The Difference between Mormons and Christians
My family and I live in a city in Arizona with a high Mormon population. We have many Mormon friends and neighbors who we love. They are kind-hearted people with strong moral convictions.
It naturally raises a lot of questions about the difference between what Mormons like them and Christians like us believe.
A few years ago, my wife and I were invited by a friend, Ken, to tour a new Mormon temple being built near our home.
We jumped at the opportunity to see the ornate building because the only time that people who are not church members are ever allowed to enter a temple is during the final phase of construction. I had read about Mormonism in books but was excited to learn more about the faith of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) firsthand.
During the tour, Ken was gracious to answer all of my questions, so I reached out to him later to ask if I could interview him about what he believes about Jesus.
How is his view similar and different than my traditional Christian understanding?
Ken agreed.
We met in the back of a Chick-fil-A so our kids could play while we talked. I ordered a Coke. He got a Sprite—since Mormons don’t drink caffeine.
I thanked Ken for taking the time to meet with me, and he was genuinely happy to share his thoughts with me (with the disclaimer that he was not an official representative of the views of the LDS church).
Ken was raised in the church and can trace his family’s LDS heritage back to his great-grandfather. After high school, as many Mormons do, he served on a two-year mission. He currently serves in his church leading Sunday school and teenage boys group.
What Mormons Believe About Jesus
I jumped right in with my big question, “Who is Jesus?”
Ken replied, “He is the Son of God, the savior of everyone, and the only way to salvation.”
I was surprised at how similar his answer was to my own. No Christian would argue with his statement. On this, we can all agree. Maybe his beliefs weren’t that different from my own.
“Is Jesus divine or human?” I asked.
“Divine.” Ken said, “He came to earth and lived as a human, in a human body of flesh and blood. He experienced everything we experience, and suffered like us. But he was perfect. He is a divine member of the Godhead—the three persons of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit.”
Again, I was fascinated by how much this sounded like orthodox theology. I’d argue the same.
So we had similar terminology, but I needed to dig deeper to make sure we meant the same thing. I pressed, “So would you say that the trinity of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit are all one person?”
“No,” he said to my surprise. “They are three separate divine persons, but they are united in their purpose.”
To clarify I asked, “So you would say they are singular in purpose, but separate in person?” He nodded, “Yes.”
Our theology became more different the more we defined our terminology.
Over the next hour of conversation, Ken continued to explain to me how he believes that the Father is who the Old Testament refers to as Elohim, but when the Old Testament says Jehovah, it is referring to Jesus.
He believes that Jesus was pre-existent with God in heaven before the creation of the world. But he also believes that all people exist as spirit children before being born on earth. So Jesus is like us because we all lived in heaven before coming to earth, taking on flesh and blood (although Jesus’ virgin birth was unique).
Ken affirms the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension of Christ. Jesus died and rose again in three days. But when I asked what Jesus did between his time of death and resurrection, Ken had an interesting answer.
He believes that Jesus went to the spirit world. Righteous people who die go to paradise, but all others go to prison. So Jesus sent others to do missionary work in the spirit prison to give them the opportunity to repent. After Jesus ascended to heaven, he continues to work today to save those in the spirit prison. This is why Ken said that the Mormon church practices what they call “temple work.” These are the ceremonies like marriage and baptisms for the dead.
Through these ceremonies, he believes families are sealed together for eternity. So they get baptized on behalf of family members who did not believe in this life and might be in the spirit prison.
When I asked what made Jesus different than other people, Ken said that Jesus is the only perfect person to ever live. While our purpose is to come to earth and receive a body to work our way to become like God, Jesus had already achieved godliness before the Incarnation. But Jesus is not all that different from us. According to Ken, “We can become like Jesus and the Father because we are created in God’s image.” We can become gods.
Trying to understand this idea of becoming a god, I asked if we would then become equal to Jesus and the Father. “In theory,” he said “yes.” But he believes that God and Jesus are progressing through eternity. While we will continue to grow, they have such a big head start that we’ll never catch up to them. So, theoretically, we could become like they are now, but in that time they will have become greater. He didn’t know exactly how it would all work, but he believed there would always be some form of hierarchy where the Father, Son, and Spirit are greater than us.
