Trust in the Lord Part 1

Viewpoint is to examine the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from a 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 so glad to be with us for this additional 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 M.

R. M. In general conference in October 2019 Pres. Dallen H. Oaks, first counselor in the first presidency gave a talk entitled trust in the Lord subtitle as it appeared in the unsigned magazine in November 2019 said for our only sure reliance is to trust in the Lord and his love for his children having trust in the Lord is certainly not a phrase that is never been used by evangelical Christians, that's for sure. I mean, that's a phrase that comes right out of the Bible and definitely we should trust in the Lord. But what does it mean when a Latter Day Saints leader uses that expression because it comes with a little bit more of a nuance, wouldn't you agree Eric that when a Latter Day Saints leader says to trust in the Lord that that comes complete with the fact that because Mormons believe the Lord appointed these leaders such as Dallen Oaks that that would mean also that you should be trusting them as well, because the Lord appointed them to lead the church. Yes, I think that idea of how do you trust in the Lord and in Mormonism trusting in the Lord requires these leaders who are from the restored church and officially are able to tell you what you need to do including baptism going to the temple and all the other things required to be able to get to the very best that this religion has to offer, which they call the celestial kingdom. But if you look at the way that Christians view the how it's much different because any sites in here. Proverbs 3, five and six. Many Christians have memorize that as well. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight. And so when it says not to lean on your own understanding is not based on anything that you come up with but it's based on God's word. Christians have traditionally use the Bible as a way for us to determine the house, which is a much different perspective than what Mormon leaders are going to give you. I think you're exactly right on that because when I trust in the Lord.

That means I want to be faithful to what I know the Lord has revealed for me as one of his children. Now I'm a child of God only because my faith in Christ known Mormonism when Dallen Oaks uses the phrase and his love for his children. Of course, in the context of Mormonism.

They mean all of humankind because they believe that all of us are the children of God, quite literally, now the Bible doesn't support that position. But that is a position of the LDS church. What I find fascinating.

In this article is he begins with the controversy that many Latter Day Saints, especially female Latter Day Saints have when it comes to this teaching of being sealed to more than one wife in eternity. That's were his whole talk starts, which is quite telling. If you asked me but before I get ahead of myself.

Let's read that first paragraph he said, my dear brothers and sisters a letter I received some time ago introduces the subject of my talk. The writer was contemplating a temple marriage to a man whose eternal companion had died. She would be a second wife. She asked this question. Would she be able to have her own house in the next life or would she have to live with her husband and his first wife, I just told her to trust the Lord okay folks did you catch what he saying here. He's not denying that this is a definite problem, especially for many Latter Day Saints women that if a man is married to a woman for each eternity and that woman dies and he finds another wife who is not been sealed to another man for eternity. That individual man can be sealed to the second wife for eternity as well. Mormon Temple.

What does that mean well this lady apparently understands clearly what that means. It means that the second wife is going to have to share her husband with that first wife not Dallen Oaks should clearly understand this arrangement because he is sealed to women. He was married to Jim Dixon. She passed away and then later on Dallen Oaks married Kristin Manes who was not sealed to another man prior to her ceiling to Dallen Oaks so Dallen Oaks is going to have two wives in the hereafter. You could almost imagine. Maybe this is Kristin asking the question, am I going to have to share a house with not only my husband but also his first wife will there's really not a lot of details when it comes to this doctrine.

But here's what's fascinating to me and did you catch this is will Eric when he responded to the woman who writes this letter I just told her to trust the Lord is in that cyst seem like a blowoff that basically that was not a question I need to answer. I'm not going to answer it.

I think that is exactly what Dallen Oaks did. Now he doesn't stop there. In the second paragraph you're going to hear. In another example of someone who has this kind of anguish regarding the next life.

What is he saying in the second paragraph I continue with an experience I heard from a valued associate which I share with his permission. After the death of his beloved wife and the mother of his children, a father remarried, some grown children strongly objected to the remarriage and sought the counsel of a close relative who was a respected church leader after hearing the reasons for their objections which focused on conditions and relationships in the spirit world or in the kingdoms of glory that follow the final judgment. This leader said, quote you are worried about the wrong things you should be worried about whether you will get to those places. Concentrate on that if you get there. All of it will be more wonderful than you can imagine." Know what's fascinating to me is the were Dallen Oaks says what a comforting teaching! Trust in the Lord! Let me ask Eric if you were the children of this woman, would you have been comforted by that kind of an answer. No. And the reason why is because this is supposed to be a church leader who has access to be able to tell me the way it should be and yet, nowhere in the book of Mormon in the Bible and the other standard works as it ever talk about this so a lot of what the next life is going to be about certainly is left open to speculation but if you have a restoration and if you have leaders who are put there by God to help us to be able to know where were going to go.

