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 45—Doctrine and Covenants 29:9–29: The Second Coming of Jesus Christ

“Lesson 45—Doctrine and Covenants 29:9–29: The Second Coming of Jesus Christ,” Doctrine and Covenants Seminary Teacher Manual (2025)

“Doctrine and Covenants 29:9–29,” Doctrine and Covenants Seminary Teacher Manual

Lesson 45: Doctrine and Covenants 29

Doctrine and Covenants 29:9–29

The Second Coming of Jesus Christ

The Second Coming of Jesus Christ will be a great and dreadful day. Those who reject Jesus Christ’s messengers and teachings will suffer the consequences of their choices. Those who are striving to follow Him will have the joy of seeing their Redeemer return to earth. He will save them from wickedness and sorrow and dwell with them for a thousand years. This lesson can help students feel joy as they anticipate the return of Jesus Christ to the earth.

Possible Learning Activities

Fearful or joyful?

Consider displaying an image of the Second Coming, such as the one at the beginning of this lesson. Near the image, create a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 representing “fearful” and 10 representing “joyful.” Ask several students to place a mark on the scale representing how they think many teenagers feel about the Savior’s Second Coming. Ask them to explain their mark.

Then consider inviting students to silently answer the following questions in their study journals.

How do you feel when you think about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ? Why?
When you think about the Second Coming, do you tend to focus more on the Savior or on difficulties that precede His return? How does your focus affect your feelings?

Take the time necessary to help students understand the content of the following paragraph.

It is true that many trials and great wickedness will exist in the last days and that “tribulation and desolation” will be sent upon the wicked (see Doctrine and Covenants 29:8). It is also important to realize that the Savior’s return does not cause the trials and wickedness. His return will deliver His disciples from them. The Second Coming will be more wonderful for His followers than we can imagine! As you study today, look for reasons the faithful can feel joy and hope when they think about the return of Jesus Christ.

Rejoice in the coming of Christ!

Read Doctrine and Covenants 29:10–13, looking for words and phrases that give you reasons to rejoice.

Doctrine and Covenants 29:10–11 is a doctrinal mastery passage. Consider inviting students to mark doctrinal mastery passages in a distinctive way so they can locate them easily.

Invite students to make a list on the board of words and phrases they found. Ask several students why what they found helps them rejoice.

As they share, you could help them personalize what they found by asking follow-up questions such as the following:

How could it comfort you to know that when Jesus appears, it will be with “power and great glory”? (verse 11).
How do you picture your everyday life being different when Christ dwells “in righteousness with men”? (verse 11).
Which of your loved ones who have passed away are you most excited to see when the Savior resurrects the righteous at His coming? (See verse 13.)
What does it mean to you to “be with [Christ], that we may be one”? (verse 13). Why do you think Jesus wants to be one with you?

You might suggest that students mark the key scripture phrase in verse 11: “I will reveal myself from heaven with power and great glory … and dwell in righteousness with men on earth a thousand years.”

The remainder of this lesson is focused on the wonderful conditions that the Savior will bless the righteous with during and after His return.

Before proceeding, you may want to help students understand the final phrase of verse 11, “the wicked shall not stand.” Students could read verses 9, 15, and 17 to see consequences that those who reject Christ will suffer. If you study these verses in class, remind students concerned about their loved ones that the Savior’s desire and power is to forgive and heal all who repent and come to Him.

(Note: Lessons in Doctrine and Covenants 45 will focus more specifically on the signs of the times and personal preparation for the Second Coming of Christ.)

Christ will dwell with men a thousand years

Invite students to share what they know about conditions on earth during and following the millennial reign of Jesus Christ. You might also invite them to share questions they have about it.

Take a few minutes to search divinely appointed sources for answers to questions you might have about the Millennium and for joyful conditions that will exist during and after the millennial reign of Christ. The following may help you in your study:

Consider placing students in small groups with each group studying one of the following sources. Then, either invite each group to present what they learned to the class, or invite students to form new groups with students who each studied different sources and to take turns sharing what they learned.

Guide to the Scriptures, “Millennium,” scriptures.ChurchofJesusChrist.org
Topics and Questions, “Millennium,” topics.ChurchofJesusChrist.org
Doctrine and Covenants 29:23–27
Isaiah 65:19–25
Revelation 20:1–3
1 Nephi 22:24–28

To help students clearly see reasons to rejoice in the conditions following the Savior’s return, you might conclude this section of the lesson by sharing Elder D. Todd Christofferson’s statement in the “Additional Resources” section.

Focusing on the Savior

To help students visualize the loving Savior descending from heaven, consider showing the video “Jesus Christ Appears in the Ancient Americas,” available at ChurchofJesusChrist.org, from time code 11:20 to 16:31. Invite them to look for similarities between the love demonstrated by the Savior’s visit to the Nephites and what they imagine will occur when He returns.

Jesus Christ Appears in the Ancient Americas | 3 Nephi 8–11

Consider closing your eyes and trying to imagine Jesus Christ descending from heaven to save, protect, and heal His followers. Pay attention to impressions from the Holy Ghost to learn how Heavenly Father would have you feel about the return of His Son.

What expression do you picture on His face as He looks at those who were striving to follow Him?
What do you imagine Him saying to the faithful after His descent?
How do you think the Savior wants His disciples to feel about His return to earth?

