Life After Ministry

 May 2 — A few days ago, I saw a clip from Dallin H. Oaks’ April 2022 General Conference talk. This is what he said:

“A common misunderstanding of the judgment that ultimately follows mortal life is that good people go to a place called heaven and bad people go to an everlasting place called hell. This erroneous assumption of only two ultimate destinations implies that those who cannot keep all the commandments required for heaven will necessarily be forever destined for hell.”

“A loving Heavenly Father has a better plan for His children. The revealed doctrine of the restored Church of Jesus Christ teaches that all the children of God—with exceptions too limited to consider here—will finally wind up in a kingdom of glory.” (Dallin H. Oaks, April 2022, “Divine Love in the Father’s Plan”)

The short answer to the question in the title is no, they don’t. However, the longer answer involves a lot of twists and turns. When I think about trying to explain all the convoluted doctrines in Mormonism, 1 Corinthians 14:33 comes to mind:

“For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.”

According to Mormonism, there are three levels of “heaven”: the Celestial, Terrestrial, and Telestial. Within the Celestial Kingdom, there are also three levels. As far as a biblical hell goes, they don’t believe in it. They have what they call Outer Darkness. This is where the “sons of perdition” spend eternity.

Oaks’ comment that “good people go to a place called heaven and bad people go to an everlasting place called hell” shows how little he’s read the Bible.

First, people don’t go to heaven because they are good. God allows us into His presence because of what Jesus has done for us. There is nothing we can do to earn our way to heaven. If we could do anything to earn it, then Jesus wouldn’t have been sent to die a gruesome death on the cross. Our “good works” will be seen as dirty rags without the sacrifice of Jesus.

Isaiah 64:6

“But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”

These “filthy rags” are referring to women’s menstrual rags.

I’ve watched videos of Ray Comfort witnessing to people. He shows them that they aren’t as “good” as they think they are by taking them through the Ten Commandments.

Mormons think they will be allowed into the Father’s presence based on their own righteousness. Jesus only made it possible for them to do so.

Romans 3:10–12 explains that no one is good:

“As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”

Oaks mocks the Christian belief that there are only two destinations by calling it an “erroneous assumption.” He then goes on to say, “those who cannot keep all the commandments required for heaven will necessarily be forever destined for hell.”

This is the whole point: we can’t keep all the commandments. James 2:10 says:

“For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.”

It seems as though they want anything but Jesus. He’s used as a prop to get people in the door and interested in Mormonism, but that’s all he’s good for. And it’s the same with the Bible: it’s used as a hook to get people talking with the missionaries, but after that, the Book of Mormon is all you hear them talk about.

This quote ends with him saying:

“A loving Heavenly Father has a better plan for His children. The revealed doctrine of the restored Church of Jesus Christ teaches that all the children of God—with exceptions too limited to consider here—will finally wind up in a kingdom of glory”

There are a couple of things I want to address here:

He refers to God as a “loving Heavenly Father” and can’t imagine why He would send anyone to hell who chooses to disobey Him. God doesn’t want us to be separated from Him; He wants us to repent and accept the work Jesus did for us.

2 Timothy 2:3-4

“For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.”

He refers to everyone who has ever lived as “all the children of God.” Not everyone is a child of God. The Bible tells us that those who receive Jesus are given the right to become children of God:

1 John 3:1

“Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

John 1:12

“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name”

Because of the sacrifice of Jesus, we can be adopted into the family of God and be called children of God.

Romans 8:15

“For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.”

He talks about the exception of their doctrine that everyone gets to live in a kingdom of glory. He said:

“with exceptions too limited to consider here”

Why didn’t he want to talk about those exceptions and what they are? Remember when I spoke about their belief in Outer Darkness? Not only will the sons of perdition be there, but Satan and his angels—and anyone who has denied Jesus—will be there as well.

The funny thing is that on the Church’s website, they have nothing under “Outer Darkness,” but they do have a description under “hell.”

Oaks believes that everyone gets to live in a “kingdom of glory,” no matter what type of life they lived here. Even the worst people in history, who have done horrible things, will live in a place of glory when they die.

I’m so thankful Jesus led me out of this tangled mess and into a relationship with Him. I pray He will do the same for all Mormons.

In Christ,

Melissa Grimes