see Ruth 3:18.

  40. This beautiful story “speaks of and symbolically demonstrates God’s redeeming power; it teaches us of how we can access that power and exemplifies how we should emulate our Redeemer.Numerous elements of the story serve as types of Christ.It is about hope in Israel.[Perhaps part of] the reason we love the story so much is because … our souls intuitively resonate with the redemption of Ruth; we long for what happened to her on a mortal level to happen to us in both a mortal and eternal way.Ruth satisfies some of our soul’s yearning for deliverance.It highlights our reasons for hope” (Kerry Muhlestein, “Ruth, Redemption, Covenant, and Christ,” in D. Kelly Ogden, Jared W. Ludlow, and Kerry Muhlstein, eds., The Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Old Testament, 38th Annual Brigham Young University Sidney B. Sperry Symposium [2009], 187–88).

  41. See Boyd K. Packer, “Self-Reliance” (Brigham Young University fireside, Mar. 2, 1975), speeches.byu.edu.

  42. See Alma 12:9–11; 3 Nephi 26:1–11 (especially verses 9–10).Elder Jeffrey R. Holland stated:“When crises come in our lives—and they will—the philosophies of men interlaced with a few scriptures and poems just won’t do. Are we really nurturing our youth … in a way that will sustain them when the stresses of life appear?Or are we giving them a kind of theological Twinkie—spiritually empty calories?President John Taylor once called such teaching ‘fried froth,’ the kind of thing you could eat all day and yet finish feeling totally unsatisfied.During a severe winter several years ago, President Boyd K. Packer noted that a goodly number of deer had died of starvation while their stomachs were full of hay.In an honest effort to assist, agencies had supplied the superficial when the substantial was what had been needed.Regrettably they had fed the deer but they had not nourished them” (“A Teacher Come from God,” Ensign, May 1998, 26–27).

  43. Henry B. Eyring, “Eyes to See, Ears to Hear,” si.lds.org; also quoted in Gospel Teaching and Learning, 54.

  44. David A. Bednar, “A Reservoir of Living Water,” 4, speeches.byu.edu.

  45. Henry B. Eyring, “Teaching the Old Testament,” 2, si.lds.org.

  46. David A. Bednar, “A Reservoir of Living Water,” 6, speeches.byu.edu.

  47. Exodus 6:7.

  48. Exodus 7:17; see also Exodus 7:5; 8:10, 22; 9:14, 16, 29; 10:2; 11:7; 14:4, 18; 16:6, 12; 29:46.

  49. See 1 Samuel 17:46.

  50. See 2 Kings 5:15.

  51. See 1 Kings 18:37.

  52. See Daniel 4:17, 26.

  53. 1 Samuel 17:46.

  54. See Psalm 59:13; 67:2; 83:18; 109:27.

  55. See Isaiah 5:19; 9:9; 19:21; 37:20; 41:20, 22–23; 41:26; 43:10; 45:3, 6; 49:23, 26; 52:6; 60:16.

  56. See Ezekiel 6:10, 14; 7:4, 9, 27; 11:10, 12; 12:15–16; 13:9, 14, 21, 23; 14:8; 15:7; 16:62; 17:21, 24; 20:20; 22:16; 24:27; 25:7; 35:4, 12, 15.

  57. Isaiah 45:6.

  58. See the section “Why Are We Making These Changes?” on “New Religion and Institute Courses:Additional Information,” si.lds.org/announcement-new-religion-courses.

  59. Boyd K. Packer, “Scriptures,” Ensign, Nov. 1982, 53.

  60. 2 Nephi 3:12.

  61. David A. Bednar, “A Reservoir of Living Water,” 6, speeches.byu.edu.

  62. Elder Neal A. Maxwell described it this way:“Cluster your scriptures together so that the Old Testament scripture on a particular topic is related [to the other books of scripture] and to the utterances of living prophets.The scriptures of the Church need each other.… And they help each other. …

    “… [Then] you will … make the teaching moment more significant.…

    “… Help your students avoid the tendency to skim lightly over the surface of the scriptures.… Encourage them to cluster the scriptures topically, as if they were a bunch of grapes from which you would then squeeze all the juice, and distill all the meaning” (“The Old Testament:Relevancy within Antiquity” [Church Educational System symposium on the Old Testament, Aug. 16, 1979], 1–2, si.lds.org.

  63. See Old Testament Student Manual:Genesis–2 Samuel, 111–15.

  64. Bruce R. McConkie, The Promised Messiah:The First Coming of Christ (1978), 453.

  65. 2 Nephi 11:4; see also Hosea 12:10; Alma 30:23–60 (especially verses 40–41); Moses 6:59–63.