Consider sharing your own feelings as you look forward to the return of Jesus Christ to the earth. You may want to end class with a closing hymn that speaks of the joy of the coming of Christ and His millennial reign, such as “The Spirit of God” (Hymns, no. 2), “Now Let Us Rejoice” (Hymns, no. 3), or “Joy to the World” (Hymns, no. 201).

Memorize

You may also want to help students memorize the doctrinal mastery reference and key scripture phrase during this lesson and review them in future lessons. The key scripture phrase is “I will reveal myself from heaven with power and great glory … and dwell in righteousness with men on earth a thousand years.” Ideas for memorization activities are in the appendix materials under “Doctrinal Mastery Review Activities.”

Additional Resources

Why should we rejoice in the return of Jesus Christ?

Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said:

When He comes, oppression and injustice will not only diminish; they will cease. …

Poverty and suffering will not only decline; they will vanish. …

Even the pain and sorrow of death will be done away. …

… Let us devote ourselves more diligently to the preparations needed for the day when pain and evil are ended altogether. (D. Todd Christofferson, “Preparing for the Lord’s Return,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2019, 81)

Will Jesus remain on the earth during the entire Millennium?

The Prophet Joseph Smith (1805–44) explained:

That Jesus will be a resident on the earth a thousand [years] with the Saints is not the case, but will reign over the Saints and come down and instruct. (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith [2007], 258)

Will the righteous be protected from trials that precede the Second Coming?

There is not one simple answer to this question. The Lord will protect the faithful from some of the coming judgments, but other conditions will affect both the righteous and the wicked. It is important to remember that despite any trials we may face, God will save the righteous in His kingdom.

The Prophet Joseph Smith (1805–44) taught:

Concerning the coming of the Son of Man … ; it is a false idea that the Saints will escape all the judgments, whilst the wicked suffer; for all flesh is subject to suffer, and “the righteous shall hardly escape” [see Doctrine and Covenants 63:34]; still many of the Saints will escape, for the just shall live by faith [see Habakkuk 2:4]; yet many of the righteous shall fall a prey to disease, to pestilence, etc., by reason of the weakness of the flesh, and yet be saved in the Kingdom of God. (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith [2007], 253)

Elder Spencer V. Jones of the Seventy taught:

Many of us are apprehensive about the Second Coming. In contemplating “the great and dreadful day of the Lord” (D&C 2:1), we may have a tendency to overlook the “great” and accentuate the “dreadful.”

Some of the prophecies can seem overwhelming. …

Some prophecies are even quite grotesque, such as [the one in Doctrine and Covenants 29:18–20]. …

As dreadful as these prophecies sound, let’s keep them in perspective. These fearful conditions contain a qualifying phrase indicating they are intended not for the righteous but for the wicked and unrepentant. (Spencer V. Jones, “Messages from the Doctrine and Covenants: Finding Hope in the Second Coming,” Ensign, June 2005, 58–59)

Doctrine and Covenants 29:11. Who are “all the hosts” that will descend with Christ at His Second Coming?

The hosts who will come with the Savior in glory at His Second Coming will include faithful Saints who have lived in all periods of time in the earth’s history. The righteous who have died will be resurrected, and they, along with the righteous who are still living on earth, will be “caught up to meet him” and “shall descend with him” (see Doctrine and Covenants 88:95–98).

Supplemental Learning Activities

Scenario

Consider starting class with a scenario about a righteous teenager who is nervous about the Second Coming. Invite students to share why the teenager in the scenario might feel that way. Then invite students to ponder how they think the Savior would want His disciples to feel about His return as they study the lesson today.

At the end of the lesson, invite students to write a response to the youth in the scenario explaining reasons to feel joy as we anticipate the coming of Christ.

The following is one example of a scenario that could be used:

At the end of a seminary class, the teacher announced that students should be excited because they get to study the Second Coming of Jesus Christ in their next lesson. As Peter leaves the building, his friend Christopher says, “I think I’m going to fake sick tomorrow. Lessons about the Second Coming always stress me out!”

Eternal perspective

Consider inviting students to practice seeing the Second Coming of Jesus Christ from an eternal perspective. To do this, the class could identify some assumptions and misunderstandings that might cause a righteous disciple of Christ to feel scared of the Second Coming. They could then practice reframing those assumptions and misunderstandings with truths they know about Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the plan of salvation. (If needed, students could review paragraph 8 in the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” section of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document [2023] to remind them of this principle.)

Images of the Second Coming

Consider inviting students to show or describe one of their favorite images of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Ask them to share what the image teaches them about the Savior, about that day, or why it’s important to prepare for it.

Consider displaying the image at the beginning of this lesson. Invite students to read Doctrine and Covenants 29:10–11, 27–28, looking for words and phrases that they see represented in the painting. Based on these verses and on the painting, how should the righteous feel as they anticipate the Second Coming of Jesus Christ?

“All the hosts thereof”

To help students feel joy and excitement for the Second Coming, consider displaying an image like the one below that shows angels accompanying the Savior. Ask students to find the phrase in Doctrine and Covenants 29:11 that describes the angels in the image. Share the statement in the “Additional Resources” section about all the hosts that will descend with Christ. Ask students who they picture among those hosts. Students could come to the board and, around the image, write names of people who could be among those hosts. Examples include Abraham, Ruth, Nephi, Mary, and others. They also might add names of their righteous loved ones.

Hymns

Students could search the hymnbook for the topics “Millennium” and “Jesus Christ—Second Coming” for lines that give us reason to rejoice in the Savior’s return. The class might choose to sing a few verses from relevant hymns.