NT Lessons 137-138 Hebrews 7-11

https://www.lds.org/manual/new-testament-seminary-teacher-manual?lang=eng

Lesson 137: Hebrews 7–10

Introduction

Paul taught that Jesus Christ is the Mediator of the “new covenant” (Hebrews 8:8). He explained that Christ’s sacrifice is superior to the Mosaic sacrifices and that the Mosaic ordinances were meant to point the people to the Savior and His Atonement.

I. Hebrews 7–8  Paul taught that Jesus Christ is the Mediator of the new covenant

---Using a flashlight, create a shadow of a small object (such as keys or scissors) on the board. Ask students if they can identify the object by looking only at its shadow. Point out that we can often determine what an object is by looking at its shadow.

---Display the picture Jesus Praying in Gethsemane (Gospel Art Book [2009], no. 56; see also LDS.org). Explain that the Old Testament records ceremonies and ordinances that functioned as types and shadows, or that symbolized and foreshadowed the Savior and His Atonement.

• What are examples recorded in the Old Testament of types and shadows of Jesus Christ and His Atonement?

---Explain that every aspect of the law of Moses was intended to function as a type or shadow that pointed the Israelites to Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice (see 2 Nephi 11:4; Jacob 4:4–5). Paul explained how several parts of the law did this. He wanted to help the Jewish Saints remain faithful to Jesus Christ instead of reverting to following the law of Moses.

---Summarize Hebrews 7:1–22 by explaining that Paul cited an Old Testament prophecy about the coming of a priest “after the order of Melchizedek” (Psalm 110:4; see also Hebrews 7:1). He taught that Jesus Christ fulfilled this prophecy. Melchizedek was a righteous king and the high priest who presided over Abraham (see Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 14:25–40 [in the Bible appendix]; Alma 13:14–19; Bible Dictionary, “Melchizedek”). Paul used Melchizedek as a type and shadow of Jesus Christ. He taught that Jesus Christ and His priesthood were necessary because the Levitical Priesthood, along with the law of Moses it administered, could not perfect God’s children (see Hebrews 7:11). You may want to explain that the Levitical Priesthood refers to the authority of the Aaronic Priesthood held by members of the tribe of Levi (see Bible Dictionary, “Aaronic Priesthood”).

---Display the picture Moses Gives Aaron the Priesthood (Gospel Art Book, no. 15; see also LDS.org) alongside the picture Jesus Praying in Gethsemane. Explain that as recorded in Hebrews 7, Paul compared the Levitical priests to Jesus Christ. You might explain that one role of a Levitical priest was to act as a mediator, symbolically standing between the people and God to resolve their differences.

---Write Hebrews 7:23–28 on the board. Divide students into pairs, and invite each pair to read these verses aloud together. Ask them to also read Joseph Smith Translation, Hebrews 7:25–26. This scripture is located in the Bible appendix. Invite one student in each pair to look for phrases that describe the Levitical priests, and ask the other student in the pair to look for phrases that describe Jesus Christ. Explain that the word they in Hebrews 7:23 refers to the priests.

---After sufficient time, invite the students who looked for phrases describing the priests to report what they found. Write their responses on the board under the picture of Moses and Aaron. (Their answers may include the following: the priests needed to be replaced by other priests when they died [see Hebrews 7:23]; they offered sacrifices daily for their own sins and for the people’s sins [see Hebrews 7:27]; and the priests had infirmities [see Hebrews 7:28].)

---Invite the students who looked for phrases describing Jesus Christ to report what they found. Write their responses on the board under the picture of Jesus Christ. (Their answers should include statements like the following: Jesus Christ and His priesthood are “unchangeable,” or eternal [Hebrews 7:24]; He can save those who “come unto God by him” [Hebrews 7:25]; He lives to “make intercession for [us]” [Hebrews 7:25]; He was sinless and therefore “needeth not offer sacrifice for his own sins” [Joseph Smith Translation, Hebrews 7:26]; He only had to offer one sacrifice, which was “for the sins of the people” [Joseph Smith Translation, Hebrews 7:26]; and He is “consecrated for evermore” [Hebrews 7:28].)

