Thirty Years of Ministry and Thanksgiving
Last month Concerned Christians began celebrating the 30 years we have been
in ministry. It started when Judy and I left Mormonism and soon realized that
many people were being deceived, just as we were, into believing that the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was the only true church on the face
of the earth. We were convinced that all other denominations were evil and an
abomination in the sight of God.
Word quickly got out that there was a couple who were willing to talk about
Mormonism. The calls soon followed asking us to come to a Bible study or a
Sunday School class or a church congregational meeting to teach about
Mormonism. This was in 1973 and little was really known about the real
teachings of Mormonism because it was believed that few ever left Mormonism.
If they did, they would never talk about it out of fear. We've been kept busy
ever since.
Our home quickly became an office and meeting place. Each Thursday night we
would hold a meeting for those leaving Mormonism. It was a support group
meeting much like AA is to the alcoholic. It is very difficult and traumatic to leave
the Mormon church and people need to be able to share with others who have
or are going through the same trauma that they are experiencing.
Almost every day during the week I was involved in counseling an individual or
couple. Then at night I'd be out teaching somewhere. We functioned like this for
almost 27 years, but it finally became apparent that we had no life of our own and also needed to find a place with more room. At that time we had grown to 2½ spare bedrooms that we
converted into office space because our children were grown and out on their own. The decision was made to find a
permanent place for an office and to accommodate the large inventory of research books and the bookstore.
That's when we found and purchased our office at 525 E. Broadway in Mesa, right behind the Mormon Temple.
There's another story about this that will have to come later. That brings me to the point of this article. I want to
acknowledge all the workers and volunteers that have participated to make this ministry so successful. First, I want
to acknowledge some pastors that have been a part since the beginning; Pastors Charles Cook, John Hendee, David
Schultz and Jim Baugh. Our staff members Bob Betts and Cheri Billingsley. Our volunteer teachers are Cheri, Duane
Strohmeyer, Andy Poland, Lloyd Sharp (our web master), Steve Lee (producer of our newsletter), and Rob Roy
Nelson. Board members are: Garth Lamb, Jim Baugh, Duane Strohmeyer, Bob Betts, Cheri Billingsley, Joe Cross, and
Judy & me. Our media person, Don Jones; our office equipment people Randy Miller and George Thibault and our
property beautification person Sam Hartzler are all greatly appreciated.
We want to recognize our office in Tucson, Arizona with Dan & LaVern Eck and in our new office in Flagstaff,
Arizona with Brad & Jennifer Melton. And we have such a long list of volunteers, please forgive me for not naming
all of you, who have been so instrumental in the success of Concerned Christians. It would take up a complete page
to name you all. You know who you are and so does God. We want to thank all of you from the bottom of our
hearts for all the hard work you have and are doing on behalf of Concerned Christians. May God continue to bless
this ministry and all who are a part of it.
Jim Robertson
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Report on Chile Trip by Judy Robertson
What joy to return from Chile with so many positive and exciting experiences.
Thanks to all of you who prayed for us while we were gone and all who helped
make this trip possible. We stayed healthy and even had an unplanned rest one
day in the middle of the itinerary. We sorely needed it.
We had the joy of teaching through our delightful Chilean translator, Ellie. And
best of all, we enjoyed interacting with the Chilean people who blessed us immensely
with their warmth and love.
When our plane landed in Santiago, Chile, after a day and half of travel, I was
told I would speak at a women's conference that afternoon-jet lag and all.
The schedule continued with teaching in many churches, two talks at a Bible Institute,
a news conference, an hour-long radio broadcast, and an eleven p.m. talk
at a church on Halloween. The response everywhere was positive even at the last seminar on Friday night when there was no power. Jim and Ellie didn't flinch even without
lights or microphones. People remained although they could barely see. And then
about nine p.m., two cars were moved in positions opposite of each other in the hall
providing headlights for the remainder of the seminar. We have been invited back
again.
