Thanks Pastor Jeff, you explained it all so well! I'm looking forward to hearing what misconceptions latter-day saints have towards protestant-evangelicals. By the way, you explained the whole polygamy and caffeine thing better than most latter-day saints would.
Another excellent video, Pastor Jeff. Concerning the different "kingdoms," they are not separate places but differing glories that resurrected bodies may be raised to. The direct presence of the various members of the Godhead is determined by the purity of the individuals in the eternities.
Dude, you are a huge blessing. Thanks for your work, man. This is what Christianity is about - no one wants to take anything from anyone, but let us get together and see how we can edify each other with the right spirit based on the common beliefs. All the best from an LDS member from Germany.
King David was never held under condemnation even with all His wives and Concubines; it was not until He desired a married man's wife and sent the man out into the heat of the front of Battle in hopes to be slain to take Her to wife that caused the High Priest to declare God's justice to King David that He would loose His first born child by Her because God knew David's son and it would not go unpunished. Because David was so grieved in Spirit for His sin that God forgave Him after loosing His first child that David had a son named Solomon in which was His successor and was a righteous King. Because things changed it was hard for people to accept multiple wives and this was done away by the people. For a time it was reinstituted into practice and because of the rejection of the people of such practices it was discontinued to go forward with the practices of ancient times in Temples. See 1 Corinthian's chapter 15:29, 30. It reads " Else what shall they do who are Baptized for the dead if the dead rise not at all, why then do they do Baptism's for the dead then and why stand we in jeopardy every hour?" This Ordinance was in fact practiced in Paul's time. He wrote Corinthian's of the New Testament. This work was rejected by those who hated truth and stopped this practice and martyring Steven, John The Baptist, other Apostles such as Peter, and even Paul. Many prescious truth's were taken from the scripts but they missed grabbing that section. It even speaks of the Celestial Bodies, Terrestrial, but left out the Celestial name but gave the example of as one star differs from another in glory after the Celestial being like the sun and the Terrestrial being like the moon in glory. The Doctrine and Covenant's explains that the Terrestrial is the lowest Glory and differs like one star does from another in glory. I have no problem believing these truths. It is not hard for me to believe that a young lad prayed for the truth because He wanted His babtism to be just as valid as when John The Baptist Baptized Christ so he prayed in a private Grove for answer's on which Church to join after all there were different names of Churches and groups forming opinions on what they believed. I believe that God The Father and His Son Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith as He humbled Himself in that grove. He was told that He would be given The Lord's true Gospel and He would be an instrument in The Lord's hands in Restoring The Gospel Truth's to The Earth once again. Morman was a ten year old boy chosen by God through the Historian keeper of ancient records of History prior to Morman's birth and through his childhood as the Historian was no longer going to be alive to take care of the plates and Morman was to go to the Hill where these plates were kept when He became a man. Morman was now in charge of preserving them. He was chosen by the King at 15 to be the leader of the Nephite Army because of His Faithfulness in following The Lord in righteousness. His son Maroni succeeded Him in death after the Nephite were being killed off by the Lamanite Army because of Prophecy being fulfilled because some of the Nephite were becoming even more wicked than the Nephite. Maroni had to leave Morman as He was old when the final battle irritated because Morman taught His son to run and take the remaining plates in their charge to hide them away from those who would use the gold and brass plates for personal gain instead of important history kept even many years before they were born. Maroni was alone twenty years and the last of all the Nephite heritage as the Lamanite hunted down and killed every Nephite found alive. He carried the plates in Ancient America in 421 AD. They were brought by ship by Lehi and His family who had son's bed Nephite and Lamanite and other family as well. This is where the Nephites and Lamanite genes came from to Ancient America from Ancient Jerusalem. God allowed Maroni to visit Joseph Smith as a Angelic Messenger in vision.numerous times throughout the night until morning and went about to His regular chores to meet His father and was told to go back and retire to rest as He appear lethargic and weak that morning and Joseph became unconscious heading home and Moroni came and regressed all He had shown Joseph the night prior including where the plates were hidden so that Joseph would recognize the place when He arrived to that very place. Joseph was told to go and tell His father working in the field and His father told Joseph it was of God and to go and obey. He was told to go to that place one time each year for four years to make sure other's would not follow and make sure He was prepared in all things concerning the matter including not using the gold for His family's needs. Joseph suffered a chipped tooth because people wanted the plates for wealth purposes and because of not wanting to believe Joseph was bringing to pass The Lord's Restoration of His Gospel in a latter day dispensation. Maroni appeared to Joseph in vision in His room on September 22, 1823. He was told to name the Church, "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." He was hot tarred and feathered for causing the book to become published. The First Book of Morman was published in March of 2830. Joseph was against Black Slavery as well and this angered those who had slaves or miss treated the black race. I am against slavery as well. I saw the movie "Root's" and cried even as a very young teen. Maybe I was even younger even younger.tgan that. I was heartbroken for we are all God's children. No one should have gone through what they went through. The reason why the Priesthood was held off was because Society was very much into Slavery for a long time and treated the black race as less than's and some still do. This brings sadness to the ❤️.of all who love all races. Joseph had enemies because He was for the Black Race having freedom and Rightfully so to establish equality in gaining Human Rights. He was hated for His religious claims of seeing God and Jesus Christ and His visions. The reason The Church excommunicates those commiting Polygamy is to assure the Temple Work other Ordinances are not interrupted as Society in latter times would never accept Polygamy as in King times even when it was once accepted in those times. I hope this assists those seeking The Truth. In I say these things as accurately as possible and state The Lord is calling and gathering Israel for The Last Time in these last day's prior to The Ushering in of The Second Coming of Jesus Christ and do so in the name of The Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Why has someone deleted my comments? You want truth but stop it from happening when some facts are given. I took the time and saw one of my post and no longer see that nor the second. Why is this being deleted as I no longer see it posted? All answer's should be allowed if no vulgarity or hate crimes are pushed here.
In the Word of Wisdom it refers to hot drinks not caffeine. When teaching science to blind high schoolers we had a teacher die from cancer in her digestive system and they wanted to know why. We learned that caffeine can be habit forming and that when someone drinks hot fluids they become used to the temperature and increase the heat of their drinks. Cancer is caused by exposing the mouth, throat and stomach repeatedly to excessive heat. Could this be the connection to caffeine?
@@jmegarrycaffeine is good for keeping someone energized for a short time but when consumed regularly becomes a hobbit that is physically painful to stop. It is addictive. Hot d drinks as stated are harmful and can cause cancer.
I am LDS, and I really appreciate the fact that you research what the doctrine is. So much hatred towards the church. If we can all have an open dialog, how much we would gain from each other and come closer to our Savior. To see folks monetizing off of the hatred. Thanx for being Christ like in your approach.
I would love to have a big session with many people from different backgrounds to have a sane and loving Christ-like study session of our understandings and learn from one another, it could also help us to clarify points of view and bust myths, of course starting with a powerful prayer calling the Holy Spirit to bless the study session and avoid contention and negative emotions
Some things I can’t square with ongoing revelation explanations. For example - Brigham Young taught that țhere are some sins that Jesus’s blood isn’t able to atone for, that must be taken care of by shedding a man’s own blood. I know that’s no longer taught, but how? How could the blood of Jesus be insufficient then, but sufficient for all sins now? This is a serious question, not a “gotcha “ attempt.
I so appreciate the time you and Joy have taken to understand the Latter day Saint faith. I have also loved learning about your faith and beliefs. Thank you for creating content that I am excited to share with friends and family.
You seem like the absolute kindest person ever, who is not a member of the LDS church, to have a calm level-headed conversation about the LDS church and its beliefs and teachings. I can't tell you how many times I was yelled at, chewed out, verbally assaulted, and, in a few rare occasions, actually physically assaulted, while I was a missionary in a Latin-American country. There have been numerous times in the past several decades since my mission when conversations about the LDS church cause others to become rude and nasty towards me. I don't understand why people get angry over a conversation about religion. I have never become angry or even felt the need to "set someone straight" when conversing about the LDS church with someone who belongs to another religion. I have never attacked someone else's church or religion to their face like others have done to me.
It really strengthens your testimony if you think about it. If all this wasn't true, why would satan be trying so hard to get people to be hostile toward it? I often wonder the same thing, like why do we just hear anti against our church? Why not others? Not saying there should be more hate out there but you get the point 😂
@@draetonbybee9307 If the only thing you can imagine that would cause hostility to the institution of the LDS church is satan, I would like to gently suggest that you keep your eyes and your ears open. People have been hurt -- badly -- by local LDS authorities put in positions of power by the church who have gone against church teachings and church policy. This should make all of us absolutely angry, and sympathetic to those who have been hurt. People have also been hurt -- badly -- by authorities following exactly church policy to the letter. Understanding this pain doesn't mean that members should leave the institution, but it should be enough to cause a good deal of introspection by devout believers.
I think you haven't looked at things from the other side. The doctrines taught in the LDS faith often deeply go against a biblical view of the important truths held, such as the nature of God, the nature of Jesus, God's ability to sustain his church beyond the lives of the apostles, and the sufficiency of Scripture. If someone shares incorrect information about the historical Christian faith it really touches a nerve, just as if someone was picking on your favorite family member.
@@janetspiritofthelivinggod6328 You're not making any sense because it appears as though you have contradicted yourself. First you state what you think is wrong with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and its doctrines. Then, you compare having a discrepancy between what you think is correct Christian beliefs and doctrines and what the LDS church has as its established doctrines to "picking on your favorite family member". It looks like you have just done the equivalent of "picking on someone's favorite family member"then. I wonder if you feel the same way when pointing out differences between all 45,000 Christian sects across the world.
A long time ago when I was 5 or 6 yrs old I had a conversation with a neighbor that was a Christian but not LDS and me in my little brain mentioned he wasn't a Christian because he didn't believe like I did. He educated me about what a Christian is and since then I have had respect for all Christ and Bible based religions. I like what is said at the end of this video about the maybe the type of conversations we should be having with others not of our faith. There is so much truth to be learned from all the perspectives. In the end when Jesus returns I truly believe he will embrace all of us that accepted him regardless of which Christian based church we belong to. In the end we will all be united in the church of Jesus Christ and that all our questions will be answered and clarified. The important thing is to Love Jesus and our neighbors. Respect goes a long way. I appreciate the respect and caring shown by Jeff in this video and others.
Absolutely, Julie. We are only able to think on earthly terms. All will be revealed when we are in heaven , we can’t even fathom how wonderful it will be, but Gods grace and mercy will be everything we need, no secrets, no promises of who will be with who in heaven, we will all be angels in Gods holy place. No one here on earth knows what heaven will be except for Jesus, Christ, who became a man, and told everyone who would listen what heaven would be like, because he was there, in the begining with God when all was created. I trust in Jesus my savior and Lord. 🙏
I was born and raised in Thailand as a Buddhism and I am converted into a LDS Church since I was early teenager 🙏 Yes, I heard about negative things about LDS Church on and on but I am not focused on it because of I am focusing on my soul as I know that the only person who can save my soul is the lord Jesus Christ so I am trying my best to follow his path and keep his commandment in my daily life as I am trying to reach my goals to partake the fruits of life 🙏 Yes, I am already sealed in the temple and did all kinds of ordinances to save my soul 🙏 I don’t really think that much about the factors of the people who are in the different perspectives it’s too much for me so I only know that Jesus is the Christ and he is my savior. ขอบคุณและสวัสดีครับ🙏
@@ponpawittnumnuan4299 if Jesus was really your Savior you would believe everything he said including what he said on the cross 'it is finished'. If you understand that he is saying he is paying the debt we owe to God, therefore you do not have to do all those things for your soul to be saved. Jesus said the truth will set us free, not tether us to a long list of beliefs and behaviors in order to be saved. Of course his love, grace and mercy motivate us to listen for his daily instructions and do them but he says his yoke is easy and his burden is light. I see LDS under heavy burdens to do so many things, it's very sad.
@@janetspiritofthelivinggod6328 you do not understand if this is what you feel. It's better to ask and be educated. We know we cannot save ourselves. We are saved by grace. But that doesn't mean we sit there like a lump on a log. Our love for Jesus causes us to want to serve others & to continually learn more about Christ to be like him. I find this joyous. No heavy lifting or burdens at all. He blesses me.
@@rachelleherle1178 You need to meet my LDS neighbor who said she hated every minute of being relief society president. Those were not her god-given spiritual gifts being utilized, but it was thrust on her by people above her who think they know better than God does. Travesty! When someone is truly serving God out of love and volunteering, there should be no retribution, shame or guilt if they say "no" to a "calling" by the Bishop. I'm glad you have only experienced what you share here and that it's been joyous. Many do not share that experience, in a lot of churches.
I like pastor Jeff. He got most things right. However, I would never characterize LDS doctrine as "progressive" at all. In fact, we're much more like strict constitutionalists and hold the scripture Canon to be interpreted as the original authors intended it, meaning as God revealed it. But we need prophets to help us with that interpretation. Believing in on-going revelation doesn't mean doctrines can change. But it does mean that new light may be shed on mysteries of heaven, and certainly that prophets can give guidance and commandments as directed by Jesus Christ.
Hey, thanks! I think this might be my favorite video of yours. When I talk to people who have misconceptions about LDS beliefs or practices, and I ask where those ideas come from, they most often say, “My pastor taught us that.” It’s always interesting how things can be taught or passed along over time, even if they’re not accurate. Then it keeps getting repeated as if it's true. I really appreciate your thoughtful approach to these topics-it makes such a difference!
We are often accused of worshipping Joseph Smith. This myth could have made your list as well. We worship God the father, through his Son Jesus Christ and not any other Prophet or church leader.
@@CGall_I have paintings of the apostle and prophet Peter in my home. I really love and admire him. I hope to get to meet him in heaven. But having a painting of him doesn't mean that I worship him. I have pictures of my family up. I don't worship them. I worship God, the eternal Father.
Thank you so much for your thoughts at the end!! I served my LDS mission in the South, and found myself trying to explain the paradigm difference to so many of my Evangelical friends! It often turned into “bible bashing,” which became SO frustrating for me because I wanted to have healthy and respectful dialogues and it rarely went that way. You articulated the key belief in ongoing revelation so nicely! One thing I would add is that a fundamental belief can be found in Moses 1:39, where the Lord says “this is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” This is such a beautiful and crucial fact about God, that His entire purpose right now is to save and exalt us! So we believe that when more revelation is received, such as instituting or abolishing polygamy, it all fits into God’s great purpose to bring to pass our immortality and eternal life. We may not understand how it works, but that is where faith comes in, and as we study and pray and seek to understand, He’ll often reveal a truth to us that helps things make more sense. So incredible!! Thank you again for your respect and care, God bless you!
This was a great video! I had my reservations about this channel for a long time but after having been subscribed for a year now and watching multiple videos, I can really tell that Pastor Jeff is just a sincere seeker of truth. On all accounts, he seems to be a very Christ-like individual. Thanks for helping to bridge understandings and sow truth!
I’m so grateful for your persistent and consistent effort to lovingly understand and give heed to correction on these topics. It is a world changing and mature position to be in and I’m so grateful for the new foundation you’re helping to restore
I like being LDS! Life is tough for everybody. I don't drink or smoke at 85 I have lived longer. My 5 kids survive well. They think well, are tough as nails, go to Church with thier kids, and work successfully hard. They have strong marriages and love thier kids! What more could a father hope for!
@@GlenMcbride-s6l I would much rather be sure that I am believing the God of the Bible and historic Christianity with evidences that form a reasoned and reasonable relationship with Him. Jesus said that the narrow gate is one of knowing him and him knowing me. Take care my friend.
@@rachelleherle1178 Who needs more when one knows and is known by the God of the Universe? Man loves to make up stuff and sell religious experiences even tho God speaks with a whisper in the prayer closets of our lives. Actually once He was a little louder than a whisper and certainly got my attention!🙂
Excellent presentation! Thank you for sharing these clarifications. This is important work that you are doing. Being of the Jewish faith, I have encountered similar presumptions from Christians about what it is we believe or do. It is probably just human nature and applicable to all religions, to be honest, but it is still a legit hurdle to honest communication and is indeed worthy to address. Additionally, I've seen in these clarifications some unique similarities between Judaism and LDS: Deuteronomy 16-17 commands judges to be appointed for the people who are able to legislate new laws that must be followed. Interestingly, the Torah (Law of Moses) only possesses a handful of situations where an offender receives the death penalty, but when it comes to the further edicts enacted by the Torah-based judges, they are expected to be followed upon pain of death. This is a form of progressive revelation, obviously, and that has allowed Judaism to adapt over the millennia while still remaining true to the core principles preserved in the Torah. As such, the books of the prophets and others are all additional revelation beyond Sinai that was given to a single individual and relayed to the nation to be observed as necessary. All of this necessitates a belief in progressive revelation, and of a body of some type to assess the information and ratify it as legit. This is evidenced in the Torah's allowance for polygyny (which is the real word that should be used when speaking of the former LDS practice, as well). The act of polygyny was never a mandate, but an "if you do, then"-type of situation. Eventually, the sages forbid it altogether, and that is fine. If it could be allowed in Judaism--that is, in the very Scriptures that Christians uphold as inspired--and the faithful in Judaism who have not practiced it for generations are not maligned, then it is hypocritical to malign an LDS believer for the historical allowance of it, as well. There is really no difference and Christians would be wise to see that and redirect their critical eye to something of worthier matters, if it must be done at all. As for the "sacred, not secret" aspect of Temple work, on what basis is the criticism from Christianity? Even Yeshua told his disciples that he spoke to the crowds in parables because the true meaning was not intended for them to hear--only for the disciples who were committed. In later books, Paul even told his readers about him learning a "secret" or a "mystery" from the Creator Himself, and relaying that to them. Notice that he did not bother relaying it specifically to the pagan outsiders, and that his letters were never openly intended to be public reading material for believers and pagans alike. The information contained in his letters was for the individual or assembly to which it was penned, mostly. Only through the passage of time has those writings been adopted and read, interpreted, and applied by people and groups to whom they never originally applied. I have often wondered if he were to know of what became of his works today how he would feel or what he would say to those who have read his mail, essentially. ;) These deeper truths are to be safeguarded for a reason. In Judaism is a corpus of teaching known as Kabbalah, and while it is based wholly on the Torah, it involves perspectives of understanding that are really only going to be appreciated as they need to be by committed believers. For ages, Kabbalah was only taught to pious, married men of the age of 40 or above as a show of respect for the type of teaching that was part of it. There is thus a place for such deeper insights and applications, and no believer should be critical of such willingness to protect spiritual truths from a world that--on the whole--is so profane in mind and heart as to not even begin to appreciate the depth of what they contain. I'll leave off an already too long post, but hopefully we can all who watch this video take away a kinder approach to one another's beliefs, and not be so cavalier in judging what we do not so well understand. Shalom
As an old LDS guy that’s been around a bit. I would say outstanding job explaining our religion. I don’t think I could do any better. I would say though with a little history in mind you might find that your own religion has probably had some changes over time as well. All be it, probably nothing as extreme as polygamy. I would definitely say that my beliefs have changed over my lifetime in a very extreme manner. I lean way over on the side of saved by grace now. When I was younger I was way to far on the works side. I’m a better person now for sure. As I know that grace is the only way I will make it back to God. I also have to extend that grace to everyone. I’m trying the best I can but still learning. Grace is the only way.
