General Conference October 2011, Part 2

03 October

General Conference October 2011, Part 2

Matthew 24:36; “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

Twice a year the Mormon Church holds their conferences as a time for members to hear the words spoken by the General Authorities and be inspired for another six months.

Many of the conferences are filled with the same mundane message that seems as if they’ve just been recycled with a few things changed to fit in with the times.  This time around wasn’t much different from that scenario with the exception of a couple things that stood out for me.

Now I can’t sit through their speeches either on television, radio or Youtube.  I just don’t have the patience or stomach to endure such a feat.  My hat is off to those who do!  I do however, read each and every one of the speeches and many times their speeches are the inspiration for my articles.  Today is obviously no exception to that.

The two things that I believe need to be questioned were remarks made by Packer and Monson…surprise, I’m sure!

Mr. Monson said; “”The laws of God remain constant,” the 84-year-old LDS leader said as the morning’s concluding speaker.”They are not suggestions. They are every bit as requisite today as they were when God gave them to the children of Israel.””

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52668223-78/church-christ-faith-jesus.html.csp?page=1

Mr. Packer said; “The end is not near, senior LDS apostle Boyd K. Packer said Saturday.  Today’s youths can look forward to “getting married, having a family, seeing your children and grandchildren, maybe even great-grandchildren…These days, young Mormons may have similar anxiety about the future, Packer said, quoting them as saying, “The end of the world is going to come before I get to where I should be.”

To that, Packer declared, “Not so!””

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52664839-75/church-lds-packer-temple.html.csp

With my quotes from the Salt Lake Tribune out of the way let’s examine what these should mean from the Christian perspective, beginning with their prophet, Mr. Thomas Monson.

Mr. Monson declared that the “laws of God remain constant”.  This is actually true if you believe and worship the One True God.  The problem here is that they don’t.  Mormons have emphatically declared beginning with Joseph Smith, that the God of Christianity is not the god of the Mormon Church.

Here is Joseph Smith’s explanation of God:

Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg. 372; Many men say there is one God; the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost are only one God. I say that is a strange God anyhow—three in one, and one in three! It is a curious organization…All are to be crammed into one God, according to sectarianism. It would make the biggest God in all the world. He would be a wonderfully big God—he would be a giant or a monster.

The Mormon god has evolved over the years and isn’t anything like he used to be.  The Mormon god once taught that the way to heaven was through practicing polygamy.  (See D&C 132)

Fast forward to 1904 and you’ll see the Mormon god has changed his mind and his laws.  You can read in the April 1904 Conference Report, pg. 97, when Joseph F. Smith made the official declaration they wouldn’t be practicing polygamy any longer.  If this was such a holy law of God why did he (the Mormon god) not keep this around?

All this to say that their god does indeed change, as do his laws.  I won’t even get into the whole racial issue this time.

So how does someone like my mother (who I know for a fact watched and listened to the conference this weekend) follow this god who keeps changing his mind?  And can my mother put her trust into someone like Monson who just lied to her?

Remember, Monson said;

The laws of God remain constant

Now on to the remarks made by Mr. Packer.  I actually have a few questions about this speech and in all sincerity I humbly ask:

As a Christian I pray (and selfishly at times) for the Lord to come NOW!!!  PLEASE!!!  What is there to fear if we know for certainty we are His?

Why is this guy uttering another false teaching?  Jesus told us in Matthew 24:36 not to concern ourselves over these things and not to listen to the false prophets who tell you they know when the Father said the end is now.

And finally….if the end isn’t near does that mean they have to change the name of their church?  Are these the “latter days” or aren’t they?

Do my kids have enough time left to see their great-grandchildren?  The way my dear mother looks at things, I’m certain this is what would be going through her mind while listening to that nonsense.

We should have a healthy respect and fear of God.  Not in the sense that we’re afraid of Him, but in the sense we revere Him because of who He is!  Jesus warned us to be on the lookout and to be ready.  He gave us the parable of the ten virgins right after He said not to listen to the false christs.  He told us to always be ready and when I read the comments of this apostle who told the audience that some people were worried they weren’t ready for the Second Coming of Christ, I felt my heart sink to my feet.  It was a false teaching from a false apostle.

