Christmas Book Citations Jesus the Christ Part 1

Point is, the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints viewpoint when Mormonism is sponsored by Mormonism research ministry since 1979 Mormonism research ministry has been dedicated to equipping the body of Christ with answers regarding the Christian faith in a manner that expresses gentleness and respect. And now, your host for today's viewpoint on Mormonism welcome to this edition of viewpoint on Mormonism.

I'm your host, Bill McKeever, founder and director Mormonism research ministry and with me today is Eric Johnson.

My colleague at MRM we continue looking at books that were given away as Christmas gifts by the first presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints to various other general authorities as well as some select employees of the LDS church today were going to be looking at a book that was written by Mormon apostle James E Talmage a book titled Jesus the Christ. Now Eric this book and another book, articles of faith were kind of a real special deal because these came also bound in leather but it was a soft leather, almost like what we'd expect the Bible to be bound in and even though I think you can still get the articles of faith in a bound leather volume.

This is still a very special edition. The reason why Jesus the Christ is so special is because like articles of faith. Talmage was commissioned to write this book by the first presidency of the church and if you look at the preface of the book at the bottom of page III it says the author of this volume entered upon his welcome service under request and appointment from the presiding authorities of the church and the completed work has been written to and is approved by the first presidency and the Council of the 12 now at this time. Joseph F. Smith, the sixth president of the church was leading the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and his two counselors were Anton Lunn and Charles Penrose.

So here we have a book commissioned by the first presidency it's vetted after it's written by the first presidency and the Council of the 12.

So we would be correct in assuming that this book Jesus the Christ is obviously containing doctrine that every Orthodox Latter Day Saints should believe or at least you would think they would.

I don't think it's a stretch to say that the two most popular individual books written by general authorities would be Talmage is Jesus the Christ and articles of faith and I want to point out in this Christmas series that we've been talking about these past couple of months.

This is very important. I think because in 1981 they started the series with the triple combination intendants flexible leather. I am not sure that they were planning to do a whole series or not. It may have been very popular when they handed these to their employees, and other general authorities so 1982 they do, the Bible, they produce the Bible 10 inch flexible leather they continue in the same format in 1983 with Jesus the Christ and then an 84 with articles of faith now to show you that no other leader is going to get that kind of recognition minute read the next five years. The 85 would be the hymnal 86 a booklet."

87 the pocket hymnal 88 pocket Quad.

It's not until 1989. Now they start to feature different people in the church and 89 was the life of Joseph Smith the Prophet. Not only did they print Jesus the Christ in 83 and articles of faith. In 1984, but they really did that. Books in 2009 and 2010 Jesus the Christ and articles of faith are the only two books that were reprinted in the series that went from 1981 to 2017 that he understand what Eric saying folks this book, Jesus the Christ as well as articles of faith by Talmage were given by the first presidency, not once but twice during that period of 1981 to 2017 so obviously it seems to be a pretty big deal that these books do contain Orthodox Mormonism and so were going to be looking at some of the things that are in these books but we want to focus today and certainly tomorrow on the book Jesus the Christ that was written by James Talmage. Now, this book was published in 1915, so to have a book be that popular for so many years. Obviously, this is something that I would think Latter Day Saints should be paying attention to, and if they are supposed to pay attention to it than I think we should pay attention to it as well to see what this book has to say. The topic that we are going to be looking at today is the great apostasy of Talmage also wrote a whole book on the great apostasy, but he mentions it on page 754 of Jesus the Christ. What does he say about that. On page 754 throughout the period of apostasy. The windows of heaven had been shut toward the world so as to preclude all direct revelation from God, and particularly any person, administration or theophany of the Christ. Mankind had ceased to know God and had invested the utterances of prophets and apostles of old who had known him with a pall of mystery in fancy so that the true and the living God was no longer believed to exist, but in his place. The secretaries had tried to conceive of an incomprehensible being devoid of body parts or passions and immaterial, nothing. There is so much that we can discuss in this one short paragraph, but notice the language that he uses here that during this period of apostasy. The windows of heaven had been shut toward the world so as to preclude all direct revelation from God. But that's not really true. The written word was still here. The Bible was still here now Mormon can assume that the Bible we have is corrupted.

