What We Believe
ROBERT L. MILLET
________________________________________
Robert L. Millet was the dean of Religious Education at Brigham Young
University when this devotional address was given on 3 February 1998.
________________________________________
I am honored to be asked to speak at the devotional assembly this
morning. Because the weekly devotionals at Brigham Young University
have been such a significant part of my life, I have taken this
invitation very seriously. My topic is "What We Believe."
Sooner or later you and I will be approached by men and women not of
our faith--persons either sincerely interested in what we believe or
else opposed to much of what we stand for. This is particularly true
as the Church grows and as our influence spreads throughout the world.
Perhaps it would be worthwhile for us to entertain a few questions
about what we believe, questions frequently asked of the Latter-day
Saints concerning scripture, God, Christ, and salvation. For example:
1. How can the Latter-day Saints justify having additional books of
scripture and adding to the Christian canon?
I remember very well sitting in a seminar on biblical studies at an
eastern university many years ago. One of the things that stands out
in my mind is our discussion of the canon of scripture. For at least
two hours the instructor had emphasized that the word canon--
referring, of course, to the biblical books that are generally
included in the Judeo-Christian collection--was the "rule of faith,"
the standard against which we measure what is acceptable in belief and
practice. He also stated that the canon, if the word meant anything at
all, was closed, fixed, set, and established. He must have stressed
those words at least 10 times as he wrote them on the blackboard over
and over.
I noticed in the second session on this topic that the instructor
seemed a bit uneasy. I remember thinking that something must be wrong.
Without warning, he stopped what he was doing, banged his fist on the
table, turned to me, and said: "Mr. Millet, will you please explain to
this group the Latter-day Saint concept of canon, given your people's
acceptance of the Book of Mormon and other books of scripture beyond
the Bible?"
I was startled. Stunned. Certainly surprised. I paused for several
seconds, looked up at the blackboard, saw the now very familiar words
under the word canon, and said, somewhat shyly, "Well, I suppose you
could say that the Latter-day Saints believe the canon of scripture is
open, flexible, and expanding." We then had a really fascinating
discussion!
Joseph Smith loved the Bible. It was through pondering upon certain
verses in the Epistle of James that he felt directed to call upon God
in prayer. Most of his sermons, writings, and letters are laced with
quotations or paraphrased summaries of biblical passages and precepts
from both the Old and New Testaments. The Prophet once remarked that
one can "see God's own handwriting in the sacred volume: and he who
reads it oftenest will like it best" (Teachings, p. 56). From his
earliest days, however, he did not believe the Bible was complete or
that religious difficulties could necessarily be handled by turning to
the Old or New Testaments for help (see JS--H 1:12). Nor did he
believe in either the inerrancy or the infallibility of the Bible. The
Prophet stated:
=46rom what we can draw from the Scriptures relative to the teaching of
heaven, we are induced to think that much instruction has been given
to man since the beginning which we do not possess now. . . . We have
what we have, and the Bible contains what it does contain: but to say
that God never said anything more to man than is there recorded, would
be saying at once that we have at last received a revelation: for it
must require one to advance thus far. [Teachings, p. 61; see also The
Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, ed. Dean C. Jessee (Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Company, 1984), pp. 297=AC301]
Occasionally we hear certain Latter-day Saint teachings described as
unbiblical or of a particular doctrine being contradictory to the
Bible. Let us be clear on this matter. The Bible is one of the books
within our standard works, and thus our doctrines and practices
(BULL****) are in harmony with the Bible (Robert Millet will
contradict himself on this point toward the end of this heretical
sermon). There are times, of course, when latter-day revelation
provides clarification or enhancement of the intended meaning in the
Bible. But addition to the canon is not the same as rejection of the
canon. Supplementation is not the same as contradiction. All of the
prophets, including the Savior himself, were sent to bring new light
and knowledge to the world; in many cases, new scripture came as a
result of their ministries. That new scripture did not invalidate what
went before, nor did it close the door to subsequent revelation. We
feel deep gratitude for the holy scriptures, but we do not wor****p
scripture. Nor do we feel it appropriate to "set up stakes and set
bounds to the works and ways of the Almighty," to tell God,
essentially, "Thus far and no more" (Teachings, p. 320; see also p.
