Posted in Witnessing Tip of the Day, tagged bible, Creator, elohim, false gospel, God, gospel, mormonism, truth on 01/03/2011| 1 Comment »
January 3 – elohim. In the Hebrew this mighty name for God means creator and the fullness or the Deity of God. In Gen. 1:26 God said; “Let Us make man in our image, after our likeness”.
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As Christians we understand and know the Deity means Trinity. The other meaning for the word elohim means pagan gods, rulers, kings, or principalities.
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Mormons do not believe in the Trinity. In addition to this, they call their Heavenly Father, Elohim. Ask them which elohim they are worshipping.
Posted in Witnessing Tip of the Day, tagged bible, Christianity, false gospel LDS Church, gospel, Jesus, Missionary, mormonism, truth on 12/30/2010| Leave a Comment »
December 30 – Jude 1:21-23; “Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. And of some have compassion, making a difference: And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.”
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Our mission statement in life should be to serve in love to others. If we witness out of animosity, then it benefits none of us, including the Lord. If we serve because somebody else told us to do this or that, are you really serving God or are you serving the position you’ve been assigned to hold?
A true missionary’s life is marked with the indelible call from God to go out into the world and spread the gospel. You won’t be able to sleep, eat or even breathe without doing what He’s called you to do. Your nights are sleepless; your days become fruitless when you don’t heed His voice.
And even with all that, it’s also understanding and accepting you aren’t the one doing the work, but God.
You are not your own. You belong to God. 1 Cor. 6:19-20.
Each day my heart cries for the souls of those who truly believe they love the Lord Jesus. It kills me that the Lord will someday say to them, “Depart from Me for I never knew you”.
I’ve compiled these verses and sayings from the LDS teachings for the people like my own mother to your neighbor. They work so hard to please, not knowing there is nothing they could ever do to win His affection. Out of your love for these people, go out and share the truth today! Have the Mormon think about this teaching from the Church. Why would the Lord not want you to be content where He places you? That is true division.
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“Let it ever be remembered that no President of this church, no counselor in the Presidency, no General Authority, no member of a stake presidency or of a bishopric or of an elders quorum presidency is there because he wished to be there and requested the privilege. Each is there because he was “called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof.” (A of F 5.) Loyalty to leadership is a cardinal requirement of all who serve in the army of the Lord. A house divided against itself cannot stand. (See Mark 3:25.) Unity is basic and essential.” R. Wayne Boss and Leslee S. Boss, Are My Children Going to Make It? Real Help for Teaching the Gospel in the Home, 63 – 64.
Posted in Witnessing Tip of the Day, tagged bible, good news, gospel, Jesus Christ, joseph smith, lie, mormonism, Sharing your faith, truth on 11/11/2010| Leave a Comment »
November 11 – Genesis 1:27; ‘So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.’
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It may seem redundant at times to go over the same scriptures that are simple to you and me, but whenever you’re dealing with a Mormon these things are the hardest for them to grasp. Look up the word created from a Webster’s dictionary and share your findings with them today.
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“In 1833 the Lord revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith that “man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be.” (D&C 93:29.) Several years later, with the publication of the book of Abraham, additional information about the immortality of the soul of man came to light. Abraham says that he was shown by the Lord “the intelligences that were organized before the world was” (Abr. 3:22). The Lord also told Abraham that these intelligences or spirits “have no beginning; they existed before, they shall have no end, they shall exist after, for they are gnolaum, or eternal” (Abr. 3:18).’ Brent L. Top, The Life Before [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1988], 39.
Posted in Doctrine, tagged apostacy, bible, bible Book of Mormon, blood covenant, Christ, Christian, false gospel, freedom, God incarnate, gospel, grace, salvation on 11/08/2010| 1 Comment »
A few weeks ago I received an e-mail through the Life After Ministries website. This gentleman informed me that quoting from the LDS authorized book Mortal Messiah, written by Bruce McConkie, was proof I didn’t know the difference between Mormon doctrine and the gospel. I would respond to him privately but he’s blocked my IP address on his computer.
Okay then.
Posted in Jesus, tagged belief, devotion, gospel, identification in Him, Jesus, Mark, miracles on 10/25/2010| Leave a Comment »
Today my pastor gave an outstanding sermon on finding our identity in Christ. He based his sermon on the passage of four definitive miracles found in the gospel of Mark 4:35-5:43.
