Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge, Part 2
Examining Concepts and Questions with an Eternal Perspective
One of the purposes of doctrinal mastery is to help you learn and apply principles for acquiring spiritual knowledge to become more like Jesus Christ. This lesson can help you learn to examine issues with an eternal perspective in order to see them more clearly.
Note: It may be best to teach this lesson toward the beginning of the school year. If this lesson needs to be moved from this week to an earlier or later week, consider teaching in its place a doctrinal mastery lesson that students may have missed when school was not in session.
Student preparation: Invite students to reflect on a challenge or question they have or to think about the question they chose to act in faith on in the lesson “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge, Part 1.” Invite them to ponder what the next steps might be to find further help with this challenge or question.
Possible Learning Activities
Questions and challenges
Sometimes we experience challenges or trials that can test our faith. President Russell M. Nelson shared one such trial that his granddaughter-in-law experienced.
Watch “Let God Prevail” from time code 5:50 to 6:39, or read the following text:
Not long ago, the wife of one of our grandsons was struggling spiritually. I will call her “Jill.” Despite fasting, prayer, and priesthood blessings, Jill’s father was dying. She was gripped with fear that she would lose both her dad and her testimony.
Late one evening, my wife, Sister Wendy Nelson, told me of Jill’s situation. The next morning Wendy felt impressed to share with Jill that my response to her spiritual wrestle was one word! The word was myopic.
(Russell M. Nelson, “Let God Prevail,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2020, 93)
The word myopic means nearsighted or shortsighted.
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What are some truths about God and His plan that could have helped Jill to not be so fearful about what might happen in the future?
Think about a challenge or question you are currently facing. This may be the same one you identified in the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge, Part 1” lesson.
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Why do you want and need help with this question or challenge?
Remember that it is OK to experience grief and pain. Even Jesus grieved for those He loved (see John 11:32–36). When we view our circumstances with an eternal perspective, the Lord can help us deal with these feelings. Look for truths in this lesson that can help you do this with your own questions and challenges.
Principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge
When we experience life’s challenges or face unanswered questions, the following principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge can help us:
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Act in faith.
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Examine concepts and questions with an eternal perspective.
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Seek further understanding through divinely appointed sources.
In this lesson we will focus on the truth that as we examine issues with an eternal perspective, the Holy Ghost can help us see them more clearly.
Study paragraph 8 in the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” section of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document and at least one of the following scripture passages. Mark words or phrases that could help Jill see her trials with an eternal perspective.
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Based on what you read, what would you want Jill to know about having an eternal perspective?
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What experiences with having an eternal perspective have you (or others) had that you might share with Jill?
How to examine questions or concerns with an eternal perspective
When we have questions or concerns, one process we can follow to help us see things from an eternal perspective is to:
Throughout the remainder of the lesson, display for students the following three steps.
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Identify any assumptions we’re making that might lead to a misunderstanding of Heavenly Father or His plan.
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Identify truths about Heavenly Father or His plan that correct these assumptions.
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Reframe the question by considering it with an eternal perspective or by revising the question to reflect gospel truths.
Watch “Examining Questions with an Eternal Perspective” (2:56), located on ChurchofJesusChrist.org, to see how a young woman named Lauren used this process to help her friend.
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What did this video help you understand about examining concepts and questions with an eternal perspective?
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How did Lauren use the three steps we just identified?
Think about how this same process could help Jill, the granddaughter from the story President Nelson shared.
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What assumptions might Jill have that could lead to doubts or fears?
Some shortsighted assumptions someone in Jill’s situation might be making could include: a loved one’s death occurred too early in life; they may never see their deceased loved one again; or their testimony is dependent on a miracle saving their loved one from death. These assumptions might prompt people struggling with their grief to ask a question like “If God loves me, why would He take my loved one away from me?”
Oftentimes making similar assumptions can cause us additional grief or pain beyond what we are already experiencing. Identifying truths about Heavenly Father and His plan can help.
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What truths do you know about Heavenly Father and His plan that might help?
Possible answers could include:
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The Lord’s thoughts and ways are higher than ours (see Isaiah 55:8–9).
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When we make and keep temple covenants, we will be reunited with our loved ones after this life through the Savior’s power (see Doctrine and Covenants 138:47–48).
