This article explains the LDS's law of eternal progression, examines its origins, implications and flaws, and compares it with what the Bible teaches.



WHAT IS ETERNAL PROGRESSION?

Eternal progression is a law, or a fixed principle, that defines the God that Mormons worship. It declares that:

a. Intelligence cannot be created.
b. Every living being, including God, originally existed in the form of intelligent matter, and then progressed in stages.
c. At its fullest potential, eternal progression results in man's exaltation to godhood.
d. There are a great many Gods in the universe.
e. The universe and the matter it contains has always existed, eternally. Consequently the Gods of eternal progression do not "create" anything in the true sense of the word. They merely "reorganize" already existing matter.

All things, even the earth itself, had a spirit existence before the physical creation. (Premortal Life, Gayle Oblad Brown, Encyclopedia of Mormonism, New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1992.)

..... Elements had an existence from the time that he (God) had. The pure principles of element are principles which can never be destroyed; they may be organized and re-organized, but not destroyed. They had no beginning and had no end. Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, compiled by Joseph Fielding Smith, pages 351-2, Deseret Book Company, June, 1989.

The mind or the intelligence which man possesses is co-equal with God himself .... I am dwelling on the immortality of the spirit of man Ibid, page 353.

The path upwards in eternal progression, occurs in the following sequence:

1. Existence as a form of intelligence.
2. Taking on a spirit form by being born as a spirit baby through procreation between a man who has already progressed to godhood, and his wife, both of whom have bodies of flesh and bone.
3. Living a pre-existence in heaven as part of our Heavenly Father's family, until we have progressed as far as we can in our first estate.
4. Taking on a body of flesh and bones and living a mortal probation on earth.
5. After death we are assigned either to paradise or spirit prison, where we await resurrection (which in Mormonism is another name for salvation by grace or general salvation, but it does not include forgiveness of our personal sins or eternal life).
6. Next is judgment, after which we are assigned to one of three kingdoms (or outer darkness) depending on what we merit.
7. At this stage those who have fulfilled all the requirements of the Mormon gospel and have gained sufficient knowledge, are "translated" to godhood.
8. Those who have become Gods will spend eternity breeding spirit children with their goddess wives, through the normal reproductive process, in order to populate worlds of their own.
9. Folk who do not qualify for godhood will spend eternity as unmarried ministering angelic beings.

"For these angels did not abide my law; therefore they can not be enlarged, but remain separately and singly, without exaltation, in their saved condition to all eternity; and from henceforth are not gods, but are angels of God forever and ever" (Doctrine & Covenants 132:17).

"Gods, angels and men are all of one species, one race, one great family." (LDS Apostle Parley P. Pratt, in The Mormon Faith: A New Look at Christianity, page 39, Robert L. Millet, (Deseret Books, 1998).

"God and man are of the same race, differing only in their degree of advancement." (Mormon Apostle, Dr. John Widtsoe (1872-1952), Gospel Through the Ages, Milton R. Hunter, page 107).

However, Mormonism is in gross error here. Angelic beings are a separate order of creation to that of mankind. (This subject will be addressed further on.)



THE INTRODUCTION OF ETERNAL PROGRESSION

In its earliest days Mormonism was similar to protestant Christianity. They believed that God had always been God eternally, that He was the only God, the creator and sustainer of all that exists, and that He was a spirit being. This is borne out by their 1835 printing of Doctrine and Covenants:

"..... We shall, in this lecture speak of the Godhead: we mean the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. There are two personages..... They are the Father and the Son: The Father being a personage of spirit, glory and power: possessing all perfection and fullness: the Son, who was in the bosom of the Father, a personage of tabernacle..... And he being the only begotten of the Father ..... possessing the same mind with the Father, which mind is the Holy Spirit.." (1835 Doctrine and Covenants, Lecture Fifth of Faith, 5:1-2, pages 52-53, First edition.) (Writer's italics)

Note: The original Doctrine and Covenants was split into two sections, i.e. the first section comprised their canon of LDS Doctrines and the second section contained the LDS Covenants [Revelations]. The above quote from the fifth lecture of faith was recorded in the first section, and included in their canon of scripture, indicating that it was their official doctrine.