This sermon reminded me of a conversation I had with a Mormon a few years back. A Mormon woman who is a professor at a prestigious university in the States told me that she is “Mormon doctrine”. When I asked her if she’d do a debate with me about this on radio she declined saying all I needed to know is that she could be defined in this “Mormon doctrine”.
The key here is who we make our identification with. When we identify ourselves we have a tendency to label ourselves as a mom, dad, single person, husband, wife, doctor, teacher, policeman, engineer, attorney, etc. While these things are all admirable, they don’t define us as individuals.
Let’s go back to when Jesus was having that famous conversation with His disciples. He asked Peter in Matthew 16:15; “Who do you say that I am?” Remember Peter’s response? “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God!” What better way to make an identification of Jesus other than declaring Him the Messiah?
In turn, our identification isn’t what we do, but who we are. We are not rules and regulations that have been written down on a piece of paper. We are not a “restored gospel” anymore than we can morph ourselves into a dog. Can the doctrines of the Mormon Church come to your aid in the midst of a storm as Jesus did for the apostles in Mark 4:37-41? And I’m not talking about the Church’s welfare system. But can they sustain you spiritually during the storms in your life?
“And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. 38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? 39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? 41 And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”
If it’s the Church you’re looking to for protection and guidance then you are not a Christian. A Christian goes to Jesus for the peace they need during a storm. They fall at His feet to have Him cast out the demons they fight with day in and day out. Christians know they can’t fight the inner struggles without Him, no matter how big or small they may be.
Mark 5:2-6, 12-15;
“And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, 3 Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains: 4 Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him. 5 And always, night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones. 6 But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him…And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. 13 And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea. 14 And they that fed the swine fled, and told it in the city, and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that was done. 15 And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid.”
They bypass all others for help because they know Jesus is God incarnate and can perform miracles as He did for Jarius and his young daughter.
Mark 5:21-23. 35-43;
“And when Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side, much people gathered unto him: and he was nigh unto the sea. 22 And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, 23 And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live…While he yet spake, there came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house certain which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further? 36 As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe. 37 And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James. 38 And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly. 39 And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth. 40 And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying. 41 And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise. 42 And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment. 43 And he charged them straitly that no man should know it; and commanded that something should be given her to eat.”
They run to Him for healing when fighting a debilitating disease as the woman did who was hemorrhaging for twelve years. Just to touch the hem of His cloak…
Mark 5:24-34; “And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him. 25 And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years, 26 And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse, 27 When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. 28 For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. 29 And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. 30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes? 31 And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? 32 And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. 33 But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. 34 And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.”
Let me tell you something, if you don’t go to Him in the deepest, darkest times of your life you’re in a boatload of trouble. Miracles don’t just take place on the outside where everyone can see. Sometimes those miracles take place inside of your heart as it did for the disciples while out on their own boatload of troubles. The main problem was not understanding at first whom they had on board with them.
Maybe they thought He was a prophet or just a good guy who loved God and knew scripture. It’s obvious from the passage in Mark they didn’t realize that God Himself was on that boat. What they soon realized is that it had to be God. Only He can control the air, water and storms. Only the creator of those things can control them.
The hemorrhaging woman, the rich leader Jarius, and even the crazy guy knew the only way they’d find relief for the pain is through Him. They all had one thing in common and that was to make sure they were totally and unabashedly devoted to Him. They knew whom to call on and where to place their faith. Oswald Chambers said this about our identity with Jesus (Feb. 13);
“If I am united with Jesus Christ, I hear God all the time through the devotion of hearing. A flower, a tree, or a servant of God may convey God’s message to me. What hinders me from hearing is my attention to other things. It is not that I don’t want to hear God, but I am not devoted in the right areas of my life. I am devoted to things and even to service and my own convictions. God may say whatever He wants, but I just don’t hear Him…If I have not developed and nurtured this devotion of hearing, I can only hear God’s voice at certain times. At other times I become deaf to Him because my attention is to other things—things which I think I must do. This is not living the life of a child of God. Have you heard God’s voice today?”
Ask yourself; what does His identity mean to you? When there’s evil around you, who do you run to, the Church or Jesus? When there’s disease in your body on whom do you call for a cure? Where my friend is your devotion?
