Journal of Discourses 2:129-130 “…It is written “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Again, “If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.” …
If the first passage I have quoted is not worded to our understanding, we can alter the phraseology of the sentence… To be as perfect as we possibly can, according to our knowledge, is to be just as perfect as our Father in heaven is. He cannot be any more perfect than He knows how, any more than we.
When we are doing as well as we know how in the sphere and station which we occupy here, we are justified in the justice, righteousness, mercy, and judgment that go before the Lord of heaven and earth. We are as justified as the angels who are before the throne of God. — Brigham Young Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, December 18, 1853.
Matthew 15:9 “But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.”
There are a number of problems in Mr. Young’s theories —
1.You can’t alter God’s word – Isaiah 40:8 states it lasts forever.
2.God’s standard of perfection isn’t man’s standard which means we’re not as perfect as God is. God said in Isaiah 55:8 that His ways and thoughts are not like ours.
3.Stating God can’t be any more perfect than He knows how is the highest form of blasphemy.
4.We are not justified by doing the best we can – Romans 3:23 says we all fall short. Furthermore, God said in Romans 3:10 there is no one good. If Brigham’s theory is true, what’s the deal with proclaiming Jesus?
Mr. Young delivered his talk 168 years ago, but the Church is still doing the same thing. They’re not repentant of their sinful doctrines and are leading people away from Jesus, not to Him!
Pray for Jesus to open their eyes to this travesty!
With Love in Christ —
Michelle
[…] Altering God’s Phraseology for Personal Gain […]
“I learned, when I was a boy, that the chief end of man was to glorify God and enjoy him forever; but I hear now, according to the new theology, that the chief end of God is to glorify man and enjoy him forever. Yet this is the turning of things upside down.” I am quoting CH Spurgeon here. Take that, BY. People were lying and twisting God’s Word since the beginning. That doesn’t excuse BY and Joe. It just shows how common they were. (Maybe they were a special kind of common, but still……) I think I smell a little oil in the air.
Love the reminder of Spurgeon! Very apropos!
BTW, I meant to type, “I smell SNAKE oil in the air.” So much for proofreading.
It’s amazing they named a university after him.
But, it’s seems when confronted with the things BY has said and done i.e. …Adam/ God therory, racism, they shrug it off like he’s just the crazy uncle who lives in the basement.
I’ve said the same thing many times! I like the comment about the crazy uncle in the basement. 😉 I’ve seen countless people who’ve described the scenario of not lifting the curtain to expose the crazy guy in the Wizard of Oz.