The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
have recently released several short videos which all begin with the question
‘How Can It Not Be True?’ These videos cover the subjects: Who is God?;
Evidence of God’s Existence; The Miracle of Humankind; Jesus Christ as the Son
of God; Agency and the Promises of Obedience; The Witness of the Spirit; Joseph
Smith; and The Book of Mormon.
Over the next few weeks, I will review these videos and consider if what they
teach can or cannot be true.
These videos are, as always, beautifully produced, and very easy on the eye.
The Mormons, realising that many people will not watch or listen to a video
like this beyond a couple of minutes, have made them short and to the point.
Their hope, perhaps, is that these videos will arouse enough interest that the
watcher visit their website or one of their churches. Let’s begin with: How Can
It Not Be True – Who is God?
The first claim made by the video is that God is always available for us. We
would agree with statement. The Bible tells us that God neither sleeps nor
slumbers (Psalm 121:4); that God is omnipresent - always present (Proverbs
15:3); that God is omniscient – all knowing (Isaiah 46:9-10) and that God is
omnipotent – all powerful (Job 42:2). But the God that the Mormon church say is
always available to us is very different to the God revealed in the Bible.
Theirs is a Limited God
Because Mormons believe that God was once a sinful man who became a God, and even now he exists as a man with flesh and bones (D&C 130:22) he cannot be omnipresent. Neither is their God omniscient because there are things he does not know. Harold B. Lee, 11th President of the Mormon Church said:
“Remember
that, brethren. You cannot destroy the appointments of the prophets of God. The
Lord knows whom He wants to preside in His Church, and sometimes it takes a lot
of practicing, guiding, testing, before He may know whether or not one of us is
prepared for the present assignment.”[1]
The prophet had clearly never read Psalm 147:4-5:
He
determines the number of the stars;
he gives to
all of them their names.
Great is our
Lord, and abundant in power;
his
understanding is beyond measure.
After declaring that God is always available for us, a question is posed: Can
It Be True?
Now, I am open to the accusation that I may be reading too much into the image on the screen as this question appeared, but in my humble opinion there is a concealed message within the graphic.
This definitely looks like a ‘sacred grove’ to me.
Next there are several statements made which would be agreed upon by pretty much everyone in the western world. ‘Life can be incredibly hectic at times’; ‘We seek moments of peace and sometime who has time for us’; ‘In a rapidly changing world, we long for something unchanging’.
Yes, life is busy and people long for peace and, as such, they may look for
something solid, something unchanging- but they will not find that in the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
A Changing God
Mormonism is constantly changing and constantly learning, and this is due, in
most part, because the God Mormonism is mutable. This is the natural conclusion
of holding that God was once a man.
“Mormon prophets have continuously taught the sublime truth that God the Eternal Father was once a mortal man who passed through a school of earth life similar that through which we are now passing. He became God – an exalted being – through obedience to the same eternal Gospel truths that we are given opportunity today to obey.” [2]
GOD IS
INCREASING IN KNOWLEDGE. If there was a point where man in his progression
could not proceed any further, the very idea would throw a gloom over every
intelligent and reflecting mind. God Himself is increasing and progressing in
knowledge, power, and dominion, and will do so, worlds without end” [3]
What kind of God is this? How can a God who can
change his mind and get things wrong help anyone? He, and his so-called church,
cannot provide support and comfort to anyone, whereas the Biblical God, the God
that true Christian’s worship is immutable and totally trustworthy.
“For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed. Malachi 3:6
God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? Numbers 23:19
More Confusion
To add to the utter confusion, Mormon prophets and leaders regularly disagree
with one another, leaving the ordinary rank-and-file believers unsure as to
what to believe.
“It seems
very strange to me that members of the Church will hold to the doctrine, ‘God
increases in knowledge as time goes on.’… Where has the Lord ever revealed to
us that he is lacking in knowledge? That he is still learning new truth;
discovering new laws that are unknown to him? I think this kind of doctrine is
very dangerous” [4]
I would agree.
Can it be true?
As the video heads towards a close, we are told that we need ‘someone who knows
what is right in difficult situations… we need divine guidance in this life… we
need someone who can direct our paths’. As we have discovered, we cannot trust
their changing God to direct us or his so-called spokesmen, who disagree with
each other.
In conclusion, the video leaves people with this message: ‘There are so many
complex things in our lives, but one thing is simple… God’s love for you and He
is always there’.
It is true that God loves us, but that needs explanation. The Bible speaks of
God’s love for us (John 3:16; Romans 5:8 etc.), but this love is to lead us to
repentance and faith in Jesus. God’s love for us does not mean that all are
forgiven, and all are accepted by Him. It certainly does not mean that all will
be saved.
The video closes with the question: ‘Can it be true?’ which quickly changes
into ‘How can it not be true?’. It is true, as the video asserts, that there is
a God who loves us and is always available to us. In a changing world we do
need to find something that we can rely upon, something that we can trust.
That something though cannot be found in Mormonism, and it is certainly cannot
be found in their mutable God.
[1] Ensign, ‘Admonitions for the Priesthood of God,’ January 1973, p. 107
[2] Milton R. Hunter, The Gospel Through the Ages, pp. 104-105. “Our Father Advanced and Progressed Until He Became God” - Search These Commandments, 1984, p.152.
[3] The Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, p.3, Fourth
President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
[4] Joseph Fielding Smith Jr., Doctrines of Salvation 1:7-8.
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