Can a Christian Celebrate Christmas?

This week in the Vanuatu Times, the headline article was a “Staff Reporter” (unnamed) reporting about a “Strong Christian” (also unnamed) who explained that Christmas was NOT the birthday of Jesus Christ and should not be celebrated. Furthermore, it was mentioned that Christmas was essentially pagan in origin, and listed Easter in the same boat.  Christianity is dominant in Vanuatu so I am sure that anonymity was deemed necessary.  I am not anonymous, my name is Dan Dempsey, and I will help to explain the facts to you about Christmas.

It is interesting that the Jehovah’s Witnesses hold the same opinion but for a different reason: They do not recognize the same Jesus Christ as Christians do and therefore find it, and the cross offensive.  They also ban birthday celebrations as well.  So they must have been most pleased with the article.

The person also added that Christmas was more commercial and few celebrated the true meaning anyway, and that a lot of people simply used the time to get drunk. People also succumb to gift buying out of pressure even though they cannot afford to.  I agree with that and like that person sense how wrong that is.

So When was Jesus Born?

Essentially every bible scholar agrees that December 25th is not the birthday of Jesus.  In fact December 25 or mid Winter is most unlikely.  The best guess is between August to October around 7-4BC.    This lines up with biblical clues, like the Shepherds  were in the fields watching their flocks (Luke 2:8) which is not a mid-winter activity.  At this time of the year they were all tucked away in burial caves which we mistake for stables.  (They didn't build stables).  Can you imagine Mary giving birth in a cave (or stable) if it was full of men and their sheep?  Unlikely, which is why December is unlikely! Some say Jesus was born around March. Historical records point to the Kings and Tetrarchs that were mentioned around at the time.  We can tell from this that he was born around 7-4BC. 

Some use these points to prove he was not born at all, however that argument is weak.  I live in Vanuatu where there are numerous people that have no idea of when they were born or how old they are. (Like biblical times, date was not relevant, but place of birth and parents is.)  Some are my close friends. I can assure you though, that they were born and are real!

Whether Jesus was born on December 25 is irrelevant.  The fact he was born through the virgin (Mary - who did not remain a virgin by the way (Matt 27:56)), in Bethlehem which was a small town just south of Jerusalem at the time (and now a suburb of Jerusalem) is the bit that matters.

In New Zealand we celebrate Queens Birthday on a day that she wasn't born. But on that day we honour the Queen. (Although admittedly most enjoy the day off!).  In the same manner, December the 25th is not the birthday of Jesus but it is the day that we Honour him.  Of course one must not forget that if we are Christians then we honour him 365 days a year in what we do for others and how we uphold God alone as our God.  That, is known by one word - worship.

Do some Christmas traditions have pagan origins?

There are some so called ‘Christmas Traditions” that can be traced back to pagan culture and its celebrations.  For example:

• The Ringing of Bells (pagan winter celebration to ward off evil spirits)
• Lighting Candles (to drive away the forces of cold and darkness - remember that Christmas began in the Northern Hemisphere where it is winter on Dec 25
• Gift Giving (Druid offering to goats)
• Santa (possibly)
• Christmas Trees and Yule Logs
• December 25 occurred during the Festival of Saturnalia (Worship of the God Saturn  -which oddly enough, Saturn can be seen in the evening as the bright star high up in the Western sky here in Vanuatu at present)

Sadly, it is possible to prove some sort of pagan custom or tradition in nearly everything.  Pagans hold hands in circles. Does that mean that a prayer group who hold hands should be stopped?  Wreaths made of flowers and leaves are also pagan practices. So do we stop putting wreaths on the graves of loved ones, or at the foot of memorials on various remembrance days?   Pagans sing and dance, why are these in Church if they are pagan traditions?  You will argue that there are different motives behind each.  That is good! 

Christmas Trees

Some have said that the Christmas tree is pagan.  This goes back to a verse in Jeremiah 10:1-16 that prohibits cutting down trees, decorating them and putting them in homes.   The context of this verse is about making idols.  There is nothing in pagan ritual where physical tree is cut down, pulled into a home and decorated.  But there are rituals where a tree is cut down, worked down to a wooden idol and decorated for worship.  Isaiah 44 says much the same.

Santa

Santa is an interesting character. He is based on Saint Nicholas of Myna, a Roman Catholic cardinal around in the 4th century.  He had a reputation for giving gifts anonymously, out of his sizable inheritance. He did this by throwing bags of money into homes or even down chimneys at night to avoid being spotted.  In fact if that story is true, then we could regard St Nicholas as following the instruction of Jesus:

Some point out that Santa is based on the God Thor who, according to pagan belief, apparently lives at the North Pole and showers gifts down during the Winter Solstice (around December 22 – close to Christmas)

Matt 6:1-2 “Be careful not to display your righteousness merely to be seen by people. Otherwise you have no reward with your Father in heaven. Thus whenever you do charitable giving, do not blow a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in synagogues and on streets so that people will praise them. I tell you the truth, they have their reward.

Santa began as a skinny man wearing a green suit, but the Coca Cola Corporation made him famous as a fat red-suited jolly man.  That picture of Santa has stuck.

The issue I have here is not whether Santa is right or not, but that by telling a child that some magical fat guy in a red suit can sneak into your house and drop off presents makes that child have faith more in Santa than in Jesus. The focus on Jesus takes second stage.  That attitude makes Santa wrong.

The other issue I have is this.  Many families tell their kids that if they are good, Santa knows and will give them a good present.   He does this by travelling to virtually every home in one night.  That makes him all knowing (Omniscient) and almost everywhere (omnipresent).  These two characteristics are reserved for God only.  It is also Santa that seems to determine if the child is worthy of a present.  That makes him Omnipotent (All powerful).  Non-Christian families happily tell this legend and yet frown upon the idea of telling their child about Christ, because in their eyes it is a myth!

Xmas or Christmas?

Some see the removal of Christ’s name as being a conspiracy and a way of appeasing Non-Christians and people from other religions to whom Christ is offensive.  Some even suggest that the X is an occult sign for a pagan god or even of Satan.  However it must also be realized that the X in Xmas can also refer to the Greek name for Christ Χριστός (Christos).  Again, if you are fully convinced that Christmas cannot be Xmas then that’s OK, but if you are fully convinced that X is not Satan, a pagan god or a deliberate attempt to downplay Christ then it’s OK to use X.

I personally prefer Christmas.

