Out of Mormonism... Part I

I've decided to invest a few blog entries on my experiences with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I hate to use that title, because they are far from what it implies - they are not a church of Jesus Christ and are not saints of the true and living God. For the rest of this entry, I'll be referring to them as Mormons and the religion as Mormonism.

It was the Christmas Season of 1989. I was 9 years old living with my mother as a single parent and for the first time she brought home a man. He was a Mormon and invited us to church. I obliged, as it was my first time in a church of any kind other than attending 2 funerals at a Catholic church. There was a community of kids my age who I befriended, activities which included basketball (my favorite pass-time), and I started to enjoy being a part of a tightnit community.  It was as if I was given the family I never had. Shortly thereafter they were married and about 6 months later I was baptized and started the process of indoctrination.

As I grew older, I had issues with some of their teachings, in particular the curse of Cain (people with black skin were cursed due to living unworthy lives in their pre-existance), but I didn't pay much attention to that, I was there for the community. Most of the youth lived as the rest of the world did. I, however, tried my best to live a good moral life and earn my status as a "worthy church member".

At the age of 16, my mother divorced her husband. I was no longer pressured to go to church so I stopped going consistently. I started to seek the pleasures of sin, falling into pornography, fornication, drinking alcohol and smoking weed occasionally. Still feeling the connection to Mormonism, I believed that one day I would repent and be back.

Fast forward 6 years. I moved to Florida to start a new life. I tried to attend a Mormon ward, as they call their churches, and at the same time started to read the Bible and watch Christian television programs. During that time I began to see the vast differences between Mormonism and Christianity and that Mormons were NOT Christians. I finally decided to sever my ties with Mormonism, oddly enough the very same day I was chosen to give a talk before the congregation. I preached the Biblical gospel, even using their book of Mormon to support some of my points, and urged everyone to repent and accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. I have not stepped foot in a Mormon building since that day.

So what's the big deal with the Mormon religion? They believe in Jesus right? They seem to be great people: nice, family oriented, full of good works, pleasant upstanding citizens?



"For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works." - 2 Corinthians 11:13-15



Facts about the Mormon Church relating to 2 Corinthians 11:13-15:

1. Mormonism claims they were established when an Angel (of light) visited their founder, Joseph Smith, telling him that every church on the earth was apostate and that the true church needed to be restored. This angel was first said to be a Book of Mormon figure named Nephi, but later the story was changed to it being Jesus Christ and God the Father as two separate personages with glorified bodies of flesh and bone. (see picture above)
2. Mormonism erroneously take their leadership structure from the example of Jesus and his 12 apostles. A prophet is said to be head of the church, only one can be living at a time and he becomes a prophet only after the current one passes away. 12 apostles (transforming themselves as apostles of Christ) hold positions of leadership under that prophet. Not only was there more than one prophet living on the earth in the Old Testament, New Testament, (and the current Christian church), the only prophet that was head of the church/Israel was Moses, and some may argue Joshua who took Moses' place after his death. Biblically there is also nowhere that says there has to be 12, in fact there were more than 12 Apostles living during the establishment of the church (and I would argue the current Christian church as well). Biblically, apostles are a higher calling than that of the prophet, which also reveals their infrastructure as unbiblical and false.
3. Mormons boast in their own righteousness based on their good works. They believe they have to earn their way to heaven, destroying the Biblical doctrines of grace. Why did Jesus have to die if you have to work your way to heaven? Truly, their "end shall be according to their works" if they are relying on their works to make it into an eternal level of glory, i.e. heaven (celestial kingdom as they call it).
   
   Galatians 5:4 - "Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace."

"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed." - Galatians 1:6-9

Facts about the Mormon Church relating to Galatians 1:6-9:

1. The Book of Mormon is called "Another Testament of Jesus Christ", denoting another gospel. But the real evidence is that they teach works must be added to grace in order to obtain salvation.  The true gospel of Jesus Christ can be described as "Salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in the finished work of Christ alone, who paid the penalty for the sins of those that repent and put their trust and faith in Him as Lord and Savior. Justification by grace apart from the works of the law (Galatians 2:16, ...)" It in fact is not just another gospel, but it is a perversion of the true gospel. It sounds like good news, but in actuality being told that you have to work your way to heaven, only to find out on judgment day that your best works are as filthy rags in God's sight (Isaiah 64:6) and the punishment is death, hell, and the lake of fire for eternity, is very, very BAD news. (Revelation 20:11-15)
2. Again this passage teaches that an angel from heaven has the ability to teach this other gospel.
3. The sad fact is that those who hold on to these teachings and reject the Biblical Good News of Jesus Christ will be accursed. In other words, damned.

Current Mormon (false) Prophet and Twelve (false) Apostles:


Part II to come.