Basic Beliefs

The atonement of Jesus Christ for our sins was the greatest gift anyone has ever given us. By choosing to live a sinless life, taking upon Himself the sins of the world, and then voluntarily giving up His life, Jesus Christ made it possible for us to return to our God to live.

The atonement is proof of the Lord’s love for us, but it’s also proof of how much God loves us.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16

The atonement was necessary due to the requirements of God’s plan. God gives each of us agency to choose for ourselves how we’ll live. That agency sometimes causes us to make bad choices. Because of the fall of Adam, our bodies became subject to death (physical death) and we were separated from God (spiritual death.) God is just and justice must be served, but we are unable to atone for ourselves. Atonement required a perfect, sinless person who would, despite His own lack of sin, be willing to suffer for the sins of everyone else. Only Jesus could do this for us, and He did so freely. This allowed us to overcome both physical and spiritual death.

Without this gift, grace would not be possible. Grace allows us to be resurrected after our deaths and to live forever. Everyone, regardless of how he chooses to live his life, receives this gift of grace, offered to us without conditions. Grace also allows us to repent if we love God enough to do so. Repentance is possible only because of the atonement. Without it, there would be no way for us to pay the price for our sins.

Grace allows us to live forever, but atonement gives us an even greater gift. It’s a gift that will allow us to return to the presence of God, to live with Him forever if we love Him sufficiently, keep the commandments, and repent of our sins.

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21, KJV of the Bible)

It’s not enough to say we accept Jesus as our Savior. Our actions must demonstrate this is true. While actions without faith are meaningless, faith without works is dead, as the scriptures warn us. Both must work together in harmony.

17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

  18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.

  19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.

  20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

  21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

  22 Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?

  23 And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.

  24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.

  25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?

  26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

 If we truly love Jesus, we will keep the commandments He gave us. Each of us is responsible for our own sins, and must fully repent, as Jesus commanded, but Jesus did for us the part of the requirements of justice we could not do for ourselves. His extraordinary gift of atonement was made for each individual person and is a personal gift of love and salvation.

When Jesus began his brief ministry, his followers were comparatively few in number. Even those who followed him sometimes found it difficult to understand the teachings he shared with them, and Jesus frequently found Himself clarifying misconceptions. After his death, his remaining apostles worked hard to continue this work, still teaching God’s work and clearing up misconceptions and misinterpretations of scripture.

17 Now in this that I declare unto you I praise you not, that ye come together not for the better, but for the worse.

  18 For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.

  19 For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.” (1 Corinthians 11)

However, a time came when no apostles remained to point out the heresies and because the world had largely rejected the Savior, no further prophets were sent to help the people understand God’s words and to receive new revelation. This was not the first apostasy-times when the world was without prophets-but it would be the longest and most challenging for the Christian world. It has become known as the Great Apostasy.

In short time, divisions arose among the Christians. What did this scripture mean? What did Jesus mean by that? The Bible was not kept as a cohesive record and men had to decide what would be included in it. We know some things are missing because there are references to the writings of prophets whose work we don’t have.

As the disagreements became more intense, churches divided and a number of different churches arose, all teaching conflicting doctrine. Church leaders felt a need to decide what to believe-to develop an official canon. In 325 AD, leaders from the various Christian churches that had developed since the death of the apostles met together in Nicaea to choose a formal set of doctrine. One important issue that had to be decided was the natures of God and Jesus, and how they were related. Some believed they were the same and others didn’t. The issue was decided democratically-by voting. As we can see, this was not a proclamation by a prophet, but merely a choice by a group of men. The council was ordered by an emperor who then used his authority to require everyone to abide by their decisions. Dissenting literature was ordered to be confiscated and destroyed.

However, this council still didn’t manage to stop the flow of debate over doctrine and the number of churches grew. Each church had different ideas of what Jesus taught and what God wanted of us. Many of the differences directly affected salvation, and this meant it was a critical concern.

