TEN REASONS WHY I CANNOT BE A MORMON by Rev. John Hornok 1. ˙MORMONISM DOES NOT TEACH THAT THE BIBLE IS THE INFALLIBLE WORK OF GOD. ˙˙"We ˙believe the Bible to the the Word of God as far as it ˙is translated ˙correctly; ˙˙we also believe the book of Mormon to be ˙the word of God" (Articles of Faith, No. 8). As ˙Christians we believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old ˙and ˙New Testaments ˙to ˙the ˙the verbally inspired Word ˙of ˙God, ˙˙the ˙final authority ˙for ˙faith and life, ˙inerrant in ˙the ˙original ˙writings, infallible and God-breathed (2 ˙Tim. ˙3:16-17; ˙2 Pet. ˙1:20-21; ˙Matt 5:18). 2. ˙˙MORMONISM TEACHES THAT GOD IS AN EXALTED MAN AND HAS A ˙PHYSICAL BODY. ˙˙"God himself was once as we are now, ˙and is an exalted ˙man" (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, ˙pg. 345). ˙"The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's..." ˙(Doc. ˙& Cov., ˙Sec. 131:22) The Bible says, ˙"God is not a man..." ˙(Num. ˙23:19). ˙"God is a Spirit; ˙˙and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and ˙in truth" ˙˙(John 4:24). ˙"A spirit hath not flesh and ˙bones..." ˙˙(Lk. 24:39). 3. MORMONISM TEACHES THAT CHRIST AND THE DEVIL ARE BROTHERS. "...that Lucifer, ˙the son of morning, ˙is our elder brother and the brother of Jesus Christ" (Mormon Doctrine by Bruce McConkie, pp. 163-4). The Bible says that the devil is a created being, ˙created by God. "thou ˙wast ˙perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast ˙created, till ˙iniquity ˙was found in thee" ˙(Ezekiel 28:15). ˙˙"For ˙by ˙Him (Christ) ˙were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, ˙visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, ˙of dominions, or principalities, ˙or powers; ˙all things were created by Him and for Him..." (Col. 1:15-17). 4. MORMONISM TEACHES THAT JESUS WAS MARRIED AND THE HE IS POLYGAMOUS. "We ˙say ˙it ˙was ˙Jesus Christ who was married at ˙Cana ˙of ˙Galilee" (Journal of Discourses, ˙Vol 2, p. 80). ˙Mormonism teaches that Jesus was ˙the ˙natural ˙child ˙of Adam and Mary. ˙"When ˙the ˙Virgin ˙Mary conceived ˙the Child Jesus....He was not begotten by the ˙Holy ˙Ghost. And who is his Father? ˙He is the first of the human family" (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, pp. 50-51). The Bible says, ˙"In the beginning was the Word (Christ), ˙and the Word was with God, and the Word was God;...The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us..." ˙(John 1:1, 14). ˙"Then Mary said unto the angel, How ˙shall ˙this ˙be, ˙seeing that I know not a man? ˙And ˙the ˙angel answered... The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee..."(Lk. 1:34-35). 5. ˙˙MORMONISM TEACHES THAT THE TRUE CHURCH CEASED TO EXIST UNTIL ˙IT WAS RESTORED TO JOSEPH SMITH. ˙The church (LDS) was restored April 6, 1830 by Joseph Smith (Doc. & Cov., 20:1). Jesus ˙Christ said, ˙"I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" ˙(Matt. ˙16:18). ˙"for other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Cor. 3:11). ˙˙"...And ˙are built upon the foundation of the ˙apostles ˙and prophets, ˙˙Jesus ˙Christ himself being the chief cornerstone" ˙˙(Eph. 2:20). 6. ˙˙MORMONISM TEACHES ANOTHER (PERVERTED) ˙GOSPEL THAN THAT ˙OF ˙THE BIBLE. ˙˙The gospel to Mormonism is: ˙"Faith, ˙Repentance, ˙Baptism, Receiving the Holy Spirit by laying on of hands, ˙Morality, ˙˙Loyalty, Tithing, ˙Word of Wisdom, Duty Celestial Marriage (for eternity)" (LDS chart of FREE AGENCY and Articles of Faith, No. 4). The Bible says, "Moreover brethren, I ˙declare unto you the gospel that he was buried, ˙and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" ˙(1 ˙Cor. 15:1, ˙3-4). ˙"if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed" (Gal. 1:9). 7. ˙˙MORMONISM ˙TEACHES ˙SALVATION FOR THE THE DEAD ˙BY ˙PROXY ˙WATER BAPTISM. This doctrine is based on one misunderstood Scripture: "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, ˙if the dead ˙rise not at all? Why are they then baptized for the dead?" (1 Cor. 15:29). Paul ˙did not practice baptism for the dead. ˙He excluded himself by using the pronoun "they" rather than "we" ˙or "ye". He is asking a question ˙rather than making a statement. ˙"It is appointed unto ˙man once to die, but after this the judgment" (Heb. 9:27). 8. ˙MORMONISM TEACHES GENEALOGICAL RESEARCH FOR THE DEAD. ˙"Let ˙us, therefore, ˙as a church and a people, and as Latter-day Saints, ˙offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness; ˙and let us present in his holy temple, when it is finished, a book containing the records of our dead, ˙which shall be worth of all acceptation" ˙(Doc. ˙& ˙Cov., ˙Sec. 128:24). The ˙Bible ˙says, ˙˙"Neither ˙give ˙heed ˙to ˙fables ˙and ˙endless genealogies" ˙˙(1 ˙˙Tim. ˙˙1:4). ˙"but ˙avoid ˙foolish ˙question ˙and genealogies..." (Titus 3:9). 9. ˙˙MORMONISM TEACHES THAT THERE ARE MODERN DAY PROPHETS AND ˙MODERN DAY REVELATIONS FROM GOD. Mormonism claims that Joseph Smith received the ˙Aaronic ˙Priesthood ˙from John ˙the ˙Baptist. ˙˙The ˙Melchizedek Priesthood and Apostleship ˙was ˙restored ˙by Peter, ˙˙James ˙and John shortly afterwards in 1829 (Doc. & Cov., Sec. 13). The Bible says, ˙"God...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" ˙(Heb. ˙1:1-2). ˙The test of a prophet is given ˙in Deut. 18:20-22. 10. ˙˙MORMONISM ˙TEACHES THAT SALVATION DEPENDS UPON ˙GOOD ˙WORKS ˙AND ACCEPTANCE ˙OF ˙JOSEPH SMITH. ˙"No man who rejects the ˙testimony ˙of Joseph ˙Smith can enter the kingdom of God" ˙(Doctrines of ˙Salvation, vol. 1 pg. 190). "Men have work to do it they would obtain salvation" (Doctrines of Salvation. vol. 3, pg 91). The ˙Bible ˙teaches ˙that salvation is provided ˙by ˙Jesus ˙Christ alone, ˙˙"for ˙there is none other name under heaven given among ˙men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:10-12). ˙"For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:8-9). 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