The object of this article is to reveal how wide the difference is, between the Mormon gospel and the gospel preached by the apostles of the primitive Christian church, as recorded in the Bible.

The following are quotes from the LDS series, Teachings of the Presidents of the Church. (In reading these quotes, bear in mind that the LDS teaches both eternal progression and pre-existence. And the word "exalt" refers to gaining eternal life [which has the same connotation as godhood].)

The Gospel of the Son of God that has been revealed is a plan or system of laws and ordinances, by strict obedience to which the people who inhabit this earth are assured that they may return again into the presence of the Father and the Son. (Teachings of the Presidents of the Church, Brigham Young, published in 1997 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, Utah, page 15)

The Gospel and the Priesthood are the means he [God] employs to save and exalt his obedient children to the possession with him of the same glory and power to be crowned with crowns of glory, immortality and eternal lives (DBY, 5). (Teachings of the Presidents of the Church, Brigham Young, published in 1997, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, Utah, page 18)

The Gospel and the Holy Priesthood continued from Noah to Abraham. "Abraham received the priesthood from Melchizedek, who received it through the lineage of his fathers, even till Noah." [D&C 84:14.] . . . The knowledge and practice of the Gospel were perpetuated through Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and other Patriarchs, until the age of Moses.... (Teachings of the Presidents of the Church, John Taylor, published in 2001, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, Utah, page 15)

As we will note from the first quote, the LDS maintains that the gospel is a plan or system of laws and ordinances. The second quote tells us that that the gospel is the means that God uses to give us the same glory as He has. And the third quote indicates that the gospel was available, and was practised, under the Old Covenant. None of these claims is biblical.



WHAT IS THE "GOSPEL?"

The word "gospel" means good news. And the good news of the New Testament was that the promised Jewish Messiah had come in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ; and that by His shed blood, on the cross at Calvary, He had ratified a New Covenant of grace. This New Covenant covered the forgiveness of all the sins of whosoever trusts in Him, as well as the gift of eternal life. And that was the gospel the apostles and the other followers of Christ, were commanded to preach. In other words, Christ told them that He Himself was to be their gospel. The gospel was to be all about Him.

And he [Christ] commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. To him [Christ] give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. (Acts 10:42-43, KJV)

And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ. (Acts 5:42, KJV)

But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. (1 Corinthians 1:23-24, KJV)

For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us, even by me and Silvanus and Timotheus (2 Corinthians 1:19, KJV)

For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. (2 Corinthians 4:5, KJV)

However, the LDS preaches another gospel, where the heroes are Joseph Smith, the angel Moroni and the LDS church. Although their church bears the name of Jesus Christ, He is not the one on whom their preaching is centred. Rather than preaching Christ crucified in the same way that the primitive church did, they preach themselves, claiming that salvation is only possible through their church. (Mormon Doctrine, LDS Apostle Bruce McConkie, page 670). Their third article of faith states that through the atonement of Christ all mankind may be saved by obedience to the laws and ordinances of [the LDS] gospel.

Although they honour Christ, Mormons believe that he is our brother in eternal progression, and that he had the same origins as we did. They claim that in a previous existence Christ was the firstborn (through a normal marital relationship between God and one of his wives), and that Lucifer, the angels and all of mankind followed. In other words, Christ is our biological brother. Their teaching is that His atonement provided for universal resurrection. This enables us to return to our original, biological father, who is the LDS God, and has a body of flesh and bone. Furthermore, the Mormon God also had the same origins as we did, and was once a mortal man.

The doctrine that God was once a man and has progressed to become a God is unique to this church. (Official LDS Lesson Manual, 1997, page 34, "The Teachings of Brigham Young")

WHY WAS THE BIBLICAL GOSPEL GOOD NEWS?

Under the Old Covenant, Israel was bound by the law. The penalty for disobedience was death (Romans 6:23). And if they disobeyed so much as one commandment, it would have had the same consequence as if they had disobeyed all.

For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. (James 2:10, KJV)

The law portrayed the righteous standards of God. Consequently, the Israelites agreed that it was good, And they vowed that they would keep it. But in spite of their good intentions, they were never able to do so.

But God had known all along that fallen man would not be able to keep the law. (God knows us better than we know ourselves.) So He provided a way out through the sacrificial system, in a practice known as "substitutionary sacrifice." When a man had sinned he would take a perfect, unblemished animal to the altar. And there, in front of the priest, the guilty sinner would lay his hand on the innocent animal's head. In this way he identified the animal as being his substitute that would die in his place, to cover the penalty for his sin (Leviticus 1:4, 4:29,33).

