Reasons starting with T & U

Reasons Starting with T


t1Tattoos

Mormon Doctrine, pg. 775; The practice is a desecration of the human body and should not be permitted, unless all that is involved is the placing of a blood type or an identification number in an obscure place. (Deut. 14:1.)

Deuteronomy 14:1; Ye are the children of the LORD your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead.

Leviticus 19:28; Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.

Here we have a couple of things going on.

First of all the scripture they used is technically not about tattooing.  The people in this day would either cut their bodies in desecration during their mourning the death of a loved one or they would also shave their heads and baldness would be a sign of mourning.  (A bald/shaved head was symbolic of the globe they worshipped).  If they were cutting themselves they would then take their blood and smear it upon themselves in devotion to their particular god or idol they worshipped.  This is part of ba’al worship.

Jesus is the One who has altered the property (body) of death by hanging on the cross.  When we desecrate ourselves in mourning we are symbolizing that we want the dead to be remembered as well as the god we’ve made the sacrifice to.

The next thing to notice is the ambiguity in the Mormon doctrine’s teachings.

Tattoos are bad, but if you’re going to do it then hide it?  Hmmm…when was the last time you told your kid to lie and hide his sin?

Temples – A place for individuals to work

Abundant Life, pg. 132; Temple building to us is different from building chapels, or tabernacles, or meeting places. We build temples for the express purpose of having a holy place into which the worthy may go to perform ordinances calculated to bind together the living and the dead.” – Hugh Brown

Hebrews 10:1; For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.

And while you go into your temples, God tells us that this isn’t necessary in addition to it being a sin to practice necromancy.

Temple Clothing

Encyclopedia of Mormonism, pg. 534;The white garment symbolizes purity and helps assure modesty, respect for the attributes of God, and, to the degree it is honored, a token of what Paul regarded as taking upon one the whole armor of God (Eph. 6:13; cf. D&C 27:15). It is an outward expression of an inward covenant, and symbolizes Christlike attributes in one’s mission in life. Garments bear several simple marks of orientation toward the gospel principles of obedience, truth, life, and discipleship in Christ….A biblical tradition teaches that Adam and Eve, prior to their expulsion from Eden, wore sacred clothing.

Colossians 2:15-16; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. 16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days.

The attributes of God are not symbolized in any clothing you might wear.  The Mormons wear these garments like a good luck charm.

Temple in Missouri

Doctrines and Covenants 84:31; Therefore, as I said concerning the sons of Moses—for the sons of Moses and also the sons of Aaron shall offer an acceptable offering and sacrifice in the house of the Lord, which house shall be built unto the Lord in this generation, upon the consecrated spot as I have appointed—

Titus 1:13-14; This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith; 14 Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.

The prophecy given by Smith in Kirtland, Ohio on September 22nd & 23rd, 1832 qualifies as a false prophecy.  No temple was built in Missouri before Smith died in June 1844.

Temple, New Testament

D&C 124:39; Therefore, verily I say unto you, that your anointings, and your washings, and your baptisms for the dead, and your solemn assemblies, and your memorials for your sacrifices by the sons of Levi, and for your oracles in your most holy places wherein you receive conversations, and your statutes and judgments, for the beginning of the revelations and foundation of Zion, and for the glory, honor, and endowment of all her municipals, are ordained by the ordinance of my holy house, which my people are always commanded to build unto my holy name.

1 Cor. 6:19; What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

All that work, effort and money are wasted when you don’t know the true God of the Bible.

Temple:  Molten Sea, OT Temple

Answers to Gospel Questions 5:12; It is verily true that the Bible as it has come down to us has very little to say about baptism in the Old Testament. Yet there are passages in the writings of Moses and the old prophets which clearly indicate to the prayerful student that baptism was a principle which was practiced all through the days of old Israel. When the temple of Solomon was built, we read of a “molten sea,” ten cubics from one brim to the other, it stood on the backs of twelve carved oxen. This font, or brazen sea, was not used for baptisms for the dead, for there were no baptisms for the dead until after the resurrection of the Lord. It is a logical venture to say that it was used for baptizing the living for the remission of their sins.

