Jesus Christ Is My Savior

By Cheryl Esplin

“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6).

Before Heavenly Father sent us to earth, He chose Jesus Christ to be our leader and Savior. You chose to follow Jesus Christ before you were born.

When Jesus came to earth, He taught the gospel and set up His Church. He kept His promise to be our Savior. He suffered and died and was resurrected so that we could be resurrected and live again with Heavenly Father and our families.

The scriptures teach us of the many blessings made possible by Jesus Christ. Do you remember the story of Lehi’s dream? Lehi saw a tree. The tree represents the love of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

On the tree was fruit that would make people happy. Lehi tasted the fruit, and it filled him with great joy. Lehi wanted his whole family to taste the fruit. (See 1 Nephi 8:10–12).

The fruit of the tree represents the blessings we receive because of Jesus Christ and His Atonement. We taste of the fruit when we trust in Jesus Christ, when we are baptized and receive the Holy Ghost, and when we live the gospel and feel our Savior’s love.

Activity

Remove page F5, and mount it on heavy paper. Cut slits in the tree on the white lines, and cut out the fruit. For each fruit, look up the scripture, identify the blessing Heavenly Father has given us, and write it on the line. Put the tab of the fruit into a slit on the tree.

Image

tree and fruit cutouts

Sharing Time Ideas

In the premortal life, I chose to follow Jesus Christ. Ask the children to name some of the choices they have made that day (what to wear, what to eat, and so on). Write responses on the board. Explain that Heavenly Father has given us agency, the ability to make choices. Teach about the Council in Heaven, when Heavenly Father presented His plan. Explain that using our agency is an important part of that plan. Help the children understand that Satan wanted to change the plan and take away our ability to choose. Jesus Christ wanted to follow Heavenly Father’s plan and volunteered to be our Savior. Emphasize to the children that they chose to follow Jesus Christ (see Primary 6, lesson 2). Write questions to help the children review what they have learned. Put the questions in a container. Choose a child to pick a question out of the container and answer it. Then have that child choose someone else to pick a question and answer it. Continue as time allows. Bear testimony of the importance of continuing to follow Jesus Christ.
My family and I will be resurrected. Beforehand and with approval of the bishop or branch president, invite a member who has experienced the death of a loved one to bear testimony of what the Resurrection means to him or her. Put the following Gospel Art Picture Kit pictures in a pile in the following order with 227 on top: 227 (Jesus Praying in Gethsemane), 228 (The Betrayal of Jesus), 230 (The Crucifixion), 231 (Burial of Jesus), 233 (Mary and the Resurrected Lord), 234 (Jesus Shows His Wounds), and 316 (Jesus Teaching in the Western Hemisphere). While the pianist plays, have the children pass around a small stone. Tell them it is symbolic of the stone rolled in front of the opening of Christ’s tomb. When the music stops, have the child holding the stone take the picture from the top of the pile and tell about it or choose someone to help. Continue for each picture, pausing after 234 to read Luke 24:39 in unison. Help the children understand that after Jesus was resurrected, the Apostles could feel His hands just as the children can feel their own hands. Continue with the rest of the pictures. Teach that because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, everyone who has ever lived on the earth will be resurrected. Have the invited guest bear testimony.