I believe this post to be good for any member and non-member to read about and clear up any confusion there may be with what our beliefs are. Now for those of you who call yourself Christian's, I assume you will diligently read these words and not skim over them nor overlook any of them, but earnestly study each sentence in your mind to know for a fact the TRUTH of what we believe rather than waste time reading up on fake websites with false information right? You might as well save yourself the time thats wasted on breaking the commandment: THOU SHALT NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS by falsely accusing our Church. When there is bashing involved you are most likely going to be breaking this commandment because you are more than likely to be wrong about your statements, not to mention that wouldn't really be showing love to your neighbor either now would it? You may as well learn CORRECT Doctrine before voicing a strong opinion.
The irony of Anti-Mormon Protester signs are the fact that they are never accurate with our doctrine of what we really believe. Prop 8 on the other hand,just like many Religions, it is true that we believe God put Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden not Adam and Steve and that was for the divine purpose of sacred procreation to replentish the earth but that doesn't mean we hate Gays or think Gays are going to Hell. We believe every man must obey the commandments and laws there of in order to gain reward. We believe every man will be judged according to their knowledge and God loves all of his children. We see society ripping apart families and higher divorce rates with sin spinning out of control and considered normal in society now and our church just wants to keep things modest and in order. Is that so wrong? Since when is conforming to a societys "norms" of wild behavior a safe thing to do? Look at the differnce in T.V. these days. The stuff that is PG now would of been XRated or not allowed at all back in the 50's yet sex, drugs, violence and crime are spreading viciously and people are being easily swayed. If we stand firm and uphold our standards we show much more organization and concern for our society. The reason we as LDS Members don't even bother talking to Anti-Mormon protesters who desire so much to tear us down, put words in our mouths and tell us we are all damned is simply because, “contention is of the Devil” Where there is contention, there cannot be a spiritual influence anyway so nothing good comes from battles of arguments. Nor will Heavenly Father show unto you the truth unless you are sincerely seeking it. Anti-Mormon protestors whether on the street or on the internet create rage and arguments by getting all of their information from false doctrine of the LDS Church from false doctrine sources! Why not try checking with the actual Church and actual doctrine in which we believe and not let others twist it into what THEY think, when they do not have the authority nor do they have enough knowledge to do so. If I walk into Barnes & Noble expecting to gain information on Historical Sites in a foreign country I’m definitely not going to go look in the Marilyn Monroe Biography section. I’m going to research the actual topic from its own background and heritage. At least that would be the smart thing to do, but its surprising how many people believe anything and everything they hear without looking at how inaccurate the source may be.
Articles of Faith:
1-we believe in God the eternal Father and in His son Jesus Christ and in the Holy Ghost.(Not just YOUR God, he is OUR God also and no we are not damned or hated by Him because we are Mormon, He is the Father in Heaven of ALL his children)
3-We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, ALL mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel. (Not that we will only be saved if we accept Joseph Smith jr. as a prophet, that is false. I heard false belief that someone thought we had to accept Joseph Smith as a prophet of God to enter into Heaven and even though we do testify that he was, we do not teach that everyone has to accept that to enter into Heaven) We believe, AND Joseph taught also, that there is no other name by which man may be saved except the name of our savior Jesus Christ.
8-We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.
Let’s go into depth on this part…. In CORRECT DOCTRINE….
The Book of Mormon Testifies of Christ, a Central purpose of it is to convince all people that Jesus is the Christ! It testifies of Him by affirming the reality of His life, His mission, and His ministry/power. It teaches true doctrine concerning the Atonement of the Savior- the foundation for the plan of salvation.
Mormon, Moroni, Jared, Nephi, and Jacob among many others, wrote testaments of Christ and those words were preserved in the Book of Mormon. Do you realize that the Bible is only an account of CERTAIN people in a CERTAIN area at a CERTAIN time? Do you realize that the Bible has been tampered with by flawed men and branched off of SOOO many countless times? That’s why the fullness of the Gospel needed to be restored. God revealed things in the Bible days just as he reveals things now in our day. He is God and he is everlasting, eternal, forever, alpha and omega and always will be. He has revealed he does reveal and he has YET to reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Gospel.