1 Kings 7:23-26; And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.  24 And under the brim of it round about there were knops compassing it, ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about: the knops were cast in two rows, when it was cast.  25 It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.  26 And it was an hand breadth thick, and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies: it contained two thousand baths.

2 Chronicles 4:6; He made also ten lavers, and put five on the right hand, and five on the left, to wash in them: such things as they offered for the burnt offering they washed in them; but the sea was for the priests to wash in.

The molten sea in the temple mentioned in the OT was for the priests to wash themselves after they had made sacrifices to God.  They’re not to be used in NT times to be baptized for dead people.

As a Mormon I was baptized for the dead several hundred times.  I went in the first Saturday of every month from the time I was about 12 until I was 16.  Each time I was there I was baptized for 50-250 dead people.

Temple Ordinances

Encyclopedia of Mormonism, pg. 1444; All participants must be baptized and confirmed members of the Church, and must receive a temple recommend. However, children under eight years of age may participate in their own family sealings before being baptized. Members who are twelve years of age or older may serve as proxies in baptisms for the dead. Worthy adults may participate in the temple Endowment ceremonies. All men must have been ordained to the Melchizedek Priesthood. Temple ordinances are performed in sequence.

Philippians 3:9-10; And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.

Remember, if you don’t do all those temple works you’re not really saved in Mormonism.

Temple Recommend

Mormon Doctrine, pg. 619; See –>EPISTLES OF COMMENDATION. It is the practice of the Church to issue certificates, commonly called recommends, in order to identify persons as members of the Church or to certify to their worthiness to receive certain ordinances or blessings.

2 Corinthians 3:1-3; Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you?2 Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:3 Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

These temple recommends are coveted pieces of paper the Mormon carry in their wallets and shows the temple workers to gain entrance into the temple.  It is SO much work!  Where is Jesus in all this?

Temple Weddings, Who can Attend?

Doctrines of Salvation 2:61;Of course there are people who are not worthy to go to the temple, and therefore should not go to the temple. No one should go to the temple except those who are worthy, as the Lord has said, “who [have] overcome by faith,” and are cleansed and are just and true. Then they can go to the temple. If they are unclean, if they lack the faith, they had better stay out until they get the faith and are clean.

1 Kings 12:28-31; Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.  29 And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other put he in Dan.  30 And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.  31 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.

Note:  Read the entire biblical passage for full context of the Israelites sin of worshipping at a pagan temple from 1 Kings 12:25-33.  The similarities between this passage in the Bible and what the Mormons do with their “priesthoods” are striking.

Temple Works

Alma 34:36;And this I know, because the Lord hath said he dwelleth not in unholy temples, but in the hearts of the righteous doth he dwell; yea, and he has also said that the righteous shall sit down in his kingdom, to go no more out; but their garments should be made white through the blood of the Lamb.

1 Corinthians 3:16; Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

Why don’t the Mormon people believe this?  Why was this supposedly written in the BC era?  And just as importantly why do their “scriptures” contradict themselves?

Temples

“Beautiful Memorial”, Ensign, Nov. 2002, pgs. 4-5; Many of you participated in the dedication of the Nauvoo temple last June. It was a great and marvelous occasion, one to be long remembered. We not only dedicated a magnificent building, a house of the Lord, but we also dedicated a beautiful memorial to the Prophet Joseph Smith.”In 1841, two years after he came to Nauvoo, he broke ground for a house of the Lord that should stand as a crowning jewel to the work of God.”It is difficult to believe that in those conditions and under those circumstances a structure of such magnificence was designed to stand on what was then the frontier of America.”I doubt, I seriously doubt, that there was another structure of such design and magnificence in all the state of Illinois.”It was to be dedicated to the work of the Almighty, to accomplish His eternal purposes.” – Gordon B. Hinckley

Zechariah 10:2; For the idols have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie, and have told false dreams; they comfort in vain: therefore they went their way as a flock, they were troubled, because there was no shepherd.

