Scripture Study Skills: Lesson 166

Focusing on Jesus Christ in the Scriptures

Looking for Symbols and Attributes of the Savior

One of the central purposes of the scriptures is to help us learn about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Learning about Jesus Christ is an important way we also learn about Heavenly Father. The more we learn about Them, the more our faith in Them can grow. This lesson is intended to help students focus on the Savior while studying the scriptures.

Student preparation: Invite students to look for insights they learn about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ as they do their personal or family study of the scriptures. Invite them to come prepared to share what they found.

Possible Learning Activities

The Purpose of Scriptures

Consider drawing a target on the board.

Invite one or two students to throw a soft object at the target. After these attempts, erase the target. If you would like, you can ask a student to try to hit the target even though it is no longer there. (This will result in some confusion.) You could ask how they feel about the activity when they do not have a target.

• Why is it good to have a target or purpose to an activity?

• What is the target or purpose of scripture study?

Students might share a variety of answers. If you would like, you could redraw the target and write some of the answers students share about the purpose of scripture study inside the target or next to it.

Explain that understanding the purpose of the scriptures can help us in our study of them.

Read the following statement from Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, looking for the central purpose of the scriptures.

In the end, the central purpose of all scripture is to fill our souls with faith in God the Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ—faith that They exist; faith in the Father’s plan for our immortality and eternal life; faith in the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, which animates this plan of happiness; faith to make the gospel of Jesus Christ our way of life; and faith to come to know “the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom [He has] sent” (John 17:3). (“The Blessing of Scripture,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2010, 34)

• How would you summarize the purpose of scriptures?

  Write the following truth on the board: The central purpose of scripture is to build our faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. You may want to draw an arrow from this truth to the center of the target.

• How could knowing this purpose influence the way we study our scriptures?

• Why might it be important to continually strive to build faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ?

Ponder what you focus on as you study the scriptures. How well do you feel you focus on building your faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ as you study the scriptures?

As you learn scripture study skills in this lesson, seek the help of the Holy Ghost to know how to use these skills to build your faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

This lesson will discuss two scripture study skills that can help students focus on the Savior. It may be useful to explain that because Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are perfectly united, as we learn about the Savior, the same attributes apply to the Father (see John 6:38; 10:30; 14:7–9). The skills in this lesson will help us focus on Jesus Christ. This focus also helps us learn about Heavenly Father.

For each skill, you will define the skill, model it, and then give students an opportunity to practice it.

Skill: Look for symbols of the Savior and ponder their meaning

Define

The scriptures are filled with symbols of the Savior. A symbol of the Savior is an object or item that can remind us of the Savior’s role in our lives. For this skill, do the following:

Consider writing the following steps on the board:

1. Look for symbols that remind you of the Savior.

2. Ask yourself the following questions:

   • How is the Savior like this symbol?

   • How does comparing the Savior to this symbol help me understand how the Savior can help me in my life?

Model

Model this skill by doing it together as a class. Doing this can help students understand what it is and how to do it.

Through the prophet Jeremiah, the Lord used a powerful symbol to teach us about Him. Read Jeremiah 2:13; 17:13, looking for a symbol of the Savior.

• How is the Savior like this symbol? (a fountain of living waters)

  If students struggle to answer, you could ask some of the following questions:

  • What are some uses of water? (To quench thirst, to help us live, to clean, and to refresh.) How is the Savior like water in these ways?

  • How is the Savior as essential as water? Why might we need Him as often as we need water?

  • Why might the Lord have compared himself to a fountain (or spring) of water instead of a pond or another source?

  • How does comparing the Savior to this symbol help you understand how He can help you in your life?

Practice

Give students an opportunity to practice this skill on their own or in small groups if you feel that would benefit them. You could have students choose one of the scriptures below or others you might provide.

Read one of the following scriptures. Find a symbol of the Savior and ask yourself the two questions on the board.

2 Samuel 22:2–4

Isaiah 25:4 (Note: The word thou refers to the Lord.)

Malachi 3:2–3

Invite several students to share what they found. Look for ways to thank and compliment them on their effort. If students struggle, assure them that is OK; these skills take practice.

Skill: Look for what we can learn about the Savior from His actions and words

Define

We can also focus on the Savior as we study the scriptures by looking for His actions and words in the scriptures. We can then ponder what we can learn about Him from His actions and words, and how what we learn about Him can help us in our lives.

