THE CROSS NEWSLETTER – Involved Christians

OCTOBER 2022

Involved Christians

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II. PILLARS BUILT ON SAND

THE STRUCTURE OF THE LDS CORPORATION

PROPHETS AND PROPHECY

This text is the second within the sequence of 4 discussing the 4 Pillars of the LDS Company. As said within the first article, you’ll not discover these described this manner in Latter-day Saints supplies. They’re nevertheless, the 4 necessities which offer their leaders with theological management over the members, in addition to administrative accountability.

Earlier than we talk about the October topic, PROPHECY, I ask the questions, what was Joseph Smith’s view of the ‘Prophets’? Did he comprehend how God used prophets within the Previous Testomony? Did he perceive the working limitations of an Previous Testomony prophet? Did he perceive how prophecy was utilized in 1 Corinthians 14? Did he confuse Previous Testomony prophets with the New Testomony prophecy of Corinthians? Have been they dealt with the identical Biblically? Did he produce other clandestine functions for ‘The Prophet’ with the concept of ‘persevering with revelation’? These logical questions cry out for solutions.

Once more, I quote Jesus in Matthew 7:24-27:

“Why do you name me, ‘Lord, Lord’, and don’t do what I say? Due to this fact, everybody who hears these phrases of mine and places them into follow is sort of a sensible man who constructed his home on the rock. The rain got here down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat in opposition to the home; but it didn’t fall as a result of it had its basis on the rock. However everybody who hears these phrases of mine and never put them into follow is sort of a silly man who constructed his home on the sand. The rain got here down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat in opposition to that home, and it fell with an incredible crash.”

Our second PILLAR BUILT ON SAND is ‘PROPHET AND CONTINUING PROPHECY’!

Through the means of historic analysis surrounding Joseph Smith, there are court docket data and eye-witness affidavits filed displaying younger Joseph being concerned in an fascinating way of life. What had been the situations of Joseph’s younger life? What had been the encompassing life pressures which developed his character and molded his future lifestyle?

THE NATURE AND LIFESTYLE OF JOSEPH SMITH

As a result of the entire improvement of Mormonism revolves round Joseph Smith, an investigation of his nature and character ought to be performed. Fawn M. Brodie, historian, did an intensive investigation of his life. She states in her historic investigation, No Man Is aware of My Historical past, the lifetime of Joseph Smith:

The highway that led Joseph Smith into the profession of “prophet, seer, and revelator” is overgrown with a tangle of legend and contradictions. – – –

The proof, nevertheless, leaves little question that, no matter Joseph’s interior emotions, his popularity earlier than he organized his church was not that of an adolescent mystic brooding over visions, however of a likable ne’er-do-well who was infamous for tall tales and necromantic arts and who spent his leisure main a band of idlers in digging for buried treasure. – – –

This description appears additionally to be the earliest public doc that mentions him in any respect. The doc, a court docket report dated March 1826, when Joseph was twenty-one, covers his trial in Bainbridge, New York, on a cost of being “a disorderly individual and an imposter.” On the idea of the testimony introduced, together with Joseph’s personal admissions of indulging in magic arts and organizing hunts for buried gold, the court docket dominated him responsible of disturbing the peace. – – – fifty-one of Joseph’s neighbors signed an affidavit accusing him of being “destitute of ethical character and hooked on vicious habits,” there is no such thing as a proof that viciousness was part of his nature. – – – Truly, he was a gregarious, cheerful, imaginative youth, born to management, however hampered by meager schooling and grinding poverty. – – –

Joseph’s neighbors later poured out tales of seer stones, ghosts, magic incantations, and nocturnal excavations. Joseph Capron swore that younger Joseph had informed him a chest of gold watches was buried on his property. – – –

Joseph’s money-digging started in earnest along with his discovery of a “seer stone’ when he was digging a properly for Mason Chase. Martin Harris said that it got here from twenty-four ft underground, and Joseph Capron testified that Joseph might see wonderous sights in it, “ghosts, infernal spirits, mountains of gold and silver.” (Pages 16-20)

From Professor Brodie’s analysis it’s apparent that Joseph Smith was a pure chief along with his contemporaries. He had an energetic creativeness and a bent for the supernatural. His poverty appeared to guide him to get-rich-quick efforts constructed on mysticism. He additionally had an interesting and winsome character, offering affect over most he met. Professor Brodie, in her early writing, establishes the poverty of the household over a few years. Joseph’s life was strongly influenced by this. He was continually on the lookout for methods to underwrite his household’s wants. By the point he was twenty-five years outdated he was starting to embrace his influential character. This mixed along with his fascination with buried treasures, seer stones, and gold led him to his ‘miraculous discovery’ of gold plates (by no means actually seen and examined for gold high quality) inscribed in “reformed Egyptian” language (by no means recognized to ever exist on this planet). All this mixed to supply the E-book of Mormon, which simply occurred to turn out to be a supply of recent prosperity.

