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| Our Websites: www.shieldandrefuge.org | www.whatloveisthis.tv | www.hagarhome.org | |
| October 2024 |  |
Dear Praying Friends,
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Seven times in the New Testament we read that “God is our Savior.” However multiple times over we also
read that Jesus is the Savior, our Savior, the Savior of the world. We ask, how can God be our Savior, if Jesus is
the Savior? And how can polygamy save a person if Jesus is the Savior. As we discuss this topic with Mormon
polygamists there is frequently a response of mockery or rejection that Jesus is the one and only God. We also
see their shock and disbelief when we explain that “religious works and rituals” cannot save or help save us.
Hebrews 11:6-- And without faith it is impossible to please Him...
It doesn’t say, without polygamy it is impossible to please Him. To those in Mormonism who trust in men, in living prophets, in unbiblical teachings and in polygamy to save them, they have turned from the one and only Savior, Jesus Christ, and trust in themselves to save themselves.
Someone said, “If our good works could save us, we would be our own savior, we would have no need of Jesus.”
The Bible says it better in Galatians 2:21:
“for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.”
We thank you for your support and prayers that enable us to continue to bring Biblical truths to polygamists!
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~ It all began with Joseph Smith ~
“It can no longer be successfully maintained that Mormon polygamy was an after-thought, first conceived of and practiced at Nauvoo, for the facts that have leaked out all tend to show that it was one of the first principles of the Mormon faith that entered into Smith's mind. Indeed, so convincing are these facts that a certain Gentile scoffer suggests that the first revelation on the subject may have come during the period of pubescence, if not before ... Apostle Orson Pratt publicly declared that the principle was first made known to the Prophet in the year 1831 though he claims that the latter did not enter upon its practice until some ten years afterwards.
“...Smith took great pains to keep his practices secret, and this is, undoubtedly, the reason why the evidences of plural wifery were so meager before 1842.. Suffice it to say, however, that the conduct of the leading Mormons prior to that date was of such a character as to raise the suspicions of their Gentile neighbors that some form of immorality was practiced among them.
“Whenever one of Smith's confederates turned traitor and revealed the immoral conduct of his chief, he was promptly cut off from the church, often on the same charge that he had made against Smith and generally without a hearing, while his accusations were met with emphatic denials and protestations of innocence. The Prophet's own denials and protestations were sometimes accompanied with certificates of good character signed by numbers of his followers, plenty of whom could be found willing to attach their names to such a statement. Many of these were undoubtedly ignorant of his private life and signed their names in good faith, but some of them, who had been let into his secrets, knowingly signed a falsehood, having been taught that it was right and proper to lie in the interests of the church and the "Lord's Anointed."
“That Smith had in mind the introduction of polygamy into the church, when he was pretending to translate the Book of Mormon, is proved by the qualifying clause of the passage prohibitive of polygamy in that book, "For if I will, saith the Lord of hosts, raise up seed unto me, I will command my people ; otherwise they shall hearken unto these things."
This qualifying clause was, without doubt, intended to be a suggestion to the believers in the Book of Mormon that God might, at some future time, command his people to practice plural wifery. That Joseph, at this time, was not opposed to the principle is proved by the testimony of Rev. Levi Lewis, an uncle of his wife, who says:
“I heard Joseph Smith and Martin Harris both say that adultery was no crime. I saw him three times intoxicated while he was composing the Book of Mormon and heard him use language of the greatest profanity.” ~The True Origin of Mormon Polygamy, By Charles A. Shook; Pgs 39-40
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FROM OUR MAILBOX
“I've been divorced for 19 years. I got a letter from my former husband's bishop stating my former husband wants to get sealed to his present wife that is still alive. She is sealed to her first husband that committed suicide. In the letter it stated that if they get sealed I will also still be sealed to him. The church still definitely believes in polygamy. On their records my former husband would be a polygamist. I told his bishop to make sure my sealing was cancelled because I NEVER want to live polygamy. I had asked for my name to be removed and my sealing cancelled over 10 years ago so I guess they never really remove your name so they can keep their count of membership up." --PD
“Joseph Smith fails God’s prophet test in Deuteronomy 13:1-5, 18:21-22. Further people who knew Joseph and his family who lived nearby felt compelled to legally record statements about his wayward character. He was a deceiver and drunkard, as well as his father. A money digger and practiced in the occult. Mormonism teaches another gospel, another god, who was once a man that earned his godhood. Another Jesus, Lucifer’ spirit brother. The Bible says Lucifer was a created cherub. And God is spirit and we are to worship in spirit and truth. Jesus is God incarnate. John 1:1. Trust God and his word alone written in the Holy Bible." --JS
“My heart goes out for Mormon people, especially those tethered in polygamous groups. I too was a Mormon for a time. I wrote a letter requesting my name be removed from LDS records but never received a reply. I reverted to Christianity, and by faith I know my Heavenly Father healed me. Oh praise be to him on high." --PB
A Heartbreaking Story...
