Mormon Direction

It was said by Brigham Young that we should endeavour to find truth where ever it is found. In that prophetic counsel, Brigham Young did not mean to blind discernment and judgement as to whether the information found is actually truth or not. Brigham Young gave that counsel to encourage us to seek truth, not grab anything we like, disregarding any discernment if the information is true and consistent with God’s teachings.

The words from Paul the Apostle should always prevail along side of Brigham Young’s counsel. Paul taught that we must “spiritually discern” matters of a spiritual concern, comparing spiritual with spiritual. Sadly to say that the majority of Christians have grossly twisted and undermined that divine counsel from Paul, misunderstanding the meaning of the word spiritual and “spiritual words” as declared by Jesus Christ in John 6:63. Failing to realize that there is a difference in worldly information versus spiritual information, and differences in spiritual information. If there were no differences, then Satan would have no tools to use to misinform and mislead.

Paul’s counsel was to teach us that we must learn the ability and power of spiritual discernment, a skill which will keep us from falling to false worldly information which affects our ability to exercise faith. Remember the words from Jesus Christ, where he said, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 7:21–23), this because they do works of iniquity despite their claim to believe in Christ. The importance to spiritually discern, especially in these last days, is imperative and crucial to our spiritual survival and our first defence against false information.

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In the scriptures, Jesus Christ tells us that we can discern the true actions of others by the results of their actions ( Matthew 7:17 ; Matthew 12:33 ; Luke 6:43 ; Moroni 7:5 ). Why is it then that Jesus Christ also teaches not to judge by outward appearances? ( John 7: 24 ). It seems confusing when matching these scriptures together. Unfortunately, many will fail to understand how to use this power of discernment because of this confusion and instead opt out by labeling it as one of God’s untold mysteries. This would be a grave mistake for those who do that, especially in these last days when we must gain the knowledge, skills and experience to discern between good and evil when faced with false miracles and false teachers and prophets, for there shall be many.

As Jesus taught an evil tree cannot bear good fruit, he speaks about any person who commits an evil act and tries to misrepresent it as something different, is revealed to his true intentions by discerning the true nature of the act. In this case, Jesus says that an evil act carries the nature of evil within it.

The judge not by appearances refers to outward appearances and not the inward nature. For us to be able to make a righteous judgement, we must be able to discern the true nature within the act for that judgement to be just and right. Again in the same context of the act as being evil, judgement does not refer to imposing penalty or railing accusation, it refers to the determination or discern of what is true and making your own choice in regards to yourself and for those under your purview. This basically addresses events and situations within a person’s personal life, the place where each person has authority and power to judge, choose and act freely, which is where the freedom and right to choose between good and evil resides.

To relate this to everyday life, Jesus spoke about the discernment of actions, not only of yourself, but of others, in other that a proper address is made rightly and righteously. In reference to your own life, it is the power to address the true nature of events and achieve a resolution, much needed change or change of direction.

Every action committed carries within it, its true nature. This is seen in circumstances created by the action taken. Let me give an example, one that most people do.

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It is unfortunate that so many preachers and teachers of the scriptures exist today, where almost all of them are false, having none of God within them and none of God’s Spirit with them, teaching doctrines favoured by men. Test the spirits of those who speak is crucial to protecting faith. There is no justification to allow false teachings to take hold within your mind and heart, not for any reason, because false teachings are sinful. False teachings are contrived by the carnal mind and the carnal mind will always be an enmity to God. False teachings or false doctrines are not of faith,  and this means that anything not of faith is sin. This is how serious false doctrines and teachings are to true faith.

When faced with the countless preachers and teachers out there that profess belief systems and doctrines, how can you ensure that your faith is protected and not infected by these falsehoods? The answer is to test the spirit of those words.

Testing the spirit is not solely by comparing word for word in the Bible, as so many other Christians profess to do. This is not the way Paul the Apostle taught. He made it clear that the letter of the word killeth, only the spirit gives life. This says that to compare the letter of the word for the letter of the word will get nothing in return but darkness and misunderstanding, but to compare the spirit of the word, which words are spirit and they are life, will get truth. This means to learn and exercise spiritual discernment, just as Paul the Apostle teaches. When a person learns the gospel by the revelation of Jesus Christ, he will learn the spiritual meaning and application. Then and only then can a person test the spirits because then it is comparing spiritual with spiritual.

When a person is able to compare rightly, then he/she is “rightly dividing the word“, which gives the power to  test the spirits of others and their words, to spiritually discern if they speak God’s word or not. If not, what is said is rejected or treated as “of the world”.

Until that time that you learn to rightly divide the word and spiritually discern, keep one’s faith a distance from preachers, teachers or presenters (famous or not). Staying at a spiritual distance until you work out with God what is true. Never give any person’s words justification, such as “they are just giving provoking thought, or trying to progress, or they are just beginners in a beginner church, etc. Such justifications in your heart and mind weaken faith because sin is justified and God cannot accept sin in any degree. A good Christian, a good Saint speaks respectfully to false speakers, but at no time accepts falsehoods or false doctrines and stands strong in the faith, which can only occur when living the true doctrines of the gospel.

