I’ve had several hits from search engines on the last post I wrote on the Mormon confirmation prayer. I want to give some clear information for anyone who might find it useful regarding this prayer. Maybe you’ve just sat with two clean-cut, nicely dressed, sincere, young Mormon missionaries (called Elders), and they have shared with you the story of Mormonism. They have more than likely then asked you to read the Book of Mormon and pray to see if what they say is true. They have based this off James 1:5, and probably told you that you will getting a feeling like a “burning in the bosom.” So now you’re at the point where you’ve probably been presented with a lot of new information, and you’re thinking, “Now what do I do?” I have one word for you: Don’t! And here’s several reasons why not.
The first reason you should not pray this prayer is simple: it’s not for you! If you read James 1:5 it says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” It is a great promise, but here’s the problem- if you’ll go back and read verse 2 you’ll see that James directs this promise to his brothers (and sisters). James is addressing this to people who are already followers of Christ and have the Holy Spirit. This is not a prayer for everyone. It is only for followers of Christ.
Mormons believe that their church is the only way to follow Christ. By their reasoning, they are asking you to pray a prayer based on a promise that is made to them, but not made to you. The reasoning is inherently contradictory. They are using a prayer for believers in attempts to convert someone who is not a believer.
At this point, hopefully you are beginning to see a problem with their methods. There’s a lot more you need to know. The next thing you need to know has to do with Joseph Smith’s first vision. Hopefully, the missionaries have shared with you that Joseph Smith claimed to have seen a vision of the Father and Son. If you have know the Bible well, you may see the irony here. If not, here’s what you need to know. 1 John 4:12 says “No one has ever seen God.” John 1:18 says the same thing (cf. John 6:46). When John says God he means God the Father. In Exodus 33:20 God tells Moses that he cannot see His face and live.
Now I hope you are seeing that you need to look further into Mormonism before you even think about this prayer. Here’s some things you should look into:
Polytheism & The Nature of God
I would suggest finding a copy of Joseph Smith’s sermon entitled the King Follett Discourse. A quick search should help pull it up online for you. Here are some statements that should catch your eye:
“God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens.”
This contradicts with several Scriptures: Psalm 90:2 He goes on to say,
“If the vail was rent to-day, and the great God who holds this world in its orbit, and who upholds all worlds and all things by his power, was to make himself visible,–I say, if you were to see him to-day, you would see him like a man in form–like yourselves, in all the person, image, and very form as a man; for Adam was created in the very fashion, image, and likeness of God, and received instruction from, and walked, talked, and conversed with him, as one man talks and communes with another.”
Not only is God an exalted man, but He is still like a man in form. Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not man, that he should lie,
or a son of man, that he should change his mind.” Next Smith adds,
“We have imagined and supposed that God was God from all eternity, I will refute that idea, and will take away and do away the veil, so that you may see.”
This one is clearly against all that the Bible says about God. To show this, we’ll turn to Isaiah 44:6-8, which says,
Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god. Who is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and set it before me, since I appointed an ancient people. Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen. Fear not, nor be afraid; have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses!
God is the first and the last. There is no time when He was not God, nor will there ever be.
We’re just getting started. Here’s where it gets interesting. Smith says,
“Here, then, is eternal life–to know the only wise and true God; and you have got to learn how to be Gods yourselves, and to be kings and priests to God, the same as all Gods have done before you,–namely, by going from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity to a great one,–from grace to grace, from exaltation to exaltation, until you attain to the resurrection of the dead, and are able to dwell in everlasting burnings and to sit in glory, as do those who sit enthroned in everlasting power.”
Whoa! Hold the phone! “Learn how to be Gods?” What is Smith talking about now? The previous quotes have taken the God of the universe and stripped Him down to being an exalted man. Now Smith exalts man and says, “you will be like God.” These were the serpent’s words to Eve! In Genesis 3:5 Satan says to Eve, “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Smith goes on to say that you will do “the same as all have done before you” Gods? Plural? Let’s go back to Isaiah. Isaiah 45:5 says, I am the Lord, and there is no other, besides me there is no God.” Isaiah 46:9 says,” I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me.”
Deuteronomy 6:4 tells us the “Lord is one.” The Bible is clear. There is only one God. The other gods of the nations are false. Those who hope in other gods will be put to shame. So is this just an isolated example? Not at all. Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and several other early Mormon “prophets” taught polytheism and deification (that man becomes a god). Brigham Young taught that Adam was God the Father and came to earth to be the literal father of humanity. These are not isolated statements, but reflect an overall trend toward polytheism that is progressive in Mormonism. Missionaries won’t present you with these things. They may even be naively unaware of them, but you need to know!
