Gospel doctrine Lesson Eleven Purpose:

To help class members

develop ears to hear so they can

understand how Jesus parables apply to them

He Spake Many things Unto them

in parables

Unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall

be taken away, even that which they have. 2 Nephi 28:30

When the Lord say To him which receiveth he is not

talking about mere knowledge of truth, but about truth which is acted on. You never

have the truth when you merely have it in your head. You have truth only when

you have acted on it, when it has affected you, when it has

changed you. It doesn't do any good just to learn

something and then to file it away as an intellectual fact in your brain. If you do not act upon it, it is not your truth; it does not belong to you. In

other words, what this scripture is really saying is,

Unto him that acts on truth will be given more; but he who

has learned the truth and doesnt act on it will lose it and the ability to receive more truth in the future.

What is one gospel truth that you have learned about but have yet to implement or put into

action?

What is one thing that you can do this week to begin to put that truth

into action?

Parable of the Sower Matthew 13:3-8; 18-23

Mark 4:1-9; 13-20; Luke 8:4-8, 11-15

Type of Soil Parallel group of people in Lehis dream

What does this look like in todays world?

The wayside 1 Nephi 8:21-23

This is a person who upon hearing the word of God thinks about it for a moment but does not immediately understand it. It is not that they couldnt understand it, its that they do not try. They hear the word, they begin to think about it and then determine that it is too much trouble. At this point Satan (the birds) comes and takes the teachings and the promptings to think about them out of his heart

Rocky Soil 1 Nephi 8:24-28 These people are what we would call shallow, people that flit from this to that, from one experience to another, never content with anything for very long.

Thorny Soil 1 Neph8:30i

Here is the typical church member. Their biggest problem? Busy-ness.. It is not that they are uninterested; They are interested in the gospel. It is not that they are shallow; they arent. They are very capable of deep thinking and applying the gospel teachings to their life, they just dont have time. For in addition to a family solidly rooted in the church, they want to coach the high school soccer team at night, raise stellar athletes, have daughters that speak two languages and are professional ballerinas. He enjoys playing softball on the weekends and she runs marathons. The result is that, though their hearts are in the right place, they have no time to think about the word, no time to receive it and no time to meditate upon it.. They are too wrapped up with the cares of this world and the pursuit of things to seriously and consistently apply the teachings of the scriptures and the brethren to their lives.

Good Soil 1 Nephi 8:31-33

Notice the qualities of this soil. Here is a heart that is neither hard nor narrow. He understands the word, i.e., he thinks about it, ponders over it. He receives it gladly but his life is not shallow. He bears fruit. The seed remains long enough to sprout and grow and to come to fruition. The fruit once It has matured, is not lost in a jumble of things, the thorns and thistles of life, but benefits the multitude as it brings forth ever increasing amounts -- thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.

Parable of the Wheat and the Tares Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43

D&C 86:1-7

In this parable, the sowing is quite different than in the first parable. In this parable the seed is not the Word of God; is is what Jesus, in his explanation, calls the sons of the kingdom. These sons of the kingdom were produced by the good seed of the word in the first parable and are subsequently taken by the Lord and scattered throughout the world. These sons of the kingdom are placed exactly where God wants them to be. Likewise, wherever you are, as a child of God and as a faithful follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, you have been put there by the lord. Have you recognized the hand of the Lord in placing you in your

current situation? Why do you think that you are there?

Read v 25. While the men yet slept (during the time of the Garden of Eden, before their eyes had been opened), the enemy came and sowed

tares among the wheat. The actual plant named here is darnel., a poisonous weed which looks so much like wheat when it first begins to

grow that even an expert cannot distinguish it from wheat. However, as it grows it begins to change. When it comes to harvest, even a child can

tell that it is not wheat.

What things in your own life started out as small events, indistinguishable from the good things of God, but quickly grew to threaten your testimony? A new relationship? A fascination

with reading your horoscope? A desire to learn the anti-mormon literature in order to be prepared to answer our critics? How can

we be open to new experience while keeping ourselves safe from the enemy?

Parable of the Mustard Seed

Mustard is a small seed. It pungent, it is biting, it is irritating. It is an irritant. Why then did the Savior compare the gospel of peace to this disturbing plant? The Savior was warning that the message of the Gospel often instigates trouble,

trouble within families, communities, and countries. By choosing the smallest seed known to the people to whom he is preaching, Jesus addresses the apparent

insignificance of the gospel. The gospel does not look like much. It does not sound like much. But, if you read the whole parable, you will find that it can grow into

something great! Have you ever seen a mustard tree? I grew up in California where we had acres and

acres of blooming mustard each spring. Now, I am not a horticulturalist, but I do know thismustard does not grow on trees. It is an annual that dies every year. It is

impossible for it to grow into a tree. Then why did Jesus say it did? That question is the heart of the parable. Our Lord obviously intended to teach

that the growth of the church would be beyond the natural mans understanding. It will not be normal. Just as a tree is not what you would expect from mustard

seed, the magnificent, unexplainable growth of the church will be just as surprising. Instead of the lowly, humble plant you would expect from a mustard seed there

would be a huge, abnormal, ungainly growth into a tree.

Parable of the treasure in the field Matthew 13:43

In this parable Jesus is the man and the world is represented by the field. In the field Jesus finds

treasures (us). Throughout our life, Jesus uncovers our true worth by

helping us through the learning experiences of mortality, and

providing us with the ordinances necessary for us to become

perfect, like unto Him. Then, we experience physical death, at which point we are placed once again in the ground and buried. Through

the atonement (which required all that the Savior had) we are

purchased once again.

The Pearl of Great Price Matthew 13:45-46

Why a pearl? The Hebrews never valued pearls...this was an Asian tradition. I

believe the Savior chose the pearl because it is the only jewel that is

the product of living matter. A pearl is the response of an oyster to

something intent on causing it harm. A pearl grows out of hurt.. In the

oyster, the grain of sand, is transmuted into something glorious.

The unsightly is transformed into something of beauty. Likewise, In the love of Christ, trials and tribulations, which Satan intends to be irritants and distractions from our service to the Savior, can become treasures.

Parable of the Leaven Matthew 13:33

Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like

unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid three measure of meal, till the whole was leavened

Cultural Note

The Jews to whom Jesus was speaking would have known immediately they symbolism that Jesus was referring

to in this verse. It was the most common offering in Israelthe meal

offering. The meal offering consisted of three measures of unleavened meal.

In Genesis 18 we can read of the beginning of this tradition and can learn of its meaning. This offering,

represented fellowship with our Heavenly Father and with one another. More specifically, it represented the offers service to his fellow man and portrayed his commitment to the

second great commandment (Matthew 22:36-39)

Jesus audience would also have been

aware that leaven was never once used in the Old Testament to refer

to something good. Leaven disintegrates, breaks up, corrupts and causes a puffed up, swollen condition. Bread that has been made with leaven spoils much more quickly than bread

that has not.

The word hidden in this parable comes from the Greek root krupto,

which means to conceal or keep secret. Hence, this woman is

surreptitiously placing the leaven of false doctrine in the church.

Thought Questions

In what way is leaven hidden in the church today? And by whom?

How can we protect ourselves and our families

from the corrupting influences found in the

world today?