Monday, November 18, 2013

Mormon Monday: What is the Book of Mormon?

Officially, our church is known as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  So why does everyone call us Mormons?

It is because of The Book of Mormon.  The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Mormon-book.jpg

We believe that God loves ALL of his children.  He doesn't just love the Jews or the Israelites, the Catholics or the Protestants, the Christians or the Muslims.  He loves everyone, including those who don't believe in him.

After Christ was resurrected, we believe, and I know this to be true for myself, that Christ also visited his other children in other parts of the world.  He had saved everyone, not just his followers in Jerusalem, so wouldn't He want to show himself to more than just one continent?

The Book of Mormon is an ancient record from the people on the American continent.  It also testifies that Christ is the Savior of the world.  God has said that by "two or three witnesses every word may be established."  Matthew 18:16

The Bible is a marvelous and wonderful book that could never be replaced.  It is the testimony of Jesus Christ's life, and his workings while He was alive on the Earth.  However, it is only one book.  People have translated the same scripture to mean a million different things.  If you have a board and you put a single nail through it, you can spin the board in any number of different directions.  However, if you have a second nail, and you put it through the board, the board cannot go anywhere.  With two sets of scriptures, the scriptures can only have the meaning that God intended for them to have. 

The Book of Mormon is the record of the seed of Joseph of Egypt.  Ezekiel 37: 16-17 They were his descendents that came from Jerusalem to the American continent.  It is their lives, their testimonies, their prophesies, and their accounts of our Savior and his ministry among them.

When their last prophet died, he buried the record in a hill.

Joseph Smith was guided by the Lord to find this record and translated it by the power of God.  He was an unlearned farm boy.  The messages in this book have guided me throughout my life to do good things for others, to improve myself, and to draw closer to God.  As I've read the Book of Mormon and the Bible together, my understanding of the doctrine of Christ has become clearer, and my testimony that Christ was the son of God and did indeed live become stronger. If the Book of Mormon was something evil, I don't think it would bring me closer to God. I think it would drive me further away from him.

There is a promise at the end of the Book of Mormon.  It says: (Moroni 10:4-5)
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.
 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.
In this promise, we are told that if we read the Book of Mormon and pray with all the sincerity of our hearts to know if it is really a book of scripture and from God, that He will tell you in your heart whether or not it is true.

I have done this experiment.  I have prayed to ask God if The Book of Mormon is from Him.  I testify that I know it is another testament of Jesus Christ.  I have felt the peace of His Spirit as I have read it, and I cannot deny my testimony that this book was translated through the power of God.  I know if you read it, you can find that same testimony.  This book, along with the restored church of God, has brought peace and certainty into my life during these tumultuous days.  I know what my path is, and if I follow it I will be protected no matter what comes.

I wish the same happiness and certainty for you.  That is what the Book of Mormon is and that is what it has brought me. 

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