“January 21–27. John 1: We Have Found the Messiah,” Come, Follow Me—For Sunday School: New Testament 2019 (2019)
“January 21–27. John 1,” Come, Follow Me—For Sunday School: 2019
January 21–27
John 1
We Have Found the Messiah
Before you read any additional materials, read and ponder John 1, and record the impressions you receive. This will invite the Spirit into your preparation. Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families and the following ideas can help you inspire the people in your class to understand and apply the doctrine in this chapter.
Record Your Impressions
Invite Sharing
To help class members share what they are learning, you might ask them to write questions, comments, or insights from their reading on strips of paper and put them into a container. Draw strips from the container to discuss as a class.
Teach the Doctrine
Jesus Christ was “in the beginning with God.”
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John began his testimony of Christ by testifying of the Savior’s roles before He was born. What did John teach about the premortal Christ? Why is it important to know Christ’s premortal roles? It might help to write these questions on the board and ask class members to look for answers in John 1:1–5 (see also Joseph Smith Translation, John 1:1–5 [in the Bible appendix]) and in Elder James E. Talmage’s statement in “Additional Resources.” What other scripture references could class members share that teach more about the premortal Christ? (For examples, see “Jesus Christ, Antemortal Existence of” in the Topical Guide.) As a class, you could also review “The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles” (Ensign or Liahona, Apr. 2000, 2).
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If you would like to use these verses to talk about the Lord’s creations, you could read John 1:3 and show pictures that depict the beauty of the earth. You might show the video “Our Home” (lds.org/topics/environmental-stewardship-and-conservation). Invite class members to share how the Savior’s creations help them feel His love.
1:34
Jesus Christ is the Light.
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Physical light can help us understand the symbolism of spiritual light. How could you illustrate this symbolism to your class? You could turn off the lights in the room and shine a flashlight to show the contrast between light and darkness. Then ask class members to find every instance of the word light in John 1:1–14, and invite them to share how the Savior and His gospel provide spiritual light in their lives. How have class members experienced His light? As part of this discussion, you might want them to read more about the Light of Christ in Doctrine and Covenants 84:45–46; 88:11–13, or you might refer them to “Light of Christ” in the Bible Dictionary. How can we be a light to the world?
The Savior and His gospel provide spiritual light.
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Because John 1:1–14 is written in symbolic language, it may be difficult to understand. One way to help class members understand John’s testimony could be to invite them to make a list of repeated words and phrases in these verses and share what each one teaches us about the Savior.
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Here is a way to engage class members in these verses: Display several pictures (including the one from this week’s outline in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families) that depict aspects of Jesus Christ’s life and divine mission. Invite class members to search John 1:1–14, looking for words or phrases that could serve as titles for the pictures.
We can gain our own witness of the Savior and then invite others to “come and see.”
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In John 1, the invitation to “come and see” appears twice (see verses 39, 46). We may not have the chance to see the Savior physically the way Andrew and Nathanael did, but we can respond to the same invitation. You might ask class members what they think it means to “come and see” in our day and to share their own experiences of gaining a testimony of the Savior.
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To introduce a discussion about these verses, consider asking class members to share stories about how they have introduced the gospel of Jesus Christ to others. Who did they invite to “come and see”? What do we learn from Andrew and Philip about sharing our testimonies of Christ?
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Sometimes people don’t share the gospel because they find that doing so is intimidating or complicated. The accounts in John 1:35–51 show that sharing the gospel can be simple and natural. You could ask class members to read these verses and discuss how they could use them to help someone who is nervous about sharing the gospel. They could use the quotation by Elder Neil L. Andersen in “Additional Resources” for ideas. (See also the video “Good Things to Share” on LDS.org.)
2:3
Encourage Learning at Home
To encourage class members to study Matthew 3, Mark 1, and Luke 3, you could ask them to think of someone they would like to help bring to Christ. Tell them that in these chapters they will read about a prophet whose mission it was to prepare people to receive the Savior.
Additional Resources
Jesus Christ was with the Father in the beginning.
Elder James E. Talmage taught: “That the Word is Jesus Christ, who was with the Father in [the] beginning and who was Himself invested with the powers and rank of Godship, and that He came into the world and dwelt among men, are definitely affirmed. These statements are corroborated through a revelation given to Moses, in which he was permitted to see many of the creations of God, and to hear the voice of the Father with respect to the things that had been made: ‘And by the word of my power, have I created them, which is mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth’ [Moses 1:32, 33]” (Jesus the Christ, 3rd ed. [1916], 10).
We can invite others to “come and see.”
Elder Neil L. Andersen taught:
“The Savior taught us how to share the gospel. I like the story of Andrew, who asked, ‘Master, where dwellest thou?’ [John 1:38]. Jesus could have responded with the location of where He lived. But instead He said to Andrew, ‘Come and see’ [John 1:39]. I like to think that the Savior was saying, ‘Come and see not only where I live but how I live. Come and see who I am. Come and feel the Spirit.’ We don’t know everything about that day, but we do know that when Andrew found his brother Simon, he declared, ‘We have found … the Christ’ [John 1:41].
“To those who show an interest in our conversations, we can follow the Savior’s example by inviting them to ‘come and see.’ Some will accept our invitation, and others will not. We all know someone who has been invited several times before accepting an invitation to ‘come and see.’ Let’s also think about those who once were with us but who now we rarely see, inviting them to come back and see once more. …
“For those using the Internet and mobile phones, there are new ways to invite others to ‘come and see.’ Let’s make sharing our faith online more a part of our daily life” (“It’s a Miracle,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2013, 79).
Music can teach us of Christ.
Consider using the hymn “For the Beauty of the Earth,” Hymns, no. 92, as you discuss the Savior’s role as Creator (see John 1:3). You could also use the video of “For the Beauty of the Earth” on mormontabernaclechoir.org.
Improving Our Teaching
Help learners liken the scriptures to themselves. The same invitation Christ gave to His disciples—to come and see—can help those you teach desire to follow the Savior. Encourage learners to apply the principles found in the scriptures to their own lives and to invite others to do the same. (See 1 Nephi 19:23; Teaching in the Savior’s Way, 21.)