LDS Articles of Faith, Part L

Article 9, Latter-day Revelation, part 8

The 9th LDS Article of Faith says, “We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.” The LDS Church claims that their president is a living prophet who receives current revelations from God. At the LDS semi-annual conference in October 1981, LDS President and Prophet, Ezra Taft Benson said, “The ultimate test of a true prophet is that when he speaks in the name of the Lord, his words come to pass.” Moses said in Deuteronomy 18:22 “When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing that the Lord has not spoken.” That was about 3500 years before Benson said it! LDS founder Joseph Smith also wrote: “When, therefore, any man, no matter who, or how high his standing may be, utters or publishes anything which afterwards proves to be untrue, he is a false prophet” (History of the Church, vol. I, p.373, footnote). That should include Joseph Smith himself! Some of his prophecies and revelations did not happen, as these blogs have shown. Doctrine and Covenants (D. & C.) 1:37 was a revelation to Smith on November 1, 1831. It says, “Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled.” But some were not fulfilled and it is too late for them to be fulfilled now. Did the Lord give false revelations to Joseph Smith, or did Smith call his own thoughts “revelations from God”? Neither choice is good for LDS!

Joseph Smith said he received D. & C. 104 from the Lord on April 23, 1834. Verses 1 and 2 say: “Verily I say unto you my friends, I give unto you counsel and a commandment, concerning all the properties which belong to the order which I commanded to be organized and established, to be a united order, and an everlasting order, for the benefit of my church, and for the salvation of men until I come—With promise immutable and unchangeable, that inasmuch as those whom I commanded were faithful they should be blessed with a multiplicity of blessings.” Verse 48 says, “After you are organized, you shall be called the United Order of the Stake of Zion, the City of Kirtland (OH). And your brethren, after they are organized, shall be called the United Order of the City of Zion (MO).” If you haven’t heard of either of those “United Orders,” it is because they don’t exist! The United Order required LDS to work for a living and give all they earned to the LDS Church and then the bishop would give each family what they needed and the remainder was for the LDS Church to use. “The Lord” supposedly said the United Order was to be an “everlasting order…until I come.” Smith attempted to establish the United Order, but didn’t succeed. Later attempts were also made but they all failed.

On August 9, 1874 LDS President and Prophet Brigham Young said, “You think a good deal about the condition of the Latter-day Saints, and what we are trying to do with them concerning the United Order. I wish you to understand that this is no new revelation; it is the order of the kingdom where God and Christ dwell; it has been from eternity, and will be to eternity, without end…Thus saith the Lord unto my servant Brigham, Call ye, call ye, upon the inhabitants of Zion (Utah) to organize themselves in the Order of Enoch, in the New and Everlasting Covenant, according to the Order of Heaven, for the furtherance of my kingdom upon the earth, for the perfecting of the Saints, for the salvation of the living and the dead” (Journal of Discourses, vol.17, p. 154). John Taylor, the third LDS President and Prophet, said on Sept. 21, 1878, “Referring to the United Order. The Lord has given us to understand that whosoever refuses to comply with the requirements of that law, his name shall not be known in the records of the Church, but shall be blotted out; neither shall his children have inheritance in Zion. Are the words of the Lord to us? I suppose there are none here today but would say, Yes. How, then can I or you treat lightly that which God has given us? It is the word of God to me; it is the word of God to you…If faith, repentance and baptism and laying on of hands is right and true and demands our obedience, so does co-operation and the United Order” (Journal of Discourses, vol. 21, p. 58). So, where is it?

LDS Apostle Bruce R. McConkie was the son-in-law of Joseph Fielding Smith the 10th LDS Prophet. He was also a respected LDS theologian. In his book, Mormon Doctrine, he said on p. 813, “Early attempts to operate various United Orders failed, but the law of consecration must yet be put in full force, and so the United Order or its equivalent must again be brought into being.” Even if LDS try to establish a United Order again, it won’t fulfill what D. & C. 104:1-2 says because on April 23, 1834 “the Lord” said it was to be an everlasting Order until He comes. That was nearly 200 years ago and there still isn’t any United Order! The polygamist town of Orderville, UT was established in 1875 by Brigham Young and was the most successful LDS United Order even though it began to fall apart within five years and completely ended within ten years. The town of Orderville is still there, but not the United Order. The United Order ended in Orderville because LDS there saw that LDS not living under the United Order in other towns lived in better conditions than they did. Jealousy has ended almost all attempts at such communes. There is no LDS United Order today, so according to LDS Prophet John Taylor there should be no LDS names in the records of the (LDS) Church!

The introduction over D. & C. 111 says that LDS leaders heard a large amount of money would be available to them in Salem, MA, so the Prophet (Joseph Smith), Sidney Rigdon, Hyrum Smith, and Oliver Cowdery traveled from Kirtland, OH to Salem to try to get it. Smith said D. & C. 111 was revealed to him on Aug. 6, 1836 while he was in Salem. D. & C. 111:1- 4 says, “I, the Lord your God, am not displeased with your coming this journey, notwithstanding your follies. I have much treasure in this city for you, for the benefit of Zion, and many people in this city, whom I will gather out in due time for the benefit of Zion, through your instrumentality, Therefore, it is expedient that you should form acquaintance with men in this city, as you shall be led, and it shall be given you. And it shall come to pass in due time that I will give this city into your hands, that you shall have power over it, insomuch that they shall not discover your secret parts; and its wealth pertaining to gold and silver shall be yours.” And verse 7 says, “For there are more treasures than one in this city.” It is obvious that this revelation was addressed to Smith and those with him in Salem in 1836. But the introduction over D. & C. 111 says, “When it became apparent that no money was to be forthcoming, they returned to Kirtland.” But the LDS Lord said Salem’s “wealth pertaining to gold and silver shall be yours” as well as many people and “more treasures than one.” Did the Omniscient, all knowing Lord tell Smith those false things or did they come from Smith’s mind because he desired them?

Next time we will continue our discussion of some LDS latter-day revelations.