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What Mormons Believe Food For Thought Series Brad Hobbs - March 27, 2008
President Brad Hobbs of the Mitt Romney, Harry Reid, Gladys Knight and young men on bikes - all are Mormons. What do they believe about Jesus and other faiths? Do Mormons consider themselves Christians? What do Mormons believe about the eternal nature of family and the marriage relationship? What is the Book of Mormon and how does it fit with the Bible and other sacred books? If you have ever wondered what Mormons believe, the best way to find out is to hear it from a Mormon as you discover more about their faith. Read on! Introduction: It is a daunting task to discuss the vast beliefs of any religion so I will present a few of the basic doctrines and principles of the Church. Our understanding and perspective are limited by our frame of reference. There are a lot of misconceptions about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS) and my purpose is to help you understand today what we really believe. A few facts: - The official name of the Church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Commonly we are referred to by a nickname of “Mormons.” That is a nickname that we did not choose, however, we are not offended by it. - Presently, there are over 13 million members of the Church in 176 countries and territories. There are about 6 million members in the - Local congregations are led by men and women who are unpaid volunteer members. There are no paid ministers. Our most important and fundament doctrines relate to our beliefs about God - first Article of Faith – “We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.” Illustrations: -Jesus’ Baptism – Matt. 3:17 (New Testament | Matthew 3:13 - 17) 3 ¶ Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to 14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he suffered him. 16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. We believe that the Godhead is absolutely one in purpose but 3 distinct separate and distinct beings, glorified and divine. (John 17) o Multiple references in the New Testament illustrate that God the Father and Jesus Christ are one in purpose and will, but they are truly separate divine persons. Statements of Jesus: § “The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do.” (John 5:19) § On another occasion Jesus said, “I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.”(John 6:38) § Jesus also declared “My father is greater than I.”(John 14:28) § To whom did Christ pray during his life, especially during the agony of Gethsemane and on Three Grand Questions: - Where did we come from? - Why are we here? - Where will we go after death? A woman who was contemplating suicide came to the church where I was the local church leader. Our discussion led to what I call the 3 grand questions. During this conversation she did not solve all of her problems but did gain new perspective and hope. Where did we come from? - We lived with God before we came to this earth. - We believe God is our Heavenly Father, the Father of our eternal spirits. We are His children and He has prepared a way for us to return to Him. We are created in His image (Genesis 1:26) Paul taught -Acts 17:29 - Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, - God prepared a Plan of Happiness for us. Illustrate with a story about losing my son, Jason. I would have done anything for my son. Later, as I reflected on my depth of love for my son, I thought how abundantly and perfectly God loves us. He would do anything that would be a blessing for us. We have a loving, caring Heavenly Father that is omniscient and omnipotent. He always wants the very best for us. Why are we here? – God sent us to this earth for us to progress. Our Father in heaven and Jesus Christ had embodied glorified bodies. God wants us to become like Him. He has commanded, “Be ye therefore perfect.” This is a long, arduous process but made possible by God’s plan for us His children. - To gain a body to house our spirit - To gain experience and be tested o (Pearl of Great Price | Abraham 3:25) And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them; Where are we going? The atonement of Christ made salvation possible – two types of salvation - Universal salvation called the resurrection of the dead. – unconditional - Individual salvation that is conditional and dependent on us doing certain things as well as on the atonement of Jesus Christ. We cannot earn our way to heaven: “We are saved by grace after all we can do.” We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Savior and Redeemer of all mankind. Jesus is the “core” of our belief. We are puzzled by the questions and confusion of people who ask, “Are Mormons really Christian?” Joseph Smith, the prophet of the restoration declared, “The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it.” In our Sunday worship services we focus on the Savior and His infinite atoning sacrifice. Through His atonement all will be resurrected and all will have the opportunity to return to live with our Father in Heaven through faith and repentance. First four principles and ordinances of the Gospel of Jesus Christ – - Faith in Jesus Christ - which leads to trust, hope and charity. Faith is an action word that requires us to do something. - Repentance – God has asked us to repent of our sins and conform our lives to the will of God. - Baptism - by immersion for the remission of sins (Jesus said to Nicodemus – “Except a man be born of the water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the - Holy Spirit – receive the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. o All ordinances must be performed by one who has authority. Do we believe in the Bible as contained in the Old and New Testaments? We believe the Bible is the Word of God. The Bible contains the teachings of the Savior and His Prophets. We believe that the Book of Mormon is another Testament of Jesus Christ and his appearance to Native Americans. Restoration – We believe the church established by Christ was lost and that His Church has been restored to the earth. The environment necessary for this restoration was fostered by those who are called the Reformers – men like John Wycliffe, Martin Luther, William Tyndale and John Calvin. We believe other world religious leaders have blessed many nations and people – men like Buddha, Confucius and Mohammed. Joseph Smith Story- our unique declaration In 1820 a 14 year old boy wanted to know which church to join. He was reading in the book of James where it says if you lack wisdom ask God. So he did and in spring, 1820 Joseph Smith went to a grove of trees, knelt in prayer and asked, not expecting what happened. We believe God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost appeared to Joseph Smith like he did to Moses on the mountain. We believe God called Joseph Smith to be a prophet in this dispensation and in this time like God called Adam, Abraham and Moses in other times. At that time, the Church of Jesus Christ was restored to the earth with priesthood authority to act in God’s name. - We believe in the same organization that existed in the - We believe in modern day revelation First Presidency Statement on World Religions: February 15, 1978 Based upon ancient and modern revelation, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gladly teaches and declares the Christian doctrine that all men and women are brothers and sisters, not only by blood relationship from common mortal progenitors, but also as literal spirit children of an Eternal Father. The great religious leaders of the world such as Mohammed, Confucius, and the reformers, as well as philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and others, received a portion of God's light. Moral truths were given to them by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher level of understanding to individuals.
Family – Proclamation We believe the family is ordained of God. Our marriages in the Marriage is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. - Latter-day Saint families are encouraged to hold weekly family home evenings. Parents are responsible to teach children the values of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. - Families and individuals, whether members of our faith or not are invited to attend Sunday services where we worship and are taught from the scriptures. (Polygamy – a limited practice in the early pioneer days, was discontinued in 1890, 117 years ago.)
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