Mark
11-09-2015, 10:55 PM
To me what ultimately distinguishes Mormonism from Christianity are as follows.
1. Christians believe in God "who alone" (1 Tim. 6.16) was "from everlasting" (Neh. 9.5). Mormons do not. So one uncreated Creator only! "Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God." (Is. 44.6) Jesus said, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last" (Rev. 22.13). God the Father is the first and the last, and Jesus is the first and the last. God the Father is the great I AM. Jesus is the great I AM. God the Father is the Alpha and Omega. Jesus is the Alpha and Omega. So these are 2 of the 3 Persons in the Godhead.
2. The uncreated Creator would be the Trinity of 3 Persons in the Godhead whom manifested to us as Father, Son and Spirit, for the Son to show perfect obedience to the Father as only God the Son can do even though they are co-equal in the eternity of the past as 3 Persons (Persons is a spiritual term). Jesus said He counted His equality with the Father as something not to be grasped, because He emptied Himself of His independent divine attributes when He entered His creation in the likeness of flesh to atone for sins to be both fully man and the fullness of the Godhead bodily.
3. Jesus created everything so Jesus is one of the Persons in the Godhead. "All things were made by him [Jesus]; and without him was not any thing made that was made" (John 1.3). But Mormons/LDS say Jesus didn't create everything.
4. Atonement is by the uncreated Creator rather than by something lesser. "I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour" (Is. 43.11).
5. Initial salvation can never be lost, for they "shall never perish" (John 10.28), but I think in Mormons like the Roman Catholic Church believe it can be lost.
6. There are not gods beside God, before Him, after Him which means also, no pre-existing material or intelligences.
7. "If justification were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose" (Gal. 2.21).
8. The idea that a Mormon will be a God of a planet doesn't sit well with me for two reasons: "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High" (Is. 14.14) was the attitude of Satan. And Hugh Ross wrote a book detailing over 800 variables that are required for life to exist on another planet and when multiplied together there is not enough planets in the universe so there are no habitable planets.
9. "You shall have no other gods before me" (Ex. 20.3). "The gods of other nations are mere idols, but the LORD made the heavens!" (Ps. 96.5). They are not even real gods. There are no real gods, just God alone from everlasting, the uncreated Creator. "Can people make their own gods? These are not real gods at all!" (Jer. 16.20) So claiming gods of planets are not real just imaginary.
10. An infinite regress of gods creating gods and pre-existing material with pre-existing intelligences has similar characteristics to atheism, because if there was this infinite regress of cause and effects, you would have had an eternity to come into being before now, so you should have already happened.
Those are my issues. Pick and choose what you would like to reply to.
1. Christians believe in God "who alone" (1 Tim. 6.16) was "from everlasting" (Neh. 9.5). Mormons do not. So one uncreated Creator only! "Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God." (Is. 44.6) Jesus said, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last" (Rev. 22.13). God the Father is the first and the last, and Jesus is the first and the last. God the Father is the great I AM. Jesus is the great I AM. God the Father is the Alpha and Omega. Jesus is the Alpha and Omega. So these are 2 of the 3 Persons in the Godhead.
2. The uncreated Creator would be the Trinity of 3 Persons in the Godhead whom manifested to us as Father, Son and Spirit, for the Son to show perfect obedience to the Father as only God the Son can do even though they are co-equal in the eternity of the past as 3 Persons (Persons is a spiritual term). Jesus said He counted His equality with the Father as something not to be grasped, because He emptied Himself of His independent divine attributes when He entered His creation in the likeness of flesh to atone for sins to be both fully man and the fullness of the Godhead bodily.
3. Jesus created everything so Jesus is one of the Persons in the Godhead. "All things were made by him [Jesus]; and without him was not any thing made that was made" (John 1.3). But Mormons/LDS say Jesus didn't create everything.
4. Atonement is by the uncreated Creator rather than by something lesser. "I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour" (Is. 43.11).
5. Initial salvation can never be lost, for they "shall never perish" (John 10.28), but I think in Mormons like the Roman Catholic Church believe it can be lost.
6. There are not gods beside God, before Him, after Him which means also, no pre-existing material or intelligences.
7. "If justification were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose" (Gal. 2.21).
8. The idea that a Mormon will be a God of a planet doesn't sit well with me for two reasons: "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High" (Is. 14.14) was the attitude of Satan. And Hugh Ross wrote a book detailing over 800 variables that are required for life to exist on another planet and when multiplied together there is not enough planets in the universe so there are no habitable planets.
9. "You shall have no other gods before me" (Ex. 20.3). "The gods of other nations are mere idols, but the LORD made the heavens!" (Ps. 96.5). They are not even real gods. There are no real gods, just God alone from everlasting, the uncreated Creator. "Can people make their own gods? These are not real gods at all!" (Jer. 16.20) So claiming gods of planets are not real just imaginary.
10. An infinite regress of gods creating gods and pre-existing material with pre-existing intelligences has similar characteristics to atheism, because if there was this infinite regress of cause and effects, you would have had an eternity to come into being before now, so you should have already happened.
Those are my issues. Pick and choose what you would like to reply to.