What the Bible says

If we believe that Christmas is celebrating the birth of Jesus then the Bible will be the absolute authority.  The problem is that Christmas is not mentioned in the bible.  Some say this absence proves that God does not condone it.  That is a very weak argument as silence is not evidence.  Often the bible does not directly refer to an event because it is not relevant.  We see this in the New Testament where neither Jesus never said to follow the Sabbath (he didn't even rate it as the top two important commandments (Matt 22:34-40)).  The Apostles also never mentioned the Sabbath.  The reason: The Law of Moses was fulfilled (completed) by Christ’s death, and secondly, the gentiles never observed the Sabbath (actually according to Mosaic Law for a gentile to observe the Sabbath was an abomination to God, even more so if uncircumcised!)

So there is no clear instruction for it.  However the Bible says that “One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.” Rom 14:5. If you are fully convinced that Christmas does not compromise your worship of Jesus as Saviour at this time, then there is not a problem.  If you are fully convinced that it is a sin to observe Christmas due to its pagan origins then that is also not a problem.  There is a problem when anyone tries to judge others for their belief over a matter of little consequence. We see this with Apostle Paul’s words to the Church at Colossi

Col 2:16-17 Therefore do not let anyone judge you with respect to food or drink, or in the matter of a feast, new moon, or Sabbath days – these are only the shadow of the things to come, but the reality is Christ!

However, I want to enlarge upon one passage in scripture that explains a similar thing.  You will find it in Romans 14:  Beginning in verse 2:

Rom 14:2-3 One person believes in eating everything, but the weak person eats only vegetables. The one who eats everything must not despise the one who does not, and the one who abstains must not judge the one who eats everything, for God has accepted him.

  

The implication of this verse is that the weak eat vegetables only while the strong eats what he likes.  This does not mean that Vegetarians are weak, It’s their choice. The weakness in this case comes from those believers that refuse to eat meat because often meat in the market was there to sacrifice to pagan Gods in the temples.  The Christian that does not understand that just because it is available to be used as a sacrifice makes the meat evil.  The sacrificing of meat offered to idols is wrong, but not the meat itself.  This same argument is raised by Paul again in 1Cor 10:25 (Eat anything that is sold in the marketplace without questions of conscience,)  And later on:

Rom 14:20-21 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. For although all things are clean, it is wrong to cause anyone to stumble by what you eat.  It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything that causes your brother to stumble.

The point Paul made with eating meat offered to idols; a person strong in their faith has the knowledge that idols are nothing but deaf, blind and dumb trinkets. That by eating the meat does not prove you are worshiping the idol but simply eating clean food. But to a person who is weak in their faith, they may misinterpret such things as condoning idol worship.

The same applies to Christmas.  If you are fully convinced that Christmas is pagan worship then do not observe it.  But if you are fully convinced that it as an opportunity to worship Christ’s birth and to celebrate with the family, to unite the family at this time of the year and to show your appreciation and love to family and friends by gift giving then go for it and freely give!

So I ask you this:  If you ring bells at Christmas.  Do you do so to ward off evil spirits or to do this?: “Oh come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!” Ps 95:1

Do you refuse to give gifts at Christmas because some pagan Druid gave a gift to his goat centuries earlier, or do you do so because this was a precedent?:

Matt 2:11 And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.

It all comes down to the motive.

REMEMBER THIS AT CHRISTMAS

Remember that Christmas provides a time to reflect on what God has done for us by sending His son Jesus to be born through a Virgin.  He was born to die.  And that death (and subsequent resurrection) meant that you could be saved from sin and come closer to God the Father,   and through him [Jesus] to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. (Col 1:20)

We are therefore able to say: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:14).If you remember this then your motive for observing Christmas is done with a clear conscience. 

Enjoy this time of the year and take time to reflect on what Jesus has done for you.  Celebrate His birth, because he had to be born in order to die so that you could come close to God and receive Eternal Life.

Merry Christmas

 He had to do this

 In order to do this

So that you could do this

And receive this

AMEN!

Can a Christian Lose their Salvation?

Is it possible for a Christian to lose their salvation. This is a discussion that has been debated for a very long time.  In this post I cover what the bible says about the issue.

Before we answer this question, we must define some words here.  Those words are Christian and Salvation.  There are quite a few interpretations that define these two words, so we must be careful to ensure, the questioner and the one answering are on the same page.  Whenever we need to converge on the same definition it must be in accord with the bible as being the absolute authority.

Christian:  The bible does not refer much to the actual term, but we do know that there were disciples were first called Christians at Antioch (Ac 11:17), but there is little else that use the direct word.  By implication though, the terms brother, brothers and sisters, brethren (Col 1:2), believer (Ac 16:1), sheep (Jn 10:27-28), belonging to “the Way”, (Ac 9:2) refer to Christians. 

So a Christian is one that chooses to follow through obedience and worship Jesus Christ, desires to have fellowship with Him and strives to bring Him glory through their lives.  Around the world in every church there are many millions of people professing to be Christians but are not obedient to the commandments of Christ or to enter fellowship with Him. These people are not by biblical definition Christian.  Also, a person who goes to church on Sunday for example may categorize them as Christians in the World’s eyes,  does not make them a Christian in the eyes of God.

Salvation: Salvation is not simply “Going to Heaven.” Salvation is also not being saved from oneself or from the devil, or from Hell (although the latter is avoided).  Salvation means to be saved from the righteous judgement of God that will fall on a sinner.  That salvation comes through one man alone – Jesus Christ (Ac 4:10-12).  One that believes in Jesus as Savour receives remission of sins (Ac 10:43).  Salvation is only by the grace of God through our faith, and not by our own efforts.  (Eph 2:4-9)

So a Christian is someone that has received salvation.

Salvation is the Gift of God (Eph 2:8) 

and  comes with certain promises from God. Here are some

• Salvation from God’s wrath (1Th 5:9)
•  Eternal Life.  (Jn 3:14-18, 6:47)
• Remission from Sins (Ac 10:43)
• Gifted the Holy Spirit (Eph 1:13)
• Become a Child of God (Jn 1:12,Rom 8:15-17)

So if a Christian is to lose salvation then that would mean that they would therefore have earned back the wrath of God awaiting sinners.  To say we can lose salvation admits that we can effectively lose eternal life (a promise given), we get our sins recorded back again (it was promised they are remitted), the Holy Spirit leaves us (it was given as a free gift) and we lose our position as one of God’s adopted children. (promised)

The main fact against this thinking is that God’s promises are made using the name of Jesus (also God). So God is using his own name as an oath.  Therefore the promises are immutable. (Heb 13:20)

Therefore a Christian is one that is obedient to the commands of God, through Jesus, worships Him and wants to have fellowship with Him.  That person has received salvation.  To them they have received irrevocable promises.  Since God will not withdraw a promise, and knowing that a Christian is saved, while a sinner has not received salvation, the question of if a Christian can lose their salvation has as much meaning as asking if a sugar can lose sweetness.Sugar is sweet as a Christian is saved, sugar cannot lose sweetness.  if it did then it would not be sugar in the first place!

