Aaronic Priesthood · 25 minutes
Chapter 9: You are blessed by priesthood keys and authority · Matthew 16:18–19
Recommended path
Open Gospel Library as you teach. Mix and match below to build one 25-minute class.
This class in one line
Joseph Smith's experience receiving the Aaronic Priesthood shows every young man what it means to be a covenant son of God, a fellow servant with heaven, called and authorized to bless others.
Skip the second principle entirely if discussion on Joseph Smith runs long; one deep question answered well is worth more than two questions skimmed.
If a youth is teaching
Keep Gospel Library open the whole time, you'll use this Sunday's lesson and Chapter 9 of the FSY guide. Start by reading the identity statement at the top of the lesson, then have someone read Joseph Smith, History 1:66–73 out loud and just talk about it; those verses carry the lesson. Skip the second principle if you need to, it is better to go deep on Joseph Smith than to rush through everything. Close by opening the Invitations in Chapter 9 and letting each person quietly choose one thing they'll do this week.
Before Sunday
Sunday: Who are you becoming?
Before Sunday, open this Sunday's lesson in Gospel Library and read Joseph Smith, History 1:66–73. Then open Chapter 9 of the FSY guide and read the section called 'Eternal Truths.' As you read, think about this: Joseph Smith was a teenager when he received the Aaronic Priesthood. What does it mean to you that John the Baptist called him a 'fellow servant'?
Pick one opening
Before we open anything, just think for a second, don't answer out loud yet. If someone asked you right now, 'Who are you?' what would you say? Your name? Your school? Your sport? Now here's the real question we're going to sit with today: Who does the Lord say you are, and who is He making you into? Hold that. Open this Sunday's lesson in Gospel Library and read the identity statement at the very top together.
Before we open anything, just think for a second, don't answer out loud yet. If someone asked you right now, 'Who are you?' what would you say? Your name? Your school? Your sport? Now here's the real question we're going to sit with today: Who does the Lord say you are, and who is He making you into? Hold that. Open this Sunday's lesson in Gospel Library and read the identity statement at the very top together.
Bring a set of keys, car keys, house keys, anything with a keyring. Hold them up. Keys don't do anything sitting in a drawer. They only matter when someone authorized uses them to open something. Open Chapter 9 of the FSY guide in Gospel Library and have someone read the first paragraph under 'Eternal Truths' out loud. Then ask: What does it mean that Jesus Christ is the one who decides who receives priesthood keys, and that He chose to give some of those keys to the Aaronic Priesthood quorum sitting in this room right now?
Teach this first
Open this Sunday's lesson in Gospel Library and have someone read Joseph Smith, History 1:66–73 out loud, all eight verses. Don't rush it. After the reading, pause. The lesson draws out what it meant for a teenage Joseph to hear John the Baptist call him a 'fellow servant.' That phrase is the heart of this discussion. Then open Chapter 9 of the FSY guide and have someone read the 'Promised Blessings' section, especially the line about becoming an instrument in the Lord's hands.
From Chapter 9 of the FSY guide: 'As you serve the Lord with His authority and under the direction of His servants who hold priesthood keys, He will help you know how to serve others in His work. Jesus Christ is your strength.'
Ask the class
If time remains
If time remains, open Chapter 9 of the FSY guide to the 'Invitations' section and have someone read the invitation to sustain those God has called. The guide teaches that sustaining means actively supporting, not just voting.
Ask the class
Last 3–5 minutes
Open Chapter 9 of the FSY guide to the 'Invitations' section. Read through the three invitations together and ask each young man to silently pick one he will act on this week, whether accepting a calling, fulfilling an assignment, or looking for a way to actively sustain a leader. Don't make them say it aloud; just let them choose.
The FSY guide promises that as you serve with priesthood authority under the direction of those who hold keys, you will become an instrument in the Lord's hands, draw closer to Jesus Christ, and find joy.
Your witness: Share, in your own words, a moment when you felt the reality that Jesus Christ was actually working through you, or through someone else's priesthood service, to reach one of His children.