Plain & Precious

So many things to discuss, so little time. Instead of dancing around amongst topics that are important but peripheral, I'm going to skip to the central issue, the one on which eternity hangs in the balance.

In the Book of Mormon (abbreviated from here on out as BoM), 1 Nephi 13:28 says this in reference to the Bible:

"Wherefore, thou seest that after the book hath gone forth through the hands of the great and abominable church, that there are many plain and precious things taken away from the book, which is the book of the Lamb of God."

Do I believe that the LDS Church has many additional practices and teachings that are not in the Bible? Absolutely. Do I believe that those teachings were originally part of Biblical scripture? I don't. But, all differences aside, let's focus on what the Bible and the BoM have in common so that LDS members who might be reading this can rest easy knowing that what I'm saying is not necessarily new to LDS scripture, it's just either ignored or justified away. Here it is, the central diversion of the LDS Church from Biblical Christianity:

Jesus is God in the flesh!

This is a plain and precious Truth that, even if you believe the BoM, hasn't been removed from the Bible! Christ and his followers state this Truth in different ways time & time again because it is important. It is central to salvation. Stick with me here-- if placing our faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to receive the gift of salvation, then isn't it critical that we understand who Jesus is? If I am presented with a challenge to distinguish between a hollywood star and a look-alike, and the outcome of my decision is life-or-death, wouldn't I hope that I was well-acquainted with that person? Who Jesus is matters for your eternity. It would be worth your time to study this topic, and I would be happy to give you scriptural references if you email me.

Unless I'm mis-interpreting something from the BoM due to its un-plainness, the book of Mosiah, chapter 15 verse 1 says that God is the one who will come to earth and save his people.

"I would that ye should understand that God himself shall come down among the children of men, and shall redeem his people."

Even if you are of the belief that there is greater revelation in the BoM, you would have to accept that Jesus is God based on that verse. Additionally, lets discuss some Old Testament verses that are copied word-for-word in the BoM that confirm the deity of our Savior.

• Isaiah 7:14 (2 Nephi 17:14)- "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." (Let me remind you that Immanuel means "God with us")
• Isaiah 9:6 (2 Nephi 19:6)- "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

If Jesus was not God in the flesh, wouldn't it be blasphemous to call him Mighty God? How can Jesus and our Heavenly Father both be an Everlasting Father unless there is oneness?

Here's the point of all this. To be plain: the reason Jesus' sacrifice on the cross was sufficient to save us from our sin is because of his deity! To place your faith in a Jesus who is not God in fleshly form is futile.

This is only one verse of countless verses in the Bible that describe the relationship between God & Jesus, but just let it speak to your heart for a moment.

Hebrews 1:1-4: "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high; Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they."

Because Jesus is God's unique Son, he has inherited a name more excellent than the angels (reflect back on the names Isaiah prophesied Jesus would be called). Jesus is the express image of God, and has the power to purge our sins from us. The Jews understood Jesus' claim of divinity, which they considered heresy. That is why they wanted him to be crucified, so this understanding of who Jesus claimed to be is not a teaching concocted by later "abominable" churches. Let me leave you with this concept; what greater love is there than this, that God would put himself through the human condition to teach us how to live like He would, and because of His sinless nature, become a spotless sacrifice in order that we could spend an eternity with Him. Wow, what a Wonderful God.

"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins."

~1 John 4: 7-10

Passion

Spiritual Restlessness, pure love-driven urgency. That is how I would describe my passion for what God has placed on my heart. The way Mother Theresa felt for the starving and the needy, that is the strength of the pull I feel to reach out to my LDS brothers & sisters. (Now don't get me wrong, I'm humble enough to recognize that I'm no Mother Theresa, but the same God lives in me that lived in her, and His passion for the lost is the same regardless of the individual's socio-economic condition!) I love them because Christ died for them and suffered the cross so that they might have hope-- the same hope & promises that I received on the day I surrendered my life to Him. God has a heart for the lost; that TRUTH is undeniable. For as long as I can remember, God has revealed his heart to me for Mormons, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that they are my mission field. I pray that their hearts would be receptive to Biblical Truth, and that their lives would be changed because of it.