Ken also believes that Jesus still speaks and provides further revelation today. He used the example of how Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon faith, didn’t know which church was the true church. So he followed the advice of James 1:5 to pray for wisdom. Joseph prayed and claimed that both the Father and Jesus visited him. They told to him that all churches had the incomplete truth, and revealed the whole truth to Joseph so that he would become a prophet to restore the church. So Jesus spoke to Joseph Smith, and Jesus has continued this method of face-to-face revelation today with the current prophet of the LDS church.
Only One God, Not Many
I give Ken a lot of credit for being willing to talk to me about his beliefs. He was more knowledgeable about his theology than the average Christian in our churches would be. But his LDS theology has some significant inconsistencies with the Bible he says he also believes.
The more we talked, the clearer it became that our beliefs about Jesus have major differences. While there is not enough time in this article to refute all the differences, the most important distinction in our theology surrounds Jesus’ divinity.
We both agree that Jesus is divine, but we disagree about the specific nature of his divinity.
Ken believes that Jesus is one of three gods who share a singular purpose. But I would argue that there is only one trinitarian God, and Jesus is part of the Trinity—one God in three persons.
Jesus was referring to his nature, not his purpose, when he said, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). Also, John writes, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). Jesus (the Word) was not just with God, like a separate divine person, he also was God. Jesus also said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). Furthermore, in Hebrews, we read that Jesus “is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature” (Heb 1:3).
While Mormons believe in many gods, the Bible also explicitly teaches that there is only one God. Deuteronomy 4:35 says, “To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him.” God declares, “there is no god beside me” (Deut 32:39). David asks, “who is God, but the Lord?” (Ps 18:31). In Isaiah, God proclaims, “Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me. I, I am the Lord, and besides me there is no savior” (Isa 43:10-11).
Additionally, I see a problem with Ken’s evidence for multiple gods by pointing to how in the Old Testament, Elohim refers to God the Father, and Jehovah refers to Christ the Son. These are two different names for God, but that doesn’t mean there are two distinct gods.
Based on Scripture, we’d be more accurate to understand them as interchangeable names for the same God. For example, Genesis 27:20 uses both names sayings, “The Lord [Jehovah] your God [Elohim] granted me success.” Also, Deuteronomy 6:4 says, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord [Jehovah] our God [Elohim], the Lord [Jehovah] is one.”
We even have reason to believe that Jesus is also both Jehovah and Elohim. In Isaiah’s prophecy about the coming of Jesus, he uses both names: “In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord [Jehovah]; make straight in the desert a highway for our God [Elohim]” (Isa 40:3).
Jehovah and Elohim are two names for one God. Even more interesting, Jehovah and Elohim, they are often translated “Lord” and “God” respectively, and when Thomas sees Jesus after the resurrection, he proclaims, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).
Based on this evidence and more, Jesus, God the Father, and the Holy Spirit are all one God in three persons (the Trinity).
Mormons and Christians: The Difference is the Definition of Jesus
In essence, Mormonism is polytheistic. They believe that there are many gods, Jesus is a god, and we can all become gods too.
Christianity is monotheistic. There is only one God eternally existing in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We can never work our way to become a god, and are only permitted in God’s presence by grace through faith in Jesus.
So when Mormons say that they are the church of Jesus Christ or that they are also Christians because they follow Jesus, we must be aware that we are not talking about the same Jesus.
Christians are talking about the Jesus of the Bible. Mormons are talking about the Jesus of the Bible and the Book of Mormon and their other sacred writings.
Jesus is the cornerstone of our faith (Eph 2:20). Everything we believe rests on who we believe he is. If you follow a different Jesus, you’ll follow a different gospel.
Although Christians and Mormons may share some words, the difference is in the definitions.