The Book of Mormon
The next thing you must know is that the Book of Mormon is a fraud. It purports to have been written by Israelites who migrated to North America 600 years before Christ. There are several anachronisms that blatantly contradict the Bible. Joseph Smith copied whole passages from the King James Bible and changed words to make them mean the exact opposite of the biblical passage (Isaiah 2:1-9; 2 Nephi 12:1-9). The book of Jacob ends (7:27) with the word “adieu.” “Adieu” is a French word; a language not yet in existence in 600 BC! There are several quotes from New Testament books written in the first century and books of Old Testament prophets written 50-200 years after the Book of Mormon.
The Book of Mormon claims that these Israelites built a temple in the Americas like Solomon’s temple in Israel. 1 Kings 5 tells us that the temple construction took 183,300 men. The immigrants to the Americas came with just a few men. Even if they could find the materials to build a temple, it would take hundreds of years for them to reproduce and have enough manpower. Not to mention that there is no evidence of any mining or construction of this magnitude anywhere in North America! (See Gleason Archer’s Appendix in his Survey of the Old Testament Introduction textbook)
Prophets and the Gospel
The basis of the Mormon claim is that at the death of the apostles, the entire church changed the gospel and went apostate (left the faith). Here’s the problem with that statement: In Matthew 16:18 Jesus says of the church, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Deuteronomy 18:22 says if a prophet speaks and it whatever he predicts does not happen, he’s a false prophet. Jesus is making a prophetic statement. If the church went apostate in the 1st or 2nd century as Joseph Smith and the Mormon church claim, then the gates of hell have prevailed and Jesus is a false prophet. If Jesus is a false prophet, Joseph Smith is too and Mormonism is false. If Jesus’ prophecy is true, then Joseph Smith’s most basic claim is false, and Joseph Smith is a false prophet. There is no other option. It is a lose-lose for Smith and Mormonism.
The absolute most important thing you need to know is that Mormonism teaches a different gospel. It is a gospel of works that is alien to the teachings of the New Testament. They teach that the gospel and commandments of the Mormon church go hand in hand. This is another gospel. Galatians 1:6-9 is clear that there is only one gospel. Paul says, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.” 2 Corinthians 11 is clear about anyone proclaiming another Jesus (v. 4, which Mormonism does), but the greatest caution Paul gives is this one about false teachers:
And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.
Satan disguises himself as an angel of light! Those who follow him will appear to be good people. They will wear nice clothes, comb their hair, come from good families, and seem to be all around good people. They are not as they seem! Watch out! These are the proverbial wolves in sheep’s clothing, and some of their best converts are church members (from Southern Baptist churches!) who aren’t properly equipped to deal with their claims. Ask questions here. Do research. Find a former Mormon who became a Christian and ask them why they left.
There is so much you need to know before you even think about praying any prayer or entering into Mormonism. I would suggest doing a lot of reading scripture and researching the background of Mormonism. Joseph Smith’s past is littered with idolatry, sorcery, and lies. He made many prophecies that failed. He translated a whole book (the Book of Abraham), which turned out to be an Egyptian book of the dead (“The Book of Breathings”). I would suggest a couple websites and books to aid in your research:
Have You Witnessed to a Mormon Lately by James Spencer
Mormonism Unmasked by R. Phillip Roberts (has a great appendix on the differing definitions of words between Mormonism and Christianity that shows how Mormons use Christian words with altered meanings attached)
Mormonism Explained by Andrew Jackson (downloadable from gigapedia)
A Survey of the Old Testament Introduction by Gleason Archer (has some great information on Mormonism in an appendix that I cited above)
http://www.irr.org
http://www.utlm.org
The True Gospel of Jesus Christ: Jesus is the promised Savior, sent by God to live a perfect life of obedience, die in place of sinners on the cross, and rise from the dead, conquering death. To be a follower of his, you must submit to him as the Lord (absolute ruler) of your life. He makes all the decisions and you joyfully obey his words, which are found in the Bible. A true follower of Christ is actively participating in a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching, doctrinally sound, local body of Christ called a church. Followers of Christ should be obedient in baptism, love others (especially within the church), and participate in the Lord’s Supper.
For more information on how to become a follower of Christ or how to find the type of church described above, feel free to contact me at: AJ633@netscape.net
