Joseph leading a donkey by a rope, Mary is walking along the side of the donkey holding a young Jesus on their way to Egypt. Outtakes include Mary walking with Jesus ahead of Joseph as well as Mary walking behind
After the Wise Men gave their gifts to the Christ child, the Lord warned them not to return to King Herod. An angel appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him to take his family to Egypt. These warnings saved the young Jesus from Herod’s slaughter of all children two years old and under in the area around Bethlehem. After Herod’s death, the Lord instructed Joseph to return to Israel. Just as the Lord blessed the Wise Men, Joseph, and Mary with revelation, He wants to bless you with revelation too. In this lesson you will identify some ways the Lord can communicate with you. You will also be invited to look for this communication in your own life.
The Lord warns the Wise Men and Joseph
Think about ways Heavenly Father has communicated with you in your life, and answer the following questions.
How well do you think you recognize when Heavenly Father is communicating with you?
What are some ways God has given you revelation or guidance?
In what area of your life do you feel you most need Heavenly Father’s guidance and direction?
As you study Matthew 2, you will have an opportunity to learn about receiving guidance and direction from Heavenly Father.
At the time of the Savior’s birth, the ruler in Judea was known as Herod the Great. He was a wicked man. When he met with the Wise Men, he asked them to return and inform him of what they discovered about the Christ child (see Matthew 2:8). Because of Herod’s wickedness, God warned the Wise Men and sent an angel to warn Joseph in a dream.
As you study the scriptures, it is important to identify principles. A principle is an enduring truth that can provide you with perspective and help you in making decisions. We can often identify principles by answering questions like the following:
What do you think was the moral or point of the story?
Why do you think the writer included these events or passages in their record?
What lessons might the writer have intended for us to learn?
Choose one of the questions above, and answer it as you ponder Matthew 2:11–16.
1. Answer the following questions in your study journal:
How can the principle you identified help you with decisions in your life?
The Lord will warn us
From Matthew 2:11–16, you may have identified a principle about receiving warnings from the Lord. President Boyd K. Packer (1924–2015) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles gave a promise about warnings through the Holy Ghost.
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Final official portrait of Elder Boyd K. Packer, President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, 2000. Passed away 3 July 2015.
It is not expected that you go through life without making mistakes, but you will not make a major mistake without first being warned by the promptings of the Spirit. This promise applies to all members of the Church.
(Boyd K. Packer, “Counsel to Youth,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2011, 18)
Think about the following questions:
What does Heavenly Father’s desire to warn us by the Spirit tell us about His nature and character?
How might looking for and responding to the promptings and warnings of the Spirit help you now and in the future?
Joseph, Mary, and Jesus return from Egypt
In Matthew 2:19–23, we read that when Herod died, the Lord gave another message to Joseph while he, Mary, and Jesus were in Egypt. From this communication with Joseph, we learn that if we are willing to listen and obey, we can receive revelation and guidance.
Read Matthew 2:19–23, looking for details that teach this principle.
In Matthew 2, God communicated with the Wise Men and Joseph through dreams and through visitations from angels. Father in Heaven communicates with His children in many other ways as well, including through inspiration and revelation from the Holy Ghost. As you study the gospel at home and in seminary, pay attention to what you are learning from the scriptures as well as what Heavenly Father is teaching you through the Holy Ghost. Your gospel study can be enhanced and more personal as you listen for what God is teaching you through His Spirit.
2. Answer at least two of the following questions in your study journal:
What are some ways the Lord communicates with you?
What experiences have you had in which the Holy Ghost has warned or guided you? How did these experiences impact your life?
If you were to hear the Savior’s voice speaking to you through the Holy Ghost as you study, how would this affect your seminary experience?
What do you feel you can do to be more receptive to the guidance and revelation of the Holy Ghost that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want to give you?
Optional: Want to Learn More?
How can the Holy Ghost help me?
President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency taught:
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Official Portrait of President Henry B. Eyring taken March 2018.
The companionship of the Holy Ghost makes what is good more attractive and temptation less compelling. That alone should be enough to make us determined to qualify for the Spirit to be with us always.
Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught:
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Official Portrait (as of June 2016) of Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Our Father in Heaven knew that in mortality we would face challenges, tribulation, and turmoil; He knew we would wrestle with questions, disappointments, temptations, and weaknesses. To give us mortal strength and divine guidance, He provided the Holy Spirit, another name for the Holy Ghost.
How can I recognize when the Lord is speaking to me?
To hear examples of how various individuals receive revelation, watch the video “Receiving Revelation” (4:17), available on ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
If you want to learn more about ways the Holy Ghost can speak to you, consider reading the article “Eight Ways God Can Speak to You” by President Dallin H. Oaks of the First Presidency (New Era, Sept. 2004, 4–8).
Why did Herod slaughter innocent children?
King Herod, “troubled” by the news that another “King of the Jews” had been born ( Matthew 2:2–3), wanted to kill Jesus to secure his own throne. Knowing that Jesus had been born in Bethlehem about two years earlier, Herod ordered the deaths of all children there under the age of two (see Matthew 2:4, 7, 12–16). Herod was infamously ruthless against suspected threats, even having his wife and three of his sons executed (see Bible Dictionary, “Herod”).