LDS
Mormons theologically are Pentecostal + Roman Catholic + Semi-Pelagians
Intro
Question: Leo Tolstoy, the famous Russian author of War & Peace and Anna
Karenina said of Mormonism, “It’s the quintessential __________ religion.” What is the blank: A) Heretical B) American C) Western or D) works-based? Correct
answer is: B) American. Joseph Smith is lauded as the only
real American “Moses”, the prophet of a distinctly American religion.
More History
1826 Smith faced charges of fraud called “glass-looking”
which is pretending to be able to use seer stones to find lost objects &
hidden treasures. He was a treasure hunter for hire.
NY – age 24 wrote Book of Mormon, Mormonism founded during the 2nd Great Awakening. In my opinion ALL of the problems with the current state of the American Church came out of the 2nd Great Awakening, if you want to learn more about it I’d recommend an article called The Disturbing Legacy of Charles Finney – by Dr. Michael Horton.
Kirkland, OH Pentecostal religious culture at the time
included enthusiastic demonstrations of spiritual gifts including fits,
trances, rolling on the ground & speaking in tongues
1832 – OH residents incensed over Smith & his VP Rigdon
financial handling of the town caused them to be beat by a mob, tarred &
feathered & left for dead
1833 – Word of Wisdom – Smith encouraged a natural/organic
movement, counseled a diet of wholesome herbs, fruits & grains, a sparring
use of meat, to avoid “strong” alcoholic drinks & “hot drinks” meaning no
coffee or tea
1844 local paper Nauvoo Expositor publically verified for
non-Mormons, the Mormon doctrines of many gods, polygamy, Smith’s desire to
rule Mormon settlements in several states beside OH, IL & MO, he also had
plans for TX, CA & OR & the paper attacked Smith for “using Religion as
a pre-text to lure unassuming women to Nauvoo in order to seduce & marry
them” **The NT makes a point as to the
motivation of false teachers. They are either seduced by greed, lust or a
desire for power.
How do M’s view Authority? - We looked last week that M
views Authority with lots of companions to the Bible – Doctrines &
Covenants – Book of Mormon – The Pearl of Great Price. In 1843 JS ran as a 3rd party
candidate for President of the US - during Pres. campaign JS declared the US
Constitution (especially the Bill of Rights) to also be inspired by God
How do M’s view God? - They view God as not a Trinity
but a Triumvirate (or Tre + Vir = meaning 3 man leadership) & we also
learned moral obedient people can become gods themselves.
Ex) Julius Caesar,
Pompey the Great & Marcus Crassus
The
Atoning Gospel –
Quote:
“One of the most fallacious doctrines originated by Satan and propounded by man
is that man is saved alone by the grace of God; that belief in Jesus Christ
alone is all that is needed for salvation,” (Miracle of Forgiveness,
Spencer W. Kimball p .206)
In Mormonism the central part of God’s plan for exaltation
(you becoming a god), is the atonement of JC, Mormons believe that the purpose
of this earthly life is to learn to make good choses over evil choices. To obtain this
state of godhood, the church teaches that one must have: faith in Jesus Christ,
repent of their sins, strive to keep the commandments faithfully, participate in
a sequence of ceremonial covenants called ordinances, (which include baptism & receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost via the laying
on of hands), the endowments (sacramental washings
and anointings based off freemason rites), and celestial marriage (means you are married for eternity, not just life).
Mormons believe these ordinances are seen as necessary for
salvation, but are not in & of themselves sufficient. For example, baptism
is required for salvation but being baptized doesn’t mean you
will be saved. Because a baptized person is expected to be obedient to God’s
commandments & to receive all other needed saving ordinances in order to be
saved, Mormons will often perform ordinances (like baptism) for the dead
(founded by Smith in1840). Baptism for the dead are for people who failed
to obey in life, these ordnances are performed by “proxy” on behalf of the
dead. As Mormons are hyper-Arminian they believe that the dead can accept or
reject these proxy ordinances done for them of their own free will in the
afterlife.
@@@ (from Mormon website)
Mormons see “accepting JC as your
own personal savior” as a good work that Protestant teach must be done in order
to be saved. They say, both groups [Protestants
& Mormons] agree that at least one
act is required of all of us in order to be with God. Its just a question of
how many works are needed in order to be saved.
To Mormons grace
means everyone will experience eternal life somewhere: either in various levels
of heaven or in hell and that your obedience determines where your eternal life
will be spent. To them, grace is an
enabling power that allows men and women to lay hold on eternal life and
exaltation after they have expended their own best efforts.
Theological note: Christ’s Atonement
produces grace. Grace means everyone can have Eternal life + grace makes
possible this EL with God, through good works.
“Each person then, is resurrected
and given a place to spend eternity. However, living forever isn’t the total sum
of our goals for eternity if we love God. We who love Him want to live with Him
in His home forever. This requires a bit more.”
We see then, that faith and works
must work together as a unified total in order for either of them to “get us
into Heaven.” (2 Nephi 25:23)
LDS, Articles of Faith
1:3 says,
We believe that through
the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience
to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.
Mike and Ann Thomas’ book
- Mormonism: A Gold-plated Religion, Alpha, p.258
“Those who join the Mormon church are not set
free in Christ but instead are introduced to a whole new set of laws and
ordinances through which they prove their faith and earn their salvation. The
imposibility of keeping all the commandments, especially in their own strength,
imposes an increasing burden of guilt, unworthiness and condemnation for
Mormons.”