---Explain that the phrase “he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25) means that the Savior’s mission is to intervene on our behalf to help us return to God.

• How would you explain the differences between Jesus Christ and the Levitical priests?

---Invite a student to read Hebrews 8:1–3 aloud. Ask the class to follow along, looking for what all high priests, including Jesus Christ, were ordained, or called, to do.

• What were the high priests ordained to do?

---Invite a student to read aloud Joseph Smith Translation, Hebrews 8:4 (in Hebrews 8:4, footnote a). Ask the class to follow along, looking for the sacrifice Jesus Christ offered.

• What truth can we learn from this verse about what Jesus Christ did for us? (Using their own words, students should identify the following truth: Jesus Christ offered His own life as a sacrifice for our sins.)
• What phrases listed on the board help us understand why Jesus Christ was able to offer His own life as a sacrifice for our sins?

---Invite students to ponder what the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ means to them. Ask them to complete one of the following statements in their class notebooks or scripture study journals:

1. I am grateful for my Savior because …
2. I know my Savior loves me because …
3. I have been blessed by the Atonement because …

---After sufficient time, invite a few students to share what they wrote if they feel it is not too personal.

---Summarize Hebrews 8:5–13 by explaining that because of His sacrifice, Jesus Christ became “the mediator of a better covenant” (verse 6), a covenant which, if accepted by the people, would help them come to “know the Lord” (verse 11) and be cleansed from their iniquities.

II. Hebrews 9–10  Paul shows how the Mosaic ordinances pointed to the Atonement

---Before class, draw the accompanying diagram on the board.

---Explain that as recorded in Hebrews 9–10, Paul continued to compare the Levitical high priests to Jesus Christ by discussing the duties the priests performed on the Day of Atonement. Invite a student to read aloud the following paragraph:

---Once a year on the Jewish holy day called the Day of Atonement (also called Yom Kippur), the high priest was allowed to enter the Most Holy Place (also called the Holy of Holies) in the tabernacle or, later, the Jerusalem temple. There, the high priest sacrificed a bullock and a he-goat. He sprinkled the animals’ blood in designated places in the Most Holy Place to symbolize Christ’s Atonement for the priest’s sins and for the people’s sins. The high priest then symbolically transferred the people’s sins onto another he-goat (called the scapegoat), which was then driven into the wilderness, signifying the removal of the people’s sins. He also sacrificed two rams as burnt offerings for himself and the people. (See Bible Dictionary, “Fasts”; see also Leviticus 16:22.)

---Assign half of the class to read Hebrews 9:11, 12, 24, 28 and the other half to read Hebrews 10:1, 4, 10–12. Ask each group to read their assigned verses silently, looking for how the events on the Day of Atonement were types and shadows of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice. After sufficient time, invite students from each group to report what they found. Then ask:

• Just as the high priests entered the Most Holy Place of the tabernacle on the Day of Atonement, what “holy place” (Hebrews 9:12) could the Savior enter because of His Atonement? (Heavenly Father’s presence, or celestial glory.)
• What could Jesus Christ’s sacrifice do that the “blood of bulls and of goats” (Hebrews 10:4) could not?
• Why, then, did the high priests perform these sacrifices on the Day of Atonement? (To demonstrate “a shadow of the good things to come” [Hebrews 10:1], or to point to the Savior’s Atonement.)

---Invite a student to read Hebrews 10:17–20 aloud. Ask the class to follow along, looking for what the Atonement makes possible.

• According to verse 19, where can we enter because of Jesus’s sacrifice? (The “holiest” place, or God’s presence in the celestial kingdom.)
• According to verse 20, how do we enter God’s presence?

---Explain that the “new and living way” refers to the gospel of Jesus Christ, or the plan by which we can be forgiven and sanctified through His Atonement and thereby become worthy to return to God’s presence.

