Joseph Smith was the first prophet of Mormonism. Let us look at 5 things that he revealed to the world to see if they are on par with the Bible.
1. He was given the right to marry more than one wife.
2. He was instructed to build temples.
3. He was told that in these temples, there would be baptisms for the dead.
4. Inside the temple walls, people could be sealed in marriage for time and all eternity.
5. He was told that faithful Mormons would become gods.
Let us now compare these revelations with the Bible.
1. Joseph Smith was given the right to marry more than one wife. The Bible teaches, “A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife.” Speaking of the church, Paul stated that not only the bishop but also the deacons are to have one wife. In God’s holy church, He would never go against this teaching.
Bible Reference: 1 Timothy 3 (KJV)
2. Joseph Smith was instructed to build temples. Jesus spoke of the destruction of the temple of Jerusalem. “Verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” And this prophecy occurred, as Jesus spoke, in 70AD. Stephen went on to teach against the building of temples in Acts 7. In that chapter, he also said, “the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands.” This teaching goes against the building up of temples. It is a well-known teaching among the Christian faith that our bodies are the temple of God. Paul teaches, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” Any true Christian, that reads the Bible, would know this to be true.
Bible Reference: Matthew 24:1-5 (KJV); Acts 7:44-54 (KJV); 1 Corinthians 3:6-21 (KJV)
3. Joseph Smith was told that in these temples, there would be baptisms for the dead. This same topic also came up once in the Bible. Paul actually was confronted by it, when wicked men were found twisting the meaning of baptism. His response to those people that were doing such evil practices was, “why are they then baptized for the dead?” As Christians we leave it at that, as no doctrine would ever be made from questioning another person. People that die have no need for baptism. As “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment”. There is no second chances to be saved.
Bible Reference: 1 Corinthians 15:1-34 (KJV); Hebrews 9:24-29 (KJV)
4. Inside the temple walls, people are sealed in marriage for time and all eternity. The very fact that his God taught on marriage in heaven, should be a big red flag. Jesus taught, “in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.” To continue in marriage after death would deny the words of Jesus.
Bible Reference: Matthew 22:23-32 (KJV)
5. Joseph Smith was told that faithful Mormons would become Gods. As Jesus said earlier, when we die, “we are as the angels of God in heaven”. Isaiah taught, “I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God beside me.” This is a true saying to those in the faith.
Bible Reference: Isaiah 45:5,6;20-23 (KJV); Matthew 22:23-32 (KJV)
As you can see, each of Joseph Smith’s revelations are contrary to scripture. This makes him a false prophet and the church he formed also false.
You know, all of these points are true doctrine… then you (Paul) go off into left field and twist everything. Let me help you get it right.
1. “Joseph Smith was given the right to marry more than one wife.” – Just like Abraham and Jacob and others in the Bible. Yes, the Bible teaches that Bishops and Deacons are to have one wife. But if polygamy was condemned in general, then why say that only these two small groups are to not practice polygamy? Besides, your church doesn’t even have Bishops or Deacons, so you are not very Biblical in your church. The Bible never says that Prophets can’t practice polygamy, just the opposite.
2. “Joseph Smith was instructed to build temples.” You twist two different teachings into one confusing mess. Yes, our bodies are the temple of God. Yet, Jesus still took His temple (body) into the temple (building), as did the apostles and dozens of others on dozens of occasions. Jesus loved the temple so much that He became violent at its defilement. God loves the temple so much that He commanded Moses and David/Saul to build them so that He would have a place on earth to “reside”.
3. “Baptism for the dead…There is no second chances to be saved.” – Your right, there is no 2nd chance, but what about all the billions of God’s children that never got a 1st chance? What about all the people that died without an understanding that they need to be baptized? And why did Jesus teach/preach to the spirits in prison (see 1 Peter 3:19) if those spirits would never have a chance? Jesus preached to the spirits in prison because (as Peter’s example) they lived on the earth at a time and/or place where they were not taught the gospel and didn’t understand the need for a Savior. In the world today there are billions of people that are in the same situation. These people will have the same chance (1st chance) to accept the gospel and be baptized by proxy. The Bible never condemns baptism of the dead. Just the opposite. Paul uses this practice as a teaching tool to show the truth about the resurrection. Paul never said anything negative about it.
4. “people are sealed in marriage for time and all eternity” – You use one verse out of context and disregard all the other verses on the topic. First of all, in Matt. 22, Jesus is teaching about the resurrection, not about marriage. And if you read the details, you will see that Jesus used the words “in the resurrection”. Just to be clear, the LDS church teaches that there will be no more marriages “in the resurrection” because there will be no more need for marriages. All marriages must be done and sealed before the resurrection, which is why we are building so many temples so that we can do all this work. In Matt. 16:19 Jesus tells the twelve “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (also see Matt. 18:18). What are these “keys”? Who did Jesus give these Keys to? And who has them today? These “keys” are the keys of the priesthood and include the key to give the gift of the Holy Ghost. This power of the priesthood was a power that Simon saw and wanted for himself (see Acts 8:17-24). These “Keys” represent both power from God and the authority from God. These keys and these powers were conferred upon Paul and Matthias when they became apostles. The words “power and authority from God” and “keys” and “priesthood” all mean the same things. If you deny the priesthood, then you also are denying that Jesus gave “keys” to the apostles. We see the apostles using these keys every time they give the Holy Ghost, every time they baptize, every time they heal someone and every time they call a new apostle, Bishop, Elder or any other leader of the church. These keys were restored to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery when they were called to be apostles and have been passed down through the twelve apostles to Russell M. Nelson and the current quorum of the twelve and The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints them today. And what is so important that it needs to be “(bound) on earth (and) in heaven”? It’s the ordinances of the gospel starting with baptism and the sacrament all the way up to the binding of a husband and wife in eternal marriage. What else would people what “bound” to them from this life and this earth. I can think of nothing else that I want to take with me, except for my wife and children. If you can give me something else that the apostles were to “bind in heaven” then please explain it to me.
5. “Joseph Smith was told that faithful Mormons would become Gods” – no, let’s be fair here. We will become “Gods”, we will become “gods” (small g) and we will still worship God (big G) throughout all eternity. The Bible teaches that we will be “Joint heirs with Christ” and “Son’s of God”. If you are a “Son of God” and “one with the Father” (see John 17), then you are a god (jr. god). The Bible also teaches that we will “judge the angels” meaning that we will be above the angels and have authority over them. The only word that comes to mind that best describes this level of power and authority is “gods”. But that doesn’t mean that we will ever be above or beside The Father.
6. “As you can see, each of Joseph Smith’s revelations are contrary to scripture” – As you can see, there are many verses in the Bible that disagree with your conclusions. I hope that you will revisit this (and other) post(s) to present the truth and not twisted lies about the church.