The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Posted: 31 Dec 2007 02:31 PMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
The purpose:
To help class members understand how the Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion and how abiding by its precepts helps us draw nearer to God.
Scriptures:
http://scriptures.lds.org/1_ne/13/38-41#38
http://scriptures.lds.org/1_ne/19/23#23
http://scriptures.lds.org/2_ne/25/21-22#21
http://scriptures.lds.org/2_ne/27/22#22
http://scriptures.lds.org/2_ne/29/6-9#6
http://scriptures.lds.org/morm/8/26-41#26
http://scriptures.lds.org/ether/5/2-4#2
http://scriptures.lds.org/moro/1/4#4
http://scriptures.lds.org/moro/10/3-5#3
http://scriptures.lds.org/dc/10/45-46#45
http://scriptures.lds.org/dc/20/8-12#8
http://scriptures.lds.org/dc/84/54-58#54
-----------------------------------------------
Teacher's Manual Link:
Student Manual Link:
XO
Whit
Posted: 31 Dec 2007 02:34 PMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Our bishop challenged us to read it this year. Im going to take him up on it. And it should be easy with the GD class.
Posted: 31 Dec 2007 02:35 PMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
http://deseretbook.com/time-out/forum/time-out/500594
I'm glad it's not gone forever!! Here are the assignments:
CTR - Posting Institute Manual Links
bennetsister - Posting Seminary Manual Links
Tuesday morning luwenn will post a spiritual thought - scripture, quote or talk to go along with the lesson for the week.
Wednesday morning verily will post a spiritual thought - scripture, quote or talk to go along with the lesson for the week.
Thursday morning melaniemom (if you WANT to, mm) will post the spiritual thought - scripture, quote or talk to go along with the lesson for the week.
Pam - FRIDAYs.
meg85242 - Can post things Mondays!!
Posted: 31 Dec 2007 02:37 PMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
http://www.whitlarson.com/2008_BM_Reading.doc
Posted: 31 Dec 2007 02:47 PMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
I was released from primary a few weeks ago, so actually get to attend GD which will also be amazing. I love the Book of Mormon, but haven't given it a good study in ages. so...I am excited. Thanks for posting this right away Whit!
Posted: 31 Dec 2007 05:21 PMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Hugs -
Meg
Posted: 31 Dec 2007 05:43 PMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Posted: 1 Jan 2008 08:20 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Here is the link to the seminary manual for the introduction to the Book of Mormon. There is a nifty chart on the sources/differant sets of plates that the Book of Mormon comes from.
Here is the link the Pres. Faust's article on the Book of Mormon being the Keystone. I thought it was a good article to go with the intro to the Book of Mormon. http://tinyurl.com/3b2823
And here is a talk by Elder Oaks that I thought went good with this lesson. He speaks mostly about Martin Harris but there is some good stuff about the law of witnessess etc. http://tinyurl.com/8j3yb
And here is another article. This one is by Elder Nelson. It is about having a testimony of the Book of Mormon. I thought it was a good read as I am starting a new study of the Book of Mormon. http://tinyurl.com/2mo328
I know I posted lots of links...I'll be back to actually comment and or pose questions about the reading.
Happy New Year! :-)
Posted: 1 Jan 2008 08:51 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Introduction
http://www.ldsces.org/inst_manuals/bm-in-sm1996/bm1996-09-mor.htm#9-7
Appendix A: The Book of Mormon - Keystone of our Religion
http://tiny.cc/krw7b
For the scriptures... you'll have to scroll through each of the posted institute lessons to get to the chapter in the lesson... I couldn't get it to link directly to the specific passage.