The following is an extract from an article on Wikipedia, that reveals that the above Lectures of Faith genuinely represented the beliefs of Joseph Smith and the early LDS church, at that stage in history:

The Lectures were selected for that volume by a committee appointed on September 24, 1834 by a general assembly of the church to arrange the doctrines and revelations of the church into a single volume. That committee of Presiding Elders, consisting of Joseph Smith, Jr., Oliver Cowdery, Sidney Rigdon, and Frederick G. Williams, stated that the Lectures were included "in consequence of their embracing the important doctrine of salvation," and that the Lectures, together with the church-regulatory sections that followed, represent "our belief, and when we say this, humbly trust, the faith and principles of this society as a body." (See 1835 D&C, Preface.) Accordingly, the church body accepted the committee's compilation on August 17, 1835 as "the doctrine and covenants of their faith, by a unanimous vote." (History of the Church 2: 243-6).

The following verses also appear in the LDS's 1981 printing of Doctrine & Covenants. This proves that at the time they were written (in 1830), Joseph Smith taught that God had always, eternally, been God, and that He had created mankind:

By these things we know that there is a God in heaven, who is infinite and eternal, from everlasting to everlasting, the same unchangeable God, the framer of heaven and earth, and all things which are in them; And he created them male and female .... (Doctrine & Covenants Section 20:17, 18 (revelation through Joseph Smith, the Prophet, April, 1830.)

The Book of Mormon was the LDS's earliest book of scripture, and was written before Joseph Smith radically changed his ideas on deity. So it backs up the biblical trinitarian teaching, and also teaches that God is spirit:

And then Ammon said: Believest thou that there is a Great Spirit? And he said, Yea. And Ammon said: This is God. And Ammon said unto him again: Believest thou that this Great Spirit, who is God, created all things ......? (Alma 18:26-28)
And the king said: Is God that Great Spirit that brought our fathers out of the land of Jerusalem? And Aaron said unto him: Yea, he is that Great Spirit, and he created all things both in heaven and in earth ..... (Alma 22:9-11)
Now Zeerom said: Is there more than one God? And he (Amulek) answered, No. Now Zeerom said unto him again: How knowest thou these things? And he said: An angel hath made them known unto me ..... Now Zeerum said unto the people: See that ye remember these things; for he said there is but one God (Alma 11:28-31, 35)
..... and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. (2 Nephi 31:21)
..... to sing ceaseless praises with the choirs above unto the Father, and unto the Son, and unto the Holy Ghost, which are one God ..... Mormon 7:7)
..... I say unto you, that the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost are one ..... (3 Nephi 11:27)
..... But every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame, as it is now, or in the body, and shall be brought and be arraigned before the bar of Christ the Son, and God the Father, and the Holy Spirit, which is one Eternal God ..... (Alma 11:44)
And he had sworn in his wrath unto the brother of Jared, that whoso should possess this land of promise, from that time henceforth and forever, should serve him, the true and only God ..... (Ether 2:8)

However, a study of the LDS's Doctrine and Covenants reveals that after the establishment of the church, Joseph began claiming to have had revelations that changed his ideas about both God and man. Then at a general conference of the church on 7th April, 1844 (fourteen years after the formation of the LDS church), he made a declaration that lasted two and a quarter hours. As it was included in a commemorative oration for a recently deceased church member named King Follett, it became known as the King Follett Discourse (History of the Church, Volume 6, pages 302-317, c/f The Encyclopedia of Mormonism). The wording of this discourse clearly indicates that the LDS church had previously had a different idea of who God was:

"We have imagined and supposed that God was God from all eternity. I will refute that idea and take away the veil that you may see. It is the first principle of the Gospel to know for a certainty the Character of God ..… that he was once a man like us ..... Here, then, is eternal life — to know the only wise and true God; and you have got to learn how to be Gods yourselves, and to be kings and priests to God, the same as all Gods have done before you, namely by going from one small degree to another" (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, compiled by Joseph Fielding Smith, 1976, pages 345-346 c/f "Times and Seasons," Volume 5, pages 613-614).

According to the LDS's doctrine of eternal progression, man came first, not God. However, the Bible teaches from cover to cover, in both Old Testament and New, that God existed before any man ever came into being, and that He always has been God. (Amongst the Dead Sea Scrolls was a full copy of the book of Isaiah. It was written in the square form of the letter, which dated it 200 years before Christ. This means that this was the same version of Isaiah that Christ used. He accepted it as being accurate. And it agrees with our modern day translations. So we will prove our point by quoting from the Book of Isaiah):

..... I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me (Isaiah 46:9, KJV).

..... Before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me (Isaiah 43:10, KJV)

..... I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God (Isaiah 44:6, KJV).

