The Words of Christ

By Karen Ashton

The words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do (2 Ne. 32:3).

Have you ever wondered how it would feel to have the Savior, Jesus Christ, look into your eyes and smile or place His hands upon your head and bless you? How would His voice sound? What would He say to you? Would you want to stay with Him always and never ever leave?

Jesus wants you to hear His voice and feel His spirit. He loves you and wants you to feel that love. He wants to bless you. He wants you to understand what things will bring you happiness and make it possible for you to live with Him and your Father in Heaven forever.

The Savior’s words are recorded in the scriptures. His teachings are there. As you search the scriptures to understand what you should know and what you should do, you will hear His voice (see Doctrine and Covenants 18:35–36). This “hearing” is often a feeling that comes into your mind and your heart. If you read the scriptures with faith, desiring to believe and seeking to understand, you do more than just read words. You open a door and invite the Spirit of the Lord into your heart and mind (see Rev. 3:20). You will want to do what is right. You will feel the love of the Savior. His words will bless you. The scriptures will tell you all the things that you should do. Studying them will bring you closer to Him.

Instructions

Color the picture of “Scripture-Study Sam” and the picture strips. Cut out along all the heavy black lines. Carefully cut out the windows above Sam’s shoulder. Then fold along the dotted line and glue or tape the edge to the back of Sam, forming a flattened tube. Glue or tape end to end the long picture strips containing the situations and the scripture references. Slip the resulting strip inside the tube. As you move the strip, a difficult situation will appear in the large window and a helpful scripture reference will appear in the small window. Be sure to look up the reference to see how the scripture can help Sam resolve each difficult situation he faces.

Illustrated by Julie F. Young

You feel like yelling at your little brothers and sisters.
Proverbs 21:23 [Prov. 21:23]

You want to have the Holy Ghost with you.
D&C 121:45–46

You want to know what Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are like.
D&C 130:22

Someone you love is very sick. You wish that you could help.
James 5:15

On your way to school you see a little child fall down.
Matthew 25:40 [Matt. 25:40]

Someone teases you because you go to church and keep the commandments.
Matthew 5:10 [Matt. 5:10]

You borrowed a game from a friend a long time ago and have not returned it.
Mosiah 4:28

Your brother tells you that he took some money from your drawer and that he is sorry.
3 Nephi 13:14 [3 Ne. 13:14]

You have two pieces of candy left, and you see someone with none.
2 Corinthians 9:7 [2 Cor. 9:7]

Your parents won’t let you see a TV show you want to see.
Colossians 3:20 [Col. 3:20]

You want to bear your testimony but are afraid.
2 Timothy 1:7–8 [2 Tim. 1:7–8]

You want to know if the Book of Mormon is true.
Moroni 10:4–5 [Moro. 10:4–5]

Sharing Time Ideas

1. Have the children sit on the floor in the middle of the room. Sing the first verse of “The Wise Man and the Foolish Man” (Children’s Songbook, p. 281). Explain that the rock they are singing about is the Savior, His teachings, and His commandments, which we find in the scriptures (see Matt. 7:24–27). When the people in the scriptures followed the Savior and kept His commandments, they were blessed. When they sinned and would not repent or keep the commandments, they were not blessed and were often destroyed. Have the children stand. Say that if the people in the story you will tell them were blessed by the Lord, they should hold their hands high. If the people were wicked and were destroyed, the children should sit on the floor. Alternate singing the verses to the song “The Wise Man and the Foolish Man” with telling stories from the scriptures. Possible stories are: City of Enoch (Moses 7), Noah’s family (Gen. 6–8:16), Daniel (Dan. 1–6), Israel crosses the Red Sea (Ex. 14), Pharaoh’s army (Ex. 14), Ammonihah (Alma 14–16).

2. Explain that one of the joys of scripture study is coming to know the prophets who have lived on the earth. Prepare a set of cards for each class, with names of prophets from the scriptures on paper of one color, and a description of something each prophet did on paper of another color. Mix the cards, then place them face down on the ground. By turning over one card each turn, of each color, try to match the name of prophet with the description of what he did. Some possible prophets: Nephi—returned to Jerusalem to obtain the brass plates from Laban (see 1 Ne. 3), Noah—built the ark (see Gen. 6), Moroni—hid the gold plates in the ground and delivered them to Joseph Smith (see JS—H 1:30–60), Samuel the Lamanite—stood on a wall to tell the people about the coming birth of the Savior (see Hel. 14:1–5), Daniel—spent an evening in a den of lions (see Dan. 6); Joseph Smith—in the Sacred Grove, saw God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ (see JS—H 1:15–17).