  66. See Moses 6:63.Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught:“The revealed accounts of the Creation are designed to accomplish two great purposes.Their general purpose is to enable us to understand the nature of our mortal probation, a probation in which all men are being tried and tested ‘to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them.’(Abr. 3:25.)Their specific purpose is to enable us to understand the atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ, which infinite and eternal Atonement is the very foundation upon which revealed religion rests” (“Christ and the Creation,” Ensign, June 1982, 13).

  67. See Alma 33:19; see also Topical Guide, “Jesus Christ, Types of, in Anticipation”.

  68. “Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness and are dead.

    “This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.

    “I am the living bread” (John 6:49–51); see also Exodus 17:6; 1 Corinthians 10:4; Topical Guide, “Jesus Christ, Types of, in Anticipation.”

  69. See Exodus 12:5–14.

  70. Galatians 3:24.

  71. “Father of a multitude. Originally called Abram, ‘exalted father.’”(Bible Dictionary, “Abraham”).

  72. Elder Dallin H. Oaks explained:“This story … shows the goodness of God in protecting Isaac and in providing a substitute so he would not have to die.Because of our sins and our mortality, we, like Isaac, are condemned to death.When all other hope is gone, our Father in Heaven provides the Lamb of God, and we are saved by his sacrifice” (“Bible Stories and Personal Protection,” Ensign, Nov. 1992, 37).

  73. “King of Salem” (Hebrews 7:1–2); “the king of heaven” (Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 14:36 [in the Bible appendix]); “King of righteousness” (Hebrews 7:2); see also Topical Guide, “Jesus Christ, Types of, in Anticipation.”

  74. Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 14:33 (in the Bible appendix); see also Topical Guide, “Jesus Christ, Types of, in Anticipation.”

  75. See Genesis 37:27–28.

  76. See Moses 1:26; see also Deuteronomy 18:15; 3 Nephi 20:23; The Pearl of Great Price Teacher Manual (Church Educational System manual, 2000), 9–11.

  77. Romans 5:14.

  78. See 2 Nephi 上午 02:23.

  79. See Moses 4:18.

  80. See 2 Nephi 2:25.

  81. Daniel 6:3.

  82. Daniel 6:3–4, 6–7.

  83. Daniel 6:4; see also verse 5.

  84. Daniel 6:6–7.

  85. Luke 22:39; see Daniel 6:10.

  86. See Daniel 上午 06:10.

  87. Daniel 6:14.

  88. Daniel 6:17.

  89. Daniel 6:19.

  90. See Daniel 6:22.

  91. Daniel 6:23.

  92. Alfred Edersheim, Bible History:Old Testament, one vol. ed. (1982), xiii; also quoted in Old Testament Student Manual:Genesis–2 Samuel, 22.

  93. Marion G. Romney, “The Message of the Old Testament,” 1, si.lds.org.

  94. See Psalm 1:2–3.

  95. Jeremiah 20:9; see also Gospel Teaching and Learning, 29–30.  President Boyd K. Packer explained:

    “‘There is a great body of evidence,’ Brother [Wilford B.] Lee wrote, ‘to indicate that, in moral behavior especially, people do not act in accordance with their knowledge.’And he observed that one could hardly find an obese person who does not know that, if he is to reduce his weight, a part of what he must do is to reduce his intake of food.Can you imagine a medical doctor who uses cigarettes and does not know that smoking is detrimental to his health?Were you ever acquainted with a divorce of parents in which both of the parties didn’t know full well that tragic effects would be visited upon their children?In such cases the persons know the right course but still fail to follow it.

    “As regards righteous behavior, then, to know intellectually is not enough.The feelings must be engaged” (Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled [1991], 14).

  96. In The Charted Course of the Church in Education, President J. Reuben Clark Jr. taught that in our study and teaching, there are actually “two prime things which may not be overlooked, forgotten, shaded, or discarded.”The first, of course, is the Savior and His Atonement.“The second of the two things to which we must all give full faith is that the Father and the Son actually and in truth and very deed appeared to the Prophet Joseph in a vision in the woods” (1–2).

  97. In its commentary for Doctrine and Covenants 6:2, the Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual contains the following explanation:“Many swords of ancient times had only one cutting edge.When someone decided to make a two-edged sword, the effectiveness of the weapon was increased tremendously.Now it could cut in any direction, no matter how the blow was struck.Thus, the likening of the word of God to the two-edged sword is a vivid simile.Just as a sharp sword can cut deep enough to sever limbs and destroy life, so the word of the Lord is powerful enough that it can bring destruction of the soul (spiritual death) to those who do not give heed to it (see Hebrews 4:12; Revelation 1:16; 2:12, 16).The word of God also has power to pierce the soul as a sword and penetrate to the inmost parts of man (see 3 Nephi 11:3; D&C 85:6).It can cut through error and falsehood with double-edged efficiency” ([Church Educational System manual, 2001], 15).

  98. See Mormon 5:14.

  99. See 1 Nephi 11:22.

  100. Abraham 1:19.

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