What we didn't expect was the great idea conceived by John Hendee, the missionary
who invited us, and by the Chilean people. We are opening a Concerned Christians
office in Chile and the plans are already underway to begin the training.
I was also able to make a positive contact with a Spanish publishing house to publish
Out of Mormonism and Understanding My Mormon Friends' Faith and Mine in the Spanish
language.
We want to thank a young man by the name of Shawn Russer, who volunteered to
raise his own funds to go with us. He assisted us greatly in the work we had to do.
Lastly, we spent valuable quality time with our long-time friend John Hendee who
gave us creative ideas concerning future plans for Jim, me and Concerned Christians.
What more could we ask? Even though some plans for our time there fell through,
other, even more far-reaching events for the Kingdom of God were planned that will
continue for decades in Chile, Latin America and the USA. Man's plans may fail, but
God's prevail.
"The One who calls you is faithful and He will do it" (1 Thessalonians 5:24).
Thanks again to all of you for remembering us daily in prayer. We would never have
made it through without it. We came home tired but very happy about all the events
that occurred in Chile. Keep the Chileans in your prayers also.
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A Comparison of the LDS Articles of Faith compared
to the Bible - Part 4 by Lloyd Sharp
Article 8: "We believe the Bible to be the word of God as
far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book
of Mormon to be the word of God."
Let us begin by dealing with the first sentence of this
Article. It is true that only an accurate translation of the
ancient Biblical manuscripts can truly represent the word
of God in another language. However, there is no such
thing as a perfect translation. Considering the different
methods of translation and the countless differences
between hundreds of languages, even the LDS church
will not claim to have a perfect translation of the Book
of Mormon from English to another language.
Joseph Smith did claim "that the Book of Mormon was
the most correct of any book on earth." (Introduction to
the Book of Mormon) This is an amazing claim when we
consider that the language Joseph Smith allegedly
translated, known as reformed Egyptian (Mormon 9:32,
Book of Mormon), does not exist. There is NO evidence
that such a language ever existed. There have also
been almost 4,000 changes made in the current Book of
Mormon, yet Joseph Smith said the original was the
most correct. Also worth noting is that if such a language
did exist, the only known copy of this language has
vanished. Thus we must trust in the word of Joseph Smith
alone for the accuracy of this translation.
Since the original gold plates the book was allegedly
written on are nowhere to be found, all copies of the
Book of Mormon written in foreign languages are
translated from the current English version. Thus all
translations of the Book of Mormon other than the
English translation are literally a translation of a
translation. If these golden plates ever really existed
(and we contend they did not), a great deal is
undoubtedly lost in these second hand translations.
In contrast, the Bible is translated from copies of the
original manuscript. These manuscripts are available for
study now and the languages they are written in can be
studied for the most accurate translation possible.
The Eighth Article is not limited to translation alone, and
therefore misrepresents the LDS view of the Bible.
Mormonism teaches that the Bible is missing many "plain
and precious things." (1 Nephi 13:38, Book of Mormon)
"Many insertions were made [to the Biblical
manuscripts], some of them 'slanted' for selfish purposes,
while at times deliberate falsification and fabrications
were perpetrated." (LDS Apostle Mark E. Petersen, As
Translated Correctly, p. 4, insert added) According to
one BYU professor, the New Testament was corrupted
"by the end of the first century, and continued in the
second and third centuries A.D. [to be corrupted]" (Robert J. Matthews, What the Book of Mormon Tells Us
About the Bible, BYU, 26th October 1991, insert added)
This argument questions the transmission not the
translation of the texts. "Transmission refers to how the
[Biblical] manuscripts were copied and handed down
through the centuries." (Bill McKeever & Eric Johnson,
Mormonism 101, p. 101, insert added)
Since we do not have the original writings of the various
books of the Bible, we must rely on the accuracy of the
copies. Christian scholars Norman Geisler and William
Nix explain that "the New Testament text is preserved in
some 5, 366 partial and complete manuscript portions
