What is Scripture?

A conversation on Looney's blog made me want to write more about the subject of scripture. What is scripture? How does scripture come to be?


It is very common in the Bible to read the phrase, "that the scripture might be fulfilled." Much of the Old Testament foreshadowed and prophecied what would happen in the New Testament times. Christ Himself often quoted scriptures as He fulfilled them. Here is an example of such a time:

16 ¶ And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. Luke 4:16-21

Being inspired to prophesy is part of what is known as revelation. The Lord reveals something to man that cannot be known by man otherwise. The scriptures are full of prophecies that did indeed come to pass. Isaiah was one of the great prophets that prophesied of the Savior. An example is found in this scripture about the atonement of the Savior:
"5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." Isaiah 53:6
The pattern God set in olden times was to reveal His word, and also to reveal through prophets things that would come to pass. Those prophets would then write those words. Those writings makeup what we today have as scripture. In our church, we believe that the same pattern is followed today. We believe that God speaks through a living prophet, and reveals His word to them. Those revelations are recorded, and added to a book of scripture we call "The Doctrine and Covenants". In addition, we believe that God also spoke to prophets in the ancient Americas, who also recorded those words in a book of scripture called, "The Book of Mormon". The Book of Mormon has this to say about scripture:
“Know ye not that there are more nations than one? Know ye not that I, the Lord your God, have created all men, and that I remember those who are upon the isles of the sea; and that I rule in the heavens above and in the earth beneath; and I bring forth my word unto the children of men, yea, even upon all the nations of the earth?

“And I do this that I may prove unto many that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever;

“For I command all men, both in the east and in the west and in the north, and in the south, and in the islands of the sea, that they shall write the words which I speak unto them; for out of the books which shall be written I will judