Today I wrapped up our Mormonism class by reviewing the information we covered in the last 6 weeks. We watched a short video by Bill McKeever on the golden plates:
Here are the slides I used for our recap:
- Slide 1 – Mormonism Recap, What did we learn during the last 7 weeks?
- Hopefully you’ve enjoyed this class series on Mormonism… Here’s where we’ve been for the last 7 weeks
- Slide 2 – Where We’ve Been the Last 7 Weeks:
- We started off with the overview video “Good News for LDS”
- 2009 podcast from J. Warner Wallace, the cold case homicide detective, gave unique, evidential perspective on Joseph Smith and the book of Mormon.
- Then watched the hour long film on the Lost book of Abraham
- We also watched the Way of the Master episode on Mormonism
- We continued with a Mormon role-play with Brett Kunkle of Stand to Reason
- And finally, today, we looked at Bill McKeever’s argument concerning the weight of the golden plates
- Slide 3 – Topics and Areas We Covered during these weeks:
- History of the LDS beginnings
- “Translation” process of the Book of Mormon from Golden Plates
- The Character traits and motives of Joseph Smith, the founder
- The story of the Book of Abraham
- Overview of Mormon doctrines, theology and practices
- Strategies and approaches in reaching Mormon people
- Responding to Mormon claims with grace and truth
- Slide 4 – Good News for LDS:
- We started this whole series with a 12 chapter video overview of Mormonism
- If you want to find out more about the video and the participants, visit http://www.goodnewsforlds.com
- It appears to have been made around 2006/2007…
- Slide 5 – Good News for LDS Topics:
- Who is Jesus?
- Mormons say Jesus was the first spirit born to our heavenly Father
- According to Mormonism, Jesus is the spirit brother of Lucifer (Satan)
- Who is Jesus?
- Christian view of Jesus – He was God in the flesh, eternal, the uncreated Creator of all things (including angels). (Man à God vs. God à Man)
- Who is God?
- According to Joseph Smith, the Father has a body of flesh and bones. (D&C 130:22) – read this
- According to the Bible, God (the Father) is Spirit. (John 4:24)
- God is everlasting (Psalms 90:2)
- According to the Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, God was once a man.
- According to LDS teaching, there are many gods.
- According to 1 Corinthians 8:4-6, there is no God but one.
- Book of Abraham 2:24 has God telling Abraham to lie, which contradicts Ex. 20:16
- How Do We Obtain Eternal Life?
- Christian view – belief in Christ as Savior and Lord guarantees eternal life (free gift).
- Mormon view – 2 Nephi 25:23b read this
- Mormon view – (D&C 76) 3 Kingdoms: Telestial, Terrestrial, Celestial. You have to keep all the commandments, be baptized, etc…
- Christian view – all authority is in Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:18)
- Mormon view – Joseph Smith holds the keys to heaven.
- Christian view – we can know that we have eternal life (1 John 5:13)
- Mormon view – they can’t be sure if they will make it into the celestial kingdom
- Archaeological Evidence:
- No book of Mormon location is known with reference to modern topography (Professor Dee Green – BYU)
- Biblical archaeology can be studied – we know where biblical places are (e.g. Jerusalem)
- Joseph Smith – Prophecies and Revelations
- Inhabitants of the Moon – look like Quakers
- City of New Jerusalem – to be built in Independence, Missouri
- David Patten Mission, but he died at the battle of cricket river in the fall of that year (this was a false prophecy)
- See Deut. 13:1-3, a warning against false prophets
- Biblical requirement for a prophet – 100% accuracy (Deut. 18:21-22)
- Joseph prophesied the coming of the Lord, but Jesus said that’s impossible (Matt. 24:36)
- The Character of Joseph Smith
- He is portrayed by the LDS church as a virtuous family man who is persecuted for his beliefs, but prevails, due to his tremendous faith and his miraculous works.
- At the age of 14, Joseph claimed to have a vision of God the Father and Jesus.
