Welcome to April!
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April, Week 1
Day 1
*Primary
1. Read Exodus 7 and Exodus 8.
2. The Israelites were in captivity and could not free themselves, but the Lord showed His power and delivered them. Pharaoh did not believe the signs that Moses and Aaron showed him, so the Lord sent plagues to convince him to release the Israelites.
*3. Print the booklet The Ten Plagues of Egypt. Color the plagues you read about today. Save the rest. We will be working on this again tomorrow.
4. Listen to the song, “Redeemer of Israel” while you color!
Youth
1. Read Exodus 7 and Exodus 8.
2. The Old Testament is full of small errors and mistranslations because of how it was handed down to the present day. When you find something peculiar or hard to understand, be sure to look at the footnotes for extra information. For example, in Exodus 7:1, it says Moses was a God to Pharaoh, and Aaron was his prophet. In the footnotes we read that it should say that Moses was as God to Pharaoh, and Aaron was his spokesman.
3. Another famous mistranslation appears in Exodus 7:3, where it says the Lord will harden Pharaoh’s heart. If you read footnote a, it says that Pharaoh will harden his heart. As you read through the plagues, it is important to remember that the Lord did not harden his heart. Pharaoh was responsible for hardening his own heart.
4. Hopefully your will is never as dramatically opposed to God’s will as Pharaoh’s was. Still, we all have times when our hearts aren’t as soft as they should be, so there is something to learn from Pharaoh’s actions recorded in Exodus 7–10. As you read about the plagues in these chapters, what stands out to you about Pharaoh’s responses? Do you notice any similar tendencies toward hardheartedness in yourself? Ponder what you learn from these chapters about what it means to have a soft heart.
5. The Lord allows us opportunities to soften our hearts and repent, but He will not force us to repent. Elder Gerald N. Lund of the Seventy said:
Individual agency is so sacred that Heavenly Father will never force the human heart, even with all His infinite power. Man may try to do so, but God does not. To put it another way, God allows us to be the guardians, or the gatekeepers, of our own hearts. We must, of our own free will, open our hearts to the Spirit, for He will not force Himself upon us.
Day 2
Primary
1. Read Exodus 9 and Exodus 10.
2. Pharaoh chose to harden his heart when the Lord told him to release the children of Israel. How can you choose to have a soft heart so you are willing to serve the Lord and do His will?
3. In these chapters we see that the people of Israel were protected from the plagues. (Exodus 9:4, Exodus 9:26, Exodus 10:23) It is important to know that the Lord did not forget how the plagues would affect the Israelites and remembered to protect them!
4. Which plagues did we read about today? Color the pages with those plagues and save your pages for tomorrow.
5. Watch the video, “The Plagues of Egypt.”
Youth
1. Read Exodus 9 and Exodus 10.
2. The plagues continued in today’s chapters. Each time the Pharaoh negotiates an end to the plagues by promising to allow the people of Israel to go and worship the Lord; each time once the plague has ended he goes back on his word. (Exodus 9:27-28, 34-35) How important is it to keep our promises? Why do you think Pharaoh thought he could get away with breaking his word?
3. The plagues served an important purpose. They showed Pharaoh, Egypt, and the Israelites that Jesus Christ (Jehovah) is more powerful than the false Egyptian gods. Egypt had many false gods, including the pharaoh himself.
[Some] interpreters suggest a symbolic correlation between each plague and an Egyptian deity, assuming they were each meant to demonstrate Jehovah’s superiority over a specific god. This explanation is difficult to confirm in every case. … [However,] there is no doubt that the plagues as a whole were intended to demonstrate the power of Jehovah over the Egyptian pantheon, which included the divine Pharaoh himself.
(Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, Dana M. Pike, and David Rolph Seely, Jehovah and the World of the Old Testament: An Illustrated Reference for Latter-day Saints [2009], 90)
Day 3
Primary
1. Read Exodus 11 and Exodus 12:1-30.
2. The death of the firstborns was the final plague, and the one that finally convinced Pharaoh to release the people of Israel. What did the people of Israel have to do to protect themselves and their families from the plague?