I’m right there with you! To the point of feeling that if we want to live in the celestial kingdom we will. Those who don’t want to won’t have to. That is what I gleaned from Pres Oaks Oct 2023 talk.
In Protestant Christianity there's a phrase "Root vs Fruit." We believe that grace through faith is the root. Works are the fruit. Meaning that one leads to the other. The freedom that comes from trusting God entirely for the forgiveness of sins and reconciling ourselves completely to himself is a life-changing thing. It has completely revolutionized how I think and act. Knowing how helpless I am and surrendering all my good deeds as if they were filthy rags makes me love God all the more and entirely dependent on Him. I see the good works developing as fruit all the more naturally as a byproduct of that faith/grace. There is nothing that I can do to make God love me more or improve my standing in his presence. It is all about Him!
He is better than most LDS bishops 🤪 I think his examples shows how important it is to have received some professional education in religion, psychology, finances, current topics like LGBTQ issues, etc. So much bad advice has been given by bishops because they are simply overwhelmed with some situations. Bishops-roulette is real. The Church likes to be proud of the fact that bishops are not paid (while General Authorities receive quite a nice salary and many unnecessary perks), but I think it’s not something to be so proud of because it has done a lot of harm to some.
@@briancrismonpetersen7885 probably because doctrines keep changing and even current doctrines are taught differently by Church leaders, for example, some teach that God‘s love is unconditional, then some apostle recently taught that God‘s love is conditional. It’s confusing even to members.
@@mgeuleinstsearDoctrine never does & never has changed. Only policies change. God's love is 100% unconditional. There are consequences to our actions that cause us to separate ourselves from God, but the Atonement is still there for everyone no matter how far we've straued. His arm is stretched out in love to us all day, every day without strings attached.
Yes! Especially as you have already cleared up some things I was taught. For example the idea that works aren’t important at all was something I was taught and it never made any sense to me and you explained that true faith results in good works (fruits) which made a lot more sense to me.
@@margemacdonald6921 It refers to the Spirit World before there are any resurrections, and likely to the Millennial world before the final judgment of eternal life, which is the only judgment that permits the continuation of the marriage covenant. (My understanding.)
Love it Jeff! SOOO grateful to have a voice like yours in our space because you truly are practicing exactly what you preach and it's helping the world so much right now. Building bridges rather than burning them is certainly how we heal the world.
I send this guy to anyone who doesn’t know anything about the church. Can there be a better source than someone who respectfully disagrees and is outside of our faith, but understands us perfectly? He is a mighty man doing a great work.
I like pastor Jeff. But be careful. He doesn't know everything, and he got a few things slightly askew of how I would describe the LDS faith. But he has good intentions (I think).
As a member of the Church, I really appreciate your dedication to learning, understanding and communicating these nuances and doing so in respect. I hope along the way, you have received an equal measure of respect and an effort to be understood from members of my faith that you have come into contact with. Thank you for the video!
You are awesome! I - quite literally - thank God you exist. Living in Utah, I keep hoping I bump into you so I can personally thank you for being not just informed, but so very kind. Until then, thank you!
"What do Latter-day Saints get wrong about evangelical beliefs?" That would be challenging since there is no world authority on what exactly ARE evangelical beliefs. They will say "the bible" is the authority but that has led to thousands of rival Christian denominations. Mike Winger is probably a reasonable authority on such things. Where they differ most is a disregard for ecclesiastical authority (no global authority); The Bible (which one?) is the sole authority. Why exactly this is so is part of the problem. The bible does not itself claim there will be no more bible; and in fact, most of the New Testament seems not intended to be part of a "bible" but were letters sent to various congregations.
@@thomasmaughan4798 No sarcasm intended. You make a good point Thomas. I'd happy with General Orthodox Christian Beliefs ... say the Apostles or Nicene Creed. Triune God, Virgin Birth, Salvation by Grace through Faith in Jesus Christ not by works, Rev 22:18-19 and 'additional revelations' ?? After two overseas deployments in the US Army, both with rather zealous yet polite LDS roommates, I can say with certainty that while there is some common threads, our core beliefs are miles apart. If in the end, the glorified LDS member and spouse may attain 'godhood', than it flat out is not Christian. It's heresy. It's a false teaching. Nicely dressed, pretty bow but not of God.
@@JenM-nc3qj "the LDS church never talks about others' beliefs." Not from the pulpit, anyway. If you are looking to God and Jesus, you aren't looking at your friendly neighborhood rival churches.
Just got home from my younger brother getting set apart to serve as a missionary. He's going to peru, I served in the Philippines. This Gospel and the Savior is everything to us. Love our Lord Jesus Christ.
I'm from Peru!, I hope he loves food! (Peru has been the World's Leading Culinary Destination for almost 12 years, there was a year with Covid and Italy won.)
@sallgood,that's cool,and I was going to add,speaking of missionaries,there was a kid from my ward who served his mission in Bentonville,Arkansas,but he was assigned in an area to speak a Polynesian dialect(Arkansas of all places,right?)I think I learned more in 2 years than at any given point in time up until then. Now as for me,I served in Carlsbad,California,English speaking.
You've learned so much from our faith. It's so cool to see you grow in knowledge since I've been a subscriber since the beginning of your channel. Great job!!!
@@jenneferc8768 this strikes me a little condescending. He’s learned so much about our faith. And we’ve learned so much from him about mutual respect and loving our neighbors
@PeopleAreBeautifulbyChris I can see how that was interpreted that way, but that wasn't my intention. When I watched his videos, there was a lot of misunderstanding, which is fine and understandable when you are learning something new. His channel also closed the gap that most new age Christian just need to profess with their young that they believe in Jesus Chist and not have to worry about committing sins. The gab closed for me, and I think we are much alike when it comes to being saved by Grace vs. works debate. So many youtuber deny or don't ever want to listen to us. Pastor Jeff is, and I do appreciate that. It's a sign of improvement and I think it's a wonderful thing. It is an aspect of life we all should be working on, of course, including me.
Thank you Brother for your curiosity, seeking to understand, respect, and really good example of friendship among God's Children. As an LDS church member I appreciate all that you do!.. and your beautiful wife too!
My understanding as a member of the church is that we are 100% saved by grace into one of the 3 degrees of glory, and the kingdom we end up in will be consistent with where we are most comfortable based on who and how much truth we have accepted. None of us earns our way into any kingdom of glory. Outer darkness is reserved for the devil, his angels and those who fully know and reject the Lord outright. However, the vilest of sinners are generously given a kingdom of glory in which they can enjoy the presence of the Holy Spirit. This kingdom surpasses all human imagination in its beauty and telestial glory. The good people of the earth who did not accept the testimony of Christ but lived good lives will be given an even more glorious terrestrial kingdom, where they will enjoy the presence of our Savior, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. The third and highest kingdom, the celestial kingdom, is reserved for those who were valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ while on the Earth. This has less to do with WORKS than it has to do with relationship and testimony. Even the celestial Kingdom will contain 3 levels of relative glory: 2 levels containing ministering angels and eternal exaltation, which includes becoming as God and creating worlds of our own with endless posterity. All 3 levels of the Celestial Kingdom will be in the presence of God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. The trait that stands apart for exaltation is being sealed for eternity with our spouse. Again, the temple ordinances are a gift from God, not something we earn; only we believe that to enter the temple, we must be living at a level of cleanliness that makes us worthy to be in His presence, as we consider the temple to be a sacred house of God which we do not want to defile. I don't know if I explained that very well and I don't remember what the distinction between the two lesser levels of the celestial kingdom, but this is my understanding as a life long member 🤗
@ that "after all that we can do" is often misunderstood. What can we really do? Give our loyalty to the Saviour and trust in Him. We cannot even breathe on our own without His grace.
Well Done! I think my favorite part was the invitation to not try and catch us in a gotcha but just have a conversation! I think the majority of us would completely love that! I know that is what I appreciate most from my friends from other faiths. God Bless!
Pastor Jeff you are right on! Even some members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints don't understand these things. Yes we abstain from coffee and tea(actual tea, not herbal infusions, tea the ingredient.) Thanks again for clarification! Happy New Year to you, Joy and your family. ❤
Thanks Pastor Jeff! This video seems like a "progress report" and it's fun to see how much you've learned about our faith. As I've continued to watch your videos, I also really appreciate you taking the time to articulate your own beliefs. You've already busted numerous myths that I've believed about evangelical beliefs and it has helped me better understand my own beliefs. Sincere interfaith dialogue does real, tangible good for both sides even if there is no "convincing" taking place. So thank you!
Protestant Christian here with lots of lds friends! Some common myths/misconceptions I've heard from latter day saints are: "Cheap grace" (that's my friends words... not mine) that we believe that we can pray a prayer and just keep on sinning and we are good with God. The nature of the trinity. Most lds people I've spoken with believe that the doctrine of the trinity is modalistic. Believing that all Christians don't believe in modern day prophecy. Believing that we don't get to be with our believing family members after we die. This is a little obscure and I'm not sure how common it is... but an lds friend stated that he believed that we worship the cross. Also that paid pastors are in it to get rich. Obviously I don't think all lds people believe all this... but I have heard them all coming from lds members.
I served my mission in the Bible belt in the early 2000s. As a missionary knocking on doors, you can always tell immediately when the person answering the door wants to have a gotcha moment. We were told not to engage because those people aren’t really looking to have a conversation or learn anything. Sometimes it was hard not to though. 😂
My brother served a mission in alabama in the 90s, and he said, people would run out of their house with bible in hand, after him, just to have an argument.
Exactly. When I learned he was going to be reading the book of Mormon. I knew it was just to make a video at the end just to try and disprove it for content
The reason for the gotcha arguments is LDS missionaries are telling people everything they believe is wrong and they have to switch teams or they will go to hell. That’s the reason for the defensiveness or the “thanks but no thanks” response.
@@Wolfie254 With all due respect, as an LDS missionary I would NEVER tell someone that they had to switch teams or "go to hell". Such a statement would be a gross violation of both the spirit and practice of our missionary work, 50 years ago when I served and now as well. I will admit that in my era there were some very argumentative LDS missionaries who wanted to "bash". The Church has gone to great lengths to purge our missionary efforts of anything like that.
Thank you Pastor Jeff. You are a breath of fresh air. I remember growing up in southern Alberta Canada. My friend saw a flyer advertising an event at a local evangelical church that was doing a presentation on the evils of modern music. It sounded interesting so we decided to go. The presenter spoke about and showed images and lyrics from various really diabolical death metal bands in a PowerPoint presentation, interspersed with pictures of the local LDS temple and the LDS church’s logo at the time, and trying to make some sort of bizarre connection between the two. It was my first experience with very direct anti-Mormon propaganda. Myth #6: Church members do not listen to or sing along to death metal in the temple.
Hi there! I am not Mormon anymore, but thank you for this! I couldn't have explained it better. My wife now, has asked about polygamy in the Mormon church & I have tried over & over to explain it, but she just says something like "Well I heard differently so you're wrong" (She also thinks Mormons are NOT Christian, which you briefly cleared up here too). I'm thinking of having her watch this video from a paster and maybe she'll understand it better? Also one other reason "Mormons" USED to practice polygamy was because at the time woman couldn't own land, so they would marry (sometimes even for a short time) to be able to be "given" land and own it. Another reason was because a lot of men had died during their pioneering to Utah, so there were more woman then men at the time. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.... Thank you for this video!
Some marriages were likely not ever consummated. There were many widows who needed to be cared for and had no one. And like you said at the time, it was a harsh world for single women. Polygamy was also a choice, it wasn’t like people were forcing women to marry, or forcing men to take on another wife…and the majority of men who actually did were more well off 💵 and had the means to take on more family members. It wasn’t a requirement, and a lot of early saints didn’t participate in it. I have ancestors who never did, and I have ancestors who did. And honestly, if the ones who did participate refused I might not be here. So, it’s not something I hold my nose at. 🤷♀️
"so there were more woman then men at the time" That was the principle reason during Brigham Young's leadership. He writes about it in Journal of Discourses. A young widowed mother with children; what is she going to do? There were no government services back then (it isn't all that great right now). But more importantly he writes about her affections; her desires, that can only be fulfilled in the married state. There's more to it but that was a principle reason. Scripture talks about 7 women taking hold of one man; it appears to be a time of tribulation when there weren't very many men.
Awesome job busting those myths as it is great that someone (you) are seeking to really understand and explain to the world the Basis of our LDS religion in ways other religions have not understood. Then we can all relate to what we have in common more than different which is actually all of our belief in Jesus Christ. We are all going the same direction, we are just sitting in a different boat! Your channel is helping us share seats in both boats and be friends while seeking and understanding Jesus through our own understanding. In reality we are more alike than different: Thank you for what you are doing. 😊 I love your show.
Spot on! As a life-long Church member whose maternal ancestors were friends and associates of Joseph Smith, and in one instance, a brother of Brigham Young; this is perhaps the most thoughtful and respectful approach to my beliefs and experience that I’ve heard from someone outside my faith. Sharing an “in” joke here on the caffeinated soft drink vs Tea and Coffee debate: “What’s the difference between a good and bad Latter-day Saint? The temperature of the caffeine.” It is not helpful, nor even Christlike, when someone tries to tell another what he or she believes. Especially when the explanation is rejected as dishonest or disingenuous. I’ve read the writings of a number of Evangelical Pastors who insist that when Latter-day Saints say certain things, they are lying. The religion I grew up, and try to practice to my best imperfect, mortal ability, regards lying (bearing false witness) as a grievous sin. So hurtful? Yes.
As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I would add one small comment about myth #3. I would not say our Church has a "works-based" approach, in the Calvinist or Lutheran sense, who argued against the Holy Roman Empire of their day, primarily against the common "works" of indulgences. In fact, members of our Church would stand with Protestants in opposing indulgences. We also acknowledge no man or woman can ever "work" their way into heaven, because all have fallen short of the glory of God and sinned. For that, we acknowledge we need the atoning sacrifice and grace of our Savior Jesus Christ for salvation. Instead of saying we need "works" to be saved, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe every soul must complete certain ORDINANCES to obtain the highest level of heaven. Ordinances to a Latter-day Saint include covenants with God and His promised blessings if we keep them. Chief among these ordinances: 1) baptism by emersion and 2) receipt of the gift of the Holy Ghost. The former Christ taught in the New Testament to Nicodemus; the latter, the apostles clearly taught throughout their ministries in Acts. Another common ordinance we perform every week is when we partake of the sacrament (blessed bread and water). In that weekly ordinance, which we make in our chapels (not temples), we covenant with God to remember Him and keep His commandments. In return, God promises us the companionship of His Holy Spirit to guide, comfort, and give us peace and joy. Because we believe everyone must receive ordinances to obtain heaven (such as baptism and receipt of the gift of the Holy Ghost), we conduct proxy ordinances baptisms for and in behalf of our ancestors in the temples, another practice clearly had among and taught to the early members of the Church during the apostles' ministries. This gives the souls of humankind the opportunity to freely accept or reject Christ in the afterlife. For how many millions of souls have died without ever hearing the name of Christ Jesus (or any of his teachings)? Shutting such souls out of heaven, we believe, just because they never heard of Christ, would not be just or fair. Thus, you could say, we believe in an ordinance-based approach salvation--ordinances which include covenants with and promised blessings from God. I hope this explanation helps others better understand why we build temples and the need for everyone to obtain saving ORDINANCES. Works alone, in the Protestant sense or regular common definition, will never enable anyone to obtain salvation, as noted.
Thank you for your faithful understanding of our beliefs. You have a kind heart and are an honorable man. May the Lord bless you for your honesty and goodness. Continue to bring others to Christ. We show our faith NY our works. We are saved by the grace of God, it is true. But we are expected to do all we can to take up our cross and follow Jesus Christ. We do not diminish the unworthiness of man, no matter our efforts to be perfect; we know without doubt that it is only by the grace of God that we are saved or exalted. We also believe that it is important that all good men should work together to prepare a people ready and worthy to receive the Lord at his coming. A true Christian will love God AND his brother.
Thank you Jeff. I was a member if a scripture study group with evangelicals, and when I pointed out Biblical scriptures thar support LDS doctrine, they eventually threw me our of the group. The teachings of the prophet Joseph Smith have been annotated to the Bible, and it is very hard to say that our doctrine is not based in the Holy Bible.
Krister Stendahl: Three rules when comparing religions: 1. When you are trying to understand another religion, you should ask the adherents of that religion and not its enemies. 2. Don't compare your best to their worst. And 3. Leave room for "holy envy". Stendahl's rules are a Christ-like way to compare other religions that brings Christians together.
Of course, the obvious problem with this binary and manichean approach is that not everyone lives in the love em or hate em camps. There are scholars and intellectuals who lie somewhere between these two apologetic and polemical groups. Frankly, they are the best equipped to study groups because they have no dog or pony in the show.
Jeff next year we will be studying the Doctorin and Covenants and Church history in our Sunday school class. Do you want to read along with us? And make some more videos?
I was a member and missionary for the LDS church many years ago. The temple ceremony back then was absolutely secret and far creepier than it is today. We had to swear oaths upon our lives that we would never reveal the secret symbols, the new name, and many other things about the ceremony. The ceremony was leaked to a covert audio recording in the mid 1980’s. since then, it’s even been video taped and I can see many parts that were taken out, such as swearing to have my throat cut if I revealed parts of the temple ceremony. We had to keep the secrets because the endowment ceremony was supposed to have secret codes for us to give to sentry angels to be allowed to pass by them. The temple absolutely has secret ordinances, but the LDS church lost control of them.