So is it a memorial to God or Joseph Smith?

Temples; Who can enter

Encyclopedia of Mormonism, pg. 1446; Temples have always been revered and reserved as sacred ground. Anciently, the prophet ezekiel [sic] declared, “Thus saith the Lord GOD; No stranger, uncircumcised in heart, nor uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary” (Ezek. 44:9). The Prophet Joseph Smith prayed that “[the temple] may be sanctified and consecrated to be holy, and that thy holy presence may be continually in this house” (D&C 109:12), “and that no unclean thing shall be permitted to come into thy house to pollute it” (D&C 109:20)…After construction and before a temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been dedicated to the Lord, an open house is held and the general public is invited to enter and view the rooms….

Ezekiel 44:9; Thus saith the Lord GOD; No stranger, uncircumcised in heart, nor uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary, of any stranger that is among the children of Israel.

If they are building temples that are to be holy places for the Lord to dwell in why are they allowing the public to do a run through first?

Testimonies

Gospel Standards, pg. 22; THE MISSION OF JESUS CHRIST. We are not dependent upon the testimony of men who lived many hundreds of years ago. We have the testimony that is given to us from the Prophet Joseph Smith, and from Sidney Rigdon that they saw the Son, that they heard the voice declare from the heavens that He was the Only Begotten of the Father, that by Him and of Him the worlds were created, and that He lives, for they saw Him.

Romans 4:18, 23; Who in hope believed against hope, to the end that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, So shall thy seed be.  Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was reckoned unto him.

Also see Hebrews 11 that tells us we can use the saints of the OT as an example who serve as a “great cloud of witnesses” to what we are doing here.

Testimonies of Traitors Cannot Influence LDS

D&C 122:3; And thy people shall never be turned against thee by the testimony of traitors.

Is. 55:11; So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

According to the Church someone like Ed Decker, Sandra Tanner, Doris Hanson, people at Living Hope Ministries or me are all traitors.  They don’t want to admit it publicly but our testimonies have led many people out of Mormonism and into a relationship with the real Jesus of the Bible.

Testimony, How to Gain a

Gospel Standards, pg. 26; HOW TESTIMONY IS GAINED. Wherever the gospel of Christ has gone, men and women by the hundreds and thousands have embraced it and have been able to bear individual testimony that they received a witness of the divinity of the work in which we as Latter-day Saints are engaged after supplicating God for a testimony. This testimony has not come through their own study, nor through the natural intelligence with which God has endowed them, but in answer to earnest and sincere prayer, uttered in the name of Jesus Christ our Redeemer, for light and knowledge regarding the divinity of this work.—70th Birthday Pamphlet, November, 1926, pp. 14-15.

Hebrews 11:6; But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Another thing the Church doesn’t want to admit is that millions upon millions of people have already accepted the real Jesus Christ and they were nowhere around.

Testimony of (the) Gospel Needed

Living the Gospel, pg. 51; There is nothing in this world for which I am so grateful as an absolute knowledge that we, the Latter-day Saints, have the true gospel of Jesus Christ”.  This testimony, borne by President Heber J. Grant, is typical of those from the lips of thousands…

2 Timothy 1:12; For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.

See “Philosophy of Mormonism” above for comparison.

Testimony of Joseph Smith

Ensign, November 2009, pg. 30; No testimony is more significant to us in our time than the witness of Joseph Smith. He was the prophet chosen to restore the ancient Church of Christ in this, the last time when the gospel will be on the earth before the return of Jesus Christ. Like all the prophets who opened the work of God in their dispensations, Joseph was given especially clear and powerful prophetic experiences to prepare the world for the Savior’s Second Coming.” – Robert D. Hales

Hebrews 10:15; Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,16 This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; 17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.

The testimonies of the saints in the Bible, the apostles in the Bible and Jesus’ testimony far outweighs anything Smith could offer.

