No Coincidences

Tag: prophet

Truths Removed from the Bible: What does the Book of Mormon tell us about Baptism?

I like to think about what critics would say as proof against the Book of Mormon. I think it helps to have responses to honest concerns about its validity. I always hope something I read, know, or especially my testimony can one day help someone to see what I see, the truth of this ancient record.

The Book of Mormon makes a very important claim. The claim is that many plain and precious truths have been removed from the Bible over time. When Joseph Smith first translated the Book of Mormon this was an outlandish and inflammatory statement. Even more so than today. Christianity in the early to mid-1800s had a firm belief that the Bible was infallible.

From a website (https://stepbystep.alancminer.com/) I’ve loved using to study alongside the Book of Mormon, I read this:

“Richardson, Richardson and Bentley write that while the Book of Mormon testifies to the authenticity of the Bible, it does not claim that the Bible is without error. It specifically states that there were many “plain and precious things” that were deleted from its pages through the evil works of men. (See 1 Nephi 13:20-32; 19:10-12; 20:1-3; 2 Nephi 3:5-22; Alma 33:3, 13, 15; 34:7; 46:23-27; Helaman 8:19-20; 15:11; 3 Nephi 10:14-17; 12:13, 17-19, 22, 29-30; 14:1.)

Scholars of the Bible have found indisputable evidence that the Bible has indeed suffered many deletions. Non Mormon scholarship has concluded that the gospels found in the New Testament have also been manipulated.”

Critics may ask for specific examples of any “plain and precious truths” found in the Book of Mormon that are not also found in the Bible.

The website I mentioned above goes on to list 24 plain and precious truths removed from the Bible and where they are laid forth in the Book of Mormon. I’d like to go over an extremely important one.

Baptism is only for those who are accountable (Moroni 8:5-23).

I know of nowhere in the Bible that lays forth the age of accountability. Should children be baptized? We know baptism is of the utmost importance:

John 3:5 “Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”

What does the Book of Mormon teach us on the subject of baptism? Moroni chapter 8 is full of profound truths found nowhere in the Bible. I will quote portions of the chapter here but encourage everyone to read the chapter and ponder its truthfulness.

8 “the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me (Jesus Christ), that it hath no power over them”

9 “I know that it is solemn mockery before God, that ye should baptize little children.”

10 “repentance and baptism unto those who are accountable and capable of committing sin; yea, teach parents that they must repent and be baptized, and humble themselves as their little children, and they shall all be saved with their little children.”

11 “And their little children need no repentance, neither baptism.”

12 “But little children are alive in Christ…if not so, God is a partial God, and also a changeable God, and a respector of persons; for how many little children have died without baptism!”

15 “For awful is the wickedness to suppose that God saveth one child because of baptism, and the other must perish because he hath no baptism.”

19 “Little children cannot repent; wherefore, it is awful wickedness to deny the pure mercies of God unto them, for they are all alive in him because of mercy.”

20 “And he that saith that little children need baptism denieth the mercies of Christ, and setteth at naught the atonement of him and the power of his redemption.”

Who can read this and deny the truth that speaks to your heart and soul? It is so clearly laid out. So perfectly explained.

What about how to baptize? There is so much confusion in the world on not only when but how. Does the Book of Mormon provide an answer? Of course! 3 Nephi 11:24-28.

24 And now behold, these are the words which ye shall say, calling them by name, saying:

25 Having authority given me of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

26 And then shall ye immerse them in the water, and come forth again out of the water.

27 And after this manner shall ye baptize in my name; for behold, verily I say unto you, that the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost are one; and I am in the Father, and the Father in me, and the Father and I are one.

28 And according as I have commanded you thus shall ye baptize. And there shall be no disputations among you, as there have hitherto been; neither shall there be disputations among you concerning the points of my doctrine, as there have hitherto been.

How lucky we are to live in the dispensation of the fullness of times. I’m grateful for the Book of Mormon. I’m grateful that it clarifies what has been a point of contention within Christianity for centuries.

Christ was our ultimate example.

2 Nephi 31:5 And now, if the Lamb of God, he being holy should have need to be baptized by water, to fulfil all righteousness, O then, how much more need have we, being unholy, to be baptized yea, even by water!

Click below to learn more about baptism as it has been perfectly restored through the Gospel of Jesus Christ by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/true-to-the-faith/baptism?lang=eng

October 1, 2020
Freedom

Let’s take a quick trip through history. Bear with me on the history recap, I swear it will be brief.

The Revolutionary War started in 1775.

Some rag-tag colonists decided to stand up to and fight for independence from the greatest power in the world. I’ll say that again, a group of mostly untrained men decided to take on the greatest military force on earth at that time. Louder for those in the back, a group of settlers stood up to THE world superpower.

