What's wrong with this picture?

As we approach the traditional celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus, THE central miracle in the Bible (because it proves He was who He said He was), it's good to reflect on yet another, and very important, difference between the Jesus of the Bible and the jesus of the Mormon church. Namely, where did the atonement for OUR sins take place? The Bible has one answer. The Mormon church another. The difference is black or white, heaven or hell.

My question isn't exactly fair, because the Mormons deny that Jesus died for our sins. According to Mormonism, Jesus only died for Adam's sin. Like Catholicism, they teach we have to work the rest of our sins off ourselves. But still, we can talk about the where the atonement took place.

It's fair game to talk about this because, you see, in Mesa, Arizona, the Mormons will be putting on an 'Easter' Pageant all this week. Billed as the "World's largest annual outdoor easter pageant," their production will draw about 50,000 lost souls for the week. (If you're in the area, why not come by and pray for the Evangelists there?)

Since they'll be promoting their version of their jesus, I have a duty as a Christian, per Jude 3, and, in this country, a right, to promote the Biblical Jesus. (Until either the Mormons or the Muslims take over, that is.)

Now, I hope as a Christian you know where the atonement took place for your sins. You can hardly miss it, it's repeated over and over again in the New Testament.

Behold the (Passover) Lamb of God!

These were John the Baptist's words when he saw Jesus coming to be baptized. (Something Jesus didn't have to do, since he was sinless. But in order to identify with sinful man, he lowered himself to this act of contrition.)

The writer of Hebrews, at the end of Chapter 9 and the beginning of Chapter 10 tells us that "the Law," that is, the first 5 books of the Bible, were a shadow of things to come. God used imagery in the Old Testament to point to Christ in the New. And so the whole point of the Jewish Passover lamb and the command to continually celebrate the Passover by slaughtering an innocent lamb was pointing to the final and greatest Passover "Lamb," Jesus the Christ.

Now, a simple question. On the night of the Jewish exodus, when did God pass over the sins of the Jews? Or in other words, when was the atonement made? Was it when the lamb was still alive, perhaps sweating drops of blood? Or was it after the lamb was slain, its blood shed in death? Obviously, it was the latter. God didn't pass over the houses in Egypt unless there was blood on the door post. Blood from a totally innocent lamb who was sacrificed to cover the sins of everyone in that household.

In the same way, our sins weren't atoned for until Jesus died on the cross. That's where He was slain.

But the Mormons don't get it. They totally miss the message of the cross and instead focus on an obscure medical comment Dr. Luke makes in his Gospel. That's the passage where Luke tells us that Jesus was in such a state of anxiety, knowing what was coming (but hadn't happened yet—remember, when the mob came, Jesus was still able to bowl them over with a single breath), that His blood pressure was so high that His capillaries broke and he "sweat" blood. Today's medical terms for this is "hemathidrosis" and it would have been a fascinating phenomenon for Luke, a physician.

The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy

Now, one of the neat things (albeit sad) about being an Evangelist is that you get to see the Bible come alive. It never ceases to amaze me how prophetic our God is and how His words continue to ring true. Take, for example, this passage of Scripture:

For the message of the cross is foolish to those who are perishing..." 1 Corinthians 1:18

It was true when the Apostle Paul (a REAL Apostle) wrote it. And it's still true today. Despite the many references to the cross in the Bible, Mormons don't get it. Satan has blinded their minds and their hearts. This is why you don't see any crosses on Mormon church buildings.

The Old Rugged Garden?

Instead of the old rugged cross, Mormons focus on the garden. Of Gethsemane. Here's a quote from their easter pageant.

... his sweat was, as it were, drops of blood, falling down to the ground. For the savior suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer, IF they would repent. ...

In a way inconceivable to man, the savior willingly took upon himself [NOTE THE TENSE] the sins of all mankind, that all might have the opportunity to repent.

Note that, being in the Garden, we haven't gotten to the crucifixion yet, but according to Mormonism, their jesus has already taken on himself the sins of all mankind. (In previous versions of the pageant, before 2000, they used to say something like, "and thus the atonement was made.")

So while it's true that Jesus sweat drops of blood, as depicted in the graphic above, that's not where the atonement took place. And too, this was a very dark time. But what do you see in the Mormon picture? You see glories streaming down from heaven.

Wrong.

And the point is?

I want Christians in America to know that the Jesus of the Bible is NOT the same jesus in the Mormon church. When Mormon Mitt Romney claims to believe in god, as he often says, he's referring to a completely different being, with completely different values. As his own prophet said, he doesn't believe in the traditional jesus. He uses our words, but he's speaking a different language. It would be correct to say he's speaking his father's language, for they both believe they can be like God.


Don't vote for Mitt Romney. His god is not your God. Therefore, his values are not your values. Don't put a Mormon in the White House. Don't fall for the siren song.