In this lesson, students will focus on the Lord’s teachings in Doctrine and Covenants 42 regarding death and healing, which were not covered in students’ home-study lessons.
In one hand, hold up a vial or a small container of consecrated olive oil for administering to the sick; in your other hand, hold up a bottle of medicine.
What are these items used for?
Which of these should we rely on in times of illness?
After students briefly share their thoughts, invite a student to read Doctrine and Covenants 42:43–44 aloud. Ask the class to look for the Lord’s instruction concerning what we should rely on in times of illness. To help students understand these verses, it may be helpful to explain that the herbs and mild food mentioned in verse 43 refer to medical treatments that were commonly administered during the time period in which this revelation was given.
To help students understand that healing can come by faith and medical treatment, ask a student to read aloud the following statement by Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. As the student reads, invite the class to listen for how healing can come through both faith and medical science.
“Latter-day Saints believe in applying the best available scientific knowledge and techniques. We use nutrition, exercise, and other practices to preserve health, and we enlist the help of healing practitioners, such as physicians and surgeons, to restore health.
“The use of medical science is not at odds with our prayers of faith and our reliance on priesthood blessings. …
“Of course we don’t wait until all other methods are exhausted before we pray in faith or give priesthood blessings for healing. In emergencies, prayers and blessings come first. Most often we pursue all efforts simultaneously” (“Healing the Sick,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2010, 47).
Why do you think it is important for us to use prayer and priesthood blessings as well as medical treatment for healing in times of illness?
According to verse 44, will every sick person who receives a priesthood blessing be healed?
Tell students that the Lord explained why some who receive priesthood blessings might not recover. Invite a student to read Doctrine and Covenants 42:48 aloud. Ask the class to follow along and look for principles that govern whether someone will be healed as a result of a priesthood blessing.
According to verse 48, what is the major factor that determines the outcome of a priesthood blessing? (If a person has faith in Jesus Christ and is not appointed unto death, he or she will be healed. You may need to explain that the phrase “not appointed unto death” refers to the fact that death or healing will take place according to the Lord’s timing, wisdom, and will.)
Why won’t everyone who has faith in Jesus Christ be healed?
Why is it important to have faith in God’s will and timing for each of us?
Invite students to identify a principle we can learn from Doctrine and Covenants 42:48 about being healed from our infirmities. Although students may use different words, their answers should reflect the following principle: If we have faith in Jesus Christ, we can be healed according to His will. You may want to suggest that students mark words or phrases in verse 48 that teach this principle.
To help students understand that our faith must be centered on Jesus Christ rather than on certain outcomes that we desire, ask a student to read aloud the following statement by Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Invite the class to listen for a reason why it is important that our faith be centered in Jesus Christ.
“As children of God, knowing of His great love and His ultimate knowledge of what is best for our eternal welfare, we trust in Him. The first principle of the gospel is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and faith means trust. I felt that trust in a talk my cousin gave at the funeral of a teenage girl who had died of a serious illness. He spoke these words, which first astonished me and then edified me: ‘I know it was the will of the Lord that she die. She had good medical care. She was given priesthood blessings. Her name was on the prayer roll in the temple. She was the subject of hundreds of prayers for her restoration to health. And I know that there is enough faith in this family that she would have been healed unless it was the will of the Lord to take her home at this time.’ I felt that same trust in the words of the father of another choice girl whose life was taken by cancer in her teen years. He declared, ‘Our family’s faith is in Jesus Christ and is not dependent on outcomes.’ Those teachings ring true to me. We do all that we can for the healing of a loved one, and then we trust in the Lord for the outcome” (“Healing the Sick,” 50).
How did the individuals Elder Oaks spoke of exercise faith in Jesus Christ?
Sometimes it requires greater faith to see a loved one die or endure a long illness than it does to see them live or be healed. Why do you think this might be?
Why do you think it is important to exercise faith in Jesus Christ even though we may not receive the outcome we desire?
Ask students if they know anyone who passed away despite following proper medical advice and seeking for healing through prayer and priesthood blessings. (Be especially sensitive to the feelings of those who may have experienced this situation.) Invite a student to read Doctrine and Covenants 42:45–47 aloud. Ask the class to follow along, looking for words or phrases that might bring comfort to someone who has experienced the death of a loved one.
Verse 45 tells us that we will naturally mourn the loss of those we love. What doctrine taught in verse 46 might bring comfort to those who mourn the loss of a loved one? (Death is sweet unto those who die in the Lord. You may want to suggest that students mark words or phrases that teach this truth.)
What do you think it means to die in the Lord? (One way to explain this is that a person has faithfully endured and kept sacred covenants up to the time of death.)
What do you think it means that death will be “sweet” to those who die in the Lord? (You may need to explain that although a faithful person who dies may suffer physical pain, this promise refers to the peace and rest he or she will experience in the spirit world.)
Invite students to ponder whether they are living their lives in a way that would make death “sweet” to them were it to happen today. (You may want to invite students to record their thoughts in their class notebooks or scripture study journals.)
Conclude by sharing your testimony of the truths taught in today’s lesson.
Ask students if they have ever felt troubled or concerned about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Explain that in the next unit they will learn more about the signs of the Savior’s Second Coming. What will happen when Jesus Christ comes? What we can do to be ready for that time?