321). As the Lord declared through Nephi, "Wherefore, because that ye
have a Bible ye need not suppose that it contains all my words;
neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written" (2
Nephi 29:10).
In short, we believe God has spoken through modern prophets, restored
his everlasting gospel, delivered new truths, and commissioned us to
make them known to the world. We feel it would be unchristian not to
share what has been communicated to us.
2. What do the Latter-day Saints really believe about God? Is it true
that they believe man can become as God?
Joseph Smith's First Vision represents the beginning of the revelation
of God to man in this dispensation. We will no doubt spend a lifetime
seeking to understand the doctrinal profundity of that theophany. This
appearance of the Father and Son in upstate New York had the effect of
challenging those creeds of Christendom out of which the doctrine of
the Trinity came--a doctrine that evolved from efforts to reconcile
Christian theology with Greek philosophy. (See Adolph von Harnack,
What Is Christianity? [New York: Harper, 1957]; Edwin Hatch, The
Influence of Greek Ideas on Christianity [Gloucester, Massachusetts:
Peter Smith, 1970]; Henry Chadwick, The Early Church, rev. ed. [New
York: Penguin Books, 1993], pp. 77, 89=AC90; Jaroslav Pelikan,
Christianity and Classical Culture [New Haven: Yale University Press,
1993], pp. 28=AC29, 74, 84=AC85, 231=AC47; Dallin H. Oaks, CR, April 1995,
pp. 112=AC13.) President Gordon B. Hinckley has observed:
To me it is a significant and marvelous thing that in establi****ng and
opening this dispensation our Father did so with a revelation of
himself and of his Son Jesus Christ, as if to say to all the world
that he was weary of the attempts of men, earnest though these
attempts might have been, to define and describe him. . . . The
experience of Joseph Smith in a few moments in the grove on a spring
day in 1820, brought more light and knowledge and understanding of the
personality and reality and substance of God and his Beloved Son than
men had arrived at during centuries of speculation. [TGBH, p. 236]
By revelation Joseph Smith came to know that the Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost constitute the Godhead. From the beginning the Prophet Joseph
taught that the members of the Godhead are one in purpose, one in
mind, one in glory, one in attributes and powers, but separate persons
(see Teachings, p. 370) (or, see Greek Mythology).
God is the Father of the spirits of all men and women (see Numbers
16:22, 27:16), the source of light and truth, the embodiment of all
godly attributes and gifts, and the supreme power and intelligence
over all things. From the book of Moses we learn that among the
ancients God the Father was called "Man of Holiness," and thus his
Only Begotten Son is the Son of Man of Holiness, or the Son of Man
(Moses 6:57). The title Man of Holiness opens us to a deeper
understanding of deity. We believe that God the Father is an exalted
man (in contrast to the Holy Bible where God the Father is invisible
and has never been seen), a cor****eal being, a personage of flesh and
bones (see Greek Mythology).1
That God has a physical body is one of the most im****tant of all
truths restored in this dispensation (BULL****); it is inextricably
tied to such doctrines as the immortality of the soul, the literal
resurrection, eternal marriage, and the continuation of the family
unit into eternity. In his cor****eal or physical nature, God can be in
only one place at a time. His divine nature is such, however, that his
glory, his power, and his influence, meaning his Holy Spirit, fill the
immensity of space and are the means by which he is omnipresent and
through which law and light and life are extended to us (see D&C
88:6=AC13). The Father's physical body does not limit his capacity or
detract one wit from his infinite holiness, any more than Christ's
resurrected body did so (see Luke 24, John 20=AC21).
Interestingly enough, research by Professor David Paulsen of our
Philosophy Department indicates that the idea of God's cor****eality
was taught in the early Christian church into the fourth and fifth
centuries before being lost to the knowledge of the people (BULL****).
(See David L. Paulsen, "Early Christian Belief in a Cor****eal Deity:
Origen and Augustine as Reluctant Witnesses," Harvard Theological
Review 83, no. 2 [April 1990]: 105=AC16; "The Doctrine of Divine
Embodiment: Restoration, Judeo-Christian, and Philosophical
Perspectives," Brigham Young University Studies 35, no. 4 [1996]:
7=AC94.)
