Religious Cults

by Ken Thomas

As the newsreels replay the fiery destruction in Waco again and again, our minds replay the scenes of senseless destruction of life from the past. The tragedy of another religious cult gone bizarre and berserk reminds the world of its stereotype of religion--"the opiate of the people." Pure religion is a blessing to the lost and dying world as it presents hope and help. Those who follow Christ may be thought peculiar by their worldly peers, but their lives are truly "lights" in the world.
A more subtle cult is Mormonism. It appeals to the unstable with an unverified testimony and an admonition to pray for a confirmation of the Book of Mormon, etc. Any demonstration of a contradiction of the B.O.M. with the Bible is received by a Mormon with no difficulty. He simply see the B.O.M. as the more accurate source.
In a recent study Acts 11:26 was compared to Alma 46:13-16. The Mormon passage is dated "73 B.C." and claims that those who believed in Christ were called Christians "because of their belief in Christ who should come." The Bible passage says disciples were called Christians FIRST in ANTIOCH--after the resurrection of Christ and well into the history of the church.
Mosiah 18, dated 147 B. C. speaks of people being baptized and called "the church of God or the church of Christ from that time forward." In contrast, the Bible records the promise of Jesus,"...I WILL build my church, " Matthew 16:18. The church did not exist in 147 B. C. Also, Luke 24:47 says that repentance and remission of sins would be preached in Jesus' name to ALL nations beginning from Jerusalem. Baptism in the name of Christ for remission of sins was to be preached to all men everywhere ( Mark 16:15, 16: Matthew 28:18-20) and the first occurrence was on Pentecost as recorded in Acts 2:38.
The Mormon response is a testimony of faith in "BOTH" accounts and an appeal for the non-Mormon to pray that God will confirm the truth of the Mormon books. There is a blindness here that truly is beyond my ability to fully understand. Please pray for the young men who zealously leave home to promote such irrationality. Even more so--pray for Christian youth who have been taught truth, that they might have the zeal that is manifest by the Mormons.

April 25, 1993

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Religious Cults by Ken Thomas As the newsreels replay the fiery destruction in Waco again and again, our minds replay the scenes of senseless destruction of life from the past. The tragedy of another religious cult gone bizarre and berserk reminds the world of its stereotype of religion--"the opiate of the people." Pure religion is a blessing to the lost and dying world as it presents hope and help. Those who follow Christ may be thought peculiar by their worldly peers, but their lives are truly "lights" in the world. A more subtle cult is Mormonism. It appeals to the unstable with an unverified testimony and an admonition to pray for a confirmation of the Book of Mormon, etc. Any demonstration of a contradiction of the B.O.M. with the Bible is received by a Mormon with no difficulty. He simply see the B.O.M. as the more accurate source. In a recent study Acts 11:26 was compared to Alma 46:13-16. The Mormon passage is dated "73 B.C." and claims that those who believed in Christ were called Christians "because of their belief in Christ who should come." The Bible passage says disciples were called Christians FIRST in ANTIOCH--after the resurrection of Christ and well into the history of the church. Mosiah 18, dated 147 B. C. speaks of people being baptized and called "the church of God or the church of Christ from that time forward." In contrast, the Bible records the promise of Jesus,"...I WILL build my church, " Matthew 16:18. The church did not exist in 147 B. C. Also, Luke 24:47 says that repentance and remission of sins would be preached in Jesus' name to ALL nations beginning from Jerusalem. Baptism in the name of Christ for remission of sins was to be preached to all men everywhere ( Mark 16:15, 16: Matthew 28:18-20) and the first occurrence was on Pentecost as recorded in Acts 2:38. The Mormon response is a testimony of faith in "BOTH" accounts and an appeal for the non-Mormon to pray that God will confirm the truth of the Mormon books. There is a blindness here that truly is beyond my ability to fully understand. Please pray for the young men who zealously leave home to promote such irrationality. Even more so--pray for Christian youth who have been taught truth, that they might have the zeal that is manifest by the Mormons. April 25, 1993 Related Articles: Print this Article Discuss this Article Back to the Sermon Page	Mt. Juliet Church of Christ 1940 N. Mt. Juliet Road P.O.Box 248 Mt.Juliet, TN 37122-0248 (615)758-2274 Fax:615-754-2351 Email Worship Services: Sunday Early Worship: 8AM Sunday Bible Study: 9:15AM Sunday Late Worship: 10:15AM Night Worship: 6PM Wednesday Bible Study: 7PM