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God allows us to experience trials to test our faith (see Ether 12:6; Doctrine and Covenants 98:14).
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What are some ways you might reframe from an eternal perspective the potential concerns of someone in Jill’s situation? (For example, you could ask questions that reflect an eternal perspective, like “How can I feel God’s love while I experience this painful loss even though I know eternally it is only temporary?” or “How can I rely on my faith in the Savior to trust that I will see my loved one again?”)
President Nelson shared how Jill was blessed by developing an eternal perspective through her trial. Watch “Let God Prevail,” located at ChurchofJesusChrist.org, from time code 6:58 to 8:24, or read the statement below:
After Jill’s father passed on, the word myopic kept coming to her mind. She opened her heart to understand even more deeply that myopic meant “nearsighted.” And her thinking began to shift. Jill then said, “Myopic caused me to stop, think, and heal. That word now fills me with peace. It reminds me to expand my perspective and seek the eternal. It reminds me that there is a divine plan and that my dad still lives and loves and looks out for me. Myopic has led me to God.”
I am very proud of our precious granddaughter-in-law. During this heart-wrenching time in her life, dear Jill is learning to embrace God’s will for her dad, with an eternal perspective for her own life. By choosing to let God prevail, she is finding peace.
(Russell M. Nelson, “Let God Prevail,” 93)
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How was Jill blessed as she kept an eternal perspective?
Reflect on the challenge or question you identified earlier in this lesson. Work through your question or challenge in your study journal using the three steps you just learned.
After sufficient time, invite students to share what they learned from this activity and to ask any questions they still have. Testify of the truths discussed in this lesson, and invite students to share their testimonies as well.
Commentary and Background Information
How can keeping an eternal perspective help me when I experience grief or loss?
President Russell M. Nelson explained how keeping an eternal perspective helped him when his wife Dantzel passed away suddenly and when his daughter Wendy passed away after a long battle with cancer:
In 2005, after nearly 60 years of marriage, my dear Dantzel was unexpectedly called home. For a season, my grief was almost immobilizing. But the message of Easter and the promise of resurrection sustained me.
(Russell M. Nelson, “Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2018, 94)
We miss our daughter greatly. However, because of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, we do not worry about her. As we continue to honor our covenants with God, we live in anticipation of our being with her again. Meanwhile, we’re serving the Lord here and she is serving Him there—in paradise.
(Russell M. Nelson, “Come, Follow Me,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2019, 88)
Why do our assumptions matter?
President Dallin H. Oaks of the First Presidency shared:
Because Latter-day Saints know our Heavenly Father’s plan for His children, we know that this mortal life is not a one-act play sandwiched between an unknowable past and an uncertain future. This life is like the second act in a three-act play. Its purpose is defined by what is revealed about our spiritual existence in Act 1 and our eternal destiny in Act 3. Because of our knowledge of this Plan and other truths that God has revealed, we start with different assumptions than those who do not share our knowledge. As a result, we reach different conclusions on many important subjects that others judge only in terms of their opinions about mortal life.
(Dallin H. Oaks, “As He Thinketh in His Heart” [evening with a General Authority, Feb. 8, 2013], 3–4)
How can I reframe my questions and concerns to see them from an eternal perspective?
Brother Chad H Webb, administrator of Seminaries and Institutes of Religion, said:
If we begin with an eternal perspective, we will arrive at conclusions that reflect eternal truth. But if we begin with worldly assumptions, we are likely to arrive at worldly conclusions. So we may need to reframe some questions because we simply do not accept the premises on which they are based.
For example, you have probably been asked, “Shouldn’t any two people who love each other be able to marry?” From the perspective of much of the world, the answer would seem to be yes. But think about what you know about the plan of salvation and about Heavenly Father’s purpose for marriage. The plan of salvation provides an eternal perspective and a gospel premise that reframes the question. Some questions you may consider are “Why is the family ordained of God?” or “Why has the Lord established marriage between a man and a woman?” Think about what you know about the spirit children of Heavenly Father—where they come from and what He wants for them now and in the eternities. Think about why He has blessed us with the power to seal families in temples. How does your understanding of these principles reframe the question and allow you to see the issue through the light of the gospel?
(Chad H Webb, “That They May Know How to Come unto Him and Be Saved” [Brigham Young University–Hawaii devotional, Mar. 22, 2016], byuh.edu)