Sharing Your Faith with Latter-Day Saints

**Continuation of Previous Post**

By Sandra Tanner

True Church?

Mormons will often say that the Christian world is too divided to have the truth. Yet there have been over 100 different churches claiming Joseph Smith as their founder. (See the book Divergent Paths of the Restoration.) Many of them have totally different beliefs from the others. Obviously, LDS scriptures did not solve the problem of division.

However, the Christian looks to such verses as Matt. 18:20 where Christ promised that where two or three are gathered in His name, He is in the midst of them. The Mormon does not understand the Christian concept of all believers constituting the church. In Eph. 2:20-22 Paul points out that Christians "are built upon the foundation of the apotles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone; in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord; in whom mye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit." Thus the question is not whether you are member of the right denomination but are you trusting Christ's atonement to make you right with God?

A Prophet?

Another area for discussion is the need for a prophet. You might ask the Mormon:

I've been told that LDS people believe God is continually giving new revelation to their prophet. How do you guard against false teachings?

If your prophet gave a revelation that differed from church teachings in the past, how do you determine which to follow?

Christians hold their ministers accountable to the Bible. (see Galatians 1:7-12, and 1 John 4:1) The early Christians compared Paul's teachings with the Old Testament in Acts 17:11-12. What is the standard for Mormons?

They may counter with something like: "God has promised he will never let the prophet lead us astray." Then why is there provisions made in the Doctrine and Covenants Sec. 107:81-83 to replace a fallen prophet? Jesus warned about false prophets in Matt. 24:11 and 24.

Mormons point to Amos 3:7 to prove that God will always have a prophet leading the church. However, this is taking the verse out of context. God promised that he would not send judgment without giving a warning first through a prophet.

If only the president of the LDS Church can receive revelation for the church, why are the books of the New Testament written by different people? Even Mormons agree Paul was never the head of the church. Shouldn't the apostles of Mormonism be as authoritative as Paul?

How many false prophecies could a prophet give and still be a true prophet? In Deut. 18:20-22 God declares that all his prophecies must come true.

If Mormons don't accept all the doctrines of their prophets and apostles, how does on know which teachings to accept and which ones to reject? They usually counter that you know through prayer. But don't their apostles pray before preaching? How can a lay member expect to get greater discernment than those ordained by God? Can the Mormon cite an example of a doctrine that their prophet or apostles taught which they can openly reject?

If you bring up a doctrinal issue with Brigham Young's Adam-God doctrine they will often counter that that was Young's personal idea and not official doctrine even though he taught it from the pulpit. Then what constitutes "official doctrine"? The Mormon will usually counter that doctrine must be voted on by the church and canonized. Doesn't this establish that one of their prophets could give a false revelation? Then couldn't he lead the people astray?

Another question is why does the Doctrine and Covenants only have four sections by prophets other than Joseph Smith? Why has no revelation been added since 1978? Is God no longer giving revelation to their president as He did in the beginning?

If a Mormon says that their prophets still get revelations, ask where they are printed. Why don't they canonize them? Are they approaching a closed canon concept?

Need More Than Atonement?

Mormons will often say, "Why can't you accept us as Christians? We believe in Jesus as our savior." However, there are problems with both their definition of "saved" and their concept of Jesus.

Mormonism limits the result of the Fall, saying that it brought mortality but not a sinful nature as man is supposed to be a god in embryo. They limit the atonement, saying it brought resurrection (or immortality) to all, but to go on to "eternal life" or "exaltation" one must be a faithful Mormon thus adding works to grace. They believe they commit sin but don't understand man's basic sin-nature.

They make a distinction between being "saved" (resurrected to some level of heaven) and having "eternal life" (exaltation, godhood). A good example of the Mormon concept of the atonement is found in a parable by Apostle Boyd Packer in Gospel Principles, pp. 75-77, 1997 ed. According to his parable, Christ's atonement was like someone refinancing your huge debt. Your friend pays off the loan for your but you then must make payments to him. From this parable we see that Mormons do not see the atonement as a total payment for their sins, they must continue to make payments. Jesus has only refinanced the loan. Thus the atonement was necessary but did not fulfill all that was required for eternal life. Apostle Packer's story is helpful in contrasting the Mormon concept of the atonement with that of the Bible.

When discussing grace with them you could also ask about 2 Nephi 25:23, "by grace we are saved, after all we can do."