You would think there be a little bit more than just don't even worry about it it's going to be better that's no better than what many Protestants are saying and I get criticized by Latter Day Saints.

When they say well you know were not sure exactly what heaven is gonna be like, but we know it's going to be wonderful and we get criticized because we don't have a more specific idea of what heaven will be in so many Latter Day Saints think were talking about sitting on a cloud and strumming a Harper not talking about that at all, but they're the ones who are supposed to know where did I come from, why am I here and where my going. The church is made very clear, they have the answers to these things. And yet, these are two issues that Latter Day Saints are concerned about. Otherwise Mr. Oaks would not have brought these up and he doesn't have answers for either one of these two. And yet it's the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints that has put this kind of anxiousness in the hearts of these individuals being talked about.

Hereby Dallen Oaks because of their quote unquote speculation as to what the hereafter is going to be like for those who were sealed to more than one wife. You would think that it would not be all that different than what plural marriage look like in the 19th century. Now in that case, some women they lived in the same house some plural wives lived in a different house and I'm sure that's probably the genesis of the question in the first paragraph you wondering what's going to be my arrangements, but it sounds it still that she's not too anxious about sharing her husband with another woman and I don't blame or would you. I don't blame her at all. But see, that's a problem that the church itself has made for itself. Based on this doctrine, which certainly is not found in the Bible and you would think if you're going to have a doctor like that at least have some answers to comfort these individuals who come to you with these kind of questions don't just blow them off by saying will just trust the Lord or if you get there. All of it will be more wonderful than you can imagine will because based on the information. This person has.

Now it's not causing them a bunch of wonderful feelings and how are they going to assume it's going to be more wonderful than they can imagine regarding that first case Bill this woman who's wondering if she's going to be in her own house is in the Bible talk about a place where there would be many rooms and certain it wasn't that something that perhaps Oaks could have comforted her and said well there's going to be this place where you will have your own room, but he doesn't even bring this up.

I think the reason why he probably doesn't bring it up because I don't think that the answer would've been comforting that all you're talking about the passage were in the King James it says in my house there are many mansions. We know from the Greek, means many rooms, so you would think that if Oaks was familiar with that passage, he could've said well you know it does say that in the next life. The Lord has a place that has many rooms so obviously it would seem like you would probably be in one of those rooms would be next door. I doesn't say anything about that because it doesn't teach this doesn't teach anything about being married throughout timing in eternity especially with multiple women but when you think that he knows definitively that they're going to be in the same realm Oaks will be with his two wives, and other women that will be added on. Just like all Latter Day Saints hope to if they get to the celestial kingdom there not to be in separate worlds there going to be in the same realm, so I would think that honesty would have him say this is what I know and especially since he is very important person in this church.

You would think that he would have the authority to be a little more definitive into brushing somebody off like this.

I guess that's what bothers me about these answers because he are not comforting answers at all. If it was me asking those questions. I would walk away from this alleged conversation or from the answer that he gives probably being just as upset or having just as much angst as I had before this conversation began. He doesn't answer it and I think it's because he knows the answer probably will not be comforting will sometimes to not get an answer isn't any more comforting than getting the right answer because now you're going to have to speculate on what does this mean he's going to be chiding Latter Day Saints for doing just that. Don't go imagining details that have never been truly were definitively discussed but yet he just pushed these people by his examples. These people were pushed into that very area of speculating and wondering what is it going to be like for me in the next life, and if these individuals have these kind of concerns.

My question would be is that really going to be a heavenly realm for them. How is that going to be something that they are going to find to be more wonderful than they can impact the gin, which is one of the answers given in the second example that he gives here were going to continue looking at Dallen Oaks sermon trust in the Lord because there's a lot of things in this message that I find not only confusing, but even a bit discomforting and sold in tomorrow's broadcast were going to continue looking at this message. Trust in the Lord.

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