The Bible tells us to believe we will receive what we pray for, and warns us to be careful what we ask for.
For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Mark 21:23 KJV
Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Matthew 18:18 KJV
However! if you believe and study the Book of Mormon, it has fail safes built into it. You do not have to be responsible for what you ask for. Examine the doctrine of the Book of Mormon.
And Assuredly as Christ liveth, He spake these words unto our fathers, saying: "Whatsoever thing ye shall ask the Father in My name, which is good, in faith believing that ye shall receive, Behold, it shall be done unto you." Moroni 7:26 RCE
These are not the same doctrine. The Bible is saying that you as a believer of God and a follower of Jesus Christ have power, be responsible and believe in it!
The Book of Mormon seems to be for those faint of heart Christians who don't know what to ask for and don't want to be held responsible for accidentally removing a mountain! Okay humor aside, but honestly lets take a look at it.
And Assuredly as Christ liveth, He spake these words unto our fathers, saying: "Whatsoever thing ye shall ask the Father in My name, which is good, in faith believing that ye shall receive, Behold, it shall be done unto you." Moroni 7:26 RCE
That is a pre-qualifier. So anything you ask that is not good won't happen. Sounds good doesn't it? Of course, except that isn't why it's in there. Do you suppose that God being a good and just God would honor a prayer request from you that is evil? No that doesn't make sense. So why is "which is good" be in there? Because it's an "out" for Mormon leaders. The Mormons will explain that you didn't get what you prayed for because its not good and God doesn't want you to have that.
Is that what the Bible says?
And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” Matthew 21:22 NKJV
As you can see, the Book of Mormon give it's believers excuses and reason for unanswered prayers. A faith that needs excuses does not sound like one that has real power. And how can it? If you pray, "God, if it be good and in thy will" is that Faith? No because you have already opted to use an excuse and a pre-requisite for not looking like a fool. That isn't believing in the power of God.
However if you pray "God heal this sick man in Jesus name!" That is calling on the power of God in faith, believing it will happen. Face it, are you going to go up to someone and pronounce that, risk looking like a fool if you don't have a strong faith in your God?
This is another doctrinal differences between the Bible and Book of Mormon. And another example of why I truly believe that the Book of Mormon is Satan's bible as it weakens and erodes your faith and power in Jesus Christ.
Showing posts with label Mormon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mormon. Show all posts
Monday, May 23, 2016
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Is Mormonism Truly Christianity?
Search your feelings to know the truth?
The Mormon way isn't Christ's way
There is so much loud debate. So many people trying to prove that Mormonism is true or it is not. Archaeological studies, DNA studies etc.
All of this bickering is to tip the scale of the "feeling" war that is being waged. Is this good? Well I am glad people are willing to research, to fight, and to prove the Book of Mormon is wrong. I'm a recovering Christian who recently left the Mormon faith so I'm studying a lot. One really interesting youtube video done by Chris Johnson a couple years ago provides more evidence as to where Joseph Smith's Book of Mormon was pilfered from. He has a great study comparing the text of the Book of Mormon to The First Book of Napoleon and The Late War and how it influenced Joseph Smith's writing of the Book of Mormon. You can view it on youtube at.
Or go to his website. http://askreality.com/hidden-in-plain-sight/ I look forward to digging into the books he references in his talk.
Matthew 4:1-11King James Version (KJV)
4 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
But should our decisions to believe be influenced by these studies?
Mormonism encourages you to pray and let your spirit tell you if the Book of Mormon is true. Anti-Mormons yell, "LOOK AT THE FACTS!" All of this is just creating a "game of war" environment for our hearts and minds. It becomes confusing and turbulent. Is this Christian? Not really.
Don't get me wrong, I love the work that Chris Johnson has done. It further shows that the Book of Mormon is an adaptation of many other influencing books. Also shows that this indeed could be inspired, but not necessarily by God. And Joe boy himself admits that he was led by an angel of light.
