by Samuel Matthews<\/p>\n
“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. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed<\/em>” (Galatians 1:6-8 KJV).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Loved ones, the Mormon doctrine concerning the church is a maze of confusion and contradiction. According to Mormon teaching: “When Jesus Christ lived in mortality, he established a Church” (Petersen 1974, 1).<\/p>\nIt is contended, however, “With the passing of the so-called apostolic age the Church gradually drifted into a condition of apostasy, whereby succession in the priesthood was broken; and that the Church, as an earthly organization operating under divine direction and having authority to officiate in spiritual ordinances, ceased to exist” (Talmage 1968, 18).
\nAccordingly, to remedy this situation, Joseph Smith Jr. was raised up by God to bring “forth out of obscurity and out of darkness, the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth” (Doctrine and Covenants 1:30).\nThe Establishment of the Church<\/h2>\n
Mormons claim the church was established by Christ when he lived “in mortality.” This assertion is erroneous, however, for the church was not established until Pentecost, ten days after the Lord’s ascension to Heaven from the realm of mortality (Matthew 16:18; Mark 9:1; Acts 1:8; 2:4).<\/p>\n
On the other hand, The Book of Mormon records “the church of God” existing some seventy-three years before Christ was even born (Alma 46:13-16). Contrast this with Luke’s affirmation that “disciples were called Christians first in Antioch” (Acts 11:26).<\/p>\n
The Perpetuity Of The Church<\/h2>\n
Though Mormonism asserts that the church “ceased to exist” after the apostolic age, the Bible teaches otherwise. When Daniel foretold the establishment of the kingdom (church) in the days of the Roman Empire, he declared that it would “never be destroyed<\/em>” (Daniel 2:44).<\/p>\nIn the first century, Paul announced that God would be glorified “in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all generations for ever and ever<\/em>” (Ephesians 3:21). Those early recipients of God’s grace were in the process of receiving a kingdom “that cannot be shaken<\/em>” (Hebrews 12:28).
\nWherever the gospel exists, the church can exist, for the Word is the seed of the kingdom (Luke 8:11). But the gospel is “eternal” (Revelation 14:6): “The word of the Lord abides forever. And this is the word of good tidings which was preached unto you<\/em>” (I Peter 1:25).\nCertainly, it was prophesied that “some” would depart from the faith (I Timothy 4:1), but this does not indicate that all would. The persecuted church of the post-apostolic era did not cease to exist; rather, she “fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God<\/em>” (Revelation 12:6).<\/p>\n
Remember, in the days of Elijah, Jehovah had seven thousand who had not bowed to Baal, though the prophet knew not of them (I Kings 19:18; cf. Romans 11:4). A studious examination of historical documents reveals various bands of genuine Christians in the dimness of antiquity (see Grimm n.d.).<\/p>\n
The So-Called Restored Church<\/h2>\n
Joseph Smith, Jr. restored nothing. He founded the Mormon Church. “On April 6, 1830, six men met in the home of Peter Whitmer, Sr., in Fayette, New York, and formally established “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – LDS” (Temple Square in Salt Lake n.d., 17). Prior to this time, the Mormon religion is a perfect stranger to all literature, both sacred and profane.<\/p>\n
Since it is an undisputed principle that no structure is stronger than its foundation, an examination of the faulty base of the Latter-day Saint movement is a commentary upon the corrupt system as a whole.<\/p>\n
Mormon writers concede: “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has its foundation in the revelations he [Joseph Smith, Jr.] received, the sacred truths he taught, and the authority of the Priesthood restored through him” (Joseph Smith Tells His Own Story n.d., 24).<\/p>\n
Joseph Smith’s “Revelations”<\/h2>\n
If the restoration of the LDS Church is based upon Joseph Smith’s revelations, it is in deep trouble. For instance: Smith prophesied that the Civil War conflict between northern and southern states would be so intense that “war shall be poured out upon all nations” (Doctrine and Covenants 87:1-3). It wasn’t!<\/p>\n
On February 14, 1835, he foretold, concerning “the coming of the Lord,” that “fifty-six years should wind up the scene” (Roberts 1902, 182). It didn’t!<\/p>\n
He suggested that the Mormon Temple would be erected in Independence, Missouri (Doctrine and Covenants 57:1-3). That “prophecy” failed also. By the criterion of Deuteronomy 18:21-22, Joseph Smith, Jr. was a false prophet.<\/p>\n
Smith’s Teachings<\/h2>\n
Many of Joseph Smith’s teachings were both morally and religiously corrupt. In The Pearl of Great Price, Smith has Adam and Eve exultant over the fact that they fell into transgression that they might know the joy of redemption (Moses 5:10-11).<\/p>\n
Too, while the Book of Mormon affirms that God approves of only “one wife,” and polygamy is characterized as whoredom, sin, etc. (Jacob 2:27; 3:5; 1:15; 2:23-24; Mosiah 11:2), Joseph Smith, Jr. received the “revelation” of plural marriage as “a new and everlasting covenant” which could not be rejected without the penalty of damnation (Doctrine and Covenants 132:3-4).<\/p>\n
These are but a sampling of the degenerate teachings of Mormonism’s “prophet.”<\/p>\n
A Restored Priesthood?<\/h2>\n
The significance of the priesthood to Mormons is revealed in the words of Mormon writer Mark E. Petersen: “Without a divinely approved ministry there can be no Church of God on earth” (Ibid. 15). There are two priesthoods in the LDS Church from which all authority results-the Melchizedek and the Aaronic (Doctrine and Covenants 107:1-3, 5). Concepts regarding both are entirely false.<\/p>\n
No Aaronic Priesthood Today<\/h2>\n
There can be no Aaronic priesthood today for: That priesthood was a part of the Law of Moses, which was permanently “taken” away by Christ’s death (Colossians 2:14). (Note: the Greek, erken, in the perfect tense denotes the permanent abolition of the Law of Moses [Robertson 1930, 494].)<\/p>\nOnly descendants from Levi could administer those Aaronic priestly functions (Hebrews 7:5), and, as all tribal records were destroyed in A.D. 70, a lineage determination is impossible.
