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The truth about "The Church of Jesus Christ and The Latter Day Saints
Mormonism
The following story is presented to the readers as an attempt to explain some of the LDS faith (Mormonism) as a story portraying what they were historically taught and currently believe. To most, it will have surprising elements which will cause you to want to "click" on the underlined links to find out where that is or was taught.
All parts of the story are researched and items that support the story are mainly from LDS sources. The few non LDS sources are documents such as letters from the Smithsonian Institute.
Basic to the LDS faith is the belief that all teachings of their leadership
are absolute and infallible truths. Therefore, spoken sermons or written
statements of doctrine by Joseph Smith and subsequent church leaders are used in
this story. These same teachings are available and taught in various degrees to
current LDS members.
"I have never yet preached a sermon and sent it out to the children of men, that
they may not call Scripture." (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses Vol. 13,
Page 95 - 1870)
The order in which this story is told is not the order in which it is taught by
the LDS missionaries.
This story is not intended to be derogatory, so if you are reading it and feel challenged, we encourage you to do your own research to determine the TRUTH!!! (And verify our accuracy)
Some tools to check the research may include:
Good reading, and God Bless You.
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© Calvary Chapel Salt Lake |
A message to our LDS readers:
Many of us were once LDS and many of us still have family and friends that are LDS. So, of course, we love you. We only want to share the truth with you.
Jesus loves you more than you can imagine. Our hearts ache for all of you involved with teachings beyond the Holy Bible and it is our goal here to expose things that are contrary to the Holy Bible. The Holy Bible is God's Word. The Holy Bible is inerrant and infallible.
Unfortunately, to examine these truths can be painful for anyone has been taught something that is not true. It is our purpose to help you. It is not our purpose to attack the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or its members. It is only our purpose to bring you the truth of the love and grace of Jesus Christ without the extra teachings brought about by Joseph Smith, et al.
We, the body of Christ, want you to know that we love you as Christ loves you. We have a heart for you that are heavily burdened with a desire to see you come to know the truth about Jesus the Christ. Sometimes, before a person can know the truth, they need to know what is not the truth.
In these pages, we will compare not only LDS teachings against the Holy Bible, but also LDS teachings against LDS teachings. We regret this may be painful but the truth needs to be told and sometimes the truth hurts.
Sometimes, pain can be said to be the breaking of the shell that surrounds our understanding.
God bless you, and may the Lord Jesus bless you
The Bible
The Bible is unparalleled in its influence, scope, and power. It is God's word. It is the source and record of God's covenant promise to His people. From its pages we learn God's will for us morally, spiritually, and relationally. We learn what is right and wrong, truth and error. It is an instruction book for those who call themselves Christian (2 Tim. 3:16).
What about the numerous contradictions in the Bible?
A. It is true there are difficulties within the Word of God. But these are not due to copying errors through the centuries. As more and more historical, archaeological, and manuscript evidence is uncovered, the fewer Bible difficulties there are.
Does manuscript evidence support inerrancy of the originals?
A. Yes. The more we have studied about the ancient manuscript, the more we have concluded that the original documents were indeed inspired and inerrant.
B. The logical implication of the statements within the Bible is that they are inerrant since they claim to be offered from God. They either are or are not inspired of God. If they are not, then their claims of speaking for God are lies.
What makes the Bible different from any other religious document claiming to be the Word of God?
Prophecy! No other literary work can claim prophecy the way the Bible does. Throughout the Old Testament, God foretold the coming of Jesus the Christ, His Son and our Savior. The New Testament is filled with prophecy concerning the Second Coming of Jesus.