---Write the following incomplete statement on the board: Because of Jesus Christ’s Atonement, we can enter the celestial kingdom if …

---Invite a student to read Hebrews 10:22–23 aloud. Ask the class to follow along, looking for what we must do to enter the celestial kingdom. Invite students to report what they find.

---Complete the statement on the board so that it reads as follows: Because of Jesus Christ’s Atonement, we can enter the celestial kingdom if we hold fast to our faith in Him.

• What do you think it means to “hold fast” (verse 23) to our faith in Jesus Christ?

---Invite a student to read Hebrews 10:35–38 aloud. Ask the class to follow along, looking for the counsel Paul gave that can help us hold fast to our faith in Jesus Christ.

• What can we do to hold fast to our faith in Jesus Christ?
• What does it mean to “cast not away … your confidence”? (verse 35).

---Invite a student to read aloud the following statement by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, in which he explains what it means to “cast not away [our] confidence”:

“In Latter-day Saint talk that is to say, Sure it is tough—before you join the Church, while you are trying to join, and after you have joined. That is the way it has always been, Paul says, but don’t draw back. Don’t panic and retreat. Don’t lose your confidence. Don’t forget how you once felt. Don’t distrust the experience you had. That tenacity is what saved Moses and Joseph Smith when the adversary confronted them, and it is what will save you” (“Cast Not Away Therefore Your Confidence,” Ensign, Mar. 2000, 8).

• Whom do you know who is a good example of holding fast to his or her faith in Jesus Christ?

---Invite students to ponder their commitment to hold fast to their faith in Jesus Christ. Ask them to write down how they will increase their commitment and ability to do this.

Commentary and Background Information

Hebrews 7:1–2. Melchizedek

“Melchizedek was ‘a great Old Testament high priest, prophet, and leader who lived after the flood and during the time of Abraham. He was called the king of Salem (Jerusalem), king of peace, king of righteousness (which is the Hebrew meaning of Melchizedek), and priest of the most high God’ (Guide to the Scriptures, ‘Melchizedek’; scriptures.lds.org). Other scriptures relate that Melchizedek conferred the priesthood upon Abraham, received tithes from Abraham, and was unsurpassed in his greatness (see D&C 84:14; Hebrews 7:4; Genesis 14:18–20; Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 14:25–40 [in the Bible appendix]; Alma 13:19). In the Epistle to the Hebrews, Melchizedek stands as a prototype of the Son of God (see Hebrews 7:15–16)” (New Testament Student Manual [Church Educational System manual, 2014], 480).

Hebrews 7:3. “Without father, without mother”

“The Joseph Smith Translation of Hebrews 7:3 clarifies that it was the priesthood that was ‘without father, without mother’: ‘For this Melchizedek was ordained a priest after the order of the Son of God, which order was without father, without mother’ (in the Bible appendix). This phrasing indicates that, unlike the Levitical or Aaronic order in ancient times, the Melchizedek Priesthood is not conferred based on lineage alone. Elder Bruce R. McConkie … of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles further explained: ‘The right to this higher priesthood was not inherited in the same way as was the case with the Levites and sons of Aaron. Righteousness was an absolute requisite for the conferral of the higher priesthood’ (Mormon Doctrine, 2nd ed. [1966], 478)” (New Testament Student Manual [Church Educational System manual, 2014], 480).

Supplemental Teaching Idea

Hebrews 9:11. Video presentation—“An High Priest of Good Things to Come”

You may want to point out that because of Jesus Christ and His Atonement, we can receive “good things” in this life as well as in the life to come. To illustrate this idea, consider showing a segment from the video “High Priest of Good Things to Come” (2:00) or a segment from the video “An High Priest of Good Things to Come” (2:38), in which Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles testifies that those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ will receive hope and happiness in the prospect of future blessings. These videos are available on LDS.org.

Play

Play

Site Map  

© 2016 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.

