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Posts Tagged ‘pre-existence’

Spirit World Behavior Determines Race

salt lake mormon temple 2“The Church and the Negroid People,” pp. 16-17; “Man will be punished for his own sins and not for Adam’s transgression. If this is carried further, it would imply that the Negro is punished or allotted to a certain position on this earth, not because of Cain’s transgression, but came to earth through the loins of Cain because of his failure to achieve other stature in the spirit world.” – William E. Berrett

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Pre-existence

salt lake mormon temple 2Invitation to Exaltation, pg 3; “The Apostle John, citing the Savior’s words, records a significant thought pertaining to premortal life: “What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?” (John 6:62) And again, “No man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven. (John 3:13)”” – Thomas Monson

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salt lake mormon temple 2Journal of Discourses 14:309; “We simply do what the Lord our God commands us. God loves his offspring, the human family. His design is not simply to furnish happiness to the few here, called Latter-day Saints. The plan and scheme that he is now carrying out is for universal salvation; not only for the salvation of the Latter-day Saints, but for the salvation of every man and woman on the face of the earth, for those also in the spirit world, and for those who may hereafter come upon the face of the earth. It is for the salvation of every son and daughter of Adam. They are the offspring of the Almighty, he loves them all and his plans are for the salvation of the whole, and he will bring all up into that position in which they will be as happy and as comfortable as they are willing to be. Our mission is to the world, and not simply to carry the Gospel to the people, but to establish plans and lay schemes for their temporal salvation.” – Lorenzo Snow, Salt Lake City, January 14, 1872

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Pre-existence

Ensign, November 1996, p. 71; “In a premortal council at which we were all present, [the Savior] led the forces of good against those of Satan and his followers in a battle for the souls of men that began before this world was formed. That conflict continues today. We were all on the side of Jesus then. We are on the side of Jesus today.” – Joseph Wirthlin, “Christians in Belief and Action”

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 Pre-mortal life/Pre-existence

The Mormon believes that he/she existed in spirit form before the earth was created and is co-eternal with God Himself.  They also believe they came into existence through a sexual union between their Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother.

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Some Intelligences Greater than Others

Before Life, pg. 91-92; “God gave his children their free agency even in the spirit world…of choosing the good and rejecting the evil, or partaking of the evil to suffer the consequences of their sins. Because of this, some even there were more faithful than others in keeping the commandments of the Lord. Some were of greater intelligence than others, as we find it here…

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Blacks Sinned in the Pre-existence 

The Church and the Negroid People, pp. 16-17; “Man will be punished for his own sins and not for Adam’s transgression. If this is carried further, it would imply that the Negro is punished or alloted to a certain position on this earth, not because of Cain’s transgression, but came to earth through the loins of Cain because of his failure to achieve other stature in the spirit world.” – William E. Berrett

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Plan of Salvation

“In the premortal existence, Heavenly Father prepared a plan to enable us to become like Him and receive a fulness of joy. The scriptures refer to this plan as “the plan of salvation” (Alma 24:14; Moses 6:62), “the great plan of happiness” (Alma 42:8), “the plan of redemption” (Jacob 6:8; Alma 12:30), and “the plan of mercy” (Alma 42:15). The plan of salvation is the fulness of the gospel. It includes the Creation, the Fall, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and all the laws, ordinances, and doctrines of the gospel. Moral agency, the ability to choose and act for ourselves, is also essential in Heavenly Father’s plan. Because of this plan, we can be perfected through the Atonement, receive a fulness of joy, and live forever in the presence of God. Our family relationships can last throughout the eternities.” – LDS Gospel Topics, Plan of Salvation

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Pre-existence

Discourses of Brigham Young, pg. 58; “We had an existence before we came into the world. Our spirits came here pure to take these tabernacles; they came to occupy them as habitations, with the understanding that all that had passed previously to our coming here should be taken away from us, that we should not know anything about it. 3:367.”

John 3:13; “And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.”

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Jesus the Only Begotten?

