Heart of the Matter

Show #30: "Seeing and Hearing"

Welcome to Heart of the MatterTGNN’s original show where Shawn McCraney deconstructed religion and developed fulfilled theology.!

Lots to cover tonight! Over the past three years, a question I am often asked is how can we contribute to our ministry. www.bornagainmormon.com has ways listed, from prayer to handing out door hangers in your neighborhood. Some people then want to know how to contribute financially and until now, we have not been in a position to accept financial donations properly. We are now in that we have established a non-profit tax-exempt 501(c)3 corporation and are not only able to accept donations but you are able to write your donations off. Understand this clearly, we are not soliciting funds from you. I am merely giving out the information that is frequently requested. Our tax-exempt Corporation is Alathea Ministries and the address is on your screen. You can also find information on Alathea Ministries on our website at www.bornagainmormon.com under the ___________ page.

Church Scouts

Remember that a list of our recommended churches can be found on our website at www.bornagainmormon.com. Alright, let’s play!

(audio effect?)

GAMAGAMAGAMAGAMA! Which stands for what? That’s right – “Get A Mormon Answer!”

The Translation of the Golden Plates

Last week the GAMA question was: “How did, or by what means, did Joseph Smith translate the Golden Plates?” We received several emails posting their answers. I will read a few:

From Tom

And From Maria

The documented truth of the matter, which can be found under the notes of this show on our website, is thus: Once Joseph and Emma were established in a small home on the property of Emma’s father, the translation of the Book of Mormon began. According to JS Manuscript History, Joseph used “spectacles” which were included with the plates to translate some of the reformed Egyptian characters himself. After 1833 these spectacles or directors were referred to as the “Urim and Thummim”.

At this time there was a curtain or drape between Smith and anyone else who was in the room.

By the way, the actual characters JS “copied” from the plates are available in the archives of the Community of Christ in Independence, Missouri. They remain undecipherable to this day, were called “reformed Egyptian” by Joseph, and are said by experts to be a combination of several writing styles. Emma acted as the first scribe. Interestingly enough, the “Reformed Egyptian” was translated out into King's English, the verbiage used in the King James Version of the Bible. Soon Joseph discarded the “plates” to some unknown and moved out from behind the curtain that separated he and Emma. There he began to just dictate openly.

Says Emma, in an interview with their son, Joseph Smith the III, in 1879: “In writing for Joseph Smith, I frequently wrote day after day, often sitting at the table close by him, he sitting with his face buried in his hat, with the stone in it and dictating hour after hour, with nothing between us.” In the early spring of 1828, Martin Harris arrived in Pennsylvania and replaced Emma as scribe. His description was the same as Emma’s – Joseph utilizing his seer stone in a hat. As recorded in the Deseret Evening News in 1881 and the Millennial Star in 1886, reporter Edward Stevenson, who interviewed Martin Harris wrote: “By aid of the seer stone, sentences would appear and were read by the prophet and written by Martin.”

It is VERY important to understand that Joseph Smith, prior to announcing that there were golden plates, was known in and around his community as being a buried treasure seeker and the means he used to “locate” buried treasure was the very same seer stone by which he claimed to dictate the Book of Mormon. This is fact. Joseph used the same seer stone to find lost objects, find the plates, find treasure, and to translate the Book of Mormon. When Oliver Cowdery took over as scribe in April of 1829, he described Joseph as using the spectacles again. Those are the facts.

Okay, LDS viewers, here’s this week's GAMA question: How much time passed between the time Joseph let people know there were golden plates to where he actually produced a mss. translation of them? Email your concise answers to: Shawn@bornagainmormon.com

Alright, let’s petition the Lord.

Two weeks ago…

Isaiah said:

(Isaiah 42:18)
Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see.

Listen to the prophet Jeremiah:

Jeremiah 5:21
Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not.

Matthew 13:15-16
For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of…

Spiritual Blindness and Deafness

hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should (1) see with their eyes, and (2) hear with their ears, and (3) should understand with their heart, (4) and should be converted, and (5) I should heal them.

