"For the Perfecting of the Saints"
October 2–8
FAIR Faithful Resources for Come, Follow Me 2023 October 2–8. Ephesians: “For the Perfecting of the Saints.” Find answers to difficult questions to help you in your learning and teaching. Here is a collection of reliable resources to supplement your study of Ephesians. FAIR Resources link to relevant questions which have been answered on the FAIR website. Under Church Resources you’ll find links to the different Come, Follow Me manuals, as well as other helpful links as applicable. Other Resources link to resources outside of FAIR that are trustworthy and helpful.
Main points to ponder
The lesson invites us to ask ourselves why we have prophets and apostles. As you ponder this question, consider the following references:
Think about the messages we received in general conference from those we sustain as prophets, seers and revelators, as you consider these questions:
- How do their teachings fulfill the purposes Paul described?
- How have these teachings helped you not be “carried about with every wind of doctrine”?
Faithful Resources on the FAIR website:
- By Grace Alone?
- Rejection of Priesthood Leaders as a Cause of the Great Apostasy
- Are Books of Scripture Missing from the Bible?
- Question: What does the Bible teach about priesthood in the Church of Jesus Christ?
- Agency vs. Predestination
- Valerie Hudson Cassler – I am a Mormon Because I am a Feminist
- Peter and Paul’s Paradoxical Passages on Women
- Question: Are Latter-day Saint (Mormon) women placed under covenant in temples to subordinate themselves to their husbands?
Resources on the Church website:
Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families
Come, Follow Me—For Sunday School
Ye Are No More Strangers (Ephesians 2:10-22)
Unity of the Faith (Ephesians 4:1-15)
The Armour of God (Ephesians 6:10-18)
Faithful Resources from other reliable websites:
- Come, Follow Me Study and Teaching Helps — Lesson 41: October 2–8, Jonn Claybaugh
- The New Testament in Context: Come, Follow Me Lesson 41
- Biblical and Non-Biblical Quotes in the Sermons and Epistles of Paul, John A. Tvedtnes
- Audio Roundtable: Come, Follow Me New Testament Lesson 39< (Ephesians)/a>
- Understand the Language in Ephesians 5 (Is Jesting Bad?), Hales Swift
- Scripture Roundtable: New Testament Gospel Doctrine Lesson 39, “For the Perfecting of the Saints”
- Saved and Enabled by the Grace of Jesus Christ, Ray L. Huntington
- Ephesians: Unfolding the Mysteries through Revelation, Ray L. Huntington
- Submit Yourselves . . . as unto the Lord, Ray L. Huntington
- Unity and Atonement in Ephesians, Ray L. Huntington
- The “Same” Organization That Existed in the Primitive Church, Ray L. Huntington
- Internal Divisions: Ephesians in Historical Context, Ray L. Huntington
- Come Follow Me – Ephesians, Book of Mormon Central Archive
- The Acts to Revelation, Discussions on the New Testament: Ephesians
- Come Follow Me: Ephesians, Book of Mormon Central
- Tyler Griffin & Taylor Halverson Ephesians | Oct 2 – Oct 8 | Come Follow Me Insights
- Lynne Hilton Wilson Ephesians: New Testament with Lynne Wilson (Come, Follow Me)
- BibleProject Book of Ephesians Summary: A Complete Animated Overview
- Unshaken Come Follow Me – Ephesians (part 1): Fellowcitizens with the Saints
- Unshaken Come Follow Me – Ephesians (part 2): The Armor of God
- followHIM Hank Smith & John Bytheway – Dr. Matthew Richardson PART 1, PART 2, Youth
Dig Deeper
Be sure to listen to Jennifer Roach’s presentation for this week!
General Conference Talks
BYU Devotionals
Be Strong in the Lord, and in the Power of His Might, M. Russell Ballard, Mar. 3, 2002
Therefore Ye Are No More Strangers and Foreigners, William G. Eggington, November 8, 2011
Lesson Devotional
Madi Puzey is a Senior Editorial Assistant for the Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation. She also works part time as a recruiter and loves spending time with her nephew, Orson.