Multitudes of people SAW and witnessed and kept accounts of the coming of the Messiah in the Americas after his death {3 NEPHI 11-28} and that is FOUND IN THE BOOK OF MORMON not the Bible.
The testimony of the Book of Mormon confirms the testimony of the Bible that Jesus is the Only begotten Son of God. You want scriptures? I have plenty!
From Preach My Gospel here are the following to references to consider: 1 Nephi 6:4-6 1 Nephi 9:3-5 2Nephi 25:23-29 2Nephi 33:13-15 Jacob 4:1-6 Enos 1:13 Words of Mormon 1:3-8 3Nephi 5:14-15 … I have plenty more…
Peoples beliefs of the Bible vary widely. Latter-Day Saints believe the Bible to be the word of God if translated correctly. Far from competing with the Bible, the Book of Mormon supports it entirely, exhorts us to read it continually, and testifies of the truthfulness of its message.
Whether you choose to see it or not, the Book of Mormon and the Bible go hand in hand.
**The Book of Mormon speaks of the ancient covenants God made with His children; **The Bible tells of great prophets who also received these covenants by faith. ** The Book of Mormon testifies of Christ and His Atonement ** The Bible provides the account of His birth, ministry, death, Atonement, and Resurrection. Thus, the Bible and BOM complement and enrich each other.
The STICK of Judah (the Bible) – (Ezekiel 37:15-17 and also 1 Nephi 13:34-41; 2 Nephi 3:12;29:8)
The STICK of Joseph (the Book of Mormon)- (also see above scriptures)
Bible states: Christ was baptized to fulfill all righteousness, Book of Mormon states: what that means!
2Nephi 3:12 – if you use them both together it will overcome all false accusation and misunderstanding.
The Bible teaches the following about the law of witnesses: “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established” – 1 Corinthians 13:1 THAT’S what is funny about Anti-Mormon critics, they think we are the crazy ones for having MORE BOOKS OF PROOF and MORE testimonies of Christ our Savior and God the Father when clearly that’s A GOOD THING! & clearly we have been told that by two or three witnesses His word will be established!
What does the Bible say about the Book of Mormon you ask? Well here are more references for you… John 10:16 – Ezekiel 37:15-17 – Isaiah 29:4, 11-18 and What does the Book of Mormon say about the Bible you ask? Here are more references: 1 Nephi 13:20-29, 40-41 also 3 Nephi 23:1 or Mormon 7:8-9 or 2 Nephi 29:3-14 and HAND IN HAND TOGETHER HOW DO THEY SERVE AS TESTAMENTS? 2 Nephi 29:8 or John 20:31 or also Acts 10:43
With all of that said, Gods greatest commandment of all, is Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart might mind and strength and second which is like unto the first is LOVE THY NEIGHBOR AS THYSELF! Any TRUE follower of Christ does not puff himself up in pride or try to offend nor tear down or mock, nor does a true follower BASH others beliefs when we ALL are Gods children! I think its crazy when people say Oh A BIBLE WE HAVE A BIBLE AND THAT’S ALL THERE EVER WILL BE! Are you serious? So the world and its chaos are never changing? So technology and Satan’s temptations are never progressing? Hmm pretty sure that the whole world is changing all the time and therefore God reveals what he needs to in order to help us have light according to his will and timetable. He doesn’t just leave us in the darkness with only one book from centuries ago that has been tampered with. The following is God speaking:
• 6 - thou fool shall say a Bible, we have got a Bible, & we need no more Bible. Have ye obtained a Bible save it were by the Jews?
7 - know ye not there are more nations than one?
8- murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word? know ye not the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God
• 9 - I do this that I may prove unto many that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; ... because I have spoken one word, ye suppose I cannot speak another; for my work is not yet finished; neither shall it be until the end of man
11- I command all men... they shall write the words which i speak unto them... I will judge the world, according to that which is written.
