1. In addition to teaching “the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ” the Book of Mormon fortifies followers of
Christ against the false teachings & ideas prevalent in the last days. One
way it accomplishes this is by exposing the enemies of Christ & identifying
the false doctrines they spread. We learn to discern between the truths of the
gospel & the false concepts of the world.
2. Dallin H. Oaks, “Be Not
Deceived,” Ensign ,Nov. 2004; “As He
Thinketh in His Heart” (Feb. 8, 2013),lds.org/broadcasts)
3. Neil L. Andersen, “Spiritual
Whirlwinds,” Ensign, May 2014.
4. a) God-given truth versus moral relativism (no
universal right or wrong); b) religious liberty versus the rights of special
interest groups; c) the right to an abortion versus the
right to life.
5. JSM 1:22.
“the elect according to the covenant” refers to members of the Church of Jesus
Christ. What threats do “false Christs” and “false prophets” pose in our day?
6. “The Book of Mormon exposes the enemies of Christ. It
confounds false doctrines and lays down contention. (2 Ne.
3:12.) It fortifies the humble followers of Christ against the evil
designs, strategies, and doctrines of the devil in our day. The type of
apostates in the Book of Mormon are similar to the type we have today. God,
with his infinite foreknowledge, so molded the Book of Mormon that we might see
the error and know how to combat false educational, political, religious, and
philosophical concepts of our time” (TPC Ezra Taft Benson [2014], 132).
7. 2 Nephi
28:3–9- Modern-day examples of these false ideas? (moral relativism;
belief that because of God’s great love for us He will not punish sin; and
prejudice against Christians)
8. “False prophets and false teachers are those who
declare that the Prophet Joseph Smith was a
duplicitous deceiver; they challenge the First Vision as an authentic
experience. They declare that the Book of Mormon and other canonical works are
not ancient records of scripture. They also attempt to redefine the nature of
the Godhead, and they deny that God has given and continues to give revelation
today to His ordained and sustained prophets. … “Perhaps most damningly,
they deny Christ’s Resurrection and
Atonement, arguing that no God can save us. They reject the need for a Savior.
In short, these detractors attempt to
reinterpret the doctrines of the Church to fit their own preconceived views, and
in the process deny Christ and His messianic role. “False prophets and false teachers
are also those who attempt to change the God-given and scripturally based
doctrines that protect the sanctity of marriage, the divine nature of the family, and the essential
doctrine of personal morality. They advocate a redefinition of morality to
justify fornication, adultery, and homosexual relationships” (MRBallard, “Beware of
False Prophets and False Teachers,” Ensign, Nov.
1999, 63–64).
9. 2 Nephi
28:12–15, What are some of the consequences of believing in false
teachings and ideas?
10. “We cannot
allow ourselves to be confused by popular messages that are easily accepted by
the world and that contradict the doctrine and true principles of the gospel of
Jesus Christ. Many of these worldly messages represent nothing more than an
attempt of our society to justify sin” (Ulisses Soares Presidency of the
Seventy, Ensign May 2015, 75). Alma 30:53 -Korihor
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Jacob 7:1-7 (Sherem)
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Alma 1:2-6-(Nehor)
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Alma 30:12-18 (Korihor)
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Vs. 2-No Christ
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Vs. 2-Large & noted for strength
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Vs. 12-No Christ
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Vs. 2- Flattered people
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Vs. 3- Attacked Church
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Vs. 13- Denounced doctrine
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Vs. 2- Overthrew doctrine of Christ
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Vs. 3- Priestcraft
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Vs. 13-No man can know the future.
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Vs. 3- labored diligently
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Vs. 4- All saved at last day
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Vs. 14-Doctrines=foolish traditions
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Vs. 4- Learned- perfect knowledge of the language
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Vs. 5- Repeated doctrines until believed
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Vs. 15-Cannot know of things you cannot see. (Sec.
Humanism)
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Vs. 4 Flattery & power of speech.
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Vs. 5- People paid him
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Vs. 16- No remission of sins
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Vs. 5- Attacked prophet
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Vs. 6- He wore costly clothes
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Vs. 16- Foolish traditions
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Vs. 7- Misused scripture (Law of Moses)
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Vs. 6- Established church according to his doctrines
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Vs. 17- No atonement. Each man fares for himself.
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Vs. 7-No man knows future
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Vs. 17-No crime
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Vs. 18-Caused people to sin. Death is the end.
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12 Jacob 7:5,
8–12 and Alma 30:39–44
What fortified Jacob and Alma against false teachings?
13. When we rely on our testimonies of Christ and seek
the guidance of the Holy Ghost, we can overcome challenges to our faith.
(An anti-Christ in Seminary?)
14. 2 Nephi
26:29-Priestcraft defined
15. 3 Nephi 18:24-Christ
is the Light we hold up; 27:27-
Christ is the manner of person we should be.
16. “Let us beware of false prophets and false teachers,
both men and women, who are self-appointed declarers of the doctrines of the
Church and who seek to spread their false gospel and attract followers by
sponsoring symposia, books, and journals whose contents challenge fundamental
doctrines of the Church. Beware of those who speak and publish in opposition to
God’s true prophets and who actively proselyte others with reckless disregard
for the eternal well-being of those whom they seduce” (MRBallard, Ensign, Nov.