1 Nephi 13:38–41
http://tiny.cc/tHXF3
1 Nephi 19:23
http://tiny.cc/qMN8J
2 Nephi 25:21–22; 27:22; 29:6–9
http://tiny.cc/cqPYD
and
http://tiny.cc/TLfKX
Mormon 8:26–41
http://www.ldsces.org/inst_manuals/bm-in-sm1996/bm1996-09-mor.htm#9-2
Ether 5:2–4
http://www.ldsces.org/inst_manuals/bm-in-sm1996/bm1996-09-mor.htm#9-3
Moroni 1:4
http://www.ldsces.org/inst_manuals/bm-in-sm1996/bm1996-09-mor.htm#9-6
Moroni 10:3-5
http://www.ldsces.org/inst_manuals/bm-in-sm1996/bm1996-09-mor.htm#9-7
Posted: 1 Jan 2008 10:11 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Elder Richard G. Scott: "It is not sufficient that the Book of Mormon be found in our homes; its principles must be captured in our minds and hearts. Through consistent reading, prayerful pondering, and conscientious application, its teachings will become an essential part of the fabric of our lives.
What does the Book of Mormon mean to you? Has it been a source of inspiration and power in your life? Will it continue to be?
If you have not yet drunk deeply from this fountain of pure truth, with all of my soul I encourage you to do so now. Don’t let the consistent study of the Book of Mormon be one of the things that you intend to do but never quite accomplish. Begin today.
I bear witness that it can become a personal “Urim and Thummim” in your life."
Elder Neal A. Maxwell: "The Book of Mormon will be with us 'as long as the earth shall stand.' We need all that time to explore it, for the book is like a vast mansion with gardens, towers, courtyards, and wings. There are rooms yet to be entered, with flaming fireplaces waiting to warm us. The rooms glimpsed so far contain further furnishings and rich details yet to be savored, but decor dating from Eden is evident. There are panels inlaid with incredible insights, particularly insights about the great question*. Yet we as Church members sometimes behave like hurried tourists, scarcely venturing beyond the entry hall." (Not My Will, p. 33)
* The "great question" referred to here is posed in this chapter of Elder Maxwell's book as the one posed by Amulek in Alma 34:5-6, whether there is really a redeeming Christ. I thought this was a "great question" to keep in mind for me as I begin my study of the Book of Mormon--not that I don't already believe it, but looking for evidence of it in the Book of Mormon, as Another Testament of Jesus Christ.
Posted: 2 Jan 2008 12:32 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
If you ponder the scriptures and begin to do what you covenanted with God to do, I can promise you that you will feel more love for God and more of His love for you. And with that, your prayers will come from the heart, full of thanks and of pleading. You will feel a greater dependence on God. You will find the courage and the determination to act in His service, without fear and with peace in your heart. You will pray always. And you will not forget Him, no matter what the future brings. Elder Henry B Eyring.
Posted: 2 Jan 2008 03:25 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Posted: 2 Jan 2008 09:16 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
I really like 1 Nephi 13:38-41. You know when you write a paper you are supposed to have a thesis at the beginning and then prove the thesis through the writing of the paper? Well that is kind of how I see this scripture. It is the thesis or purpose of the Book of Mormon. To prove that the "Lamb of God is the son of the Eternal Father, and the Savior of the world; and that all men must come unto him, or they cannot be saved."
And that is pretty much what the Book of Mormon does. It backs up this statement.
I think Doc and Cov 20: 8-12 also went well with 1 Nephi 13:38-41 as a good summery statement about what the Book of Mormon is and what it contains.
And of course there is the good ol' scripture mastery from 1 Nephi 19:23. I memorized this when I was 15 or 16 but I can still continue to gain new insights from it. Understanding Isaiah will help us believe in the Lord, help build our testimony. That is nothing new but a good reminder. I tried doing a study of the Isaiah chapters in the Book of Mormon last year. I have to admit I did not get very far because I got discouraged. It was taking a lot of brain power that is hard to summon with two young kids. I will have to try to do a better job this year.
I also really liked reading Doc and Cov 84:54-58. Especially where it says to "not only say, but do..." A reminder I often need. Reading the doctrines, studying etc will do no good if I am not actually living and doing what I am being taught and learning. It goes with t he quote that looney_tunes posted by Elder Scott.
