LESSON PLAN FOR JACOB 1-4

To watch the full video presentation on YouTube go to: https://youtu.be/_KiOdZ8fcr4

CAUTION: This lesson is full of some very difficult issues. Materialism, Sexual immorality, Plural marriage, Prejudice and Racism, and Abuse.   AS you teach these topics, please be cautious and sensitive in how you approach them. Imagine there are people in your class who may have either been guilty of these things or are victims of these things.

ICEBREAKER

Problems and Solutions: Have your class try out the following Brain Teaser Problems

Problem:

Two fathers and two sons went fishing one day. They were there the whole day and only caught 3 fish. One father said, that is enough for all of us, we will have one each. How can this be possible?

Solution:

There was the father, his son, and his son's son. This equals 2 fathers and 2 sons for a total of 3!

Problem:

You’re a medieval knight leading an army that is attacking a castle with a square moat. You have brought planks that are 10 feet long to bridge the moat but find that the moat is actually 12 feet across. How do you get your men across the moat quickly without getting wet?

Solution:

You place planks on the corners of the moat. That should give you enough space to place another plank across the remaining distance.

TRANSITION

So there you go. You’re now all warmed up to use your problem solving skills with the scriptures. The scriptures often present us with problems and difficult situations. But the scriptures will almost never present a problem without the solution appearing somewhere nearby. Jacob, as the new spiritual leader of his people, has a number of different problems his people are facing.  He says in Jacob 2:7 that they were "beginning to labor in sin". Let’s see if we can first discover what those problems are, and then we’ll look to see if we can find the solutions to them:

ONLY THE MOST RELEVANT AND BENEFICIAL

Quick Note: At the beginning of chapter 1 Jacob tells us the following:

2 And he(Nephi) gave me, Jacob, a commandment that I should write upon these plates a few of the things which I considered to be most precious; that I should not touch, save it were lightly, concerning the history of this people which are called the people of Nephi.

4 And if there were preaching which was sacred, or revelation which was great, or prophesying, that I should engraven the heads of them upon these plates, and touch upon them as much as it were possible, for Christ’s sake, and for the sake of our people.

Also, in Jacob 4:1 we discover that Jacob was only able to write a little of his words because of the difficulty of engraving our words upon plates.

So, now we know that what we find in the book of Jacob are the things that he felt would be the most precious, sacred, and important to pass on to future generations. He knew his record would be read for generations, including our day. So we can rest assured that what we find in Jacob, keeping in mind the difficulty of engraving the plates, is only going to be what would he considered to be the most relevant and beneficial for those who would read it. Let’s see if that holds true here.

Can you discover what these three problems are by studying the following verses?

• Jacob 2:12-13

• Jacob 2:23

• Jacob 3:9

• Materialism (and the pride that goes with it)

• Sexual Immorality (they are using Old Testament plural marriage practices as an excuse for sexual immorality)

• And Prejudice (they hate and revile the Lamanites because of their culture and differences in their physical appearance)

So, take a look at that list. How did he do? Is he touching on problems that are relevant to our day? Definitely.

SO, like I said, the scriptures will never present a problem without the solution being somewhere nearby.

Let’s go through each of these problems and find Jacob’s recommended solutions.

PROBLEM #1-MATERIALISM

Discussion Question: Do you see any evidence of materialism in your own nation or community?

Note: Now the problem that we have here isn’t so much the prosperity. If prosperity in and of itself were a bad thing, then God would never reward a hardworking, righteous people with it. But He often does. In fact, a repeated promise of the Book of Mormon is that if you are righteous, you will “prosper in the land” (Mosiah 2:22) and I assume this means both spiritual and temporal prosperity. And I believe that God wants us to experience an abundant life, not an excessive one, but abundant. He tells us that in D&C 49:9. The Doctrine and Covenants also teaches us that God wants us to have enough to support our families, our circumstances, our needs, and our wants(D&C 51:3), inasmuch as our wants are just (D&C 82:17). The problem with prosperity is not in God’s giving it to us, but how we react to it—how the adversary uses that situation to ensnare us.

Q: See if you can find the problem with prosperity in Jacob 2:13 and try to fill in this scripture equation using what you discovered.

Prosperity —>  P__________  —> P______________.

Prosperity leads to what? PRIDE

Which leads to what? PERSECUTION

Which can eventually do what to your soul according to 2:16? Destroy, or another P, PERISH.

BRIGHAM YOUNG QUOTE

“The worst fear I have about this people is that they will get rich in this country, forget God and His people, wax fat, and kick themselves out of the Church and go to hell. This people will stand mobbing, robbing, poverty, and all manner of persecution, and be true. But my greater fear … is that they cannot stand wealth.”