On the one hand, we wor****p a divine Being with whom we can identify
(through the Holy Spirit). That is to say, his infinity does not
preclude either his immediacy or his intimacy. "In the day that God
created man," the scriptures attest, "in the likeness of God made he
him; in the image of his own body, male and female, created he
them" (Moses 6:8=AC9). God is not simply a spirit influence, a force in
the universe, or the First Great Cause. When we pray, "Our Father
which art in heaven" (Matthew 6:9), we mean what we say. We believe
God is comprehendible, knowable, approachable, and, like his Beloved
Son, touched with the feeling of our infirmities (Hebrews 4:15).
On the other hand, our God is God. There is no knowledge of which the
Father is ignorant and no power he does not possess (see 1 Nephi 7:12,
2 Nephi 9:20, Mosiah 4:9, Alma 26:35, Helaman 9:41, Ether 3:4).
Scriptural passages that speak of him being the same yesterday, today,
and forever (e.g., Psalms 102:27; Hebrews 1:12, 13:8 (about Jesus
Christ); 1 Nephi 10:18=AC19; 2 Nephi 27:23; Alma 7:20; Mormon 9:8=AC11,
19; Moroni 8:18, 10:7; D&C 3:2, 20:12, 17, 35:1) clearly have
reference to his divine attributes--his love, justice, constancy, and
willingness to bless his children. In addition, President Joseph
Fielding Smith explained:
=46rom eternity to eternity means from the spirit existence through the
probation which we are in, and then back again to the eternal
existence which will follow. Surely this is everlasting, for when we
receive the resurrection, we will never die. We all existed in the
first eternity. I think I can say of myself and others, we are from
eternity; and we will be to eternity everlasting, if we receive the
exaltation. [Doctrines of Salvation, 3 vols., comp. Bruce R. McConkie
(Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1954=AC56), 1:12; emphasis in original. See
also Bruce R. McConkie (dead and in hell), The Promised Messiah (Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1978), p. 166.]
We come to the earth to take a physical body, to be schooled and gain
experiences in this second estate that we could not have in the first
estate, the premortal life. We then strive to keep the commandments
and grow in faith and spiritual graces until we are prepared to go
where God and Christ are. Eternal life consists in being with God; in
addition, it entails being like God. A study of Christian history
reveals that the doctrine of the deification of man was taught at
least into the fifth century by such notables as Irenaeus, Clement of
Alexandria, Justin Martyr, Athanasius, and Augustine (see Stephen E.
Robinson, Are Mormons Christian? [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1991],
pp. 60=AC61). Because we know that many plain and precious truths were
taken from the Bible before it was compiled (see 1 Nephi 13:20=AC39 and
preface to D&C 76), we might not agree with some of what was taught
about deification by such Christian thinkers, but it is clear that the
idea was not foreign to the people of the early Church.
For that matter, no less a modern Christian theologian than C. S.