Many were concerned about this choosing of doctrine by popular vote and by the divisions arising. Some, such as Martin Luther, stated that the truth was no longer on the earth. These men prepared the way for something to change-a restoration of truth.

The apostasy was foretold by many prophets in the Old Testament. Isaiah warned:

 The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant. (Isaiah 24:5, KJV of the Bible)

Paul also told the people Christ would not return until there had been a falling away, meaning an apostasy.

 “1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,

  2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.

  3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; (2 Thessalonians 2)

In time, the falling away that was prophesied became so powerful that it was essentially impossible to find the truth, and many truths had completely disappeared. It was time for a restoration.

Although it’s commonly taught that Mormons don’t believe in grace, this isn’t true. Grace is even discussed in the Book of Mormon:

23 For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do. …

26 And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.  (2 Nephi 25)

This well summarizes what the Mormons believe about grace-that it is the atonement of Christ that does for us what we can’t do for ourselves. However, we can’t just sit around and wait for our mansion. God has expectations of how we will spend our time on earth, and these are outlined in the commandments.

It’s important to note that Mormons differentiate between living forever and living in God’s presence. The atonement allows everyone to rise from the dead and to live forever. However, few of us want to live forever without being in the presence of those we love, including God and our families. Since those who are righteous want to live in God’s presence and those who love their families can’t imagine being happy without their spouse and children, the atonement also made it possible for us to repent of our sins and be forgiven.

Mormons believe God sent us here for a reason and that we have certain responsibilities to fulfill. No good parent lets his child sit around doing nothing while the parent waits on him hand and foot, and God is a good parent. God does His part, but we must also do our own part.

What is our part? The Bible makes this very clear:

“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21, KJV of the Bible)

This shows us without doubt that simply accepting Christ as our Savior will not be enough. Those who truly accept Him will want to do His will. If we say we believe, but we’re living a selfish life that ignores the commandments, are we really converted?

That said, you can’t buy your way into heaven. If you set up a plan in which you do thousands of good works, but don’t have faith, don’t really love God or the Savior, and don’t do what you do out of love and testimony, the works are of no value eternally.

The Book of Mormon teaches:

5 For I remember the word of God which saith by their works ye shall know them; for if their works be good, then they are good also.

6 For behold, God hath said a man being evil cannot do that which is good; for if he offereth a gift, or prayeth unto God, except he shall do it with real intent it profiteth him nothing.

7 For behold, it is not counted unto him for righteousness.

8 For behold, if a man being evil giveth a gift, he doeth it grudgingly; wherefore it is counted unto him the same as if he had retained the gift; wherefore he is counted evil before God.

9 And likewise also is it counted evil unto a man, if he shall pray and not with real intent of heart; yea, and it profiteth him nothing, for God receiveth none such.

10 Wherefore, a man being evil cannot do that which is good; neither will he give a good gift.

God doesn’t reward hypocrisy, as the Bible often warns us:

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. (Matthew 6:5)

Works are not proof of a person’s worthiness, but they are the natural outgrowth of faith. God, knowing everything, knows what is in the heart of the giver. He gave us strict commandments to follow, and those who have faith must work hard to demonstrate their faith is great enough to allow them to do what they’re taught. But the works must-absolutely must-be the outgrowth of our faith.

As you can see, the Mormons don’t really teach that you can buy your way into heaven with good works. Instead, they teach that the atonement allows us to be resurrected and to be forgiven of our sins if we repent, but that God has also made clear throughout the Bible that we must also keep the commandments, and this obedience must be done out of love for our Father in Heaven and in our Savior, Jesus Christ.

For members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the principle defining factor about ourselves is that we are children of God. For this reason, anything else that might seem to define us in mortality is really only temporary and not the most important thing we know about ourselves.

“…some people consider feelings of same-gender attraction to be the defining fact of their existence. There are also people who consider the defining fact of their existence that they are from Texas or that they were in the United States Marines. Or they are red-headed, or they are the best basketball player that ever played for such-and-such a high school. People can adopt a characteristic as the defining example of their existence and often those characteristics are physical.

