Christ and His Church--No Substitute, No Other Way

Alma 34:39 "Yea, and I also exhort you, my brethren, that ye be watchful unto prayer continually, that ye may not be led away by the temptations of the devil, that he may not overpower you, that ye may not become his subjects at the last day; for behold, he rewardeth you no good thing."

There are those who, for some reason or another, dedicate themselves to tearing down other peoples' faith. Specifically, there are people who go to great lengths seeking statements, bits of history, or scriptural passages that they expect members of the Church to be unable to explain. Thus, they think they have evidence that would disprove the true Church of Jesus Christ.

We have heard them and their arguments. We felt the darkness seeking to creep into our hearts. And we have been faithful, knowing that the testimony that we have received from our Heavenly Father is strong enough that we can continue to worship and serve Him, even if we don't have a perfect explanation for every accusation made.

He would be an unreasonable God if He expected us to understand everything, to gain every iota of spiritual knowledge, before setting out to really live our lives based on that knowledge. Rather, He asks us to have faith, believing in Him even though we don't see Him, and being true to the Church He has given us. As Alma put it, "Faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true." (Alma 32:21)

Many years ago, while practicing at the piano in the Ephraim Institute of Religion, I came across Hymn #124. I was struck with and comforted by the words of the second verse in particular: "Be still, my soul: Thy God doth undertake To guide the future as He has the past. Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake; All now mysterious shall be bright at last." There will be many things that I will not fully understand even until the day that I die. Even so, God will one day teach me all things. Even in this life, I continue to gain greater knowledge, and I have felt silly before after coming to understand simple truth that answers the questions that previously sowed doubt. For now, I have an undeniable witness from the Holy Ghost that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is indeed the true Church that God organized on the earth to bless His children. I receive this witness again and again as I am taught in that Church, as I read the Book of Mormon and other scripture, and as I listen to the inspired words of modern prophets.

And after moments of doubt, when we truly exercise faith we then return to the scriptures. We read the Book of Mormon and feel the Spirit testifying to us. We feel the Comforter, and with healed hearts we return to the work of God.

Some have let their hope and confidence be shaken. They have let things they couldn't explain drive them away from what they once believed. These are, in fact, often those who are the most ardent in propagating the attacks on and misinformation about the Church of Christ. I feel for them, because I know that they have lost something. They frequently still seek to serve and know Christ, and that is good. However, I know what the Church has done for me, and I know that those who have left the Church have lost something vital to our lives.

This is what I would ask them: If you would have me leave the Church that has given me a knowledge of my Savior, the Church that has given me such great opportunity to serve my God and my fellow brothers and sisters on earth, the Church that has allowed me to learn not only from living prophets but also from common disciples who struggle along just as I do, the Church that has given me a desire to repent and live like my Savior, the Church that has helped me to understand the written word of God, the Church that has given me a knowledge of who I am and why I exist and what I ought to do in life, the Church that has provided me with an unfortunately rare understanding of the nature of God Himself, the Church that has taught me to value my family, the Church that has taught me and thus saved me from so much pain and suffering by helping me to avoid sin, the Church that does so many good things in the world that aren't even seen by the general public, the Church that allows me to assume my role as a son of God and serve using his authority as I strive to become like Him, the Church that has shown me the great mercy of my Father toward someone as undeserving as myself, the Church that has taught me to trust in my God and readily obey His wise counsel, the Church that has helped me bit by bit to not just know about Jesus Christ but also to truly know Him, the Church through which God has given me every good thing in my life! If you would have me leave this Church, I ask you: What do you give me in return?!? What do you expect to give me in exchange for my membership in the kingdom of God on earth that can possibly fill that void?

Jesus Christ is "the way, the truth, and the life: (and) no man cometh unto the Father, but by (Him)." (John 14:6) "...there is no other way, nor means whereby man can be saved, only in and through Christ." (Alma 38:9) Jesus Christ leads his true Church on the earth, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and nothing could ever replace it in my life. Despite my own faults, I will ever seek to de a true disciple of the Savior of the world and I will teach, learn, serve, and worship in His inescapably good Church.


Last thoughts for now:
I am so very grateful to my Father in Heaven for all that He has given me. I will never be able to adequately express gratitude for these things, but I know from where my blessings come. I am grateful for other children of God who seek to help me, even if they feel that I am in error. I will do my best to testify with humility and charity to all who listen that God has restored His Church and His truth, and that through them we can receive all the peace and happiness that He has to offer.

Restored Christianity

Over two years ago, when I was at BOLC II at Fort Sill, OK, I remember another new lieutenant asking me about the Church. He was an interesting fellow; very humorous, though crass at times, and he had given up drinking, apparently after having some very negative experiences. When we spoke of the Church on this occasion, he was basically just expressing general but sincere curiosity. I don't remember exactly what he asked me at the time, but I do remember briefly relating to him the account of Joseph Smith, including his First Vision. The conversation must have then turned along the lines of him asking why some people said we weren't Christian. I was struck, as I began to answer, that all of the issues were encapsulated in Joseph Smith's early experiences.

Joseph received revelation from God. Some churches do not believe that revelation is given to Man in our day.

Joseph saw Heavenly Father and His son, Jesus Christ, distinctly as two separate beings. To my knowledge, essentially every other church believes in the incomprehensible concept of a trinity.

Joseph was told to not join with any other church. Some people, and some churches, accept the logic that if various churches teach different doctrines that at most one of them can possess a full measure of truth, but many take offense to the idea that there can be only one true Church.

In addition to receiving direct revelation, Joseph Smith brought forth the Book of Mormon. Most any church will say that the only valid scripture is the Bible (though which version of the Bible, and even what books should be included in it, is a lasting dispute), and that there can be no other Word of God.

Interestingly, I had been listening to a general conference talk by Elder Holland's on one of these very issues. While I was explaining these things to the lieutenant, one of my roommates, Lieutenant Cameron, suggested that I just have him listen to Elder Holland's talk, because he said it very well. (My roommates must obviously have heard the talk when I listened.) The two talks given by Elder Holland in the fall of 2007 and spring of 2008 are among those I consider "modern classics".

(Links for those two talks are here:
http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-775-15,00.html
http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-851-30,00.html )

I remember the story of Joseph Smith's First Vision as one of the best ways as a missionary to help people feel the Holy Ghost. Well, the Holy Ghost testifies of truth, and Joseph Smith's experiences brought some hugely significant truths to a world that had lost them. How strange that the world should have such a poor understanding of their God, and how strange that people who do have a better understanding should be labeled "not Christian", but how wonderful that our loving Heavenly Father should restore these truths to us!

Yes, Joseph Smith introduced truth that didn't mesh with "traditional Christianity", but traditional Christianity lost something, had been altered; aspects of modern "traditional" Christianity simply aren't like what Christianity was in Christ's time. What we practice is not traditional Christianity, it's restored Christianity. As Latter-day Saints, we hope to be true Christians, not in name only but in Spirit and character, and in a way that is evident through our actions and our lives.

Last thoughts for now:
There will always be some who defame, and there will always be some who refuse to use the term "Christian" for members of Christ's true Church, but that doesn't matter. What does matter is that we recognize the powerful truths that God has restored to us, that we seek to follow Christ through his Atonement, and that we don't hide the goodness of our discipleship from the world so that others may also discover restored Christianity and fully pursue their exaltation.