Lewis recognized the logical and theological extension of being
transformed by Christ. "The Son of God became a man," Lewis pointed
out, "to enable men to become sons of God" (in an adopted spiritual
sense) (Mere Christianity [New York: Macmillan, 1952], p. 154; see
also The Weight of Glory and Other Addresses [New York: Macmillan,
1980], p. 18). Further, Lewis has explained:
The command Be ye perfect is not idealistic gas. Nor is it a command
to do the impossible. He is going to make us into creatures that can
obey that command. He said (in the Bible) that we were "gods" and He
is going to make good His words. If we let Him--for we can prevent
Him, if we choose--He will make the feeblest and filthiest of us into
a god or goddess, dazzling, radiant, immortal creature, pulsating all
through with such energy and joy and wisdom and love as we cannot now
imagine, a bright stainless mirror which reflects back to God
perfectly (though, of course, on a smaller scale) His own boundless
power and delight and goodness. The process will be long and in parts
very painful; but that is what we are in for. Nothing less. He meant
what He said. [Lewis, Mere Christianity, pp. 174=AC75; emphasis in
original]
All men and women, like Christ, are made in the image and likeness of
God (see Genesis 1:27, Moses 2:27), and so it is neither (yes it is)
robbery nor heresy for the children of God to aspire to be like God
(see Matthew 5:48, Philippians 2:6 =3D about Jesus Christ =3D jerked out
of context). Like any parent, our Heavenly Father wants his children
to become and be all that he is (all praise, honor, and glory belong
to the Father and the Son =96 Rev 5:13). Godhood comes through
overcoming the world through the Atonement (salvation comes from the
death of Jesus Christ for your sins) (see 1 John 5:4=AC5; Revelation
2:7, 11; D&C 76:51=AC60), becoming heirs of God and joint-heirs with
Christ (of eternal life and resurrected bodies), who is the natural
Heir (see Romans 8:17, Galatians 4:7), and thus inheriting all things,
just as Jesus inherits all things (see 1 Corinthians 3:21=AC23;
Revelation 21:7; D&C 76:55, 95, 84:38, 88:107). The faithful are
received into the "church of the Firstborn" (Hebrews 12:23; D&C 76:54,
67, 94, 93:22), meaning they inherit as though they were the
firstborn. In that glorified state we will be conformed to the image
of the Lord Jesus (see Romans 8:29, 1 Corinthians 15:49, 2 Corinthians
3:18, 1 John 3:2, Alma 5:14), receive his glory, and be one with him
and with the Father (see John 17:21=AC23, Philippians 3:21).
Although we know from modern revelation that godhood comes through the
receipt of eternal life (see D&C 132:19=AC20), we do not believe we will
ever, worlds without end, unseat or oust God the Eternal Father or his
Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ; those holy beings are and forever
will be the gods we wor****p. Even though we believe in the ultimate
deification of man, I am unaware of any authoritative statement in LDS
literature that suggests that we will ever wor****p any being other
than the ones within the Godhead. We believe in "one God" in the sense
that we love and serve one Godhead, one divine presidency, each of
whom possesses all of the attributes of Godhood (see Alma 11:44, D&C
20:28).
In short, God is not of another species, nor is he the great
unknowable one; he is indeed our Father in Heaven. He has revealed a
plan whereby we might enjoy happiness in this world and dwell with him
and be like him in the world to come.
3. Do the Latter-day Saints believe that salvation comes through their
own works rather than by the grace of Christ? Are they "saved"
Christians?
The theological debate over whether we are saved by grace or by works
is a fruitless argument that is much "like asking which blade in a
pair of scissors is most necessary" (C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity,
p. 129). Latter-day Saints have often been critical of those who
stress salvation by grace alone, and we have often been criticized for
a type of works-righteousness. The gospel is in fact a gospel
covenant--a two-way promise (wrong =3D 1 Corinthians 15:1-4). The Lord
agrees to do for us what we could never do for ourselves--to forgive
our sins, to lift our burdens, to renew our souls and re-create our
nature, to raise us from the dead and qualify us for glory hereafter.
At the same time, we promise to do what we can do--receive the
ordinances of salvation, love and serve one another (see Mosiah
18:8=AC10), and do all in our power to put off the natural man and deny
ourselves of ungodliness (see Mosiah 3:19, Moroni 10:32). (The Gospel
according to the Holy Bible is not about yourself)
We believe that more is required of men and women than a verbal
expression of faith in the Lord (Romans 10:9?), more than a confession
with the lips that we have received Christ into our hearts. The
scriptures of the Restoration (heresy) add perspective and balance
(degradation) to the majestic teachings of the apostle Paul on the
matter of salvation by grace. We know, without question, that the
power to save us, to change us, to renew our souls, is in Christ. True
faith, however, always manifests itself in (faith =3D Romans chapters 3
& 4) faithfulness. Good works evidence our faith and our desire to
remain in covenant with Christ, but they are not sufficient. (See
Bruce R. McConkie (dead and in hell), Doctrinal New Testament
Commentary, 3 vols. [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965=AC73], 2:499=AC500;
and Dallin H. Oaks, CR, October 1988, p. 78). The real question is not
whether I am saved by grace or by works but rather, In whom do I trust
(Jesus Christ not yourself or a bogus church in Utah)? On whom do I
rely? (See 1 Nephi 10:6; 2 Nephi 2:8, 31:19; Moroni 6:4.)
