Reasons starting with O

Reasons Starting with O


o1Obedience

Ensign, October 1998, pg. 7; A few years ago, my family and I visited Palmyra, New York; Kirtland, Ohio; and Nauvoo, Illinois. We reviewed the early history of the Church on that trip and were reminded of the overwhelming sacrifices the founders of the Church made to establish the kingdom of God in this last dispensation.”Reflecting upon their humble obedience focused my mind on the eternal nature of the law of sacrifice, a vital part of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”” – M. Russell Ballard

1 Corinthians 15:1-4; Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.

The “law of sacrifice” if you want to call it that was fulfilled in Jesus my friends!  Jesus proclaimed “It is finished” while He hung on that cross sacrificing His life to pay for our sins!  Our sacrifice is to worship and adore Him.

Obedience & Stewardship

Ensign, November 2009, pg. 93; In all of our stewardship efforts, we follow Jesus Christ. We try to emulate what He has asked us to do, both by His teachings and His example…I am grateful for the counsel of a loving, faithful prophet to serve and rescue those in need. As we follow his counsel, I know we will qualify for the Lord’s promise: “And whoso is found a faithful, a just, and a wise steward shall enter into the joy of his Lord, and shall inherit eternal life.” – Quentin L. Cook

Jeremiah 31:31-34; Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:  32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:  33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.  34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

Specifically which people has the prophet “rescued” and what did he do to rescue them?

In what ways are you serving that prophet and why?

Exactly what determines you to be a wise, just and faithful servant?

Obedience to the Law Brings Choicest Blessings

General Conference, October 2009, Dallin H. Oaks; My message is that God’s universal and perfect love is shown in all the blessings of His gospel plan, including the fact that His choicest blessings are reserved for those who obey His laws.”…….”God’s choicest blessings are clearly contingent upon obedience to God’s laws and commandments.

James 2:17-18; Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.  18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.

When we are filled with the Holy Spirit’s presence He prompts us to do good works.  Those good works are a manifestation of our salvation, not a result of our salvation.

If someone is always trying to do works to prove they are saved or has an overwhelming “need” to keep doing works for God  we should doing an internal evaluation as to why we feel we have to do these things.

Obedience to the Law or God Can’t Save Us

Three Degrees of Glory, pg. 35; In Christ, [God] sent His only begotten Son to save and redeem mankind, but unless we accept the atonement and act in conformity to the laws and requirements laid down for us, even God cannot save us. — Melvin J. Ballard

Romans 5:8; But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

If Jesus died to redeem mankind then what are the “laws and requirements” mentioned here?

Obedience to the Leadership

Journal of Discourses 6:32; But if you are told by your leader to do a thing, do it. None of your business whether it is right or wrong.” – Spencer W. Kimball, November 8, 1857, Salt Lake City

1 Timothy 6:3-5; If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; 4 He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, 5 Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

It’s none of my business whether it’s right or wrong?  What if he told you to go rob a bank or jump off a bridge?

Omnipotent; Definition of

Abraham 4:1; “And then the Lord said: Let us go down. And they went down at the beginning, and they, that is the Gods, organized and formed the heavens and the earth.

Unlimited Authority or Power from the website of www.dictionary.com

How is it these “gods” don’t have enough power to create the earth?

Why would anyone place their very souls into the hands of all these gods?

Omnipotent, Is Christ?

Mosiah 5:15; …Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his, that you may be brought to heaven, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life…

Jude 1:24-25; Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, 25 To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

If Christ is the Lord God and He didn’t have the power to create the earth then how could he have power enough to save you?

Omniscience

God & Man in Eternal Union, pgs. 1-2; In many other ways the Mormon view is separate and distinct from the position of traditional Christianity. As a tangible being, God is considered to be in—not outside—of time and space. He is not an absolute Creator, for reality in its essential elements is said to be self-existent. By first attaining supreme intelligence, God organized self-existent realities for the mutual advantage of all concerned. The highest form of co-eternal life that God organized became man, whom he formed in His own image. By full development of his potential intelligence and by union with God, man may one day become a being of like intelligence as his divine Father.” – Hyrum Andrus

Proverbs 15:2-3; The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.  3 The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.

This explanation of God and man sounds a lot like evolution.

ORDINANCES

Gospel Ordinances

Encyclopedia of Mormonism, pg. 103; In harmony with biblical precedent and latter-day commandment, all saving and exalting ordinances, from baptism to temple marriage, are performed in the presence of witnesses, and a proper and faithful record is made and kept in the archives of the Church (2 Cor. 13:1; cf. D&C 128:2-5). Thus, ordinances become “a law on earth and in heaven” and, unless the covenants are violated, they cannot be annulled, “according to the decrees of the great Jehovah” (D&C 128:6-10).

