Suggested Lesson Development

Attention Activity

As appropriate, use the following activity or one of your own to begin the lesson.

Ask class members if they know what a railroad switch point is. Draw one on the chalkboard (as shown on the next page), and explain that a switch point is a location on a railroad track where a train can be switched from one track to another.


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Share the following experience related by Elder Gordon B. Hinckley:

“Many years ago I worked in the head office of one of our railroads. One day I received a telephone call from my counterpart in Newark, New Jersey, who said that a passenger train had arrived without its baggage car. The patrons were angry.

“We discovered that the train had been properly made up in Oakland, California, and properly delivered to St. Louis, from which station it was to be carried to its destination on the east coast. But in the St. Louis yards, a thoughtless switchman had moved a piece of steel just three inches. That piece of steel was a switch point, and the car that should have been in Newark, New Jersey, was in New Orleans, Louisiana, thirteen hundred miles away” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1972, 106–7; or Ensign, Jan. 1973, 91).

When you finish the story, refer to the railroad switch point on the chalkboard and ask the following questions:

The last chapters of Paul’s first epistle to the Corinthians address four doctrinal switch points where the Corinthians had departed from the truth. Explain that as we study Paul’s teachings in these chapters, we can strengthen our commitment to follow the path of righteousness that will lead to our Father in Heaven.

Scripture Discussion and Application

As you teach the following scripture accounts, discuss how they apply to daily life. Encourage class members to share experiences that relate to the scriptural principles.

1. Husbands’ and wives’ relationships with each other and with the Lord

Read and discuss 1 Corinthians 11:1–3, 11–12.

If you used the attention activity, discuss how these relationships can act as positive or negative switch points in our lives.

2. The purpose of the sacrament

Read and discuss 1 Corinthians 11:17–29. Explain that many of the Saints in Corinth were not observing the purpose of the sacrament service. Instead of focusing on the sacrament ordinance, they were contending with each other and eating and drinking to excess (1 Corinthians 11:18–22).

If you used the attention activity, discuss how our attitude toward the sacrament can be a switch point in our lives.

3. The importance of all spiritual gifts

Discuss 1 Corinthians 12–14. Invite class members to read selected verses aloud. Explain that Paul’s letter suggests that the Saints in Corinth may have placed too much importance on the gift of tongues (1 Corinthians 14:2–14, 27–28). In chapters 12–14, Paul explains that all the gifts of the Spirit are important, but that the Saints should seek gifts that will be for the benefit of all.

If you used the attention activity, discuss how charity can act as a switch point in our lives.

4. The Resurrection and the degrees of glory

Read and discuss selected verses from 1 Corinthians 15. Explain that many of the Corinthians had begun to dispute the reality of the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:12).

Conclusion

Testify of the importance of following the doctrines that will lead us back to our Father in Heaven. If you used the attention activity, invite class members to examine their own lives for switch points—attitudes and actions that, if followed, could change the direction of their lives. Encourage them to choose directions that will affect their lives positively.