The restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ in 1830 was a return to the Earth, or a “coming out of the wilderness” (Revelation 12:5), of the church Jesus established in his ministry on earth in Jerusalem. Jesus declared, “Upon this rock I will build my church” (Matt 16:19 IV, Matt 16:18 KJV), and the doctrine and ordinances Jesus established as recorded in the four Gospels are the same as what was originally set in the church by God through Joseph Smith, Jr. We believe all that God has revealed, and it is this “rock of revelation” which guides his church.

 

God does not change. “By these things we know that there is a God in heaven who is infinite and eternal, from everlasting to everlasting the same unchangeable God, the framer of heaven and earth and all things which are in them…the only living and true God” (RLDS D&C 17:4a-b, LDS D&C 20:17). The LDS Church temple ordinances of endowments and sealings are not found in the revelations in Doctrine and Covenants received by Joseph Smith Jr., the Bible, or the Book of Mormon. There is no record of Jesus placing these ordinances in the primitive New Testament church he built. The many temples built by the LDS Church feature ceremonies and rituals that are closed to the public. They are done in secret with the supposed purpose to keep them sacred and holy. They are a product of the “philosophies of men, mingled with scripture.” At best, they point to aspects of Christ, but they do not establish God’s Kingdom. At worst, they build up the pride and ambition of man.

 

We do not accept the accounts that Joseph Smith revealed secret ordinances in the attic of the Red Brick Store. It was only on the condition of completing the Nauvoo temple that the Lord promised to reveal certain ordinances to his people. “And verily I say unto you, Let [the Nauvoo temple] be built unto my name, that I may reveal mine ordinances therein, unto my people; for I deign to reveal unto my church things which have been kept hid from before the foundation of the world; things that pertain to the dispensation of the fullness of times.” (RLDS D&C 107:13a, LDS D&C 124:40-41) Thus, it was in the temple that such things were to  be revealed by God, but the temple was never completed before it was destroyed by fire. Since the church failed to complete the Nauvoo temple, the ordinances and mysteries pertaining thereto were not revealed. We believe the Lord will, in time, lead his people to build a temple in Zion on the designated spot, wherein his purposes may be revealed.

 

The church that Jesus established in the New Testament has ordinances that are simple and straightforward  and open to all to witness. These ordinances are the blessing of children, baptism, confirmation, sacrament of the Lord’s supper, ordination, administration to the sick, and marriage. These ordinances are performed publicly and allow non-members the opportunity to witness them. These are the ordinances originally set up in the Restoration of the church in 1830 and are the primary means through which God blesses his church. The temple ordinances of the LDS Church did not come into practice until after the death of the prophet, Joseph Smith, Jr. They were not recognized as valid ordinances by the RLDS church, and the Restoration Branches believe them to be a product of man, not of God.

 

Temples are places for public worship and instruction of the priesthood. The purpose of the temple or house of God as described in the Doctrine and Covenants is to, “Establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God” (RLDS D&C 85:36b, LDS D&C 109:8). The Kirtland Temple was utilized as a place of worship. Priesthood did meet for instruction, but the building was never closed off from non-members. The Nauvoo Temple was also intended to be a much needed place for public worship, as evidenced from Joseph Smith, Jr.’s statement in the Times and Seasons. “…so many thousands (are) subject to the inconvenience of worshipping out of doors…in private homes, or in the best manner that we can, and no matter how important a subject has to be laid before the saints, it is impossible for them to hear it, as there is no place for them to congregate” (Times and Seasons 3:937). There is nothing in the written word of God or modern day revelation which would instruct a temple to be used for secret rituals closed to the public as now occurs throughout the world in temples of the LDS Church.

 

Temples are to be built expressly by the command of God by revelation to his prophet, such as the building of the Tabernacle in the wilderness, Solomon’s Temple, the Kirtland Temple, the Nauvoo Temple, and the Independence Temple. King David was expressly told by God not to build the Temple (I Kings 8:19) and instead that his son would do it. The correct interpretation of RLDS D&C 107:12c or LDS D&C 124:39, which references the Nauvoo Temple and states that, “my holy house, which my people are always commanded to build unto my holy name,” is that God will always command his people when it is his will that a temple be built. This follows the pattern of temple building amongst God’s people throughout history. It is incorrectly interpreted by the LDS Church to mean that his people should always build temples at every opportunity.

 

The true endowment given in a temple is the one like the endowment given on the day of Pentecost – an added portion of God’s power through the Holy Ghost that allows one to bear a bold testimony of Christ. This endowment is promised several times in the Doctrine and Covenants and all of them are referring to this type of outpouring of the power of God through the Holy Ghost.

 

Yea, verily I say unto you, I gave unto you a commandment, that you should build an house, in the which house I design to endow those whom I have chosen with power from on high, for this is the promise of the Father unto you. (RLDS D&C 92:2a, LDS D&C 95:8).

 

This endowment is not a ritual or ordinance performed in secret by temple workers, but a blessing of God given to his people in a temple built by his command. The blessing of the Spirit of God at the dedication of the Kirtland Temple is a good example of an endowment as described in the Doctrine and Covenants. We look forward to an even greater spiritual endowment or an outpouring of the Spirit of God to enable us to take the gospel to the world in power for the last time before the second coming of Jesus Christ.