Romans 10:13
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

The Word of God presents a number of general reasons for spiritual blindness. I will talk about three. The first is quite obvious – people are blind from being in the dark. What kind of darkness are we talking about?

Called Into Marvellous Light

Peter 2:9
… that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light. Now LDS say you are born a child of Light. But this verse says you must come out of the darkness!

Another obvious cause of spiritual blindness and deafness is sinMissing the mark of faith and love—no punishment, just lost growth or peace.. Some sins – like those of the flesh – take the participant down a road to deeper and darker levels of spiritual and physical destruction. If you have lived long enough, you have seen this occur to some otherwise wonderful people. I hate carnal sin because of what it does to people I love. It traps them. It keeps them in the dark. It destroys them. I’ve watched four very close friends waste away into oblivion because of drugs. I hate them.

We had a caller who presented himself as “informed and educated in the LDS religion” but who was, for all intents and purposes, blind – not only to the historical facts of Mormonism but to biblical truth. He purported to nearly be a “Ph.d” but was ignorant to some basic information about the religion he claimed to be true and the essential saving truths of Jesus. Have you ever met a person who was blind in their heart? Who could hear but was at the same time deaf?

Why are some people deaf and blind to the truth when it is presented plainly to them? How can people have “the parts” for perception but not the ability to use them.

Reasons for Spiritual Blindness

In Matthew chapter 13, Jesus explains that He speaks in parables because there are those “who will not hear” and those who “will not see” – even if they are standing right in front of Him listening. Jesus then goes on to say why:

“Heart is waxed gross.”
GRK= “mind has grown fat.”
Ears dull of hearing.
Eyes have closed.

WHY? He gives us the answer right there! People close their eyes and ears and let their minds grow fat so they won’t: See with their eyes. Hear with their ears. Understand with their heart. Be converted. And then be healed by Him! Can you see and hear the process of rebirth in this? (REVIEW IT) Isn’t that beautiful?

Then Jesus says to those who hear and see Him – I have literally met hundreds of people in the course of my life – atheists, Jews, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Catholics, Mormons, Buddhists, Humanists, pagans, Christians – who at some point in their existence were suddenly able to “see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand in their heart, were converted, and were then subsequently “healed by Jesus.” This is rebirth!!!! And no matter where they have come from, they all know where they are headed and why they are headed there – JESUS. They SAW. They HEARD. They UNDERSTOOD with their heart. They are CONVERTED. Then He HEALED them!

Unfortunately, I have also met far too many people -some very good and some very evil, who do not, will not, cannot! see or hear Him at all! They are truly blind and deaf to truth!

Ephesians 6:12
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

I have always maintained that there are only two operating systems in this world and everything is connected in one way or another to one of these two systems. Satan’s darkness or the Lord’s light.

Light in the World

Where Ephesians 2:2 reads…
“Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.”

John 12:46 responds…
“I am come a light into the world,

Spiritual Light vs. Spiritual Darkness

"That whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness." Without the Light of the World illuminating the dark, we all find ourselves unable to see truth from the murky corners in which we have learned to exist, to make choices, and to perceive the world around us. Everyone must come out of the darkness at some point in their lives and into His light. All followers of Jesus must come out of the darkness and into His light—Mormons included. We are not born children of light but are actually children of darkness until we come to Him and into His light through rebirth. This is why He said, You MUST be born again. Spiritual darkness is the domain of all things not of God. In other words, whether you are an evil, sin-filled predator OR a patriotic, law-abiding, upstanding civic leader, you are in spiritual darkness until you come out into His marvelous light. Until you are born-again.

