Was Joseph Smith, Jr., a Prophet of God?

by Dudley Ross Spears
via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 16 No. 1, March 31, 1990

Joseph Smith Jr. was an amazing American who claimed to be a true prophet of God. Millions of people worldwide believed his claim, which resulted in one of the largest religious bodies in existence. Everyone should believe everything he said if his claim is valid and true. If it is false, he should be exposed as a fraud. This document aims to examine his prophetic credentials by examining his prophecies and testing him using the Bible.

Prophets are much more prominent in the Old Testament than in the New Testament. Many warnings were issued against men who claimed to be true prophets but who, in reality, were false prophets. Certain tests were outlined by which the people of God could determine whether a prophet was genuine or false. Deuteronomy 13:1-5 is one such scripture in the Bible dealing with false prophets. The test in the passage is whether the self-proclaimed prophet leads people from the true and living God to a false god.

Joseph Smith, Jr., had a unique view of God, which he claimed God revealed to him. That view is very basic to the Mormons and one of their very prominent doctrines. The doctrine is called "eternal progression." Smith, founder of Mormonism, in April 1844, delivered an oration to over 23,000 hearers which sets forth his view of his god (or gods). The sermon was a funeral oration in honor of King Follett. This man was not a king - his name was King Follett. He had been an ardent follower of Smith from the very early days of the Mormon movement. Smith included some thoughts about deity in the funeral oration. Please notice:

"I will prove that the world is wrong, by showing what God is. I am going to inquire after God; for I want you to know him, and to be familiar with Him; and if I am bringing you a knowledge of Him, all persecutions against me ought to cease. You will know that I am His servant; for I speak as one having authority."

From this statement, we are not to understand them as mere opinions of a preacher or religious leader but as those who claim that God directly revealed these things to a special man. The man in this case is Joseph Smith, Jr. Now, what is the character of the deity Smith wants his people to follow? Read carefully.

"God, himself, was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens."

Just a little later, Smith continued his description of his god in the following excerpt:

"I have got the oldest book in the world; but I have the oldest book in my heart, even the gift of the Holy Spirit, I have four Testaments. Come here ye learned men, and read, if you can. I should not have introduced this testimony, were it not to back up the word rosh-the head, the Father of the Gods. I should not have brought it up, only to show that I am right."

Listen even further:

"In the beginning, the head of the Gods called a council of the Gods; and they came together and concocted (prepared) a plan to create the world and people it. When we begin to learn this way, we begin to learn the only true God, and what kind of being we have got to worship. Having a knowledge of God, we begin to know how to approach Him, and how to ask so as to receive an answer."

This god of Mormonism was born like all other humans are born, grew up on some far away planet. He was baptized, married (likely to several women), produced many offspring, and progressed and was exalted to god status because of his faithfulness. His name was Ahman, according to Smith, who explained how he lives on a planet (or star) nearest the imaginary planet of "Kolob" and then was glorified, exalted into a tangible being. For further information on this, see Mormon Doctrine, by the late Bruce McKonkie, page 250. This book is a standard and authoritative work in Mormonism.

The question now is, is the god Smith asks people to follow the true and living God? The Book of Mormon was allegedly revealed by an angel to Smith, and he supposedly accurately translated the book out of "reformed Egyptian" into English. There is a very clear statement in the Mormon scripture about the nature of God. Oddly enough, the very same language Smith used to describe the character of God is found in the Book of Mormon- What is the true God?

This doctrine, allegedly revealed by angelic authority and correctly translated by Smith in what he immodestly proclaimed to be "the most correct book in all the world," states that there is really only one God. The Book of Mormon claims this is the only true doctrine of Christ concerning God's character. It also claims that God has not changed. Read now from the book.

"And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Chrsit, and the only true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. Amen.

"And now if ye have imagined up unto yourselves a god who doth vary, and in whom there is a show of changing then have ye imagined up unto yourselves a god who is not a God of miracles."

These facts establish irrefutable proof that Joseph Smith, Jr., was fully false one time or another. Either he lied when he claimed that the Book of Mormon was revealed to him by angels and translated correctly, or he lied when he claimed to have been given special revelation that his god is really just one of many millions of deities. A prophet would not lead people away from the one true and living God to a false god.