The intellectual dishonesty and rational disconnect it takes to be a Mormon continues to amaze me...
Posted on 03/17/2010 2:50:32 PM PDT by reaganaut
I write today for my son and other young men about what an extraordinary privilege it is to be an Aaronic Priesthood holder. You have been ordained and given POWER, by someone with authority from God, to act in God’s name on the earth today.
You know all about superheroes. It’s fun to watch movies and see the powers superheroes like Spiderman, Batman and Superman have. But that’s just the movies and not real.
However, from the moment you are ordained a deacon in the Aaronic Priesthood, you are given more power than all the superheroes in the world combined -- and it is REAL power. It’s a special power, of course, and it can only be used if you are living the commandments.
It’s also a power that lets you help others, but you can’t use it for selfish reasons: to get things or do things that Heavenly Father doesn’t want done. However, when you use your priesthood power righteously, wonderful things will happen and you will see miracles, from simple to awe-inspiring, in your life.
What does it mean to be ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood? First, it means God has enormous confidence in you. Imagine a powerful king who rules over millions of people telling you he trusts you so much that he is going to give you his signet ring.
When you have his ring you have the authority and power to do things in the king’s name. That king would have to love you very much and he would have to have enormous faith that you will make good decisions and do what is right.
But this is not a make believe situation; it’s real. Priesthood is the greatest power in the universe and our Heavenly king, God, will trust you with his power throughout your life as long as you remain worthy. He expects you to be sober, to keep the commandments, share the gospel and use priesthood power to help and serve others.
Second, more than the fact that you have power, being an Aaronic Priesthood holder means that you have duties and responsibilities given you. God requires you to do certain things and you will answer to him somedayabout how well you did what he asked you to do.
You can still have fun and enjoy life, but he wants you to be serious in representing him, honoring the priesthood and setting a righteous example for others.
A good way to understand what it means when you are ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood is to consider some of the responsibilities and blessings that come to you as a deacon, a teacher and a priest. All young men ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood hold the keys of the ministering of angels.
This is a literal promise and at times angels with attend and watch over you although you will not necessarily see them.
As a deacon you are to pass the sacrament, watch over the church, bear testimony of Christ, warn, expound, exhort and invite all members to come unto Christ. To do this you will need to keep the commandments, and carefully study the scriptures and the teachings of today’s prophets and apostles.
You are charged with helping the bishop by gathering fast offerings, caring for those in need, fellowshipping quorum brethren, and strengthening and uplifting the members.
When you become a teacher, under the direction of your priesthood leaders, you are to prepare the sacrament and are charged with speaking well of others and strengthening members by encouraging them to live the commandments.
You too warn, expound, exhort, teach and invite all to come unto Christ by home teaching, speaking in church, being an example of righteousness and integrity, and speaking kindly about others.
A priest adds to these duties baptizing and administering the sacrament. He is commissioned to visit members in their homes and to urge them to pray and attend to their family duties.
Isn’t it amazing how much the Lord trusts the young men in the church and how much he depends on them?
When Wilford Woodruff went on his first mission, he "went out as a priest, and my companion as an elder, and we traveled thousands of miles, and had many things manifested to us.
"I desire to impress upon you the fact that it does not make any difference whether a man is a priest or an apostle, if he magnifies his calling. A priest holds the key of the ministering of angels. Never in my life, as an apostle, as a seventy, or as an elder, have I ever had more of the protection of the Lord than while holding the office as a priest.
"The Lord revealed to me by visions, by revelations, and by the Holy Spirit, many things that lay before me.”
What a wonderful honor it is to hold the Aaronic Priesthood and how important it is to do everything in your power to always be worthy of this great privilege given you by God.
Saundra, serious question: what exactly happens when one is “served the sacrament”?
We remember the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ - what He did for us. We remember his body that was broken for us and His blood that was shed for us.
But you keep reading them. I think you’re coming along nicely.
AAAHH! Yes, WATER! That’s important, I had forgotten that. They are now consumed with wanting to be considered nominal Christians...but their “communion” directly assaults the idea of power in the blood. Kinda like Cain’s sacrifice....
Now it’s not so hard to see why Glenn Beck seems all wrong sometimes, huh?
Well, not quite. That is a CHRISTIAN answer but not really a full Mormon answer. According to the LDS the ‘sin bearing’ took place in the garden not on the Cross. And you forgot you renew your ‘baptismal covenant’ to ‘take upon themselves the name of Christ’ and ‘to keep all His commandments’. I’ve posted the actual prayers below.
Tell me Saundra, every week when you take ‘the sacrament’ and you promise to keep the commandments, do you really think that you will be able to keep ALL the commandments that week? really? not sin at all? If so, then you are lying to yourself. If not, then you are lying to God.
Note: These prayers MUST be recited EXACTLY, if the teenage boy who is reciting them messes up, even a little bit, then it MUST be resaid until he gets it correct. That is a lot of pressure.
I also find it interesting that the LDS complain about ‘rote’ prayers yet enforce them in their so-called ‘sacrament’ prayers.
Over the WONDER BREAD (the one for the WATER is identical except for water/blood/drink):
O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this bread to the souls of all those who partake of it; that they may eat in remembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him, and keep his commandments which he hath given them, that they may always have his Spirit to be with them. Amen
They are now consumed with wanting to be considered nominal Christians...but their “communion” directly assaults the idea of power in the blood.
