What Mormons Believe About:
God, man, Jesus, salvation, Bible/authority, and the afterlife
By Rev. Wil R. Hoffmann
God: All members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS or Mormon Church) will tell you they believe in God and Jesus and even point out that Jesus is in the name of their church. However, just because they say they believe and worship God and Jesus, they do not believe in the Trinity as the Bible defines it, and therefore do not believe in the same God as we do. So who is God, also known as Heavenly father or Elohim, in the teachings of the LDS church?
1. God is an exalted man. Joseph Smith taught that, “God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens!”1
This belief comes from the idea that Heavenly Father was once a man on another planet that followed the teachings of the LDS Church on his planet. After dying and going to the 3rd level of Heaven, he was given a planet to rein over by his god.
2. God is not Spirit but is a man of flesh and bone. Joseph Smith said, “That which is without body or parts is nothing. There is no God in heaven but that God who has flesh and bones.”2
3. Heavenly Father is the literal father of Jesus. President Joseph F. Smith (1838-1918) taught: “God the Eternal Father…is the literal parent of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and of the spirits of the human race….We are God’s children.”3
This teaching is that god came down in the flesh and knew Mary to conceive Jesus.
Jesus: According to Mormon doctrine, both God and Jesus came to Joseph Smith to tell him that all denominations were false. This again points to the belief that God and Jesus are two different people. Although Jesus is in the name of the LDS church, their doctrine on Jesus is not found in the bible.
1. Jesus is not God but a god. Within the LDS church, Jesus was a man; however he became a god by his father bestowing it on him even before he came to earth. Jesus was the first-born child of Heavenly Father and one of his wives. When Heavenly Father decided to pick a savior for the people of earth, he had to choose between his first-born Jesus and his second-born Satan. Both brought their case for why they should be savior, and Heavenly Father picked Jesus.
“Christ attained Godhood while yet in pre-existence, he too stood as a God to the other spirits, but this relationship was not the same one of personal parenthood that prevailed between the Father and his offspring.”4
Because of this, Satan rebelled and left Heaven, and Jesus was sent to earth to be savior of the people.
2. Jesus needed to be saved by God. “Even Christ himself was not perfect at first; he received not a fulness [sic] at first, but he received grace for grace, and he continued to receive more and more until he received a fulness [sic]”5
3. Jesus is our Spirit brother and the brother of Satan. “The oldest child in our heavenly family was Jesus Christ. He is our oldest brother.”6
The teaching of the LDS Church is that all mankind are spirit children of Heavenly Father and his wives. Jesus was the first-born spirit child and Satan was the second-born spirit child. Through this understanding everyone is a spirit child of god and one of his wives. Therefore we are all spirit brother and sisters.
Man: Men and women are the spirit children of Heavenly Father and his wives. Man was once with God in heaven and then was sent to earth. If man follows the teachings of the LDS Church, then when he passes away he will be able to return to his heavenly father and mother.
1. Men can become gods. The understanding behind this is that man is the same species as God. Because of this, if men keep to the teachings of the LDS Church and meet the requirements established by the LDS Church, then they can be given their own planet by their Heavenly Father. “God and man are of the same race, differing only in their degrees of advancement.”7
Also, a point to note is that only men can reach godhood. Women are subject to the actions of their husbands, even to the point of their salvation.
2. Mankind was with God before they were on earth. “We lived before we came here and our birth into this world was the reward of having kept our first estate.”8 Within the LDS Church, it is commonly known that before we came to earth, we were with God in heaven. We just cannot remember that time. This is what is known as the preexistence and is historically understood that Heavenly Father conceived the people of the world with one of his many wives in heaven.
After some time in Heaven, we are picked to come to earth and forget our preexistence. Then man works his way back to God through the teachings of the LDS Church.
Bible/authority: When it comes to understand the Scriptures and authority of the LDS Church, one has to understand that the Mormon faith is, in a sense, is a living religion. Scripture and authority are always changing and can change at any time. Within the LDS Church there are four books of scripture (Holy Bible KJV, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price). With these books of scripture, the LDS Church also has a Living Prophet (Thomas S. Monson) that dictates their beliefs.
1. Members of the LDS church do use the King James Bible. To many members of the LDS Church, the Holy Bible in the King James Version is their first book of scripture. However, they believe “the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly.”9
It was taught by Joseph Smith that he believed the Bible was correct when it was written by the original authors. But over time and bad translators, the Bible lost its true meaning and was corrupt and has led many astray.
So, today’s members of the LDS Church read the bible but understand it as told to them by the leadership of the Mormon Church.
2. Along with the King James Bible, the LDS Church has other scriptures. Most people know about the Book of Mormon and that it is known as “another testament of Jesus Christ.”“The Book of Mormon is a sacred record of some of the people who lived on the American continents between about 2000 B.C. and A.D. 400. It contains the fulness [sic] of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon tells of the visit Jesus Christ made to the people in the Americas soon after His Resurrection.”10
This is one of the most recognized items that Mormon missionaries will have and want to give you when they come to your door. However, the King James Bible and The Book of Mormon are only two of the four books of scriptures.
The other two books are Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price.
Doctrine and Covenants contains “revelations given to the Prophet Joseph Smith. It also includes a few revelations given to other latter-day prophets. This book of scripture is unique because it is not a translation of ancient documents. It is a collection of revelations given by the Lord to His chosen prophets in the latter days.”11
The revelations given to the prophets are something that is still happening today. At any time the Prophet/ President of the LDS Church, Thomas Monson, can have a “revelation” that would be voted on at the LDS General Conference and then added to Doctrine and Covenants. (The last addition to Doctrine and Covenants took place on June 8, 1978, dealing with the subject of allowing all worthy males to hold the priesthood. This came because it was found out that there were no African American priesthood holders. This is because at one time it was believed that people with dark skin where not worthy to hold high positions in the church.)