Can you believe how truly insane that was? Just that they revolted was crazy. Surely that got smashed into submission…right? WRONG!

They won! Independence. How? Tons of stories from that time point to divine intervention. We can save those for another day.

244 years ago, July 4, 1776 The Declaration of Independence was signed.

1777 The Articles of Confederation were written. This would be the first constitution of the United States.

1787 The Constitution we have today was written.

1791 the Bill of Rights was written for the United States.

Amendment I of that Bill of Rights:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

1805 The Prophet Joseph Smith was born.

1820 God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to Joseph Smith.

1827 Joseph Smith received the golden plates.

1830 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Christ’s restored church was re-established on the earth.

Fourteen short years after the Bill of Rights was established and set forth the freedom of religion in this choice nation a prophet was born. 29 years after the established freedom of religion Heavenly Father appeared to His prophet. Four short decades after the Bill of Rights was ratified Christ’s Church was restored.

Think about that for a moment. Human history spanning thousands of years. Yet, somehow, within 15 years of a free nation set forth the guidelines for free religion, a boy was born who 15 years later would claim visitation from God the Father. He would establish a church from meager means. Within 200 years that church would have millions of members across the globe.

Talk about all the coincidences.

It was less than 40 years after freedom of religion was established in the United States of America that the Church of Jesus Christ was organized.

What spectacular timing.

I know there aren’t coincidences in God’s plan. I know he reared up and prepared inspired, God-loving, intelligent men to establish this great nation. Men who desired freedom above all else. I know that soon after they did their part in establishing this free country it was finally time in God’s plan to establish His Church. There had to be a place for the Church to be restored first. There was nowhere else in the world the Church of Jesus Christ could have been established.

God works in miraculous and spectacular ways for His purposes.

I know the exact timing of Joseph Smith’s birth and the exact timing of the freedom of the United States were no coincidence. They were planned out long ago.

On this Fourth of July I’m grateful to our founding fathers.

I’m grateful to Joseph Smith.

More than anything I’m grateful to God for His perfect plan.

I’m grateful for a country where I can worship whom, how, and where I please. I’m grateful that I can pray in private or public. I’m grateful to be born in a country free. I’m grateful that I’ve never been truly persecuted for my religious beliefs. We live in a special country. We live in a country founded on true principles: freedom, liberty, and equality. I know it took some time for those principles to be truly established and I know we’re still working on some of those principles. But the principles are there. There are still parts of the world, many parts of the world, where freedom, liberty, and equality are not even considered.

The most important principle of all that this nation was founded on: faith and belief in God.

I know right now America is in a predicament. We have turned from God. God gave us this great nation and helped its establishment. Now we spit on Him and marvel at our own great strength and power. We’re American! THE Global Superpower. Doesn’t that sound familiar. We know what happens to global superpowers that rely on their own strength.

If we don’t humble ourselves and confess to whom we owe all, God in Heaven, He will take back His land. We are only as strong and powerful as our faith in God allows. Like England during the Revolutionary War we will fall if our pride is not removed. We must return to God. He founded this country and it will continue to degrade until we return to the source of all strength. It’s time to repent.

I love this country. I hope we can return to our principles and be better. I hope we can love God and keep Him here with us.

GOD Bless the USA

July 4, 2020
Which Church?

I often have religious conversations. As often as possible I try to have those conversations with people of different faiths.

I’ve had great conversations with someone who is devout in their faith of Jesus Christ. He doesn’t believe the Book of Mormon to be true. We have many great discussions. Our discussions are always extremely cordial, soft-spoken, and kind. I think we are both extremely aware and conscious of our tones when we get into topics. Early on in our discussions things would get somewhat heated every once in a while. I don’t remember a time when we yelled at each other or it ever got out of hand, but there’s always this feeling when we talk. It’s a feeling of being on the edge of a cliff. Like we’re justttt teetering on the edge of it being a full-blown argument. We could topple over the edge at any moment.

Our discussions are almost always centered on disagreements. There are many, many things we agree on. Obviously, what good is it for us to dwell on those things? We get to the meat of our differences and try to learn from each other, I love it. But like I mentioned, there’s always this dangerous balance. It makes sense since we disagree.

Our extra-cautious approach protects us. We both love Jesus Christ and His principles with all our hearts. We’ve both been saved by Him in powerful ways. I believe this is what keeps us from toppling over the edge. The constant fight within ourselves to let love, tolerance, patience, and agreeing-to-disagree trump those powerful emotions brought on by Satan in the midst of a heated discussion centered on doctrine and eternity.

I’ve had similar discussions with many different faiths. Catholics, Presbyterians, Bahai. I’d like to have these discussions with every faith on earth.

If we all believe in Christ we should all be able to agree on so many points, right?

