Strang, The Teacher
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The greatest testimony of James' claim as a Prophet of God is found among his teachings.  His teachings agree with all the Prophets of God before him.   Joseph wrote that no man can have faith in God toward salvation without having a correct understanding of "his character, perfections, and attributes." James brought us all of these.  James left us with an understanding of God and Jesus not found anywhere else in the Christian world.  If religion were taught as a science, as James said it would one day, James would certainly be honored as most precious gem in the stream of knowledge.  He left us with a treasure of teachings on all the subjects related to our spiritual welfare and temporal behavior.

CHAPTER SIX:
JAMES J. STRANG, THE TEACHER

James J. Strang, The Teacher 
God and Jesus Christ
Gospel of Christ
Order of the Kingdom of God
Necessity of the Priesthood
Loss of the Priesthood
Calling and Ordination
Order of the Priesthood
Law of God
Teachings of the Prophet James J. Strang
Apology for the Mormons

CHAPTER SIX:

JAMES J. STRANG, THE TEACHER

James embraced the concept embodied by Joseph Smith that religion should be taught as a science.  Its principles and laws are as perfect and unchanging as those of other sciences.  James used principles of science to prove the existence of God.  Theology should be understood as that revealed science, which treats of the true nature and characteristics of God, His will towards man, man’s duty to God, and man’s duty to his fellows.  The principles and doctrines taught by Adam, Noah, Moses, Jesus, and all other Prophets of God on a particular subject always compliment each other.  “8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” (Gal. 1)

In his notes in the Book of the Law, James wrote, “108. In all else, the united testimony of those who have studied the facts, is deemed sufficient and satisfactory proof. The facts of Geology, the facts of Astronomy, the facts of Chemistry, the facts of Botany, the facts of Zoology, are all proved by testimony like this in kind, less in accumulation. And upon facts so proved are based the principles of those sciences.  The facts were thus determined.  And the principles are but deductions from them.

“109. The existence of God, the Lord of the universe, a being of intelligence, motive and will, is proved by more testimony than that of Julius Caesar.  And a world of spirits is proved by more living witnesses, and has been in every generation of men, than can or ever could be adduced to prove the existence of one half the species of living animals on the earth.

“110. Enter into the closet of your friends’ hearts, open the door that shame and the fear of being called superstitious has shut, induce men to speak to you as they commune with their own hearts, and how many will you find, who have never beheld the spiritual?  How many who have never been spoken to by the invisible?  How many who have never been led by the intangible?

“111. The world is now a vast crowd of living witnesses of the spiritual, shamed down to silence by the Atheistical doctrines of modern Christianity.  This truth is a spring that can never be dried up.

“112. A generation shall yet arise who, taking facts as they find them, will make religion a science, studied by as exact rules as mathematics.  Then will these facts be sought for as are new discoveries in Geology and Astronomy.  Facts well attested will be generalized. Rules be drawn from them. Man’s prejudices will cease to minister to his blindness.  The mouth of the Seer will be opened, and the whole earth enlightened.” (pp. 85, 86)

It seems that James’ whole life, after being ordained a Lawgiver, on June 27, 1844 , was dedicated to the instruction of spiritual truth.  He worked to build his own house, feed, and clothe his family; although they had only a meager existence.  But, the bulk of his time was dedicated to reading and teaching.  He preached several times a week--with a single sermon sometimes reaching eight hours.  He edited official church journals, wrote many articles, attended nearly every church conference, traveled hundreds of miles preaching the gospel, and carried on a correspondence with over five hundred elders. His teachings were spread by his many travels, by those whom he instructed in righteousness, and in the many books and articles which he wrote.

Joseph Smith wrote, “What is the object of our coming into existence, then dying and falling away, to be here no more?  It is but reasonable to suppose that God would reveal something in reference to the matter, and it is a subject we ought to study more than any other.” (Joseph Smith’s Teachings, p. 101)

The primary subjects that affect our salvation are:

(1) God and Jesus Christ,
   (2) the gospel of Christ,
   (4) the order of God/kingdom,
   (5) the law of God, and
   (6) the teachings of God’s holy prophets.

 “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” (1 Thess. 5:21)

“To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word,
it is because there is no light in them.” (Isa. 8:20)

  God and Jesus Christ

  And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart,
and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.--Deut. 6:5

  There is no subject of greater importance than a true knowledge of God and Jesus. “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:3)  “15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel , The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.” (Ex. 3)  “36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment.” (Matt. 22)  Jesus will soon return, “In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Thess. 1:8)

Knowledge and belief in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was removed from the Christian church by Constantine—an unbaptized, pagan Roman Emperor.  Constantine took the Roman Empire by the sword.  His kingdom, though, was divided on religious grounds.  About ten percent of Rome had become Christian; and the rest followed in the mysteries of Babylon.  Constantine was a loyal follower of the sun God. 

"As seen in Constantine's originating piety, that supreme deity would have been associated with the sun, and pagans would have recognized, with reason, their own solar cult in such [new] Christian practices as orienting churches to the east, worshipping on 'sun day,' and celebrating the birth of the deity at the winter solstice [December 25]." (James Carroll, Constantine's Sword, p. 183)

He established a new Christianity as the state religion.  In 325 AD, he called the first church council; and created the first creed of the Christian church.  This Creed of St. Athanasius established three points of doctrine:  (1) it established the Catholic faith as the only acceptable religion, (2) it changed the identity and nature of God, with the Trinity as the foundation of the Catholic faith, and (3) it changed the identity and nature of Jesus.

