Week 14 Teacher Material

Daily Repentance and the Divine Gift of Forgiveness

In this lesson students will discuss and ponder how they can continue to come unto Jesus Christ through partaking of the sacrament, worshipping in the temple, and repenting daily. They will also explain what it means to overcome the world and be born again and will have the opportunity to share meaningful thoughts and feelings that have come from participating in this course.

Ideas for Teaching

Chapter 24

Daily repentance is liberating, ennobling, and crucial to our individual progression.

• Consider inviting students to share what they enjoyed most about chapter 24 and why they enjoyed it. You could also invite them to ask any questions they might have.

• Read the second and third paragraphs of the chapter together and identify a truth like the one stated in the section heading above. You might then ask:

  • How do you think daily repentance might be the same or different from repenting of a single, more serious sin?

• You might provide students enough time to complete the self-evaluation Elder Andersen recommends in the first paragraph of the section “Daily Repentance.” You could invite students to imagine it is the end of the day and they are on their knees in private prayer asking themselves these questions. Afterward, you might ask how they think a deliberate, daily exercise like this could affect their individual spiritual progression.

Partaking of the sacrament sustains our efforts to continually repent.

• Consider dividing students into small groups and asking them to share what they learned in this chapter about the sacrament as it relates to repentance. You might also provide one or more of the following questions for them to discuss:

  • When and how should we begin our preparation to partake of the sacrament?

  • What does it mean to “always remember Him”? (paragraph 3 in the section “The Sacrament”). (You could review this paragraph as part of your discussion. You might also read and talk about Doctrine and Covenants 6:34–37 during the discussion.)

  • What have you done that has made the sacrament a more meaningful experience for you? (You could review paragraph 2 of the same section, which begins “We approach the sacrament … ,” for ideas.)

In the house of the Lord, we come to better understand how to take His name upon ourselves.

• Consider reading together the first paragraph of the section “The Name of Jesus Christ and the House of the Lord” and asking students what stands out to them. They may identify several truths, including the one stated in the section heading above. You might then discuss the following questions:

  • What does it mean to take Jesus Christ’s name upon us?

  • How has temple worship deepened your desire to repent and become more holy?

  You might also invite students to ponder when they have felt promptings related to their repentance as a result of their temple worship.

• You could review the last paragraph of the chapter together and give students time to consider or write how they intend in the coming weeks to draw closer to the Savior through the sacrament, the temple, and continual repentance.

Chapter 25

Overcoming the world and being born again allow us to receive the Savior’s gift of eternal life.

• You might ask a student to be prepared to recount President David O. McKay’s dream recorded at the beginning of chapter 25. Ask students what President McKay learned about who would join the Savior in the “City Eternal.” Help students identify a truth like the one stated in the section heading above. You might then discuss one or both of the following questions:

  • What do you think it means to overcome the world?

  • What does it mean to be born again?

• You could divide the class into two groups. You might invite one group to review what Elder Andersen taught about overcoming the world in paragraphs 11–15 of the chapter (which begin with “How do we prepare …”). You could invite the other group to look for what it means to be born again as they study paragraphs 18–19 (which begin with “As we repent …”).

  After students have had sufficient time to review the paragraphs, invite them to share what they found. You could list responses on the board under columns labeled “Overcome the world” and “Truly born again.” Consider giving students a minute to ponder what these truths might mean to them now and to their future.

Course Review

• It may be beneficial to discuss with the class what they have learned from this course that has meant the most to them. You could also talk about any particular ways Elder Andersen’s book or the class discussions have blessed their lives. Consider asking follow-up questions as students share things that have been meaningful for them, without getting too personal. Some possible follow-up questions include:

  • Why was that so meaningful to you?

  • How will understanding that help you to receive forgiveness in the future?

  • How will your new understanding help you to act differently in the future?

• Leave enough time for students to bear testimony of the Savior and what they have come to know as a result of this course. You might then read the final paragraph of chapter 25 together or watch the video “Living a Life of Daily Repentance” (3:05).

• You might conclude by sharing your own testimony about the power of forgiveness and the blessings it can bring.

You could also encourage students to take advantage of further opportunities to learn the gospel by enrolling in additional institute courses.