jesusorjoseph

    There once was a man who lived believing and trusting in the Bible as the true Word of God and in Jesus Christ as the only Savior for mankind. The man died. He was immediately brought before the judgment seat of God. God looked down upon him from His throne and said, "Tell me, why do you think I should let you into My heaven?"
     The man said, "According to the Bible, you said 'that whosoever believed in Your Son Jesus Christ, wuld not perish but receive the gift of eternal life'. Because the Bible said your word was true and would stand forever, I believed that Jesus died for my sins, that is why you should let me into your heaven."
     There was a long silence, then God sighed a deep, sorrowful sigh. He said, "I'm sorry, I lied! Although I tried and tried to preserve my word thru the many translations and thru the centuries, I just couldn't do it many plain and precious things were taken out, many corruptions came in. Didn't you realize that I really don't have much power, that my power wasn't strong enough to control the human translation of my word?"
     The man was shocked and said, "but the Bible said you would preserve your word, that we could trust you to preserve your word, that you alone are the Almighty, the All powerful God and that your word would never pass away."
     God just shook His head in distress, "Look," He said, "if you believed that, I guess you don't deserve to go to heaven." I had very little control over humans. During the translations of my book, they made errors. I tried real hard to influence them, but it just didn't work. Therefore, whoever believed only in the Bible can not go into heaven."
     "But", said God, "I did give my word to a guy named Joseph Smith and if you followed him instead of Jesus, the I might let you go into heaven. Except, I was having a real bad day when I chatted with Joseph, and I told him a few things that weren't quite right too, but oh well....no one's perfect!"
      The man, nearly speechless at this point, asked God what He had told this Joseph that wasn't right.
     "There were a few items I told him to put in the Book of Mormon, that were not quite correct," God said. "For instance, that Jesus would be born at Jerusalem when everybody knows He was born in Bethlehem, but then I guess I'm not a stickler for minute details. I also told him that when Jesus was crucified, there was three days of darkness when really there were only three hours. Oh dear, I guess one shouldn't sweat the small stuff."
     "There were some things which I told Joseph that were right tho, and he did put them in the Book of Mormon too. What a good boy Joseph was, you know. One of those was that there is only one God and that Jesus is God. Joseph did put that fact in the Book of Mormon. Then after that, some people went off teaching that there are gods many and that Jesus was only "a" god, silly people, they are."
     "I'm sorry to tell you this, but only the followers of Joseph Smith get to go into my heaven. I know, I know. I've sent a lot of people away from heaven because they believed I had preserved my word and believed and obeyed it, but you know, they should all have known that my servant Joseph was the only right prophet. So if people can't realize that and discern right doctrine from wrong, is that my fault?"
     God continued, "What Joseph said was so much more important than what Jesus said, didn't you know that? Do you know that Jesus actually said that when one dies he will become like the angels in heaven, neitehr marrying nor given in marriage?" Can you believe that?" Of course that is totally different than what Joseph said."
     "Come to think of it, Jesus may have been correct at that time you know. I changed my mind ever so often and I can't remember for sure if that's how it was then or not. "But when Joseph said that marriage was eternal, and polygamy was necessary and you had to work real hard to become gods yourselves, I'm quite sure that that is exactly what I had in mind at the time. Oh dear! I wonder if I've changed my mind since then. I guess I'll have to check that out."
      Mind boggled and distressed beyond belief by now, the man said, "But your word says there are no other gods, that You and You alone are God, and that for eternity past and into eternity future there is only one God and there are none besides you."
     "Well, I changed my mind. Besides, you mere humans take everything out of context."
     "And when I did change my mind," God continued, "I tried to let you know about it. Joseph wrote the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price for me and all my changes are recorded there. Joseph was real faithful about doing that. Even tho the Book of Mormon said polygamy was wrong and it declared that there is only one God, when I decided to change my mind about that, I told Joseph and he recorded the changes. You really have no excuse you know."
     "Completely confused, the man asked, "But doesn't your word say that you change not? Even in the Book of Moromon you said you are the same yesterday, today and forever."
     God looked him straight in the eye and declared "If I am God, I would think I would have the right to change my mind about anything, even about me being unchangeable!"
     Then He shook His head, perplexed, and said, "I do have one slight problem tho. There were so many believers in Joseph Smith and so many of them formed their own little groups away from the mainstreem Mormon religion, and each little splinter group picked and chose which of Joseph's teachings they would follow:"

Some wore the garments and some didn't care about them.
Some lived polygamy - but didn't baptize for the dead.
Most believed Jesus and Satan were brothers, but there were a few who didn't believe that.
Some worked in the temple but didn't live the United Order.
Some lived in the United Order but got real greedy....
Some baptized for the dead but didn't live polygamy.
And a whole lot of them never even went to the temple.

     "But they all did belive in Joseph Smith. I wonder what I should do about this dilemma. I really must try to be fair. I guess I'll just have to judge them all on only one thing, and that will determine their eternal abode....."

"Who did they truly believe on: Jesus or Joseph? Its impossible to believe in both!"