150 Question. What attitude should we adopt towards cults not recognised as branches of the Christian Church?
Answer. Cults, such as the Mormons, the Watchtower Society, and the Seventh Day Adventists, and many others teach dangerous unscriptural doctrine and should be entirely avoided.
151 Q. Who are the Mormons?
A. Mormonism is a worldwide religious cult which claims to be the only true Church and describes itself as the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints. It was founded by Joseph Smith in the USA in the early 19th century.
152 Q. What heresies are held by the Mormons?
A. Contrary to Rev. 22:18-19, Mormons believe that their books The Book of Mormon and Doctrine and Covenants are the authoritative Word of God, equal to the Bible, which they have also altered and undermined in The Pearl of Great Price. They deny the Trinity, the Spirituality of God and the equal Deity of the Eternal Son with the Father. Mormons believe in a plurality of gods and that men may become gods. The Mormon Church denies original sin and teaches salvation by works as well as faith through ordinances such as baptism and celestial marriage. It practises baptism for the dead in order to “save” the departed.
153 Q. Are the views of the Mormons scriptural?
A. No. Mormonism is a dangerous cult which cannot be regarded as Christian in even the loosest of senses and while its adherents should be pitied and if possible instructed in the truth, its doctrines should be detested and avoided and their endeavours to promote them strongly opposed.
154 Q. What is the Watchtower Society?
A. The adherents of the Watchtower Society, falsely called Jehovah’s Witnesses, are the followers of a self-proclaimed Pastor Russell who died in 1916 in America, leaving behind a large organisation which uses its own corrupted version of the Bible called the New World Translation. They gather for meetings in Kingdom Halls all over the world, drawing away many after them. They believe that they alone are God’s true people and that the Watchtower Society is God’s only channel of correct teaching and that all Churches are part of the devil’s organisation.
155 Q. What other views are held by the Watchtower Society?
A. They deny the Trinity, the true Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ, that the Holy Spirit is a Person and that God’s justice is satisfied by the atonement. The Society also denies justification, the new birth, and sanctification for most converts, and rejects the office of the ministry. While they deny eternal punishment and the existence and immortality of the soul, they teach that after death men who die impenitent will receive a second opportunity of salvation.
156 Q. Are the doctrines of the Watchtower Society biblical?
A. No, the teaching of the Watchtower Society is heretical, blasphemous, grossly unscriptural, and dangerous and ought to be avoided as deadly poison. The adherents of the Society should, however, be pitied in their spiritual blindness and where possible shown their errors from the Word of God.
157 Q. Who are the Seventh Day Adventists?
A. The Seventh Day Adventists are a worldwide group who believe that they are the remnant Church. They originated in the USA over 150 years ago and give particular emphasis to the so-called prophetic visions of Ellen G. White.
158 Q. What do Seventh Day Adventists believe?
A. The Seventh Day Adventists hold that the Fourth Commandment is still binding, but that the seventh day of the week should be observed as the Sabbath, instead of the first day. They deny the existence and immortality of the soul and they believe in a second opportunity of salvation after death. Adventists believe that we are saved by grace but that we keep our salvation through works.
159 Q. Are these views about the Sabbath scriptural?
A. The binding obligation of the Fourth Commandment is a scriptural doctrine, but the first day of the week is the Christian Sabbath as is seen in the example of the apostles in the New Testament (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2; Rev. 1:10).