Testimony of Joseph Smith Needed

www.lds.org; “For a testimony of the restored gospel to be complete, it must include a testimony of Joseph Smith’s divine mission. The truthfulness of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints rests on the truthfulness of the First Vision and the other revelations the Lord gave to the Prophet Joseph. President John Taylor, the third President of the Church, wrote, “Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man that ever lived in it” (D&C 135:3).

Matthew 6:24; No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

If anyone has a testimony supporting this “restored gospel” that person cannot possibly have a testimony that Jesus is Lord.

Testimony is of God, Not of Man

Especially for Missionaries 4: Chapter 2; Now, don’t ever think your testimony isn’t strong, because it is. Every testimony that’s born is not born of man, but born of God by the power of the Holy Ghost. When you bear testimony, it’s not you. It’s not me. It’s the Spirit of God, and that’s powerful.

Romans 10:17-18; So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. 18 But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.

I share the biblical passage from Romans for two reasons.  One – the testimonies of the saints went into every nook and cranny of the earth which is quite contrary to LDS teachings.  Secondly – the Mormon Church would have you believe what Mr. Pinegar wrote in “Especially for Missionaries” is truth.  Nothing could be a bigger lie.  As we’ve seen in previous teachings of the Church, the Mormon’s testimony must include many variables which prove their faith in Jesus is nothing more than an afterthought.  The Mormon testimony is a well rehearsed 3-5 minute explanation of their belief in Joseph Smith, Mormonism and their good works.

Theme of the Gospel vs. Theme of the BoM

Alma 50:20; Blessed art thou and thy children; and they shall be blessed, inasmuch as they shall keep my commandments they shall prosper in the land. But remember, inasmuch as they will not keep my commandments they shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord.

John 3:16; For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Mark 1:14-15; Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Jeremiah 32:40; And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me.

Note:  While there are many themes within the Bible, we have chosen the three listed here to use as examples.

Thought Life

Ensign, Nov. 2009 pg. 46;When temptation comes, you can invent a delete key in your mind—perhaps the words from a favorite hymn. Your mind is in charge; your body is the instrument of your mind. When some unworthy thought pushes into your mind, replace it with your delete key. Worthy music is powerful and can help you control your thoughts (see D&C 25:12).” – Boyd Packer

2 Cor. 10:5; Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

Note:  It’s not bad to fill your thoughts with a hymn when encountering spiritual warfare in your mind, but why is it the Mormons don’t think of using biblical scripture?  And who is determining what is worthy?

Thoughts, An Accounting of All

Power Within Us, pg. 60; Although your spirit had a veil of forgetfulness placed over it at the time of your birth into mortality, it retained its power to remember all that happens—precisely recording each event of life. Indeed, scriptures warn that “every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.” (Matthew 12:36.) Prophets refer to our “bright recollection” (Alma 11:43) and “perfect remembrance” (Alma 5:18) at that day of decision.” – Russell M. Nelson

Psalm 94:11; The LORD knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.

How is this even possible when the Lord has repeatedly told us that we were created here on earth?

Trinitarian Doctrine

2 Nephi 19:6;For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6; For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

If the Bible has been translated incorrectly, then why are there plagiarisms from the Bible found in the Book of Mormon?  Also; Mormon doctrine does not ascribe itself to Trinitarian beliefs so why would a verse like this appear in the Book of 2nd Nephi?  Lastly, the plagiarisms in the BoM also contain the errors of the KJV.  Why were the mistakes in the KJV that were written in 1611 found on plates that were originally in Reformed Egyptian from the BC era?

Trinity, No Such Thing in Mormonism

D&C 130:22;The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us.

John 14:17; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

I wonder how long the Mormon Holy Ghost has been waiting for a body.  Other Mormon scripture tells us that those spirits without a body are not of God.