The Pearl of Great Price contains the book of Moses, the book of Abraham, The Articles of Faith and some inspired writings of Joseph Smith. The inspired writings of Joseph Smith are his interpretation of the Gospel of Matthew and the History of Joseph Smith.
3. The most important authority of the LDS is the President. The Prophet, Seer, and Revelator are all names to describe the President and leader or the LDS Church. From the first Prophet Joseph Smith to the sixteenth and current Prophet Thomas S. Monson, there is no greater authority in the Mormon Church.
The trust of the leadership of the LDS Church is strong among the members. They truly believe that he is God’s called servant, and whatever is said by the Prophet through his teaching can be counted as the Word of God.
“The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints accepts four books as scripture: the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. These books are called the standard works of the Church. The inspired words of our living prophets are also accepted as scripture.”12
Salvation: Salvation in the LDS church is worked based. It focuses on the work that people do for their own spiritual growth, the LDS Church, and helping others in need. For salvation in a person’s life within the LDS church, three things must be involved: 1. Works of the person; 2. Jesus; and 3. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
1. You’re saved by grace but you also need work. In the Book of Mormon it teaches that your works are a huge part of your salvation. 2 Nephi 25:23 says, “For we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.” This points to the idea that the one doing most of the work is man and Jesus makes up the rest.
This belief points clearly that man has to keep the commands of God and the LDS Church to be saved. Jesus is not enough and this point is taught many times through the LDS Church.
“Many people think they need only confess that Jesus is the Christ and then they are saved by grace alone. We cannot be saved by grace alone, ‘for we know that it is by grace that we are saved after all we can do.’”13
2. You have to be a member of the LDS Church to be saved. When Joseph Smith started this new religion in the 1800’s, he preached that all other churches are wrong and have become apostate. Joseph Smith taught that he restored the one true church that had been lost since the passing of the apostles.
“If it had not been for Joseph Smith and the restoration, there would be no salvation. There is no salvation outside The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”14
This is a key reason why LDS missionaries, even if you tell them you go to church, will still evangelize to you at your door. This is because they believe that salvation is not found outside the LDS Church.
3. Salvation can be a family thing. One of the strongest aspects of the LDS Church and one of the main reasons people convert to the Mormon faith is because of their dedication to family. Family forever is the teaching that a family, through the father, can be sealed in an LDS temple and remain together forever. Boiled down, the salvation of the family relies on the father of the family.
This position even states that if a child of a sealed family at some point stops going to church and even states he is no longer a Mormon, the sealing of the family still allows that child/ person to be with his family in Heaven.
Afterlife: When you talk to Mormons about Heaven, they will always talk about “going to be where God is.” For most people this means Heaven, but for the members of the LDS Church this means the 3rd level or the highest level of Heaven. Within Mormon doctrine they teach that there are three levels of Heaven. The Celestial Kingdom (highest, where God is.), the Terrestrial Kingdom (Middle), and the Telestial Kingdom (lowest).
With three levels of Heaven, one would assume that there would be levels of Hell. However, the LDS Church does not believe in Hell as Christian’s understand it. They believe in a place known as outer darkness, described as “where there is weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth.”15 But it is just understood as a place of darkness, and only a handful of people are there.
1. God and Jesus are only in the highest level of Heaven. When it comes to the afterlife for a member of the LDS Church, they want to be where God is. Heavenly Father is only in the highest level of Heaven, the Celestial Kingdom.
The only way for a someone to reach this level of Heaven is by being a member of the Mormon Church, being allowed to enter the Temple, paying his tithes, being married and sealed to his wife/ family in the temple, and by holding the priesthood and doing works for the church.
2. The other two levels are for everyone else. Most people within an evangelical church will go to the Terrestrial Kingdom (middle or second level). This place is for those who are Christians but were not part of the LDS Church. The Terrestrial Kingdom is for almost everyone else.
3. Outer darkness only has a handful of people in it. “Outer Darkness. These are they who had testimonies of Jesus through the Holy Ghost and knew the power of the Lord but allowed Satan to overcome them. They denied the truth and defied the power of the Lord. There is no forgiveness for them, for they denied the Holy Spirit after having received it. They will not have a kingdom of glory. They will live in eternal darkness, torment, and misery with Satan and his angels forever.”16
When talking to any member of the LDS Church, they will tell you that this means only members of the LDS Church that have been given a testimony of Jesus Christ, yet have rejected that knowledge, are in outer darkness, and that number is only a handful.
Because of these statements, the realization that almost everyone is in a level of Heaven comes clear. No matter who you are or what you do, you will go to Heaven. However, Mormons work hard through their church events, outreach, and community clubs so that they may reach the 3rd level, the Celestial Kingdom where God is.
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1 Joseph Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 345.
2 Joseph Smith, Teachings of Presidents of the Church – Joseph Smith, p. 42.
3 Joseph F. Smith, “The Nature of the Godhead,” Ensign, January 2006, p. 51.
4 Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 1966, p. 323
5 Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine, 1986, p. 68.
6 Gospel Fundamentals, 2002, p. 5
7 John A. Widtsoe, Rational Theology, 1915, p. 61
8 George Albert Smith, Conference Reports, October 1926, p. 103. George Albert Smith was the 8th President of the LDS church.
9 Article Eight, Articles of Faith in the Pearl of Great Price
10 Gospel Principles, 2009, p. 46
11 True to the Faith: A Gospel Reference, 2004, p. 158
12 Gospel Principles, 2009, p. 45
13 James Faust, Ensign, November 2001, p. 18
14 Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 1966, p. 670
15 Doctrine and Covenants 101:91
16Gospel Principles, 2009, p. 273