We have the agency to choose which characteristics will define us; those choices are not thrust upon us.

The ultimate defining fact for all of us is that we are children of Heavenly Parents, born on this earth for a purpose, and born with a divine destiny. Whenever any of those other notions, whatever they may be, gets in the way of that ultimate defining fact, then it is destructive and it leads us down the wrong path.” (Dallin H. Oaks.)

When something defines you, it becomes central to your life. It can occupy your mind nearly every moment, and influence the decisions you make. For this reason, it’s important to choose your defining characteristic wisely. Mormons who struggle with gender issues or homosexual feelings know this is only one small part of who they are during this brief life, and not the most important part of who they are. They know everyone has something he struggles with, and each person can decide whether he should  let that struggle take over his life, or if he will put it in its proper place and focus more attention on those things that matter eternally. God gives each of us the ability to choose for ourselves how to handle the various aspects of our personality and lives, and to choose our priorities. This isn’t to say he accepts any choice.

The Bible makes it clear God considers choices to be important. Joshua, in the Old Testament, admonished us to choose this day whom we will serve. Just because we have the ability to choose doesn’t mean our choices are always right. A person who follows Joshua’s admonition will choose God over temporary pleasure. God promises we will never be tempted beyond our ability to resist. Mormons know they can resist any tempting urges they experience if their faith in and love for God is great enough. With this as their focus, other challenges become background irritants, not a defining aspect of mortality.

Mormons are taught to evaluate the consequences of each decision they make—not just the temporal consequences, but the eternal ones. They must ask themselves, “Is what I will get when I do this worth what I will give up?” Viewed from an eternal perspective, giving in to homosexuality desires is not worth the sacrifice. To gain a few moments or years of worldly happiness, one would be required to forego an eternity of true joy, and the opportunity to live with God forever. Because no one will struggle with this challenge in Heaven, the relationships that develop here cannot continue after death. The attraction will be gone at that time. This means one is definitely making a choice that brings pleasure for only the very briefest of times, and is sacrificing eternal joy for that brief moment of pleasure. This is rather like the shortsightedness of Esau, who sold his birthright for a mess of pottage—a moment of satisfaction that affected a lifetime. (Genesis 25)

It is important, as we make choices for our lives, to think of the “big picture,” the vision of eternity. The commandments are a guideline that marks the path back to God. Nothing in this world is worth more than to spend eternity with God. When making our choices for life, we must be certain we don’t sell our eternal birthright as children of God, for a brief time of worldly pleasure. Only eternal joy can bring true happiness. Staying focused on our role as a child of God can help us to put our priorities in order.

Next: Gender was determined prior to birth. What this means to Mormons struggling with same-gender attraction.

“We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.

All human beings-male and female-are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.”

These words open a courageous proclamation issued by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the nature, responsibilities, and blessings of family life. This document makes clear how the Mormons view marriage.

Marriage is a sacred ordinance, planned for us by God as a way of furthering His great plans for us. He planned for men and women to marry each other, and to, if possible bear and raise children. This unselfish effort would bring the husband and wife closer together as they served each other and their children, and give them companionship and support as they work their way through mortality.

Mormons stand strongly on the principle that marriage is ordained of God and planned by Him, and therefore, because it’s sacred, it must be guarded and preserved, protected from people who want to alter this sacred ordinance or weaken it. A person who has respect for sacredness, even if his own sacredness is found elsewhere, can understand why a group of people would work hard to protect that which is sacred to them from desecration and destruction.

“27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. (Genesis 1, King James Version of the Bible.)

Today, too many people treat marriage as a man-made invention, something casual and unimportant. Too many consider marriage to be something you do until you don’t want to do it anymore, and too many abandon it too easily. Too many consider it unimportant, and not even necessary in today’s world. Too many see it as something for which they can make any rules they choose.