Too often we are prone to view grace as that increment of goodness,
that final gift of God that will make up the difference and thereby
boost us into the celestial kingdom, "after all we can do" (2 Nephi
25:23). To be sure, we will need a full measure of divine assistance
to become celestial material. But the grace of God, through Jesus
Christ our Lord, is available to us every hour of every day of our
lives. "True grace," as one non-LDS writer has suggested, "is more
than just a giant freebie, opening the door to heaven in the sweet by
and by, but leaving us to wallow in sin in the bitter here and now.
Grace is God presently at work in our lives" (John F. MacArthur, Jr.,
Faith Works: The Gospel According to the Apostles [Dallas: Word
Publi****ng, 1993], p. 32). The grace of God is a precious gift, an
enabling power to face life with quiet courage, to do things we could
never do on our own. The Great Physician does more than forgive sins.
He ministers relief to the disconsolate, comfort to the bereaved,
confidence to those who wrestle with infirmities and feelings of
inadequacy, and strength and peace to those who have been battered and
scarred by the ironies of this life (see Isaiah 61:1=AC2, Alma 7:11=AC13).
Few things would be more serious than encouraging lip service to God
but discouraging obedience and faithful disciple****p. On the other
hand, surely nothing could be more offensive to God than a smug self-
assurance that comes from trusting in one's own works or relying upon
one's own strength. Understanding this sacred principle--the
relation****p between the grace of an infinite Being and the works of
finite man--is not easy, but it is immensely rewarding. The more we
learn to trust the Lord and rely upon his merits and mercy, the less
anxious we become about life here and hereafter. "Thus if you have
really handed yourself over to Him," C. S. Lewis wisely remarked, "it
must follow that you are trying to obey Him. But trying in a new way,
a less worried way" (Lewis, Mere Christianity, p. 129).
Are we then "saved Christians"? (yes =3D 1 Corinthians 6:11) Whereas the
ultimate blessings of salvation do not come until the next life, there
is a sense in which people in this life may enjoy the assurance of
salvation and the peace that accompanies that knowledge (see D&C
59:23). True faith in Christ produces hope in Christ--not worldly
wi****ng but expectation, anticipation, assurance. As the apostle Paul
wrote, the Holy Spirit provides the "earnest of our inheritance," the
promise or evidence that we are on course, in covenant, and thus in
line for full salvation in the world to come (Ephesians 1:13=AC14; see 2
Corinthians 1:21=AC22, 5:5). That is, the Spirit of God operating in our
lives is like the Lord's "earnest money" on us--his sweet
certification that he seriously intends to save us with an everlasting
salvation. Thus, if we are striving to cultivate the gift of the Holy
Ghost (The Holy Spirit empowers Christians to live godly lives though
in a sin sick world), we are living in what might be called a "saved"
condition.
One of the most respected Evangelical theologians, John Stott, has
written:
Salvation is a big and comprehensive word. It embraces the totality of
God's saving work, from beginning to end. In fact salvation has three
tenses, past, present and future. . . . "I have been saved (in the
past) from the penalty of sin by a crucified Saviour. I am being saved
(in the present) from the power of sin by a living Saviour. And I
shall be saved (in the future) from the very presence of sin by a
coming Saviour" . . . (cult members will always twist what Christians
will say to mean something very different)
If therefore you were to ask me, "Are you saved?" there is only one
correct biblical answer which I could give you: "yes and no." Yes, in
the sense that by the sheer grace and mercy of God through the death
of Jesus Christ my Saviour he has forgiven my sins, justified me and
reconciled me to himself. But no, in the sense that I still have a
fallen nature and live in a fallen world and have a corruptible body,
and I am longing for my salvation to be brought to its triumphant
completion. [Authentic Christianity from the Writings of John Stott,
ed. Timothy Dudley-Smith (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press,
1995), p. 168]
(clarification: We have been saved but have not yet been saved into
heaven)
President David O. McKay taught that
the gospel of Jesus Christ, as revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith,
is in very deed, in every way, the power of God unto salvation. It is
salvation here--here and now. It gives to every man the perfect life,
here and now, as well as hereafter. [GI, p. 6; emphasis in original.