The Illusion of Goodness

And outward presentations of goodness and honor are not necessarily indicative of an inward ability to see and hear the Lord. Just remember the Pharisees of Jesus time: "Outwardly whited-sepulchures, Inwardly full of dead and dried bones." But the sins of avarice, lust, anger, and violence only represent one category of sins that blind and deafen. Few things more effectively blind spiritual eyes or deafen ears than the sins of pride, ego, and religious arrogance. Where sins of fleshly carnality often lead to self-disgust, loathing, and despair, they also have the potential to lead the sinner to a state where they have no option left than to scream in desperation for God. And He hears them in such a state. But the sins of religious and spiritual pride, arrogance, and ego often do more to distance a person from God than the ugly crimes of carnality weaker men might commit. This is what makes errant doctrines and religiosity so threatening to the Light. This is what makes religious piety, hypocrisy, and certainty such a heinous detriment to spiritual sensitivity.

Remember, the Pharisees were not blinded by their failures, they were blinded by their goodness, their piety, their religious pride, their personal worthiness. And Jesus seemed to hate, attack, and dismiss this category of sin more than anything else. Finally, and somewhat paradoxically, another cause of spiritual blindness is blinding counterfeit light.

Satan's Deceptive Roles

The scriptures allude to the idea that Satan has three forms under which he tempts or captures men and women:

1. He comes as a subtle serpent.
2. As a roaring lion.
3. And as an angel of light.

As the Subtle Serpent, Satan keeps much of the world under the oppressive control of his dark powers as millions if not billions wander aimlessly under the control of dark and evil empires. As a Roaring Lion, Satan seeks to captivate and devour us in our flesh. He gets us by our lust, our desires, our greed, our avarice, our weaknesses. And he drags us by our necks into his dank dens of despair and feeds upon our weaknesses as the natural consequence of our fleshy choices.

Imagine for a moment a gorgeous valley. Snow capped mountains, Crystal rivers and streams, Golden and Green meadows. Some people are walking about this valley who look to the sky, recognize God, read and trust His Word, and pray. They are simple, they are failures. They want to…

The Building and Its Symbolism

Do right. And they trust Jesus.

Now some men—whether well-intentioned or not we do not know—get together and decide that God needs a building to be built in the heart of this valley. A “glorious edifice.” Earth movers come. Base electric and plumbing done. Steel girders towering into the sky—2000 stories high! Walls attached. Marble and brick porticos. Leaded ornate Glass. Gorgeous hand carved interior. Climate controlled to perfection. Light controlled—glorious. Perfect habitation for all.

People begin to move into the structure. Equipped with cafeterias, kitchens, restaurants. System of rules are implemented with manuals distributed. Positions of authority are made. Portraits of authority are hung. Pictures of the founders, originators, and sustainers dot the walls. A culture develops. There are do’s and don’ts. There is an unwritten order of things. Life inside is really good. “Better” than life outside. Orderly. Easier. A whole system of security. Truth becomes systematized. Variance frowned upon.

The Illusion of Liberty

But even though things run well, and there is an appearance of freedom, there is an underlying oppression. A general façade. An ambiance of fantasy mixed with the inferred demands of conformity to the buildings expectations.

Those who appear perfect go to higher floors. Those who struggle are relegated to the basement. But here is the point: Those inside have been blinded by the light. Yes they feel superior. They really think they are following a better way, but in reality they cannot see or understand the liberty in Christ those have on the outside.

Now think back to those outside who simply follow and believe. They see the building. And they see the manner of the people who exit it on occasion. They see. They hear. They know. And their heart breaks at the façade and demands and expectations heaped upon those who are prisoners in the most glorious building ever created by man.

Reflection on Galatians 3:3

Brothers and Sisters, read Galatians 3:3 and tell me what it means.

“Are ye so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, they can now be made perfect by the flesh?” (Galatians 3:3)

Have you begun in the spirit, believing you can be made perfect by the flesh? Come outside, my friends. You have nothing to lose but your chains, and everything to gain—including your ability to see, hear, understand, convert, and be healed by Him.

Alright, let’s go to the phones.

QUESTIONS

Gennie: “I take exception to you saying that homosexuals are born that way. You are wrong. Homosexuality is a sin and has been a sin since the beginning. You should publicly take back having said this, Shawn.”

Congrats to Ragnar in Germany who has found the Lord and been born again through Jesus.

How could you say prophets like Gordon B Hinckley are no longer needed? Brenton in Palmdale

CONCLUSION