Do you want to know Christ?
Well, that�s all. If you read through all of this, and you are of the Mormon faith, I want to first say thank you (If you're not, please go to the Resources and Keys page). My purpose here wasn't to personally attack you, or to ruin your life, or anything else of that antagonistic nature. Look at it this way: this site is no different than what your churches missionaries do every day. I believe that the Bible holds the truth that the world needs, and I want to share that with you. But I don't want to leave you hanging, now. I sincerely hope you read everything and took it to heart. If you did, you have a choice to make: who are you going to believe? Will you follow Joseph Smith, a sinful man, who has shown to not be the prophet he claimed to be. Or will you accept what the Bible says and follow Jesus. You must choose one or the other, you can not do both.
Since you now are following LDS teachings, there is a terrible weight on your shoulders; you are in a very unfortunate predicament: you have the impossible burden of Perfection.
Perfection. The unending demand that you be "worthy". It permeates every single aspect of the LDS spiritual walk. Spencer Kimball wrote, "All blessings are conditional. I know none that are not" (Remember Me 23). You are then given verses which supposedly prove this demand, the most common being "be ye therefore perfect, even as you Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5:48). Kimball also wrote:
"Being perfect means to triumph over sin. This is a mandate from the Lord. He is just and wise and kind. He would never require anything from his children which was not for their benefit and which was not attainable. Perfection therefore is an achievable goal" (Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles)Unfortunately, Kimball has misunderstood this passage, in trying to use it to explain progression. Jesus plainly says "be perfect," not "become perfect." The two cannot be mistaken. And this passage cannot be considered "corrupt", as it is commonly used by your church. The fact is, perfection is an unattainable goal. No one can ever be worthy enough to gain exaltation/ salvation. No one. On the contrary, everyone is sinful, and, thus, deserves to go to hell. You have been given an utterly impossible demand--there is no way you can ever become righteous enough to enter heaven. It's a hopeless cause, an unwinnable battle. So we're all doomed then, right?
No, there is a way. It's Jesus. Jesus loves you and desires to have a personal relationship with you! Let me explain, point by point, what the Bible says:
1. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). No matter how good we try to be, when we sin once, just once, we are guilty of breaking the whole law, and therefore headed to hell. Please take a moment and read these verses, which explain this: Romans 9:31-32, Titus 3:5-6, Romans 3:20, Galatians 2:16, Romans 11:6, Romans 11:35, Romans 3:10-12.
If we could work our way into heaven, Christ died for nothing! Galatians 2:21 says "if righteousness came by (following) the law, then Christ died in vain." But we can't save ourselves--we all deserve to go to hell, which brings me to my next point.
2. "The wages (penalty) of sin is death..." (Romans 6:23)! Death=hell=eternal separation from God. There is a real Hell. But you don't have to go there. God desires to spend eternity with you. Read on to see how...
3. But God loved us so much he made a way for us to escape that terrible judgment. He gave us a gift, something that cannot be earned, and only accepted. He sent His only son, Jesus to die in our place! Jesus, God's own sinless son, came to earth and paid our penalty! He made a way for us to escape that terrible judgment that we all deserve. The CROSS is our way out; our only hope. The price Jesus paid on the cross is His gift to you--you. Jesus died for you!(John 3:16-17, Romans 3:23)
4. How do we obtain that gift. It's so easy: all we have to do, all we can do, is repent, and accept Him as Lord and Savior of our life. Romans 10:9 says that if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our heart that God raised Him from the dead we will be saved! (Please also read Acts 2:21, Acts 16:30-31, Romans 10:13, Joel 2:32, Ephesians 1:7) That's it! Nothing more is required. And the Bible says that when we do so, we become a new creation in Him (2 Corinthians 5:17). You may be thinking that anyone can say they "believe", what�s the big deal? But belief isn�t just saying you believe something. Believing is a conscience act of your will. It�s not just paying lip service--it�s committing yourself to what you confess. God knows and judges the heart; He knows when it�s real. Faith is more than lip-service: it�s putting your confidence in Him, and giving Him your loyalty. Read on.
So what exactly is "accepting Jesus as my savior" mean? Well, since you have realized that you can never earn your way into heaven, it means admitting that you are a sinner, asking God to forgive you of your sins, and asking Jesus to take control of you life. That's all. And by his grace, God will do just as you ask; from then on you're a child of God! He will come into your heart and change your desires. Then the works will follow, and they are a fruit of your salvation--evidence of it, so to speak. And when you're a Christian, those same works, which mean nothing outside of salvation, finally gain importance in the sight of God.
Let me put it one more way, in case you don't understand. The Mormon hope is to become "worthy" enough that they will eventually gain exaltation. Sadly, that hope is in vain. But the Christian has realized that he/she will never be good enough, and that any good they do comes from the Jesus living inside of them. Christians do not believe that God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us, just as the roof of a greenhouse does not attract the sun because it is bright, but becomes bright because the sun shines upon it. James warned that shallow, �intellectual faith" was not real. Genuine faith alone saves, but genuine faith will not be alone. It will have good works accompanying it. You see, works alone are, in the least, nothing, and at most, evidence of a commitment. They are "fruits" of salvation; the effect, not the cause.
I hope you understand what I'm trying to say here. I will end by now asking you a question. If you've come to see that I've spoken truth here, then what is more important to you: holding onto a vain faith in a religion that is empty and based on a lie, or finding the truth, love, and the saving grace of the Almighty God? If you answer is the latter, and I sincerely hope it is, then you must accept that Jesus is your only hope. There is no other alternative. Every single person ever born is headed for an eternity, in either heaven or hell--it is each individuals choice as to where they spend it. That is the choice I mentioned above--God doesn�t have to send a person to hell, each person chooses to go there on their own.
I hope you choose heaven, and Jesus. If so, please pray the prayer as I explained above, to accept Jesus as your savior and Lord. Pray right where you are, right now. Don't pray to see if it's all true--you have seen that it is not. Just confess that you are a sinful person (as we all are) and ask that He forgive you and come in to your heart and take control of your life. Talk to Him like he's your friend, there in the room with you right now, because He is. You won't regret it, and you'll never be the same. To follow Jesus is the highest calling in life. There's nothing more fulfilling than a close walk with Him. We were created to serve Him, and only by doing so can we be truly happy and fulfilled.
Finally, if you did pray that prayer, let me just say a big congratulations! Welcome to the family of God. There is so much to tell you and so many reasons to rejoice right now. But I won't lie and say that everything will be easy. If you were heavily involved in the Mormon church then things obviously are going to be complicated right now. You're going to need the love and support of God and fellow Christians. I strongly urge you to do three things. One, go ahead and drop me a note. I would love to talk with you and support you and answer any questions you may have. Two, pick up your Bible and start reading. The Bible is where it's at, and you'll come to see that all the answers you need are found there. When all else seems to fail, trust what you read in the Word. I suggest the gospel of John, to start out with. As you read, go ahead and talk to God. He's listening and when you talk to Him (pray) you're developing a relationship with Him in an intimate and personal way, which is what He desires. Finally, find yourself a good Bible-believing church to get plugged into. Anywhere that teaches a solid Bible-based gospel is okay, whether it be Baptist, Nazarene, Assembly of God, Four Square, Evangelical, etc. All are Christian denominations who believe the same core doctrines. In church you'll find the fellowship, support, teaching, accountability, and worship opporutunities that will help you grow in your new faith. You also might think about picking up the book After Mormonism, What?, by Latayne C Scott. A local Christian retailer should have it or be able to order it for you, or you could probably find it through Amazon.com.