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In the spirit of making peace, I will go even further in personal revelation, tantiboh.

Your immortal soul is a most precious thing, to God The Father Almighty. And as a lowly Christian that I am, your soul is most valuable to me, also. [I shall return to that notion momentarily] I have spent literally decades studying the Bible, from angles you wouldn't even imagine at your age. I happen to believe the striving of Mormons (as different from the religion itself) is behavior after God's own heart! God has said clearly that He will in no wise ignore the broken and contrite spirit in a man or woman.

I've met and spoken with many Mormons, most are 'converts' from a Christian sect. This conversion is always as the result of Mormonism sowing doubt regarding the salvation the 'convert' thought they had before meeting Mormonism missionaries. Only a small percentage of milk-fed or starving Christians convert when confronting Mormonism, but that tells us something about the plea to the mind of those who may well have started their Christian journey with salvation in Christ, then the 'birds of the air' swept in upon the good seed'.

When Jesus handed the keys to Peter, and the Holy Spirit came down upon the believers at Pentecost, the great commission was to go into all the world and preach the Gospel ... OF GRACE ... baptizing the believers, those who will come unto Him, in the name of The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. In the day of Cornelius, the arrival of the Holy Spirit into the believer was evidenced by tongues, etc. and then the believers were baptized. The important thing to note is that the commission was to bring the gospel of Grace, and baptize any who would receive it. Salvation was the central theme of Christ's great commission to the Apostles and believers at His Ascension.

I've had missionaries bring the Mormonism message to me on several occasions. NEVER have they begun the exercise asking if I am saved; never have they begun their mission with the essentials of the great commission. They are there to proselytize for members to the Mormon religion. I speak/write to you and any readers of this post the single vital reason for Christ appointing believers the task once salvation is theirs ... be converted to trust in the Saving Grace of God in Christ, then be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind ... focus upon Jesus and your relationship with Him, wherever He finds you, whenever He calls, however He works in you to will and to do of His good pleasure to transform you.

Can one find Christ in a false religion? That is wholy up to God's Spirit, but if the scriptures are any indication, with the numerous examples of people caught up in cults and things like Baal worship, the answer is 'He will not contend within the confines of heresy.' It is only when someone steps out of the heretical worship regimen that God's Holy Spirit will be heard within.

If I were to sit idle while what I honestly believe is a false religion claims to be not only a Christian manifestation but the ONLY representative of Christ with true restored authority today, I would squelch the Spirit within me Who has been instructing me for lo these many decades. If I pass you by in your grievous state of spiritual injury, I am what Jesus spoke of in the story of the others not the Samaritan and the injured man on the road. If your soul is precious to my Lord, can I treat it as nothing, to be ignored when your mind shares heresies you believe in?

If you love the Lord --as Saundra Duffy has spoken several times on a thread in which she started her discussion with a diatribe against those who would strive against what they honestly believe are Mormonism heresies-- then you will hear as I plead with you to turn away from this false teaching, and turn to the Lord Whom gave Himself for your ransom. He will guide you then, whether you remain in the Mormon religion or not, but He will eventually guide you away from heresies as you allow His still small voice to do in you. I beg you to open your mind and ponder the gross contradictions in Mormonism where compared to the message Jesus taught. If the book of Mormon is from God, leaving it closed whle you study the Bible intently will not be difficult, for the Truth from God doesn't change. Give it a try, I plead with you. Let your considerable intellect focus solely upon the Bible message found in the New Testament for a spell. Allow His voice to be heard within and ignore a 'burning in the bosom' which Satan can produce quite easily. This is not an emotinal thing. God wants to renew your mind!

MHGinTN, I sense your earnestness; and I appreciate your kind words and frank testimony.

When I follow my Lord, I do much as you do; I study the matter out in my mind; I pray for guidance, for help, and for knowledge; and I finally come to a conclusion based on scripture, sound judgment, and good advice. I then approach the Lord in humble prayer for confirmation. The results are remarkable, and familiar to many who follow God. Paul expressed it far more eloquently than I:

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
(Galatians 5)

These are the fruits of the Spirit. When my conclusion is wrong, my mind darkens, and my heart empties of peace.

But when my conclusion is right, my soul fills with the love, joy, peace, faith, etc. described above.

Thus, my beliefs are forged not from thought and intellect, nor from heart-felt emotion; but rather an alloy of the two. This is the “burning of the bosom” of which we speak. And it is strong indeed. Foundations of faith deeper than the roots of the mountains are built thereon; and they are immovable.

Christians all over the world feel this certainty that I describe - and I am sure you are no exception - as they try to know Christ and follow His will.

But I have felt this when I have humbly, faithfully, and with real intent asked about the truth of the Book of Mormon as the word of God and of Joseph Smith as the Lord’s prophet.

In each instance, I have been filled with the mental certainty - the clarity of thought - that explains to me - and only me (in other words, I find it impossible to transmit that thought through words) - that Joseph Smith must be a prophet of God. It’s divinely sensible. And that the Book of Mormon must be the word of God - there could be no other way. It’s clear and it’s certain. Surrounding and enveloping this acuity is a soul filled with peace, love, goodwill, and joy.

And I know. I just know. And that knowledge cannot be moved. It is deeper than the mountains; it is founded in the testimony of the Holy Spirit to my very soul, and it cannot be denied. It’s a precious gift.

And Christians all around the world know that it is not the Devil’s work, for the Devil cannot speak to the soul with the voice of joy and charity and faith in Christ. Only God has that voice.

And I have had the same powerful experience when I’ve asked if Christ lives; if He loves me and if I am following Him. The answer has always been yes (though I cannot claim that the answer has always been yes when I’ve asked if I please Him). I join with you in rejoicing in Him and testifying of Him.

And the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in which we both delight, is that the same certainty can be had by the humble, searching soul at any time, no matter the person. It’s a joy that I seek to share.

Perhaps defense of my faith is contrary to all this. Perhaps, by arguing with those who disagree with me, I offend the Lord. I do not know the answer to this question; and I continue to search my soul; it is certain that at times I am clumsy, and at times I am less than charitable. I am rife with human faults, and will be for the duration of my life. Therefore, I depend on the grace of my Lord and Savior to see me through.