Should we then as people seeking God's truth listen to the Anti-Mormons and be swayed by them? Or the Pro-Mormons? Should we not listen to any of these loud voices? I will tell you one thing, if you are still a believer in Mormonism, that does not mean you can't hear God's voice. I was told that when I was still a Mormon believer. The Anti-Mormons will say that your faculties are impaired because you are listening to a different Jesus. I know this to be a false argument because it limits God's power. He can speak to whomever he wants.
Listen to God. All these studies by men are good, and bad at the same time. Even the ones that support your current beliefs are bad. Why? Because you are listening to men. Heck even if you are a Mormon believer, the Doctrine in Covenants tells you not to trust in the arms of flesh. In essence don't listen to men. So that being said, lets look at an example that neither side can deny. An example of listening to God's truth.
Both sides believe the Bible is true. Lets take an example from the King James Bible of what we are to do. Mormon's say, listen to your feelings and your spirit inside you to know if the Book of Mormon is true? right? What did Jesus Christ do?
Matthew 4:1-11King James Version (KJV)
4 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
What do you think Jesus was feeling? Ask yourself, as a man, what would YOU be feeling? I'm hungry, I want food. I'll prove to the devil I am the Son of God hah! look, stones are bread devil! Do any of us doubt that Jesus could have done that? How many of us if given that same dare from one of our friends or acquaintances KNOWING that we could indeed prove the power we have, wouldn't do it?
Again being on top of a temple pinnacle what do you think Jesus might feel as a man? I myself am scared witless of heights! If I can command angels to save me, why wouldn't I?! God loves me and doesn't want me harmed. What would you be feeling if you were in Jesus's shoes?
Lastly how many of us desire power, glory or even just simple security knowing that we will live in comfort and acceptance and will be able to provide for our loved ones? These were offered Jesus. If your boss or a powerful business man you know offered you money and security if you did something he wanted, or did NOT do anything about something? How many of us have sat and said nothing when we should have stood to our feet in front of our friends and business associates and said, "no, I will not be a part of this and you shouldn't either." That is a terrifying feeling to risk ridicule, loss of acceptance, or even your job.
And lastly, did Jesus search his spirit wondering if any of this was okay? No. What is the keyword in EVERY response from Jesus? It is written. It is written. Not I feel that would be wrong, I feel God won't like that. Jesus knew what the word of God was. He didn't listen to his feelings, didn't even consult his feelings! He held fast to the written word of God.
While I love the studies, and am a man that loves a good argument, as a Christian we are to hold fast to the written word of God. I know what you are thinking now. "But Jake! The Book of Mormon IS the written word of God!" Well as a Mormon you've got some tough work before you if you still believe that. Also note that Satan himself in tempting Jesus used "it is written", do you think he is beyond writing his own Bible?
Instead of turning to the studies and the "war of words" and listening to men who want to sway those "feelings" inside you to determine if the Book of Mormon IS the written word of God, I pray that you will turn instead to the uncontested word of God. The Bible. Neither side, Pro or Anti Mormon can contest that the Bible IS the word of God. Jesus Christ himself clung to it. That should be your guide as well. And please don't pick up a "interpretation" of the Bible. Get a King James Version. It's a bit harder with the old English, but it's all there.
Instead of turning to the studies and the "war of words" and listening to men who want to sway those "feelings" inside you to determine if the Book of Mormon IS the written word of God, I pray that you will turn instead to the uncontested word of God. The Bible. Neither side, Pro or Anti Mormon can contest that the Bible IS the word of God. Jesus Christ himself clung to it. That should be your guide as well. And please don't pick up a "interpretation" of the Bible. Get a King James Version. It's a bit harder with the old English, but it's all there.
If you are a Mormon and know your Book of Mormon you can find the similar but altered Bible verses. Do they agree? Do they match? Study both of these, use my sidebyside blog links to help you find comparable verses. Use the Bible as your baseline. As the cornerstone of your faith. If the Book of Mormon is truly inspired by the same God of the Bible, they will both be the same. Because God is the same yesterday, today and forever.
