“Moses 1:1–11,” The Pearl of Great Price Teacher Manual (2017)
“Moses 1:1–11,” The Pearl of Great Price Teacher Manual
Moses 1:1–11
God Revealed Himself to Moses
Some Important Principles, Doctrines, and Events
Moses saw God face-to-face upon an unknown mountain sometime after he spoke to the Lord in the burning bush but before he went to free the children of Israel from Egypt (see Moses 1:1–2, 17, 25–26, 42; see also Exodus 3:1–10).
Overview of Moses 1. Moses Saw Jesus Christ and Satan
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Christ appearing to Moses
Discuss what it is like to walk into a dark room from a brightly lit room, or vice versa. What happens to one’s eyesight? Compare what happened to Moses as he spoke to God (see Moses 1:1–9, 25–31) to what happened when he confronted Satan (see verses 12–24).
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Video presentation—“I Am a Son of God”
Consider showing part of the video “I Am a Son of God” (6:30). In this video, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles narrates Moses’s experience meeting God face-to-face. Play the video from the beginning, and stop the video after Moses’s vision ends (time code 2:50). Or, consider showing the entire video as you teach the following scripture block (Moses 1:12–23) to help students understand that we should not fear in the midst of adversity because God can help us. This video is available on LDS.org.
Ask students: Has anyone ever told you that they would be honored to have you as a son or a daughter? You may want to suggest that students mark “my son” in Moses 1:4, 6–7. Review the commentary under “Moses 1:4–6. Moses Was a Son of God” in the student manual. Invite students to share their thoughts on the significance of being called “sons and daughters of God.”
Ask a student to read Moses 1:6 aloud. Explain that “in the similitude” means “resembling another” or “to be in the form or image of another.” In what ways was Moses’s life similar to the life of Jesus Christ? What are some things we are asked to do as members of the Church that are similar to what Jesus Christ did? What can we accomplish in this life, and in the next life, because we know we are in the similitude of God? Testify of our divine parentage and potential.
Invite a student to read Moses 1:6 aloud. Ask students to suggest some ideas, objects, or people that we sometimes place ahead of God in our lives. Display and invite a few students to take turns reading aloud the commentary under “Moses 1:6. ‘There Is No God beside Me’” in the student manual.