(1). Constantine stood as the absolute head of the Catholic Church; and as god on earth.  " Constantine wanted to unify the empire in every way... His political impact on Christianity is widely recognized, but his role as a shaper of its central religious idea is insufficiently appreciated." (James Carroll, Constantine’s Sword, p. 173)  "The unity of the empire--under himself--was to him the absolute political virtue... So in turning to religion, unity of belief and practice, not tolerance of diversity, had to seem paramount... Constantine really understands himself by now as 'the vice-regent of god.' " (Ibid., p. 187)

The Trinitarian Creed stated, “This is the Catholic Faith; which except a man believe faithfully, he cannot be saved.”  Prior to Constantine it had been the Church of Christ.  Constantine made it heresy (a civil crime punishable by death) for anyone to hold contrary beliefs; and Constantine had many thousands killed and banished to enforce this law.  "What never varied in Constantine's otherwise fluid religious self-understanding, something that carried over from Apollo to Christ, was that it was divinely commissioned 'that the rule of the whole world should belong' to him." (Ibid., p. 181)  "...unification was by definition a matter of domination...For Constantine, religious differences were impediments to the power that had replaced Maxentius and Licinius.  In this way, the choice ('heresy') to be religiously different defined as treason, a political crime." (Ibid., pp. 179, 189)

The mission of the Church of Christ was to afford people the opportunity of choice between the delights in mortality and an eternity in the kingdom of heaven.  Although Jesus had twelve legions of angels at His command (Matt. 26:53), He never forced anyone to believe the good news of the gospel.  God will not force anyone to either believe, or perform a given act.  Satan cannot force anyone; except through unholy rulers.  Even then, men have the choice between their beliefs and mortal death.  “28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matt. 10)  We do not know how many thousands were killed under Constantine and his successors.  It has been estimated that 50,000,000 were martyred under the direction of the Papacy for holding beliefs contrary to Catholic doctrine.

Joseph Smith wrote, “We claim the privilege of worshipping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.”

Everyone of every religion was welcomed in the community of saints; and invited to address the saints concerning their beliefs.  Joseph and James taught and were martyred while teaching freedom of religious beliefs.

(2). The Creed of St. Athanasius in 325 AD, which embodied the Trinity, changed the nature of God for Christians to that of paganism.  The Trinity originated with Nimrod, a grandson of Noah and King of Babylon.  "So utterly idolatrous was the Babylonian recognition of the Divine unity, that Jehovah, the Living God, severely condemned His own people for given any countenance to it: ‘They that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the gardens, after the rites of the ONLY ONE, eating swine’s flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together.’ (Isaiah 66:17).  In the unity of that one Only God of the Babylonians, there were three persons, and to symbolize that doctrine of the Trinity, they employed, as the discoveries of Layard prove, the equilateral triangle, just as it is well known the Romish Church does at this day.  In both cases such a comparison is most degrading to the King Eternal, and is fitted utterly to pervert the minds of those who contemplate it, as if there was or could be any similitude between such a figure and Him who hath said, ‘To whom will ye liken God, and what likeness will ye compare unto Him?’” (Rev. Alexander Hislop, The Two Babylons, p. 16)

Joseph Smith taught the critical importance of knowing God.  He taught, “that three things are necessary, in order that any rational and intelligent being may exercise faith in God unto life and salvation.  First, the idea that he actually exists. Secondly, a correct idea of his character, perfections, and attributes. Thirdly, an actual knowledge that the course of life which he is pursuing, is according to his will.” (1835 Doctrine and Covenants, Part One, Lecture Three)

Joseph described the Father and the Son as two distinct personages.  A young farm boy restored knowledge of God and Jesus that had been lost since Constantine and the Papacy.  Some people believe that God is only a spirit (John 4:24).  All men are spirits.  When their spirit is joined with a physical body, it becomes a living soul; and is said to have a tabernacle (physical body).  The official church journal in 1842, which Joseph edited, clearly described both the Father and the Son as having physical bodies.  “Joseph Smith opposes vice and error, and supports his positions from revelation:  no odds whether there be two, three, or ‘Gods many.’  The Father and the Son are persons of Tabernacle; and the Holy Ghost a spirit, besides the sons of God:  for the scriptures say:  ‘Ye are Gods.’” (Times and Seasons, Vol. 3, p. 926)

Joseph Smith went to great lengths to teach a correct understanding of God in his Lectures on Faith (1835 Doctrine and Covenants, Part One).  He explained that God is (1) merciful, gracious, slow to anger, abundant in goodness, long suffering, of a forgiving disposition, (2) without change, (3) love, (4) no respecter of persons, (5) a God of truth, (6) a God of Justice, (7) a God of Judgment, (8) possessed of all knowledge, and (9) holds supreme power over all things.

James composed Chapter Two, “The True God,” in the Book of the Law through inspiration of God.  He provided further definition and explanation of God and Jesus Christ. He explained the sacrifice of Christ in the chapter “Eucharist.”

The Book of the Law notes that God: (1) is The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, (2) is glorious in his perfections, (3) alone has immortality, (4) alone has omniscience, (5) alone has omnipotence, (6) alone is omnipresent, and (7) alone is one.

James, in his notes, offered the Creed of Saint Athanasius; and then proved its errors.  He wrote, “25. This is not the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Ye shall not bow down to the God of Babylon, for the God who spoke in Sinai, said, ‘Thou shalt not bow down unto, nor adore anything that thy imagination conceiveth of; but the Lord thy God only.’

26. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, was not the offspring of adultery; nor was he born of woman; he was not carried about in a nurse’s arms, nor dependent on his mother’s milk for sustenance; he never died, nor did he cry to himself, and find no helper. (Matt. 27:46; Mark 15:34.) Eternal ages are but pulsations in his lifetime, and his might is omnipotence.” (Book of the Law, p. 58)

When Constantine reorganized the Christian Church and adopted all the doctrines, mysteries, and traditions of paganism into Christianity, he changed the identity of both God and Jesus.  Constantine died two years before the birth of Ambrose, the bishop of Milan , who became a leading writer of Catholic doctrine.  Ambrose gave a definition of this new god of Christianity.  He wrote in The Confessions, “when God is thought of, our thoughts should dwell on no material reality whatsoever.”  Truly, the Trinity leads one to worship the unseen god of mystery Babylon.  “Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.” (John 4:22)

The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is a literal personage.  He is called the “living God” thirty times in the Bible.  In his notes on the True God, James wrote, “9. The God who created Adam had a body, with all its parts; for as truly as Adam, when he begat a son, begat him in his own likeness, after his image, (Gen. v, 3) so truly God, when he created Adam, made him in the likeness and after  the image of God. (Gen. i, 26, 27. v, 1. ix, 6. 1st Cor. xi, 7.  Jas. iii, 9.)