3. Watch the video, “The Passover.”
4. Finish coloring your booklet. Cut apart the pages and staple them together to make a book.
5. Listen to the song, “Keep the Commandments.”
Youth
1. Read Exodus 11 and Exodus 12:1-30.
2. Plague after plague afflicted Egypt, but Pharaoh still refused to release the Israelites. And yet God continued to demonstrate His power and give Pharaoh opportunities to accept “that I am the Lord” and “there is none like me in all the earth” (Exodus 7:5; 9:14). Meanwhile, Moses and the Israelites must have watched with awe at these manifestations of God’s power in their behalf. Surely these continued signs confirmed their faith in God and strengthened their willingness to follow God’s prophet. Then, after nine terrible plagues had failed to free the Israelites, it was the tenth plague – the death of the firstborn, including Pharaoh’s firstborn — that finally ended the captivity. This seems fitting because in every case of spiritual captivity, there truly is only one way to escape. No matter what else we may have tried in the past, it is with us as it was with the children of Israel. It is only the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Firstborn — the blood of the Lamb without blemish — that will save us.
3. The only way for the Israelites to be spared from the tenth plague was to precisely follow the instructions the Lord gave to Moses in Exodus 12, a ritual known as the Passover. The Passover teaches us through symbols that just as the Lord delivered the Israelites from bondage in Egypt, He can also deliver us from the bondage of sin. The blood of a lamb on their doorposts protected the people of Israel from physical death during the tenth plague. The atoning blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ, can protect us from spiritual death.
Day 4
Primary
1. Read Exodus 12:31-51 and Exodus 13.
2. The Lord wanted the people of Israel to always remember how they were saved from bondage and brought out of the land of Egypt. The Lord asked the children of Israel to celebrate the Passover each year to help them remember that He saved them from the Egyptians. The Passover taught the Israelites about the Savior and the sacrifice He would one day make for us. Today, we take the sacrament to remember Jesus’s sacrifice.
3. Watch the video “Always Remember Him.”
4. Listen to the song, “Did Jesus Really Live Again?”
Youth
1. Read Exodus 12:31-51 and Exodus 13.
2. Following the tenth plague, Pharaoh sent the people of Israel out from Egypt so fast that they didn’t have time for their bread to rise. (Unleavened bread is bread without something in it to make it rise, like crackers or tortillas.)
3. Moses told the Israelites to remember the day they were brought out of Egypt by repeating the Passover feast each year on the anniversary of their deliverance (Exodus 13:1-7). How long were they supposed to remember the passover? (Exodus 12:14, 17, 24). The Savior wanted the Israelites to always remember that He had delivered them, even after their captivity became a distant memory. This is why He commanded them to observe the Passover feast each year.
3. Do we still observe the ordinance of the Passover in our day? What ordinance do we observe today in the place of the Passover to help us remember Jesus Christ?
4. Watch the video “Always Remember Him.”
5. On the evening before Jesus Christ was crucified, He and His disciples shared a Passover meal together. At the end of this meal, Jesus introduced the ordinance we now recognize as the sacrament, which He told His disciples to repeat in remembrance of Him. The following day, as a fulfillment of the Passover, the Lamb of God was sacrificed on the cross for the sins of the world. His sacrifice ended the ordinance of blood sacrifice (see 3 Nephi 9:19–20). After the Savior’s Crucifixion, His followers began to meet on the first day of the week to partake of bread and wine in remembrance of Him. Like the Passover, the sacrament helps us remember the Savior’s atoning sacrifice.
Week 2
Day 1
Primary
1. Read Exodus 14.
2. Remember: when it says in the scriptures that the Lord hardened the hearts of Pharaoh and the Egyptians, it should say that they hardened their own hearts. It didn’t take the Egyptians very long to regret letting the Israelites go, and soon they chased them, to capture them and bring them back. The people of Israel complained to Moses that he had brought them out into the wilderness to die, but God had a plan to save them from the Egyptians. Do you remember what it was?
