Where Did All The Splits/Groups Come From?

This is a question that I was asked recently, to which I gave a general answer based on principle.  The reason is because this is a very emotionally, and politically charged question.

I am not a person to constantly and consistently post references to support my conclusions or opinions.  I feel that if a person doesn’t have at least a basic working knowledge of the scriptures, then there is no reason to attempt to converse with someone who obviously has no interest in what I have to say, except to fight against it.  With that said, all those who have a working knowledge of the scriptures and Church History, will easily be able to follow this post with understanding.  Some of these things happened simultaneously, but for ease they are broken into parts.   So, here we go: 

Through the Prophet Joseph Smith Jr., the Lord eventually set up a quorum of 12 Apostles.  Of course He did set up 2 quorums, but I will leave that out for the present.  Now, this quorum was called and ordained by four people who had a Fullness of the Priesthood.  This Fullness was not bestowed upon the quorum of the Twelve by reason of ordination to the Apostleship, because it can only be bestowed by God Himself.  But the Apostleship was bestowed upon these men, along with all the relevant keys to open the Gospel in all the world (among the Gentiles).  As is true with any of us, these 12 did not have the Fullness of the Priesthood until they obtained it from God in person, as they were instructed in the commission given to them when they were first ordained. 

Once set apart, they were set in order.  The order the Lord revealed was according to the Ancient Order which was according to age, not ordination. 

After the “Saints” delivered up Joseph and Hyrum to those who would murder them, the several different, independent and interdependent churches and organizations which the Lord through Joseph set up were scattered.  Most all of them claimed some sort of authority to the right of succession, but the Lord only set up one right of succession, and most all of the groups went through great lengths to hide it. 

Brigham Young was one of those who went through great pains to make his claim of succession.  Over the course of three years he formed a coup d’etat, and systematically removed anyone, that he could, from the Traveling Twelve that opposed the idea of the Traveling Twelve becoming the ruling body of the church.  

After Brigham got the remainder of the Traveling Twelve on board, he won over approximately a fifth of the members, which consisted of a great deal of the Seventy (which organization has gone through several significant changes and revisions).  The Seventy Apostles were a significant missionary force, and would cause the small splinter group to flourish like the rose. 

Since the majority of the twelve, and the majority of the records of the Church would be left behind, Brigham’s next move was a bold one.  He now petitioned the Twelve to create a First Presidency, under which auspicious he would attempt to unite the several different organizations that Joseph set up, and rule them all from one seat, usurping the calling of Joseph.  This was in so much opposition to the Oracles of God that some very significant historical figures would not agree (those who were with Joseph and Hyrum at the end), which would cause a split decision among the newly reorganized Quorum of Twelve.  The problem was that in the oracles of God, Brigham did not hold the highest priesthood.  Mainly because those who, under the direction from God, called and ordained the Twelve were still alive.  To resolve this, the newly reorganized Twelve would vote and send these men on missions, then while they were away, new apostles were called who would sustain the formation of a new First Presidency.  Now, by bare majority, the resolution was passed and Brigham sat on a throne. 

With the new order, a new governing principle had to be established, and that principle was based on previous principles, but now had to be revised, and in my opinion this is where it became a stand alone principle.  It was this: That the keys of the priesthood leadership were no longer to be obtained from God, but were to be automatically assumed by the worthy senior by ordination, along with the priestcraft principle that, only he holds the keys.  This is the foundation of the majority of the Splits/Groups/Churches. 

It is quite obvious that the worthy senior has only the leadership of the quorum that he represents, and only the authority which that body grants unto him.  Therefore, the idea that, because of this, he now holds the keys of Joseph, or of anyone else that holds the Priesthood of the Fathers, is a blatant lie.  You cannot hold the Fullness of the Priesthood of God, just because enough men get together and say you do. 

The term “worthy” is the justification that a great many of the groups use to qualify their priesthood lineage, and by which they validate their claims. 

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Johnny Cake

I have often told this story when speaking to the Youth and from the pulpit on Sundays, so I hope I don’t bore anyone by relating it again. 

It happened when my first three children were very young.  I had a job offer on the other side of the country, but we were so poor that we had to walk and hitch-hike across the country.  Many people were very kind to us and so the Lord blessed us to be able to gather a little bit of money and support for the move, and with that we were able to buy some things that we needed for the long hike.  There were many times when there were no stores close by so we carried dried food with us.  The thing with dried camp food is it doesn’t taste very good and the desire to eat it fades very quickly. 

After a few weeks of eating this bland re-hydrated camp food, Toni just couldn’t take it anymore, to which she voiced her opinion in great sadness.  She was wondering why things were so hard.  I didn’t want her to lose faith, and my heart was drawn out to the Lord for any ideas of what to do. 

The Lord heard my unuttered prayer and put an idea into my heart.  I called the children around and told them the story of Joseph Smith and the Johnny Cake. 