Ok...Those are just some thoughts I had this morning. I don't know if I will get a chance to read more of the lesson today but will continue tomorrow.
Looney_tunes-Thank you for the quotes! They are great! I love the one my Elder Maxwell. He was a great writer! I love the imagery from the quote and how well it does apply to the Book or Mormon. "Flaming fireplaces waiting to warm us." "details yet to be savored."
Love it! :-)
Posted: 2 Jan 2008 09:43 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Okay, I just want to say... PLEASE... even if you get "off track" for a few weeks... don't be afraid to come back and jump back in. I really think it's better to just come join back where we are than to worry about "catching up" - seriously!! We lost some people last year and I don't want to see it happen this year. It is OKAY if you can't keep up every week!! It is understandable and even to be expected.
Okay, that's my plea... now... I will go read what everyone has posted. :)
Posted: 2 Jan 2008 10:28 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
This morning, when reading Moroni's words, "Wherefore, I write a few more things, contrary to that which I had supposed; for I had supposed not to have written any more; but I write a few more things, that perhaps they may be of worth unto my brethren, the Lamanites, in some future day, according to the will of the Lord" I really felt the Spirit testifying to me of the importance of Moroni's work and words. How grateful I am that he listened and wrote "a few more things."
I have always loved Parley P. Pratt's testimony of the Book of Mormon, “I opened it with eagerness, and read its title page. I then read the testimony of several witnesses in relation to the manner of its being found and translated. After this I commenced its contents by course. I read all day; eating was a burden, I had no desire for food; sleep was a burden when the night came, for I preferred reading to sleep.
“As I read, the spirit of the Lord was upon me, and I knew and comprehended that the book was true” (Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt, p. 20).
Thanks to everyone for quotes and links. I have enjoyed going through them this morning. Elder Maxwell's quote was particularly moving to read. I look forward to exploring the rooms more carefully. I look forward to the beauty and comfort and warmth that I know I will find in the pages that I read.
I look forward to this journey with each of you!
Whit
Posted: 2 Jan 2008 02:00 PMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Posted: 3 Jan 2008 12:41 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Posted: 3 Jan 2008 02:59 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
this goes with 1 Nephi 1:8
Posted: 3 Jan 2008 05:34 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Love,
Melanie
Gary J. Coleman, “‘Mom, Are We Christians?’,” Ensign, May 2007, 92–94
Christianity celebrates the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God the Eternal Father. Christian churches with great variations of doctrine dot the land the world over. When 14-year-old Cortnee, a daughter of a mission president, entered a new high school as a freshman, she was asked by classmates if she was a Christian. They scoffed at her response that she was a Mormon, a common reference to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Upon arriving home she asked her mother, “Mom, are we Christians?”
Growing up in my family, we lived as devout members of another Christian faith. I was baptized a member of that church shortly after my birth. Our family went to church each week. For many years my brothers and I assisted the pastors who conducted our Sunday services. I was taught the importance of family prayer as our family prayed together each day. I thought that someday I would enter the full-time ministry in my church. There was no question in our minds that we could define ourselves as devout Christians.
When I was a university student, however, I became acquainted with the members and teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a Christian faith centered on the Savior. I began to learn about the doctrine of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ in these latter days. I learned truths that I had not known before that changed my life and how I viewed the gospel. After much studying, prayer, and faith, I chose to embrace beautiful restored truths found only in this Church.
The first restored truth that I learned was the nature of the Godhead. The true Christian doctrine that the Godhead consists of three separate beings was known in biblical times. God bore witness of Jesus, His Only Begotten Son, on several occasions. He spoke at Jesus’s baptism: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”1 Jesus Himself testified of God, His Father, when He said, “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”2 After Jesus’s death and Resurrection, we learn that Stephen, “he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, and said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.”3 What a dramatic testimony of the Godhead from that disciple of Christ.