- At age 21, Joseph was arrested in Bainbridge, NY for deception of Josiah Stole (a misdemeanor for his “glass looking”)
- Joseph Smith committed multiple adulteries. 27 women were “sealed” to him. He revealed the doctrine of “plural marriage” in 1843 after being caught in an adulterous affair with Fanny Alger. He married underage girls & women who were already married.
- Warren Jeffs is in prison for the same behavior that Joseph practiced.
- The Bible condemns multiple wives. (Deut. 17:17, Mark 10:7-9, 1 Tim. 3:2,12; Titus 1:6)
- The First Vision
- Joseph Smith recorded several different accounts of his first vision. Some of these accounts have Jesus only, some have an angel, some have multiple angels, but the official version of the LDS church has God the Father and Jesus appearing to him.
- Since the official vision was before Smith’s official ordination to the priesthood, this would conflict with D&C84:21-22, which says without the authority of the priesthood, no man can see the Father and live.
- There are 9 varying accounts of the first vision. The first vision is considered the foundation and the cornerstone of the Mormon religion.
- Joseph was a 14 year old boy when he supposedly first had this visitation.
- He was known around the country as a fabricator of stories. Even his father-in-law thought so.
- In 1855 Brigham Young preached a sermon in which he denied that the Lord came to Joseph in the first vision, but was rather visited by an angel.
- The Occult
- Joseph, his father and brother were actively involved in the occult while living in NY
- Joseph found his seer stone while money digging. This seer stone was claimed to have been used by Joseph to translate the Book of Mormon from the golden plates.
- On March 15th 1842, Joseph Smith joined the Freemasons (believe Jesus is not divine)
- Joseph’s Mason membership affected the development of the temple ceremonies
- Nauvoo, Illinois temple architecture utilized masonic symbols
- The Jupiter Talisman – one of Joseph’s intimate possessions. Guaranteed the possessor the gain of riches, favor, power, love and peace and ability to influence female love. This talisman was found is Joseph’s pocket the day he died in Carthage.
- The Translator
- The golden plates were not used during the translation of The Book of Mormon. Rather, it was translated by Joseph looking into a “peep stone” (seer stone) inside a hat.
- Oliver Cowdery was primary scribe for Joseph & 1 of “the 3 witnesses” listed in BoM
- Joseph Smith boasted that the BoM was the most accurate book in existence.
- If this book was translated by the power of God, why thousands of corrections?
- The witnesses said that they never physically saw or handled the golden plates.
- Paul warns of another gospel in Galatians 1:8 (even from an angel [e.g. Moroni]…)
- Kinderhook Plates – a trap set for Joseph, a hoax to expose him as a false prophet.
- Lamanites and DNA
- Lamanites are described by Joseph Smith as ancestors of the ancient Israelites
- DNA testing of > 5000 Native Americans from 150 different tribes has been completed
- Not 1 person contained DNA that was of Hebrew descent, but rather of Asian descent.
- In order to be a Mormon, one must trust in the “stories” of Joseph Smith
- The Book of Abraham has been proven to be completely false. No Egyptologists agree with Joseph’s interpretation of the ancient scroll. Rather, it is a common funeral text.
- Conclusion – Jesus Christ vs. Joseph Smith
- Joseph claimed that there were many ancient cities in the Americas (38) – not one has ever been found.
- DNA evidence disproves his story about Native American origins
- He was a liar, a false prophet, a womanizer/adulterer, a fraud.
- Examine objectively the life of Joseph Smith and the teachings of the Book of Mormon over against the Jesus of the New Testament and the reliability of the Bible
- The Mormons are good people and they’re worth the fight. We love them.
- There are no excuses at the final judgement
- All you have to do is believe in Christ.
- You must choose to follow Joseph or to follow Jesus – you can’t do both. CHOOSE!
