Come, Follow Me Daily Study Guide for the week of July 5-11, 2021 covering Doctrine and Covenants 76. For personal and/or family study of the scriptures, geared towards families with teenagers.
*These are suggested resources that coincide with the Come, Follow Me manual that I have gathered along with my own thoughts and testimony.
*SCRIPTURE JOURNALS – I strongly suggest having a scripture journal. On occasion it is suggested to write something down in your scripture journal. These are also great for writing down any impressions or “Aha” moments that you might have as you study the scriptures.
*A free PDF DOWNLOAD of the Study Guide is available at the bottom of this post. You can also add Melanie’s Library to your mobile device home screen by following these instructions, click HERE
*SONGS – For a list of suggested songs for each day of the week, be sure and check out the blog called Music for Latter-day Life by clicking HERE. Suggestion for NON-SINGERS: Instead of singing, listen to the song suggested on Music for Latter-day Life and as you listen, write in our scripture journals how you have seen the hand of the Lord in your life or something you are grateful for. It is a great way to invite the Spirit to your scripture study.
FHE DAY
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I AM A CHILD OF GOD
SCRIPTURE
D&C 76:24
SUMMARY
We are begotten sons and daughters unto God.
VIDEOS
- I am a Child of God [Lyrics Video], click HERE
- Video Presentation: I Am a Child of God (3:18), click HERE
ACTIVITIES
1.CFM MANUAL: Your family might notice connections between the truths in section 76 and those taught in “I Am a Child of God” (Children’s Songbook, 2–3); one of these truths is found in Doctrine and Covenants 76:24. How might the world be different if everyone understood that we are all children of God? How does this truth affect the way we treat others? Perhaps looking at pictures of the diverse sons and daughters of God on this earth could help your family ponder this question. (See also “Video Presentation: I Am a Child of God,” ChurchofJesusChrist.org.) Consider singing “I Am a Child of God” together and look for other connections to the principles in section 76 (see, for example, verses 12, 62, 96). **The video they suggest plus a lyrics video to the song are included under the VIDEOS section above**
2. FREE COLORING PAGES: Here is a “I Am a Child of God” color by numbers. There is a scripture verse to read before you color a new number. Click HERE. Here is another free I Am a Child of God coloring page. Click HERE
3. POEM: Have a family member read this poem “Who I Really Am,” click HERE
4. SIGN LANGUAGE: Learn sign language to the first verse of the song I Am a Child of God, click HERE
5. OBJECT LESSON/QUIZ: Show your family several different fruits, flowers, or plants. Discuss how they are alike and how they are all different. Explain how trees, fruits, flowers, and animals are all different shapes, colors, and sizes. Heavenly Father made people different too. We grow at different speeds and blossom at different times. You can feel good about who you are and what makes you special. Ask the questions on this page “It’s Good to Be Me,” click HERE. End by discussing how we can be more accepting of all people.
6. OBJECT LESSON: The Offspring of a King, click HERE
7. FIGHTING OFF FALSEHOODS: Movies, music, and things you see online might make you feel bad about yourself. Practice battling Satan’s lies with Heavenly Father’s truths. Print the following page and as a family see if you can match the false with the truth. Click HERE Then discuss if there are any more falsehoods you could add to the list and what is Heavenly Father’s truth that would fight against that falsehood?
QUOTES
- SAMUEL HISLOP: Before anything else in this life, we are children of God, and brothers and sisters. (For image, click HERE)
- DONALD L. HALLSTROM: No matter what our circumstances are, it is essential that our preeminent identity is as a child of God. (I Am a Child of God)
- BRIAN K. TAYLOR: How can each of us experience the power of understanding our divine identity? It begins by seeking to know God, our Father. (Am I a Child of God?)
- PRESIDENT PACKER: You are a child of God. He is the father of your spirit. Spiritually you are of noble birth, the offspring of the King of Heaven. Fix that truth in your mind and hold to it. However many generations in your mortal ancestry, no matter what race or people you represent, the pedigree of your spirit can be written on a single line. You are a child of God!
IMAGE
Used for educational purposes
PONDER & DISCUSS
- How might the world be different if everyone understood that we are all children of God?
- How does this truth affect the way we treat others?
- Ponder how I can better show acceptance to all people through my actions?
CONFERENCE TALKS
- I Am a Child of God by Donald L. Hallstrom, click HERE
- Am I a Child of God? by Brian K. Taylor, click HERE
GOD SAVES “ALL THE WORKS OF HIS HANDS, EXCEPT THOSE SONS OF PERDITION”
SCRIPTURE
D&C 76:25-27, 41-44, 71-91, 97-112 (Today’s focus is on Lucifer, the sons of perdition, and the Terrestrial and Telestial glories. Wednesday’s focus is on the Celestial glory.)