3. Take a look at this picture of Moses parting the Red Sea. Parting the Red Sea was a miracle that showed Moses and the Israelites how powerful the Lord is. Moses knew by revelation how to lead the Israelites across the Red Sea. (D&C 8:2-3) Because he followed the Spirit, Moses was able to save his people and escape from the Egyptians.
4. Listen to the song, “Redeemer of Israel.”
Youth
1. Read Exodus 14.
2. The Israelites were trapped. The Red Sea was on one side, and the army of Pharaoh was advancing on the other. Their escape from Egypt, it seemed, would be short-lived. But God had a message for the Israelites that He wanted them to remember for generations: “Fear ye not. … The Lord shall fight for you.” (Exodus 14:13–14)
3. Since that time, when God’s people have needed faith and courage, they have often turned to this account of Israel’s miraculous deliverance. When Nephi wanted to inspire his brothers, he said, “Let us be strong like unto Moses; for he truly spake unto the waters of the Red Sea and they divided hither and thither, and our fathers came through, out of captivity, on dry ground” (1 Nephi 4:2). When King Limhi wanted his captive people to “lift up [their] heads, and rejoice,” he reminded them of this same story (Mosiah 7:19). When Alma wanted to testify to his son of God’s power, he also referred to this story (see Alma 36:28). And when we need deliverance—when we need a little more faith, when we need to “stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord” — we can remember how “the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians” (Exodus 14:13, 30).
4. Imagine how the Israelites might have felt as they saw Pharaoh’s army closing in. Perhaps you feel that you need a miracle to survive a difficult challenge you are facing. What do you learn from Exodus 14:13–31 that can help you seek God’s deliverance in your life?
Day 2
Primary
1. Read Exodus 15.
2. If we turn to Jesus Christ, He can help us during difficult times in our lives, just as He helped the children of Israel. How did He help the people of Israel in Exodus 15:22-27?
3. Listen to the song, “Did Jesus Really Live Again?”
4. Listen to the song, “The Books of the Old Testament.” Can you sing through the book of Exodus? (That’s where we are reading now.)
Youth
1. Read Exodus 15.
2. Exodus 15:3-21 contains the words of the song Moses and the people sang to tell the story of their deliverance from Egypt and to give thanks to God. It is important to thank the Lord for what He has done for us. How can music help us to express gratitude to the Lord?
3. As you read in Exodus 15:22–27 about Israel’s journeyings toward the promised land, think about things in your life that have seemed “bitter” like the waters of Marah. Consider the following questions as you ponder these verses: How can the Lord make bitter things in your life sweet? What value have these experiences had in your life? What do verses 26 and 27 suggest about how the Lord blesses us when we hearken to His voice?
4. Listen to the song, “The Books of the Old Testament.” Can you sing through the book of Exodus?
Day 3
Primary
1. Read Exodus 16.
2. The people of Israel were angry with Moses when they ran out of food. They complained that it was better to be slaves in Egypt than to starve to death in the wilderness. The Lord sent them a special food to eat, called manna. It tasted like bread and honey. The people of Israel were told to only gather enough for one day. Those who did not trust in the Lord gathered more, but manna stank and grew worms on the second day. There was fresh manna every day, so they did not need to gather extra. Once a week they were told to gather twice as much, so they would not have to work on the Sabbath day. On the Sabbath, the manna stayed fresh for a second day.
3. Watch the video, “The Israelites in the Wilderness.”
4. Listen to the song, “Keep the Commandments.”
Youth
1. Read Exodus 16.
2. Running out of food in the wilderness is a serious problem. Unlike the family of Lehi, the host of Israel was far too numerous to be fed by hunting or gathering food as they went. Unfortunately, the Israelites murmured and were angry, saying it would have been better to be slaves in Egypt, where they always had bread and meat, than to starve to death in the wilderness. However, the Lord would provide. The Lord blessed the children of Israel with manna and instructed them to gather it every morning except on the Sabbath.