In order to conform with their doctrine of eternal progression, all their previous doctrines and teachings, including those on God, Christ, mankind, the fall, salvation, the atonement and the gospel, had to be changed radically. This is why their earlier, pre-eternal progression scriptures in the Book of Mormon (some of which have been quoted above) so often contradict their later scriptures in Doctrine and Covenants and so on. (See the link at the end of this page to the article entitled "Contradictions in Mormon Scriptures.")

Not only does eternal progression embrace a totally different belief system to that taught by the Bible; it opposes all the major tenets of the Bible. Consequently, when it was adopted as the foundational doctrine of the LDS church, Mormonism became an exclusive religion that bears little resemblance to biblical Christianity.

The following are explanations of Mormon terms connected to eternal progression:



LDS TEACHING ON INTELLIGENCE

"Intelligence is eternal and exists upon a self-existent principle." (King Follett Sermon, Joseph Smith, History of the Church, Volume 6, pages 302-317)

"Man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be." (Doctrine and Covenants 93:29.)

The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth (Doctrine and Covenants 93:36).

"...the soul, the mind, the immortal spirit. All men say God created it in the beginning. The very idea lessens man in my estimation...The mind of man is as immortal as God himself ... their spirits existed co-equal with God... I take my ring from my finger and liken it unto the mind of man, the immortal spirit, because it has no beginning... God never did have power to create the spirit of man at all. God himself could not create himself: intelligence exists upon a self existent principle, it is a spirit from age to age, and there is no creation about it ... The first principles of man are self existent with God..." (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons, Vol. 5, page 615). (Italics inserted by editor.)

We note that in the above LDS quotes, the soul, mind and spirit are equated with intelligent matter. Contrarily, the they also teach that the first stage of eternal progression is from intelligent matter to that of a spirit form. But Mormonism is filled with contradictions. This indicates that it is a religion that was invented by a fallible man.

Joseph Smith's claim given directly above indicates that matter has always existed and that nothing was created. He maintains everything "progressed" (including mankind and God) from pre-existent matter. In this respect Mormon beliefs fall into the same category as Darwin's theory of evolution.



LDS TEACHING ON OUR FIRST ESTATE

Our first step upwards in eternal progression from a form of mere intelligence, is the taking on of a spirit form. This happens when we are born as spirit babies as a consequence of normal, physical procreation between a God and one of his wives, who have themselves already progressed ahead of us from intelligent matter, and who have bodies of flesh and bone. The family life we live in heaven at this stage is called pre-existence, or our first estate.

"We were begotten by our Father in Heaven; the person of our Father in Heaven was begotten on a previous heavenly world by His Father; and again, He was begotten by a still more ancient Father; and so on, from generation to generation ..." (Orson Pratt, "The Seer," page 132).

But how could a Mormon God and his wife, i.e. two physical beings with bodies of flesh and bone, mate; and then end up reproducing a different species, i.e. spirit baby? This doesn't make sense. And it contradicts what the Bible says about like reproducing like, after its own kind (Genesis 1:11, 12, 21, 24, 25, 6:20, 7:14.)

The Lord Jesus was the Mormon God's firstborn spirit child, and his birth was followed by the births of Satan and the demons, the angels, and all of mankind. This means that we are all brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ; and that Christ had the same origins as the devil, the demons, the angels, you and me.

Among the spirit children of Elohim [the LDS God] the firstborn was and is Jehovah or Jesus Christ to whom all others are juniors .... There is no impropriety, therefore, in speaking of Jesus Christ as the elder brother of the rest of humankind.... (LDS President Joseph F. Smith, "Improvement Era," volume 19, pages 941-942, June 30, 1916)

..... the Devil, the mighty Lucifer, the great prince of the angels, and the brother of Jesus. (Apostle Joseph Young, Journal of Discourses, Volume 6, pages 207-208, October 11, 1857) (Italics inserted by editor.)

All of us, Christ included, are the spirit children of the Father; all of us, Christ included, seek to become like the Father. In this sense the Firstborn, our Elder Brother, goes forward as we do..... Our Relationship with the Lord, LDS Apostle Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, in his address at Brigham Young University on 2nd March, 1982.

Conversely, the Bible teaches that Christ created all the heavenly principalities and powers, including the devil and the angels, and that He was God from the very beginning (Colossians 1:16-17, John 1:1). (A fair amount of LDS misunderstanding on this particular subject has come about because of their lack of knowledge regarding colloquial terms used in biblical times, that are foreign to our way of speech today. You'll be able to access an interesting and easy to understand article on biblical terms by clicking on this link: Mormon Doctrines Misconstrue Hebrew Terms of Speech .)

