‘Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.’ Psalms 32:1
December 8 — Zechariah 11:7 “And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.”
Matthew 9:35-36 “And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. 36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.”
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Ministry to poor, the believing remnant … The events that took place about 2,000 years ago is one of the things I ask people to stop and think about. Today, right now, stop and reflect on what Jesus was doing. He was traveling around the region known as the Sea of Galilee.
In that area you’ll find several villages filled with synagogues, temples dedicated to foreign gods as well as your average everyday person who has no religious affiliation at all. They’re just there, living their lives and trying to survive.
Now think about Jesus going through all these places and offering forgiveness to people, healing the sick and performing one miracle after another.
Fast forward to 1969 and you’ll hear a different version of Jesus’ works and specifically in the village of Magdala. A woman by the name of Mary was in desperate need of forgiveness and healing. According to the Bible Jesus forgave her, but in Mormonism there’s no such thing for this poor soul.
In 1969 Mormon prophet Spencer W Kimball decreed that she wasn’t deserving, and Jesus offered her no such gift.
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Miracle of Forgiveness, p 164 “I have repeatedly heard people praise the Lord for his mercy in having forgiven the adulteress. This example has been used numerous times to show how easily one can be forgiven for gross sin. But did the Lord forgive the woman? Could he forgive her? There seems to be no evidence of forgiveness. His command to her was, “Go, and sin no more.” He was directing the sinful woman to go her way, abandon her evil life, commit no more sin, transform her life.” – Spencer W. Kimball
[…] LDS: Mary Magdalene Not Forgiven […]
Nothing in scripture even hints that she wasn’t forgiven while all the passages about her seem heavily to imply forgiveness. Goodness, these people have to twist every little thing!
You’re spot on w/ that. How anyone could imply that she wasn’t is fooling themselves and sadly, LDS members as well.
John 8 – So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.
Admittedly Kimball was in his 70’s when he uttered the judgmental words you mentioned, so casting a stone might have been challenging for him. But as a star forward on a Stake basketball team he might still have had some zip left in his stones. Therefore, he might have been just righteous enough to initiate that first stone and let fly upon Mary Meg. Whatta guy.