“10. Abraham worshipped the same God; for when God  visited him, Abraham at first mistook him for a man; and, with genuine Patriarchal hospitality, invited him into the tent to eat, and offered to wash his feet. (Gen. xviii.)

“11. Jacob also, worshipped the same God; for after wrestling with him, he tells us he saw him face to face. (Gen. xxxii, 24, 28, 30.)  Surely the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has a body and parts, face and feet.

“12. The God who spoke to Moses from the fire in the bush, and in a voice of thunder in Sinai, gave the Commandments; wrote the Commandments on tables of stone, with his finger; (Deut. ix, 10;) conversed with Moses face to face, as a man converses with his friend; (Ex. xxxii, 11;) passed by covering Moses with his hand, and allowed him to behold his back parts. (Ex. xxxiii, 22, 23.)  Truly this is not the God without body or parts, which Episcopalians, Methodists, and all other Christians worship.

13. The God of the Prophets and Apostles was in bodily form, with all the appropriate parts, as imaged in his creature man.” (Book of the Law, p. 54)

James conducted a written debate in the Gospel Herald on the fact that God exists as a literal personage.  He offered an article on “The Lineage of Christ” in the Gospel Herald.  He also conducted a written debate with a Catholic spokesman, Charles Rafferty, which was published in the Gospel Herald; and included the following.

“Upon the fore front of almost every one of your creeds, catechisms, and confessions of faith, whether established by Catholic councils or Protestant convocations, stands out the doctrine ‘That there is but one true God, the creator of heaven and earth, who is WITHOUT BODY, PARTS, Or PASSIONS; which is precisely equivalent to saying, ‘WHO DOES NOT EXIST AT ALL;’ and is the creed of mere Atheism. Thus has this wind of doctrine carried you away from the Apostles' creed, which declared their faith in ‘God the Father Almighty,’ without immediately adding that he did not exist; because the Apos­tles who made it believed, with other men who receive revelations, that ‘God made man in his own image,’ (Gen. i. 26, 27. v. 1,) precisely in the same sense in which Adam begot his son Seth ‘in his own IMAGE,’ (Gen. v. 3,) to wit: having a body in the same general form, and the same number and kind of limbs, joined on in a similar manner. And, consequently, believed that God had both body and parts, which Moses also well knew when he BEHELD the FACE (not in its illumination or glory,) and the BACK PARTS of God. (Ex. xxxiii. 11 to 23.)

“And Abraham not only talked with the Lord, but washed his feet and fed him, and did the like also for two angels; when, accord­ing to your creed, neither Lord or angels have any feet, or stomachs, or mouths; though they looked so like men that Abraham knew not that they were not men till he saluted them. (Gen. xviii.)­And Jacob named a certain place Phanuel, (the face of God,) saying, I have seen God face to face.’ And all the ancients, having a CERTAIN STANDARD or RULE of FAITH SUFFICIENT to DECIDE INFAL­LIBLY ALL QUESTIONS of DIVINE TRUTH which men need know, have concurred in speaking of God, not by way of figure, but reality, as a being in form similar to man, having the same limbs, members, parts and passions; a being walking, talking, eating, riding in a chariot, loving, hating, being angry, jealous, &c., &c.”

“Not satisfied with making Atheism the first article in the Chris­tian creed, Polytheism follows close after, in the declaration that Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are equally the very and eternal God. To put it beyond doubt that these are THREE DISTINCT GODS they declare their faith in ‘God the Father Almighty, WITH­OUT body, parts, or passions,’ and in Jesus Christ, very and eternal God, and very man, who was crucified, died, and raised again, and ascended to heaven, body and soul, flesh bones and all which he possessed as a man on earth, and that with such body and soul, flesh and bones, he has set down at the right hand of God the Father, as a God in heaven; consequently being a God, WITH body and parts, really in the image of a man, at the right hand of another God of an altogether different make; and God the Holy Spirit which emanated from these two, and necessarily must partake somewhat of the nature and likeness of both; and consequently a monster, par­tially without body, having some parts.

To make these creeds utterly, hopelessly, and irrevocably false and impossible, impossible with Omnipotence, as well as with man, it is next asserted that these three are one God, being and substance; that they are all like one another and alike eternal, Omnipotent, Omniscient, and Omnipresent; though the second emanated from the first, and the third emanated from both the others. I do not, I will not, speak of this as a mystery. It is a lie. A lie absolutely and immutably. A lie that OMNIPOTENCE CANNOT MAKE TRUE. As well might you talk that three times four does not make twelve in abstract mathematics, but that it makes ten in a mysterious sense, and that we ought to subscribe to it as a Christian mystery, which we can believe but not comprehend.

“To make the matter as ridiculous as it is infidel, heathenish as it is false, Catholics tell us of the ‘mother of God,’ as though it was God that was conceived in the womb of the Virgin Mary; begotten by himself on a creature he had made, that he might be eternally begotten. And Protestants not willing that the Catholics should monopolize all the folly and falsehood, have trumped up, or borrowed from their mother, the Catholic church, the doctrine of an infinite atonement’ by means of infinite sufferings in the crucifixion and death of one of the three Gods. And as they still insist that these three Gods are verily and in truth but one God, self-existent, indivisible and eternal, it follows that the eternal uncreated and self existent God became a PRIEST unto HIMSELF, and offered HIMSELF a SACRIFICE unto HIMSELF, to make propitiation unto him­self for sins against himself, and became Mediator between himself and his rebellious subjects.” (Gospel Herald, Nov. 25, 1847)

It is noteworthy that James taught the same as Joseph on the identity and nature of God and Jesus.  Brigham Young, on the other hand, taught that God was once a man; and is still in a state of eternal progression.  He taught that Adam was God and Eve was his wife from another planet.  He also taught that man can progress to an identity equal with God.

The teachings of James on God and Jesus agree perfectly with the Bible (with the exception of the alteration in Matt. 1:18 -25).  When we think of God, we think of a real, living personage whose appearance is like ours; and who is possessed of the most perfect and supreme characteristics.