2 Corinthians 13:1; This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.

Well…the passage from 2nd Corinthians has absolutely nothing to do with getting married in the temple or being baptized for dead people.  In this passage Paul was exhorting the Corinthians to behave and call sinners to repentance in the presence of two or three witnesses.

Ordinances Necessary

TPJS, pg. 331; The question is frequently asked, “Can we not be saved without going through with all those ordinances?” I would answer, No, not the fulness of salvation. Jesus said, There are many mansions in my Father’s house, and I will go and prepare a place for you. House here named should have been translated kingdom; and any person who is exalted to the highest mansion has to abide a celestial law, and the whole law too.

Colossians 2:13-14; And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; 14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross.

Joseph Smith is retranslating scripture.  Smith didn’t like using dictionaries, he didn’t speak or read Greek, Aramaic or Hebrew yet he’s telling the people the scripture should actually say something it doesn’t.

Would you buy into that?

Ordinances Necessary for Celestial Kingdom

Preparing for Exaltation, Teacher’s Manual, pg. 269; Ordinances are Necessary for Entrance into the Celestial Kingdom

Chart and scripture discussion

Display the plan of salvation chart throughout the lesson.

What are the first principles and ordinances of the gospel?

Invite a class member to recite the fourth article of faith to help answer the question.

Why are the ordinances of baptism and the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost important to us?

Have class members read and mark John 3:5. Point out that these ordinances are necessary for entrance into the celestial kingdom.

Explain that these are earthly ordinances that must be performed here on earth.

How many people do you think have lived on the earth and then died without hearing the gospel, being baptized, or receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost?

What will happen to these people?

Explain that if these people never receive earthly ordinances, they will be unable to enter the celestial kingdom, regardless of their righteousness. However, Heavenly Father’s plan of salvation applies to all his children, and he has provided a way for these people to hear the gospel and receive the ordinances, even though they were unable to do so when they were on the earth.

John 3:5; Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Unless you’ve been born again you won’t be saved, period.  When we are saved we will by the compulsion of the Holy Spirit be baptized.  Baptism means nothing unless we are worshipping Him in spirit and truth as it says in John 4:24.

And as for the people who’ve died before us the Bible is very clear that everyone knows Him.  Romans 1, Jeremiah 29-31…

Sealing Ordinance

Mormon Doctrine, pg. 684; “See CELESTIAL MARRIAGE, SEALING POWER, TEMPLE ORDINANCES, VICARIOUS ORDINANCES. Those ordinances performed in the temples whereby husbands and wives are sealed together in the marriage union for time and eternity, and whereby children are sealed eternally to parents are commonly referred to as sealings.”

Ephesians 1:13; In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise.

To catch a glimpse of how the Mormon Church has changed the meanings of words in the English language we’ve chosen to use the word “seal” as our example.  The word “seal” and its derivatives appear in the Bible 72 times.  Both the Hebrew and Greek translations are listed in our list here.  It means signature, to close up, to stamp for security, or preservation (by implication to keep secret), to attest, to stop, a signet (as fencing in or protecting from misappropriation), the stamp impressed.

Question:  How does a human being become sealed to one another?

Original Sin

Alma 12:31;Wherefore, he gave commandments unto men, they having first transgressed the first commandments as to things which were temporal, and becoming as Gods, knowing good from evil, placing themselves in a state to act, or being placed in a state to act according to their wills and pleasures, whether to do evil or to do good.

Genesis 3:5, 24; For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.  So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

God did not give a commandment to Adam to sin and become as gods.

The Lord explicitly told Adam NOT to eat from the tree of knowledge.

Original Sin

“Self-Reliance,” Ensign, Aug. 1975, 88; Elder Boyd K. Packer said: “It is critically important that you understand that you already know right from wrong, that you’re innately, inherently, and intuitively good. When you say, ‘I can’t! I can’t solve my problems!’ I want to thunder out, ‘Don’t you realize who you are? Haven’t you learned yet that you are a son or a daughter of Almighty God? Do you not know that there are powerful resources inherited from Him that you can call upon to give you steadiness and courage and great power?’ ”

Gen. 3:14-15; And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: 15And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

Mankind is NOT inherently good – that’s a lie from hell.

 

Reasons Starting With P