"Backsliders"

I have never liked the word "Backslider."  For one thing, it is mentioned in the bible as referring to the rebellions of the Nation of Israel and never to an individual,especially not a Christian.

But what happens if a so Christian falls repeatedly into sin or even goes the down the full road to  Apostasy, by denying God himself? If you want to call that "backsliding,"  go ahead.  Basically, that cannot happen.  For once one has tasted the gift of eternity through Jesus Christ, having partaken of the fellowship of the Holy Spirit and has experienced the love of God, going back is impossible (Heb 6:1-8).  If a “Christian” does fall away then one has to question if they were sincere about their faith in the first place.  It can be argued that those who turn away from their faith never had faith to begin with! (2 Tim 2:11-13) The reason is that if they remain in sin, then they have not followed through on the first act of salvation – Repentance (which means to turn away from a life of sin and towards a life of Christ. 

"Once Saved, Always Saved" Truth or Excuse

A Christian who upholds the cliché line, “Once saved, always saved,” as an excuse to sin, is missing the point of what it means to be a Christian.  A Christian should not entertain sinning in the first place (1Jn 2:1).  Furthermore, while God guarantees salvation, it does not prevent him punishing disobedience in his children, for example, by holding back blessings or rewards (Heb 12:6).  Being punished for being his child is different from being judged for being a sinner. John spent a great Deal of First John explaining that Children of God cannot walk in the dark, but only in the light.   God is Light and we must continue to walk in light. (1Jn 1:5). Furthermore a Christian who claim that they can continue to sin under the, “Once saved, always saved,” mantra and still claim their 'Christianity" is in defiance of First John Chapter 2 verses 3-6.  This states that person who says they have come to know God (a Christian) but does not obey God's commandments (a Christian) is a liar!  John then goes on to question if that person is truly a christian or not.  In other words, that person most likely never came to the point of salvation in the first place.  He same reason why as before, is that they never did repent.

However, it must be said that from a purely scriptural point of view, once saved we are saved.  Its reaching the point of salvation that is at issue.

Nominal Christianity

But what about a Christian who fails to show anything for it – The so called “Nominal Christian.”  For example, they do not share the Gospel as Jesus commanded? This does not prevent salvation.  The righteous will be rewarded according to their works, through Christ’s return at the Rapture (Rev 22:12) while at the Second Coming; Christ will render judgement on unrighteous works.  You should not confuse Salvation with the Rewards. Some Christians will be saved, but for their lack of works, will not receive rewards, while those that obey and follow the commandments of Christ absolutely will receive the rewards for such.  Christians show their faith through good works (Jas 2:18)

Summary

So to summarize: No a Christian cannot lose their salvation.  A Christian is a saved person.   If someone lost their salvation it would mean that God bloke his promise to them and God cannot break his own promises, and neither can he lie.

Mormon as a Charity

The Mormon Corporation is very proud in demonstrating how much it gives to charity.  Recently it announced that the LDS "Church" has given 1.2 billion in donations. (Most commentators say 1.4bn) That sounds impressive, but that is spread over the years 1985 to 2011. 25 YEARS AND 1.2 BILLION. 

That means that is gives out a mere 48-50 million a year.  Compare this with the Salvation Army and Catholic Charity Services (1.6 Billion)) or World Vision (634 million) IN ONE YEAR ALONE.

Given that there are supposedly 14 million mormons, that means that each one contributes something like $3.40 each per year, or 28 cents per month.

Every month every mormon fasts for two days. The money that would have been spent on food must go to the church.  That money is tagged for the needy (ie, charity)  I spoke to a NiVanuatu Mormon Elder who says that if you calculate the rice, tinned fish and other bits that make a meal, it adds up to about $10USD (1000VT) a day.  So that is $20 each month he contributes.  He is an average local although educated.  Let us take worst case and say that he family only givesnwhat they spend on rice only.  For a Nivanuatu family that typically eat rice as a staple diet, and they each eat about $1 a day or more each, that means they would be giving a minimum of $2 a month to the corporation.  28 cents to the needy.  So what happens to the remaining $1.72? 

When one considers that The LDS makes an estimated 7 billion a year in tithes and only gives out 48 million to the community, therein lies one of the greatest shames in history.

More on this later.  Including what Mormon Inc demands from its members.  You will be sickened at best and horrified at best.

The ABCs of religion

The Adventists teach Healthy Living
The Baptists teach water baptism
The Charismatics teach signs and wonders
The Dutch reformed church teach reverence in worship
The Episcopalians teach us to love one another and tolerance
The Fundamentalists teach strict adherence to the bible
The Grace Movement churches teach salvation by grace
The Hutterites teach non violence
The International Lutheran Council teaches the importance of humanitarian aid
The Jehovah's Witnesses teach that we must do good works
The Kingdom Now believers teach prosperity
The Latter Day Saints teach family values and looking good
The Methodists teach puritan doctrine
The Nazarenes teach Holy Spirit is received at repentance
The Orthodox Church teaches that their head is not the Pope
The Pentecostals teach Baptism in the Holy Sprit and speaking in tongues
The Quakers teach to not worship idols, including family photos
The Roman Catholic Churcb teaches solemnity, sacriments and traditions
The Salvation Army teach helping the needy
The True Jesus Church teach to give one day a week to God
The United Churches teach unity
The Vatican teaches obedience
The Wesleyan Church teach Evangelism
The X-men teaches tolerance of people that are not the norm
The Yehowists teach Jehovah is God
The Zionists teach the sovereignty of Israel

All of these are commendable in one way or another, it may be hard to remember the list, but it is not hard to remember this

The TRUE CHURCH teaches CHRIST, AND CHRIST GLORIFIED.

YWAM group at Prima

Today a group from America and one Norwegian visited Prima Village.   They brought with them a stack of Bislama bibles made possible by the Bible Society. 

Acts 1:8 in action.

Praise the Lord for YWAM and the Bible Society!

What was the fastest growing church denomination in America last year?

I was chatting to a Mormon Elder the other day, when his defence that the Mormon Corporation is from God and is the true church is because it is the fastest growing church.  Here is what I found regarding America.