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Feeling The Truth
One thing that Mormon missionaries, or Mormons in general will do if trying to convert you to Mormonism is they will ask you to pray about Mormonism and feel if it is right. People will often do this, thinking if it is wrong that they would feel it in their spirit.
There are a few issues with this. One, the devil comes as an angel of light. So, why would we, as humans, think we can figure out that it is the devil? Would we not think it is an angel of light? In most instances, yes we would. Not only is the devil disguised as an angel of light, but he is a lot older than us and has been fooling humans for a long, long time. Longer than we, as individuals, have been alive. So to think we could out-strategize the devil is, well, naive.
Furthermore, the Bible says in 1 John 4:1 to "...believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world" (KJV). This is referring to more than just praying and feeling if it is okay. You are to actually try or test the spirits against the Word of God.
Do not, I repeat, do not test this against the inspired version that the mormons use. The inspired version was made by Joseph Smith so you should not use it to test what he said. (Though I'm sure there are areas that still contradict.) Instead, I would suggest using the KJV (or even the New KJV), or get a direct translation Hebrew/Greek to English Bible and read the actual words. These direct translations can be difficult if you have not studied the Bible much and/or you are not good with old English or the literal translations of words. However, if you are knowledgable in regards to language or Hebrew and/or Greek, then this is also a great way to go.
So, in order to test the Mormon church against the Word of God, take the Bible and compare what the Bible says to it. Or the Pearl of Great Price. Or the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon was what I used to compare to the Bible and the fallacies abound. Read them SIDE BY SIDE and compare them WORD FOR WORD.
It's amazing how easily the devil can change the entire meaning of a scripture simply by moving the location of one or two words.
You can also search other areas of this blog where we do this exact thing for you and point out some of the fallacies. We, of course, have not scratched the surface of the errors and contradictions that abound.
You cannot trust what you feel. The Bible explicitly says, in Jeremiah 7:19 "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (KJV). Are you really going to hinge the eternal salvation or damnation of your soul upon feelings that came from a desperately wicked place? I would strongly advise against it.
This is no easy or simple or laughing matter. This is eternal, take the time to read the Word. You owe it to your soul to find the truth God has already given you. All you need to do is seek it.
There are a few issues with this. One, the devil comes as an angel of light. So, why would we, as humans, think we can figure out that it is the devil? Would we not think it is an angel of light? In most instances, yes we would. Not only is the devil disguised as an angel of light, but he is a lot older than us and has been fooling humans for a long, long time. Longer than we, as individuals, have been alive. So to think we could out-strategize the devil is, well, naive.
Furthermore, the Bible says in 1 John 4:1 to "...believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world" (KJV). This is referring to more than just praying and feeling if it is okay. You are to actually try or test the spirits against the Word of God.
Do not, I repeat, do not test this against the inspired version that the mormons use. The inspired version was made by Joseph Smith so you should not use it to test what he said. (Though I'm sure there are areas that still contradict.) Instead, I would suggest using the KJV (or even the New KJV), or get a direct translation Hebrew/Greek to English Bible and read the actual words. These direct translations can be difficult if you have not studied the Bible much and/or you are not good with old English or the literal translations of words. However, if you are knowledgable in regards to language or Hebrew and/or Greek, then this is also a great way to go.
So, in order to test the Mormon church against the Word of God, take the Bible and compare what the Bible says to it. Or the Pearl of Great Price. Or the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon was what I used to compare to the Bible and the fallacies abound. Read them SIDE BY SIDE and compare them WORD FOR WORD.
It's amazing how easily the devil can change the entire meaning of a scripture simply by moving the location of one or two words.
You can also search other areas of this blog where we do this exact thing for you and point out some of the fallacies. We, of course, have not scratched the surface of the errors and contradictions that abound.
You cannot trust what you feel. The Bible explicitly says, in Jeremiah 7:19 "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (KJV). Are you really going to hinge the eternal salvation or damnation of your soul upon feelings that came from a desperately wicked place? I would strongly advise against it.
This is no easy or simple or laughing matter. This is eternal, take the time to read the Word. You owe it to your soul to find the truth God has already given you. All you need to do is seek it.
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