Brigham Young

(in Preston Nibley, Brigham Young: The Man and His Work [1936], 128).

THE SOLUTION TO MATERIALISM

It is possible to be rich and righteous, wealthy and worthy. The trick is to learn how to live in prosperity, without being lifted up unto pride. So Jacob is going to give anybody who has the intention of seeking wealth some cautions. I call it the “Can I Be Rich Test”.

Definition of RICH: Spencer W. Kimball Quote

“We say that he is rich whose accumulations are sufficiently great to blind him to his spiritual and moral obligations and to render him slave instead of master” (Spencer W. Kimball, The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball p.356).

CAN I BE RICH TEST HANDOUT (Available for Download at https://www.etsy.com/shop/TeachingWithPower)

For each question, you are going to answer with either a 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 depending on your own assessment of your attitude towards seeking wealth.  So for each statement answer with a

1. Absolutely

2. I think so

3. Not Sure

4. I don't think so

5. Nope

So here we go.

Question #1 comes from v.17 "Think of your brethren like unto yourselves” So, Are you able to resist the temptation to think that because you have more, that you are better?  It’s so easy and almost natural for us to arrive at that conclusion. If we plan on getting rich, let’s be sure that we start with the fundamental truth that earning more money will never make us better than anybody else.

Question #2 be familiar with all and free with your substance, that they may be rich like unto you. So the question: Are you able to give of your wealth freely to others? Do you want others to be rich like you? That’s often a very difficult one for people to accept. Because they find their value in that comparison. That’s why they feel prideful. If others become rich like us, we no longer feel superior. There’s no reason to feel like we’re better. So, we may be really good at making money, but how good are we at giving it away? If we find it difficult to be familiar and free with our substance, we should probably try to stay away from wealth. My favorite way of describing this dynamic is with the analogy of the house. Imagine a large house. That house represents a family’s needs and righteous wants. But what do we do when that gets full. What if we start to bring forth in abundance.  We have quite a problem here. There’s no more room for our abundance. It’s the same problem encountered by the rich fool back in the gospels. His solution was to build bigger barns to fit all of his abundance. God says this is a foolish solution. Do we get to the point that they don’t even know what to do with all we've been blessed with? So what do we do?  We buy bigger and better things; we spend more and more extravagantly.  But is there another solution to our house problem? Yes! Open up the back door and start to shovel the abundance out. How do we shovel it out? Tithing, fast offerings, humanitarian aid, the missionary fund, direct help to struggling family and friends, educational and cultural opportunities, disaster relief efforts, charities that help those in developing countries. There are many opportunities to give.  And do you know what often happens when there is somebody that is willing to shovel abundance out the back door? I think God says to himself “Well here is a rare individual, somebody that can be satisfied with enough and willing to give, lets bless them even more”, and God starts shoveling the blessings more quickly into his front door. So what do you do? Shovel it out the back just as quickly. If we have this ability to open the back door and be familiar and free with our substance I think we’ll find that the Lord will enthusiastically support our righteous endeavors.

Question #3 before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God. Now that’s an interesting phrase that I think is often misinterpreted. Does that mean chronologically or in terms of priority. I think it’s priority. I don’t think it means that I go out, get my testimony, find the Lord’s kingdom, get to the temple and make my covenants, and now I can go out and get on with the business of making money.  I think it means that no matter what age or circumstances we are in, we always put the kingdom of God first. So if there is a conflict between making a greater profit and being honest, we choose to be honest, because we seek the kingdom of God first. If there is a conflict between honoring our family and church commitments and making extra income, we honor our commitments because we seek the Kingdom of God first. If there is a conflict between paying our tithing, and the desire to pad our investments, we pay our tithing because we seek the kingdom of God first.  So the question is, Will the kingdom of God always be your first priority?

Question #4 And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ, ye shall obtain riches if ye seek them. So, the question: Have you obtained a hope in Christ? What does it mean to obtain a hope in Christ. Jacob explains it in Jacob 4:6 and also 11. "Wherefore, we search the prophets, and we have many revelations and the spirit of prophecy; and having all these witnesses we obtain a hope." So Jacob gives us something different to seek for. If we feel the need to search for something, we shouldn’t make it riches, make it the words of the prophets, and revelations and testimony of Christ. Obtain that hope in Christ. That has to be our center, our foundation, and our priority. If it’s not, we should take Jacob’s counsel to heart.