But it really is on their shoulders to prove that assumption and quite honestly I don't think any Mormon apologist or leader has done a very good job at that. But the fact remains that when it says all direct revelation from God, and particularly any person, administration or theophany of the Christ. Mankind had ceased to know God. Now that becomes particularly important because it's implying there was no one on the face of the earth who had a correct understanding or belief in the God that the Mormon church claims is true. Nobody knew who this God was and that would seem to makes some sense. You might think, because even at the Council of Nicaea, nobody seems to be arguing for the Mormon view of God, even at the Council of Nicaea which takes place in 325 A.D. nobody is arguing for tritheism.

Are we saying that nobody in 325 believe this all that was gone in such a short period of time.

That just seems to make no sense whatsoever because even heresies tend to linger for a long long time. Even the debate at the Council of Nicaea. It wasn't ended at the Council of Nicaea. That debate came up later on in early church history regarding who Christ is, when it says mankind is ceased to know God. He also says so that the true and the living God was no longer believed to exist that seems to imply. As I said that nobody could have possibly have been saved during this period known as the great apostasy.

If you don't have an understanding of who the true and living God is how in the world.

Can you imagine an individual to be saved saved by who saved from what all these questions start to pop up, but this becomes problematic because within the context of Mormonism. We have this pesky little revelation found in doctrine and covenants section 7 section 7 tells us that Jesus himself promised that the apostle John would remain alive. Let us read for you. The first three verses from section 7, but let me first of all read you the heading and it says revelation given to Joseph Smith the Prophet and Oliver Cowdrey at Harmony, Pennsylvania April 1829 when they inquired through the urine and foam him as to whether John the beloved disciple tarried in the flesh, or had died.

The revelation is the translated version of the record made on parchment by John and hidden up by himself. The airmen from them is it's an interesting device that really Joseph Smith does not use much besides what we see here and and and so God apparently thought it was important to have that included when Joseph Smith got the plates. The gold plates of the book of Mormon, you're right. The German Thummim were there with the gold plates buried in the stone box but yet the church admits that it appears most of the book of Mormon was translated via a seer stone and and Smith found the seer stone will dig in a well with his brother Hiram years before. But you're right here and here.

The German Thummim shows up and supposedly there's a parchment that was written by John and hidden up by himself. That contains something that the New Testament doesn't teach us and that is that the apostle John is going to remain alive. What is it say in verses one through three and the Lord set onto me.

John, my beloved, what desirous thou, for if you shall ask what you well, it shall be granted unto you, and I set onto him, Lord, give onto me power over death, that I may live and bring souls onto the in the Lord set on the me, verily, verily I say unto the because thou desirous.

This thou shalt tarry until I come in my glory, and shall prophesy before nations kindreds, tongues, and people, and then he goes into verse four. And this is really the kicker, because this shows that there's a purpose as to why John is going to be allowed to remain alive on the earth till the Lord comes.

What is say in verse four, and for this cause.

The Lord set on the Peter if I will that he tarry till I come. What is that to the for he desired of me, that he might bring souls onto me but thou desirous that thou mightiest speedily come onto me in my kingdom. So Peter desires to go and be with the Lord in his kingdom, which means he's going to have a mortality ending, you might say, but as for John, it says he desired of me speaking of Jesus, that he might bring souls unto me, so is not only going to live on the earth until Jesus returns.

But he's going to have a purpose. He's going to bring souls on to me that you would think that being ministered to by one of the 12 apostles that Jesus himself chose during his earthly ministry that John would be preaching a correct version of the gospel. If that's true, and he's making converts through this preaching. Where do we come up with this idea that mankind had ceased to know God did all these disciples and converts to John's ministry.

Pasta ties as well. That doesn't seem to make sense and were going to explain more about this in tomorrow's show. Thank you for listening you would like more information and research ministry.

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