Tag: mormon
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One of the passages I frequently cited when teaching about the Great Apostasy as an LDS missionary was Acts 20:28–31: “Keep watch over yourselves and the entire flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after…
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Coal in the Stocking: A Harmless Bluff? Every December, parents everywhere tell their kids that if they misbehave, Santa will leave coal in their stockings instead of presents. It’s an empty threat, of course. The coal never comes. Eventually, the kids realize it was just a bluff—a tool to encourage good behavior during the holidays.…
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“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!”—Romans 11:33 (ESV) The Trinity is a doctrine that is simultaneously relatable and yet beyond our comprehension. It is beautiful and yet mysterious. It reveals a God that is infinitely worthy of our worship.…
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Grace is one of the most difficult topics for Latter-day Saints and Evangelicals to talk about. Even though Evangelicals Latter-day Saints use the same terminology, there are some pretty significant differences that are difficult to fully unpack. But often, it’s not our definitions that say the most—it’s our metaphors. Metaphors paint with vivid colors. They…
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One of the most compelling reasons I rejected the LDS idea of a Great Apostasy boils down to a simple question: If the apostles died without successors and priesthood authority was lost, why don’t early Christians express alarm or lament? It very much strikes me as a dog that didn’t bark. The phrase “the dog…
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I’ve noticed a curious pattern in the way some Latter-day Saint apologists engage with the Bible. When it comes to the Pentateuch—the first five books of the Bible—many are quick to embrace the conclusions of the documentary hypothesis or historical-critical methods. They seem more than comfortable suggesting that Moses didn’t write the Torah, that Deuteronomy…
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One of the most distinctive teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the belief that we lived with God before being born on earth. But does this teaching actually appear in the Church’s foundational scripture, the Book of Mormon? While there are a few passages that Latter-day Saints cite in support…
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Christian apologist Wesley Huff recently appeared on the Flagrant podcast, a popular comedy podcast, where he was able to proclaim Jesus Christ. Huff was a wonderful ambassador for the Christian faith. Huff got asked some pretty tough questions about how it can be fair for God to condemn unbelievers to Hell. He responded with both…
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Recently my wife and I made a down payment on a new home. As I signed the documents, I couldn’t help but think of Paul’s words in Ephesians 1:13–14 and 2 Corinthians 1:22, where he describes the Holy Spirit as a guarantee, a deposit, a down payment—the Greek word arrabōn—on the full inheritance God has…
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One of the greatest truths we celebrate at Easter is that our confidence and assurance rest not in ourselves, but in the finished work of Christ on the cross. That’s why I loved how Pastor Scott Hollingshead put it in his Easter sermon:“You do not start looking to yourself for assurance. You look to Jesus…