(Note, the words in italics are words matching scriptural passages in the King James Bible)

Outside of this Church, how many Christians believe that the Holy Ghost continues to give revelation, which is direct communication? That has become a crucial question in light of worldly events that are happening and due to happen in these last days on the earth. Biblical prophecy dictates that a storm of evil is forthcoming. War skirmishes, unknown diseases and encomomic collaspe are but a small example of what this world is to suffer, which Christians agree.

Christendom has repeatedly claimed that all we need is the Bible and nothing else. They claim that the Holy Ghost is in them and all revelation they need is in the words read in the Bible. Many other Christians believe that they get all the guidance they need for their life from the Bible, but is this true in all respects? It is true the Bible holds God’s wisdom for the common aliments of life and gives counsel of what we are to do and believe, in general, but a serious problem arises in light of the ongoing fulfillment of prophecies for these last days. Will the Bible be able to provide the right counsel for these times, at the right moment, to tell or warn you of things not yet seen and give the right counsel and direction? In fact, the Book of Mormon, Doctrine of Covenants and Pearl of Great Price face the same problem. What then is the answer to this concern?

In Christendom, there are more than 34,000 different Christian denominations across the world. All are different and they do not all have the same beliefs in Christ and salvation. In other words many have differing doctrines about the same thing. Some believe in baptism by water, others believe baptism by sprinkling, others baptism by desire and others, no baptism at all. Some believe Jesus Christ is a real person and others merely an expression from a greater single being. Some believe the Holy Ghost still communicates, others claim such communication has ended with the end of the early Christian Church and believe that the Holy Ghost is no longer needed since we have all we need in the Bible. Yet there are many different Bible versions which exclude scripture, added scripture, mistranslated the original Hebrew and Greek texts or purposely left out some things for some unknown reason. It is these Bibles that other Christians claim are sufficient.

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I have read quite a few statements by ex-members who claim they have seen the light that this Church is false and they spent years believing in the wrong church. Reading their personal accounts I have found an alarming trait with all of them. None have claimed that God told them to leave, not one. 

The beliefs that each of them held, to account for leaving the Church, have centered on some claim that the Church lied, or mistreated them, or that they claimed the Church is false after reading some book or article about some historic account that tainted the Church, etc etc. With that, they professed the Church was false. 

Not one of their claims have originated from the Spirit of God, not one of their beliefs is spiritually based, not one is spiritually justified. Wouldn’t a spiritual basis be the foremost important reason for staying or leaving, knowing that it is only the spiritual that God works in and determines if a church is his?

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There is an endless array of claims against Joseph Smith and this Church, so much so, it would be hard to count them, but from time to time, I feel there is a need to address some of these claims, for faith reasons. What would be my reason to address only a few? The reason is to express spiritual common sense and first hand knowledge and experience toward those Anti-Mormon claims, showing the foolishness of them.

Over the many years, from the moment of Joseph Smith’s First Vision, his creditability was attacked. It began the moment Joseph Smith related the First Vision to a Methodist preacher who flatly denied him and essentially called Joseph a promoter of the devil. The vigor and fervor of that opposition spread and grew.

This says that the First Vision preceded any claims about Joseph Smith and because of the First Vision, evil intentions rose in others which Satan grabbed hold of and worked it to death (pun intended). From that point on, problems existed about so called “testimonies” made by people against Joseph Smith.

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There are many other Christians who speak against the use of feelings in regards to faith and the discernment of truth. Some Christians use the Bible to deny the idea that impressions from the Holy Ghost are felt based on the idea that we cannot trust feelings. Others denounce the idea of feelings because it has no basis in fact or logic, claiming that feelings about Mormonism is far too subjective.

Bible passages used by others to discredit the use of feelings are, Proverbs 3:5 ; 14:12 ; 28:26 and James 2:24, to name a few. It appears that religious beliefs about feelings fall into two basic camps. The ones who deny feelings to promote facts and logic and the other camp that declares feelings as a means to determine if they are saved. Either way, when reading the beliefs of these two camps, I see that there is no real understanding of the scriptures and what God teaches about feelings.

Many of the members of this Church are converts and some of these converts came from both camps, the “fact” camp and the “feeling” camp. It is reasonable to believe that either convert would likely experience some degree of struggle with their past beliefs in the face of the doctrines and teachings of this Church. With the ties to their past still affecting them, it can be difficult to make the transition. The “fact” believers would have to learn the spiritual truth (facts) about feelings and the believers from the feeling camp would need to learn and develop a better perspective of “feelings” in reference to spiritual truth and the gospel.

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I was going to speak a little on tattoos and what they reflect as to the spiritual state of the world, but recent events now brings me to speak on this topic of “Catering to Beliefs”.

I have seen many people from the Church on the Internet make such an effort to interact with others who are nonmembers. In their efforts, they try to be understanding to “opinions” and make the effort to avoid contention with other contrasting beliefs. These efforts have gone as far as appeasing others who have been contentious or degrading against other Latter-day Saints members.

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With the array of differing doctrines in the general Christian community among the many Christian denominations, one wonders who is true and who is not. I say this from the perspective of a new convert or one who is investigating which church to join.

When I researched the many beliefs of the many Christian denominations, I began to find a consistent pattern among all of them. This pattern refers to “perspective”. The thing within each person that determines how he/she will view and comprehend God’s word. It is “perspective” that will either serve a person well or mislead them.

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