The Creed of Saint Athanasius states, "And the Catholic faith is this: That we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity...  Such as the Father is, such is the Son; and such is the Holy Ghost... The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Ghost eternal... The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible, and the Holy Ghost incomprehensible... So likewise the Father is Almighty, the Son Almighty, and the Holy Ghost Almighty... And yet they are not three Gods, but one God... The Son is of the Father alone; not made, nor created, but begotten.  The Holy Ghost is of the Father and of the Son; neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but proceeding.  And in this Trinity none is afore, or after other; none is greater, or less than another... He therefore that will be saved, must think of the Trinity. Furthermore, it is necessary to everlasting salvation, that he also believe rightly the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ... This is the Catholic Faith; which except a man believe faithfully, he cannot be saved."

Three Gods or One?  The Bible makes it clear there is one God, the Father, and one Saviour, Jesus Christ.  The Holy Ghost is never spoken of as God.  "These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, AND Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:1-3)

"Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him." (Deut. 4:35)  "But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him." (1 Cor. 8:6)  "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." (1 Tim. 2:5)  "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all.  Amen." (2 Cor. 13:14)

The Bible teaches the Father has a physical body similar to ours; although man cannot look upon the face of God in all His glory.  Moses had spoken with God face to face; but, he wanted more.  He asked to see God in all His glory.  "And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend...  And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory. And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy. And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen." (Ex. 33:11, 18-23)

In the Trinitarian creed, God the Son is equal and coeternal with the Father and the Holy Ghost. It makes Jesus the Father.  Who was Almighty God when Jesus was a one celled embryo; and while Jesus was carried about in His mother’s womb?  Who was Almighty God while Jesus was a babe?  Why did Jesus pray to the Father, if he was equal to the Father?  Why was He ordained by the Father (Heb. 5:5), if He was the Father?  The lesser is blessed of the greater.  Who was God Almighty, while the Son lay dead for three days?  If He is equal with the Father, did God die?  Why didn't Jesus raise Himself?  Does He now sit at His own right hand?  How can the Son be equal to the Father, when only the Father knows the exact time of His return?  "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only." (Matt. 24:36)  Jesus told us He was not equal with the Father, "my Father is greater than I." (John 14:28)  See the thirty-one questions posed to Rafferty in the Catholic Discussion (Part Two of this book).

In this creed, God the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and Son.  The Holy Ghost, being coeternal, could not exist until the Father had begotten the Son.  Clearly this creed establishes the Father as the first identity, the Son as the second identity, and the Holy Ghost as the third.  Three gods!  Yet, they are all three coeternal.  Since all three are coeternal, the Father and Son were begotten through the Son by themselves.  This concept actually denies all three.  Since the Holy Ghost is coeternal with the Father and the Son, the Father and Son could not exist until the Holy Ghost.  Yet, the Holy Ghost was last in this grand series of begetting and proceeding.  Since the Holy Ghost could not exist until both the Father and the Son existed, none can exist.  Their existence becomes a nonentity.

The Bible clearly teaches of only one God; and of His Son, and our Savior, Jesus Christ.  Jesus, throughout his whole mission, taught that the Father was superior to Himself.  God alone has a name never known among the Gentile.  It was never spoken above the breath; and then, only between three High Priests, after the order of Melchisedec (Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, Book 2, ch. 12:4).  God alone has immortality (1 Tim. 6:16).  Jesus, who was a spirit similar to us, became mortal like us, died like us, and was then resurrected; even as we will be resurrected.  God alone never changes.  God alone has perfect knowledge.  Jesus tells us only the Father knows the day and the hour of His return. (Matt. 24:36)  God alone holds all power.  Jesus received power from the Father.  God alone is one.  "But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; AND one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him." (1 Cor. 8:6)

This creed would have us worship the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost as one god.  Yet, throughout the Bible men prayed to the Father.  Jesus commanded, "After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name." (Matt. 6:9)   "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you." (John 16:23)  The Bible never speaks of either the Son, or the Holy Ghost as God.  Who are we to believe?

All alike?  "Such as the Father is, such is the Son; and such is the Holy Ghost… The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Ghost eternal.”  The creed admits the "The Father is made of none; neither created, nor begotten."  The Son was begotten of the Father.  The Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son.  The Father is the only GOD spoken of in the Bible.  Jesus is always addressed as the Son, having a lesser power.  How can three different substances, with three different existences, be one?  Admittedly three different identities; coming into existence at three different times.

The Father is obviously the first personage to exist in this Trinity.  The Son being begotten of the Father cannot be either identical, or eternal with the Father.  The Holy Ghost is not even recognized as a personage; but, only as proceeding.  The Father had to exist before the Son.  The Father and Son had to both exist before the Holy Ghost.  The Son also existed by the substance of His mother.  "And yet they are not three Gods, but one God."  By this creed, Jesus was not the Son of God; but, the son of a ghost (that was half Himself).

All three gods Almighty?  "So likewise the Father is Almighty, the Son Almighty, and the Holy Ghost Almighty."  Jesus was not Almighty.  Nowhere in the Bible is Jesus addressed as the Almighty.  During his whole ministry, He submitted His will to the Father.  A person can submit their will only to a superior.  Even in death, Jesus subjected His will to God, "Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done." (Luke 22:42)

I call Jesus as my witness, "my Father is greater than I." (John 14:28)  Jesus is also inferior in knowledge to God.  "But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father." (Mark 13:32 )  The very fact that Jesus was begotten of the Father renders him unequal.  How can he be coeternal?

Nowhere in the Bible is the Holy Ghost spoken of as God.  If the Holy Ghost is God Almighty, he begat seed upon one of His creatures to become the Son, Almighty.  Where is the real Almighty during all these carryings on?

There are many occasions in the Bible where the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are represented in different places.  Were all of these men hallucinating?  "And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven [Father], saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matt. 3:16, 17)  Jesus spent three days in the grave.  Did God the Father and God the Holy Ghost follow?  "So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God." (Mark 16:19 )

"And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man." (Luke 2:52)  How can an Almighty increase in wisdom?  "This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear." (Acts 2:32 , 33)  How can an Almighty receive more power?

