Posted on 01/21/2010 2:05:00 PM PST by Colofornian
It is urgent to witness to Mormons because they worship a false god. To many Christians this sounds like an extreme position; after all Mormons profess faith in Jesus Christ and have incorporated his name into the name of their church. Yet the majority of LDS doctrine contradicts the truth of the Bible. There are few simple comparisons of doctrine that illustrate the great gulf between Mormonism and Christianity more clearly than the LDS doctrine of godhood. This doctrine states that the LDS god was once a man and that if a Mormon is faithful to the LDS church he or she will become a god.
The title of this article is taken from Doctrine and Covenants 132:20-21 “Then shall they be gods, because they have no end; therefore shall they be from everlasting to everlasting, because they continue; then shall they be above all, because all things are subject unto them. Then shall they be gods, because they have all power, and the angels are subject unto them. Verily, verily, I say unto you, except ye abide my law ye cannot attain to this glory.” This passage refers to the LDS doctrine that those who fulfill all the demands of Mormonism will become a god and rule over their own world.
A more complete explanation of the doctrine can be found in the 76th chapter of Doctrine and Covenants. This doctrine is dovetailed with the doctrine that the god of this world was once a man on another world who fulfilled all the demands of Mormonism and was given this world to rule. The LDS prophet Lorenzo Snow is credited with coining a catch phrase to summarize these doctrines “As man is, God once was; and as God is, man may become.”
Many people believe this doctrine is one of the “old school” beliefs of the LDS church, no longer part of today’s LDS church. This is due to a number of different factors:
How the LDS church markets its form of religion. You will not find the doctrines concerning godhood prominent in their TV commercials or on the web site designed to promote their beliefs to non-Mormons, mormon.org.
How Mormons themselves react concerning the doctrine. Most Mormons when asked about their personal pursuit of godhood and whether they really see themselves at some time in the future as a god, down play the thought. It seems as though most Mormons are embarrassed by the thought of becoming a god and that this ultimate result of their faith is relegated to “out of sight, out of mind”.
How godhood is covered using other terms. The subject of godhood is discussed via a variety of more commonly used equivalent phrases; ‘exaltation’, ‘eternal life’ and ‘having an eternal family’
Modern Mormon official church literature ensures that this doctrine remains one of the church’s foundations and is to be the desired outcome of every Mormon’s walk of faith and works. In Gospel Principles on page 302 is a list of the blessings of exaltation. Number 2 is “They will become gods.” The list also includes “live eternally” and “have their righteous family members with them." The D&C Student Manual on page 358 has this quote of prophet Spencer Kimball: "Brethren, 225,000 of you are here tonight. I suppose 225,000 of you may become gods. There seems to be plenty of space out there in the universe."
Most discussion of godhood in the official church magazine “Ensign” is discussed using the subjects of eternal life, exaltation, and eternal family; however godhood still makes the occasional appearance:
The Prophet Joseph Smith taught of a much simpler and more sensible relationship: “God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens! January 2005 Ensign, page 48
“We are in the mortal life to get an experience, a training, that we couldn’t get any other way. And in order [for us] to become gods, it is necessary for us to know something about pain, about sickness, and about the other things that we partake of in this school of mortality.” January 2006 Ensign, page 52
While the doctrine that man can become a god is very troubling to Christians, it is actually the other part of the doctrine that clearly shows the urgency of witnessing to Mormons. The implications in the claim that their god was once a man has many far-reaching consequences. Among them are:
This god is not eternal. He was procreated spiritually by two other gods and born physically to mortal, sinful parents.
This god was not always perfect. He worked his way up from being a sinful being.
This god is not unique. There are countless other gods.
This god is not all powerful. He is just one cog in a much larger machine.
This god created Christ. The son of this god, also called Jesus Christ, did not exist until this god procreated him spiritually with another god and physically with Mary.
Once Christians understand the magnitude of the differences between the Mormon god and their own God, they can then see the urgency of witnessing to Mormons. They can see the futility of Mormonism in the worship of a created being.
Love it and I am now officially jealous. I want a “monkapotamus original”. ;)
:)
So, what’s in it for the Mormons? Why do they give a fig if anyone other than their family becomes Mormon too? It seems they are all in it for themselves, for what they can get out of it. They become gods and populate their own planets. Why would they care about Joe Schmoe down the street?
This is a serious question. Is it just one of their works? They do it for “points’?
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Colofornian is right, motives vary from one to another, so I will give you my reasons/experience.
There are usually a multitude of reasons why the LDS prostletize.
1) They feel sorry for non-Mormons, especially Born Again Christians. There is this idea that non-Mormons are basically unhappy, they just don’t know it yet. They would be “so much happier” having the truth of Mormonism.
2) There is a lot of pressure to go on a formal LDS mission, RM’s (returned missionaries) are more respected and for women who are not married by their 21st birthday, makes them more desirable to be married and married in the temple. On the mission itself, there is a VERY HUGE emphasis on numbers.
3)There is also a lot of pressure put on members by the leadership. A common phrase is “every member a missionary” and numbers are a big deal.
4) Finally, I was taught that every convert you bring into the church adds to your own glory. Kinda related to the “becoming a God” thing. If you bring in (”save”) several converts then you will “progress” to godhood faster or have more power.
5) As far as obedience, it is, IMO, more obedience to “the church” than to God. Missionary work is one of the “works” expected by members.
Let’s call “MissesBush”, surely she will show up...
To all those who know that the list means, it is well-known that "Biblical" is pretty much presupposed in the list. :-)
-Theo
No idea what that's supposed to mean, or prove so I'll say you're saying that the Orangemen in Northern Ireland are not Catholic and, for that, Catholicism is "anathema" to them, because it ain't orange.
Big deal. If that's what you meant.
-Theo
Re: John 6:29...even Smith’s made-up Book of Moses teaches this! (Moses 1:39) It’s all the work of God!!!
Awwww.. I love it, and I love you. :)
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