@@jeffreynielsen3659 , not sure how long you've been a temple attending member... but before the 1990 temple changes, what ArthurCluogh-f2o is describing was prevalent throughout all the temples at that time. Even Mitt Romney participated in that ordinance... and made those secr... oops, sacred, oaths and vows. Naturally, we all understand the LDS Church has changed, and is changing, since that time... and we hope it will continue to change for the better - especially with Pastor Jeff's help.
@@jeffreynielsen3659 What was the year you first went through the endowment? The "penalties" were removed in 1990. If you went in 1990 or later, yes, you went through a different ordinance in the LDS church than I did.
A conversation with a church member on the Word of Wisdom would be a great video. There tend to be several nuances in individual understanding and practice.
Yes, might be a good video! My dear mother (father went along, too) taught me as a very young child that caffeinated soda is bad, and here I am now at 69 years old and having honored my mom for my whole life by not partaking of the caffeinated drinks. I can truly say this practice of mine, instilled upon me since my early childhood, has done me no harm. I am faced with an opportunity to drink these drinks on a weekly, if not daily, basis, and it is easy for me to keep honoring my mom by choosing not to. But, I don't proclaim it as "doctrine." Even my own spouse, and half of my own children, drink of the "Cokes and Dr. Peppers" without receiving any judgment at all from me.
And it should be noted, that while we do hold the word of wisdom to be very important, it is not an eternal law. It is given for us in this dispensation for God's wise purposes.
Yes, they've started to change certain questions to enter the temple based on these observations instead of do you obey the word of wisdom it is do you understand the word of wisdom thank goodness I wouldn't make it back to the temple if it were the way it used to be so I think they're starting to realize through time people change things change, ideas change, and I'm grateful that our father in heaven does not change and loves us all
Yes, they've started to change certain questions to enter the temple based on these observations instead of do you obey the word of wisdom it is do you understand the word of wisdom thank goodness I wouldn't make it back to the temple if it were the way it used to be so I think they're starting to realize through time people change things change, ideas change, and I'm grateful that our father in heaven does not change and loves us all also on the ceiling if a woman is divorced like myself I am able to remove the ceiling with proper authority. I just sent a letter and they discern that I've done my best to be a good wife and they look at all the facts, the judge has put on things in my feelings towards what I went through and are able to absolve that ceiling if you will ? so that these men can't be sealed to several people. Unless the wife prohibits them from that, then if they pass then, yes, it will still be up to God later to discern what to do with those ceilings. We just know that it's something special that we couldn't possibly understand right now on earth if that makes sense. Love you guys.
Let's face it, caffeine isn't really good for you and can cause physical and mental issues if abused. So, in practice, it might be well to avoid it or consume little of it.
Thank you for your constant tone of Christlike love and sincere seeking for mutual understanding. Grateful UA-cam recommended your channel, you are a wonderful man Pastor Jeff.
3:56 President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the governing First Presidency of the church, said this in Oct 2023: “We have a loving Heavenly Father who will see that we receive every blessing and every advantage that our own desires and choices allow. We also know that He will force no one into a sealing relationship against his or her will. The blessings of a sealed relationship are assured for all who keep their covenants but never by forcing a sealed relationship on another person who is unworthy or unwilling.”
Jesus stated that in the afterlife, people will "neither marry nor be given in marriage, but will be like the angels in heaven," indicating that marriage as we know it will not exist in heaven; this is found in Matthew 22:30
@UTBanjo That marriage is not performed in the afterlife makes it all the more important to understand that the ordinance must be performed here on earth. Jesus gave to Peter sealing authority (“And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 16:19 KJV) and similarly has bestowed that authority on the authorized prophet in the latter-days.
@@sillyolryan You and I read the same passage, and interpret it way differently. You read, it can't happen in the afterlife so it has to happen on earth. To me, "will be like angels in heaven" says there will be no marriage at all and it's unnecessary. That scares many people, because they can't fathom not needing that relationship while in these incomplete and imperfect bodies.
@@UTBanjo Do you interpret these verses in Matt 22 to mean that the relationships cease, or that marriage as instituted by God for the purpose of creating families will not be necessary? That makes more sense to me because family relationships will clearly continue in the resurrection (see story of David reuniting with his deceased son in 2 Samuel 12), and I don't know why my family relationship with my wife would be an exception when God declared us one flesh. I believe that the primary relationship that we were created for is with God, but that's doesn't mean that we wont joyfully worship him in heaven along side of the people we love here in this life, and I don't think Jesus saying we will be like angels contradicts that idea. I agree that marriages won't be happening and will be unnecessary because we won't be creating families in heaven, but will all be part of the family of God. That is a shift for me though because I used to be LDS and believed that my ultimate relationship with God and how far I was able to progress with Him was dependent on my eternal marriage.
@@scottbryner3 Marriage won't be needed. You are one flesh with your spouse now, but will be made complete and whole in a perfected body during the resurrection. We just won't have a need for that relationship. I don't think we stop knowing those we loved in this life. I do believe that the relationship will be so pale in comparison to the presence of the Father, that it won't matter much. It'll be about as important as your junior high girlfriend/boyfriend after having been married to your spouse for 50 years.
Well done. You still have a journey of learning and understanding ahead, but your approach to get to the truth is commendable. Thank you, from one servant of God to another.
I like how you are approaching the continuing revelation. I've had these types of discussions in the past and people have really gotten heated accusing me of believing in a changeable God. God is the same, it's us humans who are different from one day to the next thus necessitating a change in what He feels we need at any given time. He did this with the Children of Israel as they came out of Egypt. Their lack of faith after 400 years of slavery led Him to creating a strict adherence law to guide them on their path, rather than the higher law that Jesus then tried to institute during His ministry. God is giving us what we need most at the point in history in which we are living. People in general do not think or behave in the same way now as they did in any other moment in history. Just like us, as parents, cannot raise each of our children exactly the same, God has a plan for His children no matter what era we were born into.
Thank you so much for your honesty and your fellowship in Christ. Pastors like you are rare and are certainly working towards ALL to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. I count you as a fellow Saint and Disciple of Jesus Christ.
the 'works' in works based salvation is this: following the commandments of the Lord. You keep and live by the teaching and commandments of the Lord, your good. You need to do or 'work' to keep the commandments of the Lord. It's that simple.
Thank you. You did an amazing job busting these myths. I know for myself it would be refreshing to have questions asked and not trying to convince us we are wrong in our beliefs. Keep up the wonderful work.
Hey Pastor, respectfully I feel like polygamy is still practiced in the church. My ex-husbands bishop reached put to me when my ex got engaged and asked me to write a letter to either approve or disapprove of his secondary sealing to another spouse. This brought me a whole lot of uncomfortable feelings as I felt it was completely unfair that he could be sealed to more than one wife since I'm still living but if I wanted to be sealed to another man I would have to go through hoops to cancel my first sealing in order to be sealed to a different spouse. It seems to me there aren't equal rights for men and woman and that men are given more options than women are.
That technically isn't polygamy, though. That is multiple sealings but not multiple marriages. I realize that a sealing can often be used for both a religious ceremony and a temporal ceremony (marriage), but in the case you outline, it was not actual polygamy. As far as things not being equal between a man and a woman, they never will be. We are different not only in physical terms, but in God's eyes (spiritually) as well.
I think the problem is defining "equal", because it implies there is a lesser value. I think it's more accurate to say we are not the same. We can be different but equal in value. @@CameronVanTassell
@CameronVanTassell so even though the apologists of the church admit Joseph Smith was married to over 30 wives this way.. it wasn't polygamy... technically. Oh the mental gymnastics you musst go through to justify to belong to the "only true church".
@quernalt Rachel used the term equal in the original post, which is why I used it. I read her comment to mean she wants things to be the same for males and females. That's what "equal rights" implies in our culture.
You have a gift of speaking articulately and explaining things so well. Thanks for what you do! As a lifelong lds member, I feel like the law of no coffee/tea is one of the most hypocritical and outdated parts of our church. I do love having the word of wisdom as health guideline (the parts besides hot drinks), but the fact that coffee/tea can prohibit people from going to the temple when so many other unhealthy substances or behaviors don’t prohibit people from the temple is just something I do not understand, nor do I agree with. So, it’s not only outsiders who see it as strange! No coffee/tea has just become so engrained in lds culture, and it has become such a huge symbol of obedience, that I feel many members haven’t given much thought about what would it mean if coffee/tea were okay. I’m always hoping this is a topic where further revelation might bring about a change, or at least not tie it to temple worthiness!
This was from ChatGPT when I asked what teachings from the Bible are different from the Book of Mormon: 1. Salvation by Grace vs. Works: -The Bible (e.g., Ephesians 2:8-9) emphasizes salvation as a gift from God through grace, not by works. -The Book of Mormon (e.g., 2 Nephi 25:23) teaches that "it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do," suggesting a stronger emphasis on works combined with grace. God's Nature: 2. Spirit or Body -The Bible generally teaches that God is unchanging (e.g., Malachi 3:6) and a spirit (John 4:24). -The Book of Mormon aligns with this in some places but later LDS teachings (from other sources like Doctrine and Covenants) describe God as having a physical body, which some interpret as a divergence.
@@brandongallacher8387 Large Language Models such as ChatGPT are good at regurgitating what they find, but don’t always have reasoning ability - and certainly don’t have access to the gift of the Holy Ghost. I read 2 Nephi 25: 23 in context of the verses around it. Nephi is writing about 550 BC and lives the law of Moses with its outward laws and practices, (which he talks about in verses 24 and 25). Instead of the rituals and animal sacrifice of Moses’ law, today we live in the new covenant, offering a broken heart and contrite spirit. But in either case, the principle is similar: "all we can do" is have faith, repent, obey the gospel, and receive and participate in the ordinances and covenants that God offers for us in our time and place of history.
point1; is a debate that LDS and nonLDS have concerning the proper interpretation of 2 Ne 25:23 - it is not about the passage suggesting a stronger emphasis on one over the other. point2; is just the chatBOT just completly ignoring the parameters of your input to pad the answer with nonessential filler material. It is programed to just make things up as it goes for the most part.
Hey Jeff, I have nothing but respect and gratitude for your respectful and delicate approach to understanding our faith. One question for you, and I think I speak for a lot of your Latter-Day Saint followers when I ask this-- What is your personal hypothesis about the Book of Mormon? I've heard you talk about your questions about it, things you agree and disagree with, and why you ultimately can't get behind it. I'd love to know though your explanation for where it came from and how we have it in our hands today if it isn't inspired of God. Hopefully that makes sense, I'd love to hear your answer!
I am an LDS convert and love all people who love Jesus as I strive to do! I I have spent the last 30 years of my life having many great experiences with my evangelical and Pentecostal friends. I love your work and I hope to continue to watch your videos that I just found. I think we have more convictions in common than most people realize.
The problem with "ongoing revelation" as understood by the LDS context is that there is no definite standard of truth, even though they'll use that phrase all the time. I have no assurance that something prophetic is indeed prophetic. It can be changed in the future and simply waved off as the opinion of the time or a flawed understanding of the brethren. There's no value to ongoing revelation when it is consistently discredited and devalued by its own church.
It's not as flexible as you think because there is a definite standard and truth that has been laid out by God. Much of the restored gospel and modern revelation was given to Joseph Smith. A lot of modern revelation is provided to help us live the gospel in these modern and confusing times. In fact, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Saints could and is thought of by many and being "old school" and "not keeping up with the times" because it remains faithful to the standards of truth. Many other churches have become progressive and have changed their beliefs and practices of morality to be more in tune with secular beliefs. That being said, that does not mean the church will not receive more revolutionary revelation in the near future to prepare for the Second Coming of Christ. Who knows?
@@quernalt It is exactly as flexible as the brethren want it to be. The doctrine that the church has sworn will never change, like the curse of blackness or polygamy, have indeed changed over the course of the church's brief stint on this planet, and those are the big examples. Smaller doctrinal disputes or petty squables like the name of the church are bickered about through generations of "prophets", as each new leader takes the helm and begins to chart a new course for the church. The problem is once any of it changes, it's all now fair game to assume what hasn't been changed just hasn't been changed yet to meet the needs of the brethren.
@BrendonKing "Curse of Blackness" came from the protestants. Many early church members carried this belief with them before they were baptised. I know of no revelation that says that blacks have inherited the curse of Cain. This was a supposition. Polygamy was practiced in the Old Testament and was authorised. It is not adultery if God authorizes it just as killing is not always murder and is authorised at times, such as self defense or defending one's country. Polygamy was authorised and even commanded in the early days of the church and it proved to be a blessing; though many sceptics today focus on some negative accounts. The same thing is happening with American history with far left progressives taking things out of context, extrapolating, and filling in unknowns with suppositions; From Columbus, to the Founding Fathers, and even later.
The same argument you are using could be used against the early church from a Pharisee point of view. For example, in Acts chapter 10 when Peter got the vision basically granting salvation to all people whether they were Israelite or not, it was a massive doctrinal change that would have been very difficult for the early church, especially for the more fundamentalist members. I would be willing to bet a number of church members left the New church over it because it was a change that would have flew in the face of thousands of years of practice and belief. However God added/clarified/changed His doctrine to grant salvation to all people. How wonderful! That is ongoing revelation. Literally every epistle to the different churches in the New Testament was ongoing revelation for their time, to address their different struggles and situations. I’m sure the Jews who were trying to destroy the Christian movement in Jerusalem would have said “they have no definitive standard of truth”. As far as the understanding being flawed because of opinion, or whatever, that is found all through the New Testament, which is why ongoing revelation was so important. One of my favorite scriptures is from 1 Corinthians 13 it says in part “for now we see through a glass darkly”. They did not have a perfect knowledge then either and needed ongoing revelation. In our modern world as it is now with all the complexity and confusion I can’t think of a greater need for ongoing revelation than right now.
Pastor Jeff, as a youth seminary teacher, and returned missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day saints… You’re a better member of our faith than many members of our faith. You’re doing the Lord’s work,. May God bless you for it 🙏🏼
Myth #3 - what do you do though about The Articles of Faith, pt3 “We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.” & 2 Nephi 25:23 - “For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.” We have been meeting with two Mormon sisters in our neighborhood that are on mission and they said yes Jesus saves us but we also have a lot to do in covenants and “all that you do” for it to “count” or “stick.” They also sent us a message from a BYU chapel where the man teaching said the same thing. We told them we believe that we are a new creation in Christ and the old is gone because of Jesus and our surrendering to him as our Savior through baptism. But the good fruit we bear doesn’t save us, Jesus saved us. I’m an evangelical pastor trying to do a similar thing that you’re doing in our own community. Thank you for the work you’re doing!
There is a fantastic talk by Brad Wilcox called His Grace is Sufficient - I think it will answer your question. It is one of my absolute favourite talks. So beautiful.
@tylerhensley726 I think it might be helpful for you to understand what we believe about the Lord Jesus Christ being BOTH our Savior and our Redeemer. Those are not synonymous. It might also help you to understand what we mean about immortality AND eternal life. Those are not synonymous. We believe that immortality is a completely free gift provided by our Lord Jesus Christ to anyone who ever lived. Regardless of works, regardless of beliefs, everyone will have victory over physical death, rise in a resurrection, and have our bodies restored to us. If people don't accept the gift of forgiveness of sins that the Lord Jesus Christ offers, evangelicals believe that they will suffer torment in hell. We essentially agree. In our view, they won't be in this state forever, but they will have to pay the price for their sins themselves. Thus, the gift of being saved from the cost of our sins is conditional upon receiving the Lord Jesus Christ and repenting before Him. This salvation is applicable to many. There is a further salvation that restores us to the presence of God, the eternal Father. It is salvation from spiritual death. It is still not the same thing as eternal life. This salvation requires what evangelicals would consider "works" as well as grace. I've heard other denominations talk about imputed righteousness. I think it's a little bit like that. Salvation comes in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. Period. On that point, we both agree. Please be assured of that.
Evangelicals believe the gospel was delivered in the first 4 books of the New Testament by those who actually walked with Christ. There aren't too many "ordinances" in there. LDS thinks BoM is gospel, snd that even ordinances most of us see as blasphemous(baptism for the dead) must be performed.
@UTBanjo Paul says what is the point in doing baptisms for the dead if Christ wasn't resurrected....so Christ taught them to do baptisms for the dead back then...
@@tylerhensley726 My personal interpretation of the 2 Nephi verse is this: modern verse numbers and punctuation make it easy to look at in isolation, but read it in context of the verses around it. Nephi is writing about 550BC and lives the law of Moses with its outward laws and practices, and he talks about that in those verses. We live in the new covenant, offering a broken heart and contrite spirit. But in either case, “all we can do” is have faith, repent, and obey the gospel and receive the ordinances that God offers to us in our time of history.
Thank you for the fair and honest attempt to clarify some of the misconceptions that have been points of contention between LDS and other Christians for decades. I sincerely hope lots of Protestants are able to watch this and it will spark more conversations about LDS belief and doctrine. If all Protestants could be as educated and open-minded about our beliefs as Pastor Jeff, the "Christian World" would be such a much better place! For future "LDS Mythbusters" episodes, I'd be dying for you to tackle the myth that "Mormons aren't Christians" and/or "Mormons believe in a different Jesus". To me, out of all the misconceptions I think those are the most hurtful and offensive to Latter-day Saint Christians. So if you could please clarify that in a future video, I think many people would indeed grateful!
One of my favorite videos yet! (And I've been watching since the VERY beginning.) I love how as your understanding has increased, you share information in a way that members of your faith will be able to relate too and understand. Ultimately, we all love and want to follow and obey Jesus! He is our Savior, and we will be sharing time and space together in the next life, so I'm grateful you are helping clear up misconceptions here. God bless!
Thank you, I'm LDS and thank you for letting other people know that our church isn't weird. People have rumors and hatefulness towards our church that it even makes my friends turn away. Thank you.
Yep. Truth is there is no permanent hell in LDS doctrine. It’s one of the biggest differences between LDS doctrine and mainstream Christianity, with the minuscule exception noted by Pastor Jeff.
That's a falsehood. There is a place where those who will deny The Father is God while standing in His presence will go, along with Lucifer and his rebellious angels when the Final Judgement is done. To differentiate it from the temporary space between Death and the Final Judgment, this is called Outer Darkness. Both are conditions of hell, though.
