“We accept these three personages as the supreme governing council in the heavens. The Father and the Son have tabernacles of flesh and bones, and the Holy Ghost is a personage of Spirit. We worship the Father in the name of the son who is the Mediator between God and man, and his is the only name given whereby man can be saved. We accept Jesus as the Only Begotten Son of the Father in the flesh, although we are all his offspring in the spirit, and therefore his children.”
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Are Mormons Christian?
Inquiry into the Church of Latter Day Saints, a
peculiarly American Religion
They teach/have taught: Jesus is not Emmanuel, Adam is God, and Salvation is by Works
| The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims that the name of the Church was given to Joseph Smith by revelation. However, when Smith first organized the Church in 1830, it was called the "Church of Christ," then four years later the name was changed to the "Church of Latter-day Saints," then in 1838, it was changed again, this time to the "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints".. |
| Regardless that Jesus told us "God is
Spirit", Mormons reject the unified Trinity and teach that God
has a body of flesh and blood. |
| Most Mormons are good, God
fearing people who believe in Christ as the Savior, the Redeemer, the Son of God,
the Creator of the earth, and the only source of salvation.
Who can doubt their love for God after sitting through a
wonderful Christmas celebration by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir? What can one make of this? Yet many of their doctrines are
heretical to most Christians. Most Mormons are good,
God-fearing people. But like
Islam,
Scientology, and
Jehovah
Witnesses, Mormonism rejects the Gospel of Jesus -- and
therefore these push their members away from the true road to
salvation. Jews also reject this. But as Paul says--Jews have
been supernaturally blinded. Most important, however,
members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and is their
personal Savior.
Some say Mormons present a "gendered, married and procreating god" with "a body of flesh and bones." This despite Jesus telling us God is Spirit. Mormons reject the Triune God. The Jesus of Mormonism is not co-eternal with the Father and of one substance with the Father, which most Christians believe.
The three persons of the Godhead are, noted
in such Scriptures as Isaiah 48:16: "baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (Matthew 28:19) Mormonism says: Jesus and Satan, like
the rest of us, were spirit brothers and sons of God before the
spirit of Jesus was given a body by Mary in Bethlehem. The
Mormon "Book of Moses" presents Satan and Jesus as contending
for the privilege of taking a body of flesh in order to become
the redeemer, with Jesus winning the contest. [See Joseph Smith,
Pearl of Great Price, Book of Moses 4:1-4.] |
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However, while Mormonism is based on a biblical belief in Jesus as the Christ, the teachings of Mormonism concerning God and Man (expounded first circa 1840 near the end of Smith's life) extend far beyond the biblical narrative in ways rejected by most traditional Christian churches. Mormons believe that God the Father is completely separate from Jesus Christ; that God the Father is the father of us all, and of his son, Jesus Christ, and of all the evil spirits, including Satan. Mormons have a creed similar to New Agers. The LDS did once teach that "We can become Gods like our Heavenly Father. This is exaltation." In Joseph Smith's own words we can become like God (''what God is"). However, they have apparently changed this teaching in recent years. They now teach: "We can become like our Heavenly Father. This is exaltation."
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Southern Baptists have called Utah "a stronghold of Satan"
Mormon beliefs are considered to be so far outside the beliefs of most Christians that the Roman Catholic Church, Presbyterians and the United Methodist Church all declared that Mormon converts must be re-baptized, a setback to the Mormon Church's effort to characterize itself as a Christian denomination. The Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith declared that baptisms in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are "not the baptism that Christ instituted." The ruling was a departure from the Catholic Church's usual practice of recognizing the baptisms of converts from most other churches. The Vatican held that the Mormon view of the nature of God was too different from Catholicism's. Southern Baptists have called Utah "a stronghold of Satan". |
Statue of Moroni
| Jesus told us, there would only be one
more revelation of truth that would come after Him. John 14:17,
16:7 & 13 tell us that Jesus said a "Spirit of Truth" (not a man
- a Spirit), the Comforter would come after He Himself departed.
