ANÁLISIS Y DIAGNÓSTICO DEL LUGAR DONDE SE

In order for our faith to lead to salvation, it must be centered in the Lord Jesus Christ. To have faith in Jesus Christ means to trust Him and obey His commandments. Faith is much more than passive belief. We express our faith through action—by the way we live.

Prepare yourself spiritually

As you study the scriptures and other resources to learn about faith, look for things that would help the young men strengthen their faith in Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 11:4–9, 17–29; Ether 12:11–22 (Examples of people who showed faith)

James 1:5–6; 2:14–20 (Faith is belief and action)

Alma 32:21, 26–43 (Faith is hope for things that are true but not seen) Moroni 7:33–41 (Miracles are wrought by faith)

L. Tom Perry, “Obedience through Our Faithfulness,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 100–103

Russell M. Nelson, “Let Your Faith Show,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 29–32

“Faith,” True to the Faith, 54–56 Video: “Pure and Simple Faith”

Let the young men lead

A member of the quorum presidency (or an assistant to the bishop in the priests quo- rum) conducts the quorum meeting. He leads the young men in counseling together about quorum business, teaches them their priesthood duties (from the scriptures and the Duty to God book), encourages them to share their experiences fulfilling their duty to God, and invites an adviser or other quorum member to teach a gospel lesson. He could prepare by filling out a quorum meeting agenda during a presidency meeting.

Begin the learning experience

Choose from these ideas, or think of your own, to review the doctrine from last week’s lesson and introduce this week’s lesson:

How have you exercised faith in Jesus Christ? What experiences can you share with the young men that could inspire them to act in faith?

How do the Aaronic Priesthood holders you teach exercise their faith in Jesus Christ? What are they doing to strengthen their faith?

• Ask each young man to spend about 30 seconds writing down as many things as he can remember from last week’s lesson. Invite the young men to share their lists. How can you use their lists to introduce the topic of faith? • Draw a simple rowboat, and label it “Faith.” Add an oar labeled “Belief”

and another labeled “Action.” Ask the quorum what would happen to this boat if it had only one oar. What will happen to our faith if we do not act on what we believe? Use the scrip- tures or True to the Faith (pages 54–56) to help quorum members understand what faith is and how this drawing relates to faith.

Learn together

Each of the following activities will help the quorum members understand what it means to have faith in Jesus Christ. Following the inspiration of the Spirit, select one or more that will work best for your quorum:

• Invite a quorum member to teach a portion of this lesson. He could do this as part of his Duty to God plan to learn and teach about faith (see “Understand Doctrine,” page 18, 42, or 66).

• Invite the young men to read James 2:14–20 and identify the examples James uses to teach about the relation- ship between faith and works. Ask a few of them to summarize in their own words what James is teaching about faith. Invite the young men to search Elder Russell M. Nelson’s talk “Let Your Faith Show” to find exam- ples of people who showed their faith through their works. Ask them to share what they find and discuss how they can let their faith show.

• Ask each young man to find a story from the scriptures in which someone acted on his or her belief in Jesus Christ (see, for example, Exodus 14:19–28; Matthew 8:5–13; Hebrews 11:4–9, 17–29; Ether 12:11–22; 1 Nephi 4). Invite the young men to also write about an experience in which they or someone they know exercised faith in

Jesus Christ. Ask each young man to share the story he found in the scrip- tures and the experience he wrote about. They could do this in small groups or as a quorum.

• Write the following question on the board: What is faith? What does it mean to have faith in Jesus Christ? How do I live by faith? How do I increase my faith? Assign each quorum member one of the sections under the heading “Faith” in True to the Faith. Invite the young men to read their section, including the scripture references, and look for answers to one of the questions on the board. Have them write their answers on the board and share additional things they learned with the quorum. 

• Ask the quorum members to search Elder L. Tom Perry’s talk “Obedience through Our Faithfulness,” looking for the word faith. What do they learn about faith and obedience from Elder Perry’s message? Invite them to share personal experiences in which their faith has helped them obey the Lord’s

Teaching tip

“When you teach from the scriptures, it is often helpful to have learners look for something spe- cific” (Teaching, No Greater Call [1999], 55).