that were copied by hand from the second through the
fifteenth centuries.... if there were no biblical manuscripts
available today, the entire New Testament could be
reconstructed from the writings of the church Fathers of
the first three centuries with the exception of eleven
verses." (Geisler & Nix, A General Introduction to the
Bible, pp. 409, 466)
While there are minor differences (also known as
variants) between the thousands of texts, none affect
essential Christian doctrine. This is best seen when we
look at the evidence supporting the reliability of the Old
Testament. When the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered
in 1947, scholars learned that they dated back to and
before the time of Christ. One scroll held the entire book
of Isaiah. This scroll is 99% the same as the next closest
copy, which is 1,000 years older and dates to about
900 A.D. (Ron Rhodes, Reasoning From the Scriptures
With the Mormons, pp. 170-171)
When we compare this evidence to evidence of other
ancient writings we see how amazing the preservation of
the Bible is. Homer's Iliad has the next highest number of
manuscript copies compared to the New Testament with
643 copies. Caesar's Gallic Wars has a mere ten copies,
with a thousand year gap between the time it was
written and the earliest copies were found. The Book of
Mormon has absolutely zero copies before Joseph Smith
allegedly translated it. There is also a 2,400-year gap
between the time the first book was allegedly written in
the Book of Mormon to the time it was allegedly
translated by Joseph Smith.
In contrast the Bible has literally thousands of ancient
manuscripts from which to work with. In the case of the
New Testament we have copies within 100 years of
when they were written. When all the evidence is
considered we see that the Biblical manuscripts are more
accurate and more abundant than any other ancient text
on Earth.
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The LDS Attack on the Bible: An Assault on
the Nature and Character of God by Bob Betts
ERRANCY
Joseph Smith was originally "inspired" to proclaim,
"We believe in the Word of God recorded in the
Bible;…" (Eighth Article of Faith). Sometime after
that, a different LDS leader was "inspired" to
change it to, "We believe the Bible to be the Word
of God as far as it is translated correctly." Aside
from this change calling into question the prophetic
calling on Joseph Smith, this second version of the
article attacks the very reliability of the Bible. From
a practical LDS viewpoint, any biblical words or
passages, which disagree with their current
teachings and doctrines, it follows, must be
mistranslated. But, this explanation for the massive
discrepancies between current LDS theology and
traditional biblical theology, leaves the Bible
substantially discredited and holding little authority.
The late LDS apostle, Orson Pratt, gave his low
opinion of the Bible in his 1853 book, The Seer, p.
213, "…almost every verse has been corrupted and
mutilated to that degree that scarcely any two of
them read alike. The original manuscripts of the
books of the Old and New Testaments are no where
to be found; all we have left are mutilated copies
containing an incredible number of contradictory
readings."
LOST SCRIPTURES
In addition, it has been taught by LDS leaders that
there are numerous lost scriptures. In his 1966
edition of Mormon Doctrine, p. 453, the late LDS
apostle Bruce R. McConkie wrote, "Only a small part
of the recorded revelations and scriptural writings
of the past are now available to men. That great
body of revealed truth which is missing-without
question a collection of scripture far greater than
the scriptures now extant-is lost scripture, meaning
that it is lost to the knowledge of men. Many
passages and even whole books of scripture have
been lost through the carelessness or wickedness of
the record keepers."
THE HOLY BIBLE
If the Bible is as incomplete and corrupted as
McConkie and Pratt claimed, then it would be a
misnomer to call it the Holy Bible. Yet, on "The Holy
Bible" page of the official LDS website, no mention
is made of the alleged missing books or the alleged
corrupted scriptures. For the Mormons to call the
Bible "Holy," yet teach that it is incomplete and
flawed because of men's mishandling is a
misrepresentation of what they truly believe.
GOD'S SOVEREIGNTY
Who canonized the Bible and is it accurately
translated? Rather than name names or produce
evidentiary proof of its accuracy, I recommend you
read God's Word, Final, Infallible and Forever by
Floyd McElveen (sold in our bookstore for $4.00)
and New Evidence That Demands a Verdict by Josh
McDowell (check your local Christian bookstore).
