Teaching of the Presidents of the Church Joseph Smith Chapter 21: The Second Coming and the Millennium

Teaching of the Presidents of the Church Joseph Smith Chapter 21: The Second Coming and the Millennium

Attention Activity:
Divide the class into two groups. Have half of the class write 10 things that could happen in the next ten years that they are afraid of. Have the other half write 10 things that could happen in the next ten years that they are really excited for. Discuss with the class some of their answers. Start with the things that are scary first. Take a few of those ideas to show that there will be bad things happening in the future. (Be careful not to get into too much speculation. If someone says something a little crazy, just agree that it could happen and try to move on. You don’t want to get bogged down in this part of the lesson.) After some discussion ask, “With all of the bad things that might happen in the next 10 years how is it that we can still come up with things that are going to bring us excitement and joy?” Joseph Smith is going to teach us about something that can bring both fear and excitement.

Class Discussion:
Keep the class in two groups. Have the first group look in Chapter 21 pages 251-256 for things that are going to be scary in the 2nd Coming. Have the other half look on pages 256-258 for things that they are looking forward to. Take a few minutes to discuss these ideas.

Regarding the 2nd Coming there are two main doctrines that are important to understand in this chapter. The first in on page 253 paragraph 1. Bad things will happen even to the Saints. Ask, “What have you learned is the purpose of God allowing these type of things to happen?” “If this is the case, how do we prepare for the 2nd Coming?” (A great scripture to share here is the final scripture of Section 87 that is quoted in the “From the Life of Joseph Smith” section.)
This leads to the second important principle. “From what you have seen in this chapter as you have been scanning, how does Joseph feel about the 2nd coming and why?” (A good place to look here is page 255 last paragraph.) Why was Joseph so positive? Hat does that teach us about the future and our ability to prepare for it?” (A great talk that you might want to look at in preparation for this is Elder Quentin L Cook Ensign Nov. 2007. One of my favorite quotes from that talk is:
I know that many of you are concerned about raising your children during these difficult times and increasing their faith. When my wife and I were starting our family in the San Francisco Bay Area, we had that same concern. At a critical point our stake members were advised by Elder Harold B. Lee, then a member of the Twelve, that we could raise our families in righteousness if we would:
Follow the prophet.
Create the true spirit of the gospel in our hearts and homes.
Be a light to those among whom we live.
Focus on the ordinances and principles taught in the temple. (See D&C 115:5; Harold B. Lee, “Your Light to Be a Standard unto the Nations,” Ensign, Aug. 1973, 3–4.)
As we followed this counsel, our faith increased and our fears decreased. I believe we can raise righteous children anywhere in the world if they are taught religious principles in the home.)