The Great Commission Zeal--Even to the Mormons

I must be honest that my zeal and passion for the Great Commission, God’s Word, etc. has been lacking of late. The dreary road of language learning can be a dangerous road for one’s spiritual walk. My thoughts are that it’s not just about “ZEAL” and “PASSION,” it’s about the object of that passion and zeal.

I am a short term missionary to Peru. I am living in a suburb of Lima, Peru studying language and other classes relating to missions, while working in a church. The town I serve in has thousands of lost people. Every time we go into the town we pass the beautiful Mormon Temple—quite the “rose” among the thorns—the stick / brick homes, dirt roads, and poverty. The Lord gave me and my room mate Cole the opportunity to meet in a restaurant twice with Mormon missionaries from the States our age. Christ said let’s come and reason together. Due to testimony and clear teaching in Scripture about false teachers, we decided NOT to meet at their church or our church. Also, we wouldn’t buy their food, nor let them buy ours. We are not to support their teaching in ANY way. But, due to their “evangelizing” so many of the young people here in Manchay, we need to know what they are teaching, what Scripture they are contradicting, and how to teach the truth amongst the lies of Satan.

Mormon teaching in a nut shell

One day, God made Christ and Lucifer, and all the spirit beings. Christ and Lucifer are special—they are brothers. All spirit beings made a choice to either go with Lucifer or to earth with Christ. That means that all of us on earth were once spirits that chose to come to earth—we passed through a veil and can’t remember choosing to come here to earth. The Bible is God’s Word, but the book of Mormon “completes” the Bible. It is the “new dispensation.” The Book of Mormon sheds light on dark areas of Scripture. With the Bible and the Book of Mormon, their gospel says that God (with a human body) says to believe in Christ (a god) in order to be saved. One must have faith, put their trust in Christ, and then they must serve God for the rest of their life—in hope of reaching the 3rd Heaven where they will be gods themselves.

The 4 Missionaries with 2 Different Gospels

These two young Americans from Utah and California worked for 2 years full time to gain $10,000 so they could spend 2 years in Peru teaching Mormon doctrine. I have studied, memorized, and preached Romans 10 many times, but I gained a new appreciation for this chapter after tonight. My heart’s desire is that people everywhere—including Peru—be saved (v.1). These boys that are 20 and 21 have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge (v.2). They are ignorant of the fact that God’s righteousness is enough to save, and that God’s righteousness is imputed (installed) into us through mere acceptance of Christ’s gift. The law is not necessary for salvation. Christ’s righteousness is the end of the law—we need not be judged according to this law because of His Son (v.3-4; Romans 3). We were going round and round with different historical, moral, doctrinal, philosophical issues. I was led to a chapter in John. As they were debating with Cole, I was studying this passage in John. They then said, “Turn to John.” You guessed it, it was the chapter I was looking at. They read 3 verses, and said 2 sentences using the verses out of context. We read the first several verses, some in the middle, and the last 10 verses witch not only proved their interpretation wrong, but other topics we spoke on earlier. Next, the Lord led me to refocus the conversation with a few questions: Why are we here? What are we working for? How do we get it? They summed up their thoughts, and we summed up ours. I took them through a modified Romans Road, and then concluded with Romans 3:20, 28: Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin . . . Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. After reading these verses, before even explaining them at all, simultaneously the two Mormons sat back in their seats and had a look of fear and dawning in their eyes.

I don’t know how they can shut the Bible and hold up the Book of Mormon and say, “I know with no doubt at all that this is the truth.” It hurts so much to see this zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. We agreed to go our separate ways. They obviously do not want to “waste time” with us, and if they reject Scripture I have no need of them either. I told them I would be at the same restaurant, same day, same time next week. Pray for that the Lord will soften their hearts, and if the Lord wants me to speak more to them, that their schedule would be freed, and one or both would show up ready to discuss Scripture.

Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.
For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. Rom 10:1-4