Were both Jesus and the Holy Ghost Almighty when Jesus received the Holy Ghost, and when He was anointed by the Holy Ghost?  "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him." (Acts 10:38 )  If Jesus was the Father, how could He anoint Himself?  Was the Holy Ghost Almighty when Jesus bestowed the Holy Ghost on others?  "Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost." (John 20:21, 22)

If Jesus was Almighty from all eternity, how could He be conceived of Himself?  How could He be Almighty in His mother's womb, as an infant, and as an alien to the kingdom of God until He was baptized?  Was He Almighty in death?  If He was Almighty, why was He raised by the Father?  Does he sit at His own right hand?  "For David himself said by the Holy Ghost, The Lord [Father] said to my Lord [Jesus], Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool." (Mark 12:36 )

One can only be blessed by a superior.  Jesus was ordained and sent by the Father.  "So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he [Father] that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec." (Heb. 5:5, 6)

All equal?  "And in this Trinity none is afore, or after other; none is greater, or less than another."  The Father had to be "afore;" as the Son was begotten of the Father.  The Holy Ghost was "after;" as he could not proceed from the Father and Son until the Son was begotten.

As the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and Son, he must be "less" than both.  The very mortality and death of Jesus demonstrates a personage of inferior nature.  Jesus was carried in his mother's womb as a fetus, born as a helpless infant, learned obedience from the things he suffered (Heb. 5:8), died on the cross, spent three days in death with the spirits in prison (hell), was resurrected, and sits at the right hand of the Father.  Not so of God.  "For I am the LORD, I change not." (Mal. 3:6)

"Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him...  Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the LORD he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else." (Deut. 4:35, 39)

"But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; AND one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him. Howbeit there is not in every man that knowledge: for some with conscience of the idol unto this hour eat it as a thing offered unto an idol; and their conscience being weak is defiled." (1 Cor. 8:6, 7)

The Bible consistently teaches there is only one God; and that Jesus is inferior to the Father.  He was begotten by the Father.  He submitted His will to the Father.  He prayed to the Father.  He received His divine authority from the father.  "And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead." (Acts 10:42 )

All incomprehensible?  This creed defines the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost as incomprehensible.  Does it not seem a little more than strange that such a doctrine is found nowhere in the Bible, during four thousand years of personal relationships between man and God?  By defining the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost as incompressible, the creed removes from man the opportunity of eternal life.  "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3)

Was the Father incompressible when he walked, talked, and knew Adam as a familiar friend (Gen. 2:3)?  Was He incomprehensible when he walked with Enoch (Gen. 5:24)?  When He spoke with Noah (Gen. 6:14-21)?  When Abraham mistook him for a man? (Gen. 18)?  When He wrestled with Jacob (Gen. 32:30)?   When He conversed with Moses face to face (Ex. 33:11; Deut. 5:4)?  Soon, He will gather His people and again plead with them "face to face."  "And I will bring you out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out. And I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, and there will I plead with you face to face. Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt , so will I plead with you, saith the Lord GOD." (Ezek. 20:34-36)

Is the Father incomprehensible?  Jesus did not think so.  Why did Jesus pray to Him during His whole ministry and cry to Him on the cross? "And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?  that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matt. 27:46)

Was Jesus incomprehensible?  Simply read the New Testament.  "Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high." (Heb. 1:3)

Was Jesus incomprehensible when he appeared to the disciples after His resurrection, and dined with them?  (Luke 24:43)  Was He incomprehensible when He said to the disciples, "Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have." (Luke 24:39)

How can man have faith in an incomprehensible?  "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." (Heb. 11:6)  How can man love an incomprehensible, "with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind"? (Matt. 22:37)

I will grant Constantine the fact his Trinity is incomprehensible.  Not so the Biblical God.  The whole Bible is a story of God's direct association with man. God conversed with Adam as a familiar friend (Gen. 2:3).  He walked with Enoch (Gen. 5:24).  He spoke with Noah (Gen. 6:14-21).  Abraham at first mistook him for a man; and invited Him into his tent to eat (Gen. 18).  He wrestled with Jacob (Gen. 32:30).   He conversed with Moses face to face (Ex. 33:11; Deut. 5:4).  Which god in this Trinity is incomprehensible, the Father, the Son, or the Holy Ghost?  Or, is it the Trinity itself which is the mystery?

James J. Strang wrote in the Book of the Law of the Lord, “24. And, as by their faith, these three gods are one and the same god, it follows that the Lord God Almighty, uncreate, incomprehensible, and eternal, became a Priest unto himself, and offered himself a sacrifice unto himself, to make propitiation unto himself for sins against himself, and became a mediator between himself and his rebellious creatures; and has risen from the dead, though he alone hath immortality, and ascended on high, where he has received all power from himself, and sat down at his own right hand; where, with his human body, flesh and bones, and all that pertains to the perfection of man’s nature, raised to immortality and everlasting life, he ‘is the express image of the invisible God,’ (Col. i, 15. 2d Cor. iv, 4,) ‘and the express image of his Father’s person,’ (Heb. 1, 3,) who has not any such body or any part of it, and is nevertheless the same identical person with himself.” (p. 58)

(3). Constantine also changed the very nature of Jesus, the son of David according to the flesh, to that of pagan gods begotten by their god upon virgin females.  The most grievous form of blasphemy is against the Holy Ghost.  "Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men." (Matt. 12:31)  Yet, Constantine had Saint Athanasius change chapters in Isaiah, Matthew, and Luke to embody the pagan doctrine of gods born of virgins.  "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost." (Matt. 1:18)  What an imposing statement of blasphemy.  A direct denial that Jesus was of the seed of Abraham; as required to be the Messiah.  This doctrine makes Jesus the illegitimate son of a ghost.  Joseph and Mary were married (espoused) when this conception took place.

An understanding of this fabrication requires a study of Constantine 's Creed of Saint Athanasius, the Bible, and pagan doctrine.  With a little effort, the deception can be uncovered.  Matthew states in the first verse, this is "The book of the generation of Jesus Christ."  In the first seventeen verses, he traces the genealogy of Jesus through Abraham , Judah , David, and Joseph.  This was the bloodline required for Jesus to have any claim to being the Messiah.  "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh." (Rom. 1:3; Acts 2:30)  See the “Lineage of Christ” written by James in Part Two of this book.

