THE CROSS Newsletter

August 2024

LET’S TALK ABOUT BIBLICAL PRIESTHOOD

In the Mormon belief system, PRIESTHOOD is one of six major differences from normal orthodox Christianity. (We will exam the other 5 differences at other times.)

The Mormon approach to the Priesthood has two levels.  

The first level is the Aaronic Priesthood, which is reserved for boys from age 11-18 and new male converts to the LDS organization.

The second level is the Melchizedek Priesthood, which encompasses male members of the organization older than 18 years and meeting standards of worthy behavior and church participation. All authority for direction of the LDS organization is contained in this priesthood. So then, what light does the Bible share about this? 

BIBLICAL PRIESTHOOD

The Bible identifies three types of priesthoods between mankind and God.

1. The Melchizedek priesthood appears in Genesis 14:18-20 and Psalm110. Hebrews indicates Jesus’ priesthood supersedes Melchizedek.  
2. The priesthood of Moses, led by his brother Aaron, is introduced in Exodus 28:1. This is the Aaronic priesthood. It is the priesthood of the Jewish nation. The New Covenant in Jesus superseded the Aaronic priesthood.
3.  Jesus is revealed the new “high priest forever in the order of Melchizedek” in Hebrews 4:14-5:10 and 6:13-7:28. Melchizedek never had a priesthood of subordinates. However, 1 Peter 2:9,10 describes all Christians believers as a kingdom of priests. 

 The Genesis, Psalm, and Hebrews Scriptures deal directly with Melchizedek. These three are the only Bible passages addressing Melchizedek and his relation to Jesus.  

GENESIS 14:18-20

Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, and blessed Abram, saying, 

“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,

Creator of heaven and earth.

And praise be to God Most High,

Who delivered your enemies into your hand.”

Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

All we know from this scripture is, (1) The priest was sent from God the Creator, (2) God delivered Abram from his enemies safely, (3) In gratitude Abram shared 10% of the plunder of success. These are the total deductive facts available.

PSALM 110

This is the most often quoted Psalm in the New Testament (Matthew 22:42-45, Mark 12:36-37, Luke 20:42-44, Acts 2:34-35, Hebrews 1:13, 5:6, 7:17, 21). It is a Messianic hymn. The text of the Psalm does not reveal the total meaning. This is learned from reading the New Testament passages which explain the connections between, Lord, lord, and Melchizedek. 

The Lord says to my lord:

“Sit at my right hand 

    until I make your enemies

    a footstool for your feet.”

The Lord will extend your mighty scepter from Zion, saying,

    “Rule in the midst of your enemies!”

Your troops will be willing

     on your day of battle.

Arrayed in holy splendor, 

    Your young men will come to you

     Like dew from the morning’s womb.

The Lord has sworn

    and will not change his mind:

“You are a priest forever,

    in the order of Melchizedek.”

The Lord is at your right hand;

    he will crush kings on the day of his wrath.

He will judge the nations, heaping up the dead

    and crushing the rulers of the whole earth.

He will drink from a brook along the way,

    and so he will lift his head high.

By itself, this Psalm is somewhat ambiguous. God inspired David to pen this scripture for a reason. But the reason is not revealed until God provides four New Testament writers with more information (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and the writer of Hebrews). This Psalm along with the New Testament authors is pivotal for understanding the meaning and purpose of Melchizedek.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke share identical information in their Gospels. Again, so does Luke in the book of Acts. The Hebrew author is the one who presents the connection between Priesthood, Melchizedek, and Jesus.  

HEBREWS 4:14-16

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. 

HEBREWS 5:5-10

In the same way, Christ did not take on himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him,

“You are my Son;

         today I have become your Father.”

And he says in another place,

“You are a priest forever, 

         In the order of Melchizedek.”

During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered, and once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

HEBREWS 6:20-7:1-3

Jesus has entered the inner sanctuary on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, the name Melchizedek means “king of righteousness”; then also, “king of Salem” means “king of peace.” Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.

The author of Hebrews is demonstrating in his treatise that Jesus is superior to everything in this world, whether it is earthly or heavenly! He is superior to angels. He is superior to Moses. He is superior to Joshua. He is even superior to the High Priest, who is only a Levitical priest after Aaron, who is Moses’ brother. 

And finally, in Matthew 28:18 Jesus states, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” HE IS TOTALLY SUPERIOR TO EVERYTHING. 

The three passages from Hebrews provide information about Melchizedek which is not available in the Old Testament. Jesus is a high priest,

1. Who has been tempted in every way and did not sin
2. Who has empathy for earthly life
3. Who provides mercy and grace
4. Who was totally committed to his Father
5. Who was perfected to be the source of eternal salvation
6. Who became High Priest in the order of Melchizedek
7. Who is described as having the same attributes as Melchizedek,
8. Without father or mother, without genealogy, his life is infinite
9. who is our priest forever.

