Posted on 09/15/2009 8:21:31 AM PDT by Colofornian
“HI, we’d like to talk to you about Jesus Christ!”
Standing tall, two young and well-dressed American boys at my door broke the ice instantaneously. Happy to see them, I said that we were Christians too. What happened next, however, took me by surprise and left me scrambling for words. Stating that they were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, they said they wanted to talk about a prophet and a book given to the prophet by God. Though a little shaken, I refused to hear their ideologies — they left only to return another day in a bid to coax me.
In today’s world, cults are very much a reality. Cults are widely prevalent in our country, in our city too. An unexpected encounter with cult members can leave us disturbed. As Jesus warned, during the last days, there will be many people proclaiming different ideologies in His name. It is our duty to be vigilant and strong in faith.
God’s Word says that many deceptive spirits will be on the loose, waiting to swallow the unaware. So do we know how to discern deceptions? We may know that their claims do not align with God’s Word, we may even understand that their belief is not the Truth – but how do we handle encounters with cult members? How do we prepare ourselves to face the challenges of the last days? One way is to be aware of the different cults and to understand their approach.
Take the case of Mormons. Mormonism and polygamy go hand in hand - an attractive proposition for today’s world. ‘Mormonism’ has a good number of followers in the US and several other parts of the world. But the Mormons have been in Chennai as well for nearly a decade now and have slowly yet steadily increased in numerical strength.
A conversation based on such beliefs can perturb anybody, especially if we are not prepared. THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER spoke to a cross-section of senior church leaders, who threw light on how we could tackle such encounters. Each of them shared valuable insights on how to be prepared always, how to answer cult members, and how to watch and pray.
Pastor P Vijayaraghavan of the Apostolic Church said, “I know that the Mormons have been around in Chennai for about 10 years. They’ve grown a lot and that wouldn’t be possible but for their polygamous behavior.” He agreed that as believers, we should know Christian truth well enough to be able to decipher cults.
“Cult groups have something novel to offer to people and especially exploit their gullible nature,” said he said.
Pastor Arthur Devadoss of Hosanna Ministries had an interesting anecdote to share.
“The Mormons gave me their book sometime ago and I didn’t even bother to read it. They came back for the book and fought with me,” he said.
However, Pastor Devadoss is worried about another new church group.
“There is a new group called the Indian Church of Christ that approaches people with visiting cards; they worry me the most. They speak the local language and lure youngsters to join them. They, too, propagate polygamy and immoral relationships,” he said.
He has briefed his congregation well about such cults and has asked them to stand up for their beliefs. In case they are unable to do so, he asks them to just invite the cult followers to their church or refer them to the pastor. “They’ll never trouble you again,” Devadoss affirmed.
Pastor Jayakaran Emmanuel of Power House Church echoes this view.
“It’s better for you not to entertain them. Since we know their beliefs are misleading and untrue, don’t encourage them and they won’t approach you further,” he said. Is there anything else that a believer needs to be aware of to tackle these cultists?
Rev. D.C. Premraj, Presbyter of St. George’s Cathedral, said: “There are just a few things that we should watch out for. First, we should be strong in our beliefs. We must make an effort to understand what we believe in. Second, as our faith and belief grow, we must be grounded Biblically. Our foundation must be clear and strong in God’s Word. Third, during any such encounters, check for Biblical context. Anyone can quote from the Bible, but we must know how relevant and contextual it is.”
Confirmation classes and Bible studies conducted by churches are aimed at making the believers’ steadfast in their faith, Rev. Premraj added.
Pastor Jagadeesan Kalyanakumar of Harvest Christian Assembly quoted Ephesians 4:16: “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.” He added: “The rule of thumb is that if you know the original, you can identify the counterfeit. And the more familiar you are with God’s Word, the better you can discern and safeguard yourself from deceptive doctrines.”
In all this, the Bible is the final authority to check any doctrine. Sola Scriptura, meaning the Bible alone, is the key theme in the church’s reformation of the 16th century.
The Jehovah Witnesses, for instance, proclaim Jesus to be an angel with extraordinary powers. But the Bible very clearly says that He is the Messiah, the only begotten Son of God who revealed God and his love to humanity (John: 3:16). Another example, the Mormons’ scripture includes the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.