Help students understand scriptural symbolism

“The scriptures are rich in symbolism and figurative expression. Ceremonies and ordinances are symbolic in their performance, and all bear record of Jesus Christ. … The tabernacle ceremony was symbolic of eternal things (Heb. 8–10), as was the entire law of Moses, containing types and shadows of Christ” (Bible Dictionary, “Symbolism”). As you help students understand these types and shadows, their understanding and love of the gospel will deepen.

Lesson 138: Hebrews 11

Introduction

Paul taught Church members about faith. He cited examples of righteous men and women from the Old Testament who exercised faith in Jesus Christ and thereby performed miracles, endured hardships, and received great blessings.

I. Hebrews 11:1–6  Paul teaches Church members about faith

---Read the following account of a young woman from the Philippines. Invite students to listen for how the young woman exercised faith.

Instead of reading the account, you could show the video “Pure and Simple Faith” (5:22), from which the following account is adapted. This video is available on LDS.org. Stop the video after the young woman has the impression to buy the things she needs (time code 2:36).

Play

Downloads

A young woman from the Philippines explained that one summer her father had to go away to work. When he received his pay he would send it home to his family. One Saturday, the family had used all the money except for two bills worth 20 pesos each. As the young woman looked at the list of items her family needed, she knew they would not have enough money to buy all of the items and pay the fare to transport her family to church the next day. She asked her mother what she should do. Her mother told her to buy the items and that God would provide the means for the fare.

The young woman prayed that she could buy the items on the list and still have enough money to pay for transportation to church the next day. She first had to buy charcoal so her family would have fuel to cook. She was shocked when she found out that the price of a bag of charcoal had doubled from 5 pesos to 10 pesos. Knowing that her family needed the fuel to cook their food, she bought two bags of charcoal for a total of 20 pesos. This young woman prayed even more fervently that her family would still be able to go to church. As she prayed, something whispered to her: “Go on and buy the things you need. It’s all right.” So she continued on her way with only 20 pesos. (Adapted from the video “Pure and Simple Faith,” LDS.org.)

• In what ways did this young woman exercise faith?

---Invite a student to read Hebrews 11:1 aloud as well as Joseph Smith Translation, Hebrews 11:1 (in Hebrews 11:1, footnote b). Ask the class to follow along, looking for what Paul taught about faith.

• According to verse 1, what is faith? (Students may use different words, but make sure they identify the following truth: Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.)

---Explain that Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles used Hebrews 11:1 as well as other sources (Alma 32:21; Lectures on Faith) to explain three basic elements of faith in Jesus Christ. Invite a student to read aloud the following statement by Elder Bednar.

“These teachings highlight three basic elements of faith: (1) faith as the assurance of things hoped for that are true, (2) faith as the evidence of things not seen, and (3) faith as the principle of action in all intelligent beings. I describe these three components of faith in the Savior as simultaneously facing the future, looking to the past, and initiating action in the present” (“Seek Learning by Faith,” Ensign, Sept. 2007, 62).

---Write the following on the board: Assurance—facing the future; Evidence—looking to the past; Action—initiating action in the present. Explain that Elder Bednar taught that these three elements of faith—assurance, evidence, and action—work together as we face the future, look to the past, and take action in the present.

• How is exercising faith in Jesus Christ different from merely believing in Him?
• How does the Filipino young woman’s account illustrate the three elements of faith Elder Bednar described?
• What can happen when we exercise faith in Christ?

---Invite a student to read Hebrews 11:2–5 aloud. Ask the class to follow along, looking for examples Paul used to illustrate what can happen when people exercise faith in Jesus Christ.

• What happened because these people exercised faith in Jesus Christ?

---Invite students to read Hebrews 11:6 silently, looking for what Paul taught about faith.

• What did Paul teach about faith?
• Based on what Paul taught, what must we do to please God? (Students may use different words, but make sure it is clear that to please God we must exercise our faith by coming unto Him, believing in Him, and believing that He rewards those who diligently seek Him. You may want to suggest that students mark this truth in verse 6.)