Conclusions may be deduced from this information. Melchizedek was a priest who never had a subordinate priesthood. Jesus is superior to Melchizedek because he offers mercy, grace, and salvation to those who are his. Jesus has a Priesthood of followers,

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:9,10) 

The priesthood of Jesus’ true followers is ALL believers. It is not limited by gender. If you follow Jesus and do his will, you are included in that number.

Gary Keating 

CARING ABOUT YOUR MORMON FRIENDS

Last month my newsletter article encouraged everyone reading to actively share two of our publications with your Mormon friends. We had activity from some of you who requested the materials. Here are the materials we are featuring.

NO COMPARISON (36 pages of side-by-side comparison of Mormonism/Bible)

BASIC TEACHINGS OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST of LATTER-DAY SAINTS (this is a single-fold, 4-panel topical comparison Mormonism/Bible)

These 2 items require no education for sharing. However, they are excellent materials for your own education. Save a copy for yourself!

Here is a testimony letter.

As I said, I received the publications on Sat (by God’s grace and in His perfect timing). Today James stopped by for A/C maintenance. I asked him if he had any spiritual beliefs and he told me that he had left the Mormon Church when he was 18 (10 years ago) and wasn’t sure what to believe now. I excitedly shared the No Comparison and Basic Teachings pamphlets with him and he was even more excited than I was! He couldn’t believe that I was actually giving them to him!

I also told him about the ministry of Concerned Christians and pointed to the contact info in the back of the No Comparison pamphlet. …. especially when he told me that it was when he was told he had to go on his mission that he realized that he couldn’t, because he had no testimony to share…. because he didn’t believe in the LDS teachings. I also gave him What is The Gospel? tract, and a Voddie Baucham Jr tract, Life’s Ultimate Questions.

We had a great conversation for about 30 minutes and he said he couldn’t wait to read the material tonite! So thanks for your part in this and please join me in praying for James…. That the Holy Spirit would open his eyes to the truth of the Gospel and Jesus Christ. He has a Bible and I encouraged him to read the Gospel of John. I told him that God had saved me as I read the King James Bible! God’s Word is so powerful!

In Christ Alone,

Marilynn

Allow God to use you like he used Marilynn. Contact us for the materials. They will be sent to you immediately.

Gary Keating

How are you doing with your daily Bible reading? I would like to encourage you, do not give up if you didn’t achieve your goal. Try switching translations. The big goal here is to make the reading of God’s word relevant to your life. And most important don’t forget to pray first. Ask God to bless you as you read, ask for insight. He can only bless you if you are ready to receive. Ask the Holy Spirit to prepare your heart. Be ready to listen with a prayerful and humble heart. In 1 Samuel 3, Eli instructed young Samuel to say “Speak Lord, your servant is listening.” You my friend are free to say the same words.   

Paulette

LDS CARE AND SOCIAL GROUPOur hope at this ministry is to love and support all who have ties to the LDS church. Many of our loved ones attend the LDS church, are raising children in that faith, or we ourselves grew up in the LDS religion and culture. We may have questions about the ever-changing policies and doctrine of the church. We might have friends and neighbors who are LDS and have questions about the information and changes that have recently occurred in the LDS church.We are rekindling a group that we held regularly in the early 2000s but with renewed focus and leadership. The LDS Care Group is a safe space for both former and current LDS Church members to share, encourage, wrestle, and grow in their Christian faith journeys with others who have similar life experiences, challenges, and culture. Currently, we meet near Dobson & Ray in Chandler. Please email Kristine Nelson at [email protected] if interested. Or call: 480-833-2537

If you are changing your email address in the future, please do not forget to make those changes in the preferences link at the bottom of the page. If you ever have questions please call Concerned Christians at 480-833-2537 or email us at 

[email protected]

We at Concerned Christians meet every MONDAY evening for an hour of prayer at 6:30 p.m. If you are not local, please set that time aside to  voice your concerns from your prayer space. If you are local and would like to attend, we ask you to call 480-833-2537 for directions. We truly look forward to meeting and praying with you in the War Room. We ask that you add Concerned Christians to your prayer list along with any other Mormon witnessing group you are familiar. The importance of intercessory prayer cannot be stressed enough. We have seen God grant many blessings to us over the years. If you have a ministry related request please send us a short email.      [email protected]

 “We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers.”    

 I Thessalonians 1:2  

We pray for opportunities to speak with Christians because we firmly believe “It is easier to keep them out than to get them out.”

If you would be interested in sharing your testimony of being delivered from the LDS Corporation into the family of the triune God, please send it to [email protected] Please include contact information.

	If you are led to make a donation please go to our web site at concernedchristians.comIf you prefer to pen a check please mail it to:PO BOX 18, Mesa, AZ 85211Concerned Christians is a Non-Profit 501 (C) (3) organization and donations are tax deductible. We thank you for your support.