April 3 — A few months ago, I read an article about two statues the Mormon Church commissioned, one of Jesus in Gethsemane and another of him carrying the cross. Recently they were unveiled outside of Temple Square in Salt Lake City, UT.
If you know about Mormon teaching on what led up to Jesus’s crucifixion you probably know they believe it was in the Garden where Jesus shed his blood for the sins of the world. Their doctrine teaches that this is where his atonement for sin began. As a Mormon I heard church leaders twist Luke 22:44 to justify this doctrine. The verse reads –
“And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”
The phrase “as it were” is what they use to confirm this doctrine. Their Doctrine and Covenants go further to affirm what they have been taught. Here Jesus is speaking to Joseph Smith –
“Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink “(D&C19:18)
This of course goes directly against what we learn from the bible. When scripture talks about his shed blood it’s always in reference to the cross, not the garden.
Colossians 1:20 – And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven
Matthew 26:28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
Mormons have always shied away from talking about what Jesus went through on the cross. I think focusing on his suffering in the garden and believing that this is the place he atoned for the sins of the world makes what he went through more palatable for them.
The old-time hymns Christians sing today about Calvary, and the cross are missing in their church service. Which is why I was surprised to see them commission and display a statue of Jesus carrying his cross.
Did you know they have Satanic symbols on this temple? I see this statue next to their temple with these markings carved all over it, and I think how shameless it is for them to pick this spot to display the statue.
(I attached a link in the references to an excellent article Michelle wrote about these markings.)
I wonder if they see the correlation, with their temples and the cross. They believe it’s only through temple works that they and their deceased loved ones have the hope of eternal life. For them to put a statue of Jesus carrying the cross that he will eventually shed his blood on and die on for the redemption of the world next to this building is just unbelievable to me.
Not only do they shun the cross and its meaning but to put it next to the temple they believe saves them I have to wonder are they daring God to strike that building down. It’s truly brazened of them to do this, to place Jesus next to these symbols, what are they saying here?
They build these temples all over the world so their members can get closer to their god and to receive what Jesus has already died for, eternal life.
As I was in my bible study today on God’s self-existence and self-sufficiency these verses came up.
Isaiah 66: 1-2 Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?
For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.
1 Kings 8:27 But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded?
Acts 17:24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
I pray the Church will start focusing more on the cross and less on temple building. They have General Conference coming up this weekend. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if their leaders proclaimed the real gospel and message of the cross to their fellow church members? We can only pray that this will happen one day.
In Christ,
Melissa Grimes
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