theplains

Christians becoming or being one like the Father and Jesus being one does not mean we become God or a Godhead.

Many things have been taught that are not supported by scripture. It appears you do believe Heavenly Father became a God before he became a Father of spirit children.

Exaltation is becoming God. "Through a continual course of progression, our Heavenly Father has received exaltation and glory; and He points us out the same path” (Religion 430-431 - Doctrines of the Gospel Student Manual, chapter 33, page 92).

My point was that a seminary manual (Religion 430-431) teaches Jesus become (was ranked as) a God when he reached some level of intelligence. This teaching is also found in the December 1975 Ensign article "How to Receive Spiritual Gifts" (Jesus Christ, the Firstborn, who became a god in the premortal existence, the Father's steward over his creations, is the one source of light for us as individuals; and the Holy Ghost is the "gatekeeper," as it were, the dispenser of light to us according to worthiness and ability to receive it"). The LDS Church also teaches Heavenly Father progressed to Godhood. “Less well understood, however, is the fact that God is an exalted man who once lived on an earth and underwent experiences of mortality . The Prophet Joseph Smith refers to this as "the great secret." (Times and Seasons 5:613, August 15 1844). See also Joseph Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 345.) The progression of our Father in heaven to godhood, or exaltation, was strictly in accordance with eternal principles” (Achieving a Celestial Marriage Student Manual, page 129).

One being as in their being one God, not three.

Which they convey as LDS truth unless otherwise specified.

Like multi-level marketing.

Gospel Principles doesn't teach that. But do you believe Gospel Principles are official LDS Church teachings?

From GotQuestions: What is the meaning of homoousious? It was in the early fourth century that a man named Arius began teaching that Jesus was homoiousious with the Father—of a “similar substance.” According to Arianism, Jesus was “divine” but not in exactly the same way the Father was divine. He did not teach that Jesus was heteroousious, which would have indicated that Jesus was simply human or radically different from the Father in some other way; rather, he taught that Jesus was “similar” to the Father. In response, a bishop named Athanasius insisted that Jesus was homoousious with the Father—of the “same substance”—the same kind of being. In other words, Jesus is divine in the same way as the Father is. Jesus is fully God in the same way that the Father is God—they are of the same divine nature.

Both LDS versions of Jesus and Heavenly Father became Gods. "He [Jesus] is the Firstborn of the Father. By obedience and devotion to the truth he attained that pinnacle of intelligence which ranked him as a God, as the Lord Omnipotent, while yet in his pre-existent state" (Religion 430-431 - Doctrines of the Gospel Student Manual, chapter 4). “Less well understood, however, is the fact that God is an exalted man who once lived on an earth and underwent experiences of mortality . The Prophet Joseph Smith refers to this as "the great secret." (Times and Seasons 5:613, August 15 1844). See also Joseph Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 345.) The progression of our Father in heaven to godhood, or exaltation, was strictly in accordance with eternal principles” (Achieving a Celestial Marriage Student Manual, page 129). The LDS version of the Holy Spirit was once not a member of the Godhead either. "Where was there ever a father without first being a son?" (TPJS 373). Joseph Smith's answer to his own rhetorical question was, "Nowhere." As with any man, there was a time when God the Father was childless, when he had not yet begun the procreation of his spirit family. Consequently, the Godhead as we know it did not exist; there was no Son of God and no Holy Ghost. [2] [2] The spirit personage known as the Holy Ghost (D&C 130:22) was apparently begotten of the Father following the spirit birth of Jesus. Heber C. Kimball taught: “Well, let me tell you, the Holy Ghost is a man; he is one of the sons of our Father and our God; and he is that man that stood next to Jesus Christ, just as I stand by brother Brigham” (JD 5:179). Franklin D. Richards quoted Joseph Smith as saying that “the Holy Ghost is now in a state of Probation which if he should perform in righteousness he may pass through the same or a similar course of things that the Son has” (Ehat and Cook 245). https://rsc.byu.edu/pearl-great-price-revelations-god/doctrine-firstborn-only-begotten

Do you believe Gospel Principles are official teachings of the LDS Church?

