Holy Ghost – What Do Mormons Believe?

Question Box: What is the nature of God and the Trinity?

Q: What is the nature of God and the Trinity?

We believe that the Trinity (or Godhead, as we more commonly refer to them) is composed of three separate and distinct perfect Beings—God, the Father; his Son, Jesus Christ; and the Holy Ghost (Acts 7:55-56; Article of Faith 1). We believe our Heavenly Father, and Jesus Christ have a body that is made of flesh and bones just like ours (D&C 130:22); however, they have bodies and are no longer subject to death, sickness, or pain. The Holy Ghost does not have a body of flesh and bones, rather he has a spirit body (D&C 130:22), but he looks like a normal person (1 Nephi 11:11). All three are perfect and can be spoken of as God collectively and separate gods individually. Their entire focus is to help each of us return to the Father, and become like Him (Moses 1:39).

Our Heavenly Father is the father of the spirits of all those who have, or ever will be born into this world (Abraham 3:22-23, Moses 6:51). He is Jesus Christ’s literal father. He oversaw and directed the creation of the world upon which we now live (Moses 1:32). To him, we pray and He answers our prayers in his own time and in his own way. He loves us and has provided a plan whereby, we, his spirit children, can come to earth, receive a body, experience adversity, and have the opportunity to return to Him (Abraham 3:23-27). He knew beforehand that we would make mistakes. These mistakes would make us imperfect and as he is perfect, we could not return to live with him again. So, he provided a way that our mistakes could be erased. To accomplish this he provided his son, Jesus Christ, to set right, everything that would prevent us from being perfect, our sins included (Moses 6:53-62).

Jesus Christ, is the literal Son of God and his mother was mortal (Luke 1:28-38, Alma 7:10). As such, Christ, was enabled to experience mortality as we do. He suffered sickness, pain, hunger, and temptation. Nevertheless, he lived a perfect life. This allowed him to suffer and ultimately die for our imperfections (Alma 7:11-13). In this way, he has the ability to set us at one with the Father again and allow us to return to live with the Father. As a free gift, through his atonement and subsequent resurrection, he provides every person born into this world a resurrected and perfect body. But, to return to the Father’s presence, Christ requires us to believe that He can in fact save us, repent of our sins, be baptized in his prescribed way, be given the gift of the Holy Ghost, and then endure in faith until the end of our mortal lives. If we do this with his constant help, we will be granted a place in the Father’s kingdom (3 Nephi 27:14-22).

To help us find Jesus Christ, accept his teachings, and then continue in his prescribed way, God provided the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is the third member of the Godhead. He has many functions, but he helps God’s children to return to Him by helping them find Jesus Christ, teaching them truth line upon line if they desire to learn more, and ultimately purifying and refining them in their journey of being a disciple of Jesus Christ (1 Nephi 10:17-19).

I am grateful for these immortal perfect beings. I know that I am the Father’s son and that he has provided a way for me to become like Him through his Son and that the Holy Ghost will help me in this endeavor.

What do Mormons Really Believe?

While not an actual question someone left in the question box, it is a top entry in Google’s autocomplete for “What do Mormons…”

Mormons really believe in God, our Eternal, Heavenly Father, in Jesus Christ, the Son of God and our Savior and Redeemer, and in the Holy Ghost, who testifies of both the Father and the Son.

We really believe in the power of the Atonement of Christ in daily life.

We really believe that God still communicates His will to people on earth directly and prophets exist in the same way they did in biblical times to teach God’s will to the people generally.

Besides revelation and prophecy, we really believe in miracles and in the power of God on earth, and that the priesthood, the authority to act in God’s name, has been restored to the earth.

We really believe the true gospel that has been taught since the days of Adam.

We really believe the Bible and the Book of Mormon to be the word of God and that further words from God will be given to us as He deems necessary.

We really believe in being good people and serving our fellow man.

We really believe that by following the commandments, we can live fuller, better lives because they are given by a loving God who has our best interests first.

Fourth Article of Faith

We believe in the first principles of the gospel, which are faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, second, repentance, third, baptism by immersion for the remission of sin, fourth, laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.

This article of faith is a very important one as it involves the most basic actions that we do to follow Christ. Having faith in Christ gives us a starting point and a drive to continue. Our failures and weakness can be remedied by repentance with faith. After repentance, we can be baptized to complete the process. Finally, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost seals the covenant we have made with God in baptism. That covenant includes the promise of having God’s spirit to be with us which will guide us throughout our lives.

