The Three Important Facts Stated By Joseph Smith
      Let us look at what two early top leaders in the Mormon church had to say about the importance of knowing God's attributes.  Joseph Smith, the founder and first president and prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons, also called LDS), in the 1835 Doctrine & Covenants (abbreviated D&C; one of their Scriptures) said the following:
 

 2 Let us here observe, that three things are necessary, in order that any rational and intelligent being may exercise faith in God unto life and salvation.
 3 First, The idea that he actually exists.
 4 Secondly , A correct idea of his character, perfections and attributes.
 5. Thirdly, An actual knowledge that the course of life which he is pursuing, is according to his will.--For without an acquaintance with these three important facts, the faith of every rational being must be imperfect and unproductive; but with this understanding, it can become perfect and fruitful, abounding in righteousness unto the praise and glory of God the Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.  (1835 Doctrine and Covenants, Lecture Third of Faith, p. 36; this was in this Mormon Scripture until the 1921 edition when it was quietly removed)

In verse 4 above note what must be taught - "A correct idea of his character, perfections and attributes." In verse 5 note how important it is to teach the "three important facts - " without them your faith is imperfect and unproductive.

The First Principle - "Tell You How God Came To Be God"  (Joseph Smith)
       At the April 7, 1844 General Conference of his church Joseph Smith, in what is called "The King Follet Discourse," expressed an idea similar to what he said in the 1835 D&C.
 

"...I am going to tell you how God came to be God. We have imagined and supposed that God was God from all eternity. I will refute that idea and take away the veil, so that you may see.
        ...It is the first principle of the Gospel to know for a certainty the character of God and to know that we may converse with him as one man converses with another, and that he was once a man like us; yea, that God himself the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth the same as Jesus Christ himself did; and I will show it from the Bible...
        Here, then, is eternal life—to know the only wise and true God; and you have got to learn how to be Gods yourselves, and to be kings and priests to God, the same as all Gods have done before you, namely, by going from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity to a great one; from grace to grace, from exaltation to exaltation, until you attain to the resurrection of the dead, and are able to dwell in everlasting burnings, and to sit in glory, as do those who sit enthroned in everlasting power."  (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pages 345-347; History of the Church, 6:305-306; Journal of Discourses :3-4; Times and Seasons, Aug. 15, 1844; 5:614). [1] (This is an Endnote)
 

"It is one of the first principles of the doctrine of salvation to become acquainted with our Father and our God." (Brigham Young)
       Brigham Young, the second president and prophet of the Mormon Church, on February 8, 1857 expressed an idea similar to Joseph Smith's.
 

 "It is one of the first principles of the doctrine of salvation to become acquainted with our Father and our God. The Scriptures teach that this is eternal life, to ‘know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent;' this is as much as to say that no man can enjoy or be prepared for eternal life without that knowledge."  (Journal of Discourses, 4:215; in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City:)

"And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise" (Luke 6:31)
       In our interaction with each other, no matter what our beliefs, we need to keep in mind the need for basic honesty (the "Golden Rule," Luke 6:31).  Rochester, N.Y. area Realtors encourage the seller of a house to tell the prospective buyer about hidden defects, such as a leaky roof or termites, for example. Some states have a law that requires such a report. There is a federal law that requires that the lender of money make clear up front all the costs the borrower will have to pay. It is called "truth in lending." Shouldn't similar principles apply in transactions that effect a person's soul?

Missionary Presentations - "In the broadest sense, all truth is part of the gospel..."  (Mormon apostle Bruce R. McConkie)
       The Mormon missionaries once used, and probably still use, six LDS missionary discussions (each has a different title; the subtitle on each is "Uniform System For Teaching The Gospel."). These are published by the Mormon Church (Copyrighted 1986 by Corporation of the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints). Except for the teaching  that God the Father has a body of flesh and bones (D&C 130:22)  [2], they do not clearly teach the character, perfections and attributes of their God. They leave out most of the information about God that Joseph Smith included in the King Follet Discourse above  (the second quote).
 Could it be that the gospel of the Mormon church excludes, or does not contain, the items not taught? No, this is not the case. Mormon Apostle Bruce R. McConkie said:
 

The gospel of Jesus Christ is the plan of salvation. It embraces all of the laws, principles, doctrines, rites, ordinances, acts, powers, authorities, and keys necessary to save and exalt men in the highest heaven hereafter...In the broadest sense, all truth is part of the gospel; for all truth is known to, is ordained by, and comes from Deity...(Mormon Doctrine, pages 331-332)

       Why does the Mormon Church's leadership, its members and missionaries fail to publicly and openly teach all of its doctrine prior to baptism, particularly the attributes of God? Why do they ignore the second  of "three important facts" (verse 4) and "the first principles" that Joseph Smith and Brigham Young said were so vital for salvation?  Are they fearful most of it would be labeled non-Christian and people would not join?  I think this is the case.

                                                    ENDNOTES:
1) Some LDS may point to the 4th Article of Faith as the source of  the "first principles." In a letter dated March 1, 1842 to Mr. John Wentworth, Editor and Proprietor of the Chicago Democrat, Joseph Smith wrote in part:
 

We Believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: (1) Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; (2) Repentance; (3) Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; (4)  Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. (History of the Church, 4:541; The Articles of Faith in the Pearl of Great Price [a Mormon Scripture], page 60)

This statement, with twelve other articles, has been canonized in the Mormon Scripture Pearl of Great Price.
      Seeing that Smith twice repeated, in Scripture and at an official meeting, the importance of really knowing God's attributes in order to have "faith in God into life and salvation" I submit that the ideas expressed by Smith in these first two references at the start of this article cannot be dismissed and ignored.

2)  Baptism for the dead is one of the major unique teachings of the Mormon Church that is taught incompletely to prospective new members (missionary discussions 4-10 and 6-1, 8, 14).  It is a complex idea that to be properly evaluated calls for an understanding of several important principles in the Mormon gospel.  These include the importance of baptism, our "pre-existence" in a pre-mortal state, a full understanding of eternal progression, obedience to God and priesthood authority.  Baptism for the dead is not the milk of the Mormon gospel, but yet it is taught, however briefly, prior to baptism.
       Missionary Discussion #4 is titled Eternal Progression, but it only gives an incomplete sketchy description.

John Farkas,  Berean Christian Ministries,  P.O. Box 1091,  Webster, NY 14580
E-mail:   bcmmin@frontiernet.net
Web pages:  http://www.bcmmin.org

art/firstpr2   9-23-99; rev. 10-27-00