“Lesson 128: Marriage and Family (Part 4),” Old Testament Seminary Teacher Material (2018)
“Lesson 128,” Old Testament Seminary Teacher Material
Lesson 128
Marriage and Family (Part 4)
Introduction
The teaching materials for this doctrinal mastery topic are divided into four parts. Part 4 contains a practice exercise that can help students apply both the doctrine they have learned from the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document and the doctrinal mastery scripture passage Genesis 39:9. This lesson also includes a cumulative review for all the doctrinal mastery scripture passages students have studied so far this year.
Note: You could do the practice exercise and the doctrinal mastery review in a single class session or over the course of two class sessions, dividing class time between Doctrinal Mastery and a regular sequential scripture lesson.
Suggestions for Teaching
Practice Exercise (20 minutes)
Review with students the following principles from the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” section of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document: act in faith, examine concepts and questions with an eternal perspective, and seek further understanding through divinely appointed sources. For example, to review the principle of examining concepts and questions with an eternal perspective, you might invite a student to read aloud paragraph 8 of the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” section of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document and then invite the class to briefly discuss why it is important to recognize the differences between worldly assumptions or ideas and the Lord’s teachings.
Note: You may want to adapt the following scenario according to students’ experiences and needs and to substitute a name that is more common where you live.
Display or provide students with copies of the following scenario, and invite a student to read it aloud:
Maria has become friends with a boy at school she really likes. One day he asks her to send him an inappropriate picture of herself. When he sees that she is hesitant to do so, he tells her that it’s not that bad and that a lot of other students are sharing pictures like that. Maria worries that if she does not send him the picture, he and his friends will make fun of her and she might lose his friendship.
To help students see how the principles of acquiring spiritual knowledge could be helpful in this situation, ask the following questions:
What could Maria do to act in faith in this situation?
What might be some worldly assumptions or ideas that could cause someone to think that asking for or sending these kinds of photos is not immoral or wrong?
What gospel doctrine or principle might help Maria in this situation?
Explain that prophets have taught about the importance of chastity and virtue. “Chastity is sexual purity. … To be chaste, you must be morally clean in your thoughts, words, and actions” (True to the Faith: A Gospel Reference [booklet, 2004], 29). Chastity is a part of virtue, which is “a pattern of thought and behavior based on high moral standards” (Young Women Personal Progress [booklet, 2009], 70).
What are some of the differences between prophets’ teachings about chastity and virtue and the world’s attitude toward these things?
What are some divinely appointed sources Maria could use to seek further understanding of chastity and virtue? (Some of these sources include the scriptures, For the Strength of Youth, True to the Faith, and general conference talks.)
Invite students to spend a few minutes searching the scriptures and any other divinely appointed sources they have access to for information that Maria could use to learn more about chastity and virtue. After sufficient time, invite students to report what they found. If students do not mention Genesis 39:9, ask them how understanding Joseph’s response to a temptation to break the law of chastity could help Maria know how to act.
Invite a student to read aloud the following statement by President Thomas S. Monson (1927–2018). Ask students to listen for anything that might help Maria.
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Thomas S. Monson
“My young friends, be strong. The philosophies of men surround us. … Do not be deceived. … You know what is right and what is wrong, and no disguise, however appealing, can change that. The character of transgression remains the same. If your so-called friends urge you to do anything you know to be wrong, you be the one to make a stand for right, even if you stand alone. Have the moral courage to be a light for others to follow. There is no friendship more valuable than your own clear conscience, your own moral cleanliness—and what a glorious feeling it is to know that you stand in your appointed place clean and with the confidence that you are worthy to do so” (Thomas S. Monson, “Examples of Righteousness,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2008, 65).
How might this statement help Maria?
If Maria asked you for advice, what would you tell her based on what you have learned from divinely appointed sources?
Invite a few students to share with the class how they might respond to Maria’s friend if they were in Maria’s situation. Then, invite them to ponder the following question:
How does living the law of chastity help you become more like Christ?
Testify of the importance of chastity and virtue. Invite a few students who would like to do so to share their testimonies or feelings about the blessings that come from living a chaste and virtuous life.
Encourage students to live the standards of the gospel and to stand up for what is right even when others might mock or exclude them for doing so.
Doctrinal Mastery Cumulative Review (20 minutes)
Explain to students that they will participate in an activity in which they will try to identify as many doctrinal mastery scripture passages as they can. Invite each student to select one of the doctrinal mastery passages the class has studied so far this year (you may want to invite each student to select two or three passages, especially if your class is small). Tell students they need to know the scripture reference for their passage, as well as what the passage teaches. (You may want to give students a few minutes to review the doctrinal mastery passages before beginning this activity. If so, encourage students to use the scriptures, the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document, the Doctrinal Mastery Reference Guide, the Doctrinal Mastery app, or other resources to review the passages.)
Explain to students that they will quiz each other on the doctrinal mastery scripture passages and see how many they can identify in a five-minute round. Students should choose one doctrinal mastery scripture passage to quiz their peers on during each round. When students correctly identify a doctrinal mastery scripture passage, they will mark the box associated with that passage on the handout in the Round 1 column. The following example demonstrates how students will interact with each other during this activity:
Student 1: What does your doctrinal mastery scripture passage teach?
Student 2: That God reveals His secrets to the prophets. Do you know the scripture reference?
Student 1 will mark the box next to Amos 3:7 for round one, and then students 1 and 2 will reverse roles and repeat the exchange. If a student gives an incorrect scripture reference, the other student can correct him or her, but the first student should not mark the box on the handout.
Encourage students to talk to as many students as they can in five minutes.
After the round is over, invite each student to select a different doctrinal mastery scripture passage (or passages) from the handout. Repeat the activity, with students marking the passages they find in the Round 2 column. If time allows, do the activity a third time. You might allow students to use the Doctrinal Mastery Reference Guide for the first round but not for the second and third rounds. Encourage students to see if they can correctly identify more passages in each round than they did in the previous round.