No matter what there’s always that feeling. Are we going to go over the edge? Is this going to turn from friendly banter and growth to a “I’m right you’re wrong!” And a storming out of the room?

This particular friend I started the story about and I have in the past discussed John 17:21:

“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou has sent me.”

When we had this discussion my point was this: How can we be one in Christ if so many sects disagree?

His standpoint is that as long as we believe in Christ we are one. We are all one under Christianity. Under this great umbrella, we are all one in Him. That sounds great, and I love that. In theory that is so beautiful. There are some immediate problems with this, though. For one, I’ve been told I’m not Christian. Where do we go from that? For another, I’ve mentioned the contention that so easily arises when two groups disagree. As much as we want to be one in Christ, how can we be when there’s that underlying tension of disagreement? While millions of people can have a good Christ-like conversation with other faiths, there are also wars over these topics.

Let me be EXTREMELY clear about one thing. There is some truth and light in all religions that teach and promote peace and love. I love any religion that brings someone closer to God and especially if it brings someone closer to Christ. All religions that love Christ and focus on Christ have light to them.

There seems to be this issue when the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims to be THE True Church of Jesus Christ.

The millennium is coming. A time is coming when all Christians in the world will begin to be persecuted. It won’t matter if we’re Baptist, or Catholic, or Protestant. What will matter to the world is the belief in Christ. As the world unites against Christians, what banner do Christians unite under? Is it Christ alone? Is there no one organization He would have us look to? With all the arguments, contentions; standing on the edge, ready to topple off, between different Christian sects, how can we possibly unite as one? If we do unite, who do we listen to? What do we follow?

God is a God of order. He wouldn’t have us blindly wander as the world unites against all believers. He can’t have us guessing which way is up and which way is down. So, where is our banner? Do we follow the Catholic Church, the Pope? Do we follow some non-denominational sect? We’ve never been able to unite. When the world is in chaos, will that be the time the Christian world pulls it together and joins as one? I don’t see that happening. Especially as the world in general becomes more and more divided.

We must be one. We must be united in Jesus Christ.

My belief is that the Church to follow is Christ’s restored Church. There is no more beating around the bush. The Church of Jesus Christ has come out with a worldwide declaration that makes clear what we’ve always declared:

“In humility, we declare that in answer to (Joseph Smith’s) prayer, God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to Joseph and inaugurated the “restitution of all things” as foretold in the Bible. In this vision, he learned that following the death of the original Apostles, Christ’s New Testament Church was lost from the earth. Joseph would be instrumental in its return.
“We declare that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, organized on April 6, 1830, is Christ’s New Testament Church restored.”

The declaration is clear. This is the banner. The keys of the gathering of Israel were handed down to Joseph Smith by Moses himself. Those same keys have been passed down for 200 years and are now in the possession of God’s prophet on the earth today, the speaker of the above declaration, President Russell M. Nelson. Only by God’s official authority could the gathering of Israel be accomplished; without contention, without fighting, without controversy.

This is my testimony and I leave it in the name of my Savior, Jesus Christ, amen.

__________________________

If you would like to learn more about the gathering of Israel, the keys that have been handed down, the restoration of Christ’s Church, and why the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sends out so many young men and women to preach the gospel, please click below:

https://www.comeuntochrist.org/belong/meet-missionaries

A missionary would gladly teach you more about what we believe. Thank you for reading.

June 18, 2020
Book Review: The Joseph Smith Translation. Precious Truths Restored

The Joseph Smith Translation. Precious Truths Restored

by W. Jeffrey Marsh

Copyright 2002

______________________

There are multiple ways I judge a book. It can be so entertaining I can’t put it down. I can feel enlightened by it, like I’m learning constantly through its pages. Ideally a book does both. I think this book more was on the enlightened, learning something from it category.

I realize most people aren’t going to enjoy the books I’m enjoying. Few people get excited about learning about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is a book I wish every active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints would read. It did so many things for me: taught gospel truths, built my testimony of Joseph Smith and his divine call, and probably the biggest thing I took away from it, better understanding of the Bible.

A statement from the summary on the back of the book states it:

“will guide you through the history, significance, and insights found in the Prophet Joseph Smith’s translation of the Bible.”

The biggest takeaway I got from this book was the knowledge of how blessed I am to have the Joseph Smith Translation (JST) of the Bible and the fact that I’ve never once doubted its truthfulness and divine nature. The book goes a lot into the history of the JST. I didn’t know there were many years that the JST was regarded skeptically by members of the Church.

I am truly grateful to be living while I’m living, with so much truth and light surrounding me. This book helped me appreciate how lucky I am. There was a part of the book where the author talked about how there would one day be a generation that never doubted the divine nature of the Joseph Smith Translation. He talked about how that generation will know the scriptures better than any prior generation. That generation will know Jesus Christ better than any prior generation, due to the truths restored by Joseph Smith. He talked about this generation that will have more fullness of scriptures than any generation ever had. Truly the fullness of times.