- Slide 6 – J. Warner Wallace, Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon:
- He is a cold case homicide detective and has a very unique perspective in looking at the Mormon issue
- Slide 7 – J. Warner Wallace Topics
- Evidence Related to Motive:
- Sexual Lust
- Financial Greed
- Evidence Related to Motive:
- The Pursuit of Power
- Evidence Related to the Timing of the Writing
- The Second Great Awakening Swept Through New York
- The Great Preachers of the Awakening Left Little Guidance
- The Culture Was Fascinated With the Origin of Native Americans
- Ethan Smith – “View of the Hebrews”, published 5 years before BoM
- The People of Palmyra Were Interested in Treasure-Digging
- Evidence Related to the Author of the Book
- Joseph was a Local Treasure-Digger
- Joseph Used a “Seer Stone”
- Joseph Was Charged with Fraud
- Evidence Related to the Translation Process
- Joseph Translated Just As He Searched for Treasure
- Joseph Was Unable to Duplicate the Lost 116 Pages
- No One Ever Observed the Plates with Their Natural Eyes (3 witnesses)
- Slide 8 – the importance of the 3 & 8 Witnesses
While the Mormon Church often portrays these critical three witnesses as trustworthy and reliable, history seems to indicate something different. Oliver Cowdery was eventually excommunicated from the Church after exposing Smith’s first polygamous relationship to Fanny Alger. Smith described Cowdery as a thief, liar, perjurer, counterfeiter, adulterer and leader of “scoundrels of the deepest degree”. Cowdery later became a Methodist and denied the Book of Mormon altogether and publicly confessed his “sorrow and Shame” for having any connection with Mormonism.
Martin Harris was a member of 5 different religious groups before becoming a Mormon, and he was part of eight different groups after leaving Mormonism. He was also excommunicated from the Mormon Church and later reported that he did not see the plates as Smith described, but only saw the plates three days after Cowdery and Whitmer and then only in a spiritual sense:
“I never saw the gold plates, only in a visionary or entranced state. …In about three days I went into the woods to pray that I might see the plates. While praying I passed into a state of entrancement, and in that state I saw the angel and the plates.” (Anthony Metcalf, Ten Years Before the Mast, n.d., microfilm copy, p. 70-71).
David Whitmer was also excommunicated from the Church and later declared he was himself a prophet of the New Church of Christ. Joseph called him a “dumb beast to ride” and an “ass to bray out coursings instead of blessings”. Whitmer later admitted he saw the plates “by the eye of faith” rather than with his physical eyes and he waffled between three varying accounts of how he saw the plates.
Eventually, Smith decided this group of three “witnesses” was insufficient; he involved eight additional men and recruited them as potential eyewitnesses, forming a group of eleven total witnesses to the golden plates. Smith limited his choices to men who were close friends and relatives. He first involved four brothers of David Whitmer. Smith next recruited his own father, two of his brothers and Hiram Page (who was married to David Whitmer’s sister, Catherine). Even though Smith limited his choices to close friends and relatives, these men also had trouble staying true to the faith founded on the golden plates they claimed to see. Two of these eight men apostatized and left the Church altogether. Another was excommunicated. Of the eleven men who claimed to see the golden plates, only five remained faithful to Mormonism. Three of these five men were blood relatives of Joseph Smith. Martin Harris later reported these additional eight witnesses also observed the plates in a vision and never saw the plates with their “natural eyes”.
- Slide 10 – Book of Abraham Points
- How he came to possess the scrolls
- The book of Abraham is considered inspired Scripture (word of God) by the LDS church.
- Joseph Smith translated this from an ancient Egyptian scroll of hieroglyphics (bought in Kirtland, OH 1835) but at that time in America, no one could read Egyptian hieroglyphics.
- How he came to possess the scrolls
- Joseph Smith purchased the scrolls (and mummies) for $2,400, which he raised from investors.
- How he “translated” the scrolls
- Joseph started by creating an alphabet and grammar of the Egyptian language. We have his notes for this process.
- Joseph created a bank in Kirtland, OH, which failed, after which he fled from there at night.
- Joseph and the Mormons moved to Commerce, IL and renamed it to Nauvoo, where he became mayor of the city, had a large militia & even announced his candidacy for president of the US
- In Nauvoo, IL in 1842, Joseph published his translation of the book of Abraham.