We worship the name upon which our Church rests, The Church of Jesus Christ! We do not worship Joseph Smith Jr. We praise Him for his wonderful hard work and love for all people and bringing forth this work through the power of God. If it weren’t for him, we would still be in darkness. Do you even know of the countless times he brought about miracles to so many people that lived to tell about it? Do you know all the sacrifices he made for everyone? Do you know that he could of boasted in his ways, gone against God’s will and sold the gold plates or handed them off to anyone but he DIDN’T, he was a simple humble,
loving, genuine righteous man that even when a few of his friends turned other ways they still testified that it was true. Peter was a great man just like many other Prophets and Apostles of the Bible who testified of Christ and his teachings, but if you can see that, then how hard is it to see that Joseph Smith was also a great man
who did the same thing in a later time, defending Christ even through extensive torture, pain, agony, sorrow, beatings, being held captive, having hot tar poured on his body, losing many children, and the list goes on and on. He too defended Christ and the accounts of the preserved words in the Book of Mormon until the day that he was murdered.
He says in Doctrine & Covenants: “I am going like a lamb to the slaughter; but I am calm as a summer’s morning; I have a conscience void of offense towards God, and towards all men. … And it shall yet be said of me—he was murdered in cold blood”
Why did he not turn back? There was time to escape. He was not yet in the hands of his enemies. Friends were at his side who would die for him if necessary. Some suggested he flee across the Mississippi where he would be safe. But he continued to Carthage.
Do you honestly think any man would suffer all those things as long as he did and blaspheme before God the day he was shot knowing he would be held accountable?
Do you think that Joseph with only three years of schooling and knowing nothing of other languages could have translated 239 chapters, 54 about great wars, 21 about history, 55 about prophecy, 71 about doctrine, 17 about missionaries and 21 strictly about Christ’s mission? IT’S NOT POSSIBLE UNLESS IT WERE BY GOD!
Do you realize that 8 witnesses and also 3 witnesses scripted their name in the first pages that they know of a surety the Gold plates were given from God!?
Do you think the Pioneers would have undergone what they did if it were fake?
As if that’s not all enough, think about it seriously, do you honestly think if this Church and Gospel were as fake as the critics try and make it, WHY ON EARTH has it spread like wildfire touching the hearts and changing the lives of all those that read it and testify that its true?
The people are not perfect however, the Church is in perfect order the way it is organized is just as God sees it should be, our Church has the Authority and the only True Priesthood that was specifically restored to Joseph Smith.
People can choose to mock him and our Church all they want but they should remember this one thing, that God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ at judgement will without a doubt be able to read every word and deed of ours that we have written, spoken and acted upon, for they will be engraved upon our bones and sinews and very souls and read as if they were clear words in a book. We will be judged according to our faith, honesty, charity, compassion and purity of heart. As I said before, you have no room to mock that which you do not understand!
It’s not rocket science. Look at all the millions of Latter-Day Saints who are so happy and so giving to everyone, look at the charity and humanitarian work,
[Residents of the Sandan District of Cambodia sit next to 100-pound bags of rice distributed by senior missionaries. Missionaries distributed 40 tons of rice, providing almost 800 families with the only rice they may see this year.]
look at the love and respect and the dedication of missionary work the Church provides all across the world. It’s obvious its TRUE but it takes an open heart, a submissive meek soul that hungers for truth and searches in the right places and pays no mind to critics that lie. A soul that asks to be filled with Christ-like compassion for all people and judges not.
We have a living Prophet on the Earth today that reveals to us God’s will and all things necessary for our eternal progression.
If we keep the commandments, listen to the words of the Prophet, hold tight to the iron rod feasting upon the words of Christ we will be able to endure all things and be lifted up at the last days to a state of happiness. The Lord Has restored the Gospel in these Latter-Days and anyone would be blind not to listen to The Book of Mormon’s teachings of righteousness.
We would all be wise to listen to the lessons of those who have gone before and preserved their ancient records that we all have available for us to read as the Book of Mormon another testament of Christ. I want to be able to be wrapped in the arms of my Savior when the time comes and have him tell me well done. I want to know that I testified along with millions of others across the earth that all of these things I know to be true, God as my witness, in the sacred and Holy name of our Savior Jesus Christ, Amen.
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