This made me appreciate my place in time, my place in history, my place in the fullness of times more than ever. It’s never been a doubt to me that the Joseph Smith Translation is holy scripture and worth studying. It helps me trust Joseph Smith as a prophet and teaches me more about Jesus Christ.

I know these things aren’t to be taken for granted. Our generation isn’t gifted greater scriptural knowledge simply by living now. We must study and learn. If we devote ourselves to the Word of God, there is more out there for us to devour and grow from than any people on this earth has ever had the opportunity to know.

I’m so grateful to be alive today and I’m so grateful to Joseph Smith for the truths he restored.

____________________________

To learn more about the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible go here:

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/revelations-in-context/joseph-smiths-bible-translation?lang=eng

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/joseph-smith-translation-of-the-bible?lang=eng

May 22, 2020
Seer Stones

Imagine giving someone a spyglass in the year 600. A spyglass is the refracting telescope you picture pirates using on the open sea before finding their target. The sinister pirate stands on deck, extends the spyglass to its full length, looks through one small hole and sees what his own two eyes could barely make out on their own. A ship. Ripe for plunder. The spyglass wouldn’t be officially invented for 1000 years, in 1608 by most accounts.

Imagine giving that to someone in the year 600. They would be amazed; it would be such a phenomenon to them. Another example is the microscope, also invented around 1600, but perfected over the next 400 years to what we have now. That would blow someone’s socks off in the year 600.

The James Webb Space Telescope is replacing the Hubble Space Telescope, the most powerful telescope known to man. Imagine showing that to someone in 1830. There’s a good chance they wouldn’t believe their eyes. There’s a good chance the people from these times would consider what they’re being shown witchcraft or sorcery. If you showed someone a modern-day microscope found in every high school science class and told them you could see the cells of a plant they might put you to the stake for burning i.e. Salem Witch Trials.

The James Webb Space Telescope is described:

“will provide improved infrared resolution and sensitivity over Hubble, and will enable a broad range of investigations across the fields of astronomy and cosmology, including observing some of the most distant events and objects in the universe, such as the formation of the first galaxies.”

I don’t know what all that even means, and I’m here, in the year 2020. The word “events” seems to imply that this telescope will be powerful enough to literally look so far away that we’re seeing the past. I won’t get anymore into the science of telescopes and microscopes because I didn’t pay enough attention in my science class to give accurate information about that.

My point is this: if in history you showed someone a device that wouldn’t exist for 1000 years, they might not believe it, or they’d think it was some sort of magic. That is exactly how people reacted in 1830 when Joseph Smith talked about seer stones. Miraculously, it’s how people react today to the idea of Joseph Smith using seer stones.

The natural eyes of Joseph Smith were seeing revelation and things of the spiritual realm just like we look through a telescope and see things that we previously could not. God-fearing people everywhere believe in heaven and hell, God and angels, and yet can’t accept a prophet of God seeing things we don’t. The concept of a stone being the medium should not be a stumbling block. Who in the year 600 would have thought glass would be the medium with which we look into the cosmos?

Our nature today is to be so skeptical of anything of a spiritual nature. If you stop and look at it in a logical sense, the principle is sound, the logic is there. The same people today who hold a cell phone, press an icon on a screen, type in a statement, and suddenly have billions of results, scoff at the idea of a stone that helps translate ancient scripture. How crazy is that? 99% of people today don’t understand internet, email, or electricity yet use it every single day. To be clear, I don’t understand how most of those things work, I don’t understand the intricacies involved. I don’t have to understand, I see it in front of me, whether I understand it or not, the proof is there. It exists.

Seer stones are not cooky, bizarre, unprecedented technology. They are a different kind of telescope. When Joseph Smith looked into them, he saw, through revelation and the power of God, things he couldn’t see with his natural eyes. A person in 1830 couldn’t comprehend a mobile phone. Many today refuse to comprehend the thought of a seer stone. It doesn’t mean seer stones didn’t exist. There’s so much we don’t understand, and we are marveled by technology daily. Is it that difficult to think God had a device that would allow man to do extraordinary things long before the mobile phone?

I know that seer stones exist, just like cell phones. I know that Joseph Smith used them to translate an ancient record. The Book of Mormon wasn’t written by a natural man. It was translated through the medium of a seer stone, provided by God. All of us here in the year 2020 who don’t understand how the very phones we hold provide all the miracles they do, how can we be so skeptical?

______________

For anyone who would like to learn more about seer stones the link below is a great resource and watch this short video:

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/seer-stones?lang=eng

May 12, 2020