See Bible Dictionary, “Lucifer”; Guide to the Scriptures, “Lucifer,”
SUMMARY
1.Some people, including some early Church members, objected to the vision in section 76 because it taught that almost everyone would be saved and receive some degree of glory. Their objections may have come, in part, from a misunderstanding about God and His relationship to us. (CFM manual)
2. When this revelation was first distributed among the Saints, some struggled. You may be surprised to know that some questioned it. Many asked, “Did this new view of heaven save too many souls?” (Saints, Vol. 1, 150). In fact, Brigham Young said, “My traditions were such, that when the Vision came first to me, it was directly contrary and opposed to my former education. I said, Wait a little. I did not reject it; but I could not understand it.” (Come Follow Me Through the Doctrine and Covenants)
3. Joseph Smith once said, “Could you gaze into heaven five minutes, you would know more than you would by reading all that was ever written on the subject.”
VIDEOS
Chapter 26: The Three Kingdoms of Heaven (4:07), click HERE
ACTIVITIES
1. TRUE OR FALSE: Take the following True or False Quiz. Have family members write their answers down on a piece of paper or in their scripture journals. (Taken from D&C and Church History Seminary Teacher Manual)
- Satan was known as Lucifer
- Satan was a spirit in authority in the presence of God.
- Satan did not mean to disobey Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
- There was rejoicing in heaven when Satan was cast out.
- Satan makes war with the Saints of God.
After you complete the quiz, explain that in Doctrine and Covenants 76:25–29 we learn of fall of Lucifer. Have your family read these verses silently and make any changes to their answers based on what they read. After everyone has verified their answers, review each statement. Have family members explain their answers using what they learned. (ANSWERS: 1-T; 2-T; 3-F; 4-F; 5-T)
2. ACTIVITY: (Taken from Scripture Study for Latter-day Saint Families) Give your family something sweet to taste and then right afterward give them something sour or bitter. Invite one of them to describe the experience. Ask why the sour or bitter taste was more of a shock after tasting the sweet than it would have been by itself. Read D&C 76:20 and D&C 76:25. Then have your family tell how the second vision Joseph and Sidney saw was like the taste test above. ASK:
- What did they see in verse 20?
- Whom did they see in verse 25?
- Which vision would have brought joy?
- Why do you think they were shown the vision of Satan right after the vision of the Lord?
Read D&C 76:29 and ask your family “What is Satan doing right now? What can we do to win the war against Satan?” Share the quote below by Joseph Smith.
3. INSIGHT FROM SCOTT SORENSEN: Lucifer means “light” or “light bringer.” After his rebellion, his name was changed to Satan, or devil. Devil means “a slanderer; a false accuser; backbiter.”
- He led “a third part” of the hosts of heaven from our Heavenly Parents (D&C 29:36). Notice that it doesn’t say “one third” or “33 percent.” It simply means one of three parts. We do not know the percentage, or number, of God’s children who rebelled.
- Lucifer, and those who followed him, were cast out “because of their agency” (D&C 29:36; emphasis added).
- When Lucifer and his followers left, “the heavens wept over him” (D&C 76:26). That did not just include our Heavenly Parents, but it included us as well. It was less like a celebration and more of a funeral. It broke all of our hearts to see them choose to leave.
4. Read D&C 76:71-75 and mark phrases describing those who will inherit the terrestrial kingdom. You may encourage family members to write these down in their scripture journals or make a list together on a large piece of paper. Share the quote below by Bruce R. McConkie and then read D&C 76:79 and discuss what it means to be valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ. (Scripture Study for Latter-day Saint Families)
5. Read D&C 76:81-83, 98-101 and mark phrases describing those who will inherit the telestial kingdom. You may encourage family members to write these down in their scripture journals or make a list together on a large piece of paper. Then read D&C 76:84-86, 102, 104-6, 112 and discover what will be the fate of those in the telestial kingdom. Then read D&C 76:89 and ask, “What does the Lord say about the telestial kingdom, even though it is the lowest of the three degrees of glory?” (Scripture Study for Latter-day Saint Families)
QUOTES
JOSEPH SMITH: “All beings who have bodies have power over those who have not….The devil has no power over us only as we permit him. The moment we revolt at anything which comes from God, the devil takes power.”
SPENCER W. KIMBALL: “Those who followed Lucifer in his rebellion in the premortal life and those who in mortality sin against the Holy Ghost are sons of perdition….In the realms of perdition or the kingdom of darkness, where there is no light, Satan and the unembodied spirits of the pre-existence shall dwell together with those of mortality who retrogress [fall] to the level of perdition….They have sunk so low as to have lost the inclinations and ability to repent, consequently the gospel plan is useless to them as an agent of growth and development. These deny the Son and the gospel of repentance, and thus lose the power to repent.” (The Miracle of Forgiveness)
BRUCE R. MCCONKIE: “Those destined to inherit the terrestrial kingdom are: (1) those who died ‘without law’ – those heathen and pagan people who do not hear the gospel in this life, and who would not accept it with all their hearts should they hear it; (2) those who hear and reject the gospel in this life and then accept it in the spirit world; (3) those who are ‘honorable men of the earth, who [are] blinded by the craftiness of men’; and (4) those who are lukewarm members of the true church and who have testimonies, but who are not true and faithful in all things.”