Question #5 And ye will seek them for the intent to do good. The question is Why do you want to obtain riches? Is it so that you can do good with them?  And if that is the case, we’re not even really seeking riches, what we’re really seeking is doing good. We’ve got to ask ourselves what our motivation for seeking riches is. Is it bigger houses, nicer cars, better clothes, OR do we want riches to do good. If we’re not sure what good we can do with them, Jacob gives us a number of examples. We can clothe the naked, feed the hungry, liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted. It hearkens back to our house analogy. Seek riches, so that we can fulfill our needs and wants and still be able to shovel many blessings and opportunities out to others.

Question #6. In verse 20 Jacob says:  And now, my brethren, I have spoken unto you concerning pride; and those of you which have afflicted your neighbor, and persecuted him because ye were proud in your hearts, of the things WHICH GOD HATH GIVEN YOU, what say ye of it?  I can’t help but put the emphasis like that. I think he’s reminding them of a certain principle. Everything they have is a gift from God. When we obtain wealth, it’s easy to make the assumption that we are the creators of our prosperity, that it is ours, because we worked for it. But we forget that the ultimate source of all things, all our abilities, all our talents, all our opportunities, the circumstances under which we have been placed in life, is God. Do we understand and believe that everything we have is really a gift from God? This is such an important idea. If we can just buy into that principle, our financial sacrifices will become so much easier. When God asks for 10% of our income for tithing, we say, oh, sure Lord, I can give you 10% of your own money, that’s easy. Or when he asks us to give a generous fast offering, or to use our means to bless the poor, we can say, “No problem Lord, you want me to use your money to bless your children, I’d be happy to.”So the question is: Do you recognize that all you have and will have is a gift from God?

Question #7. In verse 21, Jacob reminds them of the principle that all people are precious in God’s sight and that they have all been created for the same purpose. That purpose? “That they should keep his commandments and glorify him forever. So the final question is “Do you understand that the purpose of your life is obedience to God and his glory? And not obedience to your own appetites and your own glory.

APPLY

So how did you do? Did you pass?

If we had to answer with a lot of 3’s, 4’s, and 5’s, I think that we ought to play it safe and avoid the procurement of wealth. Better that we focus on obtaining a hope in Christ and seeking the Kingdom of God.

If you had a lot of 1’s and 2’s, well , I pray that the Lord will bless you with great abundance.

PROBLEM #2 SEXUAL IMMORALITY

Our world today is prone to minimizing sexual sin. Casual intimate relationships, sex before marriage, multiple partners, rampant adultery, and an overall focus on sensuality. This is the world we live in.

Ezra Taft Benson said:

“The plaguing sin of this generation is sexual immorality. This, the Prophet Joseph said, would be the source of more temptations, more buffetings, and more difficulties for the elders of Israel than any other” (“Cleansing the Inner Vessel,” Ensign, May 1986, 4).

Well, in a world that minimizes immorality, look how Jacob describes it and its effects.

Q: What do these words suggest about sexual sin?

• 2:8 The wounded soul

• 2:9 Daggers placed to pierce their souls and wound their delicate minds

• 2:22 Grosser crimes

• 2:24 Which thing was abominable

• 2:31 I the Lord have seen the sorrow, and heard the mourning of the daughters of my people

• 2:31 Wickedness and abominations

• 2:32 The cries of the fair daughters

• 2:33 lead away captive

• 2:33 a sore curse

• 2:34 great condemnation

• 2:35 broken the hearts of your tender wives

• 2:35 lost the confidence of your children

• 2:35 sobbings of their hearts

• 2:35 hearts died

• 2:35 deep wounds

• 3:10 grieve hearts

• 3:12 awful consequences

What is Jacob’s message on immorality? It’s pretty clear isn’t it.  It’s serious. It’s not something to be taken lightly. God’s laws of sexual purity must not be trifled with. The consequences of immorality are significant and its effects can be awful.

CAUTION:

Jacob’s words are very strong against sexual sin in this section. He’s not mincing words, but that's what his particular audience needed to hear at that time. If you’re teaching this, it’s very possible that there is somebody in your presence who has committed sexual sin. Please be careful, please be sensitive. The gospel is a message of hope, and change, and forgiveness. Don’t forget to balance this strong message of chastity with a healthy dose of hope. We can be forgiven for our sins, and God promises to forget them. An individual who has committed sexual sin is still loved and valued by their Heavenly Father. The power of God’s mercy and forgiveness is one of the great messages of the Book of Mormon. In fact in Alma 39, we’re going to see a great example of a father helping his son through the repentance process after committing sexual sin, and it is full of hope and love. Don’t forget that as you study or teach this chapter.

THE SOLUTION TO IMMORALITY

Q: What are the solutions to immorality?

The first we already covered. Understand the seriousness of it. The act of creating life is sacred to our Heavenly Father and there are firm rules in place for how and when it is used.