1. Evangelical Christans are 26.3% of the population and represent the largest group. 
2. Catholics are a close second (23.9%).  
3. The mormons are 1.7%

As for growth.  Most mainsteam churches are currenty in decline.  In America the Episcopalian and Presbyterian Churches fit this category (Both churches grappling over the ordination of homosexuals)  

However, compare this.

• Assemblies of God 1.27% growth in 2010 .  MORMON: 1.7% 2010
• AOG: Worldwide population of 65 million members (actual converts). MORMON 14.7 million (including children as young as 8)
• AOG: 1 million members added every year MORMON: 300,000 (includes newborns)
• AOG: New converted member every 25 seconds.  MORMON: new member every 2 minutes (including children as young as 8).
• AOG: New church planted every 35 minutes, currently 362,791 MORMON: 300 a year.  Currently 29014 in 7464 branches
• AOG: 2700 full time missionaries outside America MORMON: 74900 total majority in America.
• Worldwide, the fastest growing evangelical population are Iran (19.6%) and Afghanistan (16.7%)  of course this is because they are small in number to begin with.  But proves that Mormons cannot say they have huge growth in Vanuatu for the same reason.
• AOG: Membership is fluid  MORMON: Once a member, always a member, unless excommunicated.  So if you leave the Mormon church and join the AOG then the AoG number goes up one, but the mormon number stays the same.

Check out some other useful statistics about the Mormon Corporation including stats from mormon researchers themselves at
http://www.mrm.org/fastest-growing-church

In 2011, there were 55,410 members serving full-time missions worldwide; approximately 6,000 fewer than in 2002. 

The annual percentage growth rate for membership has declined over the past decade from approximately 2.9% to 2.2%.  Annual congregational growth rates have fluctuated from a high of 1.62% to a low of 0.23%

  The number of districts worldwide has remained relatively unchanged over the past decade at slightly more than 600

SOURCE: http://ldschurchgrowth.blogspot.com/2012/08/is-lds-mormon-church-growing.html

Mormons often say that whenever a stake gets high enough they can build a temple as a sign the church is expanding.  They are proud of thier temples.  They boast 170 temples worldwide.  If we just consider the AoG alone. They know that 1 Corinthians 6:19  says "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?"  That means there are potentially 65 million temples in the AoG church alone.

In the end, numbers mean little.  Growth means little.  Statistics mean nothing.  If I can but bring one man alone to Jesus Christ then in that there is much rejoicing in Heaven

1 Cor 9:22  To the weak I became weak in order to gain the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that by all means I may save some.

Luke 15:7  I tell you, in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to repent.

Declaration: I am not a member of the AOG church by definition of AoG policy, however as a fellow believer in the fact that I believe that Jesus is the Christ into who I am baptised, I am a member of the same body of Christ to which they, and plenty other churches belong.

Listen!

How true is this cartoon!  If you believe that you never hear Jesus talking to you then perhaps you are simply not listening.  That is usually my problem.  It wasn't until in a time of serious prayer that the Holy Spirit interrupted me by shouting, "Would you stop talking and listen! "  That changed my relationship with Him.

Now I try my best to listen more than talk.  It works!  Not only that but whenever I am giving a message anywhere, because I know the Master's voice, He can interrupt me at any time. Sometimes to point out a problem, or person, or even telling me to, "Stop!"

Unless you learn to listen to Him, you may never reach a point of knowing the Shepherd's voice.

Cartoon used with permission.  Check out Mike Waters' website.

Love your Enemies

What makes a true Christian different from everyone else?  You will tell me, it is one that follows the Lord Jesus Christ and his commandments that believe in the fact that Jesus died on the cross as full and final atonement for your sins.  That a true Christian loves the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and that you also love your neighbour as yourself.  That is true, but we often forget, or find it hard to do this – to love your enemies.

I will give you an example that happened to me the other day.  I give you this example not to demonstrate how amazingly, “righteous,” I am so that you congratulate me.  Far from it, I am nowhere near as righteous as I (or perhaps God) would hope yet.  It all happened quite unexpectedly and was not planned.  So I hold little credit personally. Let us consider the example:

On Saturday afternoon I was in my house relaxing, having enjoyed one of those nice, calm, tropical, sunny days that occasionally hit Vanuatu, when a fair amount of busy behaviour began on the road at my gate.  There was a crowd of youth (or flock, gaggle, squadron, school, or whatever a gathering of youth is called) hanging out noisily.  At first I thought it was some local boys meeting the neighbours girls (again - as they do – “Go Krip!”). 

Some boys who knew me from the group came up and asked if I could help them.  It was not “Go Krip” but “Batri i flat!” (Flat battery).  I came up with a solution which was to take my battery from my pickup and jumper leads and take them to their truck.  (From we trak blong mi i brok! – because by pickup is [broken down])    

On arrival I saw that the truck belonged to the Mormon Church.  Two of their “Elders” were returning with a group of prospects from hiking in the bush. Someone must have left the lights on or something.

If you have read this blog enough you will see that I have very clear views about the Mormon Corporation.  However, you will notice that I also emphasise that it is not the Mormon who you hate but the church doctrines that go clearly against the Word of God. OH THE IRONY!  So I had a choice to make.

A.      I could tell them that their faith was false and that as a true believer I would not help them essentially aid their cause.  They make billions more Vatu than me every year out of tithes (estimated at 700 billion worldwide in fact) so they can pay for a repairman to come.

OR

B.      Help them out unconditionally as a person in need. 

A lot went through my mind at the time.  But eventually the voice I recognise as the Holy Spirit instructed me to help them.  So in obedience I chose Option B.

I managed to get in a few quick points to their prospects before an elder rushed over.  One being how ironic it was that a Christian would help out a Mormon, when the Mormon Corporation believes that we Christians are an abomination to God.  They teach to those in training that we Christians are enemies of their belief (no problems there – for many of their beliefs, we are!)  The problem is that many Christians they encounter in their 2 year mission leaves them with an impression that we Christians are raving fanatics that hate, hate, hate. 

ASIDE: The Mormon book, The Pearl of Great Price, claims that all other Christian groups are "corrupt" and are an "abomination" in God's sight (Joseph Smith, 2:19). The Doctrines and Covenants 1:30 states – “the only true  and living church upon the face of the whole earth.”  (To which the D&C includes a footnote on the word church that points you to 1 Cor 14:33 which speaks of “all the churches[plural] of the saints!”).  This doctrine has no scriptural basis whatsoever being not found anywhere in God's word.  [With that in mind, I will state that whether it is the Mormon corporation, other cults, or Christian churches, stating that they alone are the, ”only true church,” is a false assumption.  The Catholics claim that, some evangelical churches I have experienced claim that, the Mormons claim that, the SDA’s claim that.  The true church, that is described as the Body of Christ with Christ as it’s head KNOWS that. I will write more on this point in a later blog.