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Used for educational purposes.
PONDER & DISCUSS
CFM MANUAL: As you read this revelation, what do you learn about God’s character and His plan for His children? Consider the difference between being saved (from physical and spiritual death; see verses 39, 43–44) and being exalted (living with God and becoming like Him; see verses 50–70).
CONFERENCE TALKS
- “The Great Imitator” by James E. Faust, click HERE
- Choose You This Day by Dale G. Renlund, click HERE
MY HEAVENLY FATHER WANTS ME TO RECEIVE ETERNAL LIFE IN THE CELESTIAL KINGDOM
SCRIPTURE
D&C 76:50-70, 92-95
See also Moses 1:39 and Doctrine and Covenants 132:20–25
SUMMARY
Obtaining Celestial Glory
VIDEOS
- A Yearning for Home by Dieter F. Uchtdorf (3:40), click HERE
- Because He Loves Us, click HERE
- You Never Know How Much Good You Do (8:54), click HERE
- Is There Still Hope for Me? Hope Works (11:50), click HERE
ACTIVITIES
1.How will you help your family look forward to and prepare for eternal life in the celestial kingdom? You could work together to find pictures, scriptures, and prophetic teachings to go with phrases in Doctrine and Covenants 76:50–70. You might find these things in Church magazines, on ChurchofJesusChrist.org, or in the footnotes of the scriptures. Then you could gather these pictures, scriptures, and teachings on a poster that could remind your family of your eternal goals. (CFM manual)
2. OBJECT LESSON: Stringing It Out, click HERE
In modern revelation we are told that only those who are devoted to God and his way of life will reach the celestial glory. Only those who go there may become like him. All others, going to the lesser glories, will be restricted in that they may not become like him.
- I ask you here today—where do you want to spend eternity? Where would you like your family to spend eternity?
- If you knew that by living the gospel you may have celestial glory rather than a lesser one, would it not be worth the effort to obtain it?
- Who would be satisfied with the subdued twinkle of a star if he could enjoy the brilliance of the sun?
- Who would be content with the reflected light of the moon if he could have the radiance of the sun?
- Who would exchange the privilege of becoming like God for the very questionable and temporary advantages of this world?
- Who in his right mind would prefer the corruptions of the flesh, the sensual pleasures, and the false excitement of sin, rather than the opportunity of becoming like God; rather than having inspired intelligence, or of some day wielding some of the powers that God uses as he walks in his majesty?
- Which of us would sell his birthright for a mess of pottage?
- Isn’t it advisable that we direct to our own selves the question raised by the Savior: “… what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”
Whether we realize it or not, we answer that question every day of our lives by what we think and say and do. Our actions demonstrate whether we are working toward becoming like God or the world. (What Will a Man Give?)
QUOTES
1.ELDER CORNISH: If you will really try and will not rationalize or rebel—repenting often and pleading for grace—you positively are going to be “good enough.” (Am I Good Enough? Will I Make It?)
2. ELDER BRUCE R. MCCONKIE: “… Everyone in the Church who is on the straight and narrow path, who is striving and struggling and desiring to do what is right, though [he] is far from perfect in this life; if he passes out of this life while he’s on the straight and narrow, he’s going to go on to eternal reward in his Father’s kingdom” (The Probationary Test of Mortality, devotional address, Salt Lake Institute of Religion, Jan. 10, 1982, 8–9).
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Used for educational purposes.
PONDER & DISCUSS
1.Have you ever wondered—or worried—about whether or not you will qualify for the celestial kingdom? When you read the description of those who receive this glory (see verses 50–70, 92–95), rather than looking only for a list of things you must do, look for what God has done—and is doing—to help you become like Him. Does reading the vision in this way affect how you feel about your personal efforts? You might also think about the great blessing it is to know these details about the celestial kingdom. How does this vision of celestial glory affect the way you view and want to live your daily life? (CFM manual)
2. President Russell M. Nelson taught, “The Lord is gathering those who are willing to let God prevail in their lives. The Lord is gathering those who will choose to let God be the most important influence in their lives.” What do you see in celestial beings that is evidence that they let God prevail in their lives?
CONFERENCE TALKS
- Value beyond Measure by Joy D. Jones, click HERE
- Am I Good Enough? Will I Make It? By Elder J. Devn Cornish, click HERE
- Let God Prevail by Russell M. Nelson, click HERE
GENERAL CONFERENCE DAY
Study a recent General Conference talk. A great way to study a conference talk is to read along as you listen and highlight the parts that stand out to you. Then after the talk, review and discuss what you have highlighted.
THIS WEEK’S TALK: Why the Covenant Path by Elder D. Todd Christofferson, click HERE
CATCH UP DAYS
Do one of the days that you missed OR any of the additional resources listed.
Yours Truly,
P.S. For more Come, Follow Me resources, check out my post Your Ultimate Guide to Come, Follow Me. It lists over 100 Come, Follow Me resources that are available online starting with the church’s resources at the top. You can find it by clicking HERE.
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