As my pastor said today “You need a God for the calamities in your life. We’re lost in our own identity but are found in His.”
I can debate and know all there is to know about Mormonism but I have a confession. My greatest source of joy comes in witnessing a Mormon when they come to know the Lord of Hosts. I pray that if you’re a Mormon you will open your bible and look to Him who can save you today.
With Love in Christ;
Michelle Grim
Jude 1:24-25; “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, 25 To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.”
Posted in Mentoring Handbook, tagged assurance of salvation, bible, celestial kingdom, godhood, good news, gospel, Gospel Ordinances, grace, heaven, Jesus, perfection, salvatiion, works on 10/22/2010| Leave a Comment »
ASSURANCE OF OUR SALVATION
You can memorize all the “instructions” I’ve written for you in this mentoring guideline, but that means nothing to the person you’re mentoring! What passages from the Bible are the most comforting for you and why? The Holy Spirit will be seen clearly with the passion you put behind the mood and tone of your voice. Mormons have an innate way of picking up on those who aren’t being completely honest with them in this genre. Now is the time to be as transparent as you possibly can be!
Ask any Mormon you know the following question: “If you died today do you know with certainty that you would go to heaven?” Ninety-nine percent of the time they will respond by telling you “I sure hope so” and then they’ll share Matthew 5:48 with you;
“Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.”
Never mind they’re taking it completely out of context and never mind they haven’t really looked up the meaning of the word for perfect in this tense. In their head they’re trying hard to be perfect so they can go to the Celestial Kingdom.
The Church’s role in propagating lies about salvation has been one of the keys to submission and confusion. If you can keep changing the rules by just tweaking one or two of the “ordinances” in addition to adding a word here or there to another word which means something else, well then by golly, you’ve got yourself a person who is unable to think independently. Confused again? Remember, you’re not alone!
Case in point: what does the term “gospel ordinance” mean to you (the ex-Mormon)? Write your answer below.
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To the Mormon its meaning encompasses everything having to do with their religion, in other words, “the plan of salvation”.
What is the plan of salvation according to the LDS Church?
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Because Christ only died to fill in the gaps after “all you can do”, there is never any assurance. If you really look back on your life honestly, can you say there wasn’t a day gone by that you weren’t lazy? What about the times you’ve forgotten about; or when you didn’t want to “be nice” to the neighbor and hurried inside before they saw you in the front yard?
The LDS Church teaches the gospel has been around since the time of Adam, and since this time there have always been ordinances and principles that are to be followed if you truly want salvation. In the book Gospel Through the Ages, intro pg. xvi it says;
“The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the “glad tidings” or “good news” concerning the Savior, the Kingdom of God, and the salvation of man. It consists primarily of the teachings of Christ and of the apostles as recorded in the New Testament and Book of Mormon…”
It goes on further to say; “Christians frequently use the word Gospel to designate their religion…” thereby letting everyone know the basics of their beliefs, i.e. “eternal nature of man, the atonement of Jesus Christ and the fall”.
This again is another place where you have to stop and clarify that man is not eternal, but created, and also to clarify what the word gospel means. In reality the word gospel is the Greek word “euaggelizo” meaning “to announce good news, evangelize or preach glad tidings or good message”. While the first portion of their “definition” of the word gospel is close to being correct, as we read further into their message you can see that they aren’t remotely close.
As a member of the LDS Church how did you define the “gospel”?
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As a Christian, what is the “good news”? Okay you have good news, what’s the news?
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The following is from the same book we used above and the section is called “Scope of the Gospel”. Gospel Through the Ages, pg. 3;
“[It] embraces every principle pertaining to life and salvation, for time and eternity, no matter who has it. If the infidel has got truth, it belongs to Mormonism. The truth and sound doctrine possessed by the sectarian world, and they have a great deal, all belongs to this Church. As for their morality, many of them are morally just as good as we are…Mormonism includes all truth. There is no truth but what belongs to the Gospel. It is life, eternal life; it is bliss; it is the fullness of all things in the Gods and in the eternities of the Gods.”
