What does it mean to have faith in Jesus Christ?
Prepare Yourself Spiritually
In order for our faith to lead to salvation, it must be centered in the Lord Jesus Christ. To have faith in Jesus Christ means to trust Him and obey His commandments. Faith is much more than passive belief. We express our faith through action—by the way we live.
Resources to Help You Prepare
These resources are to help you prepare for the “Learn together” section of the meeting.
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James 1:5–6; 2:14–20 (Faith is belief and action)
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Alma 32:21, 26–43 (Faith is hope for things that are true but not seen)
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Moroni 7:33–41 (Miracles are wrought by faith)
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Esther 4–5; Mark 5:25–34; Hebrews 11:4–9, 17–29; 1 Nephi 4; Alma 19; 56:45–48; 57:21; Ether 12:6–22; Joseph Smith—History 1:11–19 (Examples of faith)
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Bible Dictionary, “Faith”
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Quentin L. Cook, “Foundations of Faith,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2017, 127–31
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M. Russell Ballard, “Precious Gifts from God,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2018, 9–11
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Bonnie H. Cordon, “Trust in the Lord and Lean Not,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2017, 6–9
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Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Fourth Floor, Last Door,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2016, 15–18
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“Faith,” Young Women Personal Progress (2009), 13–20
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“Faith,” True to the Faith (2004), 54–56
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“Face to Face: How can I increase my faith?” (video)
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“Pure and Simple Faith” (video)
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“Courage” (video)
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“Follow Him—An Easter Message about Jesus Christ” (video)
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Questions to Ponder before You Teach
What does it mean to have faith in Jesus Christ? What examples of faith in Jesus Christ have you seen? How does faith in Jesus Christ influence your hope for the future?
Think about the young women in your class. What examples of faith have you seen in their lives? In what areas of their lives could they rely more on the Lord?
What can the young women do to prepare to learn? For example, they could read a talk, watch a video, or study a scripture related to this doctrine.
Meeting Outline
1. Counsel Together and Share Experiences
Led by a member of the class presidency; approximately 5–10 minutes
Lead a discussion about items such as the following:
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Our class: Who is missing today? What visits do we need to make? Who should we invite to an upcoming activity? Who needs our help and prayers?
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Our responsibilities: What assignments do we need to make? What assignments have we fulfilled? How have we invited others to come unto Christ, and how can we invite others now?
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Our lives: Remind the class of the discussion from the last meeting. What experiences have we had with applying what we learned? What experiences have we had in the past few weeks that strengthened our testimonies of the gospel?
If possible, discuss these items beforehand in a class presidency meeting.
2. Learn Together
Led by a leader or teacher or a member of the class; approximately 25–35 minutes
After studying the above resources and following the inspiration of the Spirit, you may select one or more of the activities below to help class members understand the doctrine.
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Invite the young women to read Alma 32:21 and Helaman 5:12. Ask a few of them to summarize in their own words what they learn about faith from these scriptures. Invite the young women to find examples of people who had strong foundations of faith in Elder Quentin L. Cook’s talk “Foundations of Faith.” Ask them to share what they find. What can they do to build a strong foundation of faith? Help the young women see the blessings that come from faith. They could find some examples in President M. Russell Ballard’s message “Precious Gifts from God.”
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Invite two young women to come to the front of the class. Ask one young woman to try standing in different ways (such as standing with her feet apart or leaning) and have the other young woman give her a light push while she is in each different stance. What stances helped the young woman remain unmoved? What stances made her lose her balance? Invite the young women to read Sister Bonnie H. Cordon’s talk “Trust in the Lord and Lean Not,” looking for her suggestions for how to develop greater trust in Jesus Christ and keep our faith centered on Him. Do the young women have any experiences they could share when they leaned on their own understanding and experienced the consequences? or when they trusted in the Savior and received the blessings?
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Invite each young woman to come prepared to briefly share an experience when she persevered or did not give up in accomplishing a good thing. You might also share an experience from your own life. Invite the young women to read the story about the two missionaries in President Dieter F. Uchtdorf’s talk “Fourth Floor, Last Door.” What can they learn from the missionaries in this story? How does this story relate to their own experiences? You might also invite the young women to review the rest of this talk, looking for things President Uchtdorf taught about faith and circling statements that stand out to them. What else do the young women learn about faith? (The young women could use this talk and another in this outline to help complete Faith value experience 1 in their Personal Progress books.)
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Ask each young woman to find and share a story from the scriptures in which someone acted on his or her belief in Jesus Christ (see, for example, Esther 4; Mark 5:25–34; Hebrews 11:4–9, 17–29; 1 Nephi 4; Alma 19:16–29; Ether 12:11–22). Invite the young women to also write down an experience in which they or someone they know exercised faith in Jesus Christ. Ask each young woman to share the story she found in the scriptures and the experience she wrote about. Consider showing the video “Courage” as part of this activity.
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Invite the young women to read Matthew 17:20, and ask them what they think it means to move mountains with our faith. Share the following statement from Bishop Richard C. Edgley: “I have never witnessed the removal of an actual mountain. But because of faith I have seen a mountain of doubt and despair removed and replaced with hope and optimism. Because of faith I have personally witnessed a mountain of sin replaced with repentance and forgiveness. And because of faith I have personally witnessed a mountain of pain replaced with peace, hope, and gratitude. Yes, I have seen mountains removed” (“Faith—the Choice Is Yours,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2010, 33). Show the video “Pure and Simple Faith,” and ask the young women to look for mountains that were removed through faith (or share an experience of your own).
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3. Plan to Act
Led by a member of the class presidency; approximately 5–10 minutes
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Ask the young women to discuss any feelings or impressions they had during the meeting. What was meaningful to them? Is there something they can do personally or as a class to apply what they have learned?
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Give the young women a few minutes to record what they will do in the coming weeks to act on their impressions. Invite them to share their ideas.
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Remind the young women that they will have the opportunity to share their experiences at the beginning of the next meeting.