Vanity: Beware of False Prophets, False Prophecy

Matthew 7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

Kings 13:18 The old prophet answered, "I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the LORD: 'Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.'" (But he was lying to him.)

Jeremiah 23:16 This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they fill you with false hopes. They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD.

Ezekiel 22:27 Her officials within her are like wolves tearing their prey; they shed blood and kill people to make unjust gain.

Daniel 11:34 When they fall, they will receive a little help, and many who are not sincere will join them.

Matthew 7:14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Matthew 24:24 For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect--if that were possible.

Mark 13:22 For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect--if that were possible.

Luke 6:26 Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets.

John 10:12 The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it.

Acts 13:6 They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus,

Acts 20:29 I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.

Romans 16:17 I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them.

2 Timothy 3:5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.

2 Peter 2:1 But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them--bringing swift destruction on themselves.

1 John 4:1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Revelation 16:13 Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet.

Revelation 19:20 But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

Revelation 20:10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

Because they [Mormons] are simply Christians.

That also brings up an interesting question, bigheadfred? Who, then, are 'simply Mormons'?

You may be aware that there was a major split up of Joseph Smith, Jr.'s church after his death, because it was unclear who was supposed to succeed him as prophet (there were spin-offs before that too, but more on that later). The Brighamite branch of the church that is headquartered today in Salt Lake City, Utah is officially the Corporation of the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. After fighting against being called "Mormons" for years, and despite wanting to make the definition of "Christianity" to broad, they are darned parsimonious when it comes to the term "Mormons." They not only have a Style Guide for newspapers on the use of the words "Mormon" and "Mormonism," but they've successfully gotten the AP to agree not to use "Mormon" when referring to any religious group derived from Joseph Smith, Jr. (including that through his son), except the Corporation of the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Now, for a 'let's all just get along and call ourselves Christians' group, you would think that at least one of these 'restored churches' through Joseph Smith, Jr. would be considered to be fellow Mormons by the LDS, but no:

Short Creek Community
Latter Day Church of Christ
Apostolic United Brethren
Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Church of the Firstborn of the Fulness [sic] of Times
Church of the Lamb of God
Church of the New Covenant in Christ
Confederate Nations of Israel
Righteous Branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
School of the Prophets
Centennial Park
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Kingdom of God
True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days
The Church of the Firstborn and the General Assembly of Heaven
Blackmore/Bountiful Community
Restoration Church of Jesus Christ
Order of Enoch
Aaronic Order
Zion's Order, Inc.
Perfected Church of Jesus Christ of Immaculate Latter-day Saints
Church of Jesus Christ (Bullaite)
Community of Christ
Church of Jesus Christ (Toneyite)
Independent RLDS / Restoration Branches
Church of Jesus Christ Restored 1830
Church of Christ (Lion of God Ministry/Clarkite)
Church of Jesus Christ (Zion's Branch)
Restoration Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
Church of Christ (Temple Lot) (Hedrickite)
Church of Christ (Fettingite) (Hedrickite)
Church of Christ at Halley's Bluff (Hedrickite)
Church of Christ (Restored) (Hedrickite)
Church of Christ "With the Elijah Message" (Hedrickite)
Church of Christ (Hancock) (Hedrickite)
Church of Christ (Burtite) (Hendrickite)
Church of Israel (Hendrickite)
Church of Christ with the Elijah Message (The Assured Way of the Lord) (Hendrickite)
The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite)
Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite)
True Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite)
Restored Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite)
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite)
Holy Church of Jesus Christ (Strangite)
Church of Jesus Christ (Drewite) (Strangite)
True Church of Jesus Christ Restored (Strangite)
Pentecostal Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Whitmerite)

Or one of these defunct sects:

Pure Church of Christ (Clarkite)
Independent Church (Hotonite)
Church of Christ (Boothite)
Church of Christ (Parrishite)
Alston Church
Church of Christ (Chubbyite)
Church of Jesus Christ, the Bride, the Lamb’s Wife
Church of Christ (Pageite)
True Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
The Church of Zion (Godbeite)
United Order Family of Christ
Church of the Potter Christ
Church of the Firstborn (Morrisite)
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Gibsonite)
Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Most High
Church of the Christian Brotherhood
Church of Jesus Christ of the Children of Zion (Rigdonite)
Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite)
Primative Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite)
Church of Christ (Aaron Smith)
Church of the Messiah (Adamsite)
Church of Christ (Wrightite)
Church of Christ (Whitmerite)
Church of Christ (Brewsterite)
The Bride, the Lamb’s Wife
Congregation of Jehovah’s Presbytery of Zion
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Gladdenite)
Independent Latter Day Saints of Nigeria
Independent Latter Day Saints of Ghana
Apostolic Divine Church of Ghana

If the 'Mormons' don't consider any of these bellow believers in joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon to be Mormons, do they consider them to be fellow Christians? That may be an interesting question, bigheadfred. Just how big is the Mormon's "Christianity" tent?

On May 26, 1944, Joseph Smith, Jr., testified against dissenters at Nauvoo:

I have more to boast of than ever any man had. I am the only man that has ever been able to keep a whole church together since the days of Adam. A large majority of the whole have stood by me. Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast that no man ever did such a work as I. The followers of Jesus ran away from Him; but the Latter-day Saints never ran away from me yet.

That's an interesting quote from a prophet, particularly when you consider that some of those denominations above had already 'run away' from Smith and his church at the time he said this, primarily because he was taking other men's wives as his own, and fourteen year-old girls (which was not common during the era, despite what you may hear), and was lying about it.

But I digress. I wonder if these groups are 'simply Mormon,' or if the Mormons consider these fellow believers in the Book of Mormon "simply Christian," bigheadfred?

there was only one gun

Again, from the Official LDS History of the Church, Vol.6, Ch.34, p.617:

In the meantime Joseph, Hyrum, and Elder Taylor had their coats off. Joseph sprang to his coat for his six-shooter, Hyrum for his single barrel, Taylor for Markham's large hickory cane, and Dr. Richards for Taylor's cane.

Joseph with a six-shooter and Hyrum with a single barrel. That's two guns. From the LDS History of the Church.

I'm sorry you find things complicated. History and the facts often are. There was an entire war going on within the United States. There was an assassination attempt on a governor. A man had called out his personal militia and had declared martial law against the law of the United States and the law of the state in which was living, He had declared his own theocracy. You're aware, I assume, that Smith had not only had himself declared General of the Nauvoo Legion, but in both 1843 and 1844 had himself ordained as "Prophet, Priest, and King over the Council [of Fifty] and the world"?

Things are pretty complicated when a guy is having himself declared king of the world, is riding around in a general's uniform on a white horse, and is declaring martial law after starting his own illegal anti-bank (and fleeing the state when it failed) and ordering a printing press destroyed for printing a newspaper saying that he was committing polygamy, which publicly denied repeatedly, although he had at least 44 wives when he was denying it, wouldn't you say?

So again, based on the LDS History of the church, I disagree. Two guns were smuggled into the Carthage Jail. And they were smuggled in by an LDS member.

Want sources for it?

For Pete's sake. I gave her the page number in the LDS History of the Church where it says two guns. I gave her the link to www.fairlds.org where it says two guns and it quotes the History of the Church. Those are LDS sources and they say two guns. One is the official, as in OFFICIAL 'official' History of the Church, as in "THE" church, her church, The Corporation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. But I used the internet. Which is apparently a problem for her even though THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS HAS A WEBSITE.

What else are you going to give her that's going to make her happy?

I'd be rude and say 'dig up Joseph Smith and ask him' - but that would have been easy for years, because the Saints just stuck his body under an outbuilding and Hie Thee to ~~Kolob~~ Utah, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Missouri, and back to the rest of the farm, just letting him sit there. They weren't particularly concerned about the prophet. Nor were they worried for their lives. Many of them just hung around. Which is what gave us the RLDS, now the Community of Christ. A dead Joseph wasn't worth much, so I don't know that he's going to convince her there were two guns.

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