The entire point to the real gospel is, as you are well aware, the good news that a Savior has been provided for us; the sinners. We can now feel assured that we are saved by believing on Jesus’ name that we are found without blemish. And it is not by our own doing, but that of God’s, who gave the Ultimate Sacrifice; His Only Begotten Son. See John 2:25, 3:17-19; Romans 10:4; Hebrews 9:26.
Have the following verses either printed or written out by hand on a sheet of paper. Leave enough space between each for a place to write down what that verse means to them. If there’s time also have them write down the LDS equivalent that refutes what the Bible says.
Acts 4:12; Romans 10:9; Eph. 2:8-9; Gal. 2:20-1; Romans 1:16-7; Heb. 9:11-14, 10:9-14; 1 Cor. 1:18-9; John 14:23; Matthew 16:16-8; Col. 1:13-20…the list is endless because of how kind and generous our God is!
The good news is that we don’t have to worry about living under the Law! The good news is that this has been accomplished for the rest of our lives! And most especially the good news is that God raised His Son on the third day, while showing us that we will be raised with Him on that final day because death could not hold Him!
Oh, what an awesome God we serve! Who or what could ever be that powerful? How could we ever think that some earthly good deed could equal what God has done for us through His Son? Everything pales in comparison and quite honestly causes me to blush with shame for ever thinking I could participate in my own salvation.
How could there be any doubt of our salvation knowing that God raised Jesus from the dead? When Jesus said “It is finished” (John 19:30), He wasn’t referring to “just His work on earth”. He was referring to the works of the Law forever! There was no longer any need for works to be done because the Law had been fulfilled and God’s justice had been met! By this we can know and have assurance of our salvation as the writer of Hebrews 10:22 said;
“Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”
To walk everyday of your life not knowing if you’re saved is a curse my friend and isn’t of God! The Lord Jesus would never want His people to be in doubt. Do you think He hung on that cross doubting His decision? Never before in history or since, has there been a more deliberate act of obedience and love!
© 2010 Life After Ministries, Inc.
Link for Chapter 14:
Chapter 14. Fundamentals of Mormonism: Is it a Lie or is it Biblical?
http://lifeafterministry.com/2010/10/22/mentoring-handbook-chapter-14/
Posted in Mentoring Handbook, tagged bible, Book of Mormon, Christ, Christian, ex-Mormon, gospel, Holy Spirit, lds church, Mormon, Pentecost on 10/22/2010| Leave a Comment »
THE HOLY SPIRIT AND HIS RESIDENCE
Picture yourself sitting in the upper room with Jesus and the other apostles at the end of the Last Supper. Can you just imagine what it would have felt like and what your response would have been if Jesus had told you (happily I might add), that He was going to die so that you would be filled with The Comforter? In the gospel of John we find just that! Judas was about to betray the long awaited Messiah and here was Jesus; just as calm as if He were talking about the daily events in the life of a butterfly.
In less than two months from that very night they were going to be filled with the third person of the Trinity. God would take up residence inside each and every believer from that day forward and never leave nor desert them just as Jesus promised the apostles with His comforting words on that dark night in the upper room.
John 14:23 says; “Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”
The long awaited day of Pentecost* had finally arrived as the apostles gathered again for prayer. The meticulous Dr. Luke narrates for us the scenario of how the Holy Spirit rushed in from heaven, filled the whole house with His presence and then filled each of the believers; Acts 2:1-4. Remember the times in the Gospels when Jesus said you cannot tell which way the wind bloweth? Now through His power and the wind they felt on their cheeks, they began speaking in tongues and witnessing to the people there that represented all of the surrounding areas!
Actually, there in the city of Jerusalem, people had gathered from all around to celebrate the feast of the first-fruits. Fifty days from the time of Passover had gone by and now was the time of harvest! What a glorious event it must have been to witness the arrival of the Promise that Jesus had foretold. At first the people who gathered around to watch this event thought the brand new spirit filled Christians were drunk, but Peter assured them it was only nine o’clock in the morning and no one had been drinking.
(Just imagine the hushed conversations in groups of 4-5 and compare that thought with the freedom. The freedom those apostles and disciples now were living in – my, what an experience…probably much like it was for you when you got saved.)