- The book of Abraham includes a creation story “they, that is the Gods, organized and formed…”. See the book of Abraham chapters 4 & 5 – Mormonism is polytheistic.
- In June 27th, 1844, Joseph was assassinated while in jail in Carthage, IL
- Scrolls were lost:
- 1846 – 1856: the papyri are lost to the church
- In 1846, under the leadership of Brigham Young, the Mormons moved to Salt Lake City, UT
- It was assumed that the papyri was destroyed in the great Chicago fire of 1871
- 3 drawings in book of Abraham misidentified by Joseph, according to Egyptologists.
- These drawings are actually, from the “book of the dead” (Egyptian funeral text)
- Scrolls found and actually translated
- 1966 – A dramatic discovery – the papyri was found in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY.
- 1967 – the lost papyri presented to the LDS church along with attesting letter from Emma Smith
- Abraham not mentioned once in the papyri. Joseph’s translation was found to be incorrect.
- The LDS church claims that a large portion of the scroll is missing, but this is not correct.
- Some argue that Joseph may’ve received the translation by direct revelation from God…
- According to Joseph Smith’s diary, this is not correct – he was translating it directly.
- According to Egyptologists, there is no historical validity to the translations in that book.
- Are the Mormon truth claims credible? Are they the kinds of things that we ought to bet our lives on?
- Since Joseph’s translation of the book of Abraham, which can be tested, has been found to lack credibility, then how can we accept his translation of the book of Mormon, which cannot be tested?
- Slide 12 – Way of the Master Topics
- The Mormon Holy Books and Sources of Authority
- The Book of Mormon (“the most correct of any book on earth” according to Joseph Smith)
- Doctrine and Covenants – a book mostly about theology
- The Mormon Holy Books and Sources of Authority
- The Pearl of Great Price
- The King James Bible (in so far as it is translated correctly)
- The ultimate authority in the Mormon Church comes from living Mormon apostles and prophets, especially the president, who is considered to be “the voice of God on earth”.
- Mormon Teachings about God:
- God has not been God from all eternity
- Jesus is a god
- Jesus is the Jehovah of the Old Testament
- They limit Jesus to being the Creator only of this planet
- There are an infinite number of gods who created an infinite number of other worlds
- God has a body of flesh and bones like us
- We can become like God if we adhere to his commandments
- God is married and has many wives and they had many spirit babies, resulting in you and I getting here.
- It is possible to become a god, reigning over your own planet.
- The Mormon Jesus
- Law of progression – men and God are of the same species. We are at different point in our progression
- God, the Father of this planet is called Elohim
- The Mormon God cannot create anything Ex-Nihilo (out of nothing) – he “organized” this earth
- The first “begotten” of his spirit children was Jehovah (or Jesus) – we all are the spirt brothers of Jesus.
- Another one of the offspring of Elohim was Lucifer – according to Mormonism, Jesus is the spirit brother of Lucifer.
- Jesus was not the eternal Creator of all things, who became a man (as the Bible says) – they have it reversed, they believe that man became a god instead
- The Mormon Afterlife
- Almost a universal salvation – only those who’ve actually had revelation of the truthfulness of Mormonism and reject it have sinned bad enough to merit eternal hell.
- There is a temporary hell in Mormonism (the spirit prison) that non-Mormons would go to.
- They would not believe Hitler went to hell
- 4 levels of afterlife:
- Eternal (outer) darkness – devil, demons, a few apostate Mormons
- Terrestrial (for non-Mormons, Hitler, murderers, rapists, child molesters, liars, thieves)
- Telestial
- Celestial (highest – this is where God is)
- The Mormon Salvation
- 2 Nephi 25:23b – “for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do”
- Moroni 10:32 – if you “love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you” (vs. 2 Corinthians 12:9)
- Spencer Kimball (former president of the LDS Church) – one of the most fallacious doctrines (of the devil) is that man is saved alone by the grace of God.
- Witnessing Tips
- You must define your terms, because Mormons use all the same terms as Christians, but they have different meanings for those terms
- Ask the Mormon first to explain who their God is, who their Jesus is and how salvation is gained
- Pose this to a Mormon – “If the Mormon religion is right and I’m wrong, then I go to the 3rd level of heaven. But if the Bible is right and the LDS church is wrong, then you are following a false Jesus and you’ll end up in hell forever.”
