Family Home Evening for 3 Nephi 27-4

 What question did Jesus’s Disciples have?

Read or summarize 3 Nephi 27:3

3 And they said unto him: Lord, we will that thou wouldst tell us the name whereby we shall call this church; for there are disputations among the people concerning this matter.

Discuss

Why are our names important?

Talk about your children’s names and why they were chosen.

Read or Summarize Jesus’s Response 

4 And the Lord said unto them: Verily, verily, I say unto you, why is it that the people should murmur and dispute because of this thing?

5 Have they not read the scriptures, which say ye must take upon you the name of Christ, which is my name? For by this name shall ye be called at the last day;

6 And whoso taketh upon him my name, and endureth to the end, the same shall be saved at the last day.

7 Therefore, whatsoever ye shall do, ye shall do it in my name; therefore ye shall call the church in my name; and ye shall call upon the Father in my name that he will bless the church for my sake.

8 And how be it my church save it be called in my name? For if a church be called in Moses’ name then it be Moses’ church; or if it be called in the name of a man then it be the church of a man; but if it be called in my name then it is my church, if it so be that they are built upon my gospel.

Discuss

Just as Jesus Christ asked His disciples in the Book of Mormon to call His church after His name, He asked the prophet, Joseph Smith, to do the same in the Latter-days. Many people refer to members of  the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as Mormons, because we are the only church to study scriptures from the Book of Mormon. Although Mormon was a great prophet of old, we do not worship him. Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer, and He is the Son of God. This is His church, and it is important that people understand this. Our Latter-day prophet, President Nelson has said, 

“Thus, the name of the Church is not negotiable. When the Savior clearly states what the name of His Church should be, and even precedes His declaration with, 'Thus shall my church be called,’ He is serious. And if we allow nicknames to be used and adopt or even sponsor those nicknames ourselves, He is offended.”

“"If someone should ask, 'Are you a Mormon?' you could reply, 'If you are asking if I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, yes, I am!'

"If someone asks, 'Are you a Latter-day Saint?' you might respond, 'Yes, I am. I believe in Jesus Christ and am a member of His restored Church.'”

If Jesus sees it important to tell His prophet to tell the members of His restored church to call the church by His name, then He sees it as important, and we should too. 

Watch

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Family Home Evening for 3 Nephi 20-26

 Read or Summarize 3 Nephi 25:5-6

5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord;

6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

Discuss

Who is Elijah and what power does he have?

In his day, Elijah ministered in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. He had great faith in the Lord and is noted for many miracles. The Prophet Joseph Smith said that Elijah held the sealing power of the Melchizedek Priesthood and was the last prophet to do so before the time of Jesus Christ. He appeared on the Mount of Transfiguration with Moses and conferred the keys of the priesthood on Peter, James, and John (Matt. 17:3). He appeared again, with Moses and others, on April 3, 1836, in the Kirtland Ohio Temple and conferred the same keys upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery (D&C 110:13–16). All of this was in preparation for the Second Coming of the Lord, as spoken of in Malachi 4:5–6.

The power of Elijah is the sealing power of the priesthood by which things that are bound or loosed on earth are bound or loosed in heaven. Chosen servants of the Lord on earth today have this sealing power and perform the saving ordinances of the gospel for the living and the dead (D&C 128:8).

Why is the sealing power important?

To make valid in heaven the ordinances performed by priesthood authority on earth. Ordinances are sealed when they receive the approval of the Holy Spirit of Promise, which is the Holy Ghost. This means that as we gather our ancestors and those we loved on earth, we bind them to us. Think of this bond as the links in a chain. Each family member you find and seal to you, gets added to the chain. Only this chain is not a chain that gets broken when we die. The Holy Ghost seals those bonds beyond death, so that we will never be separated again. Families are meant to be eternal. We are meant to be together forever.

What do we have to do to be sealed to our ancestors?

1. Visit familysearch.org. This is a free website that anyone can enjoy. Type in the name of at least one of your known ancestors who have passed away. One cool note is that if people have discovered this ancestor before you, they may have added pictures and stories about them. If you have pictures and stories, you can add these treasures for other people to find. For a guide on how to build your tree, go here. 

2. Continue searching and working backwards to expand your family tree and to discover ancestors who do not have their temple work done for them.

3. Print their ordinance card.

4. Give this card to a person who holds a temple recommend, or if you do, take this card with you to the temple.

5. In the temple, you can perform the ordinances of baptism, confirmation, initiatories, endowments, and sealings on behalf of your relatives.

6. Your relatives will have the opportunity to decide if they want to accept or reject the ordinances that you performed (Agency is eternal!).

7. Your eternal family just got bigger!

Watch

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Family Home Evening for 3 Nephi 17-19

 Read 3 Nephi 18:18-21

18 Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, ye must watch and pray always lest ye enter into temptation; for Satan desireth to have you, that he may sift you as wheat.

19 Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name;

20 And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.

21 Pray in your families unto the Father, always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed.

Discuss

When Jesus visited the Nephites, after His resurrection, He administered the Sacrament and taught them the importance of prayer. Read the scriptures above and discuss the reasons why we should pray, according to what Jesus taught. Discuss how we should act during prayer and bare testimony of how prayer has blessed your lives.

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