God was now showing them fifty days after the resurrection of His Son Jesus; the Promise was theirs to keep. Now God would go with them everywhere they went. They wouldn’t have to wait outside the gates of the temple or travel several days to attend the three required yearly feasts and sacrifices at the temple where God resided. He now came to His people instead of them going to Him. Many of the experiences, feelings and thoughts the early Christians lived through are the same things we live through; but not with this particular incident on the first Christian Pentecost.
God purposefully used this exact time to fill His believers to get the biggest audience and get “more bang for the buck”, if you will. All the Israelites had to come back to Jerusalem for the Feast of the first-fruits. He wanted His children who didn’t yet believe to hear Him and when they went back to their villages and towns they would take the stories of their experience with them.
Sure, God was obviously going to send out apostles and missionaries, but the little nooks and crannies of the towns were taken care of by witnessing God in action in Jerusalem on that first Christian Pentecost. God is never one to overlook any situation; He is the ultimate Giver of Life, our Prince of Peace. What a merciful God we have; so eager to forgive, providing through His love for a way to come to Him just in case you change your mind…
There were so many signs that this “wind” was the infilling of the Presence of God the only way to “miss” it was to willfully turn away from Him. Paul reiterates the residence of the Holy Spirit in his first epistle to the believers in Corinth. In chapter 3:16 he says;
“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?”
And again in 6:19 he reminds them that they are the temple of God who resides inside of them. For more examples of being filled with the Holy Spirit let’s take a quick glance at the beginning of the Church of Jesus Christ.
Acts 2:41 says 3,000 became Christians in one day. Acts 2:47 says there were people being saved every single day. In Acts chapter three we find Peter and John going up to the temple to preach the gospel and came upon a lame man sitting at the doors of the temple. Through this man’s healing that came from the Holy Spirit through the mouths of Peter and John, 5,000 more people were added to the body of Christ! See Acts 4:4. By the time we get to Acts 5:14 we see that Peter and John had brought a multitude of believers to their new spirit filled lives.
Fast forward some 2,000 years and here we are in today’s world, today’s sinful behavior filled with violence and temptations of every kind; how’s a person to survive the onslaught of evil from the television, radio, magazines, billboards and just people around them? The answer is obviously clear for those who pronounce His name as their God, but for those who’ve been lied to on purpose it’s another story. How does one “get the Holy Spirit”?
Questions will obviously begin swirling around in the heads of those you mentor so be prepared. This is always such a blessing and fascinating time for them and for you. Always know that we’re here praying for you and those you are mentoring. Interesting word study if you have the time! Take a look at the word “comforter”.
There’s a short list of questions to answer at the end of this section; however we won’t be delving into the subdivisions of the many denominations throughout the world. The purpose of focusing on this subject is to show the new Christian how the disciples did nothing to deserve or expect the Holy Spirit to take up residence inside of them. We so desperately want you to know how the everyday Christian life is spent on a day-to-day basis of leaning into Him and no one else.
Now that we’ve gone to the Bible and learned some new things, let’s compare them with the lies that are packed tightly inside of the heart of the ex-Mormon. Exposing the lies for what they are and calling them out to the light will take the control away from the spiritual stranglehold they have around the throats of these dear people; maybe it’s even you who needs true freedom!
God said that “what is bound on earth is bound in heaven” (claim Matt. 16:19 while praying for their minds to be clear of lies). The Bible also tells us that scripture is more powerful than a two edged sword. As a believer you have the ability to claim spiritual authority over any darkness that still lingers around. So with this in mind let’s take a look at the lies; expose them for what they’re are and carefully help the ex-Mormon see the differences between what the LDS Church and the Bible really says.
For further information on denouncing and the oppression that comes along with being a Mormon, see “Denouncing Mormonism” and “The dark clouds overhead are Mormonism” later in this outline.
The LDS Church has always taught its members that “When the leaders (of the Church) speak, the thinking has been done”. So if the leaders of the Church say the things that are listed below, it’d be difficult at best to figure out whom the Holy Ghost is, what purpose he serves or where he even come from.
In DoS 1:39 Joseph Fielding Smith, grandson of Hyrum Smith and son of Joseph F. Smith was the “leading gospel scholar and the greatest doctrinal teacher of this generation”. The point to my bringing attention to this man is that he was and still is considered to be as “authoritative” as Hinckley is today. They use his writings in public correspondence and continued on to say the following in the preface of volume one in DoS:
“Few men in this dispensation have approached him in gospel knowledge or surpassed him in spiritual insight, His is the faith and the knowledge of his father, President Joseph F. Smith, and his grandfather, the Patriarch Hyrum Smith.” –
In other words, they still believe it even if they lie and say they don’t. The leaders of the Church, both dead and alive hold a tremendous amount of spiritual power over the members of the Church.
