Home-Study Lesson

Luke 10:38–17:37 (Unit 11)

Preparation Material for the Home-Study Teacher

Summary of Daily Home-Study Lessons

The following summary of events, doctrines, and principles students learned as they studied Luke 10:38–17:37 (unit 11) is not intended to be taught as part of your lesson. The lesson you teach concentrates on only a few of these doctrines and principles. Follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit as you consider the needs of your students.

Day 1 (Luke 10:38–12:59)

From the Savior’s words to Martha, students learned that if we choose to devote ourselves to spiritual matters over temporal concerns, then we will receive lasting blessings. Jesus also taught that if we persistently pray and seek Heavenly Father’s blessings in times of need, then He will, in His own time and in His own way, answer our prayers. Other truths students learned are: The Lord commands us not to covet worldly possessions. If we seek to bring forth God’s kingdom and His righteousness, He will help provide for our needs and prepare a place for us in His kingdom.

Day 2 (Luke 13–15)

In these chapters, students learned the following principles: If we try to help people who are less fortunate than we are, the Lord will reward us at the Resurrection. If we place other priorities above the Lord and His gospel, we will lose gospel blessings that we could have received. Disciples of Jesus Christ must be willing to sacrifice everything to follow Him. When we help others feel a desire to repent, we feel joy and the heavens rejoice.

Day 3 (Luke 16)

From the parables of the unjust steward and the rich man and Lazarus, students learned that if we wisely prepare for our eternal future and righteously use earthly riches, we can be blessed with eternal riches. They also learned the following principles: If we are covetous and do not use our earthly riches righteously, we will eventually experience suffering and regret. Conversion comes through believing and heeding the words of prophets, not by witnessing miracles or seeing angels.

Day 4 (Luke 17)

In Luke 17, the Apostles asked Jesus to increase their faith. Students learned that our faith will increase as we strive to do all that Heavenly Father commands and as we remember that we are always indebted to Him. Students also learned that we receive the Lord’s blessings as we do what He has instructed us to do, and it is important to express gratitude for the blessings we receive.

Introduction

The Savior responded to the Pharisees’ complaints about Him associating with publicans and sinners by giving the parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son.

Suggestions for Teaching

Luke 15

Jesus gives the parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son

Begin class by asking students if they have ever lost an item that was valuable to them.

• What were you willing to do to find it? Why?

• What do you think it means for a person to be spiritually “lost”? (Help students understand that this can refer to those who have not yet received the restored gospel of Jesus Christ or are not currently living according to the teachings of the gospel.)

Invite the class to think of someone they know who may be spiritually lost. Ask them to ponder how they feel about this person.

Explain that Luke 15 contains the Savior’s teachings about those who are spiritually lost. Invite students to look for truths in Luke 15 concerning how Heavenly Father feels about those who are spiritually lost and the responsibilities we have toward them.

Ask a student to read Luke 15:1–2 aloud. Invite the class to follow along, looking for what the Pharisees and scribes complained about.

• Why did the Pharisees and scribes complain?

• What does this complaint reveal about the Pharisees and scribes?

Explain that the Savior responded by giving three parables: one of a lost sheep, one of a lost coin, and one of a lost son. Ask them to pay attention to why the subject of each parable became lost and how it was found.

Explain that in the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin, the Savior described how the shepherd and the woman who lost the coin searched with great diligence until they found that which was lost.

Invite a student to read Luke 15:4–6, 8–9 aloud. Ask the class to follow along, looking for how the shepherd and the woman felt when they found the sheep and the coin.

• What is the difference between how the sheep and the coin were lost? (The sheep became lost through following its normal course of life and through no fault of its own, while the coin was lost because of the negligence or carelessness of its owner [see David O. McKay, in Conference Report, Apr. 1945, 120–22].)

• What word was used to describe how the shepherd and the woman felt?

Invite students to read Luke 15:7, 10 silently, looking for what the Savior likened the joy of the shepherd and the woman to. (The rejoicing in heaven over a sinner who repents.)