The Mormons don’t treat marriage this way. Not only do they believe it was created by God to help us through this life, but they also believe it was created to be eternal. The marriages we create here can be, if we do what is necessary to make them so, last forever. After all, Heaven is where we’re told we will be happier than we can ever imagine. Could you be happy without those you love most in all the world? Would a loving God place such a powerful love for your family into your heart, tell you to give your family priority in this life, and then yank them away from you forever when you got to Heaven? Of course not, and so He’s promised us we can keep them forever if we live worthy of that wonderful gift and take the necessary steps.

Marriage was ordained before the world began, begins here on earth, and can continue through eternity. That places the definition of marriage, and its rules, under God’s direction. As a result, we can’t decide to change the rules ourselves. A careful reading of the Bible makes it very clear marriage was always intended by God to be between men and women, that God must be a partner in every marriage, and that marriage must be according to the commandments He set forth from the moment he created one man and one woman to begin the human family.

Sources:

The Family: A Proclamation to the World

Marriage on LDS.org

Next: Mormons and the Same-Sex Marriage Battle

Just before Jesus began his ministry on earth, he approached John, his cousin, and asked to be baptized. John was astonished and protested that Jesus, being perfect and the Messiah, did not need baptism. Jesus insisted however. Baptism was a commandment, and Jesus obeyed the commandments and also set the example for all to follow.

What example did Jesus give us in his own baptism? First, of course, we see that everyone must be baptized, without exception, when they are old enough to do so. Mormons baptize children when they are eight years old, the age of accountability. At this time, they’re old enough to reason and to know right from wrong. They’re old enough to take responsibility for their actions. Converts who are eight or older are also baptized, even if they were already baptized in another church.

Jesus was baptized by full immersion in the river Jordon. His cousin lowered Him completely into the water, covering all of Him, and then Jesus rose from the water. This is symbolic, reminding us of the Savior’s-and our own-death and resurrection. It also represents the death of our sins and the return to life as a cleansed being, spiritual, pure, and dedicated to doing the work of the Lord. Mormons baptize only by full immersion, in a font or another body of water.

Another thing Jesus’ baptism teaches us is that it must be done by one in authority. Jesus didn’t have a random person do the baptism. He went to John, who held the priesthood and baptized through the authority given to him by God.

Baptism isn’t just a ritualistic birthday or conversion event for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The baptism cleanses the person of all their sins, allowing them to start fresh now that they’ve learned what God expects of them. At this time, they also make covenants with God. A covenant is a two-way promise between a person and God. If we do our part, God is bound (required) to do His part. We promise to take on ourselves the name of Jesus Christ, and to keep His commandments all our lives. God, in return, promises to bless us and to eventually admit us into His kingdom.

Soon after baptism, the person is made an official member of the church. At this time, he is given the gift of the Holy Ghost, which can be his constant companion every moment of his day, guiding, reassuring, and protecting him as he travels through his mortal life.

Each Sunday, when church members attend their Sunday services, they partake of the sacrament. This offering of bread and water (similar to Communion in many churches) is an opportunity to renew the covenants of baptism every week. As the sacrament is passed throughout the congregation by men age twelve or older who hold the priesthood, they think about the Savior and remember the promises they made. It’s a quiet time of reflection and renewal.

Children younger than eight years of age do not require baptism. They are protected by the atonement. No loving God would punish a child too young to make a choice or understand the covenants made at baptism, and so a child who dies prior to age eight is admitted directly to God’s presence. The Book of Mormon suggests that those who would deny a small child God’s mercies denies, or doesn’t understand, the atonement or God’s great love and fairness for his children.

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often referred to as Mormons, consider the family to be the essential unit of life on earth. They are encouraged to give priority to their families and to make unselfish choices that will benefit their families.