When an active, inactive, or ex-Mormon says that the Church doesn’t use these references anymore; ask them why the Church still sells them (the books) at their bookstores and why they are continuing to this day to embrace the “old prophets” theology. They are indeed used in speeches or classes they teach when it’s convenient for the leaders. Until they completely denounce all the teachings of the LDS faith, we will continue to speak the truth. The prophet Joseph Fielding Smith told the members of the Church that he didn’t speculate on the purpose of the Holy Spirit.
Doctrines of Salvation 1:39 says; “I have never troubled myself about the Holy Ghost whether he will sometime have a body or not because it is not in any way essential to my salvation. He is a member of the Godhead, with great power and authority, with a most wonderful mission which must be performed by a spirit. This has satisfied me without delving into mysteries that would be of no particular benefit.”
Then from James Talmage in his work entitled Articles of Faith, pg. 145, it says the Holy Ghost isn’t omnipresent;
“Much of the confusion existing in human conceptions concerning the nature of the Holy Ghost arises from the common failure to segregate His person and powers…the actual person of the Holy Ghost cannot be in more than one place at a time.”
Joseph Smith went so far as to say the Holy Ghost’s power is nothing but pure intelligence. History of the Church 3:380;
“There are two Comforters spoken of. One is the Holy Ghost, the same as given on the day of Pentecost, and that all Saints receive after faith, repentance, and baptism. This first Comforter or Holy Ghost has no other effect than pure intelligence…while the effect of the Holy Ghost upon a Gentile, is to purge out the old blood, and make him actually of the seed of Abraham.”
History of the Church 3:379;
“THE GIFT OF THE HOLY GHOST by the laying on of hands, cannot be received through the medium of any other principle than the principle of righteousness, for if the proposals are not complied with, it is of no use, but withdraws.”
Encyclopedia of Joseph Smith’s Teachings;
“But the Holy Ghost is yet a spiritual body and waiting to take to himself a body, as the Savior did or as God did or the gods before them took bodies; for the Savior says the work that my Father did do I also. . . . He took himself a body and then laid down his life that he might take it up again. (Joseph Smith, The Words of Joseph Smith, p. 382; standardized).”
Note: The page number for the above passage is sketchy as it didn’t list each page number. From the entries before and after it’s somewhere between pg. 321-323.
I believe we’ve made our case and proven the Holy Spirit is not any of the things the LDS Church says He is! I can’t imagine living even one day without His Holy Spirit inside of me. I can look back to the time before I was saved in ‘93 and remember what a mess my life was then. The most striking difference is the loneliness I felt all the time from running circles in my head looking for the answers and always coming back more empty than before.
*Give definition of Pentecost. Share any insights you have gleaned in your years as a Christian.
Questions for Chapter Five
1. What are the transliterations in Hebrew and Greek for Pentecost?
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2. What is the purpose of Pentecost now that it’s “over with”?
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3. How can the Holy Spirit living inside of each believer be a comfort to the ex-Mormon? Be as specific as you can.
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4. What were some of the signs given to the disciples and others at the time of Pentecost?
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5. Who, where, what is the Church of Jesus Christ today? _____
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6. What was the purpose of Pentecost in the Old Testament? Read the following and write your answers below. Exodus 23:14-17; Lev. 23:1-16.
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7. Did the Holy Spirit ever dwell inside a man before Pentecost or the time of Jesus? Use scripture for proof of your answer. ___________________
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8. How is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in each believer different from the LDS version of the Holy Ghost? 1 Cor. 3:16 & 6:19 says what to us as believers?
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9. Give example of what a Christian might say to their very active LDS family members
or friends about the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of you as a Christian and don’t forget scripture!
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Link for Chapter 6:
Chapter 6. Will the One True Church Please Stand Up?
http://lifeafterministry.com/2010/10/22/mentoring-handbook-chapter-6/
© 2010 Life After Ministries, Inc.
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