Anyway, back to the story:  Their battery was so flat and my jumper leads so useless that we could not crank the motor.  So I decided to loan them the battery and then took their battery back to my house for overnight charging.  They were very grateful for my generosity. 

But what was my motive?  It was simply that here was a group in need.  I knew that they represented an actual company that my battery was safe and that they would not run away with it.  Irrespective of the fact that their organisation speaks privately against us but publically declares that the Mormon Organisation like all churches are all Christians.

Herein lies the message.  Jesus commanded us to love our enemies.  The reason is that we are all members of the human race. 

Matt 5:44-45 But I say to you, love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be like your Father in heaven, since he causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

Jesus implies that we are all born sinners, we all need basic necessities of life – food, shelter and warmth.  No matter what you believe, you have the same rights as me to love.  Likewise, a Mormon believer has the same rights to love as me. Jesus states that it is Godly to do so.  This is re-emphasised in Luke.  (Both scriptures come from the Sermon on the Mount)

The next day they returned as they promised with my battery and we swapped them over.  I joked to them how impractical white shirts were in Vanuatu, while they were replacing the battery!  Both missionaries were from NZ so we shared a few stories.

What does “love your enemies” mean?    

To answer that we must look at the focus of the love.  Love does not mean tolerance or acceptance.  We are told to love our enemies, but we are never told to love what they stand for.  I love Mormon missionaries if I focus on them as people like I am a person.  I also love Mormon believers.  I also love marijuana smokers, drunks, athiests (one of my good friends is one), homosexuals. I love them enough to want to share Eternity with them, worshipping God.   I love them all enough to desire that they are saved from the pit of Hell.  BUT I do not love their lifestyles or beliefs, because their beliefs are against God’s laws. I would love a drunk to join me in heaven, but not his drunkenness.  It has no place there.  What is the same with the Mormon, Drug Addict, Homosexual, Drunkard, Athiest, and the rest?  They are all lost souls.  They have not found Christ and come to know Him as their Lord and Saviour.

Have you seen the film “Saving Private Ryan?”  There is a part where one of the American soldiers (It think he was a Catholic) was confronted by a German.  He had a choice – to shoot him point blank, or let him go.  He chose the latter.  Later on in the movie, he was again confronted but this time the gun was in the other hand.  The German looked at him, and walked by.  This is a great example!  In World War II, the Americans and the Germans were arch-enemies.  They hated each other, but then here we see the power of “loving your enemy.”  The American did not see a German soldier, but a man like him, probably with family hoping for his return.  His focus was on the person not what he represented. The effect was profound on both.  Both survived (at least at that point).

I recall a true story as told by that man in person, who was operating overseas in a similar role.  Details of the actual event and persons are private.  He recalls finding an enemy freedom fighter and how when he pointed the gun at the man’s head, and asked to say his last statement, the man replied, ….

“Jesus loves you.”

The man survived.  Those words haunted that soldier and lead him to Christ.  Here was a man who stood for what he believed in (freedom) who with a gun pointed to his head, loved his enemy.  I personally believe that that man can expect a great reward.

Luke 6:35 But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to ungrateful and evil people

There is a massive gulf that separates being kind to Mormons by loaning a battery and saying “Jesus loves you” with a gun held at your head, but the principle is the same.

Let’s take the Freedom Fighter/Soldier example and change the titles to Christian/Mormon.  Let’s also assume that both are absolutely convinced that they are right so that the argument which follows is applicable no matter who “holds the gun.”

You as the Christian could berate them and even shout verbal abuse at them.  Maybe you would “bible bash” them.  (I know a man who is not a Christian, who would greet them at the door with a bucket of cold water.  That I find despicable behavior.) What would that achieve? That Mormon will be absolutely convinced that you are clearly not reflecting God (which I agree with) and will have his indoctrinated belief that Christians are an abomination to God (which I don’t believe).  He will be strengthened more towards his Corporation and therefore further away from God.  As a result, their eternity is damned.  If the Christian is holding the Gun, the Mormon has no hope and knows he will die.  If the Mormon holds the gun, then the Christian will be killed!  Who wins?  No body.  One is dead and the other murdered.  Let me say this loud and clear - YOU WILL NEVER WIN SOMEONE TO CHRIST BY HATING THEM.

Now if you the Christian loves and lends a hand, then that goes against what the Mormon has been lead to believe.  If you hold the gun, The Mormon understands that he will not die, but if the Mormon holds the gun, he will not shoot because he is grateful. You challenge his belief.  You have opened up a possible friendship.  Who wins?  Firstly, you do because you are reflecting and obeying God.  Your reward is great.  Secondly, he may come to a point where he is convicted enough to repent and turn the Christ.  That is a DOUBLE PORTION blessing!  Praise God!

Now the icing on the cake.

There was a young prospect in the group that day who later came to me privately and introduced himself.  For his safety I will not tell you what we talked about which might reveal identity.  That person wanted to know more about what I believe and why the Mormon Corporation is false. 

Remember way back at the start, I said the Holy Spirit was responsible for my actions that day.  Perhaps it was not so much to help the Mormon Elders as it was to help that young person.  After all, why did they push the vehicle about 500 metres down a dirt road, ending up near my gate, when they would have pushed past another expat engineers house near the start of their attempts to crash start? 

If I had refused to help the Mormon Corporation that day, then it is most likely that the person in question would have been drawn more towards Mormonism.  But now that person has a chance.

Jehovah's Witnesses - Facts you should know

I have posted up three PowerPoints on the Jehovah's Witness cult.

1. Man-Jehova - Bigfala Giaman Doktrin Blong Kalt ia

This looks at one of the fundamental doctrines of the Church - The Trinity - and explains why the JWs distort the truth and downplay the significance of Jesus Christ resulting in Apostasy.

2. Giaman Profisi blong Man-Jehova

This looks at the numerous false predictions on Christ's return using pages directly from their publications, especially Watchtower articles.  Many Jehovah's Witnesses are unaware that these exist so here is the proof!

3. Krangke Tok Blong Man-Jehova

We investigate the main teachings of the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Watchtower Organisation.