@@Charistoph No disagreement, but you are into the nitty gritty. As to those who accepted mortality, there are only a handful of sons of perdition. The rest will either accept Christ's atonement, or pay for their own sins. That is their "hell". However, once all debt for sin is paid, each will be assigned to a kingdom of glory. In the protestant/evangelical world, only those who accept the Christ of the Counsel of Nicaea will go to "heaven". Everyone else burns for eternity in hell. Again, the depth of Christ's love and his plan is poorly understood by the mainstream world.
@@ericchase5045, not saying there wouldn't be many, but they will exist. No one can pay for their own sins and obtain a kingdom of glory. I don't see how this is "into the nitty gritty." All sin that can be paid for and still allow for a kingdom of glory has already been paid. What is needed is for the person to accept that someone else has. Those sons of perdition are those who will reject Jesus' payment even while standing at the Final Judgement, even as Lucifer rejected the Father while standing in front of His throne. It is to deny any Light.
Been following your kind, open-minded, open-hearted search for true understanding for a long time now. I REALLY appreciate your respect and attitude. Keep going. You're a blessing to us all x x
I would add that some of the sources of these myths are from jealous pastors who have no qualms about lying about other people, or just simply not doing any research to correct misconceptions which they then spread. In addition, there are those who were asked to leave The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints due to a burden of sin (or leave of their own accord), and carry a hatred in their heart for The Church, and then spread lies, which quite a few pastors are more than willing to lap up and spread about as truth. The Godmakers program is a good example of this.
As a Latter-day Saint, I laughed out loud about the caffeine one 😂 thank you for all these videos using such respectful discourse! You have sparked my interest to learn more about Evangelical beliefs and what sets them apart from other Christians
When I was a kiddo here in Argentina, Evangelicals were considered a cult. So, I know I have to refrain my words when judging people, mainly Christian religions. And that's something I would recommend to any Protestant to do as well.
I am so impressed Pastor Jeff. It's been a long while since I last saw one of your videos, and you have come a long way since that point in your knowledge and understanding and appreciation for our beliefs. Many thanks from Tennessee, Mount Juliet 1st Ward!
I've heard from ex LDS people that there definitely are secretive things that take place in the sealing ceremonies. Secret names to recognize your spouse in the afterlife, secret handshakes (which are eerily similar to Masonic handshakes), etc.
A side note on the coffee thing, because I could see people feeling a bit judged by Latter Day Saints when they choose to drink coffee, we have made a covenant with god to stay away from tea and coffee. We’re not going to (or if someone does they shouldn’t) stick their noses up at you, or scold you for drinking it. I had a friend who felt uncomfortable when he drank coffee around me, and it genuinely made me feel bad, because I don’t want anyone feel uncomfortable around me.
I’ll be honest I have heard members scoff at people that drink coffee or alcohol and say things like “we choose to not be alcoholics and love our family so we don’t drink” I remember whispering to my wife who is a convert saying sorry. She was like they do know that’s now how that works right?
It is not compulsory. Many things you should do, and many things you should not do, that are not compulsory. My wife needs a cup of coffee pretty much daily; just one; the alkaloid substances keep her digestive tract functioning. I drink hot chocolate which is dang near the same thing but not "forbidden".
@@thomasmaughan4798 I thought so too until I heard at coffee that one cup of coffee can keep you from being with your family. I remember I thought that was odd and I know each of the talks are approved by the presidency.
@@Zez88 At times, people engage in what Bruce McConkie called "gospel hobbies" or placing great emphasis on this or that; usually things the person is doing well and thus can act holier than you. It is the attitude that counts. If you are DEFIANT and go to the steps of the temple and there in front of cameras pour yourself an espresso, well, the coffee is harmless but your defiance will be noticed. It is defiance that ousted John Dehlin and "Nemo the Mormon". It is not clear why anyone wants to be a member of a church they do not sustain, embrace or endorse; acknowledging that it isn't always a package deal; there may be some aspect not to your liking, at times there may be things not to God's liking. It is what you *do about it* that reveals your character.
Doctrine and Covenants 89:9 And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly.And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly. I purpose that at the time of writing, "hot drinks", meant hard liquor. It burns the mouth, throat and stomach.
@hellosaints a question for you as a Protestant believer. The one aspect of the LDS faith that I find interesting and perhaps more believable is the idea that most people in the world go to heaven of some form when they die rather than only believers of Jesus. What of those who died before Christ or who have earnestly pursued god but have never heard or received the gospel before death? Would love the evangelical view on that.
LDS here. We believe that all will have an opportunity to know and learn of Christ’s Gospel (whether in this life or in the next life), regardless of when God’s children have lived on the Earth.
Great questions. Here's a video that helped me understand the protestant perspective on that. ua-cam.com/video/zT04pR_2_S0/v-deo.htmlsi=HHogAWbWFaJf3RoT It basically states the biblical position that Hell is a place for people who use their free will to reject God, and so it is God honoring the wishes of those who want nothing to do with him or his attributes like love, joy, relationship, peace, mercy, etc. The message is that the alternative (Heaven) is a free gift purchased when God entered his creation to pay for sin on our behalf and only asked that we place our trust in him as Lord. The bible also supports the idea of varying punishments in hell according to how badly people reacted toward God. Because God is just, the consequence of sin has to be paid for, and if a person is unwilling to let God the Son be their proxy substitute at judgement, Hell is where the demands of the law are exacted against them. As for the people all over the world who don't know about Jesus in the same way we do, the bible teaches that God is just AND merciful. He will not hold someone responsible for not seeing what they cannot see or knowing what they cannot know (John 9:40-41). In fact, the bible is full of examples of people like Abraham who we know were declared saved prior to Jesus's earthly ministry, and so we can safely assume they knew little to nothing of it or His atonement. Apparently, God is an omniscient judge and is able to slide the scale according to the knowledge and opportunity available to anyone and everyone. As for opportunity to know God on some small level (like in countries where Christianity doesn't exist or where people are blinded by false ideas) What the bible says is that " his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse."(Romans 1:20) In other words, Gods invisible attributes like love, joy, peace, etc, as well as his visible creation in nature are enough for all people to know and respond to him on a level that is sufficient for God,... and we don't know and can't judge anyone when it comes to whether they are saved. LDS scripture teaches that honorable people of the earth who didn't accept Jesus in this life because they were blinded by the craftiness of men but accept the gospel after death will be in the Terrestrial kingdom- a heaven that doesn't include God the Father or continued family relationships. (D&C 76:74-75). To me, the biblical message of one heaven that I don't deserve but receive anyway and a hell that I deserve but don't get because of Jesus better represents the love of God than a consolation prize version of heaven that I get because I was confused when the full message of the gospel was presented to me during life.
As always, wonderful job. As a Latter-day Saint, I'd REALLY like you to "bust" some of the myths that Latter-day Saints believe about Evangelicals. That would be very helpful for me.
I liked everything you said. It pretty much covered, in short, good reasons for the myths. What I like particularly is that you have an open mind about our culture and you have made good friends and neighbors while exploring our beliefs while living and preaching within your own. The only thing I thought was how if you had had a good LDS religious professor right by you he or she could have filled with in with a bit more knowledge and reasons for the practices we have, and why there are myths. But you did a very good job. If you do decide to have a religious professor help you do a show on these matters - I can tell you now it would help our own community of Saints know how to answer some of these questions better! Thank you for being there!
7:35 it’s not about going to a kingdom. It’s about becoming. That’s why people misunderstand. This is what you guys call holiness, what we call exaltation.
One more thing. I want to complement you again for the constructive way you are building bridges between Latter Day Saints and other churches. It is refreshing. Thank you.
Nice work Pastor Jeff. I think you explained it well. If you were unaware, for many years you could not buy a caffeinated soda on BYU campus. All the vending machines had “caffeine free” versions of your favorite sodas. Things like that also reinforced the idea of caffeine being against the Word of Wisdom.
I tend to lean against caffeine because it is or can be an addictive substance... it honestly depends on the amount of caffeine consumed and or the addictive nature of the person drinking it. Mtn Dew caffeine is now not enough so they keep making new drinks with more caffeine... as much is legally allowed. Why does caffeine need to be regulated if is not dangerous in high amounts??? Just my thoughts
It’s all about the addictive component to caffeine. Caffeine should be banned along with alcohol, tobacco, illicit drugs, and anything else that is negative and addictive such as gambling.
Hi Pastor Jeff! I just started watching your channel yesterday and I'm enjoying it immensely. I grew up in Idaho, in an LDS family and have a strong testimony of the Gospel and of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I've attended other denominations over the years and made an effort to understand other Spiritual and Religious views, much as you are doing now, and I really appreciate your approach to it. Although there are other questions and comments in my mind, the one I wish to address at this point is Baptism for the Dead. You and other denominations as well, seem to find that concept to be one of the hardest to accept. Not in argument but in curiosity...How do you interpret 1 Corinthians 15:29? I interpret it as Paul trying to argue the truth of the Resurrection by using what was, apparently, a common practice. Anyway, thank you for your efforts and please keep it up. I'm enjoying it.
Because we believe polygamy is an eternal principle to be used only when God says and for God’s purposes. In fact, the biggest reason current (in this life) polygamy is a sin is that it is against God’s will for us in this time. In just the same way that sex is a sin before you’re married but not a sin within marriage is that God said so. He has his reasons and we don’t have to understand them. You still want to know why it’s permitted in the hereafter? There are scriptural references (Isaiah 4:1) etc but it comes down to the highest salvation only being available to people in an eternal covenant marriage, and for whatever reason there will be more women who live worthy of that than men and a fair and just God will not punish women simply because there are not enough men who lived up to it. For any other iterations of afterlife polyamory I’m happy to tackle them one by one. But everything comes down to God said so, and here’s where he said it in what part of holy scripture.
Plural marriage is a true and eternal principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is not "banned" in the church, it is simply not being practiced at the current time. The reason it is not being practiced is for political purposes. Read the Manifesto at the back of the Peal of Great Price to understand this.
The word of wisdom dating back to the eighteen hundreds actually has nothing to do with coffee, caffeine or tea. In fact, mormons in 1800s used tobacco, drank coffee and also drank alcohol when they dedicated the Temple in salt lake, they celebrated with alcohol. If you do the research, hot drink was an alcoholic drink known as "hot drinks" in tje 1800s, I can't remember how it was made, but that was regarded as unhealthy. The church didn't outlaw alcohol until prohibition, because it was the law of the land and then it never reverted back. Something of which, I am actually in disagreement of. The belief in hot drinks, being referred to as coffee or tea is simply based on nothing more than ignorance. Especially when they try to tie caffeine to it. Coffe and tea has nothing to do with it. This ignorance is even prevalent among mormon society as well. The word of wisdom was also just a suggestion of guidance, and it was not hard set law hat had to be followed. That was something that evolved later on.
Agreed. I'm a devout Mormon, and I firmly believe that the knowledge of cultivating beer and wine was bestowed by God. The scriptures say that He delights in partaking of the fruit of the vine. There is divine symbolism in how they are made, and enjoying these drinks while in the wholesome company of friends and family is amazing and often Spirit-filled. The Word of Wisdom actually *supports* their use.
This is such an incredible video! Thank you for explaining all these points so wonderfully! I believe you really are doing the Lord's work in rid his churches of contention. It reminds me of Mark 9:38-41. Please keep going on this beautiful journey!
Member for 30+ years. Yes we believe in a works-based salvation. D&C 82:10 I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise. Also we believe faith without works is dead and only through keeping our covenants in the temple can we be enter the highest kingdom of glory.
The dispute seems to revolve on what one means by "works" and by "salvation". It is common among certain flavors of Evangelical Christians to believe all you need do is say some magic words, accept Jesus Christ as your personal savior (I have one in my backpack!) and that's it, you are DONE, saved! They can even tell you the exact date they were SAVED. Well, I and all other humans were saved 2000 years ago. But if you want something more than the bare minimum, well then some *works* are needed; Faith, hope and charity! And baptism. But what about.... yeah, well God has plans for the whatabouts. Baptism for the dead.
Not entirely. Like Jeff says, it is nuanced. We believe in 3 kingdoms of glory. Evangelicals don’t. So to them, saying that we have to “work for” the celestial kingdom sounds like we believe you have to work to be saved and that Jesus dying on the cross wasn’t sufficient to save all men.
@igobyandrew however, we do believe that we have to work for the celestial kingdom. Evangelicals believe that being “saved” is not going to hell and being with Christ / their family in the afterlife. For us that is the Celestial Kingdom. Yes, hell or outer darkness is not the terrestrial or telestial kingdom however being in God’s presence and being with our families forever is in the Celestial kingdom. The atonement of Christ gave us the path to return to our father again and to be like him. Yes this makes us different and that’s the point. We don’t need to conform to other beliefs.
@@thebenplatt "Mormonism in 100 percent a works-based salvation religion." Is this really in dispute? Of course it is; more or less, without defining "works" and "salvation". There are things you must DO to live with God Himself. DO is action; action is works. I am amazed that anyone thinks you can go live with God while having done NOTHING.
Regarding works based salvation/exaltation: There seems to be an argument that if you believe that any single work is required, then you must believe you are saving yourselves and you believe Christ's atonement is not sufficient. Therefore, since we believe that baptism is required because God told us so, we believe in works based salvation. I view it differently. Our works will never save us. If I pay for a vacation for a friend, they still have to show up and get on the plane. If they do show up, no one is under the illusion that they helped pay for the vacation. However, if they choose not to show up, they'll miss out on the vacation and no one will agree with them that they skipped out because they were promised it would be free and it really wasn't. Similarly, Christ paid the full price. No one is saved by their own accord. Making covenants also doesn't save us or guarantee our exaltation. God invites us to make covenants with Him. Therefore we do. If God invites you to do something and you turn the other way, you shouldn't complain if you don't end up at the destination where Christ invited you to. We believe very strongly in agency. We can choose God or Satan, but it is incumbent on us to make the choice. Through God's mercy, every single man, woman, and child born on earth will receive the opportunity to accept Christ and make covenants with Him. That is why temple work and family history is so important to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
"Our works will never save us." But failing to have ANY works will most definitely not save you. Your example of you having to show up is good; you have to do your part. "since we believe that baptism is required because God told us so, we believe in works based salvation." That is correct. The argument usually revolves around what is a WORK. It also revolves around what exactly is "salvation". Does that mean the Telestial Kingdom? Terrestrial? Celestial? Jesus Christ atoned for Adam's transgression; for all people for all time. It is FINISHED. Everyone that ever lived, except the very worst sons of perdition, will get some sort of salvation; it is a *free gift* thanks to the atonement. *Beyond that free gift* are levels that must be earned; and you earn it by your obedience to the first and second great commandment (principally).
Noel, I think you've written an outstanding explanation of the necessary relationships involved. I would think and hope that even Pastor Jeff could see an evangelical thread in what you've stated.
What a thoughtful way of busting myths about my church. You really have taken the time to understand our faith and doctrine! This is how we bring people and churches together for good. Thank you so much.
Gospel topic essays covering Polygamy states that it was practised well after 1900 and was not completely abandoned in 1890. The concept, or the principle as it was commonly referred to has not been disavowed. President Nelson, President Oaks, President Hunter all remarried when their original spouses passed. Theologically, it is expected by them and members that their second spouse will join them in the afterlife as one of their wives, becoming sister wives with the first spouse.
People choose to do what they want . Polygamy today is continuing even though it is not doctrine. They do not participate in the Church of Jesus Christ of LATTER DAY SAINTS CHURCH
@@emmahocking2095, at least, not in good faith. There are some who hide their actions while presenting a clean face. The Daybells who were just convicted this past year to name a pair.
Excellent content. I really liked the video you did with Todd McLaughlin about a year ago going over some of the differences of the LDS and Christian world. Really great dialogue and unifying which is so important right now among all humans who believe in Christ. We need to stand together focused on our love for Him. Thank you!
Did I do a sufficient job busting these myths? What other misunderstandings need to be cleared up?
Thanks Pastor Jeff, you explained it all so well! I'm looking forward to hearing what misconceptions latter-day saints have towards protestant-evangelicals.
By the way, you explained the whole polygamy and caffeine thing better than most latter-day saints would.
You said it perfectly!!
@@kevinl1299 This would be a great video. I've learned a lot from talking to my evangelical friends that I was mistaken on.
Another excellent video, Pastor Jeff. Concerning the different "kingdoms," they are not separate places but differing glories that resurrected bodies may be raised to. The direct presence of the various members of the Godhead is determined by the purity of the individuals in the eternities.
Great job Jeff!!!
Dude, you are a huge blessing. Thanks for your work, man. This is what Christianity is about - no one wants to take anything from anyone, but let us get together and see how we can edify each other with the right spirit based on the common beliefs. All the best from an LDS member from Germany.