3. Watch the video, “The Sin of Murmuring.”
4. Those who did not trust the Lord tried to gather extra, but on every day but the Sabbath the leftover manna would stink and be full of worms. By following the commandments of the Lord, the people of Israel began to develop trust in Him. Elder D. Todd Christofferson said,
By providing a daily sustenance, one day at a time, Jehovah was trying to teach faith to a nation that over a period of some 400 years had lost much of the faith of their fathers. He was teaching them to trust Him, to ‘look unto [Him] in every thought; doubt not, fear not’ (D&C 6:36). He was providing enough for one day at a time. Except for the sixth day, they could not store manna for use in any succeeding day or days. In essence, the children of Israel had to walk with Him today and trust that He would grant a sufficient amount of food for the next day on the next day, and so on. In that way He could never be too far from their minds and hearts.”
(“Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread” [Church Educational System fireside, Jan. 9, 2011]; broadcast.lds.org)
Day 4
Primary
1. Read Exodus 17.
2. In this chapter, the Lord had Moses perform another miracle for the Israelites. The Israelites complained that they did not have any water to drink, and the Lord told Moses to hit a rock with his staff. Fresh water came out, and the Israelites were able to drink.
3. During their journey, the people of Israel battled someone named Amalek. Israel only won in the battle when Moses held his hands up. Unfortunately Moses could not hold his hands up all day. Read Exodus 17:11-12 to see what the people did to help him.
4. Watch the video, “The Israelites in the Wilderness” to remind yourself of the miracles that the Lord had him perform for the people of Israel.
5. Listen to the song, “Did Jesus Really Live Again?”
Youth
1. Read Exodus 17.
2. What new trial did the Israelites face in Exodus 17:1-4? Given the Israelites’ experiences with the manna and the quail, how do you think they could have responded to this trial differently?
3. What did the Lord tell Moses to do? (Exodus 17:5-7) The account of Moses striking the rock has a symbolic meaning. The scriptures sometimes refer to Jesus Christ as “the rock.” Christ also refers to Himself as a provider of “living water.” (John 4:10)
4. After Israel made camp in Rephidim, a man named Amalek brought his people to war against Israel. The people of Israel would prevail whenever Moses had his hands upraised, and the people of Amalek prevailed when Moses put his hands down. How long do you think you could keep your hands in the air? Aaron and Hur thought of a way to help Moses. Read Exodus 17:12-13 to see what it was.
5. Because Aaron and Hur supported the arms of the prophet, what was the outcome of the battle? Based on the actions of Aaron and Hur, what must we do to prevail in our conflict against Satan? As we sustain the Lord’s prophet and follow his words, we will eventually prevail in our conflict against Satan.
Week 3 – Easter
Day 1
Primary
1. This week we are taking a break from the Old Testament to study the Easter story. We will resume studying the Old Testament next week!
2. Just before Jesus was killed, it was time to celebrate Passover. Do you remember which symbols of Passover represent Jesus Christ? Read “The Passover Symbols that Might Change How You Look at Easter.”
3. At the Last Supper, Jesus ate with his disciples and taught them to take the sacrament. The sacrament, in which we remember the sacrifice Jesus made, was meant to replace the animal sacrifice of the Passover.
4. Watch the video, “The First Sacrament.”
5. Listen to the song, “Keep the Commandments.”
Youth
1. This week we are taking a break from the Old Testament to study the Easter story. We will resume studying the Old Testament next week!
2. The week before he died, the Savior came to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. Read Mark 14:12-16. Why do you think it is significant that the Passover occurred just before Jesus was to suffer and die for us? What symbols do you remember from the Passover that represent Christ?