The Bible is the most amazing book. In the Old Testament it uses "pictures" to explain the New. The Old Covenant sacrificial system was a picture of the promised Messiah, the sinless Lamb of God. Under the New Covenant Christ, our sacrificial lamb, would bear, once for all, the sins, the guilt and the shame of all those who trust in Him. John the Baptist was a Jewish prophet. So he was all too familiar both with their sacrificial system and with their messianic promises. And when the Lord Jesus appeared on the scene, John announced:

Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. (John 1:29, KJV)

In his epistle to the church at Galatia, Paul explains that God used the law to convince fallen man of his inability to live according to His standards of righteousness and purity. The constant plume of smoke arising from the sacrificial altar bore witness of this fact.

Don't forget that the Israelites had the perfect set-up. They were God's chosen people and as such had enjoyed His favour, guidance and protection. Furthermore, they had actually covenanted to keep His law (Exodus 24:6-8). Nevertheless, in spite of all their advantages and their good intentions, they kept finding themselves slipping up in word, thought and deed. And we are no different.

The problem with laws and ordinances is that they don't have the power either to make us righteous or to save us. All they do is reveal the holiness of God on the one hand, and the innate sinfulness of fallen man on the other.

Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. (Galations 3:21-25, KJV) (Emphasis by editor)

Because of our inability to save ourselves through obedience to laws and ordinances, God has provided a different way, under a New Covenant of grace. And just as the sinner had to identify himself with his substitutionary sacrifice under the Old Covenant, so we need to do the same under the New. And we do this by repenting of our sins, turning from our self-reliance, and trusting in Christ alone for salvation.

But Mormons have been taught a different way:

That by keeping the commandments they might be washed and cleansed from all their sins ..... (Doctrine and Covenants 76:52)
(Editor: Contrary to Mormon claims, the Bible tells us that it is Christ's sacrificial blood that washes and cleanses us from sin (Revelation 1:5)

"Redemption from personal sins can only be obtained through obedience to the requirements of the [Mormon] gospel, and a life of good works ..... The Sectarian Dogma of Justification by Faith Alone has exercised an influence for evil" (Mormon Apostle James Talmage, Articles of Faith, pages 478-479).

The first effect [of the atonement] is to secure to all mankind alike, exemption from the penalty of the fall [death], thus providing a plan of General Salvation. The second effect is to open a way for Individual Salvation whereby mankind may secure remission of personal sins. As these sins are the result of individual acts, it is just that forgiveness for them should be conditioned on individual compliance with prescribed requirements, obedience to the laws and ordinances of the [LDS] Gospel. (LDS Apostle James Talmage, Articles of Faith, page 87). (Author's italics)

"Immortality is assured to all of us through the atonement of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. But eternal life is a personal responsibility we must earn and be worthy of." (LDS Apostle Delbert L. Stapley, Member of the Quorum of the Twelve, in The Path to Eternal Glory, Ensign, July 1973, page 99.) (Emphasis inserted by editor.)

THE NEW COVENANT

When reading the gospels we need to bear in mind that they were written during a transitional period between the Old and New Covenants. The New Covenant was only ratified by Christ's shed blood and His death. So Christ lived under the Old Covenant. And some of the things he said and did, applied to life under the Old Covenant.

Under the New Covenant of grace Christ became our substitutionary sacrifice. As such, He paid the full penalty for all our sins, in our place, on the cross at Calvary. The moment we turn to Him in faith, thereby identifying ourselves with Him and his atoning sacrifice, He becomes our Saviour, and we are counted as being "in Him."

The New Covenant was tailor-made for the fallenness of man, in that it caters for every eventuality and possibility. No longer does our salvation depend upon our own inadequate efforts, but on the sufficiency and the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. He took our sins upon Himself and paid the full penalty for those sins, in our place, on our behalf, in order to earn our forgiveness. And because He was our substitute, we were "in Him" when he suffered and died on the cross. So it was the same as if we had paid the price of our forgiveness.

Solely because of His undeserved mercy towards us, and not because of any merit in ourselves, whosoever trusts in Christ will receive forgiveness of, and cleansing from sin, freedom from guilt, eternal life, and reconciliation with God. No matter how inadequate they may think they are, as long as they are trusting in Him, they will be saved; because salvation is through His power, and His substitutionary death on our behalf. So we all stand on level ground at the foot of the cross. As the Apostle Paul exclaimed, "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!" (Romans 11:33, KJV)

..... God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:19, KJV).

