Kirtland Temple

Kirtland Temple, by Jon McNaughton

September 27–October 3

Doctrine and Covenants 109–110

“It Is Thy House, a Place of Thy Holiness”

To have spiritual experiences studying Doctrine and Covenants 109–10 with the children in your class, first seek to have spiritual experiences studying these scriptures on your own.

Record Your Impressions

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Invite Sharing

Show pictures that can help the children remember and share something they have learned about the principles or events in Doctrine and Covenants 109–10. For example, you could show a picture from this week’s outline in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families.

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Teach the Doctrine: Younger Children

Doctrine and Covenants 109:12–13; 110:1–7

The temple is the house of the Lord.

Ponder how you will help the children feel reverence for the Lord’s house and look forward to the day when they can enter the “place of [His] holiness” (Doctrine and Covenants 109:13).

Possible Activities

• Ask the children to tell you something they love about their homes. Show the children a picture of the Kirtland Temple, and use Doctrine and Covenants 109:12–13; 110:1–7 to tell them about the day the temple was dedicated and became the Lord’s house (see also “Chapter 39: The Kirtland Temple Is Dedicated,” Doctrine and Covenants Stories, 154). To show that the temple is the Lord’s house, read the following from the dedicatory prayer that Joseph Smith gave: “It is thy house, a place of thy holiness” (Doctrine and Covenants 109:13). Ask the children to share something they love about the temple.

• Give each child a picture of a temple, or invite them to draw one. Sing together a song about temples, such as “I Love to See the Temple” (Children’s Songbook, 95). Invite the children to hold up their pictures each time they sing the word “temple.” Point out to them other words in the song that teach us something important about the temple. Tell the children how you feel about the temple and how you know it is the house of the Lord.

Doctrine and Covenants 110

The priesthood keys needed to accomplish God’s work are in the Church today.

The Kirtland Temple is important in Church history. Jesus Christ appeared there, along with ancient prophets. These prophets committed priesthood keys to Joseph Smith that are needed to do God’s latter-day work.

Possible Activities

• Use this week’s activity page or “Chapter 40: Visions in the Kirtland Temple” (Doctrine and Covenants Stories, 155–57) to tell the children about the heavenly beings who visited the temple. Share phrases from Doctrine and Covenants 110 that help you and the children to understand the sacredness of these events.

• Show the children some keys, and talk about what keys do. Let the children take turns holding the keys and pretending to open a locked door. As they do, explain that Joseph Smith received priesthood keys in the Kirtland Temple. These keys unlock power and blessings so we can do God’s work in His Church, such as sharing the gospel and doing temple work.

• To help the children understand the keys that Elijah committed to Joseph Smith, sing together a song about Elijah or family history, such as “Truth from Elijah” (Children’s Songbook, 90–91). Tell about an experience that helped turn your heart to your ancestors. Ask the children to share something they know about a grandparent or other ancestor.

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Teach the Doctrine: Older Children

Doctrine and Covenants 109; 110:1–10

The temple is the house of the Lord.

How will you share with the children your love for the Lord’s house? Consider how you will inspire them to accept Elder Quentin L. Cook’s challenge “for each of us, wherever we live, to see ourselves in the temple” (“See Yourself in the Temple,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2016, 98).

Possible Activities

• Choose verses from section 109 or 110 that you feel highlight the blessings of the temple (some are suggested in this week’s outline in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families). List these blessings on the board, and invite the children to search the verses you chose to find those blessings. How might we explain to someone why the temple is important to us?

• Ask the children to silently read Doctrine and Covenants 110:1–10, and invite them to share something they learn about Jesus Christ or the temple from these verses. Invite the children to draw a picture of themselves and the Savior in the temple.

• Ask the children to imagine that a friend is trying to find their house. How can we help our friend know which house is ours? How do we know that the temple is the Lord’s house? Read Doctrine and Covenants 109:12–13 with the children, and tell them how you know that the temple is the house of the Lord. Show pictures of temples, and let the children share their feelings about the Lord’s house.

• Sing with the children “The Spirit of God” (Hymns, no. 2), and tell them it was sung at the Kirtland Temple dedication—and in temple dedications today. Why was this a good song for the Kirtland Temple dedication?

  Kirtland Temple interior

  Each end of the Kirtland Temple has pulpits for priesthood leaders.

Doctrine and Covenants 110:11–16

The priesthood keys needed to accomplish God’s work are in the Church today.

Elder Gary E. Stevenson said, “All of Heavenly Father’s children [had] been locked out from the saving ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ—until a divine restoration was effected by [Moses, Elias, and Elijah]” (“Where Are the Keys and Authority of the Priesthood?” Ensign or Liahona, May 2016, 30).

Possible Activities

• Invite the children to search Doctrine and Covenants 110:11–16 to find the names of three ancient prophets who appeared in the Kirtland Temple. Then help them find words in these verses that describe what each prophet “committed,” or gave, to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. You can find a helpful description in “Chapter 40: Visions in the Kirtland Temple” (Doctrine and Covenants Stories, 156–57).

• Share this description of priesthood keys by President Russell M. Nelson: “In your pocket there might be a key to your home or car. Priesthood keys, on the other hand, are intangible and invisible. They ‘switch on’ the authority of the priesthood” (“Personal Priesthood Responsibility,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2003, 45–46). To illustrate the importance of priesthood keys, discuss with the children the problems of losing a house key or car key. How is this similar to the problems of priesthood keys being lost? Help the children understand who holds priesthood keys today and how these keys are used to unlock blessings for all of God’s children (see “Priesthood Keys,” True to the Faith, 126–27).

• To further explain the keys restored in the Kirtland Temple, show the video “By the Hand of Elijah the Prophet” (ChurchofJesusChrist.org). Discuss what we can do to participate in the work that Elijah’s keys made possible. Or show the video “Gatherers in the Kingdom” (ChurchofJesusChrist.org) and talk about how we can help gather Heavenly Father’s children back to Him.

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Encourage Learning at Home

Invite the children to use this week’s activity page or a picture they drew during class to teach their family something they learned today about temples or priesthood keys.

Improving Our Teaching

Create a loving, reverent atmosphere. “Your example has a powerful influence on the attitudes of the [children]. … With your words and your actions, show them that you love the gospel and that you care about their spiritual growth” (Teaching in the Savior’s Way, 15).

activity page: priesthood keys were restored in the Kirtland Temple