KNOWING GOD THE FATHER AND HIS SON JESUS
CHRIST
The scriptures teach that it
is essential to know the only true God and his Son Jesus Christ. (John 17:3)
One of the fundamental doctrines of the Bible is that the Father and the Son
are personal beings having form and substance. Please refer to the following
examples:
Genesis 1:26-27; 5:1-3 - Adam
is created in the image and likeness of God even as Seth is created in the
image and likeness of Adam.
Matthew 3:17 - Father in
Heaven identifies Jesus Christ as his beloved Son.
Mark 14:61-62 - Jesus Christ
testifies that he is the Son of God.
Luke 24:36-43 - The
resurrected Christ makes it absolutely clear that he has a body of flesh and
bones.
James 2:26 - Death is the
separation of the body and spirit
Romans 6:9 - Christ will not
die again.
Acts 1:11 - The resurrected
Christ ascends to heaven with the promise that "this same Jesus" will
return.
Hebrews 1:1-3 - Christ is in
the express image of his Father and sat down in heaven on the right side of the
Father.
Acts 7:54-60 - Stephen was
filled with the Holy Ghost and saw Jesus standing next to God the Father.
1 John 3:1-3 - When Jesus
returns those who are purified will see him as he is and be like him.
John 17:19-23 - The prayer of
Jesus explains how the Father and the Son are one and how others may be one
with them. (See also 3 Nephi 19:23, 29; D&C 35:2)
Doctrinal creeds concerning
the nature of God that were developed after New Testament times are evidence of
departure from Biblical truths. Due to the martyrdom of the prophets and
apostles, the foundation of the church was damaged and many early Christians
were subjected to winds of false doctrine. (see Ephesians 3:19-20; 4:11-15) The
falling away that had been prophesied took place. (see Acts 20:29-30; Galatians
1:6-12; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12; 2 Timothy 4:3-4) A curious blending of Greek
philosophy and Christian doctrine resulted in creeds which speak of an
immaterial God consisting of three entities who are of one substance. That
concept of God, commonly known as the Trinity, has become a generally accepted
part of Christianity. However, there are some Christians who do not believe in
the mysterious God of the sectarian creeds.
The King James Version of the
Bible says that God is a spirit and they that worship him must worship him in
spirit and truth. (John 4:24) Even if we ignore the translation problem (see
JST John 4:26), the Bible also says that God is a consuming fire (Hebrews
12:29), that God is light (I John 1:5), that God is love (I John 4:8), and much
more. To try to limit God to any one of these attributes and say that he can be
nothing more falls far short of the truth.
The truth about God and the
Godhead must include the reality of the resurrection. The Bible testifies again
and again that Christ rose from the dead unto eternal life. The tomb was empty.
Christ was careful to verify that he was not just a spirit, and that his spirit
was clothed with a glorified body of flesh and bones. He ascended into heaven
as a resurrected being and he will return the same. The Bible does not teach
that Christ ceased to be a resurrected being so that he could become part of an
immaterial Trinity in an immaterial heaven. The Bible teaches that the spirit
and body of Christ were inseparably connected in the resurrection and that
Christ is in the express image of his Father.
Now compare the testimony of
the Bible with the testimony of the Book of Mormon, which is a record of an
ancient people who left Jerusalem and came to the western hemisphere. It
contains an account of the appearance of Christ in ancient America in the year
34 AD.
3 Nephi 11:6-17 - "And
behold, the third time they did understand the voice which they heard; and it
said unto them: Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I
have glorified my name--hear ye him.
"And it came to pass, as
they understood they cast their eyes up again towards heaven; and behold, they
saw a Man descending out of heaven; and he was clothed in a white robe; and he
came down and stood in the midst of them; and the eyes of the whole multitude
were turned upon him, and they durst not open their mouths, even one to
another, and wist not what it meant, for they thought
it was an angel that had appeared unto them.
"And it came to pass
that he stretched forth his hand and spake unto the
people, saying: Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall
come into the world . . . And it came to pass that the Lord spake
unto them saying: Arise and come forth unto me, that ye may thrust your hands
into my side, and also that ye may feel the prints of the nails in my hands and
in my feet, that ye may know that I am the God of Israel, and the God of the
whole earth, and have been slain for the sins of the world.
"And it came to pass
that the multitude went forth, and thrust their hands into his side, and did
feel the prints of the nails in his hands and in his feet; and this they did
do, going forth one by one until they had all gone forth, and did see with
their eyes and did feel with their hands, and did know of a surety and did bear
record, that it was he, of whom it was written by the prophets, that should
come.
"And when they had all
gone forth and had witnessed for themselves, they did cry out with one accord,
saying: Hosanna! Blessed be the name of the Most High God! And they did fall
down at the feet of Jesus, and did worship him."
Now let's compare the
testimony of the Bible with the testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith
concerning a vision he received in the year 1820 AD.
Joseph Smith History 1:17 -
"When the light rested upon me I saw two personages, whose brightness and
glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me calling me by name and said, pointing to the
other - This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"
Joseph Smith History 1:25 -
"I had actually seen a light, and in the midst of that light I saw two
Personages, and they did in reality speak to me; and though I was hated and
persecuted for saying that I had seen a vision, yet it was true; and while they
were persecuting me, reviling me, and speaking all manner of evil against me
for so saying, I was led to say in my heart: Why persecute me for telling the
truth?"
There are many who are
opposed to any revelation or scripture that is not included in the Bible. They
use Revelation 22:18-19 where it says not to add to or delete from "this
book" to justify their position. The fact is that John could not have been
referring to the Bible because the Bible was not compiled until several hundred
years later. Obviously he was referring to additions to, or deletions from, the
book he was writing at that time which book was identified in Revelation 1:11.
Moses included the same warning in his writings near the beginning of the
Bible. (Deuteronomy 4:2) Neither Moses or John meant that God would not talk
anymore, or that we should not listen if he did. Surely we should give heed to
everything the Lord has said, and everything he says hereafter. Certainly,
everything the Lord has said and done and will say and do is not written in the
books of the Bible. (see John 21:25) It is strange that many of those who
desire to know the Lord are so quick to oppose communication from him.
The Father and Son of the New
Testament are also revealed in the Book of Mormon and in the teachings of the
prophet Joseph Smith. The only true God and his Son, Jesus Christ, want us to
know them and become one with them.
© 1997 by Ancient Message Keeper™ All rights reserved. This document is the result of personal scholarship and does not represent the official position of any church.