Amen
King David was never held under condemnation even with all His wives and Concubines; it was not until He desired a married man's wife and sent the man out into the heat of the front of Battle in hopes to be slain to take Her to wife that caused the High Priest to declare God's justice to King David that He would loose His first born child by Her because God knew David's son and it would not go unpunished. Because David was so grieved in Spirit for His sin that God forgave Him after loosing His first child that David had a son named Solomon in which was His successor and was a righteous King. Because things changed it was hard for people to accept multiple wives and this was done away by the people. For a time it was reinstituted into practice and because of the rejection of the people of such practices it was discontinued to go forward with the practices of ancient times in Temples. See 1 Corinthian's chapter 15:29, 30. It reads " Else what shall they do who are Baptized for the dead if the dead rise not at all, why then do they do Baptism's for the dead then and why stand we in jeopardy every hour?" This Ordinance was in fact practiced in Paul's time. He wrote Corinthian's of the New Testament. This work was rejected by those who hated truth and stopped this practice and martyring Steven, John The Baptist, other Apostles such as Peter, and even Paul. Many prescious truth's were taken from the scripts but they missed grabbing that section. It even speaks of the Celestial Bodies, Terrestrial, but left out the Celestial name but gave the example of as one star differs from another in glory after the Celestial being like the sun and the Terrestrial being like the moon in glory. The Doctrine and Covenant's explains that the Terrestrial is the lowest Glory and differs like one star does from another in glory. I have no problem believing these truths. It is not hard for me to believe that a young lad prayed for the truth because He wanted His babtism to be just as valid as when John The Baptist Baptized Christ so he prayed in a private Grove for answer's on which Church to join after all there were different names of Churches and groups forming opinions on what they believed. I believe that God The Father and His Son Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith as He humbled Himself in that grove. He was told that He would be given The Lord's true Gospel and He would be an instrument in The Lord's hands in Restoring The Gospel Truth's to The Earth once again. Morman was a ten year old boy chosen by God through the Historian keeper of ancient records of History prior to Morman's birth and through his childhood as the Historian was no longer going to be alive to take care of the plates and Morman was to go to the Hill where these plates were kept when He became a man. Morman was now in charge of preserving them. He was chosen by the King at 15 to be the leader of the Nephite Army because of His Faithfulness in following The Lord in righteousness. His son Maroni succeeded Him in death after the Nephite were being killed off by the Lamanite Army because of Prophecy being fulfilled because some of the Nephite were becoming even more wicked than the Nephite. Maroni had to leave Morman as He was old when the final battle irritated because Morman taught His son to run and take the remaining plates in their charge to hide them away from those who would use the gold and brass plates for personal gain instead of important history kept even many years before they were born. Maroni was alone twenty years and the last of all the Nephite heritage as the Lamanite hunted down and killed every Nephite found alive. He carried the plates in Ancient America in 421 AD. They were brought by ship by Lehi and His family who had son's bed Nephite and Lamanite and other family as well. This is where the Nephites and Lamanite genes came from to Ancient America from Ancient Jerusalem. God allowed Maroni to visit Joseph Smith as a Angelic Messenger in vision.numerous times throughout the night until morning and went about to His regular chores to meet His father and was told to go back and retire to rest as He appear lethargic and weak that morning and Joseph became unconscious heading home and Moroni came and regressed all He had shown Joseph the night prior including where the plates were hidden so that Joseph would recognize the place when He arrived to that very place. Joseph was told to go and tell His father working in the field and His father told Joseph it was of God and to go and obey. He was told to go to that place one time each year for four years to make sure other's would not follow and make sure He was prepared in all things concerning the matter including not using the gold for His family's needs. Joseph suffered a chipped tooth because people wanted the plates for wealth purposes and because of not wanting to believe Joseph was bringing to pass The Lord's Restoration of His Gospel in a latter day dispensation. Maroni appeared to Joseph in vision in His room on September 22, 1823. He was told to name the Church, "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." He was hot tarred and feathered for causing the book to become published. The First Book of Morman was published in March of 2830. Joseph was against Black Slavery as well and this angered those who had slaves or miss treated the black race. I am against slavery as well. I saw the movie "Root's" and cried even as a very young teen. Maybe I was even younger even younger.tgan that. I was heartbroken for we are all God's children. No one should have gone through what they went through. The reason why the Priesthood was held off was because Society was very much into Slavery for a long time and treated the black race as less than's and some still do. This brings sadness to the ❤️.of all who love all races. Joseph had enemies because He was for the Black Race having freedom and Rightfully so to establish equality in gaining Human Rights. He was hated for His religious claims of seeing God and Jesus Christ and His visions. The reason The Church excommunicates those commiting Polygamy is to assure the Temple Work other Ordinances are not interrupted as Society in latter times would never accept Polygamy as in King times even when it was once accepted in those times. I hope this assists those seeking The Truth. In I say these things as accurately as possible and state The Lord is calling and gathering Israel for The Last Time in these last day's prior to The Ushering in of The Second Coming of Jesus Christ and do so in the name of The Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Why has someone deleted my comments? You want truth but stop it from happening when some facts are given. I took the time and saw one of my post and no longer see that nor the second. Why is this being deleted as I no longer see it posted? All answer's should be allowed if no vulgarity or hate crimes are pushed here.
In the Word of Wisdom it refers to hot drinks not caffeine. When teaching science to blind high schoolers we had a teacher die from cancer in her digestive system and they wanted to know why. We learned that caffeine can be habit forming and that when someone drinks hot fluids they become used to the temperature and increase the heat of their drinks. Cancer is caused by exposing the mouth, throat and stomach repeatedly to excessive heat. Could this be the connection to caffeine?
@@jmegarrycaffeine is good for keeping someone energized for a short time but when consumed regularly becomes a hobbit that is physically painful to stop. It is addictive. Hot d drinks as stated are harmful and can cause cancer.
I am LDS, and I really appreciate the fact that you research what the doctrine is. So much hatred towards the church. If we can all have an open dialog, how much we would gain from each other and come closer to our Savior. To see folks monetizing off of the hatred. Thanx for being Christ like in your approach.
Well said.
I would love to have a big session with many people from different backgrounds to have a sane and loving Christ-like study session of our understandings and learn from one another, it could also help us to clarify points of view and bust myths, of course starting with a powerful prayer calling the Holy Spirit to bless the study session and avoid contention and negative emotions
Some things I can’t square with ongoing revelation explanations. For example - Brigham Young taught that țhere are some sins that Jesus’s blood isn’t able to atone for, that must be taken care of by shedding a man’s own blood. I know that’s no longer taught, but how? How could the blood of Jesus be insufficient then, but sufficient for all sins now? This is a serious question, not a “gotcha “ attempt.
@@beckyharris347 I'm sorry you feel that way.
@@TheDustinExperience Thank you. Can you answer my question? Did the power of the blood of Jesus change?
I so appreciate the time you and Joy have taken to understand the Latter day Saint faith. I have also loved learning about your faith and beliefs. Thank you for creating content that I am excited to share with friends and family.
You seem like the absolute kindest person ever, who is not a member of the LDS church, to have a calm level-headed conversation about the LDS church and its beliefs and teachings. I can't tell you how many times I was yelled at, chewed out, verbally assaulted, and, in a few rare occasions, actually physically assaulted, while I was a missionary in a Latin-American country. There have been numerous times in the past several decades since my mission when conversations about the LDS church cause others to become rude and nasty towards me. I don't understand why people get angry over a conversation about religion. I have never become angry or even felt the need to "set someone straight" when conversing about the LDS church with someone who belongs to another religion. I have never attacked someone else's church or religion to their face like others have done to me.
It really strengthens your testimony if you think about it. If all this wasn't true, why would satan be trying so hard to get people to be hostile toward it? I often wonder the same thing, like why do we just hear anti against our church? Why not others? Not saying there should be more hate out there but you get the point 😂
@@draetonbybee9307 If the only thing you can imagine that would cause hostility to the institution of the LDS church is satan, I would like to gently suggest that you keep your eyes and your ears open. People have been hurt -- badly -- by local LDS authorities put in positions of power by the church who have gone against church teachings and church policy. This should make all of us absolutely angry, and sympathetic to those who have been hurt. People have also been hurt -- badly -- by authorities following exactly church policy to the letter. Understanding this pain doesn't mean that members should leave the institution, but it should be enough to cause a good deal of introspection by devout believers.
My experience as well. Some people are heck bent on proving us wrong as if our beliefs affect them personally.
I think you haven't looked at things from the other side.
The doctrines taught in the LDS faith often deeply go against a biblical view of the important truths held, such as the nature of God, the nature of Jesus, God's ability to sustain his church beyond the lives of the apostles, and the sufficiency of Scripture. If someone shares incorrect information about the historical Christian faith it really touches a nerve, just as if someone was picking on your favorite family member.
@@janetspiritofthelivinggod6328 You're not making any sense because it appears as though you have contradicted yourself. First you state what you think is wrong with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and its doctrines. Then, you compare having a discrepancy between what you think is correct Christian beliefs and doctrines and what the LDS church has as its established doctrines to "picking on your favorite family member". It looks like you have just done the equivalent of "picking on someone's favorite family member"then. I wonder if you feel the same way when pointing out differences between all 45,000 Christian sects across the world.
Thank you for this. I feel very well seen. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever felt so seen and understood by a Protestant before. Thank you.
A long time ago when I was 5 or 6 yrs old I had a conversation with a neighbor that was a Christian but not LDS and me in my little brain mentioned he wasn't a Christian because he didn't believe like I did. He educated me about what a Christian is and since then I have had respect for all Christ and Bible based religions. I like what is said at the end of this video about the maybe the type of conversations we should be having with others not of our faith. There is so much truth to be learned from all the perspectives. In the end when Jesus returns I truly believe he will embrace all of us that accepted him regardless of which Christian based church we belong to. In the end we will all be united in the church of Jesus Christ and that all our questions will be answered and clarified. The important thing is to Love Jesus and our neighbors. Respect goes a long way. I appreciate the respect and caring shown by Jeff in this video and others.
Absolutely, Julie. We are only able to think on earthly terms. All will be revealed when we are in heaven , we can’t even fathom how wonderful it will be, but Gods grace and mercy will be everything we need, no secrets, no promises of who will be with who in heaven, we will all be angels in Gods holy place. No one here on earth knows what heaven will be except for Jesus, Christ, who became a man, and told everyone who would listen what heaven would be like, because he was there, in the begining with God when all was created. I trust in Jesus my savior and Lord. 🙏
I was born and raised in Thailand as a Buddhism and I am converted into a LDS Church since I was early teenager 🙏
Yes, I heard about negative things about LDS Church on and on but I am not focused on it because of I am focusing on my soul as I know that the only person who can save my soul is the lord Jesus Christ so I am trying my best to follow his path and keep his commandment in my daily life as I am trying to reach my goals to partake the fruits of life 🙏
Yes, I am already sealed in the temple and did all kinds of ordinances to save my soul 🙏
I don’t really think that much about the factors of the people who are in the different perspectives it’s too much for me so I only know that Jesus is the Christ and he is my savior.
ขอบคุณและสวัสดีครับ🙏
@@ponpawittnumnuan4299 if Jesus was really your Savior you would believe everything he said including what he said on the cross 'it is finished'. If you understand that he is saying he is paying the debt we owe to God, therefore you do not have to do all those things for your soul to be saved. Jesus said the truth will set us free, not tether us to a long list of beliefs and behaviors in order to be saved. Of course his love, grace and mercy motivate us to listen for his daily instructions and do them but he says his yoke is easy and his burden is light. I see LDS under heavy burdens to do so many things, it's very sad.
@@janetspiritofthelivinggod6328 you do not understand if this is what you feel. It's better to ask and be educated. We know we cannot save ourselves. We are saved by grace. But that doesn't mean we sit there like a lump on a log. Our love for Jesus causes us to want to serve others & to continually learn more about Christ to be like him. I find this joyous. No heavy lifting or burdens at all. He blesses me.
@@rachelleherle1178 You need to meet my LDS neighbor who said she hated every minute of being relief society president. Those were not her god-given spiritual gifts being utilized, but it was thrust on her by people above her who think they know better than God does. Travesty! When someone is truly serving God out of love and volunteering, there should be no retribution, shame or guilt if they say "no" to a "calling" by the Bishop. I'm glad you have only experienced what you share here and that it's been joyous. Many do not share that experience, in a lot of churches.
Thank you! As a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saint I think your video was fair and accurate!
I like pastor Jeff. He got most things right. However, I would never characterize LDS doctrine as "progressive" at all. In fact, we're much more like strict constitutionalists and hold the scripture Canon to be interpreted as the original authors intended it, meaning as God revealed it. But we need prophets to help us with that interpretation.
Believing in on-going revelation doesn't mean doctrines can change. But it does mean that new light may be shed on mysteries of heaven, and certainly that prophets can give guidance and commandments as directed by Jesus Christ.
Hey, thanks! I think this might be my favorite video of yours. When I talk to people who have misconceptions about LDS beliefs or practices, and I ask where those ideas come from, they most often say, “My pastor taught us that.” It’s always interesting how things can be taught or passed along over time, even if they’re not accurate. Then it keeps getting repeated as if it's true. I really appreciate your thoughtful approach to these topics-it makes such a difference!
We are often accused of worshipping Joseph Smith. This myth could have made your list as well. We worship God the father, through his Son Jesus Christ and not any other Prophet or church leader.
Then why would you have pictures if old Joe in your homes? I have seen them many times.
@@CGall_I have paintings of the apostle and prophet Peter in my home. I really love and admire him. I hope to get to meet him in heaven. But having a painting of him doesn't mean that I worship him. I have pictures of my family up. I don't worship them. I worship God, the eternal Father.
@@CGall_I have a picture of George Washington in my home. That doesn’t mean I worship him.
@@CGall_ I have photos of my parents and grandparents in my home. That doesn't mean that I worship them.
@@CGall_your argument is just a picture of someone? I have a picture of my mom in my mom, according to your logic I worship her?
Thank you so much for your thoughts at the end!! I served my LDS mission in the South, and found myself trying to explain the paradigm difference to so many of my Evangelical friends! It often turned into “bible bashing,” which became SO frustrating for me because I wanted to have healthy and respectful dialogues and it rarely went that way. You articulated the key belief in ongoing revelation so nicely! One thing I would add is that a fundamental belief can be found in Moses 1:39, where the Lord says “this is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” This is such a beautiful and crucial fact about God, that His entire purpose right now is to save and exalt us! So we believe that when more revelation is received, such as instituting or abolishing polygamy, it all fits into God’s great purpose to bring to pass our immortality and eternal life. We may not understand how it works, but that is where faith comes in, and as we study and pray and seek to understand, He’ll often reveal a truth to us that helps things make more sense. So incredible!! Thank you again for your respect and care, God bless you!
This was a great video! I had my reservations about this channel for a long time but after having been subscribed for a year now and watching multiple videos, I can really tell that Pastor Jeff is just a sincere seeker of truth. On all accounts, he seems to be a very Christ-like individual. Thanks for helping to bridge understandings and sow truth!
I did too!
Lol
I’m so grateful for your persistent and consistent effort to lovingly understand and give heed to correction on these topics. It is a world changing and mature position to be in and I’m so grateful for the new foundation you’re helping to restore
I like being LDS! Life is tough for everybody. I don't drink or smoke at 85 I have lived longer. My 5 kids survive well. They think well, are tough as nails, go to Church with thier kids, and work successfully hard. They have strong marriages and love thier kids! What more could a father hope for!
@@GlenMcbride-s6l I would much rather be sure that I am believing the God of the Bible and historic Christianity with evidences that form a reasoned and reasonable relationship with Him. Jesus said that the narrow gate is one of knowing him and him knowing me. Take care my friend.
@@thebenplatt or, perhaps you do the research to see what MORE you could have.
@@janetspiritofthelivinggod6328 I hope this means that you are 100% relying upon the holy spirit to teach you all truth.
@@rachelleherle1178 Who needs more when one knows and is known by the God of the Universe? Man loves to make up stuff and sell religious experiences even tho God speaks with a whisper in the prayer closets of our lives. Actually once He was a little louder than a whisper and certainly got my attention!🙂
Thank you for this video, and also for using our name correctly. It shows a lot of respect for us.
I guess President Hinckley didn’t have respect for you ….
@@steppingawaytogetherthis!
@@steppingawaytogetherhe was before pres. Nelson asked us to start using the correct name.
President Monson was okay with Mormon.
Relax, Mormon.
Excellent presentation! Thank you for sharing these clarifications. This is important work that you are doing.
Being of the Jewish faith, I have encountered similar presumptions from Christians about what it is we believe or do. It is probably just human nature and applicable to all religions, to be honest, but it is still a legit hurdle to honest communication and is indeed worthy to address.
Additionally, I've seen in these clarifications some unique similarities between Judaism and LDS:
Deuteronomy 16-17 commands judges to be appointed for the people who are able to legislate new laws that must be followed. Interestingly, the Torah (Law of Moses) only possesses a handful of situations where an offender receives the death penalty, but when it comes to the further edicts enacted by the Torah-based judges, they are expected to be followed upon pain of death. This is a form of progressive revelation, obviously, and that has allowed Judaism to adapt over the millennia while still remaining true to the core principles preserved in the Torah. As such, the books of the prophets and others are all additional revelation beyond Sinai that was given to a single individual and relayed to the nation to be observed as necessary. All of this necessitates a belief in progressive revelation, and of a body of some type to assess the information and ratify it as legit.
This is evidenced in the Torah's allowance for polygyny (which is the real word that should be used when speaking of the former LDS practice, as well). The act of polygyny was never a mandate, but an "if you do, then"-type of situation. Eventually, the sages forbid it altogether, and that is fine. If it could be allowed in Judaism--that is, in the very Scriptures that Christians uphold as inspired--and the faithful in Judaism who have not practiced it for generations are not maligned, then it is hypocritical to malign an LDS believer for the historical allowance of it, as well. There is really no difference and Christians would be wise to see that and redirect their critical eye to something of worthier matters, if it must be done at all.
As for the "sacred, not secret" aspect of Temple work, on what basis is the criticism from Christianity? Even Yeshua told his disciples that he spoke to the crowds in parables because the true meaning was not intended for them to hear--only for the disciples who were committed. In later books, Paul even told his readers about him learning a "secret" or a "mystery" from the Creator Himself, and relaying that to them. Notice that he did not bother relaying it specifically to the pagan outsiders, and that his letters were never openly intended to be public reading material for believers and pagans alike. The information contained in his letters was for the individual or assembly to which it was penned, mostly. Only through the passage of time has those writings been adopted and read, interpreted, and applied by people and groups to whom they never originally applied. I have often wondered if he were to know of what became of his works today how he would feel or what he would say to those who have read his mail, essentially. ;)
These deeper truths are to be safeguarded for a reason. In Judaism is a corpus of teaching known as Kabbalah, and while it is based wholly on the Torah, it involves perspectives of understanding that are really only going to be appreciated as they need to be by committed believers. For ages, Kabbalah was only taught to pious, married men of the age of 40 or above as a show of respect for the type of teaching that was part of it. There is thus a place for such deeper insights and applications, and no believer should be critical of such willingness to protect spiritual truths from a world that--on the whole--is so profane in mind and heart as to not even begin to appreciate the depth of what they contain.
I'll leave off an already too long post, but hopefully we can all who watch this video take away a kinder approach to one another's beliefs, and not be so cavalier in judging what we do not so well understand.
Shalom
Wow! ...how gracious of you! Very, VERY well presented, accurate, and kind 🙂
As an old LDS guy that’s been around a bit. I would say outstanding job explaining our religion. I don’t think I could do any better. I would say though with a little history in mind you might find that your own religion has probably had some changes over time as well. All be it, probably nothing as extreme as polygamy. I would definitely say that my beliefs have changed over my lifetime in a very extreme manner. I lean way over on the side of saved by grace now. When I was younger I was way to far on the works side. I’m a better person now for sure. As I know that grace is the only way I will make it back to God. I also have to extend that grace to everyone. I’m trying the best I can but still learning. Grace is the only way.
❤
I’m right there with you! To the point of feeling that if we want to live in the celestial kingdom we will. Those who don’t want to won’t have to. That is what I gleaned from Pres Oaks Oct 2023 talk.