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Prophecy, the Bible and Jesus How do you respond to someone's claim that the Bible is not inspired? Is there a way to prove inspiration or, at least, intelligently present evidence for its inspiration? The answer is "Yes!" One of the best ways to prove inspiration is by examining prophecy. There are many religious books in the world that have many good things to say. But only the Bible has fulfilled prophecies--with more fulfillments to come. The Bible has never been wrong in the past, and it won't be wrong in the future. It claims inspiration from God (2 Tim. 3:16). Since God is the creator of all things (Isaiah 44:24), then He is also the creator of time. It is under His control. Only God, then, would always be right about what is in the future, our future. Fulfilled prophecy is strong evidence that God is the author of the Bible because when you look at the mathematical odds of prophecy being fulfilled, you quickly see a design, a purpose, and a guiding hand behind the Bible. If just one prophecy failed, then we would know that God is not the true God, because the creator of all things, which includes time, would not be wrong about predicting the future. Deut. 18:22 says, "If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously" (NIV). Isaiah 46:9-10 says, "Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please." One approach to use with an unbeliever is to turn to Psalm 22
and read verses 12-18. This is a detailed description of the
crucifixion--1000 years before Jesus was born. After you read the
section ask him what it was about. He'll say, "The crucifixion of
Jesus." Then respond with something like, "You're right. This is about
the crucifixion. But it was written 1000 years before Jesus was born.
And on top of that, crucifixion hadn't even been invented yet. How do
you think something like this could happen?" After a brief discussion,
you could show him (or her) a few other prophecies like where Jesus'
birthplace was prophesied (Micah 5:2), that He would be born of a virgin
(Isaiah 7:14), that His side would be pierced (Zech. 12:10), etc. |
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Born of the Seed of the Woman |
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Gen. 3:15, "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." |
Matt. 1:20, "But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit." |
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Isaiah 7:14, "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." |
Matt. 1:18,25, "This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary...was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit... But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus." |
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Psalm 2:7, "I will proclaim the decree of the LORD: He said to me, "You are my Son today I have become your Father." |
Matt. 3:15, "And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.'" |
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Gen. 22:18, "and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me." |
Matt. 1:1, "record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham:" |
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Gen. 21:12, "But God said to him, 'Do not be so distressed about the boy and your maidservant. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.'" |
Luke 3:23-34, "Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, the son of Heli...the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor," |
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Jer. 23:1, "The days are coming, declares the LORD, "when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land." |
Luke 3:23-31, "Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, the son of Heli...the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David," |
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Micah 5:2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times." |
Matt. 2:1, "After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem." |
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Deut. 18:18, "I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him." |
Matt. 21:11,"The crowds answered, "This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee." |
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Psalm 110:4, "The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind: 'You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.'" |
Heb. 3:1, "Therefore, holy brothers,
who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the
apostle and high priest whom we confess." |
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Psalm 2:6, "I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill." |
Matt. 27:37, "Above his head they placed the written charge against him: THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS." |
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Isaiah 33:22, "For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; it is he who will save us." |
John 5:30, "By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me." |
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Isaiah 40:3, "A voice of one calling: 'In the desert prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.'" |
Matt. 3:1-2, "In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.'" |
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Isaiah 53:3, "He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not." |
John 7:5, "For even his own brothers did
not believe in him." |
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Zech. 12:10, "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one mourns for an only son." |
John 19:34, "Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water." |
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Psalm 22:1, Psalm 22:11-18, "For the director of music. To the tune of "The Doe of the Morning." A psalm of David. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?...Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help. Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan. Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me. They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing." |
Luke 23:33, "When they came to the place called
the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals -- one on
his right, the other on his left." |
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The following probabilities are taken from Peter Stoner in Science Speaks (Moody Press, 1963) to show that coincidence is ruled out by the science of probability. Stoner says that by using the modern science of probability in reference to eight prophecies, 'we find that the chance that any man might have lived down to the present time and fulfilled all eight prophecies is 1 in 1017." That would be 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000. In order to help us comprehend this staggering probability, Stoner illustrates it by supposing that "we take 1017 silver dollars and lay them on the face of Texas. They will cover all of the state two feet deep. "Now mark one of these silver dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a man and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up one silver dollar and say that this is the right one. What chance would he have of getting the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would have had of writing these eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one man." Stoner considers 48 prophecies and says, "we find the chance that any one man fulfilled all 48 prophecies to be 1 in 10157, or 1 in
100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, The estimated number
of electrons in the universe is around 1079. |
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© Calvary Chapel Salt Lake |