Instead, I'm going to take a different approach. The
answer? "Men spoke from God as they were
carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter 1:21)
resulting in our Bible today and, of course it's
accurate. Being sovereign and all-knowing, these
scriptures were "God-breathed" (2 Timothy 3:16)
and everything God purposed is included. He
accomplished this just as surely as He created all
that is; just as surely as He breathed life into Adam;
just as surely as He etched the Ten Commandments
on stone tablets with His finger; just as surely as He
sent Himself, His Word (John 1:1-5) and His Truth
(John 14:6) personified; just as surely as He raised
Jesus from the dead to sit at His right hand; just as
surely as He sent His chosen apostles, giving them
instructions through the Holy Spirit to continue the
spread of His good news worldwide and does so to
this day.
IT'S ALL ABOUT GOD
By faith in the flawless character and sovereign nature of God,
we know that the Bible is precisely what God purposed. Jesus assured
us in Matthew's gospel (5:18) that "…until heaven and earth pass,
not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the law, until
all is accomplished." Jesus also stated in the parallel verses
of Matt. 24:35, Mark 13:31 and Luke 21:33, "Heaven and earth shall
pass away, but my words shall not pass away." And in Luke 16:17,
He put it this way: "But it is easier for heaven and earth to
pass away, than for one stroke of a letter of the law to fail."
Regarding missing books, John gave us this insight in his gospel
(21:25), that Jesus did "…many other things which…if written…the
world itself could not contain the books." The Bible is intact.
Were it not so, our Father God would not be Almighty.
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FROM THE MAIL BAG
Dear Mrs. Robertson,
I am writing this letter to express my
personal thanks to you for the contribution
that you have made in my life. I am 16
years old and I attend a public high school
in Tempe (AZ). Many of my friends are
members of the LDS church. I am blessed
to have been born and raised in a
Christian family with two positive parents
who have always been exemplary
examples of Christians. I take much
comfort in the fact that if/when I have
questions about my faith, I can turn to my
parents or one of my siblings for advice.
As I was looking for a book to read, I
came across a copy of your book, Out of
Mormonism and was instantly captivated
by the title. I am fascinated in studying
religions and theologies and grabbed
your book right off our bookshelf. I asked
my Mom where she had gotten it and she
told me that our neighbor (also a
Christian) had read your book and heard
you speak in a book club at her church. To
make a long story short, I plowed through
your inspiring book in 2-3 hours.
Through reading your text, I was
introduced to a deeper insight to the LDS
church. A few months ago, my older
brother (now 18) had asked some
questions to an LDS friend's parents that
pertained to fallacies and non-parallels
between the LDS doctrine and the Word
of God. He was shocked to find that, in
many cases, they avoided his questions at
all costs, causing him to become more
suspicious about Mormonism as a whole.
Another reason that I am writing is to
request a copy of your booklet, Witness
to Mormons for my own personal study.
I would like to share with you the lyrics of
a favorite worship song of mine called
Emmanuel.
"You have laid Your hands upon me Let Your
love surround me. You are Emmanuel. I was sliding through the
darkest night. And then You found me. You are Emmanuel, Emmanuel."
Thanks again for your light that has shone
so brightly for others in their time of need.
Thank you for the courage to share your
story, knowing that you would be
ostracized for it. Thank you for providing
evidence for your beliefs, a leg to stand
on that many people don't have. Thank
you for the time, money, and thought that
you have put into Concerned Christians.
Thank you for rekindling in me a fire that
at times does not shine as bright as it
could. Thank you for changing my heart.
Thank you for changing the world.
Your perseverance, strength, and
compassion for the lost inspires me. I first
thought, "I want to change the world like
her when I grow up." I then realized,
"Why wait?" Thank you for taking the time
to read my letter.
P.S. Could you explain the Mormon view
of Polygamy? I tried to research it on their
website but, as usual, no explicit answers
were given. Thanks!
We pray your Christmas
holiday will be blessed and that you have a prosperous, happy
and safe New Year.
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