This process is repeated thoughout our lives, with baptism renewed through the sacrament, in order to improves our lives and become more like God.

See: Fundamentals of the Gospel

How does the baptism process work?

Q: I have not met with any missionaries yet, but after researching the LDS faith then praying about it, I learned it was the truth. It was such a moving spiritual experience, and I wept with joy when it was confirmed to be to be the truth. I was overcome with peace and joy. I purchased a copy of the BOM and have started to read it and listen to it (on my iPod). I know I wish to be baptized. I understand that I need to meet with the missionaries and attend church. I just wondered, that as I already know the truth, and wish to be baptized, how quickly this would happen. And thank you for your very helpful website.

A: This is absolutely wonderful! I am so happy to hear that you have experienced that unexplainable joy that a person feels when Heavenly Father answers the sincere prayer to know if The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the truth. And how wonderful to hear that you wish to be baptized, because you know the truth.

You are correct, you do need to meet with the missionaries and attend church. Also they will teach you a handful of lessons about the fundamental teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They will also ask you to do a few things: commit to live the Word of Wisdom, commit to pay tithing, commit to only having sexual relations with your spouse to whom you are lawfully married (live the law of chastity), and also attend church.

To answer your question specifically, as you already have received an answer to your prayers and desire to be baptized, together you will schedule a day for your baptism as soon as you are ready and meet the requirements in the previous paragraph. It could be in four or five days (enough time to teach you the lessons), or it could be in a few weeks. The missionaries will help you to make this decision.

Prior to your baptism you will have an interview with one of the missionaries who will ask you some specific questions about your decision to be baptized and your acceptance of Jesus Christ as your savior and your desire to be one of his disciples. In addition, you will be asked if you are living the commandments you have been asked to live. You may also be asked to meet with the bishop or branch president of your local congregation before your baptism.

After this interview process, your baptism will occur. Oftentimes, baptisms are held at a local church where there is a small pool (font) specifically for baptisms. If you are in an area where there isn’t a font available, the baptism might be held at a local pool, in the ocean, or in a river. The specific location isn’t terribly important, just as long as there is water deep enough for you to be completely immersed in the water. You and the man who will be baptizing you will be dressed in white. It is important to note that the man baptizing you will have God’s approval to perform this important ordinance for you and since he has God’s approval to do this, God recognizes your baptism as being legitimate. After being welcomed, there will be a song, prayer, and then a talk given on baptism. Your baptism will then occur. After which, there is a talk about the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Then one of two things will happen, either everyone will go home and you will be confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints the next Sunday, or this will occur directly after you are baptized. This proceeds as follows: a handful of men who have God’s approval to do so, will put their hands on your head and confirm you a member of The Christ of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and bestow upon you the gift of the Holy Ghost. They will stand around you as you sit on a chair. One of the men will act as voice for the rest of the group. I won’t repeat here the first part of this ordinance, as it should be held sacred, but the second part is a blessing that is specifically tailored for your needs and comes by revelation from God to the man acting as voice.

After receiving these two ordinances, baptism and being confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, your feet are planted solidly in the strait and narrow way that Christ spoke of that leads to eternal life. There will be many people along your way to help you, but most importantly, you will have the gift of the Holy Ghost, who will be your constant companion as long as you are keeping Christ’s commandments the best that you can and relying upon Him in all that you do. The Holy Ghost has many roles, but he will provide you with comfort, he will teach you, he testifies of Christ and truth, he warns you of danger, and much more.

I am so excited for you, please let us know when you are baptized. Please let us know if you have any other questions. May the Lord bless you!

Here are some links to other articles about baptism:

Repentance before baptism

What does baptism entail?

Baptism

What is a baptismal service like?

The First Article of Faith

We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.

This is a fitting first statement of our beliefs, that we believe in God. We believe that They are each separate and distinct beings from one another but that they fulfill Their work with unity of purpose.

God is our Heavenly Father and is the Father of our spirits and in this sense, Jesus is our Elder Brother. Jesus is, however, the only Son of God in the flesh. Both God, the Father, and the Son, have physical bodies. The Holy Ghost does not have a body so that He can be present with every person on Earth. His role is to testify of Christ and of the Father and to guide and comfort us in our lives.