A traditional LDS family consists of a mother, a father, and children. Of course, not all families fit that pattern, but it is the pattern Mormons strive for. The family operates under what most people consider to be old-fashioned or traditional roles. While they may seem old-fashioned, Mormons note that divorce was less common when these roles were the standard format for family life. Traditional roles bring stability and organization to the home.

By traditional, they mean that whenever possible, the man presides over the home. This doesn’t make him the “boss” or a ruler. He simply presides, working in unity with his wife, who is his equal in the partnership of the home. Together, they make the choices necessary to run the home effectively.

The husband is primarily responsible for the financial support and well-being of the family, although he does this job in consultation with his wife. He also supports her in her role, knowing it is too much for a single person to do. He is expected to assist her in her various tasks.

The mother’s role is to care for the home and the children. Mormons know there is nothing degrading about raising a child of God. It is not wonderful to teach other people’s children, but degrading to teach your own. A mother who does her job well is doing challenging, rewarding, and stimulating work, at least as difficult as any she might do in an office.

By having a mother and wife in the home all day, the children always have someone they can turn to when they need to talk. They are less influenced by the outside world, because they spend more time in the company of a parent.

Mormons work hard to create meaningful family time. They pray together as a family every morning and evening, and before each meal. They read scriptures together daily and discuss them. They attend church together. During the main service, children aren’t shunted off to a nursery. They sit together as a family, even though it means more noise for the congregation. Family comes first.

Once a week, the family gathers together for Family Home Evening. On Monday nights, they shut out the world and focus on each other. Each member of the family has an assignment, even small children. This gives them a stake in the success of the evening and teaches them new skills. The evening generally consists of the following parts:

A welcome by the person conducting

Song

Prayer

Lesson on a gospel or family principle

Fun activity

A treat

A song

A closing prayer

Family members take turns doing each part. Small children gain early experience in leading music, conducting meetings, and teaching lessons under the guidance and assistance of loving family members.

The lesson portion of the meeting allows the family to address those issues that might be harming the family, or strengthen those that are already good. Parents have a chance to share their personal values openly with their children, as teachers or as students in a lesson taught by a child. Typical topics include prayer, morality, peer pressure, emergency preparedness and marriage preparation. It’s a time to discuss serious issues in a safe setting. Some family home evenings also include service projects, to help the children learn to serve in their community.

Many LDS families also have a family counsel on Sunday nights. In this meeting, generally presided over by the father, the family sets goals to strengthen their family. They address any problems the family is having and work out a plan to resolve it. They make plans for upcoming events or challenges. This is a way to be certain the family is functioning well and that everyone’s needs are heard and addressed.

As you can see, LDS families are a carefully thought out, structured entity. They are operated in love, with an eye on eternity, because LDS members know families can exist forever, even after death. This gives them a powerful responsibility to work toward creating a family that can withstand an eternity, and that is worthy for such a gift from their Father in Heaven.

The Book of Mormon was written long ago, during much of the Biblical era. Although it is not primarily a history, there is a history. The book begins with a man named Lehi, a wealthy man who was called by God to be a prophet. This was during the time of the Prophet Jeremiah, of the Bible. Jerusalem had become very wicked and God wanted the people to know that if they didn’t repent, the city would be destroyed and the people carried away captive. As is so often the case, the people didn’t want to listen. Instead, they thought they could make the problem go away by killing the various prophets God had called.

God instructed Lehi to take his family and flee. Although he lived a life of privilege, he promptly obeyed. He gathered only those things he had to have to survive in the wilderness, abandoned his wealth, and left. In time, his family would be joined by another family that would eventually provide spouses for Lehi’s children, and a man who would become a friend.

They traveled many years in the wilderness, growing in number, before God instructed them to build a boat and travel to what would someday be the American continent.

Lehi’s family consisted of six sons. Prior to their departure from Jerusalem, there were four. The first two, Laman and Lemuel, were spoiled and unrighteous, becoming progressively so as the journey continued. They resented the abrupt change to their lifestyle. They progressed from complaining to violence, and even attempted murder in time.