 

The RLDS Church, and consequently the Restoration branches, have also never practiced baptisms for the dead. In a resolution adopted by the General Conference of the RLDS Church in 1886 this statement was approved  –

 

We know of no temple building, except as edifices wherein to worship God, and no endowments except the endowment of the Holy Spirit of the kind experienced by the early Saints on Pentecost Day. Baptism for the dead referred to belongs to those local questions of which the body has said by resolution:

That the commandments of a local character, given to the first organization of the church are binding on the Reorganization only so far as they are either reiterated or referred to as binding by commandment to this church: And that principle has neither been reiterated nor referred to as a commandment.

(RLDS Resolution 308 adopted April 9, 1886)

 

We believe it would take a direct command from God through his prophet in order for baptisms for the dead to be instituted.

 

The temple ordinances of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are strongly tied to section 132 in the LDS Doctrine and Covenants, which the RLDS church and Restoration branches do not recognize as being authentic or inspired from God. Section 132 was presented by Brigham Young in 1852, eight years after Joseph Smith, Jr.’s death, and it is not in harmony with the scriptures or teachings of Jesus. (See the linked article on LDS D&C 132 authorship) The doctrine of eternal progression (the belief that humanity can progress to possessing the attributes of omnipotence, omniscience, or sovereignty found only in God) is not in harmony with the Bible, Book of Mormon, or the revelations received by Joseph Smith, Jr. in his lifetime and approved by the Church.

 

Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen; that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he; before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. I, even I, am the Lord; and beside me there is no savior. (Isaiah 43:10,11).

 

While The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims Joseph Smith taught doctrines of eternal progression in the King Follett sermon, we do not believe the reconstructed sermon (first published in the Times and Seasons one month after Joseph Smith’s death) accurately conveys Joseph’s teachings as he was not alive to approve or disapprove its content or publication. God will always be God, and man will always be his creation. There is not a chain of “Gods” above our God. He was not once a man. Man finds completeness by having greater communion with his creator. Men will never become “Gods.” We should instead seek to only become “God’s.” While we seek to be perfect and become like Jesus, there are certain attributes of God we will never possess. Eternal progression in this manner is a deception of the adversary that has been presented to man since the fall in the garden of Eden when Satan promised Adam and Eve that, “Ye shall not surely die…ye shall be as gods” (Gen 3:10 IV, Gen 3:4,5 KJV). The doctrine of eternal progression or exaltation is not part of the gospel of Jesus Christ which teaches self-denial and that “whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all” (Mark 10:44).

 

The LDS temple sealings of eternal marriage and eternal families tries to conform heaven to our earthly understanding and desires. The focus on family values is commendable, but to make salvation ultimately dependent and interconnected with family relationships is a denial of the incarnation and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. While we are to certainly share the love of God with all, including our family, our family is not to be set above God. “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, or husband, yea and his own life also; or in other words, is afraid to lay down his life for my sake, cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26). We will all stand before God on our own, not as a family. “And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God” (Revelation 20:12).

 

Our salvation is dependent on our own response to the ministry of Christ, and no so-called binding or sealing of families will affect that. A woman will not be the property of any man in the resurrection (as asked by the Sadducees in Matthew 22), but will be a child of God. Christ himself taught that, “in the resurrection, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angel of God in heaven” (Matt 22:29 IV, Matt 22:30 KJV). In the resurrection we will all be God’s and no one else’s. Our salvation and the promise of eternal life in the celestial kingdom do not depend on us being married, or “sealed” in a temple. Nevertheless, the marital relationship is one of the most important human relationships, and we are to develop and demonstrate our Christ-like love for our spouse as we seek to become a child of God.

 

There has not been definitive revelation given concerning the state of marriage and family after the resurrection. Revelation suggests that those who enter into the Millenial Reign following the destruction of the wicked “shall multiply and wax strong, and their children shall grow up without sin unto salvation, for the Lord shall be in their midst.” (RLDS D&C 45:10d, LDS D&C 45:58) This implies that there will be husbands, wives, and children during the Millennial Reign. There is evidence that Joseph Smith discussed these concepts with early church leaders, but no revelations were given to the church on the matter. It is speculation on our part whether married couples will still be husband and wife in Celestial Glory after the final judgement. We affirm that we can hold this belief while accepting that God may reveal more on the matter. Our main concern in this life is to be with our response to Christ in this probationary state and not a preoccupation with the manners and conditions of existence in the hereafter.

 

The gospel of Jesus Christ is plain and simple as well as the ordinances that define it. The interpolations of man make it complicated and ultimately self-serving. The unadulterated Church of Jesus Christ will teach the pure gospel as expressed in 3 Nephi 12:25-29 RLDS (3 Nephi 27:13-16 LDS) and nothing more or less:

 

Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you, that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me; And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, I might draw all men unto me: That as I have been lifted up by men, even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil; And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father, I will draw all men unto me, that they may be judged according to their works. And it shall come to pass, that whoso repenteth and is baptized in my name, shall be filled; and if he endureth to the end, behold, him will I hold guiltless before my Father, at that day when I shall stand to judge the world.