---Invite a student to read aloud the conclusion of the Filipino young woman’s account. Ask the class to listen for what happened because the young woman exercised faith in Jesus Christ.

If you chose to show the video instead, play the rest of “Pure and Simple Faith” (time code 2:36 to the end).

Play

Downloads

Downloads: Small Medium

As the young woman went to pay for the other items, she reached into her pocket and felt a big lump of paper. When she opened it she found an additional five bills worth 20 pesos each wrapped in her one remaining 20-peso bill. At that moment she knew she had enough to purchase the things her family needed and pay the fare for her family to go to church. This young woman explained that during this experience she felt God’s help and God’s love for her. When she got home she thanked Heavenly Father for the miracle. (Adapted from “Pure and Simple Faith,” LDS.org.)

• What happened because this young woman exercised faith in Jesus Christ?
• How might this experience help the young woman exercise faith in the future? (Because she recognized the evidence that God was helping her during this experience, she can be assured that God will help her again in the future. Because of the evidence and assurance she received, she may have faith to take action in the present. If she continues to act, then this process of acting in faith will continue and her faith will grow stronger.)

---Ask students to think of a time when they exercised faith. Invite a few students to share their experiences.

• How did that experience provide you with evidence that God will help you in the future?

II. Hebrews 11:7–40  Paul cites examples of righteous people from the Old Testament who exercised faith

• What are some situations that you face now or will face in the future that require you to exercise faith in Jesus Christ?

---Invite students to look for truths as they study Hebrews 11:7–40 that can help them know the blessings they can receive as they exercise faith in Jesus Christ.

---Write the words by faith and through faith on the board, and explain that Paul cited examples of righteous people in the Old Testament who exercised faith to assure his audience that they too would be blessed by exercising faith. Invite students to quickly scan Hebrews 11, looking for the phrases “by faith” and “through faith.” You may want to suggest that students mark these phrases.

---Invite a student to read Hebrews 11:7 aloud. Ask the class to follow along, looking for how Noah exercised faith in God. (You may want to explain that the phrase “moved with fear” means that Noah acted with hope and assurance based on God’s guidance [see footnotes b and c].)

• How did Noah exercise faith in God?
• Which elements of faith described by Elder Bednar (assurance, evidence, and action) are manifest in this account of Noah?
• In what ways are they manifested?

---Write the following scripture references on the board: Hebrews 11:8–10, 11–12, 17–19, 20–22, 23–28, 29–31. Divide the class into six groups, and assign each group one of the references. (If you have a small class, assign each student one of the references, or divide the students into pairs and assign each pair more than one reference.) Invite each group to read their assigned reference together, looking for answers to the following questions (you may want to write these questions on the board):

Who exercised faith?

In what ways were the three elements of faith (assurance, evidence, and action) exemplified?

What situations do we face today that require similar faith?

---After sufficient time, invite a student from each group to report their answers to the class.

---Invite a student to read Hebrews 11:13–16 aloud. Ask the class to follow along, looking for what we can learn from the examples of Abraham, Sarah, and others about exercising faith. Explain that “better country” (verse 16) refers to eternal life.

• According to verse 13, what happened to Abraham and his wife Sarah as well as other faithful people?
• Why did they stay faithful even though they did not receive all of God’s promises in this life? (You may want to explain that to see the promised blessings “afar off” means to have hope and confidence to receive the blessings after they die.)
• How can their examples help us to remain faithful?

---Write the following phrase on the board: As we exercise faith in Jesus Christ, we can … Invite students to write this phrase in their class notebooks or scripture study journals.

---Invite several students to take turns reading aloud from Hebrews 11:32–40. Ask a student to read aloud Joseph Smith Translation, Hebrews 11:35 (in Hebrews 11:35, footnote b), and invite another student to read Joseph Smith Translation, Hebrews 11:40 (in Hebrews 11:40, footnote a). Ask the class to follow along, looking for how they can complete the phrase they wrote down. You may want to suggest that students mark words or phrases in their scriptures that stand out to them.