He just gave the Mormon people a false sense of security that they have time to kill.  We don’t know these things; only God knows when He will return!  He also just threw a huge red flag out there to everybody who was listening that he’s a false apostle.

To all Mormons:

YOU CAN BE READY TODAY!!!

Accept Him into your heart; confess with your lips that Jesus is God.  Confess that you are a sinner in need of a Redeemer.  Jesus will come to you; forgive you of your sins and give you rest!  Right here, right now my friend, you can find rest.

Matthew 11:28-30;

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

You don’t have to be perfect – He is.  You don’t have to do all the work – He did.  He’s the Redeemer – not you!

General Conference time always makes my heart sad for the Mormon people and most especially my mother.  As I drive by their ward building on my way to church to worship God I can’t help but notice the empty parking lot of the Mormon Church.  The doors are locked and I wonder just how many hearts have been locked out to the Real Jesus…

Below is a link to our article Romans Road.  If you don’t know how to pray or what to do, but you want Jesus, this set of verses will show you in your Bible how to ask Him into your heart.  It’s not a cure-all and it’s not meant as a one step thing.  But it is the first step into living your life as a Christian!

http://lifeafter.org/salvation/romansroad/

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3 Responses to “General Conference October 2011, Part 2”

  1. discoveringgrace October 3, 2011 at 2:32 pm #

    You brought up a good argument IF we aren’t in the “latter days” then why don’t they change the name of their church? I don’t have a reference handy at the moment but wasn’t the whole reason from calling themselves “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints” because their leaders believed they were in the “latter days” when the church was established?

    I guess it all goes back to your definition of latter, because I’m sure the Mormons have their own view and definition of how long it is. ;)- Melissa

  2. Georgia October 7, 2011 at 5:33 pm #

    You have a few good arguements that would make sense to someone who hasn’t heard the full extent of The Lord’s teachings through Mormons. I won’t try to correct you on everything you speak of, for I am not the most edcuated among Mormons, but I will tell you that I am one of them. I am a Christain also, for a christian is one who believes in Jesus Christ and his teachings. We study from the same bible, and believe His words. We also have another Testament of Jesus Christ: The Book of Mormon. We share many of the same values that hundreds of other religions have, but controversy does appear among and between faiths. I do want to tell you that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. If you dive deeper into the reason WHY God allowed polygamy, you may think differently about it. There is a reason for everything God does. And it is true that his laws, his COMMANDMENTS, remain constant. I believe that Joseph Smith is a prophet, and that, when he explained “God” in the scripture you pointed out, he is explaining that there is One God, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, that these three beings are separate, and are not one. I am guessing that this is different than what you believe, and that’s fine. You are entitled to you agency. I strongly encourage you, if your heart is in it, to seek out a highly educated Mormon teacher who undoubtedly follows God and his teachings. You may or may not learn many great things, depending on whether or not you will listen with an open heart. The teacher I went to would not hear those who came merely to spite the Mormon religion. He only wanted to teach those who had soften their hearts and would listen, willing to learn. I have learned many great things that give me hope and happiness, and I hope that one day you will come to realize why your mother listens open-heartedly to General Conference.

    • lifeafterministry October 8, 2011 at 5:44 pm #

      Dear Georgia, thank you for taking the time to comment on our blog!

      First off I have to say that I do agree with you – up to a point. We do have our own free agency.
      The problem I have with Mormonism is that it’s nothing like what you’re claiming it is here. The Mormon god is not the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. Moroni 8:18 and other Mormon scriptures may say he is, but the track record of this god is anything but the same or constant.
      The Mormon god had a beginning so how can he be eternal?
      I don’t need to seek out a highly educated Mormon to know when something contradicts what the Bible says and neither do you!  The Bible says God is not man. Numbers 23:19, 1 Samuel 15:29, John 4:24…
      Joseph Smith said the Mormon god is an exalted man. History of the Church 6:305; “God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens…”
      The Bible says there is only ONE God and there were no other gods before Him, He is the one and only God – Isaiah 44:6, Isaiah 43:10-11…
      The Jews wanted Jesus crucified because He was claiming that He is God – John 8:23-30; John 8:38-40; John 8:57-59 – compare those with Exodus 3:14.
      I pray you look at the scriptures I’ve listed here and compare them with the Mormon version of the gospel. They both can’t be right.
      God bless you Georgia.
      Michelle

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