This Comforter was to guide us "into all truth". So there would
then be no truth remaining which would be sealed or hidden. This
was Jesus’ way of saying there would be only one more revelation
of Truth after him. We know, that this was the Comforter who
descended on the apostles gathered together on Pentecost. There
have been no others. According to Mormon tradition, the angel Moroni is the heavenly messenger who first visited Joseph Smith on the night of September 21-22, 1823. Adherents of Latter-day Saint theology believe that Moroni is a prophet who lived in North America in the late 4th century. In 1827, Moroni supposedly delivered golden plates to Joseph Smith, which are the record of Moroni's people -- ancient Americans known as Nephites and Lamanites. The golden tablets containing the Book of Mormon and magic translation stones were supposedly buried beneath a hill in Palmyra, New York. Since Joseph Smith was the only witness to the appearance of Moroni, and only eight others (all converts rather than disinterested witnesses) claim to have seen the golden plates--there is little to corroborate Smith's story. Most of these so-called witnesses later left the Mormon Church. Smith says that these valuable plates were lost. In the Journal of Discourses, vol. 7, page 164, Brigham Young stated: "...witnesses of the Book of Mormon who handled the plates and conversed with the angels of God were afterwards left to doubt and to disbelieve that they had ever seen an angel." A worrisome note smacking of what Jesus was against is that the foundation of the practice of the Mormon church is priesthood authority. Another of Joseph Smiths doctrines was polygamy, a practice that Smith denied publicly but practiced secretly. That doctrine was the obvious downfall of Joseph Smith; he was killed during a shot out in 1844, as a result of the polygamy controversy. The Book of Mormon shows every indication of being
written by a rather uneducated man, who plagiarized most of it
from the King James version of the Bible. Amazing little
knowledge of Judaism and 4th-century Judea is noted in the Book
of Mormon. This Book of Mormon shares a common denominator with
another such contrived book. Both the Muslim Qu'ran and
the Book of Mormon exhibit gross chronological errors. |
| In Galatians 1:6-9 Paul says;
"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than ye have received, let him be accursed." Would this mean that Mormons and Masonic Worshipful Masters and other Masonic instructors are under the curse of God? Don't both of these preach the contrary doctrine that "salvation is by works" - as if they can earn credit points towards earning a celestial reward? This is exactly the wrong reasons for charity work and helping your fellow man/women. Doing it only because of your love for Jesus and obedience to his loving message to "love one another" is the correct motivation - knowing that you are only saved by His grace. Isn't this new Mormon 19th century Doctrine in violation of what Paul speaks of and warns about above? Islam and Mormonism have similar roots/leaders. Both have prophets who made no prophecies, nor showed any sort of divinity, or even divine inspiration. History has shown that both were opportunists and murdered up to the end, also. Both taught salvation by works.
Mormons want you to believe their "prophet", Joseph Smith was martyred: In 1838, when Oliver Cowdery accused Joseph
Smith of adulterous affairs, Joseph had Oliver excommunicated. The
controversy over polygamy was the underlying reason for the death of
Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum. William Law's wife had confessed
that she had an affair with Joseph. William Law left the Church and
started a publication called "Nauvoo Expositor." One issue was
published and the second one was going to print when Joseph found
out that William Law was going to print his wife's confession in
that issue. Joseph had the press destroyed and the building burned.
That caused his arrest and, consequently, his death. "Joseph opened the door slightly, and snapped the pistol six successive times... afterwards (I) understood that two or three were wounded by these discharges, two of whom, I am informed, died." The same account is also in the History of the Church, vol. 6, p. XLI and pages 617-618. It was too bad that Joseph Smith was thus killed, but he did not die like a martyr who went "as a lamb to the slaughter" as is claimed by the LDS Church. HE DIED IN A GUNFIGHT, and killed two people before he was shot. Joseph acted as a Mason at the time of his death. John Taylor tells also that Joseph went to the window and made a Masonic distress sign after his gun was empty, hoping that Masons, if there were any among this mob, would rescue him, according to the Masonic oath "to defend one another, right or wrong." How Joseph Smith died - in a blazing gunfight: After a brief struggle--during which Joseph
Smith, who had armed himself with a smuggled pepperbox revolver,
reached around the doorjamb and fired all six chambers--Hyrum fired
through the door and was struck in the face by a mobber's bullet. He