3. On five separate pieces of paper, write: Acts 17:11, Jacob 7:23, Mosiah 1:7, Alma 33:2, D&C 1:37. Place them around the room. Blindfold a child. Have the other children lead him or her to one of the slips, calling out “hot” as he gets near it or “cold” when he moves away from it. Have the children read the scripture and find the word that describes one important key to studying the scriptures. (It is the same in each scripture.) After the children have guessed the word search, explain what it means. Explain the word ponder. When we search and ponder the scriptures, we can receive inspiration from the Holy Ghost that will help us understand. President Joseph F. Smith received inspiration when he did this. Ask an adult to role-play Joseph F. Smith and explain what happened when he was pondering the mission of the Savior and the scriptures (see D&C 138:1–11).

4. Ask two or three adults to briefly explain how prayer, another key, has helped them understand the scriptures. Finish by singing “Search, Ponder, and Pray” and “Seek the Lord Early” (Children’s Songbook, pp. 109, 108). As the children leave, pin a note on each that says: “Ask me what I should search, ponder, and pray about. Tell me how you study the scriptures and what they mean to you.”

5. Prepare the six word strips: “Old Testament,” “New Testament,” “Book of Mormon,” “Doctrine and Covenants,” “Pearl of Great Price,” and “Living Prophet.” Place a picture of the Savior in the middle of a wall or chalkboard. Carefully select from the Gospel Art Kit three or four pictures depicting events told in each of the standard works for each class to use later in the activity. Explain that all the prophets who lived before the Savior testified of His coming and His mission and that all the prophets since His coming have testified that He came and that He made it possible for us to live with Heavenly Father again. Jesus Christ came to save us from our sins if we will repent and keep His commandments. He also made it possible for us to be resurrected. No one else could have done this. His life and mission are more important than any other event in the history of the world. He is the center of our religion. Explain that the scriptures we use are divided according to when they were written, but they all testify of Jesus Christ. Place the word strip “Old Testament” to the left of the Savior’s picture. All the stories from the Old Testament happened before the Savior was born. Place “New Testament” under the Savior’s picture. It tells stories of Jesus’ life on earth and of the time just following His death. Place “Book of Mormon” above the picture of the Savior and explain that it covers a time from before the birth of the Savior and continues on after His death. Place “Doctrine and Covenants” to the right of the Savior’s picture. These scriptures were given by inspiration to Joseph Smith and other latter-day prophets. Place “Pearl of Great Price” above the picture of the Savior and explain that it contains records of prophets before, during, and after the Savior’s life. Place “Living Prophet” and a picture of President Gordon B. Hinckley to the far right. We have a living prophet today who tells us what Jesus wants us to do. Remind the children of some of the things he has asked us to do. Within classes, let the children discuss where their pictures from the Gospel Art Kit belong. Allow time for the classes to come up front and place their pictures under the proper word strip.

6. Where available, assemble scripture study aids that would be appropriate for children, such as scripture tapes, scripture readers, Gospel Art Kit, Topical Guide, Bible Dictionary, Bible Maps. Ask several teachers to show how these aids may be used. Place the teachers in different areas in the room, divide the children into groups, and have them rotate from teacher to teacher to learn about each aid. Let each child draw a picture of himself studying the scriptures to be used as a reminder during the week.

7. For additional Sharing Time helps on the scriptures, see the Friend, Nov. 1983, p. 11 (“Gratitude for the Scriptures”); Feb. 1985, p. 27 (“Search the Scriptures”); Mar. 1988, p. 42–43 (“Search the Scriptures”); Sep. 1988, pp. 40–41 (“Study the Book of Mormon”); Mar. 1991, pp. 12–13 (“Read the Scriptures Daily”); Apr. 1992, pp. 12–13 (“My Favorite Book of Mormon Stories”); Aug. 1994, pp. 36–37 (“Search the Scriptures”).

Illustrated by Del Parson