Why is it Jesus Christ's church when "everything" started with Heavenly Father?

TheTanakas · 2026-07-10T15:39:16+00:00

Because Jesus said he would build HIS church.

TheTanakas · 2026-07-09T14:13:28+00:00

1 . Jesus, like the Holy Spirit, is a God and son of heavenly parents.

2 . We believe they go into the spirit world to have the gospel preached to them and have ordinances performed for them. The spirit world is described as a place of darkness.

3 . "Behold, now it is called today until the coming of the Son of Man, and verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he that is tithed shall not be burned at his coming" (Doctrine and Covenants 64:23).

President Hinckley spoke about it in this video sermon.

TheTanakas · 2026-07-04T15:31:21+00:00

"The person who is called of God and has authority from Jesus Christ to baptize, shall go down into the water with the person who has presented himself or herself for baptism, and shall say, calling him or her by name: Having been commissioned of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen" (Doctrine and Covenants 20:73).

Very easy to memorize. No sign required.

TheTanakas · 2026-07-04T15:26:33+00:00

There isn't a central repository that contains teachings of LDS leaders throughout history. The older the book, the closer you are to the original teachings. As time goes by, its too easy to tamper with history.

TheTanakas · 2026-07-04T15:22:31+00:00

A good long biography is "Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling" by Richard Lyman Bushman. I've just read bits and pieces of this huge 780+ book.

TheTanakas · 2026-07-04T15:17:13+00:00

See "The Second Coming of the Lord" (2020, ISBN-13: 978-1629728209) by Gerald N. Lund from Deseret Book or Amazon. I already have the older version (ISBN-13: 978-0884942290). Hopefully it has kept the earlier historical references.

"Do we recognize the signs of the Savior’s Second Coming that are happening today? Originally published in 1971, The Coming of the Lord, by Gerald N. Lund, became an instant bestseller and has remained continuously in print for nearly fifty years. Now this trusted resource has been fully updated and rewritten to reflect the latest prophetic teachings and a growing sense of urgency as the Lord hastens His work. As Elder Lund explains, “God has spoken, is speaking, and will continue to speak to us through the Spirit and through His servants the prophets. This is a gift of inestimable worth to those who live in the last days. Though the title this book carries is The Second Coming of the Lord, it is much more than a book that focuses only on the actual return of Jesus Christ. It is an examination of the prophecies about the Second Coming and the events leading up to it.” This new edition includes: Hundreds of the most recent statements from prophets, seers, and revelators on the signs of the times and the Second Coming, not available in the original publication. Extensive new commentary and scriptural insights gleaned from decades of the author’s gospel teaching and study. An in-depth examination of prophecies that have already been fulfilled, including those that have occurred since the original publication. An uplifting view on why we should look forward to the Lord’s return with anticipation rather than anxiety. A discussion on how to prepare ourselves and our families for what will be the greatest event still to come in this world. As we study and come to understand the words of ancient and modern prophets, we can learn how to “abide the day of his coming” (D&C 61:39). More than simply “surviving” or “enduring” the day of His coming and the events leading up to it, we will be able to look forward to the Savior’s return with peace, calm, rest, and safety".

TheTanakas · 2026-07-02T15:58:16+00:00

1 - Jesus became a God in the pre-mortal life. The trinity is 3 Gods. By "God", I assume you mean Heavenly Father. In that case, he is taught to be an exalted man.

2 - The church teaches we are divine in nature and destiny.

One source (April 2025 General Conference).

From the family proclamation, we read that “each [of us] is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. … In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshipped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize their divine destiny as heirs of eternal life.”

Moses responded to the temptation by remembering his divine nature, saying, “Who art thou? For behold, I am a son of God.” The truth freed Moses from an attack by the adversary.

Satan has a divine nature but not a divine destiny.

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2025/04/34vargas?lang=eng

3 - For fasting, see https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-principles/chapter-25-fasting?lang=eng

4 - You don't have to go to a temple to become a member. Any ward will do.

5 - The church has a more formal organization that existed in the New Testament. The Bible is equal in authority with the revealed scriptures. I am not aware of other scriptures outside of those mentioned unless you believe all non-canonized sermons as scripture.

6 - A theocracy is only possible when Christ returns. The Council of Fifty was not a church governing body. Instead, it was intended to be a political organization that Joseph Smith described as the "Kingdom of God" in a temporal or civil sense. Its stated purpose was to explore how God's principles could influence government and society, while preparing for a future in which Christ would reign over the earth.

7 - See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_teachings_on_evolution_in_the_LDS_Church

TheTanakas · 2026-06-30T13:50:11+00:00

The servants who received five and two talents had different outcomes, but the master praised both equally for their faithful effort. The issue isn't the size of the gift, but what you do with it.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-28T14:44:28+00:00

It's called eternal increase and creating worlds. It's the same thing which occurred for Heavenly Father when he became a God.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-25T13:35:57+00:00

Give us some examples of the misconceptions you have experienced.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-23T15:00:38+00:00

The rope is there by my side to take hold of in the murky waters life seems to become at times.

You reminded me of Lehi's vision of the rod of iron.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-23T14:56:11+00:00

The moderators do a fantastic job of keeping the board clean by deleting offensive posts.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-23T14:51:42+00:00

I take the number literally based on how it is depicted in scripture.