You offer a twisted view of a much greater and all encompassing gospel. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of latter day Saints, do absolutely believe in Christ. They also are not polytheistic. God the father is the One God. Jesus Christ is His son, and the Holy Ghost is a witness and guide sent by God. You have taken a few things that members have acknowledged, and twisted them to fit your agenda. You should be ashamed and it is very un-Christian of you to warp another faiths beliefs. Shame on you.
I am not Morman, although the first girl that ever kissed me was my morman neighbor when I was 9 so maybe that makes me biased, I don’t know. What I do know is that almost 100% of the Morman’s that I have had contact with, seem to all be extraordinarily good and honest people.
I am a businessman. If I am buying 10,000 widgets from a morman, I need to negotiate hard because they tend to be shrewd; but after a deal is set, I never need to check up on things. I never need to count the widgets. It is never 9,999. If they owe me money they always pay…ALWAYS!! I don’t know if it’s the Morman culture or what, but what ever they believe, it sure seems to make them honest. I can’t say that about any other culture or religion I have experienced. .
I don’t know where you get your information about members of the church, but you’re wrong. We don’t believe in more than one God we believe in God, his only begotten son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
So what is the truth?
Jesus is the way the truth and the life. No man comes to the father, but by him.
Why are there so many Lies about the LDS? I guess people just don’t know the truth about the LDS church, I am 81 years old, And I have heard them all, SO many different stories,It sad that people will not listen to the truth. *
Thank you for bringing these things to light. I just want to have as much information as possible to witness to Mormons/LDS. I know that they prefer to be called LDS.
A lot of this is not true. The Mormons believe in the Bible.
There are people that try to discredit LDS but they really don’t know
If what You say is right, show Me in the “Bible” of these discrepancies.
Where does it say that God, Jesus and Man are ALL of the same Species?
Where does it say that Man can become a God?
Where do it say that
You can work Your way to Heaven.
How can the Dead stand in front of God and All all of US and say that he believes that Jesus died for His Sins and that he rose from the dead and sits next to God the Father and is the Only way for US to be Saved. If this Dead Man can’t say this or at least nod his head.
“How can He be Baptized in accordance with the Bible?”
There are religions that have their own thoughts of how certain circumstances would Question how God is going to handle this, but in reality as long as You have complete faith of Who’s in Charge of this..
Who cares. I believe that He can govern Anything.
This article misrepresents a lot of Latter Day Saint beliefs. Based on the author’s replies, I am starting to think it’s on purpose, because many other members have responded saying something else, actual *members,* and he brings up his interpretations of very conveniently selected pieces of text that contradict the church’s official modern views.
The topic discussed is very delicate but people manage to disagree politely. Who is Brandon H?
I find his discourse polite and informative. I myself had been blocked from entering a Mormon church in Houston. The people in the front said there’s a ceremony inside. They cannot allow a newcomer in. What is hidden?
So what’s with Mormonism, LDS, Jehovas Witness, Word of Faith, Trinitarian, Catholic?
You obviously tried to enter a Temple, not simply a church in Houston. No one, including members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (What you are calling the Mormon Church) can enter that sacred building and other temples around the world with having a temple recommend. Although, before a temple is dedicated there is always an open house which the public is invited to attend.
If you have more questions, you can ask the missionaries or any member. We are always happy to welcome visitors to worship with us on Sundays, also.
If you would like
A church is a building that welcomes visitors and where regular Sunday meetings happen. You went to a temple, where ceremonies are performed that are closed to the public.
Jesus does not turn away us,lol on you but don’t laugh I pray for you, Jesus didn’t put nothing out of reach he made us all welcome did you or mormans, decide something other, we are All we are all welcome, no one has a right to keep his children away, think, read, ask god wisdom please a friend in Jesus
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Right! It’s it’s crazy that they have a temple where church members are not permitted to enter. When has God ever made a building of worship and not allowed his children to enter… that literally makes no sense.. and this whole belief system of them becoming gods seems very egotistical. Joseph Smith was a con artist who made people believe that he could read “sacred scrolls” from a hat. The book of Mormon is blasphemy and written by a white man Who believes that Native Americans were originally Caucasian, and sin turned their skin darker. This is a twisted version of Christianity rooted in racism, egotistical ideology.
