LDS Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual 2002, Section 93, ‘Truth is Knowledge of Things,’ pp 217-222 & General Conference, ‘How to Worship,’ October 1971; “…In other words, true and perfect worship consists in following in the steps of the Son of God; it consists in keeping the commandments and obeying the will of the Father to that degree that we advance from grace to grace until we are glorified in Christ as he is in his Father. It is far more than prayer and sermon and song. It is living and doing and obeying. It is emulating the life of the great Exemplar.
With this principle before us, may I now illustrate some of the specifics of that divine worship which is pleasing to him whose we are?
To worship the Lord is to be married in the temple, to have children, to teach them the gospel, and to bring them up in light and truth.” – Bruce McConkie
1 Chronicles 16:23-31; “Sing unto the LORD, all the earth; shew forth from day to day his salvation. 24 Declare his glory among the heathen; his marvellous works among all nations. 25 For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised: he also is to be feared above all gods. 26 For all the gods of the people are idols: but the LORD made the heavens. 27 Glory and honour are in his presence; strength and gladness are in his place. 28 Give unto the LORD, ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength. 29 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness. 30 Fear before him, all the earth: the world also shall be stable, that it be not moved. 31 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice: and let men say among the nations, The LORD reigneth.”
Our LDS quotes today come from one source – Bruce McConkie. The late LDS apostle delivered a speech at the October 1971 General Conference and it was reprinted in the Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual from 2002.
While the Church likes to downplay McConkie’s teachings and the everyday member is quick to denounce him, somehow his teachings materialize in all of the important foundational teaching manuals throughout Mormonism.
Today we’re looking at the sermon from 1971 to show just what it takes for a Mormon to receive a full salvation. As a side note – take notice of the Masonic term he threw in for good measure by referring to Christ as the ‘Great Exemplar’. Nice.
While we’ve only listed one of the ‘mandates’ McConkie proscribed, I can assure the reader there was no less than ten other must-do’s members must adhere to in order to live the ‘families are forever’ ideal. You can check out all the other things by using the link provided in the title of today’s dilemma.
There’s nothing in the Bible mandating marriage and kids for salvation, and in fact just the opposite is shown in Paul’s letter to the Colossians when he told them that we’re no longer bound by the doctrines of men (Col. 2) and that marriage is good for those who can’t be single in his first letter to the Corinthians. 1 Cor. 7
In addition to those examples we also have our Lord’s explanation to the Sadducees when He told them there was no such thing as marriages in heaven. Mark 12:18-27
When we truly read the word of God and compare the letters and gospels along with all of the OT, we can know for sure what the Lord has said. And more importantly we can know how to worship Him just like He told the Samaritan woman.
John 4:24; “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”
Shockingly in the speech McConkie delivered in 1971, he very adamantly told his listeners that worshiping a ‘god’ that is immaterial in matter is worshiping a false god while misquoting John 4:24.
‘There is no salvation in worshiping a false god. It does not matter one particle how sincerely someone may believe that God is a golden calf, or that he is an immaterial, uncreated power that is in all things; the worship of such a being or concept has no saving power…But if he worships the true and living God, in spirit and in truth, then God Almighty will pour out his Spirit upon him…’
As always, we’re asking that you pray for the Mormon youth who will be taking the D&C classes. Pray the Lord opens their hearts and minds and that the kids who will put their young inquisitive minds into action!
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