You may want to display the following steps on the board for students to follow.

1. Look for the Savior’s words and actions.

2. Ask yourself the following questions:

   • What do these words or actions teach me about the Savior?

   • How do these words or actions help me understand how the Savior can help me in my life?

Model

We can learn about the Savior by studying the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego. These three righteous men were thrown into a fiery furnace because they refused to worship the golden image that king Nebuchadnezzar had created (see Daniel 3:13–22).

Consider explaining to students that at times they must read carefully, specifically looking for what the Lord said or did. The following verses are an example.

Read Daniel 3:23–25, looking for what the Savior did in these verses.

Consider showing the picture “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego in the fiery furnace.”

If needed, you could explain that either the Savior, or a heavenly messenger that He sent, stood with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego in the furnace.

• What does this action teach you about the Savior?

• How does this action help me understand how the Savior can help me in my life?

From this experience we learn that the Lord will support us in our trials (see also Alma 36:3, 27; Doctrine and Covenants 3:8; 24:8).

Practice

To practice this skill, read one of the following sets of verses, looking for what the Lord said or did, then asking yourself the two questions that accompany this skill.

Exodus 14:21–22, 30. The children of Israel were trapped between the Egyptian army and the Red Sea.

1 Samuel 16:6–7. Samuel was trying to identify the next king of Israel.

Isaiah 1:16–18. The people of Israel had fallen into sin.

Isaiah 53:3–5. A prophecy of the Savior’s Atonement.

Invite several students to share what they found. If useful, ask: “How can knowing this attribute of the Savior help you exercise faith in Him?”

Conclusion

• How might these skills help you in your scripture study?

Conclude by sharing your own thoughts about the Savior and these skills. Invite students to look for ways to implement these skills in their scripture study. For example, they may keep a study journal with what they are learning about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

Additional Resources

How can focusing on Christ’s example help us in our daily lives?

Chad H. Webb, then administrator of Seminaries and Institutes of Religion, taught to seminary and institute teachers:

[Jesus] is the perfect example, the embodiment and expression of all gospel principles…. Focusing on His perfect example also invites the Holy Ghost to testify of Him.…

One student was recently asked [how the Savior was an] example of gentleness. Her thoughts and feelings raced to the gentle way in which the Savior has always treated her. This experience, right in a classroom, created in her a deep desire to be more Christlike and gentler with the people who depend on her, as she depends on the Lord. (“We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ,” [address given at the Seminaries and Institutes of Religion annual training broadcast, June 12, 2018])

Supplemental Learning Activities

Skill: Looking for names and titles of Jesus Christ

If helpful, consider using the following as an additional scripture study skill.

Define the skill: Another helpful scripture study skill is to learn about the Savior from His names and titles.

Model the skill: Read Isaiah 40:28 (or another verse of your choice), looking for one or more names or titles of Jesus Christ.

• What can we learn about Jesus from these different names or titles?

• Which title is most meaningful to you? How could understanding that title help you in your life?

For example, when we understand the Savior is the Creator, it can increase our faith that He can nurture and help all He created, including us. We can also turn to Him for help as we strive to be creative.

Practice: Read some or all the following scripture passages and write in your study journal any names and titles you find. Ponder what you can learn about Jesus from the name or title and how He can help you in your life: Job 19:25; Job 32:8; Isaiah 7:14; 9:6. For help understanding the meaning of a name or title, consider looking at footnotes or looking it up in resources like Guide to the Scriptures or Bible Dictionary.

Metaphors

If useful, you could explain that the Lord also uses metaphors to teach us about Him. These are similar to symbols. Invite students to read Isaiah 54:5, looking for students to fill in the blank: “For thy Maker is thy .” Inform students that throughout the Old Testament the Lord compares His relationship with those who covenant with Him to a marriage.

• How is the Lord’s relationship with us like a marriage?

If students struggle to answer, you could ask:

• How is the commitment in a marriage different from other relationships?

• How would you describe the love and dedication one spouse should have to the other—even when their spouse is imperfect? How is that symbolic of the commitment and love the Lord has for us? (See Ephesians 5:25.)

• How could understanding the Lord’s covenantal love for us help us show faith in Him?