“So is what all of you Mormon haters are saying is that that original church, which I believe is that papist Catholic Church, the only one around in 33 AD, the only true church with the only real Jesus?”
Mr. Oldbill,
“The Church” is the spiritual body of Christ. He is the head, and believers in Him are members of His body (Romans 12:4-5). They came into His body by believing that He was God’s Son sent to save His people from their sins. It is by God’s grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that we true Christians are saved.
The Church was not in existence during the lifetime of Jesus. She was born after Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection during Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was given to indwell all believers permanently. The first ones to receive His Holy Spirit were His apostles and disciples. They were all Jewish, not Gentiles, not Catholic. Then as the gospel of salvation through Christ spread and men believed, the Church increased and it didn’t take long before the majority of believers were Gentile.
The best answer to questions about the birth of the church is found by reading the New Testament. This is what this Mormon family did. Please watch the video; it shows how they found the truth.
“The Church was not in existence during the lifetime of Jesus.”
Matthew 16:18 “ “Tu es Petrus et super hanc petram aedificabo ecclesiam meam”
(”you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church,”)