---Ask students to complete the phrase based on verses 32–40. After sufficient time, invite several willing students to report what they wrote. Summarize students’ responses by writing the following principle on the board: As we exercise faith in Jesus Christ, we can endure suffering, accomplish miracles, receive divine promises, strengthen our testimony of Him, and move toward perfection.

• What are some ways we can exercise faith in Jesus Christ?
• What blessings have you seen come into someone’s life because that person exercised faith?

---Invite students to think again about situations that require them or will require them to exercise faith in Jesus Christ.

---Encourage them to set a goal to exercise faith in the Lord in those situations. Invite students to write down the goal by completing the phrase “By faith I will …”

Commentary and Background Information

Hebrews 11:1. “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”

Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles explained three basic elements of faith:

“The Apostle Paul defined faith as ‘the substance of things hoped for [and] the evidence of things not seen’ (Hebrews 11:1). Alma declared that faith is not a perfect knowledge; rather, if we have faith, we ‘hope for things which are not seen, [but] are true’ (Alma 32:21). Additionally, we learn in the Lectures on Faith that faith is ‘the first principle in revealed religion, and the foundation of all righteousness’ and that it is also ‘the principle of action in all intelligent beings’ [Lectures on Faith (1985), 1].

“These teachings highlight three basic elements of faith: (1) faith as the assurance of things hoped for that are true, (2) faith as the evidence of things not seen, and (3) faith as the principle of action in all intelligent beings. I describe these three components of faith in the Savior as simultaneously facing the future, looking to the past, and initiating action in the present.

“Faith as the assurance of things hoped for looks to the future. …

“Faith in Christ is inextricably tied to, and results in, hope in Christ for our redemption and exaltation. And assurance and hope make it possible for us to walk to the edge of the light and take a few steps into the darkness—expecting and trusting the light to move and illuminate the way [see Boyd K. Packer, “The Candle of the Lord,” Ensign, Jan. 1983, 54]. The combination of assurance and hope initiates action in the present.

“Faith as the evidence of things not seen looks to the past and confirms our trust in God and our confidence in the truthfulness of things not seen. We stepped into the darkness with assurance and hope, and we received evidence and confirmation as the light in fact moved and provided the illumination we needed. The witness we obtained after the trial of our faith (see Ether 12:6) is evidence that enlarges and strengthens our assurance.

“Assurance, action, and evidence influence each other in an ongoing process” (“Seek Learning by Faith,” Ensign, Sept. 2007, 61–63).

Hebrews 11:4. “Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice”

“The Prophet Joseph Smith explained why Abel’s offering was acceptable to God and Cain’s offering was not: ‘By faith in this atonement or plan of redemption, Abel offered to God a sacrifice that was accepted, which was the firstlings of the flock. Cain offered of the fruit of the ground, and was not accepted, because he could not do it in faith; he could have no faith, or could not exercise faith contrary to the plan of heaven. It must be shedding the blood of the Only Begotten to atone for man, for this was the plan of redemption, and without the shedding of blood was no remission. And as the sacrifice was instituted for a type by which man was to discern the great Sacrifice which God had prepared, to offer a sacrifice contrary to that, no faith could be exercised, because redemption was not purchased in that way, nor the power of atonement instituted after that order; consequently Cain could have no faith’ (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith [2007], 48)” (New Testament Student Manual [Church Educational System manual, 2014], 486).

© 2016 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.

Marking and annotating scriptures

One of the most helpful ways for teachers and students to retain the things they learn is by marking and annotating scriptures. Consider inviting students to mark important words, passages, or verses in their scriptures. You could also invite them to mark doctrines and principles. As you invite students to mark their scriptures, do not promote any particular system of marking scriptures. Remember that students should not be compelled to mark their scriptures.