“March 27–April 2. Genesis 3–4; Moses 4–5: The Fall of Adam and Eve,” Come, Follow Me: Living, Learning, and Teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, for Sunday School (2017)

“March 27–April 2. Genesis 3–4; Moses 4–5: The Fall of Adam and Eve,” Come, Follow Me for Sunday School

March 27–April 2

Genesis 3–4; Moses 4–5

The Fall of Adam and Eve

Before you prepare your lesson, read and ponder Genesis 3–4 and Moses 4–5. Record the impressions that come to you through the Holy Ghost. Come, Follow Me for individuals and families and the ideas below can help you understand and teach the doctrine in the scriptures. As you study, think about the people you teach and how you can help them understand the Fall of Adam and Eve.

Improving Our Teaching

Increase the participation of class members. Many activities can be done as a class, in small groups, in pairs, or as a panel discussion. Use a variety of methods to allow people to participate who might not otherwise have a chance. (See Teaching in the Savior’s Way, 33.)

Invite Sharing

One of your objectives as a teacher is to encourage class members to learn from the scriptures on their own and with their families. Consider inviting class members to share an insight they gained as they read about the Fall of Adam and Eve and redemption through Jesus Christ. Encourage them to share verses that led to these insights.

Teach the Doctrine

Genesis 3:16–23; Moses 4:22–29; 5:4, 7–13

Jesus Christ helps us overcome the consequences of the Fall.

When class members understand the effects of the Fall, their appreciation for the Atonement of Jesus Christ deepens. If class members used Come, Follow Me for individuals and families during their personal study, they may have made a list of consequences of the Fall and how the Atonement redeems us. Invite them to share what they learned, or do this activity together as a class. A picture of Adam and Eve leaving the Garden of Eden (see medialibrary.lds.org) could add a nice visual element to this discussion.
The Fall brought opposition (see 2 Nephi 2), which may seem like a bad thing. But opposition helps to fulfill the plan of happiness. It furthers our growth by allowing us to make choices for ourselves. You might invite class members to read passages from Elder Dallin H. Oaks’s talk “Opposition in All Things” (Ensign or Liahona, May 2016, 114–17) and find statements about opposition that deepen their understanding of Genesis 3 and Moses 4–5. What counsel do they find in the talk that might help them when they face opposition?
Adam and Eve’s story of hope and redemption can encourage class members when they feel hopeless. Consider inviting them to find words and phrases in Moses 5:7–12 that give them hope. When have we felt hope similar to what Adam and Eve felt? The hymnbook has many hymns that express the hope that comes through the Atonement; consider inviting class members to share their favorite hymns about Christ.

Moses 4; 5:1–16

Agency is essential to our progression.

Agency—the God-given ability and privilege to choose and act for ourselves—is such a fundamental principle that it’s easy to take for granted. But the story of the Fall can help us appreciate what a valuable gift agency is and how it helps us progress. In explaining the Fall to his sons, Lehi spoke of four conditions that are necessary for us to exercise agency: punishment and reward, opposition, law, and the power to act (see 2 Nephi 2:10–11, 13, 16). To help class members understand these conditions, you could invite them to search Moses 4–5 for verses that illustrate each condition. How might we respond to people who claim that there is no need for law or punishment or opposition? It might help class members to imagine trying to raise children without rules or discipline.
Moses 5 vividly illustrates both positive and negative consequences of choices. To help class members see this, you could divide the chapter among class members and invite them to look for examples of consequences. How do our decisions determine our destiny? (see “Additional Resources for Genesis 3–4; Moses 4–5”). When have class members used their agency to make a right choice, even when it was difficult? How were they blessed as a result? Why is agency such an important part of God’s plan?

Moses 4:5–12; 5:12–33

Satan tempts us to disobey the commandments of God.

How can you help class members identify the ways in which Satan tempts us to do evil? One way would be to ask half of the class to read Moses 4:5–12 and the other half to read Moses 5:13, 18–33. Then invite class members to make a list of Satan’s tactics and share them with the class. Or you might show the first minute or two of the video “Addiction: You Will Be Freed” (LDS.org), in which Elder M. Russell Ballard compares fishing lures to the tactics Satan uses to deceive us. Then ask class members to look for “lures” Satan used to tempt Adam, Eve, and Cain (see Moses 4:5–12; 5:12–33). How can we resist temptation?

2:55

Encourage Learning at Home

To inspire class members to read Genesis 5 and Moses 6 for next week’s class, you might tell them that in these chapters we learn how to access the atoning power of Christ in our lives.