Popular belief: "Mormons do not follow or believe in the historic Jesus Christ of the Bible, but rather in a difference Jesus. This is why most Biblical Christians emphatically insist that Mormons are not Christians." (That is the exact quote, yes, they had serious grammatical errors, but you can read it here)
Basically the objection is that the Jesus Christ that Mormons believe in is not the same Jesus Christ that most other Christians believe in.
Now lets get to figuring out if we can confirm, deem plausible or bust this myth!
Example 1: Mormon leaders stating official doctrinal positions of the LDS Church with regards to being Christians.
Example 2: Former LDS Church President Gordon B. Hinckley's own words regarding the matter. “Are we Christians? Of course we are! No one can honestly deny that. We may be somewhat different from the traditional pattern of Christianity. But no one believes more literally in the redemption wrought by the Lord Jesus Christ. No one believes more fundamentally that He was the Son of God, that He died for the sins of mankind, that He rose from the grave, and that He is the living resurrected Son of the living Father.
“All of our doctrine, all of our religious practice stems from that one basic doctrinal position: ‘We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.’ This is the first article of our faith, and all else flows therefrom” (read it here)
All of this is well and good, but what does the Book of Mormon, the keystone of Mormon doctrine, say about Jesus Christ?
This passage comes from 2 Nephi chapter 25 verse 26.
"And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." (read it here)
This passage comes from Mosiah chapter 3 verses 8 through 11 (the passage is believed to have been written by a man named King Benjamin at about 124 b.c.)
"And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and his mother shall be called Mary.
And lo, he cometh unto his own, that salvation might come unto the children of men even through faith on his name; and even after all this they shall consider him a man, and say that he hath a devil, and shall scourge him, and shall crucify him.
And he shall arise the third day from the dead; and behold, he standeth to judge the world; and behold, all these things are done that a righteous judgment might come upon the children of men.
For behold, and also his blood atoneth for the sins of those who have fallen by the transgression of Adam, who have died not knowing the will of God concerning them, or who have ignorantly sinned." (read it here)
Now, do these passages of scripture correlate with the Jesus Christ of the New Testament?
This passage comes from John 3:15.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (read it here)
There are many more passages from the Bible that can show direct correlation with the Jesus Christ that Mormon's believe in and the Jesus Christ that most Christians believe in.
Now to the heart of the matter, all the evidence in the world will not convince anyone who's bent on religious bigotry against the Mormons. Mormons have professed a belief in Christ ever since the beginning with Joseph Smith's first vision and on down to the current church president. As a practicing Mormon, I know that I believe in Jesus Christ - and He is the exact same Jesus Christ that everyone else believes in. You can disagree if you like, but if you do, I would like some strong evidence backing up your claims because I can tell you that 99 percent of all those who say this ridiculous thing are saying it only out of a hateful heart, one that is rooted in religious bigotry and seeking to promote conflict.
This myth is totally BUSTED!
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2 comments:
I love this blog! Yes, Mormons are Christians!! If people look at the sub-title to the Book of Mormon, they will find that it says "Another Testament of Jesus Christ." The fact that we are called mormon is another proof that we are Christians because the Book of Mormon teaches of His life and His gospel. I am a mormon, too and I love my Savior, Jesus Christ. He lives and loves me and loves everyone! He spoke to Joseph Smith and Christ restored His gospel on this earth through Joseph. It's true.
Here’s a million dollar question – If you were to die right now, would you qualify for the celestial kingdom? If you’re like many Mormons, you’re not sure. You try hard to be as good as possible, but you still don’t know if you’ve done enough. If the Book of Mormon is really scripture, this hope will always elude you. Alma 11:37 says God cannot save you in your sins. Are all of your sins forgiven? Moroni 10:32 says you must be perfected in Christ, which can only be done by denying yourself of “all ungodliness”. Have you done that? Do you repent on a regular basis? Is so, then it is clear that you sin on a regular basis, since only those who break the commandments need to repent. 1 Nephi 3:7 states that you are able to keep His commandments. In fact according to D&C 25:15, you are required to keep them continually! Since you haven’t done this so far, why assume you will in the future? Of course, we should all try to be holy; but if you think that sinning less will qualify you to live in God’s presence, you are mistaken (Gal 3:1-11). The assumption that good works are required for forgiveness only cheapens Christ’s atonement, making it nothing more than a partial payment. God chooses to justify us by faith. Jesus alone does the “perfecting” (Heb 10:14). God gives peace to those who trust in Him alone. If you don’t have this peace, it’s probably because at least a part of you trusts in yourself. Questions? Visit us at www.gotforgiveness.com
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