How do I talk to Mormons about Jesus?

How do I talk to Mormons about Jesus?

Asked by Josh

Hi,
Firstly I want to say that I am a dedicated Christian, have been and always will be.
For the past few weeks my house has had Mormons knocking on our door. Very determined and committed I will say, as they have come back again and again. I am led to believe they will come back again, and would like to know what in the Bible I can put forward to them to basically say they are “wrong”.
I want to take this oppourtunity to introduce them to the real God and Jesus (not what they will be expecting, but much better for them), though I want to know exactly where they get their information from (is it from selective parts of the Bible and/or extra written material and/or their entirely own book). I want to be able to show them hard evidence that God and Jesus exist, and are Lord, and give them reason to actually turn to the Christian faith (I don’t know how likely that is though, but God can do wonderful things).
Any help with what they believe and what Christians should say in response to them would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks, Josh!

Hi Josh,

I’ve had a similar experience with Mormons, and have chatted a bit with an ex-Mormon Christian, so here are my reflections on it.

Yes, they are wrong and there’s plenty of places in the Bible that contradict their teaching, but pointing to them won’t necessarily convince a Mormon. They assert that new revelation was given to Joseph Smith in the 1800’s, so a “newer is better” argument works for them, even if it’s flawed. They’ll just say that God corrected himself the next time. As you look into the details of this ‘revelation’ it’s all a bit fantastic, with magic spectacles and mysterious golden plates.

Salvation, for a Mormon, is by works, which is why they’re so keen to come back to you. Any part of the Bible that speaks of salvation by grace through faith would be good to have in mind. (e.g. 2tim 3:15, Eph 2:8-9, Heb 11). If they’re missionaries from Utah, say, then they are solidly indoctrinated to believe that any criticism you make is an attack of Satan himself. As you open your mouth, the shutters go up and it’s all over. You can’t really convince them of truths from the Bible, which is really frustrating!

What hope is there then? Lots!

You can actually give them a reason to turn to Jesus: Assurance. Those with faith in Christ WILL be saved aside from works. We have confidence in the hope we share in Christ. It leads to Joy and Love, which is something they don’t have. Pray, and show some love for them, and see what God does… Even giving a cool glass of water would be a shock to them, since they get so many doors slammed in their faces.

(Just a note of caution: Mormons aren’t idiots. There’s something attractive to their lies, so don’t get sucked in!)
Hope this helps.

PS: The book “So What’s the Difference” is a bit dated now, but is still really helpful.

Answers are kindly provided by our friends at Christianity.net.au

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