Doctrine and Covenants Seminary Teacher Manual

Contents
Title Page
Introduction to the Doctrine and Covenants Seminary Teacher Manual
Doctrine and Covenants Lessons
- The Restoration Proclamation
- Doctrine and Covenants 1
- Joseph Smith—History 1:1–26
- Doctrine and Covenants 2; Joseph Smith—History 1:27–65
- Doctrine and Covenants 3–5
- Doctrine and Covenants 6–9
- Doctrine and Covenants 10–11
- Doctrine and Covenants 12–17; Joseph Smith—History 1:66–75
- Doctrine and Covenants 18
- Doctrine and Covenants 19
- Doctrine and Covenants 20–22
- Doctrine and Covenants 23–26
- Doctrine and Covenants 27–28
- Doctrine and Covenants 29
- Doctrine and Covenants 30–36
- Doctrine and Covenants 37–40
- Doctrine and Covenants 41–44
- Doctrine and Covenants 45
- Doctrine and Covenants 46–48
- Doctrine and Covenants 49–50
- Doctrine and Covenants 51–57
- Doctrine and Covenants 58–59
- Doctrine and Covenants 60–63
- Doctrine and Covenants 64–66
- Doctrine and Covenants 67–70
- Doctrine and Covenants 71–75
- Doctrine and Covenants 76
- Doctrine and Covenants 77–80
- Doctrine and Covenants 81–83
- Doctrine and Covenants 84
- Doctrine and Covenants 85–87
- Doctrine and Covenants 88
- Doctrine and Covenants 89–92
- Doctrine and Covenants 93
- Doctrine and Covenants 94–97
- Doctrine and Covenants 98–101
- Doctrine and Covenants 102–105
- Doctrine and Covenants 106–108
- Doctrine and Covenants 109–110
- Doctrine and Covenants 111–114
- Doctrine and Covenants 115–120
- Doctrine and Covenants 121–123
- Doctrine and Covenants 124
- Doctrine and Covenants 125–128
- Doctrine and Covenants 129–132
- Doctrine and Covenants 133–134
- Doctrine and Covenants 135–136
- Doctrine and Covenants 137–138
- The Articles of Faith and Official Declarations 1 and 2
- The Family: A Proclamation to the World
- The Living Christ
Life Preparation Lessons
- Doctrinal Mastery: Finding Answers to My Questions
- Scripture Study Skills
- For the Strength of Youth: Making Choices
- Building Self-Reliance
- Physical and Emotional Health
- Preparing for Future Education and Employment
- Succeeding in School
- Missionary Preparation
- Temple Preparation
- Teachings of Church Leaders
Appendix

Lesson 44—Doctrine and Covenants 29:1–8: Listen to Your Redeemer

“Lesson 44—Doctrine and Covenants 29:1–8: Listen to Your Redeemer,” Doctrine and Covenants Seminary Teacher Manual (2025)

“Doctrine and Covenants 29:1–8,” Doctrine and Covenants Seminary Teacher Manual

Lesson 44: Doctrine and Covenants 29

Doctrine and Covenants 29:1–8

Listen to Your Redeemer

Heavenly Father has great love for all His children. He and His Son want us to be happy in this life and to join Them in gathering all people back to Their presence. This lesson can help students better understand the desires Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have for them.

Possible Learning Activities

Who do you trust?

Consider ways you might help students see that trusting someone greatly depends on understanding their motives or desires. The following is one way you could do this.

Think about who you would be willing to trust the following with and why.

Your house keys
Your password to a personal device or account
Your most personal dream or goal

What do you know about that person or people that influences your willingness to trust them?

In your study journal, write one or two sentences describing what you know about the motives and desires of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. If you know something about Their motives or desires, reflect on how that influences your willingness to trust Them. If you do not know much about Their motives or desires, think about why knowing this is an important step to being willing to trust Them.

Desires of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ

Prior to a Church conference in September 1830, the Savior spoke in Doctrine and Covenants 29 of the love and desires He and Heavenly Father have for all people.

The following activity is one way to help students study Doctrine and Covenants 29:1–8. It may need to be modified to accommodate the size or needs of your class.

Write the numbers one through eight on the board. Then give students the following instructions. Have them follow each instruction before giving them the next.

Read Doctrine and Covenants 29:1–8 and mark what you learn about the desires of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ in each verse.
Write your name on the board next to the number of a verse that has special meaning to you.

Wait for all students to write their names on the board next to a verse number before moving on to the next steps.
If possible, gather with two or three students who wrote their name next to the same verse number.

If only one student writes their name next to a verse number, consider allowing that student to choose to work individually or to join another group.
Share with your group the words or phrases you marked in your verse and what they teach you about the desires of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
Within your group, discuss a question that can help deepen your understanding of the desires of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

Display or provide each group with a list of questions they could select to discuss. Students could select a question from the list of suggested questions, or they could create their own questions. Below are some examples:

How can knowing this truth influence the way you see yourself or others?
When have you witnessed Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ demonstrate these desires in your life or in the lives of others?
What are some additional scriptures that teach a similar truth? (Look at the doctrinal mastery passages, footnotes, or other resources to find some.)
What have prophets, apostles, or other Church leaders taught that support this truth? (Search for statements in Gospel Library.)
How might this verse increase our ability to see life from an eternal perspective?
What questions do you have about this verse? What questions could be asked to better understand this verse? (Work together to find possible answers.)
How might believing or living the principles taught in this verse influence someone’s relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ?
Why might some people find it difficult to believe or to live the teachings of this verse? What could help them overcome that challenge?