The story takes place in Nauvoo, when Joseph had very little food in the house.  At this time Joseph was called to dinner and all they had was Johnny cake.  The Prophet offered the blessing, “Lord, we thank Thee for this Johnny cake, and ask Thee to send us something better.  Amen.” 

Before the cornbread was all eaten, a man came to the door that brought the Prophet some flour and a ham. 

Joseph turned to his wife, Emma, and said, “I knew the Lord would answer my prayer.” 

After telling my children this story, we gathered together and I offered the prayer.  ‘Our Father in Heaven, we thank thee for this camp food, and ask thee to send us something better.  Amen.’ 

Nothing happened, so we started to prepare our dehydrated food.  But before we finished eating, someone drove into our camp with bags of fresh groceries, like lettuce, tomatoes, bananas, cereal and milk, a bag of candy for each child, and they even included ham just like with Joseph Smith!  The Lord heard our prayer too! 

It didn’t end there, the lady that brought us the groceries invited us over for supper with her family, and we were able to have showers and do laundry.  They fed us until we were so full, then they fed us a wonderful desert just to top us off. 

Then on the way back to camp, we visited a farmhouse nearby just to say hi, and much to our surprise they fed the children ice cream cones.  We were delighted!  The Lord had more than exceeded our expectations.  But with the Lord, you never know when the blessing is over, and when we finally got back to camp, we found that someone had been there and left us a couple of gifts, one of which was an Apple Crisp, which, if I remember correctly, was way more than we could finish that night. 

To us, this was such a great blessing!  Our Heavenly Father had heard our prayer and had poured out a blessing greater than we had room to receive it. 

But it didn’t end there! 

For the next three days the Lord continued to pour out His blessings.  Different people would be guided to us, and would invite us over for meals, and others would bring us groceries.  Someone even brought us a camper to sleep in, which was much warmer than our tent.  Other luxuries and necessities were also provided, which would about double the length of this post if I were to list them all.  Heavenly Father fussed over us so much after that one tiny prayer, and showered us with such great concern, and showed us with what detail He can and does provide for His children.  There is no doubt that He is completely aware of every aspect of our lives. 

I was so happy that the Lord heard our prayer and strengthened the faith of my little family. 

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My Vision On The Hill

I asked Toni if she would write out a short version of her seeing our Heavenly Father, which I posted about in the post entitled "Just A Little Reminder."  These are her words:  

Shortly after Joseph and I had gotten engaged, we went out for an evening walk around the outskirts of the University that I was currently attending.  Alongside the road was a grassy knoll, so Joseph and I climbed up to the top and sat down together, hand-in-hand.  We talked for a few minutes, but the conversation dwindled and we just sat there together enjoying each other's company.  I stared up into the sky, taking note of the innumerous stars that could be seen.  As I watched, the scene began to change before my eyes, soon I saw a stereotypical scene of heaven with many white robed figures walking on white clouds.  My attention was drawn to two figures in particular; one was an older man with white hair and a white beard whom I immediately recognized as my Heavenly Father, the other was my Joseph, standing on the Father's right hand side.  I could see myself standing a fair distance in front of them and slightly off to their right.  I saw the Father stretch out his right arm and hand towards me so that it crossed in front of Joseph, and the Father said, "Take care of her, and bring her home."  After that, the scene faded, and I turned to Joseph.  Believing this to be just a wonderful imagination, I said to Joseph, "I just saw the most beautiful scene..."  But before I could tell him anymore, he stopped me and said, "I know what you just saw, because I saw it too."  He proceeded to describe our vision to me in detail, exactly as I had just seen it, even elaborating on details that I had not really noticed, but as I thought back, could see clearly.  I realized that this was not just some vain imagination, but that I had actually seen the Father giving Joseph instructions.  This vision left me without a doubt that Joseph was the man I was to marry. 

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Degrees Of Glory

In the early days of the Church, 182 years ago today, when Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon saw the vision of the degrees of glory of which heaven is made up, many of the church members found it very difficult to accept. 

The prevailing Protestant doctrine of just a heaven and a hell, of which most members had been taught prior to conversion, was a comfortable justification, not one easily given up by some people.

Brigham Young later remembered that when he first heard of this vision, “it was so directly contrary and opposite to my former education, I said, wait a little, I did not reject it, but I could not understand it.” Others, even fell away from the Church because of it.

However, many members rejoiced that our Father in Heaven would be so kind as to reward each as to their own devotion.  It truly was, as was related in Joseph's manuscript, that Nothing could be more pleasing to the Saint, upon the order of the kingdom of the Lord, than the light which burst upon the world, through the foregoing vision.