Explain that the third parable in Luke 15 is the story of a prodigal son (meaning one who is wasteful and recklessly extravagant), his older brother, and their father.

Consider dividing students into groups of three. Provide each group with a copy of the following handout. Invite them to read Luke 15:11–32 aloud in their groups. Assign one student to consider the parable from the perspective of the prodigal son, the second student to consider it from the perspective of the father, and the third student to consider it from the perspective of the older brother.

After students have finished reading, ask them to discuss the questions on the handout in their groups.

Instead of asking students to read and discuss the parable, you could show the video “The Prodigal Son” (5:35) from The Life of Jesus Christ Bible Videos. Provide each student with a copy of the following handout, and ask students to look for answers to the questions as they view the video. This video is available on LDS.org.

The Parable of the Prodigal Son

New Testament Seminary Teacher Manual—Home-Study Lesson (Unit 11)

The Prodigal Son

• What helped you come to yourself, or recognize the awful situation you were in?

• How did you expect your father to respond to your return home?

• What might you have been thinking and feeling when your father treated you as he did?

The Father

• What might you have been thinking and feeling while your younger son was gone?

• Why would you welcome your prodigal son home in the way you did?

• When your elder son resented how you treated his younger brother, how did you help him understand your actions?

The Older Brother

• What might you have been thinking and feeling while your brother was gone?

• Why was it difficult for you to rejoice in your brother’s return?

• What blessings have you received for being faithful to your father?

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• Why did the prodigal son become lost? (In contrast to the sheep and the coin, the prodigal son became lost due to his own rebelliousness.)

• Understanding that the father in this parable represents Heavenly Father, what can we learn about how Heavenly Father responds to those who return to Him by repenting? (Students should identify a principle similar to the following: If we return to Heavenly Father by repenting and seeking His forgiveness, He will rejoice and welcome us back with open arms. Write this principle on the board.)

• How might this principle help those who feel spiritually lost?

Remind students of the older brother in the parable.

• Why do you think the older brother was angry?

Invite a student to read aloud the following statement by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and ask the class to listen for insights regarding why the older brother was angry:

“Feeling unappreciated and perhaps more than a little self-pity, this dutiful son—and he is wonderfully dutiful—forgets for a moment that he has never had to know filth or despair, fear or self-loathing. He forgets for a moment that every calf on the ranch is already his and so are all the robes in the closet and every ring in the drawer. He forgets for a moment that his faithfulness has been and always will be rewarded. …

“… He who has virtually everything, and who has in his hardworking, wonderful way earned it, lacks the one thing that might make him the complete man of the Lord he nearly is. He has yet to come to the compassion and mercy, the charitable breadth of vision to see that this is not a rival returning. It is his brother. …

“Certainly this younger brother had been a prisoner—a prisoner of sin, stupidity, and a pigsty. But the older brother lives in some confinement, too. He has, as yet, been unable to break out of the prison of himself. He is haunted by the green-eyed monster of jealousy. He feels taken for granted by his father and disenfranchised by his brother, when neither is the case” (“The Other Prodigal,” Ensign, May 2002, 63).

• According to Elder Holland, why was the older brother angry? In what ways was the older brother also lost?

• What do we need to remember when we see God being merciful and blessing those who repent and return to Him?

• What principle can we learn from this parable about becoming more like our Father in Heaven? (Students should identify a principle similar to the following: We can become more like our Father in Heaven by responding with compassion and joy when others repent.)

Remind students of the person they thought about at the beginning of class who may be spiritually lost. Encourage them to prayerfully consider how they might be able to help that person repent and draw closer to Heavenly Father. Invite them to also consider in what ways they themselves may be lost and need to repent and return to the Savior.

Next Unit (Luke 18–John 1)

Invite students to ponder a time when someone mistreated them and how it felt. Explain that as they study the next unit, they will learn how the Savior chose to respond to those who mistreated Him. Ask them to notice additional details in Luke’s account of Jesus Christ’s suffering in Gethsemane and what Jesus ate after His Resurrection.