To allow groups to deepen their understanding, you might have another student choose a different question and discuss it as a group. When students stop sharing or become distracted, this may indicate it is time to adjust the learning activity. If desired, students could do the activity again by choosing a new verse, forming new groups, discussing the verse they selected, and following the steps listed above.

When students have finished working in groups, invite a few to share with the class what they have learned about the desires of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

The good will of God

Among the many truths that students may have discovered, one truth we can learn from these verses is that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ desire to give us Their kingdom. You might invite students to mark this truth in verse 5. Share the following statement and invite students to respond to the corresponding questions.

Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles shared the following:

Our Heavenly Father wants you to become His heir and receive all that He has. He cannot offer you more. He cannot promise you more. He loves you more than you know and wants you to be happy in this life and in the life to come. (Dale G. Renlund, “Your Divine Nature and Eternal Destiny,” Liahona, May 2022, 76)

How does understanding the desires of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ affect how you feel about Them?
How does understanding Their desires influence the way you feel about the counsel They give us?

Consider concluding by inviting students to look back at their journal entry from the beginning of class. Invite them to ponder truths they have learned about the desires of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ that they could add to their entry.

Additional Resources

Doctrine and Covenants 29:6. Why should we unite with others in prayer?

If you choose to share this section with your class, consider either watching the video or sharing the summary and statement that follow.

2:3

While visiting New Zealand, President Spencer W. Kimball and his wife, Camilla, planned on attending a cultural celebration prepared by many youth. That evening the Kimballs fell ill and could not attend. About the time the celebration was to begin, however, the Kimballs miraculously felt better and rushed to the event. As the meeting began, a youth was called upon to offer the opening prayer.

President Russell M. Nelson shared the following details of what happened next:

He so prayed: “We are 3,000 New Zealand youth. We are assembled here, having prepared for six months to sing and dance for Thy prophet. Wilt Thou heal him and deliver him here!” After the “amen” was pronounced, the car carrying President and Sister Kimball entered the stadium. They were identified immediately, and instantly everyone shouted for joy! (Russell M. Nelson, “Jesus Christ—the Master Healer,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2005, 86)

Doctrine and Covenants 29:8. Where is the “one place” the Lord wants us to be gathered?

The Lord desires His Saints to be gathered to Zion. In the early days of the Church, the Saints sought to establish Zion in central locations where all members could gather. As membership has expanded throughout the world, Church members are now asked to gather within their local congregations.

President Russell M. Nelson taught:

14:51

The choice to come unto Christ is not a matter of physical location; it is a matter of individual commitment. People can be “brought to the knowledge of the Lord” [3 Nephi 20:13] without leaving their homelands. True, in the early days of the Church, conversion often meant emigration as well. But now the gathering takes place in each nation. The Lord has decreed the establishment of Zion [see Doctrine and Covenants 6:6] in each realm where He has given His Saints their birth and nationality. Scripture foretells that the people “shall be gathered home to the lands of their inheritance, and shall be established in all their lands of promise” [2 Nephi 9:2]. “Every nation is the gathering place for its own people” [Bruce R. McConkie, in Conference Report, Mexico City Mexico Area Conference 1972, 45]. The place of gathering for Brazilian Saints is in Brazil; the place of gathering for Nigerian Saints is in Nigeria; the place of gathering for Korean Saints is in Korea; and so forth. Zion is “the pure in heart” [Doctrine and Covenants 97:21]. Zion is wherever righteous Saints are. Publications, communications, and congregations are now such that nearly all members have access to the doctrines, keys, ordinances, and blessings of the gospel, regardless of their location.

Spiritual security will always depend upon how one lives, not where one lives. Saints in every land have equal claim upon the blessings of the Lord. (Russell M. Nelson, “The Gathering of Scattered Israel,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2006, 81)

Supplemental Learning Activities

Youth themes

Invite students to recite or read their respective Aaronic Priesthood or Young Women themes. Ask them to look for truths they learn about Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and themselves. Invite them to study Doctrine and Covenants 29:1–8 and look for similarities between the Savior’s words and the youth themes. Discuss how these verses can help them believe more fully and live the truths found in the youth themes.

“Declare my gospel”

As students read Doctrine and Covenants 29:4, explain that the word gospel means “good news.” Invite students to choose a gospel truth that they feel is “good news.” Invite them to share it with the class “with the sound of rejoicing” (verse 4).

A yearning for home

Consider watching the video “Migration: A Yearning for Home” (4:15), available at ChurchofJesusChrist.org, at the beginning of class. After the video, invite students to consider marking the phrase “it is his good will to give you the kingdom” in Doctrine and Covenants 29:5.

In the video, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf says, “I believe that every man, woman, and child has felt the call of heaven at some point in his or her life. Our beloved Father in Heaven has given us the light of Christ, and deep within each one of us a heavenly stirring urges us to turn our eyes and hearts to Him.”

What are ways that Heavenly Father calls to us at certain points in our lives?
Why does He reach out to every man, woman, and child?

Then invite students to read Doctrine and Covenants 29:1–8 and look for answers to questions such as the following:

What help has God given us for our journey back to His kingdom?
What responsibilities do we have to assist others in their journey?

4:15

“The gathering of mine elect”

As students share the desires that God has for all His children, you might ask, “How does knowing this about Heavenly Father help you to understand why He calls us to gather Israel?” Invite students to read Doctrine and Covenants 29:7. If they have not already done so, you could invite students to consider marking the Savior’s desire for each of us to assist in the gathering. You might look for ways we can fulfill this responsibility by studying a recent conference talk about the gathering of Israel, missionary work, or family history work.