In Protestant Christianity there's a phrase "Root vs Fruit." We believe that grace through faith is the root. Works are the fruit. Meaning that one leads to the other. The freedom that comes from trusting God entirely for the forgiveness of sins and reconciling ourselves completely to himself is a life-changing thing. It has completely revolutionized how I think and act. Knowing how helpless I am and surrendering all my good deeds as if they were filthy rags makes me love God all the more and entirely dependent on Him. I see the good works developing as fruit all the more naturally as a byproduct of that faith/grace. There is nothing that I can do to make God love me more or improve my standing in his presence. It is all about Him!
@ thank you I love this
Such a wonderful and kind review! Thank you very much ! We are disciples of Christ who are trying our best the end !
This guy is actually better than most pastors.
For sure! Much appreciated.
“Where do these myths come from?” Good question.
He is better than most LDS bishops 🤪
I think his examples shows how important it is to have received some professional education in religion, psychology, finances, current topics like LGBTQ issues, etc.
So much bad advice has been given by bishops because they are simply overwhelmed with some situations. Bishops-roulette is real.
The Church likes to be proud of the fact that bishops are not paid (while General Authorities receive quite a nice salary and many unnecessary perks), but I think it’s not something to be so proud of because it has done a lot of harm to some.
@@briancrismonpetersen7885 probably because doctrines keep changing and even current doctrines are taught differently by Church leaders, for example, some teach that God‘s love is unconditional, then some apostle recently taught that God‘s love is conditional.
It’s confusing even to members.
@@mgeuleinstsearDoctrine never does & never has changed. Only policies change. God's love is 100% unconditional. There are consequences to our actions that cause us to separate ourselves from God, but the Atonement is still there for everyone no matter how far we've straued. His arm is stretched out in love to us all day, every day without strings attached.
Better than a large chunk of members too, as far as knowing their religion and the beliefs of the Church they belong to.
I’d love to see some myth busting about Protestant Evangelical beliefs. 👍🏻
Yes! Especially as you have already cleared up some things I was taught. For example the idea that works aren’t important at all was something I was taught and it never made any sense to me and you explained that true faith results in good works (fruits) which made a lot more sense to me.
This would be helpful to protestants and others alike, as the previous response seems to indicate!
Scripture says that in the afterlife, or in heaven, there will be no marriage is between anyone. Look it up.
@@margemacdonald6921 It refers to the Spirit World before there are any resurrections, and likely to the Millennial world before the final judgment of eternal life, which is the only judgment that permits the continuation of the marriage covenant. (My understanding.)
@ The words of Jesus I’m Matthew 22:30. Look it up.
Love it Jeff! SOOO grateful to have a voice like yours in our space because you truly are practicing exactly what you preach and it's helping the world so much right now. Building bridges rather than burning them is certainly how we heal the world.
I send this guy to anyone who doesn’t know anything about the church. Can there be a better source than someone who respectfully disagrees and is outside of our faith, but understands us perfectly? He is a mighty man doing a great work.
I like pastor Jeff. But be careful. He doesn't know everything, and he got a few things slightly askew of how I would describe the LDS faith. But he has good intentions (I think).
@ I’d challenge you to show me someone better
@@PeopleAreBeautifulbyChris how about an active faithful member of the Church?
@@blackjay5338 yeah then you lose the 3rd party non bias resource aspect
@@PeopleAreBeautifulbyChris Jeff is most definitely biased.
As a member of the Church, I really appreciate your dedication to learning, understanding and communicating these nuances and doing so in respect. I hope along the way, you have received an equal measure of respect and an effort to be understood from members of my faith that you have come into contact with. Thank you for the video!
You are awesome! I - quite literally - thank God you exist. Living in Utah, I keep hoping I bump into you so I can personally thank you for being not just informed, but so very kind. Until then, thank you!
I bumped into him this morning... he's every bit as nice in person as you see in his videos. Jeff is a very kind, respectful pastor.
Spot on! I would love a reverse video on this. What do Latter-day Saints get wrong about evangelical beliefs?
"What do Latter-day Saints get wrong about evangelical beliefs?"
That would be challenging since there is no world authority on what exactly ARE evangelical beliefs. They will say "the bible" is the authority but that has led to thousands of rival Christian denominations. Mike Winger is probably a reasonable authority on such things.
Where they differ most is a disregard for ecclesiastical authority (no global authority); The Bible (which one?) is the sole authority. Why exactly this is so is part of the problem. The bible does not itself claim there will be no more bible; and in fact, most of the New Testament seems not intended to be part of a "bible" but were letters sent to various congregations.
@@thomasmaughan4798 No sarcasm intended. You make a good point Thomas. I'd happy with General Orthodox Christian Beliefs ... say the Apostles or Nicene Creed. Triune God, Virgin Birth, Salvation by Grace through Faith in Jesus Christ not by works, Rev 22:18-19 and 'additional revelations' ?? After two overseas deployments in the US Army, both with rather zealous yet polite LDS roommates, I can say with certainty that while there is some common threads, our core beliefs are miles apart. If in the end, the glorified LDS member and spouse may attain 'godhood', than it flat out is not Christian. It's heresy. It's a false teaching. Nicely dressed, pretty bow but not of God.
Unlike other religions, the LDS church never talks about others' beliefs.
A sad thing for me is that I have a really hard time separating the angry hateful evangelical pastors/bashers from the general members.
@@JenM-nc3qj "the LDS church never talks about others' beliefs."
Not from the pulpit, anyway. If you are looking to God and Jesus, you aren't looking at your friendly neighborhood rival churches.
Just got home from my younger brother getting set apart to serve as a missionary. He's going to peru, I served in the Philippines. This Gospel and the Savior is everything to us. Love our Lord Jesus Christ.
I'm from Peru!, I hope he loves food! (Peru has been the World's Leading Culinary Destination for almost 12 years, there was a year with Covid and Italy won.)
@sallgood,that's cool,and I was going to add,speaking of missionaries,there was a kid from my ward who served his mission in Bentonville,Arkansas,but he was assigned in an area to speak a Polynesian dialect(Arkansas of all places,right?)I think I learned more in 2 years than at any given point in time up until then. Now as for me,I served in Carlsbad,California,English speaking.
You've learned so much from our faith. It's so cool to see you grow in knowledge since I've been a subscriber since the beginning of your channel. Great job!!!
@@jenneferc8768 this strikes me a little condescending. He’s learned so much about our faith. And we’ve learned so much from him about mutual respect and loving our neighbors
@PeopleAreBeautifulbyChris I can see how that was interpreted that way, but that wasn't my intention. When I watched his videos, there was a lot of misunderstanding, which is fine and understandable when you are learning something new. His channel also closed the gap that most new age Christian just need to profess with their young that they believe in Jesus Chist and not have to worry about committing sins. The gab closed for me, and I think we are much alike when it comes to being saved by Grace vs. works debate. So many youtuber deny or don't ever want to listen to us. Pastor Jeff is, and I do appreciate that. It's a sign of improvement and I think it's a wonderful thing. It is an aspect of life we all should be working on, of course, including me.
Thank you Brother for your curiosity, seeking to understand, respect, and really good example of friendship among God's Children. As an LDS church member I appreciate all that you do!.. and your beautiful wife too!
im 23 lds member and hes videos help me stay stronger in the church . we neeed stuff like this in the church
Pastor, Jeff…thanks for your sincere efforts to understand the LDS church. You’ve got a lot of the facts correct. Great job!
My understanding as a member of the church is that we are 100% saved by grace into one of the 3 degrees of glory, and the kingdom we end up in will be consistent with where we are most comfortable based on who and how much truth we have accepted.
None of us earns our way into any kingdom of glory. Outer darkness is reserved for the devil, his angels and those who fully know and reject the Lord outright. However, the vilest of sinners are generously given a kingdom of glory in which they can enjoy the presence of the Holy Spirit. This kingdom surpasses all human imagination in its beauty and telestial glory. The good people of the earth who did not accept the testimony of Christ but lived good lives will be given an even more glorious terrestrial kingdom, where they will enjoy the presence of our Savior, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. The third and highest kingdom, the celestial kingdom, is reserved for those who were valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ while on the Earth. This has less to do with WORKS than it has to do with relationship and testimony.
Even the celestial Kingdom will contain 3 levels of relative glory: 2 levels containing ministering angels and eternal exaltation, which includes becoming as God and creating worlds of our own with endless posterity. All 3 levels of the Celestial Kingdom will be in the presence of God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. The trait that stands apart for exaltation is being sealed for eternity with our spouse.
Again, the temple ordinances are a gift from God, not something we earn; only we believe that to enter the temple, we must be living at a level of cleanliness that makes us worthy to be in His presence, as we consider the temple to be a sacred house of God which we do not want to defile. I don't know if I explained that very well and I don't remember what the distinction between the two lesser levels of the celestial kingdom, but this is my understanding as a life long member 🤗
@ that "after all that we can do" is often misunderstood. What can we really do? Give our loyalty to the Saviour and trust in Him. We cannot even breathe on our own without His grace.
@@taylorvansickle8756 for sure, but on our own strength? Not possible. Which question are you pointing to?
Well Done! I think my favorite part was the invitation to not try and catch us in a gotcha but just have a conversation! I think the majority of us would completely love that! I know that is what I appreciate most from my friends from other faiths. God Bless!
Pastor Jeff you are right on! Even some members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints don't understand these things. Yes we abstain from coffee and tea(actual tea, not herbal infusions, tea the ingredient.)
Thanks again for clarification!
Happy New Year to you, Joy and your family. ❤
Well done.
As a Mormon, I will say that we respect all people of all religions.
Thank you for giving that back.
Thanks Pastor Jeff! This video seems like a "progress report" and it's fun to see how much you've learned about our faith. As I've continued to watch your videos, I also really appreciate you taking the time to articulate your own beliefs. You've already busted numerous myths that I've believed about evangelical beliefs and it has helped me better understand my own beliefs. Sincere interfaith dialogue does real, tangible good for both sides even if there is no "convincing" taking place. So thank you!
Protestant Christian here with lots of lds friends! Some common myths/misconceptions I've heard from latter day saints are:
"Cheap grace" (that's my friends words... not mine) that we believe that we can pray a prayer and just keep on sinning and we are good with God.
The nature of the trinity. Most lds people I've spoken with believe that the doctrine of the trinity is modalistic.
Believing that all Christians don't believe in modern day prophecy.
Believing that we don't get to be with our believing family members after we die.
This is a little obscure and I'm not sure how common it is... but an lds friend stated that he believed that we worship the cross.
Also that paid pastors are in it to get rich.
Obviously I don't think all lds people believe all this... but I have heard them all coming from lds members.
I served my mission in the Bible belt in the early 2000s. As a missionary knocking on doors, you can always tell immediately when the person answering the door wants to have a gotcha moment. We were told not to engage because those people aren’t really looking to have a conversation or learn anything. Sometimes it was hard not to though. 😂
My brother served a mission in alabama in the 90s, and he said, people would run out of their house with bible in hand, after him, just to have an argument.
Exactly. When I learned he was going to be reading the book of Mormon. I knew it was just to make a video at the end just to try and disprove it for content
@@nickdial8528I served in the Bible Belt as well. Your brother is lying. That never happens ever.
The reason for the gotcha arguments is LDS missionaries are telling people everything they believe is wrong and they have to switch teams or they will go to hell. That’s the reason for the defensiveness or the “thanks but no thanks” response.
@@Wolfie254 With all due respect, as an LDS missionary I would NEVER tell someone that they had to switch teams or "go to hell". Such a statement would be a gross violation of both the spirit and practice of our missionary work, 50 years ago when I served and now as well. I will admit that in my era there were some very argumentative LDS missionaries who wanted to "bash". The Church has gone to great lengths to purge our missionary efforts of anything like that.
Thank you Pastor Jeff. You are a breath of fresh air. I remember growing up in southern Alberta Canada. My friend saw a flyer advertising an event at a local evangelical church that was doing a presentation on the evils of modern music. It sounded interesting so we decided to go. The presenter spoke about and showed images and lyrics from various really diabolical death metal bands in a PowerPoint presentation, interspersed with pictures of the local LDS temple and the LDS church’s logo at the time, and trying to make some sort of bizarre connection between the two. It was my first experience with very direct anti-Mormon propaganda.
Myth #6: Church members do not listen to or sing along to death metal in the temple.
😂first time I've heard that myth, but my brother would appreciate it!
Hi there! I am not Mormon anymore, but thank you for this! I couldn't have explained it better. My wife now, has asked about polygamy in the Mormon church & I have tried over & over to explain it, but she just says something like "Well I heard differently so you're wrong" (She also thinks Mormons are NOT Christian, which you briefly cleared up here too). I'm thinking of having her watch this video from a paster and maybe she'll understand it better? Also one other reason "Mormons" USED to practice polygamy was because at the time woman couldn't own land, so they would marry (sometimes even for a short time) to be able to be "given" land and own it. Another reason was because a lot of men had died during their pioneering to Utah, so there were more woman then men at the time. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.... Thank you for this video!
Some marriages were likely not ever consummated. There were many widows who needed to be cared for and had no one. And like you said at the time, it was a harsh world for single women. Polygamy was also a choice, it wasn’t like people were forcing women to marry, or forcing men to take on another wife…and the majority of men who actually did were more well off 💵 and had the means to take on more family members. It wasn’t a requirement, and a lot of early saints didn’t participate in it. I have ancestors who never did, and I have ancestors who did. And honestly, if the ones who did participate refused I might not be here. So, it’s not something I hold my nose at. 🤷♀️
"so there were more woman then men at the time"
That was the principle reason during Brigham Young's leadership. He writes about it in Journal of Discourses. A young widowed mother with children; what is she going to do? There were no government services back then (it isn't all that great right now). But more importantly he writes about her affections; her desires, that can only be fulfilled in the married state.
There's more to it but that was a principle reason. Scripture talks about 7 women taking hold of one man; it appears to be a time of tribulation when there weren't very many men.
Pastor Jeff nails it perfectly. I was raised Baptist and joined the Church 52 years ago at age 18. Jeff is the most excellent interfaith authority.
Land ownership for the wife may have been an advantage, but it was not a purpose for going into polygamy.
@@Tom_From_Alpharettawhy would you leave Christianity for Mormonism? Is Jesus somehow not enough for you?
Awesome job busting those myths as it is great that someone (you) are seeking to really understand and explain to the world the Basis of our LDS religion in ways other religions have not understood. Then we can all relate to what we have in common more than different which is actually all of our belief in Jesus Christ. We are all going the same direction, we are just sitting in a different boat! Your channel is helping us share seats in both boats and be friends while seeking and understanding Jesus through our own understanding. In reality we are more alike than different: Thank you for what you are doing. 😊 I love your show.
Spot on! As a life-long Church member whose maternal ancestors were friends and associates of Joseph Smith, and in one instance, a brother of Brigham Young; this is perhaps the most thoughtful and respectful approach to my beliefs and experience that I’ve heard from someone outside my faith. Sharing an “in” joke here on the caffeinated soft drink vs Tea and Coffee debate: “What’s the difference between a good and bad Latter-day Saint? The temperature of the caffeine.” It is not helpful, nor even Christlike, when someone tries to tell another what he or she believes. Especially when the explanation is rejected as dishonest or disingenuous. I’ve read the writings of a number of Evangelical Pastors who insist that when Latter-day Saints say certain things, they are lying. The religion I grew up, and try to practice to my best imperfect, mortal ability, regards lying (bearing false witness) as a grievous sin. So hurtful? Yes.
As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I would add one small comment about myth #3. I would not say our Church has a "works-based" approach, in the Calvinist or Lutheran sense, who argued against the Holy Roman Empire of their day, primarily against the common "works" of indulgences. In fact, members of our Church would stand with Protestants in opposing indulgences. We also acknowledge no man or woman can ever "work" their way into heaven, because all have fallen short of the glory of God and sinned. For that, we acknowledge we need the atoning sacrifice and grace of our Savior Jesus Christ for salvation.
Instead of saying we need "works" to be saved, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe every soul must complete certain ORDINANCES to obtain the highest level of heaven. Ordinances to a Latter-day Saint include covenants with God and His promised blessings if we keep them. Chief among these ordinances: 1) baptism by emersion and 2) receipt of the gift of the Holy Ghost. The former Christ taught in the New Testament to Nicodemus; the latter, the apostles clearly taught throughout their ministries in Acts. Another common ordinance we perform every week is when we partake of the sacrament (blessed bread and water). In that weekly ordinance, which we make in our chapels (not temples), we covenant with God to remember Him and keep His commandments. In return, God promises us the companionship of His Holy Spirit to guide, comfort, and give us peace and joy.
Because we believe everyone must receive ordinances to obtain heaven (such as baptism and receipt of the gift of the Holy Ghost), we conduct proxy ordinances baptisms for and in behalf of our ancestors in the temples, another practice clearly had among and taught to the early members of the Church during the apostles' ministries. This gives the souls of humankind the opportunity to freely accept or reject Christ in the afterlife. For how many millions of souls have died without ever hearing the name of Christ Jesus (or any of his teachings)? Shutting such souls out of heaven, we believe, just because they never heard of Christ, would not be just or fair. Thus, you could say, we believe in an ordinance-based approach salvation--ordinances which include covenants with and promised blessings from God.
I hope this explanation helps others better understand why we build temples and the need for everyone to obtain saving ORDINANCES. Works alone, in the Protestant sense or regular common definition, will never enable anyone to obtain salvation, as noted.
Thank you for your faithful understanding of our beliefs. You have a kind heart and are an honorable man. May the Lord bless you for your honesty and goodness. Continue to bring others to Christ.
We show our faith NY our works. We are saved by the grace of God, it is true. But we are expected to do all we can to take up our cross and follow Jesus Christ. We do not diminish the unworthiness of man, no matter our efforts to be perfect; we know without doubt that it is only by the grace of God that we are saved or exalted.
We also believe that it is important that all good men should work together to prepare a people ready and worthy to receive the Lord at his coming. A true Christian will love God AND his brother.
This is a really great explanation that obviously comes from a place of love and respect. Thank you so much for this.
Thank you Jeff. I was a member if a scripture study group with evangelicals, and when I pointed out Biblical scriptures thar support LDS doctrine, they eventually threw me our of the group. The teachings of the prophet Joseph Smith have been annotated to the Bible, and it is very hard to say that our doctrine is not based in the Holy Bible.
i am sure that is not why they kicked you out, and why wouldn't you go to an LDS study group? why spread your division?