• The status of Jesus
• Resurrection
• No Sin and No Hell
• Salvation by Works
• Blood Transfusions
• The ridiculous health advice, including the Radio Biola Machine
• No working for Goverment, fighting in war or voting
• False Returns of Christ

The presentations are in Bislama

Introduction to the SDA Faith and Sabbath Keeping

I have put my three PowerPoints that I use when talking about the Seventh Day Adventist Church. They are written in Bislama but use English where direct quotes from EGW or the bible is necessary.
1. Introduction to the SDA faith
2. Sabbath
3. Investigative Judgement

The material comes straight from SDA writings, their website, or from organisations sponsored by the SDA Church so there can be no denying the facts.

Then I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, so you will not take part in her sins and so you will not receive her plagues, Rev 18:4 

A letter to my Baha'i Friends

This message is for my Baha'i friends.  

One thing about you, my Baha'i friends, is that you are all very nice, polite and kind people.  That is commendable.  You demonstrate as best you can that you wish for unity and peace for all mankind and show a willingness to help people achieve that goal.  However, I do have one concern.  My concern is regarding your eternity.  I love you enough to want to ensure that you do find the truth that you seek.    I do not want you to miss out on what God truly has to freely offer you.  It is something that your leaders will never tell you.  

I want to begin by declaring that I follow the teachings of one of the Manifestations of God (as you call Him), Jesus Christ, so what I share is therefore said within the framework of your own faith.

I want you to read this scripture carefully:

God is love.

1John 4:9 By this the love of God is revealed in us: that God has sent his one and only Son into the world so that we may live through him.
10 In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
11 Dear friends, if God so loved us, then we also ought to love one another.
12 No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God resides in us, and his love is perfected in us.
13 By this we know that we reside in God and he in us: in that he has given us of his Spirit.
14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
15 If anyone confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God resides in him and he in God.
16 And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has in us. God is love, and the one who resides in love resides in God, and God resides in him.

It demonstrates that God loves you much more than you realise.  He sent his Son to die personally for your sins.  You are taught that there is no sin, but that is clearly not true.  That deception is taught to prevent you from being convicted enough to come to accept that there is a Saviour.  That person who can save you is Jesus.  Search your soul, search your heart.  You know there is sin and even though you strive to believe you don't sin or that sin does not exist, yet you know that is not true.  Your spirit knows this:

Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”  

Yes, you and I have sinned.  You have been taught that there is no heaven or hell, but a mere moving towards or away from God.

I therefore ask you these five simple questions:

1.Do you believe people essentially good or bad?  Look around you, look at yourself.  

2.Are you a good or a bad person?

Now consider these scriptures

What then? Are we better off? Certainly not, for we have already charged that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin, just as it is written: ​​​​​​“There is no one righteous, not even one, ​​​​​​​there is no one who understands, ​​​​​​there is no one who seeks God. 

All have turned away, ​​​​​​together they have become worthless; ​​​​​​there is no one who shows kindness, not even one.”
Rom 3:13 ​​​​​​​“Their throats are open graves, ​​​​​​they deceive with their tongues, ​​​​​​the poison of asps is under their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood, ​​​​​​​ruin and misery are in their paths, and the way of peace they have not known.” 

​​​​​​​“There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Rom 3:9-18 

3. Can you say that you have never done anything wrong?  Have you ever stolen, lied, cheated, hit or killed? 

4.  Do you fear God? Do you understand the consequences of not following His commandments?

Rom 6:23 For the payoff of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

5. Where do you go when you die?  I an assured that I am going to go straight to heaven and there meet God.  But what about you? Can you claim the same?

If you accept that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.  That he is God, that came to give you salvation so that if you believe and follow Him, then you too, like me, can say that you are a child of the One True God and receive Eternal Life.

Buddah, Krishna, and Baha’u’llah never told you that.  They deny a heaven for the righteous and they deny a hell for the sinner.  Yet Jesus, one of your so called "Manifestations of God" said this

 In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good deeds and give honor to your Father in heaven. Matt 5:16

If Jesus said it then surely there must be a heaven.  By the same token, Jesus also said there was a Hell

Matt 25:41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels!

He also put is quite simply when he said: 

Matt 25:46 And these will depart into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

As a Baha'i you understand that you are to seek out the truth.  That is your whole aim of existence.  in fact a summary of your faith was made by Shoghi Effendi, the appointed head of the religion from 1921 to 1957.  He began his summary be saying that your faith is "The independent search after truth, unfettered by superstition or tradition." \

The problem you face is that you are told to accept that there are many different manifestations of God, but they each teach different things on different topics.  So what do you believe?  Which one is telling the truth, since all are teaching different beliefs.  They cannot all be right can they? The Bab and Baha’u’llah both made is very hard for you to therefore find the truth, by confusing your mind.

So stop your searching.  You can find it in Jesus, and Jesus alone.  It is he and he alone that said:

 “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6

There is only one road to the Father - the One True God, and that is through Jesus.  A manifestation of God has said this so it must be truth!

 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 

The one who has the Son has this eternal life; the one who does not have the Son of God does not have this eternal life. 1John 5:11-12

It is not your good works that will save you. It is not hoping for peace, building unity, being a good person that will save you.  It is only in be believing that Jesus did come and dies on the cross, was buried but rose again and  is seated in heaven.  It is by following his commandments namely

1. To love the Lord your God with all your heart soul and mind, and to

2. Love your neighbour as yourself

That you will be saved.  As a Baha'i you probably already practice the second commandment pretty well, or maybe not, I don't know you that well,  but you do not fully live by the first.  

So right now turn away from that which has no life and believe in Jesus Christ for the Kingdom of God is at Hand.  Contact me if you want to understand how.

May the Holy Spirit convict you and bring you closer to the God who created you through his Son Jesus Christ.

Your friend

Dan Dempsey

Baha'i

Recently Port Vila was host to the Baha'i sponsored "Youth Empowerment Conference." I was grateful for the opportunity to share the Gospel with a few of the participants. 

Mrs Deamer, a high ranking woman inside this organisation told Daily Post, the local Newspaper, 
“From Santo and Malekula we had 300 by boat, and from Tanna there were 600. In addition to other islands we had about 100 each from Solomon Islands and New Caledonia. Tahiti was also represented. These are not just Baha’i youth but youth from  the Seventh Day Adventist, Catholic, Presbyterian churches, and other religious denominations and schools, putting to action some of Baha’is beliefs that: all humanity is one family, all prejudice, whether racial , religious, national or economic is destructive and must be overcome, the family is very important and there is one God."

So who or what is Baha'i?  

