The Heart of the Matter: Where Mormonism Meets Biblical Christianity

Live from the Mecca of Mormonism – Salt Lake City, Utah – This is Heart of the MatterTGNN’s original show where Shawn McCraney deconstructed religion and developed fulfilled theology. – Show 4 379 The 2014 Examination Explained

And I’m your host, Shawn McCraneyFounder of TGNN and developer of the fulfilled perspective—calling people to faith outside of religion.

We thank the true and living God for allowing us to be part of this, His ministry.

A Thought for the Night

Let's begin with a thought for the night:

“I pray for the day when Christianity is entirely stripped of its own culture, when opinions, politics, lifestyles, tastes, and attitudes are lost in the blinding light of Christ’s love.”

Something to think about, huh.

All right… take yet another LOOK!

Heart of the Matter Television Network

I want you to try and imagine what we are doing here. Take a mixture of 20 plus verse-by-verse bible teachers, another ten noted Christian apologists, and spread their teachings out over a year's worth of airtime. In between them, add in programs that deal with Mormonism, with short films, fine art education, stand-up comedy, good music clips, and somewhere between five to seven original programs – and growing. That will be the Heart of the Matter Television Network, airing here in Salt Lake City, Utah on KPDR 19.3 and then God willing, on cable, then Dish, then Direct… across the nation.

Will this happen because we have gathered together a top-notch team of television professionals? Nope. Is it going to fly because we have deep pockets and can produce high-end content? No, no. It’s gonna happen because God will allow it and He will make it fly.

So pray for us. And tell your friends – The Heart of the Matter Television Network is on the way – Giving God a Chance to Make Sense.

Last week we ended our interview with faithful LDS believer Doug Bundy. If you haven’t watched the shows (last week and the week before) you ought to take a minute and go to the HOTM website and check them out. Among other things, Bundy did not hesitate, as (again) and faithful member of the LDS church since 1965 (we’re talking almost 50 years folks) that Mormon’s know that:

1. Plural marriage is an eternal principle that will be practiced after this life.

2. That they are the ONLY real Christians on earth and that unless a person accepts the BOM they could not be considered Christian.

3. That Mormons believe (and teach) that God was once a man and man may become a god.

4. That people must pass by Joseph Smith (have his approbation) to enter the Celestial Kingdom.

5. That both he (and other men) are high priests just as Jesus is the Great high Priest.

6. That the LDS Church is going to fall (as articulated in the Doctrine and Covenants) and that

7. The BOM is proven authentic not through material supports (like the Bible) but because of its fulfillments of a mix of biblical and BOM prophecy.

I liked Doug – he was friendly and affable and fairly forthright. His big soap-box centers on his belief that the BOM fulfills Old Testament promises God made to Israel – and that these promises are being fulfilled today, even in the Americas. Such a theory is not novel to the Book of Mormon as the premise was all around early 19th-century American Christianity and in a large part was propagated by Pastor Ethan Smith in his book, View of the Hebrews, and who happened to be the family pastor to Oliver Cowdery. I’m not so sure Doug knows this.

A Revealing Call

In any case, it was fun having a fairly forthright (although beguiled) LDS man on the show, and I admire him as an individual. The low point of the show occurred when a Christian man (who called himself “Dave” from Salt Lake City) phoned into the program. The reason I say this was the low point is because the caller had an agenda and it wasn’t to elucidate something about Doug and his position but was to actually attack me, my person, and the ministry. I do not mind such an attack but resent it when the program for the evening is focused on a guest and his religion.

You see, Dave does not appreciate, as a brother in Christ, that my personal position relative to Five Point Calvinism and sold-out Arminianism is total reconciliation through Christ. He attempted to show that I was actually preaching a form of Mormon universalism. When I recognized early on that his intention was to divide I called him “an…

The Distinction Between Reconciliationism and Universalism

"Idiot" (which was actually a very kind term when I seriously consider his personality) and refused to let him continue. His ultimate agenda revealed itself when he said that I was sounding like a cult leader (an ad hominem attack planted to also undermine). So before we continue with the show, let me clearly explain how reconciliationism is in no way another way of saying universalism. (And by the way, I have never read anything by Rob Bell).