Krister Stendahl: Three rules when comparing religions: 1. When you are trying to understand another religion, you should ask the adherents of that religion and not its enemies. 2. Don't compare your best to their worst. And 3. Leave room for "holy envy". Stendahl's rules are a Christ-like way to compare other religions that brings Christians together.
Of course, the obvious problem with this binary and manichean approach is that not everyone lives in the love em or hate em camps. There are scholars and intellectuals who lie somewhere between these two apologetic and polemical groups. Frankly, they are the best equipped to study groups because they have no dog or pony in the show.
Jeff next year we will be studying the Doctorin and Covenants and Church history in our Sunday school class. Do you want to read along with us? And make some more videos?
I was a member and missionary for the LDS church many years ago. The temple ceremony back then was absolutely secret and far creepier than it is today. We had to swear oaths upon our lives that we would never reveal the secret symbols, the new name, and many other things about the ceremony. The ceremony was leaked to a covert audio recording in the mid 1980’s. since then, it’s even been video taped and I can see many parts that were taken out, such as swearing to have my throat cut if I revealed parts of the temple ceremony. We had to keep the secrets because the endowment ceremony was supposed to have secret codes for us to give to sentry angels to be allowed to pass by them. The temple absolutely has secret ordinances, but the LDS church lost control of them.
Fascinating. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Must have went to different temples then I did bud.
@@jeffreynielsen3659 , not sure how long you've been a temple attending member... but before the 1990 temple changes, what ArthurCluogh-f2o is describing was prevalent throughout all the temples at that time. Even Mitt Romney participated in that ordinance... and made those secr... oops, sacred, oaths and vows.
Naturally, we all understand the LDS Church has changed, and is changing, since that time... and we hope it will continue to change for the better - especially with Pastor Jeff's help.
@kennunez59.....well said. Perhaps the LDS Church will change for the better.
@@jeffreynielsen3659 What was the year you first went through the endowment? The "penalties" were removed in 1990. If you went in 1990 or later, yes, you went through a different ordinance in the LDS church than I did.
A conversation with a church member on the Word of Wisdom would be a great video. There tend to be several nuances in individual understanding and practice.
Yes, might be a good video!
My dear mother (father went along, too) taught me as a very young child that caffeinated soda is bad, and here I am now at 69 years old and having honored my mom for my whole life by not partaking of the caffeinated drinks. I can truly say this practice of mine, instilled upon me since my early childhood, has done me no harm. I am faced with an opportunity to drink these drinks on a weekly, if not daily, basis, and it is easy for me to keep honoring my mom by choosing not to. But, I don't proclaim it as "doctrine." Even my own spouse, and half of my own children, drink of the "Cokes and Dr. Peppers" without receiving any judgment at all from me.
And it should be noted, that while we do hold the word of wisdom to be very important, it is not an eternal law. It is given for us in this dispensation for God's wise purposes.
Yes, they've started to change certain questions to enter the temple based on these observations instead of do you obey the word of wisdom it is do you understand the word of wisdom thank goodness I wouldn't make it back to the temple if it were the way it used to be so I think they're starting to realize through time people change things change, ideas change, and I'm grateful that our father in heaven does not change and loves us all
Yes, they've started to change certain questions to enter the temple based on these observations instead of do you obey the word of wisdom it is do you understand the word of wisdom thank goodness I wouldn't make it back to the temple if it were the way it used to be so I think they're starting to realize through time people change things change, ideas change, and I'm grateful that our father in heaven does not change and loves us all also on the ceiling if a woman is divorced like myself I am able to remove the ceiling with proper authority. I just sent a letter and they discern that I've done my best to be a good wife and they look at all the facts, the judge has put on things in my feelings towards what I went through and are able to absolve that ceiling if you will ? so that these men can't be sealed to several people. Unless the wife prohibits them from that, then if they pass then, yes, it will still be up to God later to discern what to do with those ceilings. We just know that it's something special that we couldn't possibly understand right now on earth if that makes sense. Love you guys.
Let's face it, caffeine isn't really good for you and can cause physical and mental issues if abused. So, in practice, it might be well to avoid it or consume little of it.
Thank you for your constant tone of Christlike love and sincere seeking for mutual understanding. Grateful UA-cam recommended your channel, you are a wonderful man Pastor Jeff.
You should read through the Doctrine and Covenants next since you finished the Book of Mormon please!
3:56 President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the governing First Presidency of the church, said this in Oct 2023: “We have a loving Heavenly Father who will see that we receive every blessing and every advantage that our own desires and choices allow. We also know that He will force no one into a sealing relationship against his or her will. The blessings of a sealed relationship are assured for all who keep their covenants but never by forcing a sealed relationship on another person who is unworthy or unwilling.”
Jesus stated that in the afterlife, people will "neither marry nor be given in marriage, but will be like the angels in heaven," indicating that marriage as we know it will not exist in heaven; this is found in Matthew 22:30
@UTBanjo That marriage is not performed in the afterlife makes it all the more important to understand that the ordinance must be performed here on earth. Jesus gave to Peter sealing authority (“And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 16:19 KJV) and similarly has bestowed that authority on the authorized prophet in the latter-days.
@@sillyolryan You and I read the same passage, and interpret it way differently. You read, it can't happen in the afterlife so it has to happen on earth. To me, "will be like angels in heaven" says there will be no marriage at all and it's unnecessary. That scares many people, because they can't fathom not needing that relationship while in these incomplete and imperfect bodies.
@@UTBanjo Do you interpret these verses in Matt 22 to mean that the relationships cease, or that marriage as instituted by God for the purpose of creating families will not be necessary? That makes more sense to me because family relationships will clearly continue in the resurrection (see story of David reuniting with his deceased son in 2 Samuel 12), and I don't know why my family relationship with my wife would be an exception when God declared us one flesh. I believe that the primary relationship that we were created for is with God, but that's doesn't mean that we wont joyfully worship him in heaven along side of the people we love here in this life, and I don't think Jesus saying we will be like angels contradicts that idea.
I agree that marriages won't be happening and will be unnecessary because we won't be creating families in heaven, but will all be part of the family of God. That is a shift for me though because I used to be LDS and believed that my ultimate relationship with God and how far I was able to progress with Him was dependent on my eternal marriage.
@@scottbryner3 Marriage won't be needed. You are one flesh with your spouse now, but will be made complete and whole in a perfected body during the resurrection. We just won't have a need for that relationship. I don't think we stop knowing those we loved in this life. I do believe that the relationship will be so pale in comparison to the presence of the Father, that it won't matter much. It'll be about as important as your junior high girlfriend/boyfriend after having been married to your spouse for 50 years.
Well done. You still have a journey of learning and understanding ahead, but your approach to get to the truth is commendable. Thank you, from one servant of God to another.
Love you for being you!
Thank you so much for taking the time to dispel these myths.
Thank you for this! From a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
I like how you are approaching the continuing revelation. I've had these types of discussions in the past and people have really gotten heated accusing me of believing in a changeable God. God is the same, it's us humans who are different from one day to the next thus necessitating a change in what He feels we need at any given time. He did this with the Children of Israel as they came out of Egypt. Their lack of faith after 400 years of slavery led Him to creating a strict adherence law to guide them on their path, rather than the higher law that Jesus then tried to institute during His ministry. God is giving us what we need most at the point in history in which we are living. People in general do not think or behave in the same way now as they did in any other moment in history. Just like us, as parents, cannot raise each of our children exactly the same, God has a plan for His children no matter what era we were born into.
Can't wait till we see the first transgender Bishop. Society changes after all.
Thank you so much for your honesty and your fellowship in Christ. Pastors like you are rare and are certainly working towards ALL to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. I count you as a fellow Saint and Disciple of Jesus Christ.
the 'works' in works based salvation is this: following the commandments of the Lord. You keep and live by the teaching and commandments of the Lord, your good. You need to do or 'work' to keep the commandments of the Lord. It's that simple.
Very good. The gospel is a gospel of ACTION and the example given was the parable of the Good Samaritan.
Thank you. You did an amazing job busting these myths. I know for myself it would be refreshing to have questions asked and not trying to convince us we are wrong in our beliefs. Keep up the wonderful work.
Hey Pastor, respectfully I feel like polygamy is still practiced in the church. My ex-husbands bishop reached put to me when my ex got engaged and asked me to write a letter to either approve or disapprove of his secondary sealing to another spouse. This brought me a whole lot of uncomfortable feelings as I felt it was completely unfair that he could be sealed to more than one wife since I'm still living but if I wanted to be sealed to another man I would have to go through hoops to cancel my first sealing in order to be sealed to a different spouse. It seems to me there aren't equal rights for men and woman and that men are given more options than women are.
That technically isn't polygamy, though. That is multiple sealings but not multiple marriages. I realize that a sealing can often be used for both a religious ceremony and a temporal ceremony (marriage), but in the case you outline, it was not actual polygamy.
As far as things not being equal between a man and a woman, they never will be. We are different not only in physical terms, but in God's eyes (spiritually) as well.
@@CameronVanTassell This is attempting to avoid the issue with semantics.
I think the problem is defining "equal", because it implies there is a lesser value. I think it's more accurate to say we are not the same. We can be different but equal in value. @@CameronVanTassell
@CameronVanTassell so even though the apologists of the church admit Joseph Smith was married to over 30 wives this way.. it wasn't polygamy... technically. Oh the mental gymnastics you musst go through to justify to belong to the "only true church".
@quernalt Rachel used the term equal in the original post, which is why I used it. I read her comment to mean she wants things to be the same for males and females. That's what "equal rights" implies in our culture.
You have a gift of speaking articulately and explaining things so well. Thanks for what you do! As a lifelong lds member, I feel like the law of no coffee/tea is one of the most hypocritical and outdated parts of our church. I do love having the word of wisdom as health guideline (the parts besides hot drinks), but the fact that coffee/tea can prohibit people from going to the temple when so many other unhealthy substances or behaviors don’t prohibit people from the temple is just something I do not understand, nor do I agree with. So, it’s not only outsiders who see it as strange! No coffee/tea has just become so engrained in lds culture, and it has become such a huge symbol of obedience, that I feel many members haven’t given much thought about what would it mean if coffee/tea were okay. I’m always hoping this is a topic where further revelation might bring about a change, or at least not tie it to temple worthiness!
This was from ChatGPT when I asked what teachings from the Bible are different from the Book of Mormon:
1. Salvation by Grace vs. Works:
-The Bible (e.g., Ephesians 2:8-9) emphasizes salvation as a gift from God through grace, not by works.
-The Book of Mormon (e.g., 2 Nephi 25:23) teaches that "it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do," suggesting a stronger emphasis on works combined with grace.
God's Nature:
2. Spirit or Body
-The Bible generally teaches that God is unchanging (e.g., Malachi 3:6) and a spirit (John 4:24).
-The Book of Mormon aligns with this in some places but later LDS teachings (from other sources like Doctrine and Covenants) describe God as having a physical body, which some interpret as a divergence.
@@brandongallacher8387 Large Language Models such as ChatGPT are good at regurgitating what they find, but don’t always have reasoning ability - and certainly don’t have access to the gift of the Holy Ghost.
I read 2 Nephi 25: 23 in context of the verses around it. Nephi is writing about 550 BC and lives the law of Moses with its outward laws and practices, (which he talks about in verses 24 and 25). Instead of the rituals and animal sacrifice of Moses’ law, today we live in the new covenant, offering a broken heart and contrite spirit. But in either case, the principle is similar: "all we can do" is have faith, repent, obey the gospel, and receive and participate in the ordinances and covenants that God offers for us in our time and place of history.
point1; is a debate that LDS and nonLDS have concerning the proper interpretation of 2 Ne 25:23 - it is not about the passage suggesting a stronger emphasis on one over the other.
point2; is just the chatBOT just completly ignoring the parameters of your input to pad the answer with nonessential filler material. It is programed to just make things up as it goes for the most part.
ChatGPT makes a lot of mistakes, it doesn’t even properly add simple equations at times, truly. Is still recommend checking sources when using AI. 😊
Hey Jeff, I have nothing but respect and gratitude for your respectful and delicate approach to understanding our faith. One question for you, and I think I speak for a lot of your Latter-Day Saint followers when I ask this-- What is your personal hypothesis about the Book of Mormon?
I've heard you talk about your questions about it, things you agree and disagree with, and why you ultimately can't get behind it. I'd love to know though your explanation for where it came from and how we have it in our hands today if it isn't inspired of God. Hopefully that makes sense, I'd love to hear your answer!
I am an LDS convert and love all people who love Jesus as I strive to do! I I have spent the last 30 years of my life having many great experiences with my evangelical and Pentecostal friends. I love your work and I hope to continue to watch your videos that I just found. I think we have more convictions in common than most people realize.
The problem with "ongoing revelation" as understood by the LDS context is that there is no definite standard of truth, even though they'll use that phrase all the time. I have no assurance that something prophetic is indeed prophetic. It can be changed in the future and simply waved off as the opinion of the time or a flawed understanding of the brethren. There's no value to ongoing revelation when it is consistently discredited and devalued by its own church.
It's not as flexible as you think because there is a definite standard and truth that has been laid out by God. Much of the restored gospel and modern revelation was given to Joseph Smith. A lot of modern revelation is provided to help us live the gospel in these modern and confusing times. In fact, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Saints could and is thought of by many and being "old school" and "not keeping up with the times" because it remains faithful to the standards of truth. Many other churches have become progressive and have changed their beliefs and practices of morality to be more in tune with secular beliefs.
That being said, that does not mean the church will not receive more revolutionary revelation in the near future to prepare for the Second Coming of Christ. Who knows?
@@quernalt It is exactly as flexible as the brethren want it to be. The doctrine that the church has sworn will never change, like the curse of blackness or polygamy, have indeed changed over the course of the church's brief stint on this planet, and those are the big examples. Smaller doctrinal disputes or petty squables like the name of the church are bickered about through generations of "prophets", as each new leader takes the helm and begins to chart a new course for the church.
The problem is once any of it changes, it's all now fair game to assume what hasn't been changed just hasn't been changed yet to meet the needs of the brethren.
@BrendonKing "Curse of Blackness" came from the protestants. Many early church members carried this belief with them before they were baptised. I know of no revelation that says that blacks have inherited the curse of Cain. This was a supposition. Polygamy was practiced in the Old Testament and was authorised. It is not adultery if God authorizes it just as killing is not always murder and is authorised at times, such as self defense or defending one's country. Polygamy was authorised and even commanded in the early days of the church and it proved to be a blessing; though many sceptics today focus on some negative accounts.
The same thing is happening with American history with far left progressives taking things out of context, extrapolating, and filling in unknowns with suppositions; From Columbus, to the Founding Fathers, and even later.
The same argument you are using could be used against the early church from a Pharisee point of view. For example, in Acts chapter 10 when Peter got the vision basically granting salvation to all people whether they were Israelite or not, it was a massive doctrinal change that would have been very difficult for the early church, especially for the more fundamentalist members. I would be willing to bet a number of church members left the New church over it because it was a change that would have flew in the face of thousands of years of practice and belief. However God added/clarified/changed His doctrine to grant salvation to all people. How wonderful! That is ongoing revelation. Literally every epistle to the different churches in the New Testament was ongoing revelation for their time, to address their different struggles and situations. I’m sure the Jews who were trying to destroy the Christian movement in Jerusalem would have said “they have no definitive standard of truth”. As far as the understanding being flawed because of opinion, or whatever, that is found all through the New Testament, which is why ongoing revelation was so important. One of my favorite scriptures is from 1 Corinthians 13 it says in part “for now we see through a glass darkly”. They did not have a perfect knowledge then either and needed ongoing revelation. In our modern world as it is now with all the complexity and confusion I can’t think of a greater need for ongoing revelation than right now.
Pastor Jeff, as a youth seminary teacher, and returned missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day saints… You’re a better member of our faith than many members of our faith. You’re doing the Lord’s work,. May God bless you for it 🙏🏼
@aligtint.....yes, he probably bringing people to the LDS Church as a result.
Myth #3 - what do you do though about The Articles of Faith, pt3 “We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.” & 2 Nephi 25:23 - “For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.”
We have been meeting with two Mormon sisters in our neighborhood that are on mission and they said yes Jesus saves us but we also have a lot to do in covenants and “all that you do” for it to “count” or “stick.” They also sent us a message from a BYU chapel where the man teaching said the same thing.
We told them we believe that we are a new creation in Christ and the old is gone because of Jesus and our surrendering to him as our Savior through baptism. But the good fruit we bear doesn’t save us, Jesus saved us.
I’m an evangelical pastor trying to do a similar thing that you’re doing in our own community. Thank you for the work you’re doing!
There is a fantastic talk by Brad Wilcox called His Grace is Sufficient - I think it will answer your question. It is one of my absolute favourite talks. So beautiful.
@tylerhensley726 I think it might be helpful for you to understand what we believe about the Lord Jesus Christ being BOTH our Savior and our Redeemer. Those are not synonymous. It might also help you to understand what we mean about immortality AND eternal life. Those are not synonymous.
We believe that immortality is a completely free gift provided by our Lord Jesus Christ to anyone who ever lived. Regardless of works, regardless of beliefs, everyone will have victory over physical death, rise in a resurrection, and have our bodies restored to us.
If people don't accept the gift of forgiveness of sins that the Lord Jesus Christ offers, evangelicals believe that they will suffer torment in hell. We essentially agree. In our view, they won't be in this state forever, but they will have to pay the price for their sins themselves. Thus, the gift of being saved from the cost of our sins is conditional upon receiving the Lord Jesus Christ and repenting before Him. This salvation is applicable to many.
There is a further salvation that restores us to the presence of God, the eternal Father. It is salvation from spiritual death. It is still not the same thing as eternal life. This salvation requires what evangelicals would consider "works" as well as grace. I've heard other denominations talk about imputed righteousness. I think it's a little bit like that.
Salvation comes in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. Period. On that point, we both agree. Please be assured of that.
Evangelicals believe the gospel was delivered in the first 4 books of the New Testament by those who actually walked with Christ. There aren't too many "ordinances" in there. LDS thinks BoM is gospel, snd that even ordinances most of us see as blasphemous(baptism for the dead) must be performed.
@UTBanjo Paul says what is the point in doing baptisms for the dead if Christ wasn't resurrected....so Christ taught them to do baptisms for the dead back then...
@@tylerhensley726 My personal interpretation of the 2 Nephi verse is this: modern verse numbers and punctuation make it easy to look at in isolation, but read it in context of the verses around it. Nephi is writing about 550BC and lives the law of Moses with its outward laws and practices, and he talks about that in those verses. We live in the new covenant, offering a broken heart and contrite spirit. But in either case, “all we can do” is have faith, repent, and obey the gospel and receive the ordinances that God offers to us in our time of history.
Thank you for the fair and honest attempt to clarify some of the misconceptions that have been points of contention between LDS and other Christians for decades. I sincerely hope lots of Protestants are able to watch this and it will spark more conversations about LDS belief and doctrine. If all Protestants could be as educated and open-minded about our beliefs as Pastor Jeff, the "Christian World" would be such a much better place!
For future "LDS Mythbusters" episodes, I'd be dying for you to tackle the myth that "Mormons aren't Christians" and/or "Mormons believe in a different Jesus". To me, out of all the misconceptions I think those are the most hurtful and offensive to Latter-day Saint Christians. So if you could please clarify that in a future video, I think many people would indeed grateful!
One of my favorite videos yet! (And I've been watching since the VERY beginning.) I love how as your understanding has increased, you share information in a way that members of your faith will be able to relate too and understand.
Ultimately, we all love and want to follow and obey Jesus! He is our Savior, and we will be sharing time and space together in the next life, so I'm grateful you are helping clear up misconceptions here. God bless!
As a member of the LDS faith I feel so safe watching this channel. Thank you Pastor Jeff.🥲
As an LDS thank you for your respect and you did a great job
Thank you, I'm LDS and thank you for letting other people know that our church isn't weird. People have rumors and hatefulness towards our church that it even makes my friends turn away. Thank you.
Yep. Truth is there is no permanent hell in LDS doctrine. It’s one of the biggest differences between LDS doctrine and mainstream Christianity, with the minuscule exception noted by Pastor Jeff.
That's a falsehood. There is a place where those who will deny The Father is God while standing in His presence will go, along with Lucifer and his rebellious angels when the Final Judgement is done. To differentiate it from the temporary space between Death and the Final Judgment, this is called Outer Darkness. Both are conditions of hell, though.
@@Charistoph No disagreement, but you are into the nitty gritty. As to those who accepted mortality, there are only a handful of sons of perdition. The rest will either accept Christ's atonement, or pay for their own sins. That is their "hell". However, once all debt for sin is paid, each will be assigned to a kingdom of glory. In the protestant/evangelical world, only those who accept the Christ of the Counsel of Nicaea will go to "heaven". Everyone else burns for eternity in hell. Again, the depth of Christ's love and his plan is poorly understood by the mainstream world.
@@ericchase5045, not saying there wouldn't be many, but they will exist. No one can pay for their own sins and obtain a kingdom of glory. I don't see how this is "into the nitty gritty."
All sin that can be paid for and still allow for a kingdom of glory has already been paid. What is needed is for the person to accept that someone else has.
Those sons of perdition are those who will reject Jesus' payment even while standing at the Final Judgement, even as Lucifer rejected the Father while standing in front of His throne. It is to deny any Light.
Been following your kind, open-minded, open-hearted search for true understanding for a long time now. I REALLY appreciate your respect and attitude. Keep going. You're a blessing to us all x x
I would add that some of the sources of these myths are from jealous pastors who have no qualms about lying about other people, or just simply not doing any research to correct misconceptions which they then spread.
In addition, there are those who were asked to leave The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints due to a burden of sin (or leave of their own accord), and carry a hatred in their heart for The Church, and then spread lies, which quite a few pastors are more than willing to lap up and spread about as truth. The Godmakers program is a good example of this.
As a Latter-day Saint, I laughed out loud about the caffeine one 😂 thank you for all these videos using such respectful discourse! You have sparked my interest to learn more about Evangelical beliefs and what sets them apart from other Christians
When I was a kiddo here in Argentina, Evangelicals were considered a cult. So, I know I have to refrain my words when judging people, mainly Christian religions. And that's something I would recommend to any Protestant to do as well.
I am so impressed Pastor Jeff. It's been a long while since I last saw one of your videos, and you have come a long way since that point in your knowledge and understanding and appreciation for our beliefs. Many thanks from Tennessee, Mount Juliet 1st Ward!
It's always great to follow and watch the videos on this channel. Thank you, Pastor Jeff! You are a person with clarity of mind and honesty.
I've heard from ex LDS people that there definitely are secretive things that take place in the sealing ceremonies. Secret names to recognize your spouse in the afterlife, secret handshakes (which are eerily similar to Masonic handshakes), etc.
A side note on the coffee thing, because I could see people feeling a bit judged by Latter Day Saints when they choose to drink coffee, we have made a covenant with god to stay away from tea and coffee. We’re not going to (or if someone does they shouldn’t) stick their noses up at you, or scold you for drinking it. I had a friend who felt uncomfortable when he drank coffee around me, and it genuinely made me feel bad, because I don’t want anyone feel uncomfortable around me.
I’ll be honest I have heard members scoff at people that drink coffee or alcohol and say things like “we choose to not be alcoholics and love our family so we don’t drink”
I remember whispering to my wife who is a convert saying sorry. She was like they do know that’s now how that works right?
It is not compulsory. Many things you should do, and many things you should not do, that are not compulsory. My wife needs a cup of coffee pretty much daily; just one; the alkaloid substances keep her digestive tract functioning. I drink hot chocolate which is dang near the same thing but not "forbidden".
@@thomasmaughan4798 I thought so too until I heard at coffee that one cup of coffee can keep you from being with your family.
I remember I thought that was odd and I know each of the talks are approved by the presidency.
@@Zez88 At times, people engage in what Bruce McConkie called "gospel hobbies" or placing great emphasis on this or that; usually things the person is doing well and thus can act holier than you.
It is the attitude that counts. If you are DEFIANT and go to the steps of the temple and there in front of cameras pour yourself an espresso, well, the coffee is harmless but your defiance will be noticed.
It is defiance that ousted John Dehlin and "Nemo the Mormon". It is not clear why anyone wants to be a member of a church they do not sustain, embrace or endorse; acknowledging that it isn't always a package deal; there may be some aspect not to your liking, at times there may be things not to God's liking.
It is what you *do about it* that reveals your character.
Doctrine and Covenants 89:9 And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly.And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly.
I purpose that at the time of writing, "hot drinks", meant hard liquor. It burns the mouth, throat and stomach.
As a member of the Church i really enjoyed the "Gotcha" section. Helped me better understand my own faith.
@hellosaints a question for you as a Protestant believer. The one aspect of the LDS faith that I find interesting and perhaps more believable is the idea that most people in the world go to heaven of some form when they die rather than only believers of Jesus. What of those who died before Christ or who have earnestly pursued god but have never heard or received the gospel before death? Would love the evangelical view on that.
Great question
LDS here. We believe that all will have an opportunity to know and learn of Christ’s Gospel (whether in this life or in the next life), regardless of when God’s children have lived on the Earth.
Great questions. Here's a video that helped me understand the protestant perspective on that. ua-cam.com/video/zT04pR_2_S0/v-deo.htmlsi=HHogAWbWFaJf3RoT
It basically states the biblical position that Hell is a place for people who use their free will to reject God, and so it is God honoring the wishes of those who want nothing to do with him or his attributes like love, joy, relationship, peace, mercy, etc. The message is that the alternative (Heaven) is a free gift purchased when God entered his creation to pay for sin on our behalf and only asked that we place our trust in him as Lord. The bible also supports the idea of varying punishments in hell according to how badly people reacted toward God. Because God is just, the consequence of sin has to be paid for, and if a person is unwilling to let God the Son be their proxy substitute at judgement, Hell is where the demands of the law are exacted against them.
As for the people all over the world who don't know about Jesus in the same way we do, the bible teaches that God is just AND merciful. He will not hold someone responsible for not seeing what they cannot see or knowing what they cannot know (John 9:40-41). In fact, the bible is full of examples of people like Abraham who we know were declared saved prior to Jesus's earthly ministry, and so we can safely assume they knew little to nothing of it or His atonement. Apparently, God is an omniscient judge and is able to slide the scale according to the knowledge and opportunity available to anyone and everyone. As for opportunity to know God on some small level (like in countries where Christianity doesn't exist or where people are blinded by false ideas) What the bible says is that " his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse."(Romans 1:20) In other words, Gods invisible attributes like love, joy, peace, etc, as well as his visible creation in nature are enough for all people to know and respond to him on a level that is sufficient for God,... and we don't know and can't judge anyone when it comes to whether they are saved.
LDS scripture teaches that honorable people of the earth who didn't accept Jesus in this life because they were blinded by the craftiness of men but accept the gospel after death will be in the Terrestrial kingdom- a heaven that doesn't include God the Father or continued family relationships. (D&C 76:74-75). To me, the biblical message of one heaven that I don't deserve but receive anyway and a hell that I deserve but don't get because of Jesus better represents the love of God than a consolation prize version of heaven that I get because I was confused when the full message of the gospel was presented to me during life.
As always, wonderful job. As a Latter-day Saint, I'd REALLY like you to "bust" some of the myths that Latter-day Saints believe about Evangelicals. That would be very helpful for me.
Love ya Jeff. Thanks for your work!
I liked everything you said. It pretty much covered, in short, good reasons for the myths. What I like particularly is that you have an open mind about our culture and you have made good friends and neighbors while exploring our beliefs while living and preaching within your own. The only thing I thought was how if you had had a good
LDS religious professor right by you he or she could have filled with in with a bit more knowledge and reasons for the practices we have, and why there are myths. But you did a very good job. If you do decide to have a religious professor help you do a show on these matters - I can tell you now it would help our own community of Saints know how to answer some of these questions better! Thank you for being there!
7:35 it’s not about going to a kingdom. It’s about becoming. That’s why people misunderstand. This is what you guys call holiness, what we call exaltation.
One more thing. I want to complement you again for the constructive way you are building bridges between Latter Day Saints and other churches. It is refreshing. Thank you.
Nice work Pastor Jeff. I think you explained it well. If you were unaware, for many years you could not buy a caffeinated soda on BYU campus. All the vending machines had “caffeine free” versions of your favorite sodas. Things like that also reinforced the idea of caffeine being against the Word of Wisdom.
I tend to lean against caffeine because it is or can be an addictive substance... it honestly depends on the amount of caffeine consumed and or the addictive nature of the person drinking it. Mtn Dew caffeine is now not enough so they keep making new drinks with more caffeine... as much is legally allowed. Why does caffeine need to be regulated if is not dangerous in high amounts??? Just my thoughts
It’s all about the addictive component to caffeine. Caffeine should be banned along with alcohol, tobacco, illicit drugs, and anything else that is negative and addictive such as gambling.
Hi Pastor Jeff! I just started watching your channel yesterday and I'm enjoying it immensely. I grew up in Idaho, in an LDS family and have a strong testimony of the Gospel and of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I've attended other denominations over the years and made an effort to understand other Spiritual and Religious views, much as you are doing now, and I really appreciate your approach to it.
Although there are other questions and comments in my mind, the one I wish to address at this point is Baptism for the Dead. You and other denominations as well, seem to find that concept to be one of the hardest to accept. Not in argument but in curiosity...How do you interpret 1 Corinthians 15:29? I interpret it as Paul trying to argue the truth of the Resurrection by using what was, apparently, a common practice.
Anyway, thank you for your efforts and please keep it up. I'm enjoying it.
If polygamy is banned- why does the church allow men to be sealed to multiple women?
Because we believe polygamy is an eternal principle to be used only when God says and for God’s purposes. In fact, the biggest reason current (in this life) polygamy is a sin is that it is against God’s will for us in this time. In just the same way that sex is a sin before you’re married but not a sin within marriage is that God said so. He has his reasons and we don’t have to understand them. You still want to know why it’s permitted in the hereafter? There are scriptural references (Isaiah 4:1) etc but it comes down to the highest salvation only being available to people in an eternal covenant marriage, and for whatever reason there will be more women who live worthy of that than men and a fair and just God will not punish women simply because there are not enough men who lived up to it. For any other iterations of afterlife polyamory I’m happy to tackle them one by one. But everything comes down to God said so, and here’s where he said it in what part of holy scripture.
Plural marriage is a true and eternal principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is not "banned" in the church, it is simply not being practiced at the current time. The reason it is not being practiced is for political purposes. Read the Manifesto at the back of the Peal of Great Price to understand this.
The word of wisdom dating back to the eighteen hundreds actually has nothing to do with coffee, caffeine or tea.
In fact,
mormons in 1800s used tobacco, drank coffee and also drank alcohol when they dedicated the Temple in salt lake, they celebrated with alcohol.
If you do the research, hot drink was an alcoholic drink known as "hot drinks" in tje 1800s, I can't remember how it was made, but that was regarded as unhealthy.
The church didn't outlaw alcohol until prohibition, because it was the law of the land and then it never reverted back.
Something of which, I am actually in disagreement of.
The belief in hot drinks, being referred to as coffee or tea is simply based on nothing more than ignorance. Especially when they try to tie caffeine to it. Coffe and tea has nothing to do with it.
This ignorance is even prevalent among mormon society as well.
The word of wisdom was also just a suggestion of guidance, and it was not hard set law hat had to be followed.
That was something that evolved later on.
Agreed. I'm a devout Mormon, and I firmly believe that the knowledge of cultivating beer and wine was bestowed by God. The scriptures say that He delights in partaking of the fruit of the vine. There is divine symbolism in how they are made, and enjoying these drinks while in the wholesome company of friends and family is amazing and often Spirit-filled. The Word of Wisdom actually *supports* their use.
This is such an incredible video! Thank you for explaining all these points so wonderfully! I believe you really are doing the Lord's work in rid his churches of contention. It reminds me of Mark 9:38-41. Please keep going on this beautiful journey!
Member for 30+ years. Yes we believe in a works-based salvation.
D&C 82:10 I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise.
Also we believe faith without works is dead and only through keeping our covenants in the temple can we be enter the highest kingdom of glory.
The dispute seems to revolve on what one means by "works" and by "salvation". It is common among certain flavors of Evangelical Christians to believe all you need do is say some magic words, accept Jesus Christ as your personal savior (I have one in my backpack!) and that's it, you are DONE, saved! They can even tell you the exact date they were SAVED. Well, I and all other humans were saved 2000 years ago. But if you want something more than the bare minimum, well then some *works* are needed; Faith, hope and charity! And baptism. But what about.... yeah, well God has plans for the whatabouts. Baptism for the dead.
Not entirely. Like Jeff says, it is nuanced. We believe in 3 kingdoms of glory. Evangelicals don’t. So to them, saying that we have to “work for” the celestial kingdom sounds like we believe you have to work to be saved and that Jesus dying on the cross wasn’t sufficient to save all men.
@igobyandrew however, we do believe that we have to work for the celestial kingdom.
Evangelicals believe that being “saved” is not going to hell and being with Christ / their family in the afterlife. For us that is the Celestial Kingdom. Yes, hell or outer darkness is not the terrestrial or telestial kingdom however being in God’s presence and being with our families forever is in the Celestial kingdom.
The atonement of Christ gave us the path to return to our father again and to be like him. Yes this makes us different and that’s the point. We don’t need to conform to other beliefs.
@@thebenplatt "Mormonism in 100 percent a works-based salvation religion."
Is this really in dispute? Of course it is; more or less, without defining "works" and "salvation". There are things you must DO to live with God Himself. DO is action; action is works.
I am amazed that anyone thinks you can go live with God while having done NOTHING.
Thank you for your video, I am so happy. I was so tired of all these attacks against the Church, and your video brought me some peace. Thank you!
Regarding works based salvation/exaltation:
There seems to be an argument that if you believe that any single work is required, then you must believe you are saving yourselves and you believe Christ's atonement is not sufficient. Therefore, since we believe that baptism is required because God told us so, we believe in works based salvation.
I view it differently. Our works will never save us. If I pay for a vacation for a friend, they still have to show up and get on the plane. If they do show up, no one is under the illusion that they helped pay for the vacation. However, if they choose not to show up, they'll miss out on the vacation and no one will agree with them that they skipped out because they were promised it would be free and it really wasn't.
Similarly, Christ paid the full price. No one is saved by their own accord. Making covenants also doesn't save us or guarantee our exaltation. God invites us to make covenants with Him. Therefore we do. If God invites you to do something and you turn the other way, you shouldn't complain if you don't end up at the destination where Christ invited you to.
We believe very strongly in agency. We can choose God or Satan, but it is incumbent on us to make the choice.
Through God's mercy, every single man, woman, and child born on earth will receive the opportunity to accept Christ and make covenants with Him. That is why temple work and family history is so important to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
"Our works will never save us."
But failing to have ANY works will most definitely not save you. Your example of you having to show up is good; you have to do your part.
"since we believe that baptism is required because God told us so, we believe in works based salvation."
That is correct. The argument usually revolves around what is a WORK. It also revolves around what exactly is "salvation". Does that mean the Telestial Kingdom? Terrestrial? Celestial?
Jesus Christ atoned for Adam's transgression; for all people for all time. It is FINISHED. Everyone that ever lived, except the very worst sons of perdition, will get some sort of salvation; it is a *free gift* thanks to the atonement. *Beyond that free gift* are levels that must be earned; and you earn it by your obedience to the first and second great commandment (principally).
Noel, I think you've written an outstanding explanation of the necessary relationships involved. I would think and hope that even Pastor Jeff could see an evangelical thread in what you've stated.
What a thoughtful way of busting myths about my church. You really have taken the time to understand our faith and doctrine! This is how we bring people and churches together for good. Thank you so much.
Gospel topic essays covering Polygamy states that it was practised well after 1900 and was not completely abandoned in 1890. The concept, or the principle as it was commonly referred to has not been disavowed. President Nelson, President Oaks, President Hunter all remarried when their original spouses passed. Theologically, it is expected by them and members that their second spouse will join them in the afterlife as one of their wives, becoming sister wives with the first spouse.
Pastor Jeff actually did mention those concepts.
People choose to do what they want . Polygamy today is continuing even though it is not doctrine. They do not participate in the Church of Jesus Christ of LATTER DAY SAINTS CHURCH
@ no, that’s not the same. Read the gospel topic and you will see it was Church sanctioned.
@@emmahocking2095, at least, not in good faith. There are some who hide their actions while presenting a clean face. The Daybells who were just convicted this past year to name a pair.
Polygamy is culturally taboo but clearly God has reasons to condone it.
Excellent content. I really liked the video you did with Todd McLaughlin about a year ago going over some of the differences of the LDS and Christian world. Really great dialogue and unifying which is so important right now among all humans who believe in Christ. We need to stand together focused on our love for Him. Thank you!