Teaching in the Savior’s way

The Savior said, “My doc- trine is not mine, but his that sent me” (John 7:16). He taught the doctrine that He learned from His Father. How can you en- sure that you are teaching true doctrine? (See Teach- ing, No Greater Call, 52–53.) 

commandments, even when they did not know all the reasons for the commandments.

• Invite the young men to read Mat- thew 17:20, and ask them what they think it means to move mountains with our faith. Share the following statement from Bishop Richard C. Edgley: “I have never witnessed the removal of an actual mountain. But because of faith I have seen a moun- tain of doubt and despair removed and replaced with hope and opti-

mism. Because of faith I have per- sonally witnessed a mountain of sin replaced with repentance and for- giveness. And because of faith I have personally witnessed a mountain of pain replaced with peace, hope, and gratitude. Yes, I have seen mountains removed” (“Faith—the Choice Is Yours,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2010, 33). Show the video “Pure and Simple Faith,” and ask the young men to look for mountains that were removed through faith (or share an experience of your own). 

Ask the young men to share what they learned today. Do they understand what it means to have faith in Jesus Christ? What feelings or impressions do they have? Do they have any additional questions? Would it be worthwhile to spend more time on this doctrine?

Invite to act

The young man who is conducting concludes the meeting. He could: • Share his feelings about what it

means to have faith in Jesus Christ and what he plans to do to act on this faith.

• Discuss with the quorum how their faith is manifest in their priest- hood service.

Selected Resources

Excerpt from “Faith,” True to the Faith (2004), 54–56 Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ

In order for your faith to lead you to salvation, it must be centered in the Lord Jesus Christ (see Acts 4:10–12; Mosiah 3:17; Moroni 7:24–26; Articles of Faith 1:4). You can exercise faith in Christ when you have an assurance that He exists, a correct idea of His character, and a knowledge that you are striving to live according to His will.

Having faith in Jesus Christ means relying com- pletely on Him—trusting in His infinite power, intelligence, and love. It includes believing His teachings. It means believing that even though you do not understand all things, He does. Remember that because He has experienced all your pains, afflictions, and infirmities, He knows how to help you rise above your daily difficulties (see Alma 7:11–12; D&C 122:8). He has “overcome the world” (John 16:33) and prepared the way for you to receive eternal life. He is always ready to help you as you remember His plea: “Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not” (D&C 6:36).

Living by Faith

Faith is much more than passive belief. You express your faith through action—by the way you live. The Savior promised, “If ye will have faith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expe- dient in me” (Moroni 7:33). Faith in Jesus Christ can motivate you to follow His perfect example (see John 14:12). Your faith can lead you to do good works, obey the commandments, and repent of your sins (see James 2:18; 1 Nephi 3:7; Alma 34:17).

Your faith can help you overcome temptation. Alma counseled his son Helaman, “Teach them to with- stand every temptation of the devil, with their faith on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Alma 37:33).

The Lord will work mighty miracles in your life according to your faith (see 2 Nephi 26:13). Faith in Jesus Christ helps you receive spiritual and physical healing through His Atonement (see 3 Nephi 9:13– 14). When times of trial come, faith can give you strength to press forward and face your hardships with courage. Even when the future seems uncer- tain, your faith in the Savior can give you peace (see Romans 5:1; Helaman 5:47).

Increasing Your Faith

Faith is a gift from God, but you must nurture your faith to keep it strong. Faith is like the muscle of your arm. If you exercise it, it grows strong. If you put it in a sling and leave it there, it becomes weak. You can nurture the gift of faith by praying to Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ. As you express your gratitude to your Father and as you plead with Him for blessings that you and others need, you will draw near to Him. You will draw near to the Savior, whose Atonement makes it possible for you to plead for mercy (see Alma 33:11). You will also be receptive to the quiet guidance of the Holy Ghost.

You can strengthen your faith by keeping the com- mandments. Like all blessings from God, faith is ob- tained and increased through individual obedience and righteous action. If you desire to enrich your faith to the highest possible degree, you must keep the covenants you have made.

MARCH: THE ATONEMENT OF JESUS CHRIST

See the appendix for other teaching and learning ideas.