The four youngest sons managed to escape the influence of the oldest and were righteous young men. The fourth son, Nephi, was chosen by God to lead the family when the father died, and indeed, took on leadership roles prior to that as needed. Even though this information was delivered by angels, Laman and Lemuel were angry, and felt they deserved to be the prophet and leaders, because of their place as the oldest. They were not, of course, interested in spiritual leadership. They only wanted power. Over the coming years, they were abusive and cruel to Nephi and to others in the family, even their own parents.

When the parents died, after they arrived in the Promised Land, Laman and Lemuel became so violent Nephi was forced to take his family and followers and move to a new location.  The family split into two groups, which came to be known as the Lamanites and the Nephites. Throughout the course of the Book of Mormon, there would be constant battles between the groups. God promised to protect the Nephites as long as they remained righteous. In those times, which did occur, the Nephites forgot to honor God, they were left without protection. Eventually, the Lamanites were able to destroy them completely. One last prophet, Moroni, was left alive to finish out the record the prophets had kept since Nephi took leadership, and to hide it to be found in our day by Joseph Smith. Joseph was led to the records by Moroni, the same man who had hidden them, and who was now an angel.

The Book of Mormon is about Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon prophets knew of Him before He was born. They passed along the signs of His coming to their people and watched anxiously. Jesus is mentioned far more often than He is in the Bible—an average of every two or three verses. When He was born, the people knew through signs given to them by God, and they also knew when He died. At that time, their homeland was cleansed of the wicked and those remaining were permitted to see the Savior in person. These were some of the other sheep the Savior told his disciples in the Holy Lands He had been to see after His death. During the brief time the Savior spent with the Nephites, He organized His church, as He had done in the Holy Lands, and taught the gospel. He served them, blessed them, and loved them. The story of Jesus’ time with the Nephites is one of love, with moments that capture the hearts of those who love the Savior.

These were a spectacular few days in the life of Jesus Christ. If you’ve ever longed for more information about His life, read the Book of Mormon and learn about His love for all people, not just those in Jerusalem.

One teaching that distinguished Mormons, who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, from most other religions is a belief in modern day prophecy.

Amos 3:7 Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. (King James version of the Bible)

God has always had prophets. A prophet is one who is learns truth through inspiration from God and then teaches it to God’s children on earth. They testify of the Savior. The first prophet on earth was Adam, who spoke directly to God in the Garden and who was always entitled to receive inspiration from God to establish the gospel for the benefit of those who came to earth to live. The words of the many prophets are recorded in the scriptures. By reading the words of Noah, Moses, and other prophets, we can learn what God wants us to know.

God established prophets from the very start. There have been times when the people refused to listen to the prophets. At those times, God withdrew access to the prophets, and thus to timely guidance from God concerning God’s desires for that specific time on earth. These times were known as times of apostasy. The Bible shows us there were multiple periods of time when the people were not entitled to prophecy, due to their own wickedness. After a time, God has always restored prophets to the earth. The times which were led by prophets are called dispensations.

After Jesus was crucified, many of the apostles were killed. Even during their lifetimes, corruption of the Savior’s teachings had begun. Paul referred to those who were attempting to alter teachings or who were sending out letters said to be by the apostles, but were not.

When there were no apostles left to keep truth in place, God withdrew from a wicked world the right to receive prophecy and to have His church operating with full authority on the earth. This time was known as the Great Apostasy. Without apostles to safeguard truth, truth became corrupted. We see, as we study religious world history, that people began to change doctrine and then to disagree and argue over what was true. In 325 AD, a council was convened in Nicene to try to straighten out the confusion of doctrines and to choose a formal set to adopt. Through debate and argument, formal doctrines were chosen-but note they were chosen by committee, not God. At this time, not in the time of Jesus, the doctrine of the Trinity was established as being the official description of God. If it were clearly understood by everyone, it would not have been the subject of intense debate at this council. It is not found in the Bible and was clearly not a Biblical teaching, as seen by these verses in the King James Version of the Bible:

“John 8: 28-29: Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things. And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.

