>>And you could not have been fooled ?
If you pray to God can just anyone answer? If so, how do you know anything? Could you be being fooled? At some point, we all have to say this, this thing, this is real.
>> Healing the sick, raising the dead, stilling the storm, walking on water, calling the fire
>>of God down to consume sacrifice, parting the sea, providing water from a rock,
>>building the ark, etc.
I have personally healed the sick using the priesthood, and it was nothing short of miraculous. I have used the Gift of Tongues to learn Chinese in less than two months. I have cast out unclean sprits by the power of the priesthood. I have not needed to do the other things you list here (Arc building for example is kind of a specialized need.) I have seen others do similar things, to what I have done, I see this requirement of yours as fulfilled, then again, I expect it to be, you expect it not to be.
Ye shall have no witness until after the trial of your faith
Mark 8:12 And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign? verily I say unto you, There shall no sign be given unto this generation.
If you are asking for a sign, I offer none.
>> And I have not proclaimed myself the self-annointed bearer of the restoration
>>of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
You assume he was self anointed, because you don’t believe the other evidences.
>>Joseph Smith did this. Biblically, he should have had a more witness ...
>>to substantiate his claim.
The three witnesses of the book of Mormon ( http://scriptures.lds.org/bm/thrwtnss )
The Testimony of the Eight Witnesses (http://scriptures.lds.org/bm/eghtwtns )
Joseph Smith’s Own Testimony (http://scriptures.lds.org/bm/jsphsmth )
How many witnesses did you say were needed?
Matt 18:16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
2 Corr 13: 1 THIS is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.
I think he has that many.
Just in case, will my witness do?
>>I've seen his (Joseph Smith's) misses.
Yep, and Jonah, Job, Moses, even Christ Himself had people who saw “Flaws” whether or not they were there. That is what faith is all about. If Christ came to you personally and taught you the gospel, your need for faith would be ended, you would know.
And I have not proclaimed myself the self-annointed bearer of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
You assume he was self anointed, because you don’t believe the other evidences.
What evidences are those ?
And, for heavens sake, don't let me get started on the anti-evidences (i.e. no historical confirmation of BOM story, no trace of Jewish DNA in the early American populations, no historical knowledge of any 'Reformed Egyptian' language, etc.)
Joseph Smith did this. Biblically, he should have had a more witness to substantiate his claim.
The three witnesses of the book of Mormon ( http://scriptures.lds.org/bm/thrwtnss )
The Testimony of the Eight Witnesses (http://scriptures.lds.org/bm/eghtwtns )
Joseph Smith’s Own Testimony (http://scriptures.lds.org/bm/jsphsmth )
How many witnesses did you say were needed?
Not one of these witnesses knows that what Joseph Smith said was true.
At the best, some of these saw something which could be described as 'golden plates' ... but only Joseph Smith has any real knowledge of what was written thereupon ... or not.
And it is quite possible that even Joseph Smith doesn't know ...
... and that he was just a pawn, himself, in a great spiritual deception.
And ... of course, the evidence (the golden plates) have vanished, ... so that noone else can examine them ... or read any writings that might have been there.
How fortunate we are that the Biblical scriptures are much more present. That we can read for ourselves (if we but learn Greek or Hebrew) ... what the original writers wrote.
How fortunate we are that the Biblical sagas ... are well-established in the historical record.
How fortunate we are that the Biblical documents (which are available for all the world to see) ... sprang from the writings of over 40 authors, writing over the course of thousands of year, ... and yet, all telling the same story.
When one looks at the foundation for the BOM, one realizes that it is all held up ... by just one testimony (that of Joseph Smith). If Joseph Smith was wrong or deceived, then the whole Mormon structure comes crashing down.
How fortunate we are ... that the Bible rests upon much more solid ground.