As Christians, Pastor Joshua Jeyaseelan, Tamil Baptist Church, said: “We have one revealed Word of God which is the Holy Scripture (II Timothy 3:16). So any new doctrine or cult has to be analyzed and understood in the light of the Scripture.”
Pastor Vijayaraghavan said, “We must know how to identify a cult and that’s by knowing what they are. Cults are major deviations from orthodox Christianity relative to the Bible’s cardinal doctrines such as the Trinity, the deity of Jesus Christ, the second coming, millennial reign, and salvation by the grace of Jesus Christ.”
It is our responsibility to understand our beliefs, our stand. Just like the wise man that built his house on the Rock, if our foundation is strong and built on Jesus, it will not be shaken.
Today, it was I who met with the Mormons, tomorrow it could be you. Let us watch and pray for the salvation of cult members and for God to grant us the wisdom to stand strong in His Word.
All other truths are found HERE........................
God wasn't foolin' around when he said.........."beware of false prophets"......................
“Amen! Jesus Christ is my Savior, too. (I’m LDS.)
If you are a Christian, come out from among them -
for what fellowship does light have with darkness?
2 Corinthians 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? [NIV: Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?]
15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
Thats a lot of red tape to get to heaven NoRedTape!
Their cows won't get more or less pregnant by having only one bull, but a farmer only has to feed one bull - the rest are steaks in his freezer. It's a matter of economics not reproduction.
“Neither Boast of Faith Nor of Mighty Works”
Really? You haven't heard of the Mormon-only mansions is heaven? They call it the Celestial Kingdom - and if you're not Mormon, you're not going there, period.
Isn't that right, Sandy?
Inaccurate. In error. Mistaken. You're trying to tell all of us that no Mormon polygamous union was practiced in the 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s? What? Do you think when Woodruff hit the brakes on polygamy in 1890, that all these poly-philanderers just tossed their extra "household labor unions" out on the streets?
(Not on your life).
So even on plural unions taking place among say, a man in his mid-20s in early 1890, that man was still 75 years old in 1940. Now, when you add to the facts that B. Carmon Hardy, in his 1992 book Solemn Covenant: The Mormon Polygamous Passage, placed an appendix of about 220 plural unions that secretly took place between 1890-1910, and you see that he has names, dates, marriage dates & death dates, there's some 3-way mainstream Mormon plural unions who were still alive in the early 1960s.
Go ahead & talk to Mormons -- & they'll tell you they knew of such families still around in the '50s & early 60s.
This doesn't even take into consideration the Mormon "cousins" -- the fLDS -- which has practiced polygamy to current times.
Yeah, I call it Kolob Heights. (Only is only "high" in terms of how far the fall is -- see Isaiah 14:12 and following)
What nonsense! This is 2009 last time I checked.
OK, let's look at the 20th & 21st century calendar, + what I'll call "Mormon 'time'."
1900-1910: About 100 Lds plural unions secretly solemnized by Lds official leaders ... often in Mexico, where it was illegal there too (they just didn't have to worry about enforcement issues there).
1910-early 1960s: Additional plural unions almost ground to a halt between 1910 and early 1940s...when the fLDS emerged and since the Mormons never did away with D&C 132 -- 'twas still on the official "scripture" books & was still canon -- whose fault was the fLDS Mormon breakaway?
Why 'twas the mainstream Mormons! The fLDS were just being faithful, loyal "retro" 19th century traditional Mormons!!! ['Tis like an elderly wife complaining, as she sits close to the older-model pick-ups' passenger window, about how they don't cuddle anymore as a couple, and the husband-driver asks, "Well, who moved?"]
Early-to-mid 1960s:
#1 The final mainstream Mormon earthly polygamous unions die out...but the spirit of mainstream Mormon polygamy was still "alive and well" on planet earth because...
#2 1963: A survey says 40% of Mormons said they would pick up the polygamy bandwagon where it left off if their "prophet" told them to...
#3 1966: Lds apostle Bruce McConkie publishes a book called "Mormon Doctrine" (revision book under the closely supervised eye of Spencer W. Kimball, future Lds "prophet" who was assigned to be such a mentoring watchdog to McConkie by then LDS "prophet" Harold B. Lee). What did McConkie, holding a position that Lds leaders say is interchangeable with the "prophet," say?