1999, 63).
17. Moroni
7:12–17; Ether 4:11–12-
How to know right from wrong.
18. “May I suggest three short tests to avoid being
deceived. …“1. What do the standard works have to say about it? … “2.
The second guide is: what do the latter-day Presidents of the Church have to
say on the subject—particularly the living President? …“3. The third and
final test is the Holy Ghost—the test of the Spirit. … This test can only be
fully effective if one’s channels of communication with God are clean and
virtuous and uncluttered with sin” (ETBenson, CR Oct. 1963, 16–17).
20. From the scriptures I conclude that followers of
Christ think differently than others. I was introduced to that idea as a young
man studying law at the University of Chicago. Raised in Mormon country with
little contact with persons of other beliefs, I was intrigued when I learned
that a part-time worker in our law library was studying for the ministry,
pursuing the degree Doctor of Divinity. Imagine my surprise when I learned in our
conversations that while he believed that Jesus Christ was “a great
teacher,” he did not believe that He was the divine Son of God. “What church do
you belong to?” I naively asked him.
“Oh, it doesn’t matter,” he replied. “I’ll take any
position that offers me a good situation—teaching, preaching, or counseling.” This
man desired to do what he saw as good, but he lacked the fundamental,
underlying belief in the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Ghost that I assumed was believed by all Christians. When it
came to the purpose and practice of religion, he obviously thought differently
than I.
On many important subjects involving religion, Latter-day
Saints think differently than many others.
21. For example, because Latter-day Saints know our
Heavenly Father’s plan for His children, we know that this mortal life is not a
one-act play sandwiched between an unknowable past and an uncertain future..
22. A recent survey reports that 53 percent of the
American public believe cohabitating is not a sin. Similarly, in my conference
talk last October, I cited the fact that in a recent period 41 percent of
all births in the United States were to women who were not married. Most
of these births were to couples who were cohabiting—living together outside of
marriage. Couples giving birth to children and raising them without being
married is common and accepted by many.
23. How should we
respond to familiar proposals to redefine the family? I suggest that it may be
preferable to refrain from arguing about such proposals. They will often be
better off to respond by identifying the worldly premises or assumptions in the
assertions they face and then by identifying the different assumptions or
premises that guide the thinking of Latter-day Saints.
24. We anchor ourselves to the word of God, contained in
the scriptures and in the teachings of modern prophets. Unless we are anchored
to these truths as our major premises and assumptions, we cannot be sure that
our conclusions are true. Being anchored to eternal truth will not protect us
from the tribulation and persecution Jesus predicted but it will give us the
peace that comes from faith in Jesus Christ and the knowledge that we are on
the pathway to eternal life.
25. We think differently about family issues than many
people in the world because of what we know about the eternal purpose and
nature of our family relationships. Our family proclamation states that
“marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God” and that “the family is
central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.” Knowing
that marriage between a man and a woman is essential to God’s eternal plan,
Latter-day Saints persist in the time-honored religious principle that marriage
is foremost an institution for the procreation and raising of children. We also
adhere to the proven experience that marriage is the best institution for the
economic, political, and moral well-being of the human family. As President
Spencer W. Kimball said many years ago: “We know that when things go wrong
in the family, things go wrong in every other institution in society.”
26. We reject the modern idea that marriage is a
relationship that exists primarily for the fulfillment of the individuals who
enter into it, with either one of them being able to terminate it at will. We
focus on the well-being of children, not just ourselves. “By divine design, both a man and a woman are
essential for bringing children into mortality and providing the best setting
for the rearing and nurturing of children.”
27. This declaration is not politically correct, but it
is true, and we are responsible to teach and practice its truth. That obviously
sets us against many assumptions and practices in today’s world—the birth of
millions of innocent children to unwed mothers being only one illustration.
28. Men and women spirits “complete each other” because
they are different, and they “progress together toward exaltation” by, among
other things, honoring those eternal, created differences. We rejoice in the
distinctive and mutually supportive roles of men and women in God’s plan. Men
and women are to be different, yet they are inseparably bound together in a
mutually supportive relationship to accomplish God’s plan. All of us—men and
women alike—find true and lasting happiness when we understand and rejoice in
our unique roles in God’s great plan of salvation.
29. When we begin by measuring modern practices and
proposals against what we know of God’s plan and the premises given in the word
of God and the teachings of His living prophets, we must anticipate that our
conclusions will differ from persons who do not think in that way. But we are
firm in this because we know that this puts us on safe ground eternally.
30.We should apply the caution Jesus gave to His
disciples to “beware of the … doctrine of the Pharisees” (Matthew 16:12).
We cannot escape the conclusions, teachings, and advocacy of modern Pharisees.
We must live in the world. But the teaching that we not be “of the world” (John 15:19; 17:14, 16)
requires us to identify error and exclude it from our thinking, our desires,
and our actions. In this way, through faith and trust in Jesus Christ and our
knowledge of our Heavenly Father’s plan, we can press forward with confidence
in these troubled times.(DHOaks, Feb. 8, 2013-Address to S&I) Abridged by
Gary
“If there is nothing
beyond death, then what is wrong with giving oneself wholly to pleasure in the
short time one has left to live? The loss of faith in the ‘other world’ has
saddled modern Western society with a fatal moral problem”