was hit by three more shots and died. Joseph leaped to the window,
where he became an excellent target for those outside as well as the
intruders on the stairway. Two shots from the doorway struck him in
the back; a third, fired from the ground outside, penetrated his
chest. "O Lord. My God!" he screamed, and plunged to earth. Brigham Young had claimed that God Himself had revealed this doctrine to him. Brigham also had claimed that his sermons were "as good as scripture" (J. of D., vol. 13, p. 166). See more about the "doorway to satanism", known as Masonry here Latter Day Saints (LDS) Lies about Jesus in
trying to make Polygamy (many wives) acceptable: The leaders of the LDS Church have also taught that their Jesus was married and had children, and that he was even a polygamist. Apostle Orson Pratt, in his book, The Seer, page 172, says: "...the great Messiah who was the founder of the Christian religion was a Polygamist...the Messiah chose to take upon himself his seed; and by marrying many honorable wives himself, show to all future generations that he approved the plurality of Wives under Christian dispensation. Joseph Smith taught that a man who took ten wives with him to heaven had ten times as much chance of becoming God of his own planet than a man who took only one wife. It is said that Joseph’s own adventure with plural marriage began with Fannie Alger. Oliver Cowdery, who at one time was second in command of the Mormon Church, called Joseph’s relation with Fannie Alger, at that time about eighteen, “a dirty, nasty, filthy affair.” The government of the Mormon Church is a monarchical style of administration. The head of the church, the “President,” is assisted by apostles and other General Authorities. The President makes all appointments and decisions of the church. The President of the church is not elected by church members, but assumes power strictly by seniority (as an apostle) as the oldest apostle. Exactly like Muhammad of Islam, Joseph Smith had a knack for coming up with "miraculous", timely and convenient revelations that benefited himself:
Evidence that Joseph Smith was probably nothing other than an uninspired man and a charlatan can be found in the way he (like Muhammad of Islam) received "miraculous", timely and convenient revelations that suited his own personal life. Joseph Smith was an advocate of plural marriage. Below is a timely and convenient "revelation" which Joseph Smith said he miraculously received from God admonishing his own wife Emma Smith who was against polygamy: Reference for the below: "Doctrine and Covenants, 1981, 132:51-56" "Verily, I say unto you: A commandment I give unto mine handmaid, Emma Smith, your wife, whom I have given unto you, that she stay herself and partake not of that which I commanded you to offer unto her; for I did it, saith the Lord, to prove you all, as I did Abraham, and that I might require an offering at your hand, by covenant and sacrifice. And let mine handmaid, Emma Smith, receive all those that have been given unto my servant Joseph, and who are virtuous and pure before me; and those who are not pure, and have said they were pure shall be destroyed, saith the Lord God. For I am the Lord thy God, and ye shall obey my voice; and I give unto my servant Joseph that he shall be made ruler over many things; for he hath been faithful over a few things, and from henceforth I will strengthen him. And I command mine handmaid, Emma Smith, to abide and cleave unto my servant Joseph, and to none else. But if she will not abide this commandment she shall be destroyed, saith the Lord; for I am the Lord thy God, and will destroy her if she abide not in my law. But if she will not abide this commandment, then shall my servant Joseph do all things for her, even as he hath said; and I will bless him and multiply him and give unto him an hundredfold in this world, of fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, houses and lands, wives and children, and crowns of eternal lives in the eternal worlds. And again, verily I say, let mine handmaid forgive my servant Joseph his trespasses; and then shall she be forgiven her trespasses, wherein she has trespassed against Me; and I, the Lord thy God, will bless her, and multiply her, and make her heart to rejoice. Early LDS President, Brigham Young Taught that Adam is God: He said; "Now hear it, O inhabitants of the earth, Jew and Gentile, Saint and sinner! When our father Adam came into the garden of Eden, he came into it with a celestial body, and brought Eve, one of his wives, with him. He helped to make and organize the world. He is Michael, the Arc-angel, the Ancient of Days! about whom holy men have written and spoken - HE IS OUR FATHER AND OUR GOD, AND THE ONLY GOD WITH WHOM WE HAVE TO DO. Every man upon the earth, professing Christians or non-professing, must hear it, and will know it sooner or later... the earth was organized by three distinct characters, namely, Eloheim, Yahovah, and Michael, these three forming a quorum, as in heavenly bodies, and in organizing element, perfectly represented in the Deity, as Father, Son, and Holy Ghost." Journal of Discourses, vol. 1, pp. 50-51. in the Millenial Star, vol. 17, page 195, we
