May 14 — Celestial Marriage.
When I decided to join the Mormon Church, I began having missionary discussions in my home. In the discussions, they taught me that married couples and families can be together forever if they are faithful to the “laws and ordinances” of the gospel.
What are these laws and ordinances? Well, there are quite a few that I’d like to address in a future article but mainly they come down to being a temple-worthy member of the church.
The temple is where the Mormon goes through an endowment ceremony which allows them to be sealed to their spouse and ensures that any children they have will be sealed to them for eternity.
This ceremony also allows them to perform endowment and baptismal ceremonies for their loved ones who have passed on, ensuring they too will be sealed to their family in the afterlife.
In the October 2008 General Conference, Russel M. Nelson stated –
“When a family is sealed in the temple, that family may become as eternal as the kingdom of God itself.”
Did you notice how he worded his comment with the qualifier “may become”? This is because you can only be sealed for eternity to your family if you do all the things the church requires you to do to hold a temple recommendation.
These include paying a 10% tithing to the Church, having a testimony of Joseph Smith, and of the Church’s current prophet, obeying the Word of Wisdom, and wearing your temple garments day and night.
I view this as a scare tactic to keep people in the Church and think it’s the main reason so many people don’t leave sooner. Speaking as someone who didn’t know their Bible when they first joined Mormonism it’s a frightening thing to think about losing your family for eternity because you didn’t do all you could to obey the doctrines of this religion.
After we left the Church a good friend asked my husband, “What about your temple marriage”? I don’t recall my husband’s response to him, but this is the mindset Mormons have about leaving the Church. They’re taught to believe if you leave you’ve lost everything, including your family for eternity.
I pray for Mormons to come to know Jesus and know that it’s only through him they have salvation and can see their families again.
In Christ,
Melissa Grimes
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That’s ridiculous, they can’t promise anything like that. 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏for all Mormons.
We pray that they see this!
I think Joe Smith and the LDS need to read what Jesus said in Matt.22:30, Mark 12: 25 and Luke 20:34-36–NO marriages in heaven!
It’s too bad they don’t make it mandatory to read what Jesus had to say about it!