Doctrinal Mastery: Matthew 11:28–30
“Come unto Me … and I Will Give You Rest”
Jesus Christ taught that if we come unto Him, He will ease our burdens and give us rest. This lesson will give you an opportunity to explain your understanding of this doctrine by applying principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge to a scenario similar to experiences you may have in your own life.
Doctrinal mastery through revelation. Elder Kim B. Clark of the Seventy shared the following about doctrinal mastery: “I want you to know and feel in your hearts that it has come by revelation from the Lord; it is a miracle. I have reflected often on how it came and when it came and why it came. I have come to see Doctrinal Mastery in the larger context of Church education and the great work of the Lord in the earth” (Kim B. Clark, “Doctrinal Mastery and Deep Learning” [evening with a General Authority, Feb. 17, 2017], broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org).
Student preparation: Invite students to practice memorizing the doctrinal mastery reference and key scripture phrase for Matthew 11:28–30 (or the entire passage if students are able). Ask them to think about how they can apply what they have learned about Jesus Christ’s ability to lift their burdens if they come to Him.
Possible Learning Activities
This doctrinal mastery passage lesson is designed to be taught after the lesson “Matthew 11:28–30,” which is the contextual lesson for the doctrinal mastery passage Matthew 11:28–30. 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
Give students an opportunity to memorize the reference and key scripture phrase for Matthew 11:28–30 (Students could be invited to memorize the whole passage if able.)
One option is to write the following on the board and then invite students to practice saying the statement either as a class or by themselves.
“Matthew __:28–__: Come unto m_, a__ ye that l____ a__ are heavy l____, and I will g___ you r___.”
The Doctrinal Mastery app could also help you memorize this key scripture phrase.
Explaining the truth
Give students an opportunity to explain the doctrine taught in the previous lesson that if we come unto Jesus Christ, He will ease our burdens and give us rest.
One way to do this is to display the following image and invite students to recall what a yoke is or explain the use of a yoke.
Recall what a yoke is (see the following image). Review Matthew 11:28–30, looking for truths the Savior taught.
Referring to the image of a yoke, explain how the Savior can help us with our burdens. Be sure to include what our role is as we partner with Christ.
Practice application
If students need to review the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge, consider inviting them to work in groups of three. In the groups of three, each group member could look up a different principle. Each person could then use their own words to explain the principle to their group. Then display or hand out the following activity, and ask students to match the principle with its explanation. (The correct answers are 1. C; 2. A; 3. B.)
If needed, review the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge by studying paragraphs 5–12 of the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” section in the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document (2020). Then match each of the following sentences with the appropriate principle of acquiring spiritual knowledge.
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Learning to recognize and avoid unreliable sources can protect us from misinformation and from those who seek to destroy faith.
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As we seek to develop our understanding and to resolve concerns, it is important that we rely on the testimony that we already have of Jesus Christ, the Restoration of His gospel, and the teachings of His ordained prophets.
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We seek the help of the Holy Ghost in order to see things as the Lord sees them.
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Act in faith
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Examine concepts and questions with an eternal perspective
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Seek further understanding through divinely appointed sources
Scenario
It might be helpful to invite students to recall the burdens they thought about in the previous lesson.
In two or three sentences, create a hypothetical scenario of a fictional person around your age who is currently weighed down by a burden. Include a name, a specific burden, and one or two details about how the person is feeling.
Consider inviting students to exchange their scenarios with each other. Students could then write a response to the scenario they received using the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge. Or, for greater variety, students could respond using only one principle of acquiring spiritual knowledge before exchanging scenarios with another student. That student could respond using a different principle before exchanging scenarios again. Students could exchange scenarios a third time in order to use all three principles. Then invite students to retrieve the scenarios they wrote and to review their classmates’ written responses.
Acquiring spiritual knowledge
Think about how you could use the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge to help the person in the scenario. Answer the following questions to help you.
Act in faith
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What have you done to trust God and turn to Him as you have faced challenges?
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What lessons have you learned from exercising faith in Jesus Christ in the past that could help in this situation? How?
Examine concepts and questions with an eternal perspective
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What do you know about Jesus Christ that makes Him able to help lift burdens?
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How is dealing with burdens and challenges in our lives an important part of our Heavenly Father’s plan?
Seek further understanding through divinely appointed sources
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How could knowing the doctrine found in Matthew 11:28–30 help with this burden or challenge?
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What is another scripture or prophetic statement that could help? How?
Lifting burdens
Using what you have identified, write a letter to the person in your scenario. Include truths from Matthew 11:28–30 and other sources to provide comfort and encouragement.
If students traded scenarios, invite them to share their letter with the classmate who wrote the scenario they are responding to.
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Which principle of acquiring spiritual knowledge do you feel was most helpful in preparing you to respond to this scenario? Why?
Review
Help students review the reference and key scripture phrase for Matthew 11:28–30.
One way to help students review is to write the following on the board. If available, consider using the Doctrinal Mastery app. It may be helpful for students to work with a classmate, taking turns repeating the reference and key scripture phrase.
“Matthew __:28–__: Come unto m_, a__ ye that l____ a__ are heavy l____, and I will g___ you r___.”
Supplemental Learning Activity
Possible scenario
Consider sharing the following scenario if students cannot think of one during the scenario activity in the lesson.
“I’m really stressed right now. I’m trying to stay close to the Lord, but things just keep piling up. School is hard, things aren’t great with my family right now, and I’m not sure how to handle everything. It doesn’t look like anything is going to get better either. I’m worried about all of it, and I don’t know what to do.”