- Baptism for the Dead
- Mormons get baptized for dead people. They use 1 Corinthians 15:29 to justify that.
- If anyone dies without believing in Mormonism, they can still make it to heaven if someone is baptized on their behalf. They can accept Mormonism in the spirit world.
- The main point in reaching the Mormon is using the power of the Gospel (Romans 1:16).
- Slide 14 – Mormon Role Play Points
- How would you define a Christian?
- Elder Kunkle: You probably believe something like this – Mormons are not Christians
- Elder Kunkle: How would you define a Christian, what is a Christian?
- How would you define a Christian?
- Someone answered “Someone who has been saved by Jesus and professes Him as their Lord and Savior”
- Mormon definition of Jesus:
- “Mormons have a different definition of Jesus” – but Elder Kunkle affirmed that Jesus was:
- Born of the Virgin Mary
- Is the Son of God
- Lived a sinless, perfect life
- Died on the cross to atone for our sins
- Rose from the dead – bodily
- Deity of Christ & the Trinity:
- “Jesus claimed to be God” – Elder Kunkle challenged, “Where did Jesus claim to be God?”
- Elder Kunkle: the oneness that Jesus is talking about is oneness in unity.
- “Mormons have a different definition of Jesus” – but Elder Kunkle affirmed that Jesus was:
- Elder Kunkle: I affirm, “One Lord and One Savior”
- Audience member says that his Bible does not say that God was once a man, like Mormonism believes. Elder Kunkle replies, “You don’t believe Jesus was a man?” Person replies, “I’m not saying Jesus, I’m saying God”
- Elder Kunkle: we believe in the Father, we believe in the Son, we believe in the Holy Spirit…I believe in the God of the Bible…. But one of the differences we have is the Trinity… the claim of the Trinity is that you have 3 beings in 1 being, but that is a patent contradiction.
- One audience member brought up Jesus is considered to be Lucifer’s brother in Mormonism
- Elder Kunkle: Colossians 1 – Jesus is the first born of all creation. So, He is the first born Son of God.
- Elder Kunkle: If Jesus is God, in Matthew 26 Jesus is praying to God, but if Jesus is God, then He is just praying to Himself.
- Elder Kunkle: There’s nowhere you can point to in Scripture to show the Trinity – where is the Trinity in the Bible?
- One audience member brought up John 10:30 – I and the Father are one. Elder Kunkle replied that in this church, you probably all consider yourself to be “one”, but not the same being.
- Elder Kunkle: where in the Bible does it say that to be a Christian, you have to affirm that Jesus is Yahweh?
- Elder Kunkle quotes John 14, where Jesus says, “The Father is greater than I”
- Book of Mormon / additional revelation:
- One audience member says he has been “taught his doctrine” – he was indoctrinated differently
- One audience member said you put your faith in a man who brought an additional book
- Elder Kunkle: that’s all the Book of Mormon is – it’s God speaking through a man
- Elder Kunkle: Just like God built on the Old Testament and gave us the New Testament, God builds on the New Testament and gives us another testament to Jesus Christ (BoM)
- One audience member quotes Revelation 22:19 “If any man shall take away from the words…”
- Elder Kunkle replies with Deut. 4:2, which has the same warning.
- One audience member quotes John 8:58 – says Jesus claimed to be Elohim.
- Elder Kunkle made a case for works salvation (James 2, Philippians 2, Acts 2, Eph. 2 etc.)
- Christians inarticulate / apologetics not optional, but required – asked everyone to do a self-assessment
- What we wanted to do tonight was provide you a little test.
- Most evangelical Christians do not know what they believe or why they believe it
- Most Christians are completely inarticulate about what they believe and why they believe it.
- We wanted you to take this test here, now, with me before you go out the door and have this test with “the real thing”.
- We need to be effective ambassadors for Jesus Christ and being an effective ambassador means that you have to know some things – you have to have knowledge of the truth.