The knowledge of God and His physical separateness from His Son and the Holy Ghost was lost after the death of Christ and His Apostles. Confusion and false doctrines about the Godhead were fashioned out of the Nicene Creed and Constantinople councils, where men declared that instead of three separate beings, the Godhead was three persons in one God, or the Trinity. Just as Christian Protestant reformers struggled with these creeds of men, I did as well. The teachings about the Trinity that I learned in my youth were incomprehensible to me.
However, when I was introduced to the glorious truths of the First Vision experienced by the Prophet Joseph Smith, it was a stunning awakening for me to finally understand the truth about the nature of God the Eternal Father and His Only Begotten Son. Joseph declared: “I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!”4 This heavenly vision restored the wondrous yet plain and precious knowledge of God and His Son to the earth again, dispelling at once the teachings I had learned about the Trinity.
I know that heaven-sent revelations have replaced the gross errors of man-made doctrines concerning the Godhead. I know that God is our Heavenly Father. His Son, Jesus Christ, is my Savior. The Holy Ghost testifies of the Father and the Son. I express my profound gratitude to God for introducing the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ to mankind in these last days. The Savior lives; He has been seen; He has spoken; He directs the work of His Church through apostles and prophets today. What magnificent truths He has taught as the Good Shepherd who continues to look after His sheep.
The second restored truth I learned as an investigator of this Church was the reality of additional scripture and revelation. The prophet Isaiah saw in vision a book that he proclaimed was part of “a marvellous work and a wonder.”5 I testify that the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ is that book. It is a sacred record written by prophets of God to persuade all people to come unto Christ, and it helps to reveal the gospel of Jesus Christ in its fulness. The Book of Mormon tells of prophets and other faithful members of the Church who took upon themselves the name of Christ, even before the Savior’s birth.6 This book tells of the resurrected Christ teaching men what they must do to gain peace in this life and eternal salvation in the world to come. What could be more Christian than seeking to take His name upon ourselves and follow His counsel to become like Him?
President Gordon B. Hinckley has said, “I cannot understand why the Christian world does not accept this book.”7 I first read the Book of Mormon at the age of 21. I then asked God if it was true. The truth of it was manifested unto me by the comforting power of the Holy Ghost.8 I know that the Book of Mormon is a second testament of Jesus Christ. I join my testimony with the prophets of this sacred book to declare that “we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ.”9 I am deeply grateful for every word that He has spoken and for every word He continues to speak as He quenches our thirst with living water.
Another restored truth of the gospel I became acquainted with was the restoration of priesthood authority, or the power to act in God’s name. Former prophets and apostles, such as Elijah, Moses, John the Baptist, Peter, James, and John, have been sent by God and Christ in our day to restore the holy priesthood of God. Every priesthood holder in this Church can trace his priesthood authority directly to Jesus Christ. Men now possess the keys to establish the Church so that we can come unto Christ and partake of His eternal ordinances of salvation.10 I testify that this is the Church of Jesus Christ—the only church authorized with true priesthood authority to exercise the keys of salvation through sacred ordinances.
Cortnee asked, “Mom, are we Christians?” As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you are a Christian, and I am too. I am a devout Christian who is exceedingly fortunate to have greater knowledge of the true “doctrine of Christ”11 since my conversion to the restored Church. These truths define this Church as having the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Like other members of the Church, I now understand the true nature of the Godhead, I have access to additional scripture and revelation, and I can partake of the blessings of priesthood authority. Yes, Cortnee, we are Christians, and I testify of these truths in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
1. Matthew 3:17.
2. John 17:3.
3. Acts 7:55–56.
4. Joseph Smith—History 1:17.
5. See Isaiah 29:14; see also vv. 11–12, 18.
6. See Alma 46:14–16.
7. The Marvelous Foundation of Our Faith,” Liahona and Ensign, Nov. 2002, 81.
8. See Moroni 10:4–5.
9. 2 Nephi 25:26.
10. See D&C 2; 13; 110; 112:32.
11. 2 Nephi 31:2; see also 3 Nephi 11:31–36.