If grace only applies after all you can do, how do you know when you have done enough? Have you truly done ALL you could do? If not, then it would seem that grace would not apply. That is why a Christian rejoices in grace (unmerited favor) as presented in the Bible.

We need to explain that good works are a result of grace, no a way to achieve it (Gal. 5:22-23 and Eph. 2). One doesn't earn or pay for a gift. You will need to explain that grace is not a license to sin, that those who truly love God will want to please Him.

Since Mormonism teaches that almost everyone will be saved (resurrected) to some level in heaven, how do they reconcile that with Matt. 7:13-14? Jesus taught that only a few would gain heaven. They seem to have reversed the broad way and the narrow way.

Temples and High Priests?

There are over a hundred LDS temples around the world in which they perform their baptisms for the dead, endowments and eternal marriage ceremonies for both the living and dead. A question to ask your Mormon friend is:

If a temple marriage is necessary for eternal life, why isn't it ever mentioned in the Bible (or the Book of Mormon)? Jesus taught that there would be no marriages in heaven (see Luke 20:34)

Can you show me a verse in the Bible (or Book of Mormon) where baptisms or marriages were ever performed in the temple?

Where in the Bible is the teaching that there are to be thousands of High Priests in the Christian church? Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament priesthood and is now the only High Priest in the Christian church. (see Heb. 4:4; 7:26; and 9:11)

Eternal Life

Mormonism teaches that in order to gain eternal life (as opposed to merely entering heaven) one must be "worthy." It is achieved after a life of full activity in Mormonism, full tithing, temple marriage, etc. So a question to ask your friend is:

What is required to achieve eternal life in Mormonism?

Have you met all of those requirements?

If you died today do you know that you will have eternal life?

Point out that the Christian have the assurance of eternal life through faith in Christ, not church activity (see 1 John 5:13).

Nature of God

Mormonism teaches a totally different concept of God. However, rather than trying to explain the trinity to them, I focus on the basic nature of God the Father. Joseph Smith taught that God was once a mortal on some other world, which was ruled by yet another deity. (See Smith's sermon on the nature of God in History of the Church, vol. 6 pp. 302-317, or Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pp. 312, 342-354, 370-373) Each god rose from mortality to immortality and earned the position of a god. He does not surpass the previous god, but is forever under his direction. It is sort of like an eternal pyramid system, or escalator, with each god answering to the one above him. If the Mormon denies this teaching ask him if he has read Smith's sermons on God. If Smith's doctrine of God is wrong he falls under the condemnation of Deuteronomy 13, a false prophet leading the people after a false god. How do they reconcile Smith's doctrine of multiple gods with Isaiah 43:10-11 and Isaiah 44:8?

A Testimony?

The Mormon will often say that he know the LDS Chuch is true from prayer and inner conviction. We need to point out that people all over the world have come up with different beliefs about God. Obviously sincerity and prayer are not enough to guard against false claims. That is why God has given us the Bible, so that we will have a standard measurement for truth claims. You might ask them:

If you were lost in the woods would you trust your feelings or use a compass? Christians use the Bible to determine truth, not feelings.

We don't need to pray to know if we should rob a bank, or commit adultery, since God has already spoken on the issue. Thus we see that if someone claims a revelation contrary to what God has already spoken, we can know that it is a false teaching. Thus if Joseph Smith taught anything different from the Bible, like plural gods, he should be rejected (Gal. 1:8-9 and Deut. 13).

While Christians value prayer and seek direction from God, this is not the Biblical method of testing a prophet. Every leader and doctrine must be examined in light of the Bible.

Conclusion

Remember that your life is already a witness to your LDS friends, one way or another. If they say you would make a good Mormon, take comfort. Your lifestyle is seen to be consistent with your claim to be a Christian, they just want to give you the rest of the gospel.

Challenge them to study the Bible (Acts 17:11-12). If Mormonism is a restoration of Christ's church, it will agree with what God has already revealed. Challenge them to think for themselves. Truth will stand up to investigation.

A Mormon quickly senses if you are talking from genuine concern and conviction, or if you just want an argument. Check your motives and attitude (see 2 Tim. 2:23-26 and Titus 3:2-9). As ambassadors for Christ we are to share His love and redemption.

"Always be full of joy in the Lord;...Let everyone see that you are unselfish and considerate in all you do." (Philippians 4:4-5, Living Bible)