3. Read “The Passover Symbols that Might Change How You Look at Easter.”
4. Read Matthew 26:26-29. What ordinance was Jesus instituting here?
5. President Howard W. Hunter said,
The sacrament of the Lord’s Supper [was] introduced to replace [animal] sacrifice and be a reminder to all those who partake that He truly made a sacrifice for them; and to be an additional reminder of the covenants they have made to follow Him, keep His commandments, and be faithful to the end.
Day 2
Primary
1. Read Matthew 26:36-46 and Luke 22:39-46.
2. Shortly before Jesus Christ died on the cross, he and his Apostles went to a garden called Gethsemane. Three of the Apostles — Peter, James, and John — went into the garden with him. They waited a short distance away while Jesus went farther into the garden and prayed to Heavenly Father. Jesus knew that he would have to suffer for us so that we could repent and be forgiven of our sins. In the Garden of Gethsemane and on the cross, Jesus suffered great pain for us. He suffered for our sins. The Atonement means that Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins so that we could repent and be forgiven. He did this because he loves us and because he wanted to make it possible for us to repent and be clean.
3. Watch the video, “Jesus Suffers in the Garden of Gethsemane.”
4. Listen to the song, “Redeemer of Israel.”
Youth
1. Read Matthew 26:36-46 and Luke 22:39-46.
2. Jesus Christ was foreordained in the premortal council to be our Savior and Redeemer. He came to earth and willingly suffered and died to redeem all mankind from the negative effects of the Fall and to pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus Christ’s triumph over spiritual and physical death by His suffering, death, and Resurrection is called the Atonement. His sacrifice benefits each of us and demonstrates the infinite worth of each and every one of Heavenly Father’s children.
3. He alone could redeem us from our sins. Because He lived a perfect, sinless life, He was free from the demands of justice and could pay the debt for those who repent. As part of His Atonement, Jesus Christ not only suffered for our sins, but He also took upon Himself the pains, temptations, sicknesses, and infirmities of all mankind. He understands our suffering because He has experienced it. As we come to Him in faith, the Savior will strengthen us to bear our burdens and accomplish tasks that we could not do on our own.
4. In paying the penalty for our sins, Jesus Christ did not eliminate our personal responsibility. In order to accept His sacrifice, be cleansed from our sins, and inherit eternal life, we must exercise faith in Him, repent, be baptized, receive the Holy Ghost, and endure faithfully to the end of our lives.
5. Elder M. Russell Ballard stated,
Even though His life was pure and free of sin, [Jesus Christ] paid the ultimate penalty for sin—yours, mine, and everyone who has ever lived. His mental, emotional, and spiritual anguish were so great they caused Him to bleed from every pore. And yet Jesus suffered willingly so that we might all have the opportunity to be washed clean — through having faith in Him, repenting of our sins, being baptized by proper priesthood authority, receiving the purifying gift of the Holy Ghost by confirmation, and accepting all other essential ordinances. Without the Atonement of the Lord, none of these blessings would be available to us, and we could not become worthy and prepared to return to dwell in the presence of God.
Day 3
Primary
1. Read Matthew 27.
2. Jesus suffered more than just death during his crucifixion. He suffered physical and spiritual trials. He was mocked and hurt. In the end, Jesus died, and darkness covered the land.
3. Watch “The Trials of Jesus.”
4. Watch the video, “Jesus is Crucified.”
Youth
1. Read Matthew 27.
2. As part of the conspiracy to kill Jesus Christ, the Jewish leaders brought Jesus to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor. Jewish leaders accused Jesus of treason, or trying to overthrow the Roman government, and claimed that Jesus declared Himself a king and sought to establish His own kingdom.
3. Pilate, recognizing that Jesus was an innocent man, did not want to have him killed. Each year during the Feast of the Passover, it was the custom of the Roman governor to pardon a convicted criminal. The people were permitted to select one prisoner to be released. Pilate offered the people a choice between Jesus and a man named Barabbas, who had been convicted as a thief, a rebel against Roman authority, and a murderer. The people chose to release Barabbas, and Jesus was left suffer greatly and to die.