See also Brigham Young, JD 6:276 and 8:124=AC25.]
Too many of us wrestle with feelings of inadequacy, struggle with
hopelessness (depression among Mormons is a very real problem), and in
general are much too anxious about our standing before God. It is
im****tant to keep the ultimate goal of exaltation ever before us, but
it seems so much more profitable to focus on fundamentals and on the
here and now--staying in covenant, being dependable and true to our
promises, cultivating the gift of the Holy Ghost. President Brigham
Young taught:
Our work is a work of the present. The salvation we are seeking is for
the present, and, sought correctly, it can be obtained, and be
continually enjoyed. If it continues to-day, it is upon the same
principle that it will continue to-morrow, the next day, the next
week, or the next year, and, we might say, the next eternity. [JD
1:131]
(clarification: Brigham Young hated the United States of America and
his salvation was to be saved from Uncle Sam)
In short, salvation is in Christ, and our covenant with Christ, our
trust in his power to redeem us, should be demonstrated in how we
live. The influence of the Holy Ghost in our lives is a sign to us
that we are on course, "in Christ" (2 Corinthians 5:17), and thus in
line for salvation.
4. Are the Latter-day Saints Christian? Or do they, as some have
suggested, wor****p a different Jesus?
We believe in Jesus of Nazareth, in the One sent of the Father to
"bind up the brokenhearted" and "proclaim liberty to the
captives" (see Isaiah 61:1, D&C 138:11=AC18). For us, the Jesus of
history is indeed the Christ of faith. He was and is the Only Begotten
Son of God in the flesh (begotten =3D raised =96 Acts 13:33-34) (see John
3:16, 2 Nephi 25:12, D&C 20:21). Although some may exclude us from the
category of Christian for this or that (many) doctrinal matter(s), our
behavior must be consistent with our profession; those who claim new
life in the Spirit are expected to walk in the Spirit (see Galatians
5:25).(by the power of the Holy Spirit not your own power)
"Are we Christians?" President Gordon B. Hinckley (dead and in hell)
asked.
Of course we are!(BULL****) No one can honestly deny that. We may be
somewhat different (heretical) from the traditional pattern of
Christianity. But no one believes more literally in the redemption
wrought by the Lord Jesus Christ. No one believes more fundamentally
that He was the Son of God, that He died for the sins of mankind, that
He rose from the grave, and that He is the living resurrected Son of
the living Father.
All of our doctrine, all of our religious practice stems from that one
basic doctrinal position: "We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and
in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost." (as three separate
gods =3D Greek Mythology) This is the first article of our faith, and
all else flows therefrom. [Meeting with Religion Newswriters
Association, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 14 September 1997; excerpted in
Speaking Today, Ensign, February 1998, p. 73]
In the long run, all we can do is live what we preach and bear
testimony of what we feel in our hearts and know in our minds.
Although we do not want to be misunderstood and we certainly would
like for others to recognize the centrality of Christ (being married)
in our lives, we do not require the imprimatur of the religious world
to substantiate our claim (rest assured we won=92t). We are who we are
(heretics) and we know who we are (blashemers), and if all the world
should think otherwise, so be it (Amen). Our primary thrust in the
religious world is not to court favor (but to cause problems). Our
desire to build bridges of (mis)understanding does not excuse us from
the obligation to maintain our distinctive (heretical) position in the
religious world. Our strength lies in our (heretical) distinctiveness,
for we have something to offer the world, something of great worth
(BULL****). No one wants to be spurned, misunderstood, or
misrepresented (but statements by Christians were taken out of
context). But sometimes such is the cost of disciple****p (see Matthew
5:10=AC12).
