Well, I guess I can't call myself a friend if you don't know my name or anything about me. my name is Aaron, I am 22 years old. I've lived most of my life in Washington state. its where I call home. The past two weeks I've thought about what you said about sending me pamphlets and stuff, and instead I would like to hear of what you've found that's better. I've read lots of stuff against the Church, and to be frank a lot of it was name calling and saying stuff that couldn't be proved one way or the other to just making stuff up. So I'm through trying to study for or against the church. There is only biased opinions going ether way.

But I am interested if you feel you have found something better, not that I'm dissatisfied with the Church, but if there is anything claiming to be better I must study it. Anything you've found, some new doctrine, a better organization, anything would be of better value to me than stuff that tries to tear down the beliefs I already have. So in this way I'm always progressing.

Thanks, I look forward to your reply.

Your friend,

Aaron

Here is how I see it:

Jesus came and gathered the Apostles and taught them, and then He died for our sins. Jesus, of course, is the Messiah promised in the Old Testament. His coming was prophesied for more than a thousand years.

So, He taught the Apostles and they began to preach His Gospel (Good News) about salvation by Grace through Faith. It is clearly presented throughout the New Testament, particularly in the first eight chapters of the Book of Romans and in the entire Book of Galatians. It is a simple, but powerful message.

Now, two thousand years later, the broad body of Christian churches still believe in and preach the Gospel of Christ. Whether I am a Baptist, a Methodist, a Presbyterian, a Pentecostal, a Lutheran...the list goes on and on. The basic truth about God, man, and salvation are held in common throughout the larger Body of Christ.

Now along comes a man like Joseph Smith (or hundreds of others who do what he does). Joseph and his kind totally redefine the nature of God, the nature of man, and the way of salvation. Mormonism's teachings are totally different from the teachings of the real Body of Christ.

Smith says the truth was lost and he restored it. That might have been considered true if we didn't know better. In order for Smith to have a chance, he had to tell us that the Bible, along with the Church, was lost from the earth. But that supposes that Jesus was wrong when he said, "I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." (Matt. 16:18) According to Smith the gates of helll _did_ prevail against the Church. So Jesus came, died, and within a few years His Gospel was lost. That is an amazing thing. He did all that He did by the power of God and promised His church would survive, but it didnn't.

So, Smith says he restored Christ's Church. He bases his story on the finding of the Book of Mormon, supposedly the story of the ancient inhabitants of this continent. Smith says Jesus visited these people. The American Indians, Smith says, are descended from Jews. Well, this is _absolutely not true_. So from the very first, Smith is presenting lies as though they were truth.

Then, he changes all the glorious revelations of the Bible to fit his own ideas. In Mormonism God is not God, but an exalted man. Jesus is not God who came to the earth in human form. No, he is no different than you and I. That is a nice idea, but not true.

Smith changes sinful man into a "god in embryo." He changes the way of salvation which is clearly taught in the Bible to be the work of Christ by shedding his blood into a system whereby puny mand saves himself by living certain laws. So the blood of Christ was not enought. On and on Smith goes devising a new gospel, which is no gospel at all. As Galatians teaches:

6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
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.
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.

So, Aaron, here is the deal. It is not that the real Church has found some new doctrine that makes it better, as you ask. But, rather, Smith perverted the Gospel so that it is weak and watery, bloodless and insipid. The bottom line for Mormonis is: "As man now is, God once was; as God now is, man may become." A great idea, but the job of God is taken!

You wanted to know what I have found. I challenge you to read just one small chapter from a book I wrote comparing what I found to what Mormonism teaches. It is found at:

https://mazeministry.com/resources/books/havetext/chap08.htm

Also, view the movie that proves, _proves_ that the Book of Mormon is a fraud:

http://www.mormonchallenge.com/dna/dna.htm

You have a chance to have a full answer to your question. Will you accept the challenge? Or will you be afraid to read something the Church has not reduced to baby food and declared safe for you to look at?

Jim