The Church, is the body of Christian believers who make up the Body of Christ.
Jesus Gods only Son emptied himself of all but Love and was born of the Virginia Mary and His Father was the God of Heaven and Earth .
Jesus was pure and sinless and was the only way that humans could come before the God of the Universe.
All a person has to do is to ask the Lord Jesus for His forgiveness and place belief and trust in the fact the Jesus was persecuted, killed on the Cross and buried and then Rose again and is now “seated” at the Right hand of God The Father.
He promised to send us a helper and that is the Holy Spirit who convicts us of our sin that we may then in turn repent and be put right with God by Jesus our Lord and Savior.
We can all recieve the Gift of GRACE only though the work of Jesus.
Gods Riches At Christ’s Expence.
If you don’t believe this all you have to do is read the Bible, the Word of God and get to know Jesus for yourself.
You wouldn’t be bared from entering a regular church building. Entrance to a temple is only for those who meet certain requirements. If you are not completely dedicated and don’t meet these requirements, you may not enter. You are mistaken about the things you have said. You need to check your facts from a proper source.
The topic discussed is very delicate but people manage to disagree politely. Who is Brandon H?
I find his discourse polite and informative. I myself had been blocked from entering a Mormon church in Houston. The people in the front said there’s a ceremony inside. They cannot allow a newcomer in. What is hidden?
So what’s with Mormonism, LDS, Jehovas Witness, Word of Faith, Trinitarian, Catholic?
Actually its quite the opposite. Mormons believe in the holy spirit and god himself. One god. They dont beleive that jesus is god. They pray to jesus in hopes that he will carry their prayers to god. Also mormons are not polygamous. Joseph smith was but that is a myth about modern day mormons. One thing about marriage is they tread grounds for divorce very carefully. Divorce is pretty rare among mormons. Im not a mormon myself but many members of my family are latter day saints and I’ve been to the church many times. This article is false
What exactly is false in the article? The LDS church believes that Jesus is the son of God and that one day you can become a god too. How is that not believing in more than one god?
Quote from the LDS website: “We believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ as the literal Son of God and a distinct member of the Godhead along with God the Father and the Holy Spirit.” ( https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/welcome/savior-jesus-christ?lang=eng )
They will say they only believe in one God. But when you study their beliefs or talk to people in the church about them, it is clear that there are also lesser gods. I’ve read the Book of Mormon, and it’s all in there if you want to read it. Also, the article mentions nothing about polygamy (though it is a major part of LDS history and is still practiced in some areas of Utah and Arizona today).
There is no significant difference between what the article says about Mormons and Trinitarians. Both believe that there are three beings that are God. If Mormons are polytheistic then Trinitarians are too.
Chris, I can understand your confusion. The doctrine of the Trinity is difficult to comprehend because God is unlike anything on earth. So we cannot point to anything on earth to visualize and see him perfectly. He is infinite, eternal, and beyond comprehension. So we should expect it to be hard to understand God’s nature.
That being said, the Trinity while difficult to comprehend is taught in the Bible. There is only one God. To deny this is to deny the Bible. God eternally exists in three persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). They are one in essence but three in person. Each person is fully God, but there is only one God. Study the councils of Antioch, Nicea, Chalcedon if you want to learn more about the theological history.
Mormons reject the Trinity. They believe in three divine persons, but they are not all God. They are distinct persons who work together, and they are not on the same level either.
I think you are comprehending it wrong on purpose. Even the quote you used above proves the other persons point. Not yours. Mormons believe there is one God and that God is a jealous God so no we do not believe there are multiple gods and that we can become one. We believe that the God, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost are separate but only there is only one God. Like you’re weird for reading into the quote and interrupting it the way you did lol.
