ARE MORMONS CHRISTIANS?

For as long as I can remember, I have enjoyed beginning my day by reading "Our Daily Bread," a devotional published by Radio Bible Class Ministries. It is amazing how often God has used it to speak to me. Skeptics would say that the timing of the devotion just happened to meet my need by pure coincidence. If it happened once or twice, I might agree, but it has happened so often that I am beginning to wonder. Am I the only person getting the monthly publication, or are there thousands of folks who have the same need as I do on the same day? Since God is no respecter of persons, I am certain that He hasn't guided the publisher just for me. In any case, I praise God for how He has seen fit for me to be blessed according to my need.

On Tuesday, February 17th, He did it again. I have been concerned about my granddaughter and her husband. He has been a Mormon all his life, and she met him through attending their meetings. He and I have had many discussions about his beliefs, and while we seem to be able to do so in a civil manner, I feel that there is some anxiety on both our parts. I try not to criticize their beliefs, but mainly try to keep him focused upon the Bible. Unfortunately, their definition of Christian terminology differs greatly from that of the mainstream Christian beliefs.

Mormons believe that "As we are, God once was; as God is, we shall be." In essence, Mormons see God as having evolved from being a man. The irony is, Jesus, Who was (and still is) God, became a man in order to die for the sins of humanity. In the devotion, I read Isaiah 43:10 which says, "...Before Me there was no God formed, nor shall there be after Me." Even though we will one day be like Jesus (1 John 3:2), we will not be a god. The verse made me think of the creation of Adam. In 1 Corinthians 15:45, Adam is called the first man. Since God created Adam, and Adam was the first man, it is not possible that God was once a man. A cross-reference to the above verse is Isaiah 44:6 which says, "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." There was no God to create our God, and our God will not create another God.

It also appears that the Mormon view of Jesus varies greatly from that of Christianity. They do not believe God is a Trinity or Triunity. They see Jesus as a man who became elevated into a god. The Bible teaches that Jesus is the Creator (John 1:1-3, Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2). He is not a part of the Trinity; there is no Trinity in Mormonism. There are three Gods, with an infinite number of Gods to follow. In addition, salvation is by ritual and works, rather than by the gift purchased by Jesus on the cross. According to Joseph Smith, an angel told him all denominations are wrong, and that he should begin the true church. Smith also viewed the Bible as inadequate for revealing God's truth, and offered the Book of Mormon to complete God's revelation to man. Just as my grandson-in-law and I do not agree concerning the truth, neither do the Bible and the Book of Mormon agree. I thank God we are able to talk about it.