"Obviously the holy practice (of polygamy) will commence again after the Second Coming of the Son of Man and the ushering in of the millennium." (LDS apostle Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 1966 edition, see pp. 577-579 for context)
2009-?: Well, obviously, Jesus could return at any time. So, for all we know, per apostle McConkie, Mormon polygamy could be re-established Sept. 15, 2009!
As for "Mormon time" I'm referencing the "non-years" of what Lds call the "celestial kingdom" -- the supposed place where Mormon god-spirits die after living on earth. This, supposedly, is a parallel universe -- existing right now -- for eternity -- where supposed marriages are forever. Therefore, the statement, Saundra, you're complaining about, is a true statement IF Lds polygamy is eternal.
Questions for you, Saundra:
Are 19th & 20th century "good" Mormon polygamists still polygamists on the other side of the veil?
Are 19th, 20th, & 21st century Mormon earthly monogamists -- who serially married multiple spouses for eternity -- likewise eternal polygamists?
And isn't that true of women as well as men -- Lds official policy is that some women will have multiple husbands for eternity?
Joseph Smith holds the keys of this last dispensation, and is now engaged behind the vail in the great work of the last days.
I can tell our beloved brother Christians who have slain the Prophets and butchered and otherwise caused the death of thousands of Latter-day Saints, the priests who have thanked God in their prayers and thanksgiving from the pulpit that we have been plundered, driven, and slain, and the deacons under the pulpit, and their brethren and sisters in their closets, who have thanked God, thinking that the Latter-day Saints were wasted away, something that no doubt will mortify them—something that, to say the least, is a matter of deep regret to them—namely, that no man or woman in this dispensation will ever enter into the celestial kingdom of God without the consent of Joseph Smith.
Brigham Young, October 9, 1859
Journal of Discourses, Vol. 7, p.289.
Cows ???
Yeppers thats what one of the early mormon leaders called women...
“I think no more of getting another wife than I do of buying anoher cow...”
Does God say that ???
Yes and no. There's no strict denominational correlation earth to heaven. You'll find. Presbyterians. You'll find ex-Presbyterians. You'll find ex-Mormons. Etc.
But the Bible talks about many dividing lines in different word pictures applied to different groups of people. We know, for example, that Matthew 25 says the "goats" won't get in. Now just because "goats" isn't a current "denomination" doesn't mean we don't have goat-like sects.
What we DO see from Scripture is that God judges peoples BOTH individually -- and corporately. Jesus judged entire towns when visibly present on earth. He also judged entire geographical churches in Rev 2 & 3.
A key dividing line Jesus makes, referencing twice, is Did He Know us? Was He in a communicative, vibrant, living forgiveness-based relationship with us? Were there too many false intermediaries & 'prophets' between us -- blocking Him out?
A second key dividing line Jesus makes is in John 17:3: "And this is eternal life, that you know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent."
That relationship then has to be two-way -- Do we KNOW THE ONLY true God -- or is it a deeply false characterization of Him? [Quick quiz: Do you think other real gods exist? If so, you don't know "THE ONLY true God" per John 17:3]
For example, you could think you know someone very well in an online relationship -- but it can turn out you didn't know that person at all. You had illusions. You had false impressions. You had misguided understandings based upon what your friends & family members told you about this person.
If we think God is only or primarily a strong stern lawgiver, precept-keeper, ordinance regulator, commandment-keeper, temple recommend checklist keeper and know little of His grace, mercy, and compassion, we will respond to Him much differently than if we had a more balanced perspective. And that can have eternal consequences.
To bad 'ol Joe didn't have the keys to the Carthage Jail. Instead, the poor schmuck was shot while trying to escape.
The Egyptians sure had a good laugh at 'ol Joe's translations, though. Laughter is good for the soul.
WOW! My little church puts out a detailed statement every month showing what was taken in and what it was spent on, how much is left over etc. I mean every single detail.
“Mormonism and polygamy go hand in hand “
_____________________________________________
Yes, they do...
One of the main reasons that Joey Smith started his home made religion was for an excuse to cheat on Emma...
And SD, please refrain from cursing and taking the Name of my Lord, the God of the Bible in vain...
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