Gospel Through the Ages, pg. 15;The appointment of Jesus to be the Savior of the world was contested by one of the other sons of God. He was called Lucifer, son of the morning. Haughty, ambitious, and covetous of power and glory, this spirit-brother of Jesus desperately tried to become the Savior of mankind. At the great council he proposed a new plan of salvation, event, the Lord revealed the following to Moses…

 

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The Creation of Man

Life Before, pg. 91; God gave his children their free agency even in the spirit world, by which the individual spirits had the privilege, just as men have here, of choosing the good and rejecting the evil, or partaking of the evil to suffer the consequences of their sins. Because of this, some even there were more faithful than others in keeping the commandments of the Lord. Some were of greater intelligence than others, as we find it here, and were honored accordingly….The spirits of men were not equal. They may have had an equal start, and we know they were all innocent in the beginning; but the right of free agency which was given to them enabled some to outstrip others…” – Brent Top

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Mormon Dilemma 67

Pre-existence and Creation of Man

Today’s dilemma is quite evident for the Christians.  For the Mormons this is just another example of why there is a dilemma.  One teacher proclaims one thing and another teacher or prophet proclaims just the opposite.

 

 

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 Pre-mortal life/Pre-existence

The Mormon believes that he/she existed in spirit form before the earth was created and is co-eternal with God Himself.  They also believe they came into existence through a sexual union between their Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother.

 

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August 22 – Job 38:4-6; “Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.  Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?  Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof.”

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Human Spirit is Eternal

Mormonism teaches that the human spirit is eternal.  (Moses 3:7, 4:1-2)  If this is the case then how is it one spirit can be less intelligent because of their choices made in the pre-existence with the Heavenly Father of this earth if they were already in existence before he spiritually begat them?  Wouldn’t it stand to reason the intelligence of that spirit had always been the way they are?  Why then would they be punished for this on earth with a black skin?

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Do Pre-existent Spirit Babies Choose Their Parents?

When I was a Mormon I was taught that I had chosen the earthly parents I would be born to while I was still a spirit in the pre-existence.  This teaching always made me wonder just how trustworthy the doctrines of the Church were if this was true.

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June 3 – 1 Cor. 15:46-7; “Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.”

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PRE-EXISTENCE DOCTRINE


In John 3:1-15 we read Jesus saying: “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”  LDS doctrine of the pre-existence creates a number of dilemmas in light of this teaching:

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February 17 – Hebrews 1:5 is clear about what God said in relation to angels and Jesus Christ.  “For unto which of the angels said he at any time, THOU ART MY SON, THIS DAY HAVE I BEGOTTEN THEE?  And again, I WILL BE TO HIM A FATHER, AND HE SHALL BE TO ME A SON?”

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Mormons believe that Jesus and Lucifer are literally spiritually begotten by God and the Heavenly Mother.  Ask them what they think about this verse.

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“The contention in heaven was-Jesus said there would be certain souls that would not be saved; and the devil said he could save them all, and laid his plans before the grand council, who gave their vote in favor of Jesus Christ.  So the devil rose up in rebellion against God, and was cast down, with all who put up their heads for him”.  Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg. 357.

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“Lord Increase Our Faith”, page 64; “The real focus on the Book of Mormon should be on the details of the book itself, not on the details of the process by which it came forth.  Although we do not know everything about the process of its coming forth or its translation, the Book of Mormon is open to full scrutiny.” – Neal A. Maxwell

Ensign, May 2007, pg. 88; “This ancient volume of holy scriptures is a sacred companion to the Bible, containing the fulness of the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ.” – L. Tom Perry

     My objective in this article is for members of the LDS Church to ponder the information presented here and honestly ask themselves if it makes sense the Book of Mormon is from God.  While I don’t agree with Mr. Maxwell’s opinion on how people should view the Book of Mormon (Galatians 1:6-9), we’re going to take him up on what he said about it being open to full scrutiny.

     All right, so I have an obsession with the book of Jeremiah; I’ll be the first to admit it!  If you’re a Mormon, have you ever read the book of Jeremiah?  There’s an important lesson to be learned in Jeremiah 36:20-32.  King Jehoiakim had decided he didn’t like God’s written word so he cut it up and burned it thinking that would take care of God, but he was sorely mistaken.

     I believe it was Matthew Henry who said “Those who hate it always seem to do things like this in life” …they either try to destroy or discredit God’s very words. 

