Seminary
Doctrinal Mastery: 1 Corinthians 6:19–20

Doctrinal Mastery: 1 Corinthians 6:19–20

“Your Body Is the Temple of the Holy Ghost”

Two youth walk across a bridge

In your study of 1 Corinthians 6, you learned about the Lord’s standard of sexual purity and the importance of your physical body. This lesson will help you increase your mastery of these teachings by giving you the opportunity to memorize the reference and key scripture phrase for 1 Corinthians 6:19–20, to explain the doctrine, and to apply principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge to a real-life situation.

Teaching the truth with love. Strive to teach the gospel like the Savior did. Teach the truth clearly but always in a spirit of love. Teaching with love will help students who may be struggling with some principles of the gospel, or who may have loved ones who are not living the gospel, to learn the truth and feel a motivation to live it. (See “The Two Sides of Teaching: A Message from Brother Chad H Webb,” si.ChurchofJesusChrist.org.)

Student preparation: Consider sharing with students the practice scenario in this lesson and inviting them to begin thinking about how they might respond.

Possible Learning Activities

This doctrinal mastery passage lesson is designed to be taught after the lesson “1 Corinthians 6,” which is the contextual lesson for the doctrinal mastery passage 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 . If this doctrinal mastery passage lesson needs to be moved to a different week, be sure to teach the corresponding contextual lesson during that week as well.

Explain and memorize

Imagine being in a class or quorum discussion when a younger classmate asks the teacher, “What exactly is the law of chastity?” The teacher asks other students, including you, to respond.

Using the truths taught in the doctrinal mastery passage 1 Corinthians 6:19–20, plan what you might share with your classmates to help them understand the Lord’s standard of sexual purity, or chastity, and why it is important.

  • Using the teachings recorded in 1 Corinthians 6:19–20, how might you explain to someone what the Lord’s law of chastity is and why it is important?

Listen carefully to students’ responses and evaluate their understanding. If necessary, review scriptures and principles from the lesson on 1 Corinthians 6.

Provide an opportunity for students to memorize the reference for the doctrinal mastery passage 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 and its accompanying key scripture phrase. The following is one example of how to do this.

To help you memorize the reference for the doctrinal mastery passage 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 and its key scripture phrase, “Your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost,” consider creating an image, meme, or collage of pictures to represent this passage and the doctrine taught. The visual that you create should be memorable but should also be reverent and respectful of the scripture and the doctrine it teaches. You might use the picture you drew of a person standing next to the temple in the activity for the lesson on 1 Corinthians 6. Be sure to write the reference 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 and the key scripture phrase somewhere near your image.

While looking at the visual representation you have created or chosen, repeat the scripture passage reference and key scripture phrase in your mind until you feel you have committed them to memory.

Practice application

Help students to review the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge. The following is one example of how to do this. As an alternative, consider inviting three students to prepare in advance to briefly summarize and teach these principles to their classmates.

In your study journal, briefly record what you know and remember about the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge without referring to other sources. When you have finished, refer to the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document (2022) to check your knowledge and add any important information you may have missed.

Ponder the following situation. Then answer the questions that follow using the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge and the doctrine taught in 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 that our bodies are temples of God where the Spirit can dwell. Alternatively, you could also create a different scenario more relevant to you or the youth in your area.

The eternal principle of our bodies being temples of God where the Spirit can dwell can be applied to situations other than chastity. Consider adapting the following scenario to make it most relevant for students.

A teenager has grown up knowing the Lord’s standards of chastity but, after being in a serious relationship for some time, feels a desire to express his feelings through engaging in a sexual relationship with his girlfriend. He has family members and friends who have had sexual relations before marriage, and they all seem happy.

Examine concepts and questions with an eternal perspective

Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles emphasized that “the eternal importance of chastity can only be understood within the overarching context of our Heavenly Father’s plan of happiness for His children” (“We Believe in Being Chaste,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2013, 41).

  • What specific aspects of Heavenly Father’s plan of salvation would you want someone in this situation to understand and contemplate?

  • How do the truths in 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 affect the way you view the law of chastity and your relationship with the Godhead?

Seek further understanding through divinely appointed sources

Consider choosing one or more of the following divinely appointed sources to search for truths that would apply to and help in the scenario you chose.

Answer the following question:

  • What did you find that might help in this scenario?

Act in faith

  • What are some different ways an individual might choose to act in faith in this situation?

  • What experiences have you had with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ that would help you trust Them and follow Their teachings?

Summarize how each of the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge could be applied to the scenario. If you created your own scenario, be sure to also include a brief summary of that situation.

After students have had time to ponder and respond to the previous questions, consider inviting them to share the scenario they used and to discuss their responses. One way to do this might be to place an empty chair at the front of the room and invite students to imagine that the person in the scenario is sitting in that chair. Ask a student to think of one thing they might share with that person. Then ask if another student would like to add to what the first student said. Invite several students to share ideas that may help the person in this situation. Encourage students to use all three principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge.

Doctrinal mastery review

The following review activity should be used for a lesson that will be taught in the near future:

Invite students to recall or display the image they created to represent 1 Corinthians 6:19–20. Invite them to see if they can remember the key scripture phrase associated with this passage. As needed, practice reciting the scripture reference and key phrase of this doctrinal mastery passage.