Lest the reader gain the wrong impression, although we cannot earn salvation through our works, once a person has been saved his salvation will bring forth the fruit of good works. But good works is the fruit of his salvation and not the reason for it. On the other hand, this doesn't guarantee that the saved one will never ever sin again. It is a sad fact that because of the weakness of our flesh, there is the possibility that a saved person could still slip and fall. But God knows this, so He has made provision for the fallenness of man, in that the gospel includes a safety net. John, Christ's apostle, explains:

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:7-9, KJV)

THE GOSPEL OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST

The gospel (good news) of the primitive Church of Jesus Christ was that Christ had ratified a New Covenant of grace for the forgiveness of sins by His shed blood on the cross at Calvary. It was there that He had defeated sin, Satan, death and hell on our behalf. He rose from the grave after three days, proving that He was whom He'd said He was, and that He actually has the power to save us. And just as we (whom He represented) were "in Him," when He died, so we were also "in Him when He arose from the dead to new life. Consequently, whosoever puts their faith in Him has both forgiveness of sins and eternal life "in Him."

To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. (Acts 10:43, KJV)

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. (John 3:14-15, KJV)

Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him ..... (Hebrews 7:25, KJV)

..... even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. (Galations 2:16, KJV)

This was the most amazing, liberating news. All the Old Covenant had ever done was to prove that fallen man could not live up to God's standards of righteousness. But now the promised Messiah had come down to earth and vicariously died to save us from both the consequences of our sins and the power that sin has over us. This means that "in Christ" Satan has lost his hold on mankind, and that we are able, through Christ Jesus, to live the way that God intended us to live. Furthermore, "in Him," the burden of guilt for sins committed and the resulting fear of death and judgment is to be no more!

After His resurrection Christ appeared to His disciples, instructing them to be witnesses of His death on the cross, and of His resurrection three days later. He also commanded them to proclaim in His name, repentance and the forgiveness of sins:

Then He opened their understanding that they might understand the Scriptures, and said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day. And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And ye are witnesses of these things. (Luke 24:45-48, KJV). (Italics inserted by writer.)

For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:21, KJV)

But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:30-31, KJV)

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1, KJV)

(The italics in the above scriptures have been inserted by the writer.)

Why does the LDS have a different gospel?



THE MORMON GOSPEL

It must be stated that the LDS church does teach that salvation is through the atonement of Christ. And as far as that goes, they are being biblical. But they go on to qualify this statement by maintaining that salvation is solely through membership of their church and furthermore that it is only attainable through obedience to their laws and ordinances, plus good works. What they done, is to change the terms for salvation.

There is no salvation outside The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Bruce McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, page 670).

There is no salvation without accepting Joseph Smith as a prophet of God, (Doctrines of Salvation, President and Prophet Joseph Fielding Smith, Volume 1, page 188.)

If it had not been for Joseph Smith and the restoration, there would be no salvation. (Mormon Doctrine, Bruce McConkie, page 670.)

Redemption from personal sins can only be obtained through obedience to the requirements of the [Mormon] gospel, and a life of good works ..... The Sectarian Dogma of Justification by Faith Alone has exercised an influence for evil (Mormon Apostle James Talmage, Articles of Faith, pages 478-479).

But the gospel preached by the apostles in the primitive church was centred on Christ, the New Covenant of grace that He had ratified, and the forgiveness of sins that He had earned on our behalf on the cross alone. In contrast, the LDS has banned the symbol of the cross on their premises and their gospel is centred on Joseph Smith, the angel Moroni, the LDS church and their claim to having the sole authority for the gospel.

This was precisely the sort of thing that Paul was warning us about in Galations.The Mormon gospel is "another gospel."

Although the LDS calls their gospel, "the gospel of Jesus Christ," it is in reality the gospel of Joseph Smith. Christ is effectively sidelined, His atonement is deprecated and Joseph Smith and his LDS church are given the glory that belongs to Christ alone.

Considering that under the Old Covenant nobody was ever able to satisfy God's demands for righteousness by obedience to laws and ordinances, the Mormon gospel places its followers in a precarious position. Not only that, they have trampled underfoot the precious blood of Christ that He so selflessly and heroically shed in order to pay the ultimate price for the forgiveness of all our sins:

For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. (Romans 10:2-4, KJV)

In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace. (Ephesians 1:7, KJV)

Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. (Romans 5:9, KJV)

Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, (Revelation 1:5, KJV)

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