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Yep. The water thing REALLY REALLY bugs me. The innocent blood of Christ was shed on the Cross for our sins and they just say ‘well, lets use water’.
Colo posted earlier about not using wine anymore b/c some people were getting drunk in St. George, but why not just use grape juice. That is what most protestant churches use anyway.
But they believe that the sin bearing blood happened as He was sweating in the Garden, and NOT being crucified on the Cross, and that it was only a ‘loan’ until they could work it off (and yes, I have sources for that), so of course they would play down the blood.
so that’s why they use water as a sacrament...
That is not good enough for me. The opinions of archeologists and scholars are limited by the available evidence, and colored by their presuppositions. Their opinions can change with the next new discovery. (That said, I find the scholarly support for the Book of Mormon to be impressive, if not conclusive.)
Moreover, the most important truths probably cannot be proven by any scholarly means. For instance, I believe that Jesus Christ arose from the dead on the third day; but there is no archeological "proof" of the Resurrection. How could there be? Jesus is risen; his bones are not to be excavated by an archeologist.
Saying something "contradicts the Bible" presumes that you know what the Bible says and means. Alas, the Bible does not interpret itself. Almost every verse in the Bible can be (and has been) interpreted various ways.
For example, I interpret James 1:4-7 and Moroni 10:4 as supporting each other:
5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. (James 1:4-7)
So I study things out to the best of my ability; and I pray to God for wisdom. I believe God will answer my prayers. Why should I believe otherwise?
Your need for agitation is telling.
Discuss the issues all you want, but do not make it personal.
His blood that was shed for us.
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The mormon god shed water ???
Oh yes thats right...
mormons believe that the mormon jesus sweated in the Garden of Gethsemane to save them the “atonemrnt”
the incidental later stuff was accidental and not part of the plan...
Thus the water to remembe the mormon jesus by...
While Chrsitians believe that the Christian Jesus shed His blood on the Cross and died on the Cross to save us..
and the Chrsitian Jesus commanded us to drink WINE to remember His death until He returns...
Some Christians use wine some grape juice in obedience to Jesus...either is acceptable...but NEVER water...
Mormonism corruptsa ever part of Chrsitianity...
mormonism is a heathen pagan joke...
the false prophet Joey Smith was a foul demonic anti-Christian, pedophile and adulterer, thief and murderer who hated God and hated the Bible and hated Christianity and anything decent...
Joey Smith boasted that he was greater than Jesus and so God destroyed him..
Mormonism is not Christianity...
So, for “proof” you rely on the current opinions of archeologists, historians, and (some) Biblical scholars?
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I never said any such thing.
I did not, in my post, appeal to the truth of the Bible based upon Archaeological evidence, and while there is plenty for the Bible, there is NONE for the BoM, no artifacts, no cities, nothing that any real archaeologist would accept (and I was past president of a large AIA chapter and know many archeologists). That is a straw man that YOU set up.
No, for ‘proof’ I rely on the Bible. Scripture (as a whole) interprets scripture. The Bible, taken as a whole is very clear on what it means. Various interpretations of verses are almost always (always) because the verse is taken out of context. LDS doctrine is a great case in point. Most LDS ‘proofs’ in the Bible can be refuted by looking at the correct context of the verse. The LDS appeal to different interpretations rings hollow since they consistently take Bible verses out of context.
Even the verses you quoted are taken out of context to ‘prove’ praying for the BoM (which is directly against the Book of Acts btw). James is talking about temptations, doubts (wavering) and looking to God for patience and strength (wisdom) when their faith is tested and not seeing wealth as a sign of favor (which the LDS also do).
It says NOTHING about praying for ‘personal revelation’ on if a doctrine is ‘true’ or not or is something is scripture. That is a GROSS misinterpretation.
James 1 2-10
2My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 3Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. 4But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. 5If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 6But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. 7For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. 8A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. 9Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: 10But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.
Why should you believe otherwise? Because trusting your ‘feelings’ can lead you to damnation. God asks us to trust HIM, not ourselves, not our feelings, not a denomination, and certainly not our ‘hearts’.
God gave us a mind, he expects us to use it and He gave us the Bible and He expects us to use it.
Let me point you to the logic of that question as seen through mormon eyes.
Adding to the Bible - Revelation 22:18 - by W. John Walsh, Robert L. Millet, Scott Drennan
Just to save you the trouble.
The closing paragraph reads thusly: It is the humble but bold testimony of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that God has restored His church, given additional scriptures, and continued to guide His church once again through modern revelation to a modern prophet and a modern twelve apostles. Just as the first coming of Christ was not an unprophesied event, so this greatly prophesied preparatory era prior to Christ's second coming should also not surprise the serious student of scripture.
An unparalleled unique prophetically promised clarion call of such splendorous stupendous significance decidedly deserves real review, not canon-closing cliches sourced from superficial scholarship of Revelations readings!
I agree with the author of my previous post...this "read and pray about it ploy" is nothing but a bait and switch attempt to sway the unaware, and is rooted in the guile of the father of lies, the great liar, Lucifer.
I’m proud of them all...though some I could do without...
That's an impressive genealogy, Nana..and just think! They have all been baptized and confirmed as members of the mormon church. ;)
The intellectual dishonesty and rational disconnect it takes to be a Mormon continues to amaze me...
Please do share this impressive scholarship...
New troll on the block, just ignore ‘em...
Could you proved a link to this scholarly support?
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