read: Further in the Millenial Star, vol. 16, page 530, we read the counsel by James A. Little: "I believe in the principal of obedience; and if I am told that Adam is our Father and our God, I just believe it." The records show that there were only two leaders in the Church who had difficulty with this doctrine, namely apostles Orson Pratt and Amasa Lyman. In one of Brigham's sermons, printed in the "Deseret News," June 14, 1873, Brigham declared: "How much unbelief exists in the minds of the Latter-day Saints in regard to one particular doctrine which I revealed to them, and WHICH GOD REVEALED TO ME - namely that ADAM IS OUR FATHER AND GOD... Our Father Adam helped to make this earth, it was created expressly for him. He brought one of his wives with him. Who is he? He is Michael... He was the first man on the earth, and its framer and maker. He with the help of his brethren brought it into existence." JOSEPH SMITH's NONSENSICAL translation: 'The Book of Abraham' The Book of Abraham was canonized in 1880 by the LDS church, and it remains an important part of the larger scriptural work, The Pearl of Great Price. The Book of Abraham text is a source of some unique Latter-day Saint doctrines such as the exaltation of humanity, the plurality of gods, priesthood, pre-mortal existence, and other inhabited worlds in the cosmos. The Book of Abraham also contains the only reference in the Latter-day Saint canon to the star Kolob, which, according to the text, is the star closest to where God lives. The Book of Abraham papyri were thought lost in the 1871 Great Chicago Fire. However, in 1966 several fragments of the papyri were found in the archives of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and in the LDS Church archives. They are now referred to as the Joseph Smith Papyri. Upon examination by professional Mormon and non-Mormon Egyptologists, the papyri were found to bear no resemblance to Joseph Smith's interpretation, and were common Egyptian funerary texts, dating to about the first century BC. Egyptologist Dr. James H. Breasted, of the
University of Chicago noted: Reference: HERE
Mormons think that Jesus's Atonement is not
Sufficient: Most information for the above article is taken from ex-Mormon's words and in-depth study..... Mormons are Masters of the double-speak - and like Muhammad of Islam, the timely "Revelation".... Although the Mormon leadership, through a "revelation" in 1978, did allow black males to be ordained, it has not changed passages in its scripture teaching that "a skin of blackness" is a curse from God. The double-speak about "a skin of blackness" is such as Mr. Ostling writes in "Mormon America" that the references pertain to American Indians, rather than African-Americans.
Muhammad's made up
Qur'an says this and more about blacks:
Muslims are told that
Africans “annoy the Prophet” (Ishaq 243),
have hearts “grosser than a donkey” (Surah 9:61) Read more at "Black
Muslims" here Also Read: "An Ex-Mormon Makes a Lot of Sense...." Two obstacles must be overcome in understanding Mormon doctrine. The first is historical. Because of changes brought about through ongoing revelation, Mormon doctrine is inconsistent and even self-contradictory. The 1830 edition of the Book of Mormon initially remained doctrinally close to orthodoxy. It declared God to be one, to be spirit, and to be unchangeable in his decrees. Christ was presented as a divine being who is one with the Father. It declared polygamy abominable and commended monogamy as the rule for marriage. Salvation was said to consist of repentance, baptism, remission of sins, and the reception of the Spirit. The unsaved were thought to have no second chance for salvation after death. Yet within a few years, Joseph Smith changed his mind about each of these doctrines. Subsequent Mormon seers and revelators have made additional changes.
The second obstacle in understanding Mormonism is language. Mormons radically redefine traditional Christian terminology to fit their altered doctrine. It is extremely important to bear this in mind when talking with a Mormon. The God of Mormonism is not the God of Christianity, but a finite, resurrected man with a physical body who lives on the planet Kolob. The Christ of Mormonism is not the Christ of Christianity, but the literal spiritual and physical son of God. Mormons call Christ their elder brother believing that, like themselves, his spirit was begotten celestially by God through intercourse with a heavenly mother. They believe Christ’s incarnation resulted from God having sexual intercourse with Mary.
When Mormons speak of being born again, they do not mean spiritual regeneration but baptism into the Mormon church. Salvation is not redemption from sin or spiritual death but the overcoming of physical death. According to Mormon theology, the atonement wrought by Christ merely reversed the penalty of physical death caused by Adam’s fall. Salvation, in the form of resurrection and immortality, is thereby guaranteed for all.