As to whether we wor****p a different Jesus, we say again: We accept
and endorse the testimony of the New Testament writers: Jesus is the
Promised Messiah, the resurrection and the life (see John 11:25),
literally the light of the world (see John 8:12). Everything that
testifies of his divine birth, his goodness, his transforming power,
and his godhood, we embrace enthusiastically. He has broken the bands
of death and lives today. All this we know. But we know much more
about the Christ because of what has been made known through latter-
day prophets (such as the heresy that Jesus was married). President
Brigham Young thus declared:
We, the Latter-day Saints, take the (heretical) liberty of believing
more than our Christian brethren: we not only believe . . . the Bible,
but . . . the whole of the plan of salvation that Jesus has given to
us. Do we differ from others who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ? No,
only in believing (heresies) more. [JD 13:56]
Our conduct and our way of life cannot be separated from our doctrine
(or hell), for what we believe empowers and directs what we do. A
number of years ago an article appeared in Christianity Today entitled
"Why Your Neighbor Joined the Mormon Church." (Why not quote the
entire article for context?) Five reasons were given (or were they
given?):
1. The Latter-day Saints show genuine love and concern by taking care
of their people.
2. They strive to build the family unit.
3. They provide for their young people.
4. Theirs is a layman's church.
5. They believe that divine revelation is the basis for their
practices.
After a brief (was it a brief?) discussion of each of the above, the
author of the article concluded:
In a day when many are hesitant to claim that God has said anything
definitive, the Mormons stand out in contrast, and many people are
ready to listen to what the Mormons think the voice of God says. It is
tragic that their message is false, but it is nonetheless a lesson to
us that people are many times ready to hear a voice of authority.
[Donald P. Shoemaker, "Why Your Neighbor Joined the Mormon Church,"
Christianity Today 19, no. 1 (11 October 1974): 11=AC13]
The Savior taught of the im****tance of judging things--prophets, for
example--by their fruits, by the product of their ministry and
teachings (see Matthew 7:15=AC20, 1 John 3:7) (prophets are not needed =96
Hebrews 1:1). He also explained that "every plant, which my heavenly
Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up" (Matthew 15:13). Evil
trees cannot bring forth good fruit. Works of men eventually come to
naught, but that which is of God cannot be overthrown (see Acts
5:38=AC39).
In short, we proclaim that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ (We
Christians preach Christ crucified =96 1 Corinthians 1:23). We have
taken his name upon us, eagerly acknowledge the redeeming power of his
blood, and seek to emulate his perfect life (sounds like boasting to
me =96 Ephesians 2:9).
Let me close by sharing with you three simple suggestions--learned
through both sad and sweet experience--on how we might effectively
deal with difficult questions posed by those not of our faith. First,
stay in control(Don=92t try to murder people like Joe and Brigham did).
There is nothing more frustrating than knowing the truth (lie), loving
the truth (lie), sincerely desiring to share the truth (lie), and yet
being unable to communicate our deepest feelings to another who sees
things differently. Argument or disputation over sacred things cause
us to forfeit the Spirit of God and thus the confirming power of our
message (see 3 Nephi 11:28=AC30). We teach and we testify. Contention is
unbecoming of one called to publish peace (so why does Woody slander
people?) and thus bless our brothers and sisters. In the words of
Elder Marvin J. Ashton, "We have no time for contention (give it up
Woody). We only have time to be about our Father's business" (CR,
April 1978, p. 9).
Second, stay in order. The Savior taught that gospel prerequisites
should be observed when teaching sacred things (see Matthew 7:6=AC7; see
also Boyd K. Packer, Teach Ye Diligently [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book
Company, 1975], chapter 11; The Holy Temple [Salt Lake City:
Bookcraft, 1980], chapter 2). A person, for example, who knows very
little about our doctrine (we know more than you think) will probably
not understand or appreciate our teachings concerning (pagan) temples,
sealing (damnation) powers, eternal life (in hell), or the deification
of man (heresy). Joseph Smith the Prophet explained, "If we (self-
focus) start right, it is easy to go right all the time; but if we
(self-focus) start wrong, we (self-focus) may go wrong, and it [will]
be a hard matter to get right" (Teachings, p. 343). It is always wise
to lay a proper foundation for what is to be said; the truth (lie) can
then flow more freely. The apostle Peter is said to have explained to
Clement:
The teaching of all doctrine has a certain order, and there are some
things which must be delivered first, others in the second place, and
others in the third, and so all in their order; and if these things be
delivered in their order, they become plain; but if they be brought
forward out of order, they will seem to be spoken against reason.