The sad thing is that all too often this doctrine has been cast aside these days. Today, the false doctrine of 'everything beneath the highest glory of the Celestial Glory is hell' prevails. This revival of the old false doctrine reveals the wickedness of modern mormons. How they love to justify themselves, to do all manner of wickedness, get baptized, shed a few tears, feign repentance, and in vain desperately lay claim on a Celestial abode. All the while telling their victims that they will live together throughout eternity. Such vanity, such pride!

God cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance. All those who commit sin are heirs of hell, and only by repenting and following the Lord can they escape from hell and, by the Grace of God, find a place in heaven.

So, do not be discouraged! No matter how much the wicked repeat the false doctrine, it will not come to pass. Your sufferings and righteousness will not go unseen. The Lord loves those who are obedient to His commands, and will tend to them with everlasting mercy as only He can, they are they who will be exalted.

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Just A Little Reminder

I just want to remind everyone that God is real. You can stand before Him in this life. There are many of us who have seen Him and talked to Him.
I remember the first time that my wife saw Heavenly Father. We had just recently gotten engaged, and we went out for an evening walk in a meadow. I had often prayed for her to receive a testimony that Heavenly Father approved of our plans to marry, and this evening my prayer would be answered.
In the meadow we found a nice grassy knoll where we sat, hand in hand, starting up at the stars. When the veil grew thin and the sky began to lighten, and we saw into heaven.
We saw Heavenly Father standing in His court, and my bride-to-be saw and heard our Father give me instructions concerning her.
She had her testimony, and that testimony has been a source of great strength to both her and me.
The Heavenly Father waits for all His children to call upon him. There is nothing more important to Him than you. You are everything to Him. As the Father ran to his prodigal son to embrace him home, so the Father will receive you when you return to Him.
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The Gift Of Eternal Marriage

The gift of Eternal Marriage is offered to those who have kept themselves pure and have qualified themselves.  It is not granted to those who have disqualified themselves.  The Lord will not be mocked, neither will he allow His laws to be trampled upon, especially by those who hold the oracles/claim to hold the oracles and perform sealings that are not in accordance with the laws that He has set to govern these things. 

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The Wicked Take The Truth To Be Hard

From time to time I am asked rather serious questions whose answers are often painful, both to the person asking the question, as well as to me.  It is also painfully obvious that the person asking the question is quite aware of the answer, and they are really only looking for justification or excuse to behave as they wish to behave. 

Jesus related that in His father’s house are many mansions. 
And Paul was caught up to the seventh heaven. 
Joseph and Sydney saw the various degrees of glory. 

From these accounts and others, we find that God has prepared a place for all of us.  And it is evident that we are agents unto ourselves as to how far we progress.  What a great God who allows us the freedom to choose how we progress, and loves each of His children so much that He has prepared a place for each and every one. 

Nevertheless, no matter the extent of God’s grace, there are those who still want to do evil and gain a reward.  And often not just any evil, but the most heinous evils, and not just any reward, but they want the greatest reward, the greatest blessings, so they have devised a false doctrine to satiate their souls.  That being that they can go and do the most heinous crimes, then when they are filled, just get baptized and feign claim hold on Celestial glory. 

God cannot be deceived!  Nor can He be mocked.  His grace is sufficient for all those who humble themselves before Him and do the will of the Father, but He will not be mocked. 

Those who commit heinous crimes can repent.  They can “leave there thy gift before the alter, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.”  The Lord is merciful and kind, and all those who repent in sackcloth and ashes He will forgive, with the exceptions that Jesus related.  Those who repent and are forgiven can be released from Hell, but that does not mean that Celestial Glory, Eternal Marriage, or Godhood awaits.  That is why there are many mansions, different levels of heaven, and degrees of glory.  The scriptures are very clear on this issue. 

The gifts of Celestial Glory, Eternal Marriage, and Godhood are offered to those who have kept themselves pure and have qualified themselves.  They are not granted to those who have disqualified themselves.  The Lord will not be mocked, neither will he allow His laws to be trampled upon, especially by those who hold the oracles/claim to hold the oracles and perform sealings that are not in accordance with the laws that He has set to govern these things. 

Fear not to do good little flock, for it is your Father’s will to give you the Kingdom. 

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From "Realities"

I love these couple of paragraphs from the book, Realities, by M. Basilea Schlink. They can be found in chapter 18. 

"Scripture speaks about the faith that can move mountains. This is far more than merely believing something to be true or possible. It is a divine hurricane. It grips a man. It completely fills him. It lets him think and desire nothing else except that one thing which God has bidden him to obtain. For this, the man gripped by the spirit of faith gives his all. He is ready for any sacrifice. His will is linked to the will of Almighty God. Retreat is out of the question, so long as he is acting according to God's Word. Should God, however, give him to understand that He has changed His plan, he would at once give in."

