What Mormons Believe--according to a Former BYU Professor
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JohnPaul
Soldier of Jehovah and Christ
The word "cult" is a slur and people use it for the same reasons they use every other slur.
Which is not to say that a person cannot have reasonable objections to JW theology-- I certainly do, but the word "cult" is not helpful.
Likewise a person can have objections to any other theology and slurs are still not helpful.
On a per capita basis, the JWs probably suffered as bad or worse persecution under Nazi Germany dominion than the Jews... because for the most part they would suffer imprisonment or die rather than recant.
Some people describe a cult as being almost anyone who disagrees with their own view of what a Christian is. From my standpoint, I avoid calling any group a cult, because who among all of us has shown ourselves to be flawless in our view of what is the perfect child of God... or Christian. Even calling people Christians is problematic since as we, in these United States of America, supposedly comprise about 80% of the population, but it don't look much like Christ to me.
For me neither the JW's nor the Mormons as a group are worse than many [most?] of the other supposedly Christians groups around us:
"Judge not, that ye be not judged.
For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye." Matt 7:1-5
Is our own vision of ourselves so clear that we are able to render a judgment any others completely fair in the eyes of God? I don't point at other here without also pointing at myself.
Help us dear Lord!
JohnPaul
Soldier of Jehovah and Christ
That is a great post Amadeus, I don’t consider Mormons or Jehova’s Witnesses cults, and you are right.
JohnPaul
Soldier of Jehovah and Christ
Sister Jane, I don’t know you but I love you sister, God Bless you and watch over you.
My thanks to all who participated in this thread. It was very interesting indeed. I got to know some of you better, and I learned some things I didn't know.... But all of this discussion is meaningless if we miss the most important thing.
What is the gospel of Jesus Christ?
Question: "What is the gospel of Jesus Christ?"
Answer: The word gospel means “good news,” so the gospel of Christ is the good news of His coming to provide forgiveness of sins for all who will believe (Colossians 1:14; Romans 10:9). Since the first man’s sin, mankind has been under the condemnation of God (Romans 5:12). Because everyone breaks God’s perfect law by committing sin (Romans 3:23), everyone is guilty (Romans 5:18). The punishment for the crime of sin is physical death (Romans 6:23) and then an eternity spent in a place of punishment (Revelation 20:15; Matthew 25:46). This eternal separation from God is also called the “second death” (Revelation 20:14–15).
The bad news that all are guilty of sin and condemned by God is countered by the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ. God, because of His love for the world, has made a way for man to be forgiven of their sins (John 3:16). He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to take the sins of mankind on Himself through death on a cross (1 Peter 2:24). In placing our sin on Christ, God ensured that all who will believe in the name of Jesus will be forgiven (Acts 10:43). Jesus’ resurrection guarantees the justification of all who believe (Romans 4:25).
The Bible specifies the content of the gospel message: “Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time” (1 Corinthians 15:1–6). In this passage, Paul emphasizes the primacy of the gospel—it is of “first importance.” The gospel message contains two historical facts, both supported by Scripture: Christ’s death and His resurrection. Both those facts are bolstered by other proofs: Christ’s death is proved by His burial, and His resurrection is proved by the eyewitnesses.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the good news that God provided the way for man to be freed from the penalty of sin (John 14:6; Romans 6:23). But not all people will be saved from hell; only those who place their faith in Jesus will go to heaven when they die (Acts 4:12).
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the best news anyone will ever hear, and what a person does with this news will determine where he or she spends eternity. God is calling you to choose life. Call on the name of the Lord and be saved (Romans 10:13).
Source: What is the gospel of Jesus Christ? | GotQuestions.org
.
Question: "What is the gospel of Jesus Christ?"
Answer: The word gospel means “good news,” so the gospel of Christ is the good news of His coming to provide forgiveness of sins for all who will believe (Colossians 1:14; Romans 10:9). Since the first man’s sin, mankind has been under the condemnation of God (Romans 5:12). Because everyone breaks God’s perfect law by committing sin (Romans 3:23), everyone is guilty (Romans 5:18). The punishment for the crime of sin is physical death (Romans 6:23) and then an eternity spent in a place of punishment (Revelation 20:15; Matthew 25:46). This eternal separation from God is also called the “second death” (Revelation 20:14–15).
The bad news that all are guilty of sin and condemned by God is countered by the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ. God, because of His love for the world, has made a way for man to be forgiven of their sins (John 3:16). He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to take the sins of mankind on Himself through death on a cross (1 Peter 2:24). In placing our sin on Christ, God ensured that all who will believe in the name of Jesus will be forgiven (Acts 10:43). Jesus’ resurrection guarantees the justification of all who believe (Romans 4:25).
The Bible specifies the content of the gospel message: “Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time” (1 Corinthians 15:1–6). In this passage, Paul emphasizes the primacy of the gospel—it is of “first importance.” The gospel message contains two historical facts, both supported by Scripture: Christ’s death and His resurrection. Both those facts are bolstered by other proofs: Christ’s death is proved by His burial, and His resurrection is proved by the eyewitnesses.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the good news that God provided the way for man to be freed from the penalty of sin (John 14:6; Romans 6:23). But not all people will be saved from hell; only those who place their faith in Jesus will go to heaven when they die (Acts 4:12).
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the best news anyone will ever hear, and what a person does with this news will determine where he or she spends eternity. God is calling you to choose life. Call on the name of the Lord and be saved (Romans 10:13).
Source: What is the gospel of Jesus Christ? | GotQuestions.org
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aspen
“"The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few
Sadly there is so much Scripture that is denied by JWs that it's hard to find a common basis for even a reasonable and coherent discussion.
It is especially hard when Scripture and what it says are not the main focus.
I find it especially hard when contradictory "scriptures" are competing with the only true written word of God--the Bible. And the Bible is misinterpreted according to these contradictory "revelations." This is probably true of just about any cult, I would think. Either the Bible is added to, or the Bible is grossly misinterpreted, or both.
You know the little rhyme? "Wonderful things in the Bible I see, 'specially what's put there by you and by me..."
I think that the practice of reading people's choice ideas into the Scriptures is far from limited to cults...
Oh indeed; particular when they impinge directly onto the Person and work of Christ, in the doctrinal scheme of things.
I guess my point was that the hermeneutics / interpretation methods used by cults is far more broadly applied, so often, sadly.
Nondenom40
Active Member
The hermeneutic of the cults isn't to harmonize their beliefs with scripture, but their church. We see this with catholicism every day, the church this, the church that. Their ccc even says to read the Bible with church history and tradition in mind. Mormons have their apostles. Jws have their elders in Brooklyn. Catholics have their 'infallible magesterium'. Any other book or person elevated to the same level as the inspired word of God should raise a red flag.
I'm always wiling to talk. I do prefer to put the most important things first in conversation (Christ, salvation, faith).
Totally agreed. I get SO frustrated when topics get trapped in non-scriptural things that are of little (if any) importance.
That's true of any group.
Unfortunately, within the bounds of Sola Scriptura, no one can prove which interpretation is correct.
And Protestants have their traditions, Luther, Calvin, the Creeds, etc.
Let's look to God, not man and his traditions.
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