4. When Jesus died, darkness covered the land and the veil in the temple ripped in half. During the time of Jesus, the temple had two rooms: the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. The Holy of Holies represented the presence of God. These two rooms were separated by a veil, or curtain. Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest passed from the Holy Place through the veil of the temple and entered into the Holy of Holies, where he sprinkled the blood of a sin offering to atone for the sins of all the congregation of Israel. When the veil of the temple was torn in two at the death of Jesus Christ, it was a dramatic symbol that Jesus Christ, the Great High Priest, had passed through the veil of death and would shortly enter into the presence of God the Father.
5. Elder Bruce R. McConkie said,
The Holy of Holies is now open to all, and all, through the atoning blood of the Lamb, can now enter into the highest and holiest of all places, that kingdom where eternal life is found. … The ordinances performed through the veil of the ancient temple were in similitude of what Christ was to do, which he now having done, all men become eligible to pass through the veil into the presence of the Lord to inherit full exaltation.
Day 4
Primary
1. Read Luke 24.
2. The reality of Jesus Christ’s Resurrection can bring us great hope and joy. It is truly a beautiful message — there will be life after death; we can return to live with our Father in Heaven once again, because of the sacrifice the Savior has made for us, and because of our own repentance and obedience to the commandments.
3. Watch the video, “Jesus is Risen.”
4. Listen to the song, “Did Jesus Really Live Again?”
Youth
1. Read Luke 24.
2. A crushing sense of defeat and despair enveloped His disciples as Jesus suffered and died on the cross and His body was placed lifeless in the tomb. Despite what the Savior had repeatedly said of His death and subsequent rising again, they had not understood. The dark afternoon of His Crucifixion, however, was soon followed by the joyous morning of His Resurrection. But that joy came only as the disciples became eyewitnesses of the Resurrection, for even the declaration of angels that He had risen was at first incomprehensible — it was something so totally unprecedented.
3. Mary Magdalene and a few other faithful women came early to the Savior’s tomb that Sunday morning, bringing spices and ointments to complete the anointing begun when the Lord’s body was hastily laid in the sepulchre before the approaching Sabbath. On this morning of mornings, they were greeted by an open sepulchre, the covering stone having been rolled away, and two angels who declared: “Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen.”
4. By His Atonement and Resurrection, Jesus Christ has overcome all aspects of the Fall. Physical death will be temporary, and even spiritual death has an end, in that all come back into the presence of God, at least temporarily, to be judged. We can have ultimate trust and confidence in His power to overcome all else and grant us everlasting life. “For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15:21-22)
Week 4
Day 1
Primary
1. Read Exodus 18.
2. Moses’s father in law, Jethro, brought Moses his wife and sons in the wilderness. While he was there, he noticed many, many people waiting to talk to Moses. Moses explained that that people had questions about what God wanted them to do, and they came to ask Moses about it. Jethro gave Moses some good advice. He said that there were too many people to Moses to teach one at a time. Instead, Moses should call righteous men to lead smaller groups and teach them how to lead the people. Moses saw that this was good advice, and so that is what he did.
3. This is how the church works today. Instead of the prophet leading each person directly, he calls people to lead smaller groups, who call people to lead even smaller groups. The Primary President is above the Primary, the Bishop is above the Primary President, the Stake President is above the Bishop, and above the stakes are regional authorities. Above them are the general authorities of the church, like the Apostles and Prophet. How do leaders in the ward help the Prophet bear his burdens and help the Church run well?
4. Listen to the song, “Redeemer of Israel.”
Youth
1. Read Exodus 18.
2. After the Israelites established a camp near Mount Sinai, Moses’s father-in-law, Jethro, brought Moses’s wife and two sons to him. Jethro was a righteous leader who had ordained Moses to the Melchizedek priesthood. What did Jethro see Moses doing that concerned him? (Exodus 18:13-18)
3. Why was it a problem for Moses to attempt to judge every matter the people brought before him? What was Jethro’s solution? (Exodus 18:19-22)
4. Why was it important for Moses to delegate authority in leading the people of Israel? How is this similar to the way the church is structured today? What are some ways we can support church leaders and help bear their burdens?
