Points to Ponder Before Beginning Your Study of the New Testament in the Come Follow Me Program for 2023

July 25, 2022

To accompany your Come Follow Me study for December 26-January 1

Points to Ponder

1. Why do you think the Church would devote the entire first week of the 2023 Come Follow Me program to a subject other than the birth of Jesus?  In brief, what do you think our leaders would want us to do differently because of this week’s study and meditation?

2. In a nutshell, what other responsibilities do we have in the Come Follow Me program other than those mentioned in the suggested answer to question #1?

3. Other than the New Testament itself and the Come Follow Me manual, what online materials does the Church offer to help us enjoy and get the most from our 2023 study?

4. What should I do if I find it hard to understand the King James Version of the Bible?  Is it okay to read it in a modern translation?

5. What is the Joseph Smith Translation?  Should I study it rather than the King James Version?

6. What other free resources are available online?

7. How can I better learn to get maximum benefit and enjoyment from the Study Helps in the Latter-day Saint edition of the Bible?

8. If you were to organize a comprehensive course concerning the life and mission of Jesus Christ, why wouldn’t you want to begin with His conception and birth?  Of the many sub-topics listed under the heading of “Jesus Christ” in the Topical Guide, which ones would properly be considered before a discussion of His mortal life?

9. How do you react to the following thought?  “Who knows if in 2030 or some other future year someone will be born who will live a life even more perfect than that of Jesus?  Then we would worship him as the Son of God.  The reason we worship Jesus as the Son of God is that he lived the most perfect life of anyone of whom we have knowledge.”

10. What do I need to know about what happened between the end of the Old Testament and the beginning of the New Testament to better understand and appreciate this year’s Come Follow Me course?

Possible Answers to Points to Ponder

1. Why do you think the Church would devote the entire first week of the 2023 Come Follow Me program to a subject other than the birth of Jesus?  In brief, what do you think our leaders would want us to do differently because of this week’s study and meditation?

This week’s focus might be compared to sharpening the saw before cutting down trees.  Too many of us have thought of the Come Follow Me program as something that is done to us twice a month in Sunday School, not something that we actively do daily.  That would make as much sense as expecting to eat only twice a month, and then only during a 45 minute period.  For us to really benefit from Come Follow Me, we need to feast daily upon the scriptures, ponder them, underline and mark them, and discuss them with our families.

2. In a nutshell, what other responsibilities do we have in the Come Follow Me program other than those mentioned in the suggested answer to question #1?

In Doctrine and Covenants 88:77, the Lord emphasized that we are each to “teach one another the doctrine of the kingdom.”  Expanding on that, He continued in verse 122 to explain that a “teacher,” or moderator, should be appointed in a classroom setting who would ensure that everyone didn’t try to talk at once but that one should speak at a time, letting others listen to him, so that “when all have spoken, that all may be edified of all.”  Paul taught the same thing in 1 Corinthians 14.  After expressing his desire that all members might “prophesy,” and in that sense be “prophets,” he counseled, “Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge.  If any thing be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first hold his peace.  For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted.”  (1 Cor. 14:29-31.)  Clearly, we each have a responsibility to seek inspired insights in our individual gospel study and go to Sunday School prepared to share them with other class members, not taking more than our fair share of time but neither taking less.  The Savior had some harsh things to say about those who “buried” the talent the master had given them. 

You may enjoy seeing the video Come Follow Me:  Teach One Another at https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/media/video/2018-06-1330-come-follow-me-teach-one-another?lang=eng&alang=eng

3. Other than the New Testament itself and the Come Follow Me manual, what online materials does the Church offer to help us enjoy and get the most from our 2023 study?

These would include:

4. What should I do if I find it hard to understand the King James Version of the Bible?  Is it okay to read it in a modern translation?

Absolutely!  However, you may wish to refer to a modern version in addition, to help you better understand the King James Version, rather than as a substitute for it, since most other class members will be using the King James.  For additional thoughts on the subject, see my article Some Thoughts on Better Understanding the King James Version of the Bible at https://latterdaysaintandhappy.com/some-thoughts-on-better-understanding-the-king-james-version-of-the-bible/.