The Book of Mormon says, “For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our
children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to
God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.
(See 2
Nephi 25:23) Ephesians 2 says we’re
saved by Grace (period); NOT after all we can do. As both Faith & repentance are actions, and therefore, we see that Christians who believe in grace alone do actually do believe in works—it comes down to a discussion of how many works are required, not whether they are required. Stating our faith in Christ is most certainly an act.
Understanding this we see that the issue of faith and works is really not controversial at all. Atonement is a gift of Jesus Christ and cannot be bought or earned. Salvation, however—the right to live not just forever, but with God, is conditional on righteousness. Faith and works must come together in complete unity within our hearts in order for us to receive everything God wants us to have.
Jesus’
sacrifice was not able to cleanse us from all our sins, (murder and repeated
adultery are exceptions),” (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 3 p. 247)
“Good
works are necessary for salvation,” (Articles of Faith, James Talmage p.92)
The blending of works with repentant-faith in order to be saved
has been the biggest and most common heresy in all of Christianity from
the Judaizes in the NT, to free-will Pelagians in the 400’s, to free-will
semi-Pelagians in 500’s & Arminians in 1600’s AD – this is the
biggest theological fight in all of Christianity.
Questions??
@@@
Mormonism
& Christianity
Quote: “If it had
not been for Joseph Smith and the Restoration, there would be no salvation.
There is no salvation [the context is of the full gospel including exaltation
to Godhood] outside the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” (Mormon
Doctrine, Bruce McConkie p. 670).
“There
is no salvation without accepting Joseph Smith as a prophet of God (Doctrines
of Salvation, Vol.1 p. 188)
Mormons categorize themselves within General Christianity &
Mormons self-identify as Christian. However Mormonism’s differences place it
outside of the umbrella of Christian orthodoxy. Mormonism is seen as a heretical different
religion, amongst Catholics, Eastern Orthodox & Protestants.
Mormonism also believes that they are also the only true form of
Christianity since the 1st century AD, according to Mormons (not
long after Christ’s ascension) Christianity became corrupted by Greek
philosophy, known as the General Apostasy. And they believe that all valid
priests ceased following the martyrdom of the Apostles & therefore no true church
leader aside from an ordained Mormon leader have valid authority to lead a
Church or to administer its ordinances.
Similarly Catholics believe their popes have a direct line of
authority from Peter to today even though there were no Popes prior to 500 AD
& there have been multiple popes at various times in history, which would
mess up that direct line of authority. Mormons believe that they exemplify the
practices of the Early Church & are now the restored version of True
Christianity.
Does Joseph Smith Jr. play a role in
our salvation?
- Brigham Young stated: "no man or woman in this dispensation will ever enter into the celestial kingdom of God without the consent of Joseph Smith...every man and woman must have the certificate of Joseph Smith, junior, as a passport to their entrance into the mansion where God and Christ are" (Journal of Discourses, vol. 7, p.289).
Can salvation come only through the
LDS Church?
- Joseph Smith stated: "This [the LDS] Church...is the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth" (Doctrine and Covenants 1:30).
- President Ezra Taft Benson said: "This is not just another Church. This is not just one of a family of Christian churches. This is the Church and kingdom of God, the only true Church upon the face of the earth..." (Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p.164-165).
Statements by Mormon Leaders about
Christian churches (made by many of the LDS
Prophet-Presidents):
- Joseph Smith stated that God told him: "they [other churches] were all wrong; and the Personage who addressed me said that their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt" (from Pearl of Great Price, Joseph Smith-History 1:19).
- Questions put to Joseph Smith: "'Do you believe the Bible?' [Smith:]'If we do, we are the only people under heaven that does, for there are none of the religious sects of the day that do'. When asked 'Will everybody be damned, but Mormons'? [Smith replied] 'Yes, and a great portion of them, unless they repent, and work righteousness." (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 119).
- "Should you ask why we differ from other Christians, as they are called, it is simply because they are not Christians as the New Testament defines Christianity" (Journal of Discourses 10:230).
- Orson Pratt proclaimed: "Both Catholics and Protestants are nothing less than the 'whores of Babylon' whom the Lord denounces by the mouth of John the Revelator as having corrupted all the earth by their fornications and wickedness. Any person who shall be so corrupt as to receive a holy ordinance of the Gospel from the ministers of any of these apostate churches will be sent down to hell with them, unless they repent" (The Seer, p. 255).
I have more to boast of than any man
had. I am the only man that has ever been able to keep a whole church together
since the days of Adam. A large majority
of the whole have stood by me. Neither
Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever
did it. I boat that no man ever did such
work as I. (History of the Church, Vol 6, p. 408-409)
Famous Mormons:
Singer – Marie Osmand
Twilight author – Stephanie Mayer
Senate Majority Leader – Harry Reid
Governor of Mass. & 2012 Presidential
Candidate – Mitt Romney
Cowboy Outlaw – Butch Cassidy
So to wrap us up: You’ve got a little taste for the violent
history of Mormonism in America & their flight Westward from NY to UT. And we’ve seen how they distinguish from
Protestant theology in 4 big areas: 1 – Authority, the bible’s no enough;
2- God, isn’t a trinity its 3 separate guys acting in unison; 3 – their
gospel, is 1 of grace + works not by grace alone through faith alone on
account of Christ alone & 4 – They not only believe they are Christians
but that they are the only real Christians, thanks to Joseph Smith whom
they revere near equal to Christ.
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