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Jesus told us "God
is Spirit"
Mormons contradict Jesus and tell us God is "flesh & bones"
| President Joseph Fielding Smith (10th
President of the LDS Church) made the following statement: |
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Mormon Proxy Baptism
| The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints believes that a dead person can be baptized by proxy, which
means that a Mormon can be baptized on behalf of someone who has
already died. The Church teaches that because millions of people lived and died without learning the teachings of Jesus Christ and without belonging to his Church, ordinances such as baptism and eternal marriage should be carried out on earth on their behalf. Mormons believe that this restores a practice followed by the early Christians. Mormons believe that baptizing an ancestor who died without hearing the true gospel as restored by the Church is a demonstration of their love for that person. In order to help Mormons track down the names of their ancestors so that they can baptize them the Church has built the largest genealogical database in the world Joseph Smith said that it was "our privilege to act as an agent and be baptized for the remission of sins for and in behalf of our dead kindred who have not heard the gospel of the fullness of it." Ceremony Such baptisms can only be performed in special fonts in Mormon Temples. Women act as proxies for women and men for men. There are witnesses present and a proper record is kept, although the ceremony does not make the person for whom the baptism is performed a Mormon. Confirmation and higher ordinances can also be performed by proxy. What's the point? Mormons believe that this doctrine ends the injustice millions of people being damned just because they died without learning of the gospel of Christ. Traditional faith says that people are judged totally on what they do in this life. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints doesn't completely agree and believes that there is a second chance for everyone. In Mormon belief, every soul spends time after death in a place where they are given the chance to hear and accept the gospel. If they accept the gospel they must be baptized in order to enter into a covenant with Christ and have their sins washed away. But at this stage the person is a spirit without a body and so they can't be baptized because this involves total immersion of their body in water. Hence the need for proxy baptism, using someone else's body. Other Faiths There have been complaints that particularly enthusiastic Mormons have been carrying out proxy baptisms for prominent historical and religious figures including the members of other faiths. For example the Ba'al Shem Tov, the 18th century founder of the Hasidic Jewish movement, was baptized a Mormon. In 1995 the Church agreed to halt proxy baptisms of Holocaust victims and other deceased Jews, and to remove the names of all Holocaust victims from the files. Such names are now only accepted if they are resubmitted by a direct descendant or if consent is obtained from the dead person's immediate family. Since that agreement Church genealogists have stripped hundreds of thousands of Jewish names from baptismal records. Theological problem Members of other faiths argue that it is just plain wrong to baptize dead people and make them Mormons when they can't have any say in the matter. Mormons say that this is a fundamental error. No-one has to accept a proxy baptism. Just as the soul in paradise has a free choice to accept or reject the true gospel, they have a free choice to accept or reject the baptism. If they choose to accept the gospel, the proxy baptism means that they are fully equipped to move on in their spiritual life. |
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Scriptural truth is that Jesus Christ is also God... "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty" (Revelation 1:8) Jehovah has declared He will not share His glory. Jesus has declared that He had that glory before the world was. In Isaiah 42:8 Jehovah
himself is speaking, and He emphatically declares "I am the LORD:
that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another,
neither my praise to graven images. Again, in Isaiah 48:11, Jehovah
is speaking, and He declares: "For mine own sake, even for mine own
sake, will I do it: for how should my name be polluted? and I
will not give my glory unto another." For unto us a Child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder: and his name will be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 (written: 712 BC ) Jesus said: And Thomas answered
and said unto him [Jesus], My Lord and my
God.
John 20:28
See more references
as Jesus/Yeshua being also God, here:
http://www.bibleprobe.com/jesus-is-God.htm |
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One Must be a Christian to be Saved! References for this is found in John 14:6; Acts 4:12, and 26:28; 1 Peter 4:16. One cannot be a Christian without verbally confessing the deity of Jesus the Christ. One cannot even pray to God, let alone have sins remitted by Him, without approaching Him through Jesus (John 14:6 and 13, 15:16; 16:23-24; Romans 5:2, and Ephesians 2:18). I know Muslims and Mormons, Christian Scientists, Jehovah Witnesses, Unitarians, Scientologists, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Seventh Day Adventists -and many others - will not want to hear this, but the Bible declares that Jesus was the FINAL revelation of God to man (Hebrews 1:1-3). There have been no others. |