5. What is the Joseph Smith Translation?  Should I study it rather than the King James Version?

The Joseph Smith Translation is an inspired revision of the Bible Joseph Smith undertook at the Lord’s direction.  In some cases, it appears to represent a restoration of the original text.  In other cases it may be inspired commentary to help us better understand existing text.  The Church does not have the copyright to the Joseph Smith Translation, which is held by the Community of Christ.  We therefore use the Church’s edition of King James Version, with its excellent study aids, in our classes but strongly recommend consulting the Joseph Smith Translation material included in the footnotes and in the appendix. 

6. What other free resources are available online?

I especially like those from Book of Mormon Central.   See them at https://bookofmormoncentral.org/sunday-school/new-testament and https://archive.bookofmormoncentral.org/content/come-follow-me-commentary-new-testament.  See also the related ScripturePlus app, available for both IOS and Android. 

ScripturePlus app icon

There are also various excellent New Testament movies available on YouTube which faithfully dramatize the content of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Acts, following word for word the content of a selected Bible translation. They include:

An excellent electronic parallel New Testament harmony is available at http://www.parallelgospels.net/.  The value of such a harmony is it lets you see at a glance the contributions of all four Gospel writers to any given episode in the life of Jesus. 

At https://www.biblegateway.com/ you have free access to multiple translations of the New Testament in both English and Spanish.  An obscure passage in one version is often much clearer in another. 

7. How can I better learn to get maximum benefit and enjoyment from the Study Helps in the Latter-day Saint edition of the Bible?

Just browse through them and see what they have to offer.  You may find it hard to put them down.  You may also enjoy the “quiz” format activity I have prepared (with answers) and which can be found at https://latterdaysaintandhappy.com/what-good-are-the-latter-day-saint-bible-study-helps/.   

8. If you were to organize a comprehensive course concerning the life and mission of Jesus Christ, why wouldn’t you want to begin with His conception and birth?  Of the many sub-topics listed under the heading of “Jesus Christ” in the Topical Guide, which ones would properly be considered before a discussion of His mortal life?

We can’t possibly understand and appreciate the mortal life of Jesus without understanding that He was Jehovah, the God of the Old Testament, the Creator of the universe, whose birth and mission was foretold by all prophets through the ages.  Relevant topics from the Topical Guide would include:

  • Jesus Christ, Antemortal Existence of
  • Jesus Christ, Appearances, Antemortal
  • Jesus Christ, Creator
  • Jesus Christ, Davidic Descent of
  • Jesus Christ, Divine Sonship
  • Jesus Christ, Firstborn
  • Jesus Christ, Foreordained
  • Jesus Christ, Jéhovah
  • Jesus Christ, Lord
  • Jesus Christ, Messiah
  • Jesus Christ, Prophecies about

9. How do you react to the following thought?  “Who knows if in 2030 or some other future year someone will be born who will live a life even more perfect than that of Jesus?  Then we would worship him as the Son of God.  The reason we worship Jesus as the Son of God is that he lived the most perfect life of anyone of whom we have knowledge.”

If this idea makes any sense to us, we really need to review the above-referenced passages from the Topical Guide once again.  Jesus is the only being who ever was or ever will be conceived by God Himself, who was Himself a pre-mortal God, who created the universe under His Father’s direction, and who had the power not only to live an exemplary life but to atone for the sins of all mankind and to take His life up again after death, opening the door for the resurrection and salvation of all mankind.

10. What do I need to know about what happened between the end of the Old Testament and the beginning of the New Testament to better understand and appreciate this year’s Come Follow Me course?

The short and fun video called Come Follow Me (Dec 26 – Jan 1) – Setting the Stage | Between the Testaments at Come Follow Me (Dec 26 – Jan 1) – Setting the Stage | Between the Testaments – YouTube will give you lots of interesting and helpful information. You may want to watch it twice for maximum benefit.

You can find more helpful information in the Institute New Testament student manual at Chapter 1: Introduction to the New Testament (churchofjesuschrist.org).