Lesson 58

The Restoration (Part 2)

Introduction

The teaching materials for this doctrinal mastery topic are divided into four parts. In part 2, students will study paragraphs 4.1–4.4 of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document. They will learn how both the Bible and the Book of Mormon testify of Jesus Christ and how the Book of Mormon contains the fulness of the gospel. Students will also study the doctrinal mastery scripture passage Ezekiel 37:15–17.

Note: You could teach the segments of this lesson in a single class session or over the course of several class sessions, dividing class time between Doctrinal Mastery and a regular sequential scripture lesson. If you choose to teach the segments over the course of several class sessions, you may need to briefly review with students what they learned in previous segments before you teach a new segment.

Suggestions for Teaching

Cultivate a learning environment of love, respect, and purpose

“Students are more likely to ask sincere questions and to turn to trustworthy sources when our classroom environment is one of love, respect, and purpose. Help them to see that the Lord loves them; they are His children. Help them to identify themselves as children of God and as disciples of Jesus Christ. Help them to know that they are loved and needed” (Chad H Webb, “Doctrinal Mastery” [Seminaries and Institutes of Religion annual training broadcast, June 14, 2016], broadcasts.lds.org).

Understanding the Doctrine

Segment 1 (10 minutes)

Before class, write The Great Apostasy on the board. Invite students to take one minute to write on the board concepts they remember about the Great Apostasy. After students finish, write The Restoration on the board. Remind students that the need for a latter-day Restoration of the gospel arose because of apostasy and that the effects of the Great Apostasy are overcome through the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Ask students to open their copies of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document to doctrinal topic 4, “The Restoration.” Invite a few students to read aloud paragraphs 4.1–4.4. Ask the class to follow along, looking for the events of the Restoration mentioned in these paragraphs.

Display the following pictures: The First Vision, by Del Parsons; Scriptures, by Grant Heaton; John the Baptist Conferring the Aaronic Priesthood (Gospel Art Book [2009], no. 93; see also lds.org/media-library.), and Melchizedek Priesthood Restoration (Gospel Art Book, no. 94). Ask students to share with the class how each of the events portrayed in these pictures contributed to the latter-day Restoration of the gospel.

Segment 2 (15 minutes)

Hold up a copy of the Book of Mormon and the Bible (or point to the picture of the Bible and the Book of Mormon used in segment 1).

Invite students to scan paragraph 4.3 in the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document, looking for what both the Book of Mormon and the Bible do.

• What do both the Book of Mormon and the Bible do? (Students should identify the following key statement of doctrine: With the Bible, the Book of Mormon testifies of Jesus Christ and contains the fulness of the gospel. Invite students to consider marking this statement in their copies of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document.)

To help students understand this key statement of doctrine, invite a student to read aloud the following statement by President Russell M. Nelson. Ask students to follow along, looking for how the Bible and the Book of Mormon work together to testify of Jesus Christ.

“The Bible and the Book of Mormon are both witnesses of Jesus Christ. They teach that He is the Son of God, that He lived an exemplary life, that He atoned for all mankind, that He died upon the cross and rose again as the resurrected Lord. They teach that He is the Savior of the world. …

“Love for the Book of Mormon expands one’s love for the Bible and vice versa. Scriptures of the Restoration do not compete with the Bible; they complement the Bible” (Russell M. Nelson, “Scriptural Witnesses,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2007, 43).

• How do the Bible and the Book of Mormon work together to testify of Jesus Christ?

• Why is it helpful to have multiple witnesses of Jesus Christ? (If you think it would be helpful, consider inviting students to read 2 Corinthians 13:1.)

Point out that the key statement of doctrine also states that the Book of Mormon contains the fulness of the gospel.

• What do you think it means that the Book of Mormon contains the fulness of the gospel?

To help students understand what this phrase means, invite a student to read aloud the following statement by President Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994). Divide the class in half. Ask one half of the class to follow along, looking for what President Benson says this phrase does mean. Ask the other half of the class to follow along, looking for what President Benson explains that this phrase does not mean. Invite students to report what they find.

“The Lord Himself has stated that the Book of Mormon contains the ‘fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ’ (D&C 20:9). That does not mean it contains every teaching, every doctrine ever revealed. Rather, it means that in the Book of Mormon we will find the fulness of those doctrines required for our salvation. And they are taught plainly and simply so that even children can learn the ways of salvation and exaltation” (Ezra Taft Benson, “The Book of Mormon—Keystone of Our Religion,” Ensign, Nov. 1986, 6).

• How does knowing that the Book of Mormon contains the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ help you understand why is it important for all of Heavenly Father’s children to read and gain a testimony of the Book of Mormon for themselves?

Segment 3 (15 minutes)

Place a copy of the Bible and the Book of Mormon on a table at the front of the class. Invite a student to come to the table to pick up the two books and place them in one of his or her hands. Ask the class if they know what Old Testament prophecy this student is visually demonstrating.

Invite students to open their scriptures to Ezekiel 37:15–17 and to consider marking this doctrinal mastery passage so they can locate it easily. Explain that Ezekiel 37:15–17 contains a prophecy about the Bible and the Book of Mormon that can be helpful in teaching the key statement of doctrine that with the Bible, the Book of Mormon testifies of Jesus Christ and contains the fulness of the gospel.

To help students understand the content of this passage, explain that the word stick in these verses refers to a wooden writing tablet that was commonly used during Ezekiel’s day (see verse 16, footnote a).

Explain that Ezekiel referred to two records, which he called the stick of Judah and the stick of Ephraim. The stick of Judah represents the Bible, which was written predominantly by members of the tribe of Judah, and the stick of Ephraim represents the Book of Mormon, which was written predominantly by members of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, who were the sons of Joseph. Consider holding up a copy of the Book of Mormon labeled “the stick of Ephraim” and holding up a copy of the Bible labeled “the stick of Judah.”

Invite a few students to take turns reading aloud from Ezekiel 37:15–17. Ask the class to follow along, looking for what Ezekiel prophesied would happen to the Bible and the Book of Mormon.

• What did Ezekiel say would happen to these two sticks, or books?

• In what ways are the Bible and the Book of Mormon “one” in our hands?

• How do the Book of Mormon and the Bible work together to testify of the Savior Jesus Christ?

• What are some scripture passages from the Bible or the Book of Mormon that have helped to strengthen your testimony of Jesus Christ and His gospel?

As students answer the last question, consider listing on the board the scripture passages they mention. Encourage the class to write these scripture references in their study journals. Invite students to share how these scripture passages have helped to strengthen their testimony of Jesus Christ and His gospel. Also consider sharing your feelings of how the Bible and the Book of Mormon have strengthened your faith in and testimony of the Savior Jesus Christ.