\nChrist’s Priesthood\nThe priesthood of Christ “after the order of Melchizedek” was an anti-typical “likeness” (Hebrews 7:15) of the former. It is heavenly, not earthly, in its nature (Hebrews 6:20). And it is “unchangeable” (Hebrews 7:24), the meaning of which is “perpetual, spoken of Christ’s priesthood as ever remaining to him inviolate, never passing from him to another” (Robinson 1855, 68).<\/p>\n
That genuine Christians are “priests” in a spiritual sense, we do not deny (I Peter 2:5; Revelation 1:6), but there is no earthly, physical priesthood authorized by God today.<\/p>\n
Conclusion<\/h2>\n
From the foregoing it is patently evident that the Mormon Church is not “The Church of Jesus Christ,” nor is it composed of “saints.” Rather, it is a cult founded in the delusions of Joseph Smith, Jr. and others.<\/p>\n
It is our devout prayer that sincere Mormons would candidly examine the evidence, renounce this false system, and in true obedience, turn to the Lord.<\/p>\nThe God of Heaven and Earth is so good, and His love reaches all. Through the free gift of God’s grace by Jesus’ blood (Ephesians 2:8; Revelation 1:5) and your obedient faith (Romans 1:5; 10:17; 16:26), salvation is offered. If you have Bible questions or wish to comment on this post, please do so. Lord willing, a Bible answer will be provided for every Bible question.
\nThe churches of Christ are neither Catholic, Protestant, nor Jew (Romans 16:16; Matthew 16:18-19). We are the loving suffering one <\/b>body of Christ (Ephesians 1:20-23; 4:4-6) – Christians<\/strong>: “Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf<\/em>” (I Peter 4:16; cf. Acts 11:26; 26:28).\nWe love you with the love of the Lord (John 13:34-35).<\/p>\n
Sources<\/h2>\n
\n
- Choate, J. E. 1968. The Great Apostasy. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.<\/li>\n
- Grimm, Hans. N.d. Tradition and History of the Early Church of Christ in Central Europe. Austin, TX: Firm Foundation.<\/li>\n
- Joseph Smith Tells His Own Story. n.d.<\/li>\n
- Peterson, Mark E. 1974. Which Church is Right?<\/li>\n
- Roberts, B. H. 1902. History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Vol. 2. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret News.<\/li>\n
- Robertson, A. T. 1930. Word Pictures in the New Testament. Vol. 4. Nashville, TN: Broadman.<\/li>\n
- Robinson, Edward. 1855. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. New York, NY: Harper & Bros.<\/li>\n
- Temple Square in Salt Lake. n.d.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Samuel Matthews “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…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[687],"class_list":["post-96004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-mormons"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":31874,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-you-support-conscientious-objection\/","url_meta":{"origin":96004,"position":0},"title":"Do you support conscientious objection?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 19, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Do you or your church support selective conscientious objection and conscientious objection? Answer: Registering for the draft is a government law that does not violate any teaching of God. \"Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1296,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-are-boy-girl-relationships-not-advisable-at-a-young-age\/","url_meta":{"origin":96004,"position":1},"title":"Why are boy-girl relationships not advisable at a young age?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 3, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Why are boy-girl relationships not advisable at a young age Answer: Youth is a time of impatient desires. They want the things available to adults, but adulthood seems so far away. The typical teenage boy enters puberty around the age of 11. 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Answer: We were taught to pray, \"Give us this day our daily bread\" (Matthew 6:11), but God still commands us\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":61889,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-book-of-my-life\/","url_meta":{"origin":96004,"position":4},"title":"The Book of My Life","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 23, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Job 19:23-27 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Each week the paper publishes its list of top selling books \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Sometimes the books are biographies, fictional stories, or fiction placed in historical settings. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0They hope that others will also purchase the books, if for no other reason than curiosity. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Many author\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6988,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/are-there-passages-that-refer-to-the-lords-supper\/","url_meta":{"origin":96004,"position":5},"title":"Are there passages that refer to THE Lord’s Supper?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 2, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: We have been studying the Lord's supper issues and one of our main concerns is about a second offering in which only a few partake, for the reasons you listed in your article (not doing it together). 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