[Clementine Recognitions III, p. 34; cited in Hugh Nibley, Since
***orah, 2nd ed. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company and FARMS,
1988), p. 97]
(Hebrews 6:1-2)
Third, stay in context. As we have already noted, we love the Bible
and cherish its messages. But the Bible is not the source of our
doctrine or authority (thus mormons are not Christians), nor is much
to be gained through efforts to "prove" the truthfulness of the
restored gospel from the Bible (this contradicts his opening
comments). Ours is an independent revelation (that contradicts prior
Biblical revelation). We know what we know about the premortal
existence, priesthood, celestial marriage, baptism for the dead, the
postmortal spirit world, degrees of glory, etc., because of what God
has made known through latter-day prophets (heretics), not because we
are able to identify a few biblical allusions to these matters. Some
of our greatest difficulties in handling questions about our faith
come when we try to establish specific doctrines of the Restoration
from the Bible alone (because mormon heresies will not be found in the
Holy Bible). There is consummate peace and spiritual power to be
derived from being loyal (cult term) to those things the Almighty has
communicated to us in our dispensation (see D&C 5:10, 31:3=AC4,
43:15=AC16, 49:1=AC4, 84:54=AC61). President Ezra Taft Benson stated:
Our main task is to declare the gospel and do it effectively. We are
not obligated to answer every objection. Every man eventually is
backed up to the wall of faith, and there he must make his stand.
[Ezra Taft Benson, A Witness and a Warning (Salt Lake City: Deseret
Book Company, 1988), p. 5]
I testify to the truthfulness (lies) of these remarkable (heretical)
doctrines about which I have been speaking. I know, by the witness of
the Holy Ghost to my soul, that God is our Father, Jesus Christ is our
Lord and Savior, Joseph Smith was and is a (false con-artist) prophet
of the living God, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints is indeed the kingdom of God on earth (BULL****). These things
I know, because I have studied and searched and sought to understand
(heresies). These things I know, because I have read and pondered and
prayed and pleaded for light and knowledge (from the devil). What has
come to me is as settling and soothing to my (self-focus) heart as it
is stimulating and enlarging to my (self-focus) mind. This work is
true (a lie), and because it is true it will triumph (BULL****). The
First Presidency of the Church in 1907 declared:
Our (self-focus) motives are not selfish; our (self-focus) purposes
not petty and earth-bound; we (self-focus) contemplate the human race,
past, present and yet to come, as immortal beings, for whose salvation
it is our (self-focus) mission to labor; and to this work, broad as
eternity and deep as the love of God, we (self-focus) devote
ourselves, now, and forever. [CR, April 1907, appendix, p. 16; cited
in Howard W. Hunter, That We Might Have Joy (Salt Lake City: Deseret
Book Company, 1994), p. 59]
I pray that we will come to know what (heresies) we believe, by study
and by faith, and then with boldness but quiet dignity share those
(un)saving (lies) truths with others, in the name of Jesus Christ (for
deception). Amen.
Note
1. If the 14-year-old Joseph Smith did indeed learn of the Father's
cor****eality in the First Vision, he did not state it specifically in
his various accounts of that vision. The Prophet explained in Ramus,
Illinois, that "The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible
as man's" (D&C 130:22). That statement was recorded in April of 1843.
However, the Saints were teaching of God's cor****eal nature at least
as early as 1836. (See Milton V. Backman, Jr., "Truman Coe's 1836
Description of Mormonism," Brigham Young University Studies 17, no. 3
[spring 1977]: 347=AC55; see also The Words of Joseph Smith, eds. Andrew
F. Ehat and Lyndon W. Cook [Provo: Brigham Young University Religious
Studies Center, 1980], pp. 60, 63=AC64.)
http://www.truthandgrace.com/byuprofessors.htm
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