"Our Lord Jesus said: "If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move hence to yonder place,' and it will move" (Matthew 17:20). And after this experience we could say: If you do not have faith and have no goal for your faith, because you are complacent and indifferent the "mountains" stay put. Those things which hinder the victory and the building of God's kingdom are removed only by a fighting faith. God wanted a house to be built. When that desire of God met with faith in us, the house was built."

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The Father and The Son

In my last post I wrote how the knowledge of who God really was, was lost.  In this post, I will share some of what was revealed and taught at the time of the Prophet Joseph. 

"There are two personages who constitute the great, matchless, governing, and supreme power over all things, by whom all things were created and made, that are created and made, whether visible or invisible, whether in heaven, on earth or in the earth, under the earth, or throughout the immensity of space.  They are the Father and the Son -- the Father being a personage of spirit, glory, and power, possessing all perfection and fullness, the Son, who was in the bosom of the Father, a personage of tabernacle, made or fashioned like unto man, or being in the form and likeness of man, or rather man was formed after his likeness and in his image ; he is also the express image and likeness of the personage of the Father, possessing all the fullness of the Father, or the same fullness with the Father ; being begotten of him, and ordained from before the foundation  of the world to be a propitiation for the sins of all those who should believe on his name, and is called the Son because of the flesh, and descended in suffering below that which man can suffer ; or, in other words, suffered greater sufferings, and was exposed to more powerful contradictions than any man can be.  But, notwithstanding all this, he kept the law of God, and remained without sin, showing thereby that it is in the power of man to keep the law and remain also without sin ; and also, that by him righteous judgment might come upon all flesh, and that all who walk not in the law of God may justly be condemned by the law and have no excuse for their sins.  And he being the Only Begotten of the Father , full of grace and truth and having overcome, received a fullness of the glory of the Father, possessing the same mind with the father, which mind is the Holy Spirit, that bears record of the Father and the Son, and these three are one ; or, in other words, these three constitute the great, matchless, governing and supreme power over all things ; by whom all things were created and made that were created and made, and these three constitute the Godhead, and are one ; the Father and the Son possessing the same mind, the same wisdom, glory, power, and fullness -- filling all in all ; the Son being filled with the fullness of the mind, glory, and power ; or, in other words, the spirit, glory, and power, of the Father, possessing all knowledge and glory, and the same kingdom, sitting at the right hand of power, in the express image and likeness of the Father, mediator for man, being filled with the fullness of the mind of the Father ; or, in other words, the Spirit of the Father, which Spirit is shed forth upon all who believe on his name and keep his commandments ; and all those who keep his commandments shall grow up from grace to grace, and become heirs of the heavenly kingdom, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ ; possessing the same mind, being transformed into the same image or likeness, even the express image of him who fills all in all ;  being filled with the fullness of his glory, and become one in him, even as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one." 

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Another Jesus, Another Gospel

In the 1920's, the LDS President Heber Grant commissioned James Talmage (one of their quorum of the Twelve) to sequester himself in the Holy of Holies in the Salt Lake Temple.  There, he was to write, or I should say rewrite, the doctrine of the character of Christ.  The infamous book entitled "Jesus The Christ" was the result. 

"But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve
through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity
that is in Christ. 

"For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we
have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him." 

It was not long after the death of Christ, when the Christians rewrote the doctrine of Christ, fulfilling prophecy and created "another Christ". 

It was not long after the death of the Prophet of the Restoration, when Grant and Talmage fulfilled the same prophecy, creating "another Christ". 

In order to have perfect faith in God, we need to have a proper understanding of God.  And it certainly looks like Grant didn't want people talking to God.  I have noticed that it is a common trait among all those who exercise unrighteous dominion to change true doctrine to keep their followers from talking directly with God. 

Talmage, just as the Romans, created the other Christ, the Beast, the Trinity doctrine.  And thereby the true character of God and His Son was lost. 

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Whose On The Lord's Side, Who?

Matthew 6:24 
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

How horrible it is when I hear people teaching false, and vain, and foolish doctrines.

Everyone has a right to believe what ever they want, but do I have to stay and listen to it?  And what do you do when they are teaching false doctrines in front of children? Children!

I spoke my peace that we should live the gospel. And when it was trampled underfoot, I left.

I have to side with the Gospel of Christ. We have to love each other. We cannot compromise with the world. We cannot lower our standard to get along in the world. The Lord said to take up our cross.

Matthew 16:25–29.

25 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me. 

26 And now for a man to take up his cross, is to deny himself all ungodliness, and every worldly lust, and keep my commandments. 

27 Break not my commandments for to save your lives; for whosoever will save his life in this world, shall lose it in the world to come. 

28 And whosoever will lose his life in this world, for my sake, shall find it in the world to come. 

29 Therefore, forsake the world, and save your souls; for what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

It doesn't get much clearer than that!

There is no compromise with the Lord. There is no middle ground, no half way, no leeway, no happy medium.

There is only His way, or the world's way.

Whose side are you on?