No. All you have to do is talk to LDS members and get clear definitions. Or simply look at LDS websites like this one: https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/what-mormons-believe-about-jesus-christ
For example, the article says, “Latter-day Saints believe that the simplest reading of the New Testament text produces the simplest conclusion — that the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost are separate and distinct personages, that They are one in purpose.” They are not all one being, but three separate beings. They categorically deny that Jesus and God the Father and God the Holy Spirit are one eternal being who has always existed (past) and will exist for eternity (future). How am I misunderstanding that these are three separate beings to Mormons, but Christians believe there is only one God? That’s basic theology 101.
Believing in 3 separate beings does not mean they are all gods.
We believe that God The Father, Jesus, and The holy Spirit are three separate personages how their wills align so closely together that they act as one God.
The Mormons are going off the interpretation of a man that never met Jesus. Instead of the eye witness account of the ones that followed Jesus and wrote down the things they seen and heard him do. If they follow and believe in Jesus then they should pick up the Bible that is eye witness account of what Jesus said not the interpretation of what a man said that was not there . To me and I’m no scholar but people put limitations on things God can do. He made everything! There is NO limitations on what God can do his mind is way beyond or human comprehension.
👍
You might investigate further so you’ll understand that your facts are wrong.
No we do not believe we will be a God there is only one God where you get this crap from
False lds do don’t do polygamy at all and they only did it back in the day because there was more women in the church than men and it only happened for about 10 years in the 1800s when they moved to Utah on the Oregon trail because are own government was trying to kill them off just like the quakers. There is a cult religion in the bottom part of utah and Arizona that does polygamy and marry young girls but the founder is in prison now. But they are not associated with the lds church. They call themselves the rlds but there completely different
Polygamy is not practiced by any member of the actual LDS church. The ones that do are apostate and are not actually members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. If you’re wrong about that, I can’t help but believe you are wrong about some other things as well.
Thank you Jade. I might add that LDS also believes that Jesus is God’s Son.
Why are there so many Lies about the LDS? I guess people just don’t know the truth about the LDS church, I am 81 years old, And I have heard them all, SO many different stories,It sad that people will not listen to the truth. *
This whole article is false take it down. Do your ignorant.
Was Sie ueber meine Kirche geschrieben haben ist Quatsch! Am besten sollen Sie zuerst die Wahrheit lernen. Es stimmt dass wir die Ergebnisse von der “Council of Nicea” ablehnen, denn es war nicht die Wahrheit. Man kann nicht unbedingt als wahr eine Wahl nehmen–es kann sein dass die Mehrheit sich irrt, und das Ergebnis damals war und immer noch ist total unverstaendlich!
Thank you, very informative, I am trying to wrap my head around Mormonism and this helped
Hi Evan, this article is actually not very helpful lol. Mormons are not polygamous like the pioneers of mormonism were. Also latter day saints only believe in god not multiple gods. Jesus is not god to mormons. However, they pray to jesus in hopes that he will relay the message to god
Please get your facts straight. Jesus is a member of the godhead according to LDS doctrine. According to the LDS website: “We believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ as the literal Son of God and a distinct member of the Godhead along with God the Father and the Holy Spirit.” https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/welcome/savior-jesus-christ?lang=eng
Being in the godhead is not the same as being a god. Christ is the son of God and, for lack of a better word, his “assistant,” but he isn’t a god himself.
So how can Jesus face God if he is not part of the God-head along with the Holy Spirit .
They are One in Three and Three in one.
