Chapter 19 (BOMC)

“And now Abinadi said unto them: I would that ye should understand that God himself shall come down among the children of men, and shall redeem his people. And because he dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son— The Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and Son— And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth.” (Mosiah 15:1-4)

In many parts of the Book of Mormon we learn about the trinity, but in other parts we learn about the oneness of God. The Trinity is a true doctrine found in the Bible, but oneness theology is not. So let me define "oneness". It is that Jesus is the Father, making up the same person. This is opposed to the Trinity, where the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are three different persons in one God. So for there to be a teaching in the Book of Mormon that adheres to oneness, we’d have to see verses that say that the Father and Jesus are the same person. As you read above, we learn this about Jesus. In verse 2 it says, “He dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son.” (Mosiah 15:2) Does any Mormon agree with this doctrine? Absolutely not. But why not, given that this teaching is present in their book? In their reading of this book, what do Mormons think this verse means if they don’t believe the Christian interpretation?

Joseph Smith’s book teaches that Jesus is the Father. It is written, “the Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and Son.” (Mosiah 15:3) But what does the Bible say about this? That the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are three different persons. The Father leads the son in all things, and Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to guide us in all truth. It is Stephen who saw Jesus on the right hand of God, making them different persons. “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.” (Acts 7:56) If Jesus and the Father are separate persons, then how could they be the same God in the Trinity? It’s like this. The doctrine of the Holy Trinity states that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one God. They exist as three different persons, all working in perfect unity. Knowing the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit make up God, this makes one God collectively, and not three. All this makes sense as there is only one true God in the Bible, not many as Mormons have been taught to believe in.

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” (Isaiah 9:6,7)

Mormons collectively tell people that they believe in the Godhead. Where Jesus is God, the Father is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. The Father is not Jesus, nor the Holy Spirit, and vice versa, but all Gods nonetheless. This differs from the Trinity, in that we believe that each person collectively makes up God. So, three persons in one being. But why do some people in Mormonism believe that Jesus is the Father? It comes from their Book of Mormon. For example, in Mosiah 16, it reads, “teach them that redemption cometh through Christ the Lord, who is the very Eternal Father. Amen.” (Mosiah 16:15) This type of teaching doesn’t just exist in this chapter, but in many places of the Book of Mormon. I’ll be covering each of those locations in detail. Just know that the oneness theology teaching is that Jesus is the Father.  People mistakenly hold to this false belief. Without the Holy Spirit, they don’t know any better. What is very sad is that when you explain how the Trinity is taught in the Bible, they reject it.

People who believe in oneness theology go to this verse to make this claim. It reads, “for unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6) Notice how it says that the child is the everlasting Father. And there you have it, they say. However, Jesus helped people understand what this means and said, “believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.” (John 14:10) Notice how Jesus explains how He is in the Father and the Father is in Him. It is because the Father’s spirit dwells in the Son.  This is in the same fashion the Holy Spirit dwells in us. Isaiah is talking about the Father dwelling in the Son, not that He is the Father. This makes sense as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one God, not three. This is what you call perfect unity.

“For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.” (1 John 5,7,8)

It appears that Mormons are being forced to make a decision, of whom both paths are wrong. Will they continue to believe in the Godhead doctrine and reject the Book of Mormon? Or will they choose to believe in oneness theology and reject Mormonism? The Book of Mormon teaches that Jesus is the Father, rather than separate individuals. This is just one example. It is written, “and also that ye might know of the coming of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and of earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and that ye might know of the signs of his coming, to the intent that ye might believe on his name.” (Helaman 14:12) What is happening here? It says that Jesus is the Father of heaven and earth. This is not what the Godhead or Trinity teaches. In the Godhead, Jesus is not the Father or the Holy Spirit, but separate individuals and Gods. The Trinity teaching is that God is one being with three distinct persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Bible also teaches that no one can see the Father and live. The Father is Spirit, being omnipresent, and able to dwell in the Son.

The Book of Mormon doesn’t teach the Godhead, but oneness theology. Jesus is the Father and not a separate God. Doesn't this contradict Mormon theology? It sure does. I discussed this with various individuals who follow the LDS faith. They admit that there are problems with these verses.  They don’t believe that Jesus is the Father or that there is only one God. As Christians, we see the oneness theology as not of God, along with the Mormon Godhead teaching. It is because the Bible is intentional in telling us that there is only one true God in the heavens. Jesus said that when people see Him, they see the Father.  This is because His Spirit dwells in Him. It is similar to someone saying, “I see the Holy Spirit in you”. Therefore, if Mormons want to keep their beliefs in the Godhead, they should reject the Book of Mormon as a whole. But if their belief is that the Book of Mormon is scripture, then they should reject their church teachings instead. However, this is all wrong. The best scenario is to reject their book and their church, for only the Trinity makes sense.

“Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.” (John 14:8-11)

Not once did Jesus say that He is the Father in the Bible. He simply said that people can see the Father when they look at Him. Many people confuse what Jesus meant when He said this. That is why we will break down John, chapter 14, in detail. First off, Jesus said that when you see me, you see the Father. How is this possible, if they are separate persons and not the same? It means that the Father dwells in Jesus, not that Jesus is the Father. Jesus explained this and said that the Father’s Spirit dwells inside His body, making the Father Spirit. Jesus is always guided by the Father in everything He does. The presence of the Father serves as a remarkable explanation of how the Trinity operates. We have the Father’s Spirit dwelling in the Son, and the Holy Spirit dwelling in humans. They all work together in perfect unity as one God. This one God is made up of the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, although they are not the same person. The Book of Mormon tells a different story, which changes the Bible's narrative.