Reason tells us that the first God could not have progressed from intelligent matter all the way up to godhood via the steps laid down by the LDS's law of eternal progression. He couldn't have been born as a spirit baby through an act of reproduction into an earlier God's family as he was the first one to progress further than intelligent matter. So there was no earlier God. Nor was there anybody greater than he was to teach him or guide him. Furthermore, there was no one with a body who could reproduce him in an earthly form with a mortal body of flesh and bones. So he couldn't have served a probationary period on earth. But somehow he obtained a physical body and attained godhood. And if he "progressed" via a different route, why didn't the rest of us just follow in his footsteps? There are far too many flaws and exceptions in eternal progression for it to be truth. The main ingredient in truth is its consistency. (For instance, besides the above contradictions, the LDS teaches that Christ was exalted to godhood due to his attaining the required level of intelligence.)



LDS TEACHING ON THE GRAND COUNCIL

After we had achieved our full potential in our first estate, Heavenly Father called a Grand Council to formulate a plan for us to progress the next step further by taking on bodies of flesh and bone and serving a mortal probation on earth. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pages 348, 349, 365).

Included in that plan was the fall of mankind, which the LDS maintains was vital for our progress. (See the article Sin and the Fall, Mormon and Biblical Teachings Contrasted.)



LDS TEACHING ON WAR IN HEAVEN

Because of the planned fall, a saviour would be required, and God asked for a volunteer (Pearl of Great Price, Abraham 3:27). Both Christ and Lucifer came forward, each with a different plan.

Christ wanted us to have our free agency so that we could choose whether or not to obey God, in order to prove ourselves worthy of exaltation. He also wanted the glory to go to God. However, Lucifer's plan was to deny us our free agency so that not a single soul would be lost. And he wanted the honour for himself. God chose Jesus to be the Saviour. (Pearl of Great Price, Abraham 3:27 and Moses 4:1, 2)

As a consequence Lucifer rebelled, declaring war on God and Christ. A third of God's children sided with Lucifer. They were defeated, cast out of heaven and denied the opportunity of taking on bodies of flesh and bone or progressing any further than they had at that stage. It was then that Lucifer became the devil.



OUR MORTAL PROBATION ON EARTH

Once we have taken on bodies of flesh and bone in our earthly existence, our Father in heaven becomes our God, just as his Father had become his God. This means that each God has a God who has a God who has a God and so on.

During our earthly existence we have the opportunity of learning the difference between right and wrong. We also have the free agency to choose our actions. Our worthiness regarding our destination in the afterlife will be determined by our level of obedience to God.

(in Mormonism, Christ's atonement provides for universal resurrection, and opens the door for salvation, but we have to earn our right to forgiveness of sins — see the article The LDS Version of the Atonement is not Biblical .)



ETERNAL PROGRESSION AFTER DEATH

Faithful Mormons go to paradise. The remainder are assigned to a spirit prison, but only temporarily. Mormon missionary work continues amongst those who are waiting in prison. Those who did not have the opportunity of becoming Mormons during their lifetime are evangelised by Mormon missionaries so that they can be worthy of a higher degree of glory after judgment. (See the article The Three Degrees of Glory . )



CONCLUSION

Eternal progression is the foundation upon which all other Mormon teachings rest. But it is absolutely unbiblical. Consequently, Mormons worship an unbiblical God and trust in a non-existent Saviour, both of whom have been designed to fit in with their exclusive doctrine of eternal progression. Their way of salvation is also unbiblical.

In order to sort out in their minds exactly what the Bible does teach, Mormons need to begin prayerfully reading the Bible, without using LDS scriptures to guide them. If you are a Mormon and need any help in this regard, the editor will assist you in every way possible. I once travelled that route myself. You are welcome to contact me at response@bibtruth.com

The following links lead to articles on this website, that were mentioned above:

The Mormon Gods, Past and Present

Contradictions in Mormon Scriptures



The next off-site links lead to scholarly articles that are related to Eternal Progression, and as such do not necessarily reflect the views of the editor:

Philosophical Problems with the Mormon Concept of God, by Francis J. Beckwith

An Examination of the Mormon Doctrine of Eternal Progression Within the Context of Big-bang Cosmology, by Kirk D. Hagan



This last link leads to an off-site chart that illustrates Eternal Progression:

http://www.carm.org/religious-movements/mormonism/mormon-plan-eternal-progression


To access a comprehensive index of articles comparing various aspects of Mormonism with what the Bible teaches, click on the "home" button at the bottom of this page.



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