     It was 600 BC and the prophet Jeremiah had been warning the Israelites for forty years that danger was lurking.  He told them God had an important message He wanted for them to hear and if they obeyed Him they wouldn’t lose their lives.  Times would be tough, but if they fled for Egypt on their own seeking safety, they would die by sword, famine or pestilence.  If they stayed put in Jerusalem (Jer. 42:10) God would protect their lives in the upcoming onslaught of the Babylonian takeover.  While they were in captivity for a time, there was a small remnant that was allowed to remain seventy years later.

     The certifiably insane King Nebuchadnezzar (descendant of Queen of Sheba and Solomon) marched the Israelites out of Jerusalem, chained some of them nude alongside a river while partying on a boat nearby and eventually went totally mad, living with animals.  He too hated God and turned the sacred scrolls into sacks filled with sand for the captive Israelites to carry into Egypt.  No one escaped his wrath.  (Eventually Nebuchadnezzar repented and worshipped God.)

     Now some 2,400 years later we have the story of Joseph Smith and the “golden plates” which he said contains the “fullness of the gospel”, otherwise known as the Book of Mormon.  One of the remarkable events about this story is the timeline.  It’s the story of a lost tribe of Israelites fleeing Jerusalem in 600 BC and guess what?  Yep, they’re headin’ for Egypt, seeking safety from the fall of Jerusalem.

     Okay, foregoing the arguments, let’s say God told everyone but this lost tribe of “Nephites” to stay put in Jerusalem; what about Joseph Smith’s other assertion about the Book of Mormon? 

     He said a lot of things about this work so his claims should be investigated as Mr. Maxwell suggests.  It’d be amazing if anyone escaped the wrath of Nebuchadnezzar, so these plates should be of significant value if true, right?   

     What do these brass plates tell us?  Does the Book of Mormon contain the “fullness of the gospel”?  Remember, parts of these plates are supposedly what the Nephites hauled over to the States when they sailed here.   

     Let’s begin with what Doctrine and Covenants 19:26, 27:5 and 135:3 says:

And again, I command thee that thou shalt not covet thine own property, but impart it freely to the printing of the Book of Mormon, which contains the truth and the word of God—

Behold, this is wisdom in me; wherefore, marvel not, for the hour cometh that I will drink of the fruit of the vine with you on the earth, and with Moroni, whom I have sent unto you to reveal the Book of Mormon, containing the fulness of my everlasting gospel, to whom I have committed the keys of the record of the stick of Ephraim.

Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man that ever lived in it. In the short space of twenty years, he has brought forth the Book of Mormon, which he translated by the gift and power of God, and has been the means of publishing it on two continents; has sent the fulness of the everlasting gospel, which it contained, to the four quarters of the earth…

     As you can see, we have confirmation through the prophecies above; the Church does believe it’s the “fullness of the gospel”.  Now in light of those prophecies by Smith, we need to compare them with what the Bible says about prophets and prophecies, in addition to looking at a few core Mormon doctrines and see if they’re in the Book of Mormon.  If they’re not found on those plates, we ask in all sincerity – how can this be the fullness of the gospel if it doesn’t contain all the requirements for salvation?

What the Bible Says:

Deuteronomy 18:20-22; “But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.  21 And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken?  22 When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.”

Deuteronomy 13:1-5; “If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, 2 And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; 3 Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.  5 And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the LORD thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee.

     Mormons believe a true and full salvation can only be attained in the highest kingdom of heaven which they call the “Celestial Kingdom”.  The Celestial Kingdom is reserved solely for those who have been found worthy enough to become a god themselves after they have accomplished a number of works here on earth.  Below are a handful of requirements and beliefs each Mormon needs for a true salvation in the Mormon Church. 

What the Mormon Church Says:

Church Government

 3 Nephi 12 says the twelve Nephite apostles received power to share the gospel, baptize and give the gift of the Holy Ghost.  This is the closest we come to anything remotely close to the hierarchy we see in the Mormon Church today.

