Doctrinal Mastery: 2 Nephi 2:27

We Are Free to Choose Through the Great Mediator

The Converting Power of the Book of Mormon

In a previous lesson, “2 Nephi 2:26–30,” you learned that we are free to choose liberty and eternal life through Jesus Christ. This lesson can help you memorize the doctrinal mastery reference and key scripture phrase for 2 Nephi 2:27, explain the doctrine, and apply principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge in real-life situations.

Expanding knowledge through doctrinal mastery review activities. Doing these activities regularly helps students memorize the key scripture phrases. You may want to encourage your students to continue studying the doctrinal mastery passages outside of class.

Student preparation: You could invite students to try to memorize 2 Nephi 2:27. Remind students they can use the Doctrinal Mastery app.

Possible Learning Activities

This doctrinal mastery passage lesson is designed to be taught after the lesson “2 Nephi 2:26–30,” which is the contextual lesson for the doctrinal mastery passage 2 Nephi 2:27. If this doctrinal mastery passage lesson needs to be moved to a different week, be sure to teach the corresponding contextual lesson during that week as well.

Memorize and explain

Use any effective and appropriate method to help students memorize the scripture reference and key scripture phrase for 2 Nephi 2:27 and explain the truths found in this passage.

If the following suggestion is used, consider inviting students to create a drawing as a class on the board or on a large sheet of paper. Be careful to keep the drawing activity brief so there will be enough time for the practice application. If possible, display the class drawing for a few days to help students better memorize the reference and key scripture phrase.

Read 2 Nephi 2:27 and draw a picture that helps you visualize the meaning of the key scripture phrase: “They are free to choose liberty and eternal life … or … captivity and death.” Include the key phrase on your drawing to help you memorize it.

Next, write on your drawing what it means that we are free to choose liberty and eternal life through Jesus Christ, or to choose captivity and death. Include what this verse means to you personally and how it can help you better follow Jesus Christ.

If a class drawing was created, invite students to work together to write an explanation of the verse.

If students completed individual drawings, invite them to write their own explanations and then to move around the room and share their drawing and explanation with at least two other students.

Finally, while looking at the picture, repeat the scripture reference and key scripture phrase until you know them from memory.

Practice application

An alternative to the following suggestion to help students review principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge is to invite three students before class to each study one of the principles. At this point in the lesson, invite them to each take one or two minutes to explain the principle they studied to the class.

To review the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge, see if you can remember what each of the three principles are. Then see if you can match the following phrases with the correct principle. (Use paragraphs 5–12 in the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” section of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document [2023] to check your accuracy.)

• “Protect us from misinformation and from those who seek to destroy faith”

• “View ideas based on the Lord’s standard of truth rather than accepting the world’s premises or assumptions”

• “Rely on the testimony that we already have”

Feel free to adapt scenarios that are suggested in the curriculum to better fit your students’ circumstances. For example, in the following scenario a different sinful behavior could be substituted for alcohol.

Different scenarios could also be used to accomplish the same purpose. For example, students could focus on an alternate scenario about a member of the Church who is upset because her parents encourage following a specific Church standard. In frustration, she might respond, “I have my agency! I can do anything I want!” Students could then apply principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge and 2 Nephi 2:27 to this scenario.

Read the following scenario and think about how the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge could be applied by Ivan.

Ivan had been planning to spend Saturday afternoon with his friends, but when one of them unexpectedly showed up with alcohol to share, he felt it was time for him to leave. He knew his friends wouldn’t be surprised because he had consistently gone home in similar situations in the past. As he walked away, he heard his friend Daniel say, “It seems like Ivan’s church won’t let him do anything.”

Ivan continued to think about Daniel’s comment as he walked home.

Examine concepts and questions with an eternal perspective

Read paragraph 8 in the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” section of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document. Pay special attention to what it means to reframe questions.

• How would you describe what it means to reframe a comment or question?

Listen carefully to student responses to the previous question to help you know how well students understand this concept. If they understand it well, consider inviting a student to lead the other students in reframing Daniel’s comment.

If students are not yet prepared to reframe ideas without help, consider using some of the following suggestions to help them.

1. Identify possible premises or assumptions.

   • What does Daniel seem to believe about freedom and the purpose of agency?

   • What does he seem to believe about the standards of the Savior’s Church?

2. Consider the issue in the context of the plan of salvation and teachings of the Savior.

   • What have you experienced by living the gospel of Jesus Christ that helps you see things differently than Daniel does?

   • What aspects of the plan of salvation do you think would be most helpful for Daniel to understand?

   • What kind of freedom does the Savior offer to those who use their agency to keep His commandments? What kind of captivity results from rejecting them?

Consider dividing students into pairs with each student studying one of the following two principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge. Then invite them to share their answers to the accompanying questions with their partner.

Read paragraphs 5–7, 11 of the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” section of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document, and ponder how the following two principles apply to Ivan’s situation.

Act in faith

• If Ivan were to start questioning his decision to walk away from spiritually dangerous situations, what might you share with him from paragraphs 5–7? Why?

Seek further understanding through divinely appointed sources

• What sources mentioned in paragraph 11 do you think would be most helpful to Ivan?

• How could the truths in 2 Nephi 2:27 to help him?

Doctrinal mastery review

During upcoming lessons, help students briefly review the scripture reference and key phrase for 2 Nephi 2:27. One way to do this is to invite students to look at the drawing they created and see if they can still remember the reference and key scripture phrase. This could be repeated at the beginning or end of various future lessons.