March 6–12

Matthew 9–10; Mark 5; Luke 9

“These Twelve Jesus Sent Forth”

As you read Matthew 9–10; Mark 5; and Luke 9, you may receive promptings from the Holy Spirit. These promptings, along with Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families and this outline, can help you prepare to teach.

Invite Sharing

Invite the children to share something they did to help someone this week. What did the Savior do to help others?

Teach the Doctrine: Younger Children

Matthew 9:18–30; Mark 5:22–43

Jesus has the power to heal me.

The Savior repeatedly showed His power to heal those who had faith in Him. You can help the children you teach build their faith in His healing power.

Possible Activities

• Tell the children the story of the daughter of Jairus (see Mark 5:22–23, 35–43). At the appropriate point in the story, read Jesus’s words “I say unto thee, arise” (verse 41), and invite the children to stand up. Help the children understand that Jesus has the power to heal people and give us eternal life.

• Show a picture of the account in Matthew 9:20–22 as you read these verses. Help the children memorize the phrase “Thy faith hath made thee whole” (verse 22). To do this, you could assign each child a word, and then have the children say their words in order several times. How did the woman show that she had faith in Jesus Christ? What can we do to show that we have faith in Christ?

• Ask the children to close their eyes and listen as you read from Matthew 9:27–30. When you read about Jesus healing the blind men, invite the children to open their eyes. Invite the children to talk about how they would feel if Jesus had healed them.

• Use this week’s activity page to help the children learn the story of the Savior raising Jairus’s daughter from the dead.

Trust in the Lord, by Liz Lemon Swindle

Matthew 10:1–10

Jesus called Twelve Apostles and gave them power to do His work.

Do the children you teach know that we have twelve Apostles today? How can you use these verses to teach them about the importance of modern-day Apostles and what they are called to do?

Possible Activities

• Summarize Matthew 10:1–10 in simple terms. Explain that Jesus calls Apostles to help Him build His Church. Let the children count the Apostles in the picture Christ Ordaining the Apostles (Gospel Art Book, no. 38) and in a picture of the current Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (see ChurchofJesusChrist.org or a general conference issue of the Liahona). Explain that we have twelve Apostles today, just as in Jesus’s time. Share your testimony of the Lord’s Apostles and of something they have taught recently.

• Hide pictures of the modern-day Apostles around the room (for pictures, see a recent general conference issue of the Liahona). Invite the children to find the pictures, and tell them a little about each Apostle (see “Meet Today’s Prophets and Apostles” at ChurchofJesusChrist.org).

• Invite a child to hold up a picture of the First Presidency and a picture of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Ask the child to lead the other children around the room to a picture of Jesus. Testify that the prophets and apostles lead us to Jesus Christ.

Teach the Doctrine: Older Children

Matthew 9:18–30; Mark 5:22–43

Jesus has the power to heal me.

Reading the accounts of the Savior healing people can help the children you teach build their faith in Him. These accounts can also help them feel His compassion and love.

Possible Activities

• Read together the accounts of Jesus healing people found in Matthew 9:20–22, 27–30 and Mark 5:22–23, 35–43 (or show the videos “Jesus Heals a Woman of Faith” and “Jesus Raises the Daughter of Jairus” on ChurchofJesusChrist.org). How did the people in these stories show their faith in Jesus Christ? What do we learn about the Savior from these stories?

• Invite the children to share experiences when they or someone they know received a priesthood blessing for the healing of the sick. How were they healed or blessed? Explain that sometimes a miraculous healing is not the Lord’s will, but we can still be blessed by His love and comfort.

Matthew 10:1–10

The Twelve Apostles can teach me about Jesus.

How can learning about the Twelve Apostles in Christ’s day help the children better understand what the Twelve Apostles do today?

Possible Activities

• Show pictures of the Apostles in Jesus’s time and in our day (see Christ Ordaining the Apostles [Gospel Art Book, no. 38] and a recent conference issue of the Liahona). Ask the children to read Matthew 10:7 to find out what Apostles do (see also Luke 9:1–2, 6; Doctrine and Covenants 107:23).

• Invite the children to write on the board the names of as many of the original Apostles as they can remember. Then ask them to list as many living Apostles as they can remember. Let them check their lists with Matthew 10:2–4 and a recent conference issue of the Liahona. You could also play a matching game in which the children match each living Apostle’s name with his picture. Pictures can be found at ChurchofJesusChrist.org.

• Several days before class, invite a few children to come prepared to share a story told by one of the living Apostles (see issues of the Liahona or Friend for ideas). How did that Apostle use the story to inspire us to become more like the Savior?

• Share several examples of modern-day Apostles’ testimonies of Christ with the children (see recent general conference messages or “The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles” [ChurchofJesusChrist.org]).

• Help the children memorize and understand Articles of Faith 1:6.

Luke 9:23–25

Following Jesus Christ requires sacrifice.

How will you help the children understand what it means to “lose” their lives as they follow the Savior?

Possible Activities

• Tell the children about a time when you gave up something in order to get something better. Invite the children to share examples of their own. Then read together Luke 9:23–25. Explain that Jesus wants us to be willing to give up anything to follow Him. While He may not ask us to literally give up our lives, what does He ask us to give? (see Joseph Smith Translation, Matthew 16:26 [in Matthew 16:24, footnote e]).

• Write several Christlike qualities on pieces of paper and the opposites of those qualities on other pieces of paper (such as love and selfishness, humility and pride, and so on). Write the words save and lose as headings on the board, and invite the children to sort the qualities under the appropriate headings. Give the children time to ponder the Christlike qualities on the board and to choose one to develop more fully.

Encourage Learning at Home

Invite the children to use this week’s activity page to teach their families about Jesus healing Jairus’s daughter.

Improving Our Teaching

Encourage reverence. Help the children understand that an important aspect of reverence is thinking about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. You might remind the children to be reverent by quietly singing or humming a song or displaying a picture of Jesus.