People who receive Christ by faith in this life are saved. Those who don’t are not. All people are not saved – only those who while living in the flesh receive Christ through faith. When a person believes unto life eternal, they are saved. Saved from what? Hell and deathSeparation from God—now overcome. Physical death remains, but it no longer separates us from life with God.? They go to heaven after this life and escape the second death. They are saved from these things. When a person says: “I’m saved,” they are saying they have been saved (by the shed blood of Jesus Christ) from sinMissing the mark of faith and love—no punishment, just lost growth or peace. and its end result – hell and the second death – or the lake of fire. Those who are saved are part of the First Resurrection. Those who are not are raised later in an inferior one.

The Conditions of Being Saved

Those who are saved enjoy the presence of God in their lives here and now. Those who are saved that grow in faith and love (and suffer with Christ) become co-heirs with Him. And I would suggest (but don’t have time tonight to explain why) but I would suggest that those who are saved (those who die Christian) reap what they sow in that they retain the characteristics of mind, will, and emotion bestowed on them in human existence. ALL of this occurs in and through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Universalism does NOT teach such things. It teaches all roads lead to heaven, that all people are saved, and that there is no hell or second death in the Lake of Fire – I am not suggesting this at all.

However, I do suggest that:

• God is Sovereign (Do you believe this, yes or no?)
• That God is Love (Do you believe this, yes or no?)
• That God’s will is that all people would come to Him? (Do you believe this, yes or no?)
• That Jesus paid for the sins of the whole world (Do you believe this, yes or no?)
• That every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord (do you believe this, yes or no?)
• that before creating anything, this loving Sovereign God, by and through His foreknowledge, knew the end result (Yes or no?)

If you agree said yes to all of these points there is not a rational way you could ever justify eternal punishment.

A Word on Human Nature

Built into human flesh is a tendency to love our own and hate that which is not like us. Victor Hugo said something to the effect that there are people who if they have love for some have to express the same amount of hatred for others. Eric Hoffer, the Longshoreman Philosopher, proved this “us verses them” mentality in his epic work, The True Believer, a study of mass movements. People find security in numbers, commonality, and in belonging to the true group, feel the right to castigate those who differ from them – even in the least. Of course the Lord sets the right tone for us in His life and walk with the twelve, doesn’t He?

They were frequently found in possession of an “us verses them” mentality – even to the point of wanting to destroy those who resisted their ways – but Jesus set them straight, didn’t He? We read in the Gospel of Mark that the apostles saw some dude casting out demons in Jesus name and they stopped him. The reason they gave was because the man “followed them not.” And then we read Jesus say to them: “Goodeth on you, men. All who are worthy of Me do everything in exactly the sameth way as everyone else – or elseth they are cast-out-able.” NO? No. Actually, Jesus said: “Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. For he that is not against us is on our part.” Mark 9:39-40.

Later, the apostles made another attempt to punish those who did not see the world the way they saw it. Jesus and the twelve were headed to Jerusalem and were passing through Samaria. Because they were obviously

The Response to Rejection

Focused on getting to Jerusalem (and not spending time in Samaria) the Samaritans were not real hospitable toward them.

So what do James and John the beloved do in response to this?

“The said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?”

But Jesus turned and rebuked them and said: Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of Man is not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them. And they went into another village.”
Luke 9:54-56

No Compromise on the Truth

There is never a time to soft-sell Him or the truth. We don’t compromise on the Truth, on love. But the objective is to reach, and teach, and bring people into the light out of love – NOT despise because they see things differently.

A Moment for Prayer

And with that, let’s have a word of prayer.

(Run from the Word Here)

PRAYER PRAYER PRAYER PRAYER PRAYER PRAYER

Okay, we’re going to go to the white board to sort of lay this out.

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