Latter-Day Saint Dad

How do you distinguish correct knowledge from incorrect knowledge about an incomprehensible God?

The Invisible Theology Problem Evangelical: You Mormons have a terrible habit of interpreting the Bible through your theology! 😡 LDS: Guilty. Evangelical: Wait, what? LDS: Of course we interpret Scripture through our theological understanding. Everyone does. Evangelical: NO! We just believe what the Bible says! LDS: Oh, interesting. Let's try something. Jesus said we must be born of water and of the Spirit to enter the kingdom of God. What does that mean? Evangelical: Spiritual regeneration. Not necessarily water baptism. LDS: I see. And that's not an interpretation? Evangelical: No! That's what Jesus meant! LDS: Okay. What about the Father and Son being one? Evangelical: One divine essence, three distinct persons, coequal and coeternal. LDS: Fascinating. Where does the Bible explain that particular formulation? Evangelical: It's the necessary conclusion of Scripture! LDS: So... an interpretation? Evangelical: BIBLICAL DOCTRINE! LDS: Right. And when Paul says we're justified by faith apart from works? Evangelical: Faith alone! No works contribute to justification! LDS: And when James says a man is justified by works and not by faith only? Evangelical: You have to understand the context! James is talking about the evidence of genuine faith, not the basis of justification! LDS: Ah. So you're interpreting James in light of your understanding of Paul? Evangelical: I'M LETTING SCRIPTURE INTERPRET SCRIPTURE! LDS: That's actually a pretty good description of what we do too. Evangelical: NO! YOU FILTER SCRIPTURE THROUGH YOUR THEOLOGY! LDS: And you don't? Evangelical: Absolutely not! LDS: So when you read Scripture, you bring no theological assumptions, no denominational traditions, and no interpretive framework whatsoever? Evangelical: Correct! I just believe the Bible! LDS: Incredible. You've managed to become the first person in Christian history to read a text without interpreting it. Evangelical: You're twisting my words! LDS: Sorry. I must have interpreted them. Evangelical: 😡 LDS: Here's an idea. Instead of pretending one of us has theology and the other just has the Bible, why don't we compare our interpretations and see which is better supported by Scripture? Evangelical: Because Mormonism isn't biblical Christianity! LDS: And we've arrived right back at your interpretation being the definition of Christianity. Evangelical: IT'S NOT AN INTERPRETATION! LDS: Of course not. Your theology is apparently invisible. Evangelical: HERETIC! LDS: There's that invisible theology again. 🙂

One of the more entertaining aspects of being a Latter-day Saint on X is discovering all the things we’re apparently supposed to believe. 😂 Every day, someone confidently explains our theology to us, announces they’ve discovered a devastating contradiction, and then celebrates defeating a religion that exists entirely in their imagination. Meanwhile, we’re over here believing that ALL people are children of God, that His light reaches every nation, and that truth and goodness can be found among Catholics, Protestants, Muslims, Buddhists, and countless others. We rejoice when anyone draws closer to God, wherever they are on that journey. We believe in continuing revelation, eternal progression, the divine potential of humanity, and a loving Heavenly Father who hasn’t forgotten a single one of His children. It’s a remarkably beautiful and hopeful theology. But please, tell us again how we don’t believe in Jesus. 😂 To my fellow Latter-day Saints: Keep sharing the light. Keep loving your neighbors. Keep finding truth wherever it exists. And to our critics: You’re always welcome to disagree with our beliefs. We’d just appreciate it if you’d learn what they are first. ❤️

I’ve been thinking more about the purpose of Christianity. Is the ultimate goal to KNOW the correct things about Jesus Christ, or to BECOME the kind of person Jesus Christ wants us to be? Before someone objects, of course understanding who Jesus is matters. But surely that understanding is supposed to lead somewhere. Consider the Pharisees. They studied the scriptures. They debated doctrine. They were deeply concerned about religious correctness. And yet Jesus repeatedly condemned them. Why? Not because knowledge of God was unimportant, but because their religious knowledge had failed to produce the kind of people God wanted them to become. Jesus didn’t come merely to correct our understanding of God. He came to reconcile us to God, redeem us from sin, and transform us into something greater than we could ever become on our own. Paul taught that we are to be “conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29). Peter taught that we can become “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4). John taught that “when he shall appear, we shall be like him” (1 John 3:2). And Jesus Himself commanded us to be perfect, even as our Father in heaven is perfect (Matthew 5:48). Do we really appreciate what these passages are telling us? The purpose of following Christ isn’t merely to learn ABOUT divinity. It’s to be transformed BY divinity. To become more loving, more merciful, more forgiving, more holy, and ultimately more like the Savior Himself. And none of this is possible without His grace. So when someone tells me I follow a “different Jesus” because my theological understanding differs from theirs, I have to wonder whether we’ve lost sight of what discipleship is supposed to accomplish. Because knowing the correct theological description of Christ, while important, is not the same thing as becoming Christlike. Even the devils believe in God. (James 2:19) But discipleship requires more than belief. It requires allowing Jesus Christ to change who we are. The ultimate purpose of Christianity isn’t merely to be right about Jesus. It’s to be made right through Jesus. And ultimately, to become like Him.

Why do Latter-day Saints do so much? It’s a fair question. Between church callings, temple worship, ministering, missionary work, service projects, scripture study, and keeping covenants, our faith asks quite a bit of us. But I think understanding why we do these things helps explain something fundamental about what we believe our purpose in life actually is. We believe we are literally children of God, with the divine potential to become like our Heavenly Father. We believe this life is an opportunity to develop that potential through Jesus Christ. And we believe that process can begin right here, right now. We don’t serve others because we’re trying to accumulate enough good deeds to earn a place in heaven. We serve because serving others helps us become more like Jesus Christ. We don’t keep commandments because we think God needs our obedience. We keep them because we love Him, and because obedience helps us become more receptive to the influence of His Spirit. We don’t worship, pray, study scripture, or attend the temple simply to fulfill religious obligations. We do these things because we genuinely want a closer relationship with God. And something remarkable happens as we pursue that relationship. We begin to change. Our desires change. Our priorities change. We become more patient, more forgiving, more compassionate. We develop a greater capacity for charity and a greater desire to lift those around us. Not because we’re accomplishing these things independently, but because we’re allowing Jesus Christ to change us through His grace. Jesus taught, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15) And He promised that those who love Him and keep His words would experience something extraordinary: “My Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” (John 14:23) Think about that promise for a moment. We don’t have to wait until the next life to begin experiencing a relationship with our Heavenly Father. We can invite His presence into our lives today. That’s why we do so much. Our purpose isn’t simply to make it to heaven. It’s to become more heavenly, through Jesus Christ. We believe God wants more for us than simply to be forgiven. He wants us to become like His Son. And the beautiful thing is that the more we become like Christ, the more we desire to help others experience His love too. We’re not trying to earn God’s love through our works. We’re trying to become more like the God who already loves us.