Breakfast Crackers for Communion?

I was asked by some church leaders a while ago as to whether breakfast crackers are appropriate for communion, and is it such a big deal.

The answer is that "bread" that has no leven (or yeast) in it is the requirement.  Put it simply, slices of white bread cut into nice little squares or broken off is off limits because bread in that form contains yeast or leven.
Leven symbolically is identified as sin.  The Jewish passover, during which Jesus demonstrated what we now know as Communion would have used Matzah bread and that must have no yeast signifying no sin.  So if we partake of bread during communion that contains yeast or leven, and then proudly declare something like, "This is the body of Jesus...." we identify that body as having sin.  Is that blasphemy?

With that in mind, I looked at breakfast crackers here in Vanuatu.  There are two main brands - Punjas and FMF Breakfast Crackers plus countless Chinese kinds.  Here is the rub:
Punjas contains leven
FMF contains NO leven

So if I was to choose the most appropriate "bread" for communion I would use FMF Breakfast Crackers!  Not only do they not have yeast but they even have the characteristic stripes and holes present in Matzah bread

Matzah Bread

FMF Breakfast Cracker

The Wordless Book and Culture

The Wordless book (or banner) used in China

I was reading sermon by Charles H Spurgeon the other day called the Wordless Book.  This book was used by Hudson Taylor (founder of the China Inland Mission, now called the Overseas Missionary Fellowship).

Spurgeon is regarded as one of the princes of preaching ever to teach the Word of God.  He was a master orator but amazingly he could reduce the message of the Gospel down to the simplicity of coloured pages.   Invented this book because he was to deliver an address on the 11th of January 1866 to hundreds of orphans.

Bible Bashing Island Style

The Boys on the mat that had the close enounter

Last night I had just finished a talk to a fellowship at Melektri and during the singing afterwarda, every boy and girl on the mats in the front jumped up.  No it wasn'

t some move of the Holy Spirit but an enormous centipede that crawled under several of them. 

One of the men immediately leaped up and bashed the centipede many times with his hardcovered bible!  How symbolic I thought. 

The Gifts and Fruit of the Holy Spirit

As a part of my bible study program at Prima where I have been covering the main Biblical Doctrines, I am up to teaching the Doctrine of the Holy Spirit (Pneumatology).  Whenever I teach, I aim to ensure that what I teach is true to scripture.  The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit is one such area where there is plenty of debate.

The debate focuses on such things as baptism in the Holy Spirit, manifestation of the gifts (especially emphasis on any one of the gifts such as Speaking in Tongues, Prophecy and Apostleship).

I see a need for the Church to better understand the gifts of the Holy Spirit as it is vitally important for the building up of the Church.  Simply put - many churches are disfunctioning because of a lack of gifts.  So my original quest was to run a series on the Gifts of the Holy Spirit and as such I set out to outline each of the gifts as a guide for church leaders, hopefully taking up only about 5-10 pages.

The result was over 200 A5 pages!  If you want to read the sneaked copy, I have made it available on Google Drive.  Click on the ARTICLES tab and open the ARTICLES folder then the LEAKED DOCUMENTS folder.  I have put up the first two parts of the pre-publication book. If that is too hard to follow Click Here.

I would appreciate if you could read it and comment here, especially regarding any inaccuracies that you see, especially in regard to Holy Spirit Doctrine. I would also like your opinion in how the Holy Spirit is understood by your Church.  Feel free to disagree with me if you like.  I enjoy a debate but also freely admit mistakes if I make them.

Enjoy!

"We love him, because he first loved us."—1 John 4:19.

If you have never heard of Charles H Spurgeon, then you are missing out on the teaching of one of Gods greatest teachers every to grace Christian History.  Forget much of the new kind of hype preaching that occurs today.  That is often entertainment.  But real teaching of the Word of God is found in many of the great men that were around during the revival period.  This was in the 1800s.

Here is the introduction to one of Spurgeon's sermons - his Sermon on Love

Delivered on Sabbath Morning, December 19th, 1858, At the Music Hall, Royal Surrey Gardens.

DURING the last two Sabbath days I have been preaching the gospel to the unconverted. I have earnestly exhorted the very chief of sinners to look to Jesus Christ, and have assured them that as a preparation for coming to Christ, they need no good works, or good dispositions, but that they may come, just as they are, to the foot of the cross, and receive the pardoning blood and all-sufficient merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. The thought has since occurred to me, that some who were ignorant of the gospel might, perhaps, put this query:—Is this likely to promote morality? If the gospel be a proclamation of pardon to the very chief of sinners, will not this be a license to sin? In what respects can the gospel be said to be a gospel according to holiness? How will such preaching operate? Will it make men better? Will they be more attentive to the laws which relate to man and man? Will they be more obedient to the statutes which relate to man and God? I thought, therefore, that we would advance a step further, and endeavour to show, this morning, how the proclamation of the gospel of God, though in the commencement it addresses itself to men who are utterly destitute of any good, is, nevertheless, designed to lead these very men to the noblest heights of virtue, yea, to ultimate perfection in holiness. The text tells us, that the effect of the gospel received in the heart is, that it compels and constrains such a heart to love God. "We love him, because he first loved us." When the gospel comes to us it does not find us loving God, it does not expect anything of us, but coming with the divine application of the Holy Ghost, it simply assures us that God loves us, be we never so deeply immersed in sin; and then, the after effect of this proclamation of love is, that "we love him because he first loved us."

And that my friends is the message of the Gospel.  A Gospel of Love.

From BBC Documentary

This is interesting - especiallythe link made between the Mormon oath and that of freemasonry.  Also note the man in the support group at the end and how he talks about the Mormon Church removing identity, community status and the like.  I am witenssing exactly that here in Vanuatu.  

When the Mormon Cult ordains a missionary, that person is NEVER sent to their own people.   This is why you never see Man-Tanna missionaries in Tanna, or Man-Malekula missionaries in Malekula. 

Little Deacons

Here is the Faith in God Program and Award that young Mormon boys study in their Primary. I find it interesting that once a boys completes the program he is then prepared enough to receive ordination as a deacon

Now compare that with what the Bible says about Deacons.

1Tim 3:8-10 Deacons likewise must be dignified, not two-faced, not given to excessive drinking, not greedy for gain, holding to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. And these also must be tested first and then let them serve as deacons if they are found blameless.11 Likewise also their wives must be dignified, not slanderous, temperate, faithful in every respect.12 Deacons must be husbands of one wife and good managers of their children and their own households.  For those who have served well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

That is a big ask for a boy!

