Who am I, and who can I become? What does this mean to me?

Lesson
https://www.lds.org/youth/learn/ap/godhead/become?lang=eng

Agenda
Lion King Clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maARmxjj3f0

What do you know about God? (list?)

Bible teaches us: Psalms 82:6, Hebrews 12:9, Acts 17: 28-29

What does it mean to be sons of God? Why is it significant that he is our Father and not our "owner" or just our "creator" only? What's the difference between us being his sons and not merely his pets or servants?

Chase - Lost Sheep parable, Rory - prodigal son parable, Joseph - Moses' Vision

Oath and Covenant - D&C 84:33-39

Uchtdorf's parable and 3 points.


Ask the young men to share what they learned today. What feelings or impressions do they have? Do they understand who they are and who they can become? Additional questions?

Invite to act: How will you use this understanding this week? What will you do about it? We will be following up!


Teacher Notes
Who am I?

• The Psalmist wrote that we are gods and children of God (Psalms 82:6). What does that mean that we are gods? Perhaps he was discussing our likeness to God, how he created us in his own image. Or maybe he was referring to a future state - that we are gods in embryo? 
• Paul clearly writes in Acts 17:28-29 that we are God's offspring.
• Paul describes God as the Father of our spirits, which supports our belief that we existed prior to this life with God as his spirit children (Hebrews 12:9).
• The Lord revealed to Joseph Smith that the inhabitants of the earth are God's sons and daughters (D&C 76:23).
• God said to Moses: "And, behold, thou art my son; wherefore look, and I will show thee the workmanship of mine hands...And I have a work for thee, Moses, my son; and thou art in the similitude of mine Only Begotten; and mine Only Begotten is and shall be the Savior, for he is full of grace and truth; (Moses 1:4,6)" 

Who can I become?

• The Parable of the Talents helps us realize that God has given us so much, including a great potential to be like Him. If we bury that potential, we'll lose it. If we do what we can to live up to it by improving ourselves during this life, we will be richly rewarded.
• Ever wonder why the Good Shepherd would leave the 99 to go after the 1 (Luke 15:4-7)? Or why there would be such rejoicing over the return of that 1 or over 1 soul that repents? There must be more to us than we think, we must be of greater worth than we can imagine. Perhaps our worth is determined by our potential, so if it's worthwhile for God to go to great effort to "rescue" our soul, we must have a great potential. Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God; (D&C 18:10)
• It doesn't matter what mistakes we have made or how far we have strayed, God is our father and eagerly awaits our return. When we repent and return, the feast is no less grand than it was for the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32).
• If further evidence is required to convince you that God's love is infinitely great for you, think of the fact that God gave his only-begotten son as a sacrifice for you. (John 3:16)
• According to the Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood in D&C 84, our potential as Priesthood holders is to "become the sons of Moses and of Aarons and the see of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God." Becoming the sons of these past prophets means that we receive the same covenant that they received and the same blessings for faithfulness. The promise gets better when the Lord promises us "all that [God] hath shall be given unto [us]" (verse 38).

What does this mean to me?

• The knowledge that he was God's son was critical for Moses to overcome Satan who subsequently came to him to tempt Moses. Moses was able to use the knowledge that he was a son of God with great potential to resist Satan's temptation. Moses said: "Who art thou? For behold, I am a son of God, in the similitude of his Only Begotten...Blessed be the name of my God, for his Spirit hath not altogether withdrawn from me, or else where is thy glory, for it is darkness unto me? And I can judge between thee and God; (Moses 1:13,15)"Knowing he was a son of God put everything into perspective for Moses and helped him to clearly judge between good and evil. This also gave him confidence to stand up to Satan and call upon God to command Satan to depart from him.