Mormonism

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A six part in-depth teaching series that looks at what the Church of Latter-day Saints believe and teach and how as Christian's we are to respond.  Please click on the PDF links to read each article in full.  

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Part 1 - An Introduction to Mormonism

 

The LDS church has twice as many members as the Jehovah’s Witnesses.  The official membership of the LDS church (as of November 2013) is 15 million.  These 15 million members meet in over 29 thousand congregations worldwide.  The LDS church has 80,000 active missionaries on every mission field of the world.  It boasts 141 Temples worldwide with a further 15 under construction and 14 more that have been announced.  It receives an estimated $7 billion a year in tithes and sits on an estimated $35 billion of real-estate. 

 

In this teaching we  take a quick whistle stop tour through the many teachings and beliefs of Mormonism including a look at its Temples and ritual, along with its governmental structure.

 

 

Part 2 - The History of Mormonsm and Joseph Smith Jr.

 

The history of the LDS church has typically been separated into three distinctive periods.

 

1. “Early History” under the leadership of Joseph Smith, Jr. 

2. “Pioneering era” under the leadership of Brigham Young.

3. “Modern Era” beginning around the turn of the 20th century as polygamy was abandoned.

 

In this teaching we look briefly at each of these three periods before moving on to look at the life of its founder Joseph Smith, Jr.  What you will discover in this teaching will shock you!   

 

 

Part 3 - Is it the Book of Mormon the Word of God?

 

Mormons believe without question that the Book of Mormon is the word of God.  In this teaching we put the Book of Mormon under the spotlight to see if stands up to scrutiny in three main areas, namely, the light of Science, the light of Archaeology and the light of the Bible.  You be the judge of the outcome!  

 

 

Part 4 - The Doctrine of God and Polytheism

 

The Bible is categorically clear and absolutely unwavering on this one thing, namely the belief that there is but one true God!!  This concept of monotheism oozes out of every part of the Bible, both Old Testament and New Testament.  Orthodoxy demands that the adherent of Christianity holds to the belief in the existence of only one true God!!  Every prophet from Moses to Jesus taught that there was but one God.  Mormonism however, believes in a multiplicity of gods, in fact every practising Mormon has the potential to become a God! 

 

This teaching explores the theology of Mormonism as it relates to the doctrine of God and contrasts it with the clear teaching of the Bible. 

 

 

Part 5 - The Jesus Christ of Mormonism

 

At first glance, it appears that the Jesus of Mormonism is the same Jesus of the Scriptures.  However, upon closer inspection of their literature we shall see that nothing could be further from the truth!!

 

 

Part 6 - Salvation  and the Afterlife

 

When one asks a Mormon if he has full assurance that if he was to die tonight that he would go to heaven; he would respond by saying I hope so.  This is because the LDS church like all cults has an intricate and complex system of works that members must go through to prove that they are worthy enough to receive.

 

In this teaching we examine this works based system along with the LDS's teaching on the afterlife.