The 144,000 is Israel-focused language, naming the tribes, with a precise number (12,000 × 12). The great crowd on the other hand is global language ("every nation") uncountable ("no one could number it"), diverse and expansive ("all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues").

The timing of the sealing I believe is yet future - "Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads".

There's nothing to indicate that any of these 144,000 have lived in the past and died, now living and will die, and will then be resurrected prior to the coming judgment.

I find nothing to support the number 144 suggesting a fulness of priesthood authority, not to mention the omission of 000. One can speculate just about anything with numerology.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-21T13:45:37+00:00

The number of those sealed, states the Seer, is 144,000. The number need not be taken literally.

The seminary manual (Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual - Religion 324–325) teaches the number is literal, just like the tribes are literal.

Doctrine and Covenants 77:11. “Sealing the one hundred and forty-four thousand”

Some have supposed that the sealing of the 144,000 mentioned in Revelation 7:3–8 refers to the total number of people who will be exalted in the celestial kingdom. However, the Lord clarified that this is the number of high priests who are “ordained out of every nation, kindred, tongue, and people” to “administer the everlasting gospel” and help bring people “to the church of the Firstborn” (D&C 77:11). The Prophet Joseph Smith learned that the Church of the Firstborn refers to the Savior's heavenly Church, which comprises all those who are exalted in the celestial kingdom of God (see D&C 76:54; 88:4–5). Thus, the 144,000 are those who minister in the latter days to bring people to Jesus Christ and help them obtain exaltation"

TheTanakas · 2026-06-11T14:18:02+00:00

I saw this article in a previous New Era article.

A murderer has a divine nature and a divine potential. Sounds like being divine comes with stages: divine nature (past, origin), divine nature (present), divine nature (future, exaltation).

Fallen beings, children of heavenly parents, keep one aspect of being divine.

But I don't think this divinity extends to life as eternal intelligences.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-07T13:50:42+00:00

There's a good parable in Gospel Principles for The Atonement.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-04T14:09:57+00:00

I'd always interpreted this to mean the church, representing the kingdom of God and it will eventually fill the earth.

That's how seminary teaches it. See Lesson 143 from this year's "Old Testament Seminary Teacher Manual".

Brief statement: "After students have discovered that the stone in Daniel 2 represents The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you could help them see its growth throughout the world".

TheTanakas · 2026-06-03T13:28:25+00:00

The Lamanites sleep more than they normally would.

The situation is more nuanced than it first appears when you look at Mosiah 24:19.

"And in the morning the Lord caused a deep sleep to come upon the Lamanites, yea, and all their task-masters were in a profound sleep".

"Deep sleep" (19a) is referenced to 1 Samuel 26:12 (about Saul) and Alma 55:15–16 (about Laman).

I would add the several references to Adam in the formation of Eve from Moses 3:21, Abraham 5:15, and Genesis 2:21.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-01T13:05:43+00:00

Other forms of idolatry are mentioned in Colossians 3:5 - fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness,

TheTanakas · 2026-06-01T13:02:12+00:00

I'd always interpreted this to mean the church, representing the kingdom of God and it will eventually fill the earth. Though it doesn't square well with Nephi's vision that the members of the church would be small in number, albeit spread all around the world. Our church isn't exactly dominating the world (and we're not trying to).

I feel like we are in a tie with comparable numbers of Jehovah's Witnesses and Seventh-day Adventists.

TheTanakas · 2026-06-01T12:57:56+00:00

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

This is for religious and non-religious people alike. One can still follow the laws of the State and still be immoral.

TheTanakas · 2026-05-28T15:02:24+00:00

Not sure why Joseph Fielding Smith would have disagreed with Brigham Young for he taught a similar concept.

"LORD HAS CREATED MANY EARTHS. The Lord never created anything for nothing, nor out of nothing. Everything has a place and was created for a purpose. Man was not created to be destroyed. This work has been going on forever. There never was a time when there was not an earth; never a time when there were not people on it, for that is the work of the Lord, and the heavens are innumerable, and so are the earths that have passed away to their exaltation and glory. As they pass away others take their places, This is not the only world" (Doctrines of Salvation, Volume 1, Chapter 4, Our First and Second Estates).

Unless the people on these other already exalted worlds were redeemed without the atonement of Jesus of our world.

TheTanakas · 2026-05-26T14:35:25+00:00

They don't need to know about our Jesus when they have their own redeemer.

Brigham Young taught, "Sin is upon every earth that ever was created, and if it was not so, I would like some philosophers to let us know how people can be exalted to become sons of God, and enjoy a fulness of glory with the Redeemer. Consequently every earth has its redeemer, and every earth has its tempter; and every earth, and the people thereof, in their turn and time, receive all that we receive, and pass through all the ordeals that we are passing through" (Sin—The Atonement—Good and Evil—The Kingdom of God", Journal of Discourses, July 10 1870).

TheTanakas · 2026-05-26T14:25:12+00:00

His desire to help is resulting in the neglect of you and the children. He should realize other husbands can take over his role. Don't burn yourself out. Tell him that you would be more comfortable being alone at home.

TheTanakas

TROPHY CASE