Lesson devotionals are provided by the Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation. Its mission is to digitally preserve and publish Wilford Woodruff’s eyewitness account of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ from 1833 to 1898. It seeks to make Wilford Woodruff’s records universally accessible to inspire all people, especially the rising generation, to study and to increase their faith in Jesus Christ. See wilfordwoodruffpapers.org.
“Christ is Our Peace”
By Madi Puzey
“If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18).
If you have ever felt singled out because of your membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you are not alone. As a Latter-day Saint, you are part of a “peculiar people” (1 Peter 2:9)—and it shows. The people of the world have always had it out for anyone who sticks out, and particularly for what they don’t understand. Such has been the case since even before God restored the gospel to the earth through Joseph Smith.
When the gospel first spread to Ephesus, the majority of that part of the world still devoutly worshipped Greek gods. As such, Christianity was not popular among the Ephesians, and it’s no surprise that it caused “no small stir” (Acts 19:23). It posed not just a threat to some Ephesians’ livelihoods, but to the entire Ephesian way of life, which made Ephesus a tense and contentious place to live. However, there were still many Ephesians who accepted and lived the gospel. Through the tumult, Paul assured the Ephesian converts that “Christ . . . is our peace” (Ephesians 2:13–14) and invited them to “let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away” (Ephesians 4:31).
Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father know what they’re asking of their people. They know we will face adversity as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in a fallen world. But “in the Lord, and in the power of his might” (Ephesians 6:10), we have been given the strength we need to face this adversity.
The early Saints were given similar encouragement, though this time through an epistle to the Church written by Wilford Woodruff rather than through words from the Apostle Paul.
October 1887 was also a tumultuous time to be a member of the one true Church, much like when the gospel spread to Ephesus, and much like today. But the early Saints, like the Ephesians, faced adversity with “dignity and courage.”1 Many people wanted to harm the early Saints, and many more wanted to provoke and goad the Saints into their own acts of violence. However, by using the strength the Lord afforded them through His infinite Atonement, the early Saints were able to practice “forbearance, patience and fortitude,” which Wilford Woodruff believed was proof “that God ha[d] been with them.”
As Latter-day Saints, we need not fear the ideas or opinions of other people. We have the Lord on our side, and through Him, we will have the strength to overcome the adversity that comes with being a member of the true Church of Jesus Christ.
1 Epistle to the Church, October 10, 1887, p. 1, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/letter/1887-10-01.
Chapter Summaries
The Saints are foreordained to receive the gospel—The gospel is to be restored in the latter days—The Saints are sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise—They know God and Christ by revelation.
1-2 Paul’s greeting to the saints in Ephesus
3-6 being chosen before the foundation of the world
7-14 Spiritual blessings in Christ
15-23 Paul gives thanks and offers a prayer
We are saved by grace through faith—The blood of Christ saves Jew and Gentile alike—The Church is built upon the foundation of apostles and prophets.
1-10 Grace, faith and works
11-22 becoming one in Christ; no more strangers and foreigners
The Gentiles are fellow heirs with Israel—The love of Christ surpasses all understanding.
1-2 Paul’s ministry to the gentiles
3-13 faith in Christ gives us confidence
14-19 Paul’s prayer for spiritual power
20-21 Paul gives glory to God
There is one Lord, one faith, and one baptism—Apostles and prophets are essential to the Church—The Saints are exhorted to live righteously—They are sealed unto the day of redemption.
1-3 Walk in unity
4-6 one Lord, one faith, one baptism
7-10 spiritual gifts through Christ
11-16 apostles and prophets edify the body of Christ
17-24 the new man
25-32 do not grieve the spirit; be kind
The Saints are exhorted to avoid uncleanness and walk uprightly—Husbands and wives should love each other.
1-2 Walk in love
3-7 be clean and avoid wickedness
8-14 walk in the light of the Lord
15-21 Walk in wisdom
22-32- Marriage – Christ and the Church
Children should honor their parents—Servants and masters are judged by the same law—Saints should put on the whole armor of God.
1-4 Children and parents
5-9 Bondservants and masters
10-20 the whole armor of God
21-24 final greeting and prayer for the saints
Tab Content
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