We want to share a heartbreaking story about a young man who was raised in the FLDS community of Colorado City, AZ. This story is shared by Brody and Liz Olson who have been Christian Missionaries to the FLDS people since 2012:
"After first arriving in Colorado City in 2012, my wife and I quickly got to work rehabbing the run down basement apartment we had rented. I remember glancing over at this young man who lived upstairs sitting on the porch, puffing on a cigarette and sipping on coffee. One day he finally approached me and asked why in the world we moved to Colorado City. I told him that God led us here to help people in the community. He then quickly retorted, 'I think you are running from the law.' CJ couldn’t believe that anyone would want to move here.
"We got to know CJ a little better over the years we lived there. His is a sad story and one that he, himself was reluctant to tell. A prophetic revelation from Warren Jeffs about his future delinquency prompted his parents to lock him in his bedroom for long periods of time. Being constantly cooped up drove CJ mad and one day he decided he would take his own life. However, a malfunctioning firing pin on the gun caused him to reconsider. We met CJ years later and by then he had spent time in juvenile hall until he aged out and was consigned to the streets. However, the kind lady upstairs had pity on him and took him in for over a year before we arrived. Her ex-husband never liked the idea. One day he filed bogus charges against CJ to get him to move out. The lady upstairs was forced to make a decision between keeping CJ in her house or forfeiting her kids. CJ needed a place to stay but no-one wanted him. I finally called my parents who were living in Wyoming at the time and CJ found himself a new home in the wind-swept plains of Rawlins, Wyoming.
"While there CJ attended church on Sundays and daily Bible studies with my mom. After a few months, with tears in his eyes CJ accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior and even got baptized. Time passed and CJ eventually made his way back to Colorado City where he floundered for a few more years. We found out and invited him to live with us to help him get back on his feet. At first, he seemed to improve. However, upon returning from a week-long trip, we discovered CJ had slumped into deep depression and prescription drug use. We sought help by sending him to a drug rehabilitation service. From there we lost contact with CJ until just over a month ago where we learned that CJ was found dead at a campsite in the mountains of Arizona surrounded only by empty tin food cans and a backpack. It was tragic news. He was discovered alone with no one to report about him except a kayaker who happened upon his body. CJ died the same way he lived. Alone and ill-equipped for life. His parents chose their religion over their son, allegiance to a prophet above their family. His sad story is not all that unusual. It illustrates the devastation of a number of young men whom the town didn’t think fit to live. But, because Christian families showed him the love of Jesus, I have reason to believe that I will see CJ in heaven one day. Death has a way of reminding us why we roam this earth. For the brief period of time where sin seems to rule the day we have the opportunity to pluck people from the devils clutches and bring them into the marvelous light. May we always be committed to that goal.
"CJ was determined as an adult to finally meet up with his mom and tell her that he forgives her and that he loves her. After years of never talking to his mother, he was finally given the opportunity when he saw her in the Walmart parking lot. After telling her how much he loved her she looked at him and told him to take all those feelings, stuff them in a concrete box and bury them deep into the ground. With that, she walked away. I would say that he never truly recovered and it is what I think caused the downward spiral later in life. I did hear that his mother finally left the [polygamous] church not that long ago and was in conversation with CJ toward the end of his life and it even sounded like she was trying to get a place where she could welcome CJ back into her life. However, I would say too little too late. CJ was a messed up kid and he was maybe too far gone to expect any recovery of relationship with his parents. “
NOTE: This is just one of hundreds of tragic stories of people born and raised in fanatical polygamous families. Please pray for them, and for all Christians who are reaching out to them with the warning that they are following false prophets and a false gospel— pray they will find peace, grace and salvation in Jesus Christ alone.
TERMINOLOGY DIFFERENCES:
TRUE CHURCH
Mormonism: 15th President Gordon B. Hinckley
“Our message is so imperative, when you stop to think that the salvation, the eternal salvation of the world, rests upon the shoulders of this Church. When all is said and done, if the world is going to be saved, we have to do it. There is no escaping from that. No other people in the history of the world have received the kind of mandate that we have received. We are responsible for all who have lived upon the earth. Church News, July 3, 1999, p. 3 ~ Copied from In Their Own Words, Bill McKeever
Bible: The church invisible "consists of the whole number of the elect that have been, are, or shall be gathered into one under Christ, the head thereof."
"It is the body of Christ. The whole body of professing Christians throughout the world are the church of Christ. It’s the universal church; not confined to any particular country or outward organization, but comprehending all believers throughout the whole world." --Easton Bible dictionary
THEY SAID THAT?
“I want the liberty of thinking and believing as I please, it feels so good not to be trammelled...it does not prove that a man is not a good man because he errs in doctrine. — Joseph Smith; Celestial or Plural Marriage by Joseph W. Musser, p 99
Praises and Prayer Requests:
“A” has finally had enough abuse and neglect from her polygamous husband, she has finally decided to leave him. Pray for continued courage and that she would trust Jesus.
“M” continues to seek Biblical truth and fellowships with Christians. Keep praying for him and his wife to totally withdraw from polygamy doctrine.
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