Posted: 3 Jan 2008 07:02 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Posted: 3 Jan 2008 09:02 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
and the Book of Mormon Gospel Doctrine Teacher's Manual -
We use references from the Seminary Manual (the same that the students use) -
http://www.ldsces.org/inst_manuals/bm-ssg/manualindex.asp
and also references from the Institute Manual -
http://www.ldsces.org/inst_manuals/bm-in-sm1996/manualindex.asp
Posted: 3 Jan 2008 09:15 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
They haven't updated for the new year yet. I'll post if/when they do. :)
BYU Book of Mormon Series:
Chronology Chart - http://tinyurl.com/yu55vl
Episode 1 - "Introduction"
http://www.byub.org/bookofmormon/episode.asp?id=1
New Testament Link:
http://deseretbook.com/time-out/forum/time-out/502654
-Whit
PS
A reminder that there are some GREAT links if you click on the BYU Book of Mormon Series. They are listed as additional resources!
Posted: 3 Jan 2008 03:43 PMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Love your guts!
Toni
Posted: 4 Jan 2008 09:08 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
Okay, back on track here...
Here's the LDS Living link:
http://www.ldsliving.com/bom1.asp
I particularly loved this quote:
Hugh Nibley spoke of this predicament. He said:
There are three possible explanations for the origin of the Book of Mormon. One is that it is a product of spontaneous generation. Another is that it came into existence in the way Joseph Smith said it did, by special messengers and gifts from God. The third is the hypothesis that Joseph Smith or some other party or parties simply made it all up. No experiments have ever been carried out for testing any of these theories. The first has not even been considered, the second has been dismissed with a contemptuous wave of the hand, and the third has been accepted without question or hesitation.
And yet the third theory is quite as extravagant as the other two, demanding unlimited gullibility and the suspension of all critical judgment in any who would accept it. It is based on the simple proposition that since people have written books, somebody, namely Smith or a contemporary, wrote this one. But to make this thesis stick is to show not only that people have written big books, but that somebody has been able to produce a big book like this one. But no other such book exists. Where will you find another work remotely approaching the Book of Mormon in scope and daring? It appears suddenly out of nothing not an accumulation of twenty five years like the Koran, but a single staggering performance, bursting on a shocked and scandalized world like an explosion, the full blown history of an ancient people, following them through all the trials, triumphs, and vicissitudes of a thousand years without a break, telling how a civilization originated, rose to momentary greatness, and passed away, giving due attention to every phase of civilized history in a densely compact and rapidly moving story that interweaves dozens of plots with an inexhaustible fertility of invention and an uncanny consistency that is never caught in a slip or contradiction. We respectfully solicit the name of any student or professor in the world who could come within ten thousand miles of such a performance. As a sheer tour de force there is nothing like it. The theory that Joseph Smith wrote the Book of Mormon simply will not stand examination. (Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, Vol.7, Ch.6, pp.137, 138)
Posted: 4 Jan 2008 10:07 AMSubject: The Keystone of Our Religion - NTSG - Lesson 1
1. It is the keystone in our witness to Christ.
2. It is the keystone to our doctrine.
3. It is the keystoneof testimony.
It goes on to say that the keystone in our witness of Jesus Christ who himself is the cornerstone of everything we do. It bears witness to his reality with power and clarity. Unlike the Bible which past through many generations the Book of Mormon came from the writer to the reader in one inspired step of translation.
The Book of Mormon is keystone to our doctrine of the Ressurection. In the Book of Mormon we will find the fulness of the doctrines required for our salvation. It is also taught plain ly and simply so that even children can learn the way to salvation and exaltation.
Finally the Book of Mormon is the keystone to testimony. Just as the arch crumbles if the keystone is removed so does the Church stand or fall with the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon.
I bear my testimony that I truly believe that the Book of Mormon is True and it is what we need for salvation. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ Our Lord, Amen.
Hugs
Pam