In purpose not in one person
But things in the info here are false
I Am by the grace of God I Am who I Am, and His Grace toward me was not in vain. I’M A SINNER SAVED BY THE GRACE OF GOD AN JESUS CHRIST HIS SON SHED HIS BLOOD FOR ALL OF US TO COVER OUR SINS. JESUS WILLINGLY GAVE UP HIS LIFE ON EARTH FOR US ALL. THAT GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT WHO SO EVER CALLS UP ON THE NAME OF JESUS SHALL BE SAVED AN HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. NOT BY MY MIGHT, NOT BY MY STRENGTH OR MY WISDOM, BUT BY THE ANOINTING OF HIS HOLY SPIRIT THAT WE SUCCEED IN THIS LIFE. ITS BECAUSE THE SPIRIT OF GOD BARE’S WITNESS WITH OUR SPIRIT THAT WE ARE THE CHILDREN OF GOD . SIGNED SEALED AN DELIVERED EVER READY FOR ANYTHING AN EQUAL TO ANYTHING THIS LIFE CAN THROW AT US. Because of the Love of Our Lord an Savior O can do ALL things threw Jesus Christ my Lord my King.Amen
Hi Brandon,
I am new to your website. Can I just say thankyou for all your hard work and research that you put into your debates. They are always with a well balanced portioned response.
Your answers are very accurate and and encouraging. 👏 I am very happy your responses are with grace and never malice.
I remember back in the 90s when at bible college in London England I had to do a paper on Christian Cults, and to my complete surprise, every major cult always denied the Trinity without exception. ‘Every day a school day’
I have also noticed over the last 20 years plus the’ Word of Faith ‘ movement are still pushing the little Gods Theology so much, just like the cults.
Its in our Christian Pentecostal Churchs now today and doesn’t look like it is slowing down anytime soon. I left the my Pentecostal church because of this heretical teaching. Will these false prophets never learn .
In His Name 👋
Vince Young BTh(hons)
How does LDS differ from other Mormon religions?
On LDS, is it ok to profit from other peoples sins ie sell caffeine but not drink it. Own the casino but don’t gamble in it etc..!
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints are also the Mormons. Same Chuch, Same People
…After a conversation with one person, you’ve “decided” what every member of an entire religion believes. I don’t know your friend, but I doubt that you listened very well if you concluded that Latter Day Saints are polytheistic after a short conversation with a single member.
And then you posted on a site which stands to gain from discrediting The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
For the purposes of this website, the biggest difference is that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints believe that priest-craft is immoral. That is, a person paid to be a priest. So, the biggest conflict here, is that your occupation has no earnings if you convert. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints presents a conflict to the financial occupation of Pastors and Priests, which should have been your largest take away from a comparison of religious values.
First, this article is based on far more than just one conversation. I’ve read the book of Mormon, Pearl of Great Price, and Doctrine and Covenants.
Second, the LDS Church doesn’t admit to polytheism, yet teaches that there are multiple gods. They also teach that you can become a god one day yourself. That is the exact definition of polytheism (more than one god).
Third, if you believe the Bible, you should read 1 Timothy 5:17-18 about how elders deserve their wages, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. There is nothing immoral about being paid for hard work.
Fourth, I didn’t become a pastor to make money. I could make a lot more doing just about anything else. I would make more money if I converted to any other religion.
I am a member of the church but we do not worship a lot of different God as we have read and studied the Bible itself. We also our teachings are based on 1 God. We believe in Christ our Savior the son of the all mighty.. I don’t know where did you get your informations from..Joseph Smith is not a God but we take studies from his book nevertheless have the Bible as our guidance..we don’t worship him but we read and understands his teachings.. the Bible is what we believe.. Book of Mormon, great pearl of price, doctrine and covernant are books that helps us understand the Bible.
Thank you!
You are completely right.
All Christians are functionally polytheistic. Father, Jesus, and Holy Ghost. Saying that your three Gods only count as one because “reasons” doesn’t change that.
We do not think there are more than one god. We try to be more like God, more perfect, and we will, someday, be exalted, but we will still never be all powerful like God. We don’t believe Christ or the Holy Ghost are gods, rather, “assistants” of sorts to God with the same purpose.
We do not believe in multiple gods and whe do not believe we can become a god I’ve read the Bible the book of mormon d an c and peral of great price clear through before I was 12 and your just making stuff up. Lieing and judging is a sin and you call yourself a man of God. There is one God the son and the holy spirit only one God That is what we believe.