John 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.”

And this is just why the world needs prophets. We can’t let truth be decided by committee. For this reason, with the Last Days upon us, God has re-established his prophets in the last dispensation. We need to have the truth as we prepare for the second coming, just as we needed it to prepare for the first coming.

God has promised He will never again leave us alone without prophecy to guide us. To learn more about today’s prophet, visit Mormon Prophets

One reason members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sometimes called Mormons, are able to have such a close and personal relationship with God is because they believe in prayer. Not only do they believe they can talk with God anytime they choose and about anything at all, but they also believe He will respond to them. God doesn’t always say yes to our requests, but He always answers, in whatever way is best. He knows us so well He has our entire eternal plan in His heart, and His answers to our pleas are based on knowing what we need. While we may not always understand the reason for the answer, we can trust Him to make the best choices.

Mormons prayer often. They traditionally hold personal prayers every morning and evening, and anytime in-between they feel a desire to do so. In addition, they pray before each meal. Many pray before leaving their homes, and most families also have prayers before important events in their lives. Of course, they also pray for comfort and guidance in times of need.

Their prayers are personal. Except for a very few specific prayers, they are not memorized and recited prayers. Rather, they are given from the heart of the person praying. They follow a general pattern:

1. Address Heavenly Father by name. Most often, they begin with “Dear Heavenly Father “ or “Our Beloved Father in Heaven,” or something similar.
2. Express deep gratitude for blessings. It’s important each day to stop and remember what God has done for us and the role He plays in our lives. As we do so, we offer thanks for those things.
3. Request those things we need. God always hears our pleas for help. However, He has a longer view of our lives, and a better understanding of our needs, so at times, He may know we are asking for something that, in the long run, would not benefit us. In these cases, He may answer no, or not yet, but He always answers, and always in the way that is best for us. In this portion of our prayers, we also pray for others whose needs we are aware of. Prayer can be one of our greatest acts of service and miracles have happened when people pray for others.
4. Close in the name of Jesus Christ, and end with Amen. We pray to God through Jesus.
5. Pause and listen for answers and feel the Spirit surrounding us. 

It’s important, as we ask God for help, that we not ask Him to do for us what we could do for ourselves. God, as a perfect parent, knows it is not good to do everything for us. We must pray for help and then do all that’s in our power to bring about the changes ourselves. He then makes up the difference. For instance, if we pray for a neighbor who is hungry, God would expect us to get off our knees and bring some groceries to that neighbor. While we may not be able to give them all the food they need, we must do our part and then trust God to do that which is beyond our abilities. In the same way, if we needed a job, we couldn’t pray for one and then sit back and watch television until one appeared. We’d need to search for work, talk to people, and send out our resumes so God has a way to make the right employer notice us. We must always do our part.

When we do our part, God then does His.

The most important prayer a person can offer is the one in which He finds out which church God wants Him to join. This is essential to anyone who loves God, wants to please Him, and wants to know God’s truth. Only God’s answer can be trusted completely.

To learn which church to join, a seeker should first begin studying the options and be prepared to make some informed choices. By praying for inspiration, the seeker will be able to recognize the spirit’s guidance in the search. When one finds a potential choice, he or she can pray to know if it’s true. A peaceful, warm feeling is God’s way of telling us we have made the right choice. Satan can never bring a feeling of peace. God is able to do anything at all, and that means He can answer prayers in a way that tells us it is indeed Him giving us our answer.

Asking for guidance brings with it the responsibility to follow through. If we ask God for answers, we must then do what He tells us to do. Throughout our lives, as we continue to seek God’s guidance in our lives, we will often find answers that don’t seem to match our personal desires. As we continue to follow God’s choices instead of our own, our faith grows. We begin to understand the wisdom of following His guidance and trusting Him to know what we don’t know.