Inside the Temple Part IV
Show 28 / 358
September 10, 2013
Observations
I'm your host, Shawn McCraney. We praise the True and Living God for allowing us to participate in this ministry. May He be with you (and us) tonight.
Got a telephone call last night from a man who is LDS and had a serious moral problem—a problem for which he actually did time in prison. Upon getting out, he decided to get back active in his LDS ward, and he has, frankly, been surrounded by helpful, loving, and forgiving friends along the way. While in prison, he went through some intense therapy and was able to see how deceptive he had been toward people over the course of his life. So when he was finally released, he wanted to face life as honestly and openly as possible—avoiding lies and deception so as not to go down the same paths he did in his past that got him locked up in prison.
Not too long ago, in his quest for authentic and open living, he discovered some facts about Mormonism he had long disregarded as anti-Mormon lies. He dug deeper only to find more and more stuff about his faith and is now a non-believer in Mormonism. The reason he called me? What should he do now? He has been received and welcomed back into full fellowship by the ward members. He is well on his way to becoming fully activated again, but he now knows it's all a farce.
After forty-five minutes, we came to the conclusion that it would be a detriment to his desire to live authentically and openly if he was to embrace a belief system he knows to be false. And I guess my point in bringing this up tonight is to show that light is light, and truth is truth, and this man has discovered that if he is going to live free from his criminal propensities, he has to be honest in EVERY area of his life—including his religion.
Again, the words of Jesus ring loud and clear:
Freedom in Truth
“If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:31-32
Had a woman call me a few weeks back and ask if I would meet with her and the LDS Elders who had been coming by her home with messages. I agreed, and last week, I sat down with three full-time Mormon Missionaries, the woman who was their investigator (her name is Camille), Mary, and my middle daughter Cassidy. I am telling you who was there so that you can know there were seven witnesses to what I am about to share with you.
Prior to sitting down with them, I decided I was going to approach this meeting with a tack I had never used before—and after having done it, I would recommend it to you as well. I’ve named the approach the, "My Jesus can beat up your church with both hands nailed to the cross" approach. This is how it works: After all the perfunctory introductions and social graces were exchanged—a little joking here, a little common ground building there (ugghhh)—I asked the Elders to explain what Mormonism offered Camille that her relationship with Jesus and activity in Christianity did not give her.
The Elders sort of squirmed around, and then Elder Edwards spoke up first. You know what he said? “Friendships.”
LDS Temples and the Bible
Because we are in the process of revealing what actually goes on in the LDS temples, I thought I would point a couple of facts out about the temple in the Bible and LDS temples. Now, remember, when I asked these official full-time representatives of the LDS church where the LDS temple rites came from, they said, “from, from you know, Moses time.”
So here are some bullet points in a compare and contrast between the temple of the Jews and LDS temples.
First, there was and remains, to every Jew, only one location for their temple. Even with Jews scattered all over the world, there is only one location they recognize as THE location for their single temple—Mount Moriah. LDS have operating to date 141. Secondly, that temple served as a place for animal sacrifice picturing Christ to
LDS Temple Practices and Scriptural Contradictions
There is no animal sacrifice in LDS temples. Third, in the temple on Mount Moriah there was no endowment ceremony, no washings and anointings (like the LDS do them), no baptisms for the dead, no eternal sealings, no second anointings – all of which are present in LDS temples. We know this because the Bible tells us so.
Fourth, genealogy was important to the Nation of Israel, just as it is important to the LDS. The reason it was important to the nation of Israel was so they could see who came from which tribe and therefore who was able to be a priest/high priest in the temple rites. What is interesting is that when the temple was destroyed in 70 AD, all the genealogy was destroyed with it, sending a clear message that there is now only one high priest to worry about – Jesus the Messiah. Additionally, when Jesus died on the cross, the veil that separated everyone but the high priest from the Holy of Holies, was torn in two – from top to bottom – signifying that the Good News was now open once and for all to everyone, and not just to the Nation of Israel.