If your a man of God you would just preach and leave other people’s beliefs alone there is 100 of religions have faith in what you believe and focus on you. We will all find out the truth when we die so live you best life and put God first don’t worry about other people that isn’t very healthy or in the image of God
You are paid to preach. I guarantee that you read none of those books without a previously formed opinion. No open mind or heart, but only seeking to cherry pick from things said, to lend credence to your beliefs and desires to discredit another religion. Sorry, but your words can’t be trusted due to your intentions of attacking others beliefs. Your idea of being a Christian is not very Christ like.
I totally agree and stand by it.. I am a member of the church but we do not worship a lot of different God as we have read and studied the Bible itself. We believe in Christ our Savior the son of the all mighty.. Joseph Smith is not a God but we take studies from his book nevertheless have the Bible as our guidance..we don’t worship him but we read and understands his teachings..
This guy that posted this should get his facts right..
The LDS church does not worship a lot of different gods. But they do worship three separate gods at least, God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each is a separate being and each is divine according to LDS theology. They deny the Christian doctrine of the Trinity that there is only one God who eternally exists in three persons. Therefore, you do have multiple gods, even if you don’t want to admit it.
Also, I find it interesting that LDS say they don’t worship Joseph Smith, but you literally sing praise to him in one of your popular hymns “Praise to the Man.” https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/media/music/songs/praise-to-the-man?lang=eng
You still show no comprehension of the similarities in your belief. Mormons and Trinitarians believe in the exact same three individuals. The only thing that changed is Trinitarians say they are a single person that is also three people. I have never seen a good explanation of how believing that three people are God is different than believe the same three people are Gods.
You just made the distinction yourself. The difference is one “God” versus three “Gods”. The Trinity is not one person who is also three persons. It is one God who exists in three persons. That is a very big difference. Mormons believe in three separate gods who work for a similar purpose, and one is greater than the others. It’s one God verse three gods. But see my explanation to your comment above for a little more detail on the difference.
This is only one major difference. There are many major theological differences between Mormonism and Christianity.
So if there all one person then explain jhon 3 16 and then read 1 Timothy chapter 6 verse 3 thru 8 on a Bible that you didn’t translate to modern words because that Bible was translated in the 1980s to believe what the translater believed read the read the king James version that has been the same for over a 1000 years not your modern belief molested Bible
Priests don’t get paid. They are provided a simple house and a stipend for incidental expenses.
This is false information, Member of the Church of Jesus Christ of latter day saints only believe in one God, and just like christianity there is our Heavenly Father, his only begotten son Jesus Christ, and the holy ghost, yes they are seperate but they’re all embodiments of the spirit and same God, also we do not think we can become Gods just angels, this website is definitely anti-mormon and not creditable.
Then why did Joseph Smith say, “I have always declared God to be a distinct personage, Jesus Christ a separate and distinct personage from God the Father, and the Holy Ghost a distinct personage or spirit, and these three constitute three distinct personages and three Gods.”
You can read the quote yourself in Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith on the LDS website on p.42: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/36481_eng.pdf
Also, Christians believe that Jesus and the Holy Spirit have eternally existed with God since the beginning. They are not created beings.
We also believe that God does not change (Malachi 3:6), and Joseph Smith taught that God used to be a man: “God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man” (Joseph Smith, Journal of Discourses, 6:3).
Also, your prophet said you can become gods. “As man is, God once was: as God is, man may become” (Prophet Lorenzo Snow, quoted in Milton R. Hunter, The Gospel Through the Ages, [Salt Lake City: Stevens & Wallis, 1945], 105–106). Was he wrong?
You may believe that you will only become an angel, but that’s not what the LDS church has taught historically.
It so if there is one one person then explain jhon 3 16
Christians can neither become either gods or angels . We are and will remain mankind . Jesus is God incarnate. He was
and remains fully man and fully God. He is seated at the right hand of God the Father to intercede for His adopted brothers and sisters. We are not perfect we are forgiven.Our relationship with God was bought with the blood sacrifice of Jesus, our Lord and savior.
Yall we believe in one god and we don’t believe that we can become gods we believe we can become angels
We can’t become Angeles the reason being is that Angels are a complete different creation than human..