This e-book was the topic of Pillar #1. As soon as God’s Phrase was neutralized and changed by the E-book of Mormon it was time to implement present authority. Joseph’s unverifiable account reported him to be chosen by the God of this world as present Prophet and chief of the brand new group. Once more, Professor Brodie stories:

A fortnight (a interval of 14 days) after the publication of the E-book of Mormon Joseph Smith introduced to his following his official title as “Seer, a Translator, a Prophet, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, and Elder of the Church by means of the need of God the Father, and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. It’s simple to hint the steps by which Joseph assumed this function. Apparently, he slipped into it with ease, with out the interior turmoil that preceded the non secular fervor of so most of the nice non secular figures of the previous. (Web page 84)

Joseph’s number of assumed titles covers nearly all the pieces non secular which one might consider. Thus, he attracts his authority by claiming direct succession from God the Father and Jesus Christ, His son. He claims to be an Apostle, Prophet, and an Elder, multi functional. Nobody within the Bible was all three. The place of Prophet supplied on the spot route and pronouncements for Joseph. This gives us with the query, what’s a Biblical Prophet?

THE BIBLE AND PROPHECY

If we wish to acquire perception into God’s idea of a prophet, the ONLY supply for that’s the Bible. Prophets (noun) and prophecy (verb) each seem within the Previous and New Testaments. Within the Previous Testomony there are a big number of God’s servants who’re recognized as prophets. Solely a only a few had been utilized by God for main historic functions.

• Revealing God’s message. (Noah, Abraham, Moses, Samuel, and Nathan are just some)
• Performing a specific occasion for God. (Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Samson, Gideon, David, and others)
• Direct verbal or written communications. (Noah, Abraham, Moses, Samuel, Nathan, and the key and minor Prophets of the Previous Testomony)
• Main God’s chosen nation. Main a gaggle for a specific time and function and terminating. (Moses, Joshua, Saul, David, Solomon)
• Predicting God’s Messiah. (One scholar has said there are 456 of those prophecies. Nevertheless, the primary ones are

1. Genesis 12:1-3 a descendant of Abraham
2. 2 Samuel 7:12-13 I’ll set up the throne of his kingdom endlessly
3. Isaiah 7:14 the virgin will conceive and bear a son who will likely be Immanuel
4. Isaiah 9:6-7 a baby is born His identify Fantastic, Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace
5. Isaiah 53 The Struggling Servant
6. Zechariah 9:9 The humility of Messiah. He’s simply and having salvation, lowly and driving on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Micah 5:2 However you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, although you might be little among the many 1000’s of Judah, but out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of outdated, from eternal.

All Biblical prophets had been restricted to explicit actions for explicit functions. The ONLY one not restricted was THE MESSIAH. No particular person was lifted to prominence besides Jesus, himself. New Testomony prophets and prophecies maintained this Previous Testomony sample.

The Bible by no means has a single incidence of any prophet being lifted to private significance! Humility was/is a attribute of all Godly individuals who had been/are prophets.

BIBLICAL HISTORY HAS NEVER HAD A CONTINUING PROPHET EXCEPT THE MESSIAH, IMMANUEL (GOD WITH US).

Jesus is our dwelling Prophet who didn’t depart us alone; He gave us His Holy Spirit because the Comforter. We’re God’s temple the place the Holy Spirit dwells (1 Corinthians 6:19).

A ‘dwelling prophet’ main a particular group of followers has by no means existed aside from God’s chief, Moses. Moses was a humble servant who spoke for God as he was directed. He was by no means elevated to private significance; the truth is, he did disobey God and was disciplined. When he died, his management was handed to Joshua quietly with no emphasis of non-public prominence.

In a paragraph above I discussed that Joseph claimed to be an Apostle, a Prophet, and an Elder, establishing preeminence. He used persevering with prophecy to ascertain coverage, management followers’ actions, and to appropriate uncomfortable earlier prophecies. He even claimed in a sermon of Could 26, 1844, (32 days earlier than his loss of life) to be better than all of the outstanding New Testomony leaders together with Jesus, God’s son. Being a pacesetter with prophetic management was essential to him.

Joseph said: I’ve extra to boast of than ever any man had. I’m the one man that has ever been capable of maintain an entire church collectively because the days of Adam. A big majority of the entire have stood by me. Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast that no man ever did such a piece as I. The followers of Jesus ran away from Him; however the Latter-day Saints by no means ran away from me but. (Historical past of the Church, Vol.6, by the LDS Church, pg. 408-409)

You resolve, was persevering with prophecy an actual factor? Did it meet the idea of Biblical Prophets? Is the LDS present prophesy something like Biblical prophecy?

MY CONCLUSION: JOSEPH SMITH’S CONTINUING PROPHECY WAS HIS NON-BIBLICAL INVENTION FOR PERSONAL AUTHORITY AND CONTROL, A PILLAR BUILT ON SAND.

What’s your conclusion?

Gary Keating

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If you’re aware of the e-book above, hopefully you could have truly learn it, or when you have heard the Wilder’s converse, then this following info ought to contact your coronary heart.

The Wilder’s dwell in Ft. Meyers Florida- the world that lately took the brunt of Hurricane Ian. They occurred to be out of city on a talking tour. They got here again to a giant mess. The within had been deep in water. Fortunately their son Matt went over and eliminated the carpets. They’re endlessly grateful for his or her motorhome as they no less than have a spot to remain dry.

If you happen to ought to really feel result in ship them a love providing or a card of prayer and encouragement right here is their mailing tackle:

ECUJ

3573 Edgewood Ave.

Ft. Meyers, FL 33916

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