The Concept of High Priest and Temple in Scripture
But Joseph tacked that veil back up, made his temple rites secret to everyone but the LDS, and said they were required for exaltation. The temple of the Nation of Israel is first called "the temple of the Lord" in 1st Samuel 1:9. In the New Testament the word is used figuratively of Christ's human body (John 2:19,21). Later in the Word believers are called "the temple of God" (in 1st Corinthians 3:16-17) and finally in Ephesians 2:21, we are told that the Church (which is made up of individual believers) is designated "an holy temple in the Lord."
Acts 7:48 says plainly that now “the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands.” Why? Because God dwells in the hearts of those who have been cleansed by the shed blood of Christ. The writer of Hebrews goes to great lengths to tell us that our High Priest, even Jesus Christ, does not operate from temples made with hands. Listen:
Christ as the True High Priest
Hebrews 9:11 “But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building.” Instead, our final and true and only High Priest has entered the Holy of Holies on high. Listen to Hebrews 9:24
Hebrews 9:24 “For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.” I have tried over the years to withhold expressing myself in unsubstantiated hyperbole but what we are witnessing the LDS doing in their temples is completely demonic and in direct opposition to all we read in the Word relative to the Good News.
Run “From the Word” here.
And with that, let’s have a word of prayer:
PRAYER PRAYER PRAYER
PRAYER PRAYER PRAYER
We are going to show you another eleven and a half minutes of the LDS temple endowment tonight. We’re almost through. There are a couple of things to note before we run tonight’s segment. They’re subtle.
Mormonism is huge in the belief that there is a constant, on-going “exchange” (if you will) between heavenly beings and earthly. Talk to any temple attending Mormon and most have either had or have heard of someone who claims to have had an experience with a heavenly being. Some claim Jesus has visited them, a few talk about notable heavenly residents, and a great majority claim that deceased relatives have made appearances to them – especially when they are in the temple.
Now remember, Mormonism does NOT believe in angels with wings but instead says that angels are men who have either come to earth and lived or are waiting to come to earth to get a body. All of this originates with Joseph Smith who, by the way, claims to have received his Book of Mormon from an angelic man named Moroni, who he had a great deal of interaction.
This is important to what we saw represented in the temple film last week. Remember? Heavenly messengers (Peter, James, and John) were told by “Elohim” (which is what the LDS say is God the Father’s name) to go down and visit the man Adam, first, in disguise, and then revealing their true identity.
Heavenly Insights in LDS Teachings
Disguise they found Satan in their midst. Now in earlier temple films and sessions, Satan introduces Adam and Eve to a Protestant Preacher. The meaning and message of this was that man cannot learn heavenly truths from other human beings but only from heavenly messengers or angels. This is why Adam says in the film, “I am waiting for father to send messengers.” Then Satan responds with, “Oh, you want religion do you.” What Smith was trying to convey is all our heavenly insights must come from heavenly beings and not from men – especially not from men like pastors and priests. According to the Biblical account, this approach subjects people to deception.
Angels are certainly presented in the biblical account. And yes, they have had interaction with humanity. But on scale visitations with the departed was minimal in the Old Testament, even more scarce in the New, and this idea proffered by Smith, in my opinion, only opens people up to visitations from the dark posing as light.
The Role of Angels
Since Jesus ascended, we know that the ministrations of angels have served in a number of different ways. We know from the word that angels today serve as “ministering spirits to the people of God,” that they rejoice over a penitent sinner, they bear the souls of the redeemed to paradise, and that they will serve as ministers of judgment hereafter on the great day. But we also know that the scripture warns us against angels of light, and angels of heaven preaching or teaching another Gospel.
2nd Corinthians 11:13-15 says
“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.”
Warnings from Scripture
Of course, we remember Paul warning in Galatians the following:
“But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” Galatians 1:8
Try and remember all of this as we, for the next 12 minutes or so, embark on yet another segment Inside the LDS Temple. We left off last week with Adam looking into the camera and testifying that the character angels (Peter, James, and John) were trust-worthy. Why was Adam able to testify of this? Because Peter shared the secret handshake with him proving his teachings could be trusted.
Roll em. (please show video from 44:49 – 56:25)