- How many of you would be able to make the case that Jesus is God, the Holy Spirit is God and that the Father is God and that those 3 persons are together the one God, who offers salvation solely through faith in Christ by grace alone? Rate yourself on a scale of 1-10.
- How well would you be able to reason from the Scripture? How prepared would you be?
- 2 Timothy 2:15 – how many can say that we are workmen who do not need to be ashamed because we can accurately handle the God’s Word?
- Many of you had courage to defend, but many of you did not accurately handle God’s Word
- I would much rather have you fail in here, than with your Mormon neighbor.
- We Christians spend most of our time talking with other Christians
- Many of us are fearful to open our mouths about Jesus b/c we don’t have answers to objections
- Apologetics is not some optional thing we do as believers, apologetics is not a club for nerds. Apologetics should be an essential part of our discipleship under Jesus Christ.
- It’s not enough to simply be right. Not only need knowledge, but wisdom and character too…
- How were you as representatives of Jesus Christ? He came in grace & truth (Jn 1:14) – need both
- Sometimes you’ve got to be made uncomfortable before you realize that you need to grow.
- John 10:30 – you have to go further in reading that passage in order to make the case from that
Here is the note-taking form I handed out:
Notes for the LDS Recap Session
- Bill McKeever – Problems with the Golden Plates
- Good News for LDS
- Warner Wallace on Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon
- The Book of Abraham
- The Way of the Master Mormonism Episode
- Mormon Role-Play, Brett Kunkle (Elder Kunkle)
Discussion Questions
- How has your view of Mormonism changed during this study?
- How has your view of the Mormon people changed during this study?
- What new information did you learn about Mormonism that will be useful to you?
- In your view, what is the most compelling evidence demonstrating that Mormonism is false?
- Do you now feel more or less likely to reach out to Mormons in your circle of influence?
- When talking to Mormons, do you think it is more effective to:
- Address their non-orthodox theology & doctrines
OR - Talk about Joseph Smith’s character, the translation process of the Book of Mormon and the lack of archeological support
OR - Just share the Gospel
- Address their non-orthodox theology & doctrines
- How would you explain to a Mormon why you don’t think Joseph Smith is a prophet of God?
- What reason(s) do you have for not accepting the Book of Mormon as Scripture?
- Why do we believe Mormon people are not evil enemies to be opposed?
- What were the 3 ungodly motivations that drove Joseph to perpetrate his lies?
- How do the biblical and Mormon views of the following differ?
- Jesus
- God the Father differ?
- Eternal life (as well as how one obtains it) differ?
- Is there any archeological evidence that the Book of Mormon is true? Is there any archeological evidence that the Bible is true?
- Has Joseph Smith met the biblical test for a prophet of God? Where is that biblical test found?
- How is the Joseph Smith portrayed by the LDS church different than the Joseph Smith of history?
- How would you answer the following charges?
- “Men of God in the Old Testament had multiple wives, so this must be a practice approved by God”
- “Several biblical authors were also sinners (e.g. David, Solomon, Abraham, Moses, Peter, Paul etc.) like Joseph, so we can still believe Joseph’s writings”
- How old was Joseph when he supposedly received his first vision?
- Were the accounts of Joseph’s vision always consistently told by him?
- What is a “peep stone” or “seer stone”? What did Joseph use it for?
- Was Joseph ever in trouble with the law? Was he ever arrested? How is this different from the apostles Peter, John and Paul being imprisoned in the book of Acts?
- How did Joseph supposedly translate the “Book of Mormon” into English?
- What are the “Kinderhook Plates” and what do they tell us about the nature of Joseph Smith?
- How does DNA evidence contradict Joseph Smith’s story of Native American origins?
- What is the Book of Abraham? What is the story of that book’s origin? What does it tell us about the reliability of Joseph Smith as a translator of ancient languages?
- What evidence could you provide to show Joseph Smith is a womanizer and an adulterer?
- What circumstances led Joseph Smith to claim that polygamy was a “God-ordained” practice?