Was the Priesthood Restored through Joseph Smith?
The Authority for
this Analytical View
Brigham Young said: “Take up the
Bible, compare the religion of the Latter-day Saints with it, and see if it
will stand the test.” Journal of Discourses, 17:46
Apostle Orson Pratt: “...convince us
of our errors of doctrine, if we have any, by reason, by logical arguments, or
by the word of God, and we will be ever grateful for the information, and you
will ever have the pleasing reflection that you have been instruments in the
hands of God of redeeming your fellow beings from the darkness which you may
see enveloping their minds.” The Seer, pages 15-16
When was the Priesthood
Restored?
David Whitmer, who was a friend of Joseph Smith and one
of his witnesses for the Book of Mormon,
wrote some revealing information about the restoration of the priesthood:
“This matter of ‘priesthood,’
since the days of Sydney Rigdon, has been the great hobby and stumbling block
of the Latter Day Saints. Priesthood means
authority; and authority is the word we should use. I do not think the word priesthood is mentioned in the New
Covenant of the Book of Mormon.
Authority is the word we used for the first two years in the Church of
Christ, and lineal priesthood of the old law being in the church, all originated in the mind of Sydney Rigdon. He explained these things to Brother Joseph
in his way, out of the old Scriptures, and got Brother Joseph to inquire,
etc. He would inquire, and as
mouthpiece speak out the revelations just as they had it fixed in their
hearts. As I have said before,
according to the desires of the heart, the inspiration comes, but it may be the
spirit of man that gives it...This is the way the High Priests and the
‘priesthood’ as you have it, was introduced into the Church of Christ almost
two years after its beginning - and after we had baptized and confirmed about
two thousand souls into the church.” (An Address to All Believers In Christ,
by David Whitmer, page 64)
David Whitmer also make known that early revelations,
purported to be from God through Joseph Smith, were later altered and changed
by inserting the priesthood doctrine into them.
“You have changed the
revelations from the way they were first given and as they are today in the Book
of Commandments, to support the error of Brother Joseph in taking upon himself
the office of Seer to the church. You
have changed the revelations to support the error of high priests. You have changed the revelations to support
the error of a President of the high priesthood, high counselors, etc. You have altered the revelations to support
you in going beyond the plain teachings of Christ in the new covenant part of
the Book of Mormon.” Ibid., Pg. 49
In order to see the changed revelations that David
Whitmer spoke of; it would be necessary to compare the original 1833 Book of
Commandments with the present day Doctrine
and Covenants. This is not so difficult, since the 1833 Book of
Commandments has been republished by both the Mormon Church and can be found in
many LDS Ward libraries or Institutes of Religion.
Doctrine and Covenants (D. & C.) Section 2 - this section is not found in
the Book of Commandments. The fact that
it was missing from the 1833 Book of Commandments indicates a pretentious revelation
after the fact, to make it appear that Smith received an early revelation on
it.
D. & C. Section 5 - verse 17 is not found in the book of Commandments. This verse predicts the coming priesthood,
which if it was not in the original revelation, it was conveniently added to
make it appear that God spoke early about the priesthood.
D. & C. Section 7 – verse 5 was altered and verses 6 and 7 were added since
1833. These verses speak of Peter,
James, and John possessing the keys of the ministry, which then was passed to
Joseph Smith.
D. & C. Section 13 - this entire section is not found in the 1833 Book of
Commandments. The date heading this
revelation, May 15, 1829, makes an early date for the Aaronic Priesthood. David Whitmer said that this revelation
never occurred, so who added it? This
section was not published in the Doctrine and Covenants for forty-five years,
not until 1876!
D. & C. Section 20 – verse 64 was changed and verses 65 through 67 were added
since the 1833 edition. This section
gives instructions concerning the ordination of church president and high
priesthood.
D. & C. Section 27 – verse 5 was altered and verses 6 through 13 and 15
through 17 were added since 1833. All
of these verses support the new priesthood that Whitmer said did not exist
while he was in the leadership of the church.
What Does the Bible Say?
The biblical purpose of the Aaronic Priesthood was to
offer sacrifices for the atonement for sin (Hebrews 5:1-3, Leviticus 17:11). Jesus put an end to this by offering himself
as the ultimate and perfect sacrifice for sins (Hebrews 7:27 and 9:11-14). Therefore, we need not daily offer blood
sacrifices, as the high priests, or Aaronic Priests did; for Jesus did it once
for all when he offered up himself. The
Aaronic priesthood is no longer needed and was abolished at the cross of Christ
(Hebrews 7:27). Aaronic priests were
not part of the New Testament Church and never will be, since Jesus put an end
to their work.
Jesus set aside the imperfect Aaronic priesthood through
His cross and established himself as a high priest after the order of
Melchizedek (Hebrews 7:11-18). Jesus
continues forever in this role and has an unchangeable priesthood (Hebrews
7:24). In the Greek New Testament, this
word “unchangeable” (aparabatos) means, unchangeable, inviolate and
untransferable. No other person can
have the Melchizedek priesthood, because Jesus didn’t transfer it or pass it
on. He holds it permanently. No Mormon can succeed Jesus in this position
because Jesus has not, nor ever will, vacate this office which he alone holds.
Dear Mormon friend, a careful perusal of the evidence
indicates there is no historical support for the restoration of the priesthood
in Mormon journals, diaries, letters nor printed matter prior to October,
1834. It does not precede the church in
1829 as Smith later wrote by changing the Book of Commandments. If such an important event which took place,
why was there no mention of it in the original records and why did David
Whitmer say that it was later added? Why
would John the Baptist restore the Aaronic Priesthood when it was abolished at
the cross? Why would Peter, James, and
John restore the Melchizedek Priesthood when they were aware, as the book of
Hebrews tells us, that Jesus alone holds it?
Jesus became our high priest (Hebrews 2:17) and is the
only one who qualifies for the Melchizedek Priesthood. No one can hold it but Jesus Christ. Please
don’t settle for an alternative to what Jesus offers us. Have you accepted the only High Priest, Jesus, and made him the Savior and Lord of your
life
If you
have any questions, or you want further information, write:
Jude 3 Missions
P. O. Box 1901 Orange, CA 92856
Copyright 2002 by Kurt Van
Gorden