The second, Understand the effects your decisions may have on others. Just look at all the consequences on that list. Most are felt by individuals other than the offender.  We need to think about the effects our decisions may have on others. The effect it has on spouses and children, present or future, the effect it might have on the life that might be created through immoral actions, the effect it might have on those who see or follow our example.  All our decisions have ripple effects on the people around us. We may be tempted to say, “Well, I’m only hurting myself”. That is wishful thinking.

Third. Don’t seek to excuse yourself. Never justify sexual sin. What are some of the excuses that people make today for immoral behavior? A few that I can think of: But we’re in love. It’s not that big a deal. It’s too hard to control. You can always repent. It just happened. Hopefully we never catch ourselves making these kinds of rationalizations.

Our 4th solution is so simple it really needs no explanation. From vs. 28. Remember that God delights in chastity. And here he says the chastity of women because of the context of his audience but we know that it’s not just women. He delights in the principle of chastity. And what is the Lords law of chastity? That sexual relations are reserved for marriage.

So remember, in all of this that God delights in chastity

WHY POLYGAMY?

Speaking of excuses, the Nephite men of this time are using the excuse that because Old Testament men like David and Solomon had plural wives that they should be justified in living that way also. However, Jacob understands that their motivation for living that lifestyle isn't pure. They want to live it for the wrong reasons.  So Jacob clearly teaches them the principle of monogamy in vs. 27. “For there shall not any man among you have save it be one wife; and concubines he shall have none”. There have been times in earth’s history when  plural marriage has been acceptable to God. But it’s the exception, not the rule. Now you and I know that plural marriage was practiced in the early church up until 1890 and has been the subject of much criticism ever since. Why was it lived during that time? I don’t claim to have the definitive answer to that question but Jacob 2:30 gives what I feel is the best scriptural explanation for why God sometimes commands or allows plural marriage. He says “For if I will, saith the Lord of Hosts, raise up seed unto me, I will command my people; (to live polygamy) otherwise, they shall hearken unto these things.” (Monogamy). The key phrase there is “raise up seed unto me”.  Not just raise up seed, but seed unto me. One of the positive results of polygamy in the early church was that more children were able to be raised by the most faithful men and women. And here, If you want a better understanding of polygamy in the early church, rather than going in to all of the particulars, I highly recommend that you read the Gospel Topics Essay entitled “Plural Marriage and Families in Early Utah”. (LINK: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics-essays/plural-marriage-and-families-in-early-utah?lang=eng)

This paragraph from that essay nicely sums up what I think Jacob is trying to get across:

For many who practiced it, plural marriage was a significant sacrifice. Despite the hardships some experienced, the faithfulness of those who practiced plural marriage continues to benefit the Church in innumerable ways. Through the lineage of these 19th-century Saints have come many Latter-day Saints who have been faithful to their gospel covenants as righteous mothers and fathers, loyal disciples of Jesus Christ, and devoted Church members, leaders, and missionaries. Although members of the contemporary Church are forbidden to practice plural marriage, modern Latter-day Saints honor and respect these pioneers who gave so much for their faith, families, and community.

PROBLEM #3 PREJUDICE

ICEBREAKER

Show a large pile of pennies and ask

Q: Do all the pennies look exactly the same? No

Q: How much is each penny worth? The Same

Q: How are people like this?

Possible Answer: All people are of equal worth, regardless of any differences in outward appearance. I believe this is how God sees all of his children. Different, but of equal worth.

Consider the answer to the following questions:

• Is an American soul worth more than a French soul?

• Is a female soul worth more than a male soul?

• Is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ’s soul worth more than a Muslim's soul?

• Is a sinner’s soul worth more than a righteous person's soul?

• Is a prophet’s soul worth more than a primary child’s soul?

• Is your friend's soul worth more than your enemy's soul?

• Is a 1 year old soul worth more than and a 90 year old soul?

The answer to each of these questions is a resounding NO. But often we struggle to come to that conclusion. Differences too often divide us, and the Nephites are struggling with this issue. Jacob is going to help us with this problem.

You can see it introduced in vs. 5. Hate and prejudice. Their justification for this prejudice appears to be two-fold.  One, Lamanite cultural differences, which the Nephites PERCEIVE as, to use THEIR word, “filthy.”  Enos gives us a good description of some of these cultural differences. The Lamanites were more of a nomadic people. "Dwelling in tents, and wandering about the wilderness with a short skin girdle about their loins and their heads shaven, and many of them did eat nothing save it was raw meat”. The second source of prejudice had to do with a physical difference, quoting Jacob “the darkness of their skins”. Today, we call this “racism” which is a major problem in societies all around the world and has caused much pain and conflict in many countries and contexts.  Attaching value based on physical differences is often, unfortunately, so conducive in human relations—and it allows bias, prejudice, discrimination and hatred to grow in our societies. Jacob words become extremely relevant to us now. He simply says “Stop it!" Technically speaking the Nephites and the Lamanites are of the same race, but the point is still the same, we must stop making value assessments of one another, based on physical characteristics, regardless of what those may be.