Why?

What do you believe is the most significant false teaching of the LDS Church?

Does being "one with God" mean you are God or in the Godhead?

Reminds me of former President Hinckley's interview with Mike Wallace.

I'll address this more later, possibly in a separate thread or in our other ongoing threads. I provided several sources where LDS leaders taught there was a father above Heavenly Father, but you never explain where you believe Heavenly Mother came from and how she became a God. Maybe you don't believe "heavenly parents" is an official doctrine of the LDS Church? As for the LDS teaching of the Holy Spirit being a son of heavenly parents: "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that the Holy Ghost is a spirit man, a spirit son of God the Father. It is fundamental Church doctrine that God is the Father of the spirits of all men and women" (Encyclopedia of Mormonism). https://eom.byu.edu/index.php?title=Holy_Ghost "The Holy Ghost is a man; he is one of the sons of our Father and our God; and he is that man that stood next to Jesus Christ" (Journal of Discourses, volume 5, page 179). If you believe teaching Jesus became a God is leading people astray, then let me know.

[1] "I have always declared God to be a distinct personage, Jesus Christ a separate and distinct personage from God the Father, and that the Holy Ghost was a distinct personage and a Spirit: and these three constitute three distinct personages and three Gods". [2] "That which is without body or parts is nothing. There is no other God in heaven but that God who has flesh and bones". Teachings of Joseph Smith, chapter 2 Comment on [1] - three Gods in the Godhead. Comment on [2] - the Holy Spirit is not God or he is God with flesh and bones.

If I am not mistaken, I think you believe you were made partakers of the divine nature when you were born to heavenly parents prior to coming to earth. If you study Romans 8, there are no sons of God who are not also "joint heirs with Christ". I don't believe LDS believe they will supplant (take the place of) Christ, but it is taught they will "have everything that our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have—all power, glory, dominion, and knowledge" (Gospel Principles). You might even be greater than Heavenly Father if you have more spirit children, create more worlds, and enable more of your children to become Gods themselves. God will never cease to be our God. But Latter-day Saints believe they will become Gods in the future and have spirit children. The God of those children will be the one by whom they were begotten and born. Take yourself for example: your God is not the Father of Heavenly Father, because he did not beget you.

They need to be cautious so as not to play whac-a-mole with past LDS teachings.

There is one God, eternally existing as 3 divine personages. How that is possible, I cannot comprehend. Teaching the Mother, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are spirit children of their respective heavenly parents, who then became Gods, is leading people astray. Oh ... and I don't have any CFR that specifically uses the phrase "this is official doctrine".

Apparently? Then he should have called the book "Speculations and Opinions of Salvation".

I didn't understand the imagery he was using.

InCognitus and I tend to write a lot 🙂

I think the LDS Church teaches many things in publications and General Conference that you wouldn't regard as official doctrine. The existence of Heavenly Mother is a doctrine of the church so that's why I asked if you believe she became a God and how. You didn't elaborate on that. Joseph Smith and others taught there was a father above the father of Christ. The Prophet says: "If Jesus Christ was the Son of God, and John discovered that God the Father of Jesus Christ had a Father, you may suppose that he had a Father also." Then he asks: "Where was there ever a son without a father? And where was there ever a father without first being a son?" The Prophet taught that our Father had a Father and so on. Is not this a reasonable thought, especially when we remember that the promises are made to us that we may become like him? Evidently his Father passed through a period of mortality even as he passed through mortality, and as we all are doing. Our Father in heaven, according to the Prophet, had a Father, and since there has been a condition of this kind through all eternity, each Father had a Father, until we come to a stop where we cannot go further, because of our limited capacity to understand. Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation "We were begotten by our Father in heaven; the person of our Father in Heaven was begotten on a previous heavenly world by His Father, and again He was begotten by a still more ancient father and so on from generation to generation" Orson Pratt, The Seer You may not also consider them as official doctrines, but do you view them as false teachings?

How do you define that term?