 There is no “first presidency”, no quorum of the seventies, no bishops, no bishopric, no wards, no branches, no stakes and no stake presidents, no area presidency…compare it with what the Bible says about church structure:

1 Corinthians 10:32, 12:9-10, 18, 29, 30; Acts 13:1, Romans 12:8, Ephesians 2:20, 3:5, 4:11 

God

Father God has a body of flesh and bonesD&C 130:22

God was once a man. – HC 6:305, Gospel through the Ages, pg. 105 

God has many wives/Mother gods Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, pg. 25

God has a father Gospel Truth, pg. 101; The Seer by Orson Pratt, pg. 132; Discourses of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg. 38

God had sex with Mary Journal of Discourses 4:218 – Brigham Young, February 8, 1857; Journal of Discourses  1:50-51, 8:115, 11:268

God progresses/Eternal progression – Distinct Doctrines and Teachings of the Pearl of Great Price, pg. 76; Gospel through the Ages, pgs. 114-115; Articles of Faith, pg. 390 

Three Separate Personages in Godhead Mormon Doctrine, pg. 576; D&C 130:22-23; Encyclopedia of Mormonism, pg. 552; Mormon Doctrine of Deity, pgs. 9-10; History of the Church 6:474, June 16, 1844

gods/polytheism

Many gods and councils of gods Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg. 348; Abraham 4:25

Man may become a god – Discourses of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pgs. 136-137; Gospel through the Ages, pgs. 105-106; D&C 76:58, TPJS 342-345

Man is a god in embryo Miracle/Forgiveness, pg. 3

Heaven

Three levels of heaven. – Encyclopedia of Mormonism, pg. 367; D&C 131:1-4

Jesus

 

Jesus chosen to become a godMormon Doctrine, pg. 129, Abraham 3:27-28

Jesus and Lucifer are brothers Jesus the Christ, pg. 8; Gospel through the Ages, pg. 15

Jesus was MarriedJournal of Discourses 2:82, 2:210, 4:259-26 

Jesus was a polygamist Jesus was Married by Ogden Kraut, pg. 27; Journal of Discourses 13:309

Jesus Crucified for Polygamy Journal of Discourses 1:346

 Polygamy

Polygamy Condemned Jacob 2:24

Polygamy is true salvation D&C 131:1-4, 132:4-6, 20-21; Journal of Discourses 5:204 & 282, 11:269, 12:262, 13:167-168, 13:189, 17:225; Doctrines of Salvation 2:67; Mormon Doctrine, pg. 219; Evidences and Reconciliations, pg. 390; Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg. 332…

Pre-existence

Elohim populating earth through sexually begotten spirit children –

Discourses of Brigham Young, pg. 24; D&C 49:17, 93:23-29, 138:55-56; Mormon Doctrine, pg. 516; Abraham 3:22-28; Journal of Discourses 4:216; Melvin Joseph Ballard, Sermons and Missionary Services, page 247; Answers: Straightforward Answers to Tough Gospel Questions, pgs. 5-6; Life Before, pg. 91; For Behold Ye are Free, pg. 42; Ensign, November 1997, pg. 65; Way to Perfection, pg. 29…

 

Salvation

Temple marriage a requirement for exaltation – Teens, Temple Marriage and Eternity, pg. 1; Doctrines of Salvation 2:62; D&C 131:1-4

President of Church Holds Keys to – Mormon Doctrine, pg. 591

Salvation after Death

Book of Mormon – none is available after death 2 Nephi 9:15, 38; Alma 12:13-14, 34:31-34, 42:22-23

Other LDS teachings say it is necessary

Baptism for the dead D&C 124:29-30, 128:15; Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg. 191; History of the Church 4:568-569; Encyclopedia of Mormonism, pg. 1258; Are Mormons Christians? pg. 19; Doctrines of Salvation 2:175…

     As the reader can plainly see, not one of those core doctrinal teachings is in the Book of Mormon.  The list here is brief in comparison to the hordes of all their teachings.  What we’ve presented here is enough to show the Book of Mormon certainly doesn’t stand up to the claims Joseph Smith and other Church leaders have made.

     How can the Book of Mormon contain the “fullness of the gospel” if their teachings are not to be found in the Book of Mormon?

     If you’re LDS we want you to know that we pray diligently for you each and every day.  We hope you’ll investigate these claims for yourself and see that God is not a God of confusion as it says in 1 Cor. 14:33.  Ask yourself and your leaders why there is such a huge contradiction in what D&C says and what the Book of Mormon doesn’t say.

With Love in Christ;

Michelle

1 Cor. 1:18  …

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