Instead of the Father and Son being different persons, they are the same person. This theology is referred to as oneness. Here is just one example of this teaching. It is written, “behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters.” (Ether 3:14) So there you have it. No longer is the Father a different person than Jesus, His Son. This is a false teaching called Modalism. Where the Father is manifest in the Son. Although Christians know this teaching to be false, Mormons don’t care that the teaching exists in their Book of Mormon. They say that modern day revelations from their false prophets trump what their book or Bible says. Therefore, they believe in the Godhead doctrine.  The Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit make up three different Gods, being one in purpose. This is heresy. One day the LDS people will learn that there is only one true God in the heavens on judgment day.

“And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch: And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died. And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years: And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.” (Genesis 5:18-23)

In Genesis, chapter 5, we learn about Jared.  He lived around 3544-2582 B.C. I am mentioning Jared's name since you see a brother of Jared in the Book of Mormon. The alleged sibling of Jared is believed to have lived approximately in 2200 B.C. The timelines of the brother of Jared and Jared are close but still three hundred years apart.  As for the Biblical text, there is no mention of another Jared during that timeframe. The Book of Mormon tries to identify this fictional character as “Mahonri Moriancumer”. He supposedly came from the time when God confounded the languages during the tower of Babel. The story of that event is in Genesis 11 and dates around 2300 B.C. However, there is no evidence for this other Jared or his brother. We only hear about Enoch’s grandfather, who is called Jared. He didn’t make it on the boat and died beforehand. Speaking of the flood, Peter wrote, “which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.” (1 Peter 3:20)

So, who went into the ark? It was Noah, and his wife, Shem, Ham, Japheth, and their wives, making a total of eight people. We learn this because “Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.” (Genesis 6:10) Also, when speaking of the ark, it says the following. “And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.” (Genesis 7:7) Therefore, only Noah’s family and their wives survived the flood. As for the brother of Jared, Mormons swear that he is real. In the Book of Mormon, it reads the following about him. “And in that day that they shall exercise faith in me, saith the Lord, even as the brother of Jared did, that they may become sanctified in me, then will I manifest unto them the things which the brother of Jared saw, even to the unfolding unto them all my revelations, saith Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of the heavens and of the earth, and all things that in them are.” (Ether 4:7) Based on what this person saw and heard, it suggests that both he and the forementioned Jesus are not real, but fictional characters. This is because of the oneness theology that he was taught. Where Jesus is the Father.

In the Book of Mormon, the story goes that a person named the "brother of Jared" saw Jesus before His birth. He even learned that Jesus is the Father. This is what we call oneness theology or modalism, which some people subscribe to. This line of thinking is inspired by John, chapter 14. This weird belief comes from the following verses. It is written, “believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.” (John 14:10-12) First off, Jesus said that the Father’s Spirit is in Him, not that he is the Father. He even stated that He is going to the Father, making them two persons, not one. Therefore, oneness theology is false, and so is the Mormon Godhead doctrine. The truth is, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three persons in one God. This is the Trinity.

“If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.” (John 14:7-12)

Has Jesus ever said that He is the Father? The answer is No. But did Jesus say that people would see the Father when they see Him? Yes, He did. There are big differences between the two. People who subscribe to the notion that Jesus is the Father are part of the oneness theology camp. The Father and Son just have different modes, which we call Modalism. See below for an example of this in the Book of Mormon, which is very disturbing. It is written, “And whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me. I am the same that leadeth men to all good; he that will not believe my words will not believe me—that I am; and he that will not believe me will not believe the Father who sent me. For behold, I am the Father, I am the light, and the life, and the truth of the world.” (Ether 4:12) This is just one example of many that I’ve found in the Book of Mormon, which teaches that Jesus is our Father in heaven. This is false, and so is the teaching of three different Gods in the Godhead. The true doctrine is that the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are one God. This is the Holy Trinity.

Our Father in heaven does exist, but so does His Son, Jesus. Joseph Smith must not have known this when He wrote this into His book. The funny thing is, Mormons don’t see an issue with this teaching. You can bring up the verse in Ether, chapter 4, and other places in the Book of Mormon, and they just write it off. Instead of seeing it as a contradiction to the Godhead, they won’t teach on it, but at the same time they don’t condemn the verses. They stick with the Godhead teaching, which says that the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are each God. So, three Gods in total. They do not believe that Jesus is the Father and admittedly teach against this. Asking a Mormon missionary if they believed that Jesus is the Father, they would say “No”. And if I said that I know people who believe this way, they would say they are wrong. However, if I show them verses in their Book of Mormon that teach this, they will justify them. At the same time, they would say that I was taking different verses out of context. This is what always happens when we bring up issues in the Book of Mormon. If only they would listen. Amen.

Let us pray:
God, I am grateful to understand the Trinity. It helps me understand how false the oneness theology really is, along with the Godhead doctrine taught in Mormonism. I give You praise! The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, three in one. I praise the Father, I praise the Son, I praise the Holy Spirit. God, Your presence brings me immense joy and fills my heart with love. Thank you, God, for being with me. I am unable to be led into all truth without You. I ask that You come and teach many people in the Mormon church also. Lead them out of bondage and into Your loving arms of freedom. May they unlearn their false beliefs and learn Your truths instead. I am talking about those who are humble. Assist me in spreading the good news of the kingdom to others. I love You, Jesus. Amen.