12 things I'm thankful for this Thanksgiving
1- Christ, our Savior
2- Living prophets
3- Every good and decent thing taught and implemented by members of all faiths and the good that comes from their trust in a loving God.
4- a loving wife and companion
5- two beautiful, healthy children
6- a family who is close even though we're far apart
7- employment and the resources to buy the necessities of life
8- the freedoms of this nation
9- the sacrifices of veterans
10- Saddam Hussein behind bars
11- a winning BYU football season and a bowl game
12- the luxuries and conveniences afforded by the Internet (thanks, Al Gore!)
posted by Garrett @ 1:26 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
I clicked on the link for "1. Christ, Our Savior" and was somewhat taken aback by the resultant claim, "Because of Christ’s Atonement and Resurrection, everyone who has ever lived on this earth will be resurrected (1 Corinthians 15:22)."
I think if you read on to verse 23 and understand the amplified version and the context, not "everyone" will be resurrected, but only "...those who are Christ's [own will be resurrected] at His coming."
To be "Christ's own" requires belief (Acts 16:31 and Romans 10:9) and an understanding (1 Corinthians 15:3, Ephesians 1:7, 1Peter 2:24, (and other scriptures)that speak to the saving nature of Jesus' death on the cross, and that salvation is "Not because of works, lest any man should boast --It is not the result of what any one can possibly do, so no one can pride himself in it or take glory to himself (Ephesians 2:9, Amplified)."
I will not attempt to justify my beliefs in any way, as the explanation and scope of Christ's Atonement is much larger than could ever fit into a brief comment on a blog. Rather, I will clarify my belief regarding Christ's Atonement.
We believe that Christ's atonement enables physical and spiritual salvation. Salvation from death, the separation of our spirits from our bodies, is a gift given to all mankind as we are all spiritual offspring of God and as such, he loves us this much. Spiritual salvation, however, was enabled through Christ's paying the price for our sins and enabling us to repent. As we know, no unclean thing can dwell in the presence of God, therefore, to live with Him someday, we must believe in Christ, repent, and live his teachings. Many of other faiths lump salvation into one big category. When one says he/she is saved because of Christ, we need to ask, saved from what? Sin, death, or both? In short, my belief is that all are resurrected because of Christ, and those who implement Christ's teachings and take advantage of His Atonement will be forgiven of their sins and qualify for life in God's presence.
"In short, my belief is that all are resurrected because of Christ, and those who implement Christ's teachings and take advantage of His Atonement will be forgiven of their sins and qualify for life in God's presence."
I respect your belief and I know your Articles of Faith define "atonement" as the way that God has supplied for you to earn your salvation "by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel."
Unfortunately, I can't find any Biblical basis for salvation by self-effort. Can you help me find it? After all, even Joseph Smith said, "The Savior has the words of eternal life. Nothing else can profit us," (Teachings of the Prophet, page 364); therefore, I would think the Savior's words as recorded in the Gospel of John, Chapter 3, pretty much sums up what Joseph Smith held as a truism. Correct?
Thanks again, Semper Fi. I appreciate your comments.
Ahh - the timeless debate between grace and works. I don't claim to be a scriptural academic, so I won't attempt to list scriptures from the Bible that teach about how God's plan of salvation includes both grace and works. Rather, I'll refer you to the following website which quite accurately represents my beliefs on the subject. It is in no way an official website of my church, but the author seems to explain gospel topics in quite simple, easy terms:
www.whyprophets.com/prophets/romans.htm
In my own mind, I would ask why in the world would God give us commandments if it made no difference as to our salvation if we followed them or not. The fact is that finding God's will is critical, and following His commandments is every bit as important. No matter how obedient we are, we all come short of a sinless life as Christ lived, even if we do our best to repent, therefore, no man can earn his own salvation, but rather relies on God's grace. In this way, "no man should boast," as we all rely on the Savior's sacrifice to gain forgiveness. We are indeed ultimately saved by grace after all we can do, but we know no unworthy being can live in the presence of God, so if one doesn't do his/her part to implement Christ's atonement, God can't look upon sin with the lest bit of allowance.
Above all and more importantly, one thing needs to be remembered when considering the beliefs of Mormons: We believe that it was confusion such as the debate over grace vs. works that led to young Joseph Smith turning to the Lord in prayer to find out the answers to doctrinal points in the Bible that weren't quite clear. Without a prophet to clear up the confusion as the prophets of old did, we are left to our own intellect to interpret scriture. Any debate over the beliefs of Mormonism should begin and end with the validity of our prophets, because we believe any true clarification of doctrines stem from revelation from our prophets, whom we believe are divinely called, just as Abraham, Noah, Moses, Peter, and other prophets of old. Just as the Paul cleared any debate among the Thessalonians regarding the time of Christ's 2nd coming ("for that day shall not come save there be a falling away first"), I believe God has chosen modern prophets, such as Joseph Smith, to clear any confusion and debate over doctrines of the Bible and to prepare the way for the Second Coming. Surely, if Moses were living today and were to come off of Mount Sinai and say, "We are saved by grace, after all we can do," that would end all debate. Because we believe Christ's church is again restored on Earth today, along with opening the windows of heaven through revelation, with prophets with the proper authority, it is difficult to debate on any gospel doctrine. No matter how theologians or scholars interpret scripture (and they debate even among themselves), I will follow the teachings of a prophet.
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