Day 2
Primary
1. Read Exodus 19.
2. The Lord told Moses that he was going to make the people of Israel a holy nation. To do this, the Israelites needed to prepare for a spiritual experience. What are some ways that we prepare for church on Sunday to help us feel the Spirit there?
3. There is a Doctrinal Mastery scripture in this chapter! (There is not a song for this one.) Exodus 19:5-6.
5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:
6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.
4. Listen to the song, “Did Jesus Really Live Again?”
Youth
1. Read Exodus 19.
2. Consider what it means to you to be “a peculiar treasure” of the Lord (Exodus 19:5). President Russell M. Nelson offered one explanation of this phrase: “In the Old Testament, the Hebrew term from which peculiar was translated is segullah, which means ‘valued property,’ or ‘treasure.’ … For us to be identified by servants of the Lord as his peculiar people is a compliment of the highest order.” How does knowing that keeping your covenants makes you a “peculiar treasure” influence the way you live?
3. The Lord told Moses that the children of Israel needed to be prepared before they could “meet with God” (Exodus 19:10–11, 17) and keep a covenant with Him. What do you do to prepare for sacred experiences in your life, such as attending the temple or partaking of the sacrament? What can you do to more fully prepare for these experiences? Think of other spiritual activities that require preparation, and ponder how your preparation can affect the kind of experience you have.
4. There is a Doctrinal Mastery scripture in this chapter! (There is not a song for this one.) Exodus 19:5-6.
5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:
6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.
Day 3
Primary*
1. Read Exodus 20.
2. Jesus gave Moses commandments for the people of Israel. He wanted them to be happy. Being righteous helps us to be happy! See if you can figure out how following the commandment would make the people of Israel happy.
3. Watch the video, “The Ten Commandments.”
*4. Print the foldable 10 commandments. Cut it out and fold it. (This activity was created by Rachel from Rachel’s Booknook. Here is a link to the original post. There is a video on that page explaining how to fold it if you do not know how!) Try to remember what all 10 commandments are!
Youth
1. Read Exodus 20.
2. The Ten Commandments are eternal gospel principles that are necessary for our exaltation. The Lord revealed them to Moses in ancient times, and they are also referenced in whole or in part in other books of scripture. The Ten Commandments are a vital part of the gospel. Obedience to these commandments paves the way for obedience to other gospel principles.
3. Although most of the Ten Commandments list things we should not do, they also represent things we should do. The Savior summarized the Ten Commandments in two principles — love for the Lord and love for our fellow men.
4. Exodus 20:3-17 is a doctrinal mastery scripture.
3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lordblessed
the sabbath day, and hallowed it.12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
13 Thou shalt not kill.
14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
15 Thou shalt not steal.
16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.
5. Read through the ten commandments and decide whether each one is a commandment about loving the Lord or loving our neighbors.
Day 4
Primary*
1. The Lord gave us commandments to help us be happy and kind to each other. Can you think of why it is important not to kill or steal? Why do you think it is important to honor your father and mother? Each commandment that the Lord gives us will help or protect us in some way.
2. The ten commandments all fall into two categories: loving the Lord and loving others. As you complete the activity, try to decide which category each commandment falls into.
*3. Print the ten commandments booklet and put it together.
4. Listen to the song, “Keep the Commandments.”
Youth
1. If someone were to ask you what the most important commandment is, what would you say? Why? The Savior was asked a similar question during His mortal ministry. Find his answer in Matthew 22:36–40. By living the Ten Commandments, we can show love for God and our neighbor.
2. Read the story about Chloe from Sister Carole M. Stevens’ talk, “If Ye Love Me, Keep My Commandments.”
3. How can you be more mindful about keeping the commandments?
We’re done with April! Move forward to May!