That’s not historically accurate. See my replies to some of the other comments.
Thanks for this piece that provides clarity on this w in an expository manner, for
The Mormons and so many other Religions definitely need help. We have a similar belief but on a partial level. They are lost if they believe they can become a God. So many religions are partially lost also like Muslims & Jehovah Witness(JW). JW used to knock at my door. What I noticed is that we are similar in beliefs to a certain portion. But they are wrong on other portions. I don’t compromise when it comes to God. So I dismissed JW coming to my door. I pray that all these religions will get wisdom and understanding.
we believe in one god and we don’t believe that we can become gods we believe we can become angels
We do not believe we can become gods, neither do we worship multiple gods. Much of the information represented in this article was false.
thank you for explaining the belief of the mormons. i like knowing how different ones believe. i am a teacher in church and a speaker in conferences and an author of a book on amazon …fabulous poems combined. i am the church bus driver i pick up a lot of different people
So the god You all believe in is from 2000 year old writings, that is silly, if you believe god is a living god then holy writings would be continued until today, interesting their not, sorry to pop your bubble , why is god not writing today? Please don’t tell me that one book covers the whole deal, and please don’t tell me that man has only been here 5000 years, if you want salvation don’t tell other peoples made up stories, (Joseph Smith)that is true blasphemy.
It may seem to some, sad and too bad that all of that proof of biblical studies,spirit given revelation and history had to be concluded with David Youngs comment of total disbelief of the bible and the God that inspired it! Fortunately, for all of those that share in his beliefs, I was once a part of that very community! I didn’t believe it, nor was I convinced that there even was” a loving God” that could be so, and allow all of this hate,pain,trouble,etc to so many,especially to the little victimized innocent ones( as was my beginning)! I hated my terrible life,that I was told ” was a gift from God and that what we did with it,was in turn,our gift to Him. To add insult to injury, on the last day of highschool in Art Class i ignorantly did something that opened up a doorway that i couldnt close,neither did i have anyone that could help me close it! For the next 2 and a half years, i existed in a living Nightmare!Well, i decided He could have His “gift” back! I thought of it as a sick,cruel joke anyways! For me,it was like unwrapping a gift box full of all kinds of infectious dieases!How could a terrible life of pain,rejection and abuse of many kinds be “a gift”? The decision was made,I’ll drive my car out in the woods, tilt my head back and put a 38( that i took from my ex-con brothers pocket)in my mouth,and blow my brains out! God didn’t care nothing about me anyways,or so I thought! A thought came to my mind, that I originally thought came from me,to pray this simple prayer ” if there is a God out there( even though I didn’t believe it was) if you are as powerful and all knowing that people say you are,I’m giving you a chance to show it! If you’ve got any care or plans for my life,let me know,otherwise you can have this ” gift of life” that feels like a sentence of death”! That was over 45 years ago,when He began to pull me to Him,to heal my many hurts and completely change my life! And that demon that tormented me nonstop,(that I opened the door of my life for)was ejected out like a rocket! And since I had such indignation for the little messy,self righteous church hypocrites that I had encountered,( and not all are) He didn’t use the church or the church folk to help deliver me, heal me or my ripped apart heart,either! Our creator knows each one of us His creation, and He knows how to fix our brokenness! I can’t tell you the many people that He has used me to help pull from similar wrecks that I myself was once in! So many are angry,hurting and ready to pull the trigger to end their misery,but I promise you there is a loving Creator that really cares! He not only heard me, but He knew how and what to do to pull me out of the fatal wreck that my life was in! First ,He planted the very prayer that I took credit for in me, to pray to Him ,that would forever change my life! It’s my prayer that He will plant within you and all of the others that are like minded,that very prayer that will permit Him to step into your personal lifes fatalities,and work a work in your lives that will forever change the way you do and view things! And I’m hoping that He hurries up, sorry to say,even with as much as He has done for so many,there’s not enough of us out here that’s even willing or wants to be used! Your future Sister in Christ Jesus!