Constantine, entangled with pagan and demi-god doctrines, most likely knew nothing about the laws of the Jews.  Consider Matthew, verse 18, which states Mary, the wife of Joseph, was found with child of the Holy Ghost, before they came together.  It was required by Jewish law and tradition that they come together on the night of their marriage (espousal).  Verse 18 states Joseph was a just man; and when he found her with child he did not want to make her a public example.  The law of God, to which Joseph was bound, required that Mary be taken to her father's house and stoned to death.

Verses 22 and 23 are direct fabrications.  First, the child was not named Emmanuel; but, Jesus.  The prophecy was a sign given through Isaiah to Ahaz; and fulfilled in those days.  "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. 15 Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good. 16 For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings." (Isa. 7:14-16)

Young's Analytical Concordance To The Bible, notes, "Immanuel, A symbolic name given to the child who was announced to Ahaz and the people of Judah as the sign that God would give them deliverance from their enemies."  The sign was to Ahaz; and had no reference to Jesus.  The sign was fulfilled in the next chapter; over 700 years before Jesus.  The child's name was not Immanuel; but, "Maher-shalal-hash-baz."  The addition of Immanuel to the text was a simple fraud.  This fabrication calls the whole account after verse 17, into question.  Truth has no fellow with anything counterfeit.  The first 17 verses support the law of God on the lineage of Jesus.  The next 8 verses deny the first 17; and are an obvious fraud.  Strange indeed that only this one account tells of this adulterous union between God and a married woman; when the whole context of the Bible tells just the opposite.

First, the basic question is whether Jesus was the legitimate son of Abraham.  Or, was he the offspring of adultery; and the illegitimate son of a ghost, that was half Himself?  This deception claims, "she was found with child of the Holy Ghost."   The Creed of Saint Athanasius declares, "The Holy Ghost is of the Father and of the Son."  If this deception were true, Jesus was not "of the Father alone;" but, was one-fourth the son of Himself.  This creed made Him the illegitimate son of the Father and Himself.

An espousal (betrothal) in Israel was a legitimate contract of marriage.  Joseph and Mary were married; and had “came together” long before the conception of Jesus.  The public ceremony was often held at a later time.  Martin Luther's own Bible when referring to Mary used "yungfrau." It is interpreted as a “young married woman” or just “young woman."  No inference as to being a virgin. Verse 19 admits "Joseph her husband."

Luke notes that Joseph and Mary were espoused/married in verse 27, “virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David;” and then in verse 31, at a later date, notes, "thou shalt conceive in thy womb." (Luke 1:31)  How many other women in the Bible conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost?  Abraham’s wife Sarah conceived Isaac by the power of the Holy Ghost.  Mary’s cousin Elizabeth was barren; when she conceived John the Baptist by the power of the Holy Ghost.

Marriages were immediately consummated.  Should the new wife prove not to be pure, the law of God required her to be returned to her father's house and be stoned to death.  How long does it take for a woman to be "found with child?"  Joseph could not be a "just man" without obeying the law of God.  "But if this thing be true, and the tokens of virginity be not found for the damsel:  Then they shall bring out the damsel to the door of her father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her with stones that she die." (Deut. 22:20, 21)

The word virgin in the English language does not admit of the true meaning of the term.  A virgin can be either a woman (or man) that has not had sexual intercourse, or a woman (or man) that has remained true to her (his) marriage vows and has had intercourse with none other.  “Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled.” (Heb. 13:4)  Thus, Luther’s “yungfrau,” in reference to Mary, could be either single, or married.

Adultery was forbidden by the law of God, "Thou shalt not commit adultery." (Ex. 20:14)  God cannot violate His own law.  "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man." (James 1:13)  Had the Holy Ghost beget seed upon a married woman, GOD would be guilty of sin; and therefore subject to death, "the wages of sin is death." (Rom. 6:23 )  "And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death." (Lev. 20:10)

The creed states, "The Son is of the Father alone."  This supposed conception by the Holy Ghost denies this doctrine and makes Jesus the son of the third person in the Trinity and not by "the Father alone."  It would have God violate His own laws and commit adultery on one of His creation.  Further, it would make Jesus an illegitimate son of a ghost; and not the Messiah of the house of David (according to the flesh).  Jesus was not the offspring of adultery.

Second, the law of nature is another of God's laws.  Genetics are much better understood today than by the pagans of Constantine's day. The woman carries only half the genetic code required for human reproduction.  Only the male seed carries the X/Y chromosome.  Without this, Jesus could not have been a male--like begets like.  A gorilla, the closest to man in genetic code, cannot beget seed upon man.

A spirit is not flesh, blood, and bones.  According to the Creed of Saint Athanasius, the Holy Ghost only proceeds.  "The Holy Ghost is of the Father and the Son; neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but proceeding."  The best definition, supporters of the creed have provided, is that this "proceeding" can be compared to light from a fire.  Not of substance; but only of essence.

A spirit cannot beget seed upon mortal woman; anymore than a beam of light.  Satan and his angels (spirits) have been visiting earth since Adam.  If spirits can beget seed upon women, imagine what evil Satan's angels would work upon women.  Satan and his angels were cast out of heaven to the earth after the resurrection of Jesus (Rev. 12:4).  If this creed be true, can any man know for certain that he is the father of his wife's children?  Jesus called himself the son of Man about eighty times in the Bible.

Third.  All the prophets in the Bible, who spoke of the Messiah, wrote that He had to be of the royal line of King David.  Only Joseph carried the proper seed of Abraham, Judah, and David; as noted by both Matthew and Luke.   God promised Abraham, "And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice." (Gen. 22:18)  No woman is given in the lineage of Jesus from Adam to Mary.  The seed of man, "according to the flesh," is carried only through the male line.  "And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham. For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him." (Heb. 7:9, 10)  Jesus could only fulfill the law on lineage through his father Joseph.  If Joseph was not the father of Jesus, the whole story of the Messiah is a fabrication.

