promise – What Do Mormons Believe?

Baptisms for the Dead

Q. What happens to people who die without being taught/accepting baptism in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

Heavenly Father has prepared another chance for them to hear the gospel and choose to accept or reject it.

The official Church website explains: “Jesus Christ taught that baptism is essential to the salvation of all who have lived on earth (see John 3:5) Many people, however, have died without being baptized. Others were baptized without proper authority. Because God is merciful, He has prepared a way for all people to receive the blessings of baptism. By performing proxy baptisms in behalf of those who have died, Church members offer these blessings to deceased ancestors. Individuals can then choose to accept or reject what has been done in their behalf.”

Baptism is the first ordinance of the gospel. It is so important that even Jesus Christ asked to be baptized in order to fulfill all righteousness. Because Heavenly Father desires for us all to return to Him, He has made it possible for the dead to have the same opportunities as the living through the temple ordinances.

Some have the misconception that this temple work forces the deceased persons into covenants against their will. This is entirely false. All spirits maintain their free will after death and can opt to accept or refuse the ordinance of baptism. When a living person is baptized and receives the Gift of the Holy Ghost in behalf of a deceased person, it is only to give the deceased person the opportunity – the option of redemption.

LDS.org also reveals: “Many in the spirit world embrace the gospel. However, they cannot receive priesthood ordinances for themselves because they do not have physical bodies. In holy temples, we have the privilege of receiving ordinances in their behalf. These ordinances include baptism, confirmation, Melchizedek Priesthood ordination (for men), the endowment, the marriage sealing, and the sealing of children to parents. The Lord revealed this work to the Prophet Joseph Smith, restoring a practice that had been revealed to Christians shortly after the Resurrection of Jesus Christ (see 1 Corinthians 15:29 ).

Part of the mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is to Redeem the Dead. Because of this, we participate in genealogy/family history work to find our ancestors who were not able to hear and accept the gospel while on earth. Many in my family are involved in this work because of our desire to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to their fathers as mentioned at the very end of the old testament.

I love going to the temple. There is such a special feeling that accompanies me when I’m in the House of the Lord. Doing the physical ordinances for my ancestors who have passed on is an amazing experience because I know that many of them have been waiting for hundreds of years to finally have their baptism performed. Being a part of their spiritual progression is remarkable. I know that God is merciful and mindful of each of us because He gives everyone a fair chance at accepting or rejecting the message of the gospel.

The Abrahamic Covenant

Covenant: A two-way promise, a conditional agreement.

About 4,000 years ago, the Lord made a covenant with a shepherd named Abram. He promised Abram that he would have a particular land to live on, that he would have posterity as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore, and that through him the nations of the earth would be blessed. In order to get these great blessings, Abram had to carry the gospel to the earth through bearing the priesthood of God, and live righteously.

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So Abram agreed to this covenant (of course), and his name was changed to Abraham. Eventually he had a son named Isaac and the Lord renewed this same covenant with Isaac—he would inherit the land promised to his father, he would have children as numerous as the sands of the sea and through him would come salvation for the earth. Isaac also received the Priesthood and the commission to preach the gospel. He had twin sons, Esau and Jacob, and the covenant was renewed with Jacob. Finally, with Jacob we see some major posterity. He had 12 sons and one daughter. His sons were Reuben, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Simeon, Levi, Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Joseph and Benjamin. Each of these sons bore lots of children, and they had children and they had children (as it always happens) and eventually they were so numerous that the Egyptians enslaved them to keep them from taking control of the kingdom. So this is where Moses comes in, and he leads them out of Egypt to “the promised land”, as in the land promised to their fathers.

Eventually, the children of Israel were separated, and then scattered. They drifted into anonymity through intermarriages, and abandonment of their traditions and religion. The house of Judah stayed pretty cohesive and defined by their covenant, which is why the Jews are known as a chosen people. But Judah was only one of the 12 brothers—the people of Joseph, of Dan, Levi, Asher, etc. are all “chosen” as well. (When we talk of being “chosen” we are talking of their great potential because of the covenant made with their ancestors–not that they are automatically saved).

This covenant really drives the Old Testament narrative. God promised this group of people some special blessings if they remain faithful to Him. He followed through with His promise throughout the generations. We believe that He continues to seek out the children of the House of Israel. Even if they don’t know who they are, He does, and His promise is just as valid with them as it was with the descendants of Israel in Moses’ time. The earth is literally swarming with Israelites, and they have the promise of eternal blessings – land, posterity and priesthood power.

We don’t all need to move to the land of Canaan to claim our blessings, of course (there are enough people claiming it right now anyway, so stay put). This covenant extends into the next life. We are promised a place in heaven (land), an eternal increase of spiritual children (posterity), and priesthood power to act in God’s name. We are promised Eternal Life, or life like God and with God. What we have to do in return is live righteously and spread the gospel throughout the world.

So how does the LDS church figure in to this narrative? We’re the last chapter. Our missionaries are working all over the world sharing the gospel, teaching and baptizing people who are inheritors of this covenant. This is the spiritual gathering of Israel—they reconnect with God through the covenants of baptism and the ordinances of the temple. God knows who they are and where they are, and even if a person isn’t a direct descendant of Israel, if they accept the covenant, they are adopted into the house of Israel as if they had been born there.

So, are you a member of the house of Israel? You probably are. God has some special blessings ready for you if you want them. To find out about making covenants with God, contact your local LDS missionaries (or let them in the door when they come around…)

What Do Mormons Believe? – The Book of Mormon

bom The Book of Mormon is remarkable.

The book is filled with amazing histories, noble people, and fascinating doctrinal insights, but the aspects I’ve thought about most are two promises, one at the beginning, and one at the end:

1) From the Introduction :

“[The Book of Mormon] puts forth the doctrines of the gospel, outlines the plan of salvation, and tells men what they must do to gain peace in this life and eternal salvation in the life to come.”
(emphasis added)

It isn’t just about some far away pearly gate. We can have peace now. And those who read the book do feel peace. It isn’t a conspicuous leap into serenity. It’s gradual, so you have to pay careful attention.

I recall one particular week I got busy and every single morning I overlooked my usual study of the Book of Mormon. By Friday I was in a notably sour mood, and when I went to give a friend some spiritual advice nothing came. I couldn’t think. The well I was used to drawing from had gone dry.

2) From Moroni 10:3-5

3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.

4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

Countless sermons have been given, dissecting every word of these three verses, but I just want to point out the obvious:

This book claims to be scripture; it claims that holy prophets transcribed it under God’s inspiration.
God knows whether this claim is true or false.
It matters to Him: if it’s false he’ll want to warn you against it; if it’s true he’ll want you to read it.
He will wait for it to become important enough for you to ask Him yourself.
He will give you the answer by the power of the Holy Ghost.

This promise has stood against the test of my experience. For two solid years I introduced hundreds of strangers to the book and pointed them to this promise. A large proportion did not read it at all, and fewer people prayed about it. But out of every single person who did pray, 100% told me that they felt the answer was yes.

You can find out too. Get a copy for yourself. You can order a free copy online here, or read the entirety of it online here. You can even download mp3’s of the audio book here.