Trinity, Some Members are Subordinate

Mormon Faith: Understanding Restored Christianity, pgs. 28-29, 189-190; Latter-day Saints worship God the Father, in the name of Christ the Son, by the power of the Holy Ghost. These three—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—constitute the Godhead. Latter-day Saints believe that the members of the Godhead are three separate and distinct personages. Joseph Smith described them as “God the first, the Creator; God the second, the Redeemer; and God the third, the witness or Testator.  1 The members of the Godhead are believed to be one in purpose, one in mind, one in glory, one in attributes and powers, but separate persons. Christ the Son and the Holy Spirit are subordinate beings to the Father, albeit divine beings, and partake of the attributes and powers of the Father. But because the second and third members of the Godhead have had extended to them the powers of the Father, because they enjoy a divine investiture of his authority, they may appropriately speak on his behalf…Latter-day Saints believe that taken together, New Testament references to the Godhead bear witness of a Trinity of oneness in purpose, not oneness of essence, and of a Godhead composed of three physically separate beings. The material for this study was developed by cataloging every verse in the King James Version of the New Testament in which more than one member of the Godhead is mentioned.

Colossians 2:8-9; Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.  9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

Luke 9:26; For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels.

The scripture in Luke struck me as a powerful message to those who don’t believe.  How scary it would be to read that and realize you’re in a lot of trouble.

Truth

Apostle Russell M. Nelson, “Truth—and More,” Ensign, Jan. 1986, pg. 69;To anyone who, because of truth, may be tempted to become a dissenter against the Lord and his anointed, weigh carefully your action in light of this sacred scripture…“These dissenters, having the same instruction and the same information…not long after their dissensions they became more hardened and impenitent…wicked…entirely forgetting the Lord their God.” (Alma 47:36.)…

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.

Truth Mr. Nelson is all that matters.  The Church has no priority over the truth of Jesus who told us plainly that He is the way the truth and the light and no man goes to the Father but through Him. – John 14:6.

Truth

Apostle Boyd K. Packer, as related by D. Michael Quinn, “Pillars of My Faith,” talk delivered at Sunstone Symposium, Salt Lake City, August 19, 1994; I have a hard time with historians… because they idolize the truth. The truth is not uplifting; it destroys. Historians should tell only that part of the truth that is inspiring and uplifting.

Romans 3:3-4; For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? 4God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.

Sometimes the truth hurts.  And sometimes the truth is not encouraging – like finding out our national security was severely lacking on 9/11.  But if we replace the truth of God for a lie we are in danger of not only being blind but losing our very souls.  In this case, truth is always good.

Truth, Some of it is not Useful

Boyd K. Packer, “The Mantle is Far, Far Greater Than the Intellect”, 1981, BYU Studies, Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 259-271;Church history can be so interesting and so inspiring as to be a very powerful tool indeed for building faith. If not properly written or properly taught, it may be a faith destroyer…There is a temptation for the writer or the teacher of Church history to want to tell everything, whether it is worthy or faith promoting or not…Some things that are true are not very useful…Teaching some things that are true, prematurely or at the wrong time, can invite sorry and heartbreak instead of the joy intended to accompany learning.

John 8:31-32; “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

It seems Mr. Packer spent a fair amount of time explaining to people that it’s okay to lie by not telling the whole story or by outright ignoring what is as plain as day.  Telling the truth is always the best way to go about things and much easier to remember.

Truth, Some Truth in Everything

Mormon Faith: Understanding Restored Christianity, pg. 203; The great religious leaders of the world such as Mohammed, Confucius, and the Reformers, as well as philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and others, received a portion of God’s light. Moral truths were given to them by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher level of understanding to individuals.

2 Timothy 4:3-4; For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

People are shocked when I tell them that Mormonism is a lot like Hinduism.  Here we can see plainly that indeed the Mormons do incorporate whatever thing looks good to them at the time.

Truth; Some Truth in Everything

TPJS, pg. 316; Have the Presbyterians any truth? Yes. Have the Baptists, Methodists, etc., any truth? Yes. They all have a little truth mixed with error. We should gather all the good and true principles in the world and treasure them up, or we shall not come out true “Mormons.”

Isaiah 59:13-15; In transgressing and lying against the LORD, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.  14 And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.  15 Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.

Mormonism is a hodgepodge of all sorts of things, that’s why it’s so confusing.

