Where Have All the Prophets Gone? pt. 2

Mormonism, THE Tolerant Religion

Why is it that so many people condemn everyone that doesn't believe as they do to a place of torment even when they are good people that live kind and charitable lives?

Obviously the Bible teaches of heaven and hell, but very little is described in that holy book about such places. If you were a builder and had a question about the architect's drawing you were constructing from, it would be foolish to guess what was intended by the master architect without asking him. It is the same with God. Those religions that deny the power of God to call a prophet today, must claim the ability to receive revelation from God to know that he wouldn't do such a thing, and in so doing prove that God does reveal himself to mankind. Those arguments don't hold up. Therefore, the best way for us to comprehend what God means by his teachings in the scriptures is to have today's builders ask the architect for clarification. That's one of the roles of a modern day prophet.

Paul taught in the Bible that he knew a man that was caught up to the third heaven and saw unspeakable things (2 Cor. 12:2). This same man was then caught up into paradise (vs. 4) showing they are differing places. He earlier spoke of varying degrees of bodies in the resurrection stating there are bodies that differ in glory the same as the sun, moon, and stars differ in their celestial glory (1 Cor. 15:40-42).

Jesus taught that in his Father's house there were many mansions (John 14:2). To me that doesn't sound like one place to live in heaven, but without someone to explain what Paul and Jesus were talking about, we would have to speculate endlessly over the subject.

Thankfully God called a prophet in these latter days and his name was Joseph Smith. He received revelations to explain such doctrines as these so that we can have a greater understanding of the full measure of God's love for his children.

When God created the universe and all the things that are in it, he had a plan that saw the end from the beginning. We lived with God before we came here and for eons of time, we knew him and were taught by him. We loved him and wanted to be like him as a child desires to be like a parent. Why does God exist? Where did he come from? If this the only world with his children on it what's he been doing for eternity? These questions all have answers through modern day prophets. God saw that to bring his children into his presense for eternity and allow them their desire to become like him, they had to endure a period of separation from him and be tested to see if they would love him and obey his commandments when they were removed from his presense.

I like to call this the cookie principle. When a child sees and smells the delicious cookies that just came out of the oven but their parent is standing over them telling them "no cookies till after dinner," the child won't touch the cookies for fear of being in trouble. But should the parent leave, the child must choose whether or not their love and obedience to their parents will govern their behavior or whether the temptation is too great and they sneak a little cookie when they know they were not supposed to.

God provided this earth to his children as a testing ground. We are here to prove that when re-presented with the truths we learned for an eternity before coming to earth, we will remember and accept those truths and live according to the light God has given us. Those that reject the truth will suffer the consequences of their actions. But those that live by the light they receive, will gain more light and truth as they seek to draw closer to their Father in Heaven. We have forgotten all that happened before we came here due to a special veil drawn over our minds (the cookie principle), but as we assimilate truth, we slowly have that veil removed until our knowledge and love of God may bring us back into his presense.

So how is it Mormon's are so tolerant beyond other religions? From the beginning, God knew that his children varied greatly in their talents and gifts and capacity to live by truth. He created many mansions, or kingdoms of glory, for his children to someday inhabit for all eternity, each according to their desires and capacity. Modern day revelation from prophets has taught us that God the Father dwells in the Celestial kingdom and only those that live and serve God with all their hearts can go there. But for those of his children that just didn't have the full desire to live that type of life for eternity, he has prepared many other mansions for them within other kingdoms we call the Terrestrial and Telestial kingdom. There isn't just one heaven for people that believe a certain way and hell for everyone else. There are many heavens within God's dwellings but those that don't love and serve God with all their heart will receive a damnation or stop to their eternal progress at some point in one of these other kingdoms. But those kingdoms will entail a fullness of happiness for those children of God that choose to dwell there. That's why it's up to us to choose and determine what our earthly actions will be and allow for us to progress forever in the Celestial kingdom growing up to be a celestial parent, or to live in some other degree of heaven where we are more comfortable with souls closer to our own desires.

I thought baptism was necessary to get into heaven? It is (John 3:1-6). So what of the religions that condemn people to hell because they died before being baptized? One of Paul's other teachings that every religion in the world seems to ignore, and it took a modern day prophet to explain, is that of baptism for the dead (1 Cor. 15:29). Ever wonder why Mormons do genealogy? We're trying to find our ancestors that didn't get baptized in this life so that we can be baptized for them while they are in the spirit world. Because the ordinances must be performed to allow for eternal progression, we step into their shoes symbolically and get baptized on their behalf. This a foreign concept to some, but it shouldn't be for Christians. The doctrine of proxy work, or being baptized for someone else that can't do it themself, is nothing more than an extension of the doctrine behind the atonement of Jesus Christ. He did something for us that we couldn't do for ourselves in paying the price for our sins upon the cross. Somehow our sins had to be erased and we couldn't do it, but through Jesus Christ, if we accept his sacrifice for us, we can be cleansed and receive the gift of sanctification before God and thus return into his presence clean and holy.

Basically, Mormons just believe that there's a place in heaven for everyone except those that actively fight against God after they have an understanding of the truth. For those, there is a special hell prepared to receive them because they would not be able to live in any degree of heaven, for it would be a hell to them to live in the light they have rejected.

Thank God for prophets, ancient and modern, that guide us and enlighten us to the vast mercies of an all-knowing and all-seeing God. He truly loves his children, every one, and he will save them in a place that they are comfortable inhabiting.

To obtain a free copy of the Book of Mormon, click here.

Why do Mormons use the Book of Mormon instead of just the Bible?