SOLUTION TO PREJUDICE

What are Jacob’s Solutions to prejudice? vs.5-7 and vs. 9.

#1 Look for the Good

Do you see what Jacob is doing here? One way to overcome prejudice is to look for the good in other people. To look for the good in their culture, their religion, their appearance and not judge those differences in terms of better or worse. The Nephites were only focusing on the differences and what they perceived as negative. I’ve had the opportunity to travel to many places in the world and meet people from various backgrounds, cultures and religions, and you know what, they are full of goodness. Lots of good. That’s where we should place our focus. We tend to find what we look for. If we only look for the bad, we’re sure to find it. But when we begin to recognize the good in others, barriers are broken down.

#2 In God’s Eyes you are No Better

A second principle comes at the end of verse 7. Jacob asks a question: How much better are you than they, in the sight of your great Creator? What’s the answer to that question? You are no better. I would respond with D&C 18:10 Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God. Or with 2 Nephi 26:33 And “all are alike unto God”.  We should remember that then next time we're feeling superior to another person. In God’s eyes, our value is equal.

#3 Jude Yourselves, Not Others

And finally, the third principle comes in verse 9.  “Ye shall remember your own filthiness". If we want somebody to judge,  if we’re looking for somebody to change, we need look no further than our bathroom mirror.

Overall, there is simply no excuse for a disciple of Christ to justify hatred, prejudice, discrimination, racism or bigotry. There just isn’t. And Jacob is emphatic about that.

PROBLEM #4

There is one other problem that I believe you could address in these chapters. It’s a very serious problem and is unfortunately very prevalent in our world. But take a look at this description of the wives and children of these Nephite men in 2:35.

I don’t know about you, but that sounds to me like a fairly accurate description of those that are victims of abuse. Do the scriptures have any advice for those that have been abused? Whether it’s physical, emotional, or sexual abuse, what is the Lord’s message to them?

I think Chapter 3:1-2 has some incredibly wise words of counsel to victims of abuse.

But behold, I, Jacob, would speak unto you that are pure in heart.

I think it’s important that he addresses them as the pure in heart. There’s a message in that. Often, the abused person doesn’t feel pure. Jacob reassures them, that they are pure. The sinful use of somebody else’s agency has no bearing on your purity and standing before God, only theirs.

Look unto God with firmness of mind,

Don’t let the abuse damage your trust and faith in God. He’s there and you can look to Him with confidence in his love and his awareness.

and pray unto him with exceeding faith,

Pray, ask and ye shall receive. Find a connection with your Father in Heaven. And he has some promises for you:

and he will console you in your afflictions,

I believe that prayer of faith for help will be answered with comfort from above.

and he will plead your cause,

Remember that God is on your side, He’s there to support you and plead your cause

and send down justice upon those who seek your destruction.

Remember that God is a God of justice. Often victims of abuse feel that there is no justice. But know, that those responsible for your pain, at least in an eternal sense, will be held accountable. Justice will be served.

O all ye that are pure in heart, lift up your heads

Don’t hang it down in shame or defeat

and receive the pleasing word of God,

And God can send that pleasing word in a number of ways. The scriptures, the Holy Ghost, trusted church leaders, family, and friends.

and feast upon his love; for ye may, if your minds are firm, forever.

Many times, the abused person, especially if it was done by a family member, feel that they can’t trust love anymore. But there is a love you can trust forever. God’s love. And that love is infinite and assured and abundant. You can feast on it. It’s there for you.

And since we’re on the subject of abuse. There is one other small story in the Book of Mormon that I feel offers some important advice to those who are victims of abuse. It’s in Alma 50:30-31.

This story comes from the war chapters where Captain Moroni is facing a group of dissenters led by a man named Morianton.

• She was the victim of abuse. So what did she do? Three important things

• She fled, she didn’t allow the abuse to continue.

• She went to a trusted individual

• She told him all things concerning the matter.

APPLY

I really hope this isn’t the case, heaven forbid this applies to any of you. But if you are a victim of abuse right now, I encourage you to follow the example of Morianton’s maid. Flee, find somebody you trust, and tell them all things concerning the matter. Don’t allow the abuse to continue.