Truths, there are some in all Churches

Doctrines of Salvation 3:271; SOME TRUTH IN ALL CHURCHES. All churches teach some truth, whether they profess belief in Confucius, Buddha, the Greek and Roman gods, or anything else; otherwise their churches would not endure a month. The fact that they teach some truth does not make them the Church of God. There is but one Church of God.

Hebrews 13:7-9; Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.  8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.  9 Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.

There is no truth in believing anything about Confucius, Buddha, the gods or any other belief system outside of the One True God of the Bible.  To believe and teach otherwise is a recipe for disaster.

Reasons Starting with U


u1Unbelief/Doubting

Life and Teachings of James Faust, pg. 281; When a member expresses his private doubts or unbelief as a public chastisement of the leadership or the doctrine of the Church, or as a confrontation with those also seeking eternal light, he has entered upon sacred ground. Those who complain about the doctrine or leadership of the Church but who lack the faith or desire to keep God’s commandments risk separating themselves from the divine source of learning. They do not enjoy the same richness of the Spirit that they might enjoy if they proved their sincere love of God by walking humbly before Him, by keeping His commandments, and by sustaining those He has appointed to lead the Church. (“The Abundant Life,” Ensign, Nov. 1985, 8.).” (Underline emphasis mine.)

Mark 9:24; And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

Those who doubt or question aren’t separating themselves from learning.  The Church wants to call it “entering on sacred ground” but isn’t that what is our goal?  Separating ourselves from divine learning is a lie and in fact do enjoy the best of the Holy Spirit’s presence all the time instead of the wishy-washy Holy Spirit of the Mormon Church.

United States, Establishment of

Mormon Doctrine, pg. 717; ESTABLISHMENT OF THE AMERICAN NATION. — We know by revelation that the United States was established as a nation by the Lord for two chief reasons: 1. So that the Book of Mormon, containing as it does the fulness of the gospel, might come forth with its message of salvation to both Jew (which includes the Lamanites) and Gentile. 2. So that the Lord’s true Church might be set up again on earth, and thus have the way opened up for the fulfilling of the covenants made by the Lord with the house of Israel.

Proverbs 25:26; A righteous man falling down before the wicked is as a troubled fountain, and a corrupt spring.

I am certain the US didn’t come into existence for the Book of Mormon, how silly and arrogant to even think such a thing.  And it definitely didn’t wasn’t founded so Smith could lie to a bunch of people.

United States to be Destroyed

History of the Church 1:315-316; And now I am prepared to say by the authority of Jesus Christ, that not many years shall pass away before the United States shall present such a scene of bloodshed as has not a parallel in the history of our nation; pestilence, hail, famine, and earthquake will sweep the wicked of this generation from off the face of the land, to open and prepare the way for the return of the lost tribes of Israel from the north country.

Matthew 24:4-6; And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.  5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.  6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

Revelation given on January 4, 1833 by Joseph Smith.  At the time of this writing (May 4, 2009), it has been 176 years since the time of this prophecy.  In case you’re wondering, that’s 64,380 days.

U.S. Will be Overthrown

LDS Prophets Speak, pg. 230; I prophesy, in the name of the Lord God of Israel, unless the United States redress the wrongs committed upon the Saints in the State of Missouri and punish the crimes committed by officers, that in a few years the government will be utterly overthrown and wasted, and there will not be so much as a potsherd left for their wickedness in permitting the murder of men, women and children, and the wholesale plunder and extermination of thousands of her citizens to go unpunished, thereby perpetrating a foul and corroding blot upon the fair fame of this great republic, the very thought of which would have caused the high-minded and patriotic framers of the Constitution of the United States to hide their faces with shame.-Joseph Smith, Jr., “Historical Record,” p. 514, May 18, 1843

2 Thessalonians 1:4-5; So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure: 5 Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer.

This is known to the LDS as the “Potsherd Prophecy” and it is obviously false.  Smith mad this prophecy in response to getting kicked out of Missouri.  As you can see he made this prophecy in 1843.  At the time of this writing it is June 14, 2010 – 167 years later.

 

Reasons Starting With V