Simply put, the Mormon church devalues the role of Deacon.  In fact, their use of the terms Deacon, Elder, Apostle and Prophet are also well below that required for such a title as outlined in the bible.  So to talk to a Mormon about these terms is like talking to them in a completely foreign language.

  

This is not unusual in cults - the devaluing or misconstruction of words and terms familiar to the average Christian means that before engaging in conversation over such things relating to doctrine, there is a need to establish the frames of reference.  For example:  if we say that something is wicked, to an adult that means it is evil, but to a teenager, it means really good!  A teenager understands that wicked means it is cool.  Cool is not cold, but something from OK to great!  

To a mormon, there is no Hell, there is only Heaven - \Everyone goes to Heaven.  To a Christian's way of understanding, that means that Mormons appear to say that sinners too go to heaven.  Mormons would not disagree, but that is because what you know is Heaven and what the Mormons believe is heaven,are different!  The Mormons believe there are three heavens - Celestial (what we Christians call heaven), Telestial (we call the sky) and Terrestrial (what we call the Earth).  A Mormon on death does to the Celestial Heaven, us non-mormons who nevertheless believe in God go to the Telestial while sinners return to Earth (the Terrestrial).  

Open Letter to Mormons

Dear member of the Mormon Faith

Recently the LDS Organisation showed an interest in my operations as it may be posing a threat to your faith.   They sent a spy, disguised as a Peace Corps member to investigate me when I was recently on Malekula.  It was too bad that after 2 years, he was immaculately presented - so unlike the standard Peace Corps volunteer after 2 years living in a remote village.  One thing that you are good at is dressing and presenting yourself well.

If you are part of the Mormon Leadership here in Vanuatu, can I suggest that you simply come out and ask me straight what I am doing.  There is no need to hide behind deceptive techniques like this.  I am open to discussion.  No doubt you know where I live,what I drive, who are my friends and how to contact me.  You know all about me because the secretive committee called the  "Strengthening Church Members Committee" which mainly spies on its own church members may actually be also spying on those who are opposed to it's own cause.  It is likely that I have appeared on the SCMC radar as a threat.

So pick up the phone and call.  If you want to know what I think and what I talk about, but are too afraid to ask, check out the articles tab.  It links to my cloud storage.  Actually I encourage every Mormon to check out what I write about there.  I provide many references straight out of Mormon Literature,including your Standard Works, and publications written by the men you look up to as your prophets from God, so there is no disputing is there?

I understand that you use the Book of Mormon as your definitive guide to everything, but it does concern me that you cannot show in the BoM supporting scripture for your current doctrines. For example, your doctrine states that there is more than one God.  You can find that in D&C 132:20 and 37, yet in the BoM, Alma 11:26-29 states there is only one God.  No doubt, you as a leader can explain that away somehow, after all you must defend your faith despite the truth, because you have invested a large part of your life to chasing that belief.  

If you are a missionary, you no doubt have been sent away from your family for about 2 years.  You believe strongly that you are sent by the LDS church to spread the Gospel as outlined by your Prophet Joseph Smith.  However, why is it that you never see a missionary witness in his own village, or city, or even Island.  Why were you sent to somewhere entirely away from your family.  Why does your name badge not show your first name.  I like to introduce myself by first name.  You can call me Dan.  I know that you find it hard to be away from your family and that you yearn to call home, but the church forbids you calling home except on Mother's Day and Christmas Day.  That must be hard - to lose that much contact with your family and even to lose contact with your very name.  I do not understand that the LDS Church promotes family values on one hand but then takes young men and women away from those families.

Your family are sacrificing a great deal to enable you to live out your dream of serving the LDS Church.  I hear that one young man from Malekula is currently in NZ for 3 months training, kindly provided free by the Mormon Church.  All his family had to do was sign a "Covenant" with the church that they would agree to become members of the church and to give tithes.  The fact that a covenant is a binding contract until the death of one of the parties, means that your family signed their lives away to give you what you wanted.  

So to put in all that effort,and considering the commitment your family has agree to, but to discover that it is all in vain would be traumatic for you.  You feel you can never walk away even if you do come to realise how much deception the Church has hidden from you out of fear of letting your family, who you love, down. 

But thankfully, there is a God of mercy who by his grace can forgive you even now for your error.  The same God can also free your family from the yolk of bondage too.  You see, my God, the Almighty God, the creator of the Universe, through his Son Jesus Christ made it always possible to find a way to Him.   All you have to do is ask him and repent.

I have quite a few Mormon friends, along with other friends from cults like SDA and Jehovah's Witnesses.  I enjoy talking to you and finding out from you directly what you believe.  I may not always agree with what your Church believes but I do believe this - I do not want you to follow a road that has no eternal life.  I want you to enjoy eternal life in Jesus Christ.  In fact the other day, I talked to an American missionary called Dan and his counterpart from Australia - Calvin.  Two nice young men who have a zeal for their faith that is commendable, but the fact the zeal is misguided concerns me.  I wish that true followers of Jesus would have the same zeal as you have for your faith, but sadly they do not.   I am interested in discussing your doctrine and sharing my doctrine with you, but for some reason, you often seem reluctant.  When I was in Malekula, I asked an Elder to share his Gospel message with a group of the men from the village, yet he was reluctant to do so.  That is a sad situation where this man who was on a mission from your Church would not sit down and take this excellent opportunity.  I am never afraid to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ to anyone who wants to listen.

I am interested that you always talk about your Testimony, and yet if I ask for conclusive proof that your testimony is true, you cannot provide that.  My understanding of a testimony is that which is presented in a court of law as fact.  In other words, you are a witness to the fact.  So why is it that you spent a great deal of time memorizing the same testimony that every other missionary memorizes.  Is that your testimony?  If that was a court, and I had ten eyewitnesses testify the exact same thing - word for word, I would label that as suspicious.  Can you please provide clear evidence that what you testify is a true and accurate record of events and facts.

I thank you for taking the time to read and consider this letter.  I am concerned for your eternity, and it is out of love for you that I take time to write this letter.  Do I hate Mormons? Absolutely not, but just like in politics, there is a political party that I support and one that I speak against because I disagree with their policy.  Yet, in NZ we get two votes - one for the Party and one for our electorate candidate.  When it comes time to vote, I vote for my party, yet I vote for a candidate that is actually from a party that I do not agree with at all!  The same it is with you. Despite the fact that you are a member of an organisation that clearly has many doctrinal problems, I still do not hate you for that.

2John 1:3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Son of the Father, in truth and love.

Dan Dempsey