Paul declared Jesus was the seed of David, "according to the flesh."  "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh." (Rom 1:3)  Matthew declared at the beginning of his book, "The book of the generation of Jesus Christ."  The first seventeen verses give a clear account of the lineage of Jesus from Abraham, through Judah, David, and his father Joseph (Matt. 1:16 ).

Luke does the same; except beginning with Adam.  Mary was a cousin of Elizabeth (Luke 1:36 ); and therefore of the tribe of Levi.  The claim of Jesus to the house of David would not have been legitimate through Mary.  Jesus had to identify with the correct lineage to have any claim as the Messiah.  That was possible only through Joseph.

When telling a lie, it is often impossible to cover all your tracks.  Many references remain that identify Jesus as the legitimate son of Joseph.  I call Mary as my first witness.  "And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us?  behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing." (Luke 2:48)  I call Jesus as my second witness.  "Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people." (Heb. 2:17)

In the King James Version of the Bible Matthew 1:16 is rendered, “And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.”  In the Sinaitic Manuscript Matthew reads, “And Jacob begat Joseph, and Joseph, to whom was betrothed Mary the Virgin, begat Jesus, who is called Christ.”

Joseph is called the father of Jesus.  “Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” (John 1:45)

Jesus was always referred to as the son of Joseph, the Son of David, the Son of Man, or the Son of God.  It is obvious that Jesus became the Son of God through His ordination to the royal priesthood by the Father.  “So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he [the Father] that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee.” (Heb. 5:4)

Surely, the friends and family of Jesus would have been aware of this miraculous conception and calling--had it been true.  Yet, on Jesus first missionary trip to Nazareth , He encountered friends and neighbors who were offended with Him and sought to kill Him.  They said, “Is not this Joseph's son?” (Luke 4:22; read 16-30)  “18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.”

Consider the source.  Demi-gods were a tradition in Babylon , Greece , and Rome .  The story of the virgin mother and her child were an integral part of paganism long before being adopted by Constantine.  "Now, when the mother of the Pagan Messiah came to be celebrated as having been thus 'Assumed,' then it was that, under the name of the 'Dove,' she was worshipped as the Incarnation of the Spirit of God, with whom she was identified.  As such as she was regarded as the source of all holiness, and the grand 'PURIFIER,' and of course, was known herself as the 'Virgin' mother, 'PURE AND UNDEFILED'... The purity of this 'Holy Virgin' did not consist merely in freedom from actual sin, but she was especially distinguished for her ‘immaculate conception.'" (The Two Babylons, p. 126)

"In Papal Italy, as travelers universally admit (except where the Gospel has recently entered), all appearance of worshipping the King Eternal and Invisible is almost extinct.  Exactly so, in this latter respect, also was it in ancient Babylon .  The Babylonians, in their popular religion, supremely worshipped a Goddess Mother and a Son, who was represented in pictures and in images as an infant or child in his mother's arms.  From Babylon , this worship of the Mother and the Child spread to the ends of the earth." (Ibid., p. 20)

By adopting the Babylonian doctrines of the Trinity and the Mother and Child, Constantine turned Christianity into a people guilty of blasphemy against the Holy Ghost.  The beast which John saw rising out of the sea, “having seven heads,” was none other than Pagan Christian Rome. Only Rome has been synonymously known as the city of seven hills. “9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom.  The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. 10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen [ Egypt , Assyria , Babylon , Persia , and Greece ], and one is [Pagan Rome], and the other is not yet come [Pagan Christian Rome begun by Constantine]; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space [325 to 476]. 11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth [Papal Rome], and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.” (Rev. 17)

The first beast which John describes in Chapter 12:3 is Pagan Rome.  The beast changes in Chapter 13:1, “and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.”  By changing the nature and character of God and Jesus to those of mystery Babylon, Constantine brought Christians under the condemnation of blasphemy.  “3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: 5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” (Rev. 17)  The Harlots, the image of the beast, can be none other than Protestantism that retained these same mysteries and blasphemy.

What is to happen to Christians who became entangled with the mysteries of Babylon ?  “And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image.  These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.” (Rev. 19:20)

How different the teachings of James.  “37. Such a one was the Lord Jesus Christ. Down to the age of thirty years, in the retirement of a peasant’s life, he never stepped aside from  the path  of rectitude, to do a single evil deed.  Not one even of the least of all the Commandments or precepts of God did he ever transgress, nor did an evil thought enter his heart.  Conscious that he was the lawful heir to the throne of David, and that the whole house of Israel were his inheritance; never did he turn aside from the present duties of the humble position in which he was born, to disturb the peace, and peril the safety of his brethren, even in claiming his own.

“38. Made of the seed of Abraham. (Gal. iii, 16. Heb. ii,  16,) of the tribe of Judah, (Heb. vii, 14,) and of the house and lineage of David (Rom. i, 3. 2d Tim. ii, 8) according to the flesh, tempted and tried in all things as we are, (Heb. iv, 15,) and partaking with us of the common infirmities of human nature, he was holy, harmless, and without sin. (Heb. iv, 15. vii, 26-28)

“39. It was fit that such a one should receive the keys of the resurrection and of life everlasting (John xi, 25, 26,) and be exalted on high with divine power; for he had maintained the divine characteristicks through all the trials of his mortal existence; and having ever “loved righteousness and hated iniquity,” (Heb. i, 8, 9. Ps. xlv, 6, 7,) he was exalted by his Father and his God to be our God, and the Father of the world to come. (Isa. ix, 6.)

“40. Jesus Christ, having committed no sin, deserved to suffer no evil that was avoidable.  Taking upon himself the Priesthood to which God called him, and working a faithful ministry with the sole view to the salvation of mankind, without regard to any suffering he might bring upon himself, he suffered bitter persecution, and a cruel death, all which he might have avoided, without sin against God or man, by doing less for the salvation of others.  It was thus that he became a natural sacrifice for the sins of men.

“41. But having loved righteousness and hated iniquity, through the severest temptations, and never swerved one moment, God raised him to an incorruptible, and immortal life, and gave him the power to raise up all others; a power which, as he had already resisted every temptation, he could not be moved to abuse.  Thus was established that incorruptible dominion of man over the creation of God, which the divine goodness had sought from the beginning, by the most direct means to establish.

“42. He was not demanded of God as a victim to divine vengeance, but offered himself as the victim of man’s malevolence.  And having walked in the way of life everlasting, through death and the resurrection, he was capable of leading others the same road.  Thus, by the appointment of  God, and the requisite intelligence, he was possessed of the keys of the resurrection, and life everlasting.

“43. He is a propitiation for the sins of all men, in this, that whereas all, both by inheritance were doomed to death, and by actual guilt had aggravated that doom, he brings the actual resurrection of the body to all, (1st Cor. xv, 22,) and puts it in their power by obedience to a law which he makes known, to lay hold on everlasting life.

“44. By means of this law the way of life is ever so guarded that none can lay hold on immortality, except those who have, through the experience of temptation, a settled and unconquerable hatred of sin, and an unchangeable love of righteousness, so that the keeping of the Law of God, instead of being a restraint on them, is their chief desire and greatest pleasure.  No other can enter into life.” (Book of the Law, pp. 156, 157)

James in his debate with Mr. Rafferty, in The Catholic Discussion, asks thirty-one questions that any believer in the Trinity and Virgin Birth need to answer.  Truth has no fear of investigation.  During this discussion, James noted, “He [Jesus] has BECOME PERFECT THROUGH SUFFERING, Heb. ii. 10. v. 9, obtained the keys of hell and of death, Rev. i. 18, received power from God, John v. 19 to 30. Acts xvii. 31, ascended on high, Acts i. 9, 10, 11, and being perfect as his Father in heaven is perfect, has set down, not in place of God, but at his right hand, Heb. i. 3. Eph. i. 20, as the principal viceroy and highest minister unto him, Heb. i. 4, 9. Eph. i. 20, 21, 22, being one with God, not in person, essence or individuality, nor in any mysterious sense, but in the same manner in which the saints are all likewise required to be one with him and each other, John xvii. 11, 21, 22, 23. Gal, iii. 28; that is, one in faith, one in purpose, one in interest and one in posses­sion and enjoyment. And he, as son, being heir of God; that is, as high priest having an inheritance in the power of God's king­dom, seeks to bring us to a like perfection, that we also may be sons, that is, high priests after the power of an endless life, that we may be also heirs of God, joint heirs with him in this inheritance, Rom. viii. 17. James ii. 5, setting down with him on thrones in the kingdom of God , Matt. xix. 28. Luke xxii. 29, 30. 1 Tim. vi. 15. Rev. i. 6. Y. 10. xx. 6; retaining to Christ his double portion as first begotten, because whereas we shall be kings, princes and lords, he will be king of kings and Lord of Lords, Rev. xvii. 14. xix. 16. And in this inheritance, as he is so like his father as to be declared the express image of his person, and the brightness of his glory, Heb. i. 3, so we shall be like him, Phil. iii. 21.

“Christ constantly spoke of himself personally as "the son of man," Matt. xvi. 13, &c. As the redeemer he is expressly declar­ed to be a "man," 1 Cor. xv. 21. In that greatest treatise on priest­hood, the epistle to the Hebrews, it is said that because he loved righteousness (and of course not till he had done so) God exalted him in power above all others, Heb. i. 9; became a son of God by being made an high priest by the oath of God, Heb. v. 5, 6. vii. 21, and it was by the word of the oath, and not by the act of carnal generation, that he became God's Son, Heb. vii. 28.

“For what trash have men bartered away the truths of God? All for want of the proper priesthood, which God set therein as a perpetual and unerring standard of truth.” (see Catholic Discussion, Gospel Herald, April 13, 1848 )

  Gospel of Christ

  No other subject, other than a proper knowledge of God and Jesus, is as important to man as the gospel of Christ.  Every minister of the gospel is ordained (given authorization and power) to preach the gospel.  James constantly addressed the subject of the gospel and the necessity of divine authority in his personal preaching, through many articles in the church journals, and in The Book of the Law of the Lord. The teachings of James were, again, complimentary to those of Joseph Smith and the Bible.  He even republished articles on the gospel from earlier church journals.

God established a plan of salvation for mankind before the foundations of the earth.  Those who were obedient during our first estate as spirits are afforded the opportunity to hear the gospel in the flesh.  “4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.” (Eph. 4)

Salvation in the kingdom of heaven is realized through obedience to the gospel of Christ.  “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” ( Rom. 1:16)

There is only one gospel; and obedience is required to inherit eternal life.  Those who obey the gospel have the opportunity to inherit the earth in eternity.  All others must spend a time with the spirits in prison (hell).  “15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” (Mark 16)

The gospel never changes.  Whatever was required to be saved in the days of Jesus, was the same in the days of Adam, and remains the same forever.  “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” (Gal. 1:8)

The gospel is a perfect law because it had a perfect author.  Had it not been perfect, it could not promise eternal life; as no one could be sure the gospel they obeyed today will be the gospel that brings eternal life tomorrow.  When changed by man, it is no longer the gospel.  “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matt. 10:28)

Every man is born alien to the kingdom of heaven.  Without worshipping the true and living God, and obeying the gospel of Christ, none can enter the kingdom of heaven.  Soon, Jesus will return, “In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Thess. 1:8)

This plan requires men to submit their will to the will of God; and remain obedient to His commandments for eternity.  God’s law is not given for any selfish reason like many of the laws of man.  His law was given for the good, happiness, and salvation of man; and was founded on love.  There are no blessings, though, without sacrifice.  The gospel is one part of that law.  An understanding of this law could only come through a direct association with God.  Through Adam, God provided both the law and the order (officers) to administer the ordinances of the kingdom of heaven.  Adam was an Apostle, Prophet, and Lawgiver like Moses.  The Ten Commandments, the gospel, and the law of God were given to Adam.  Cain violated the law, “Thou shalt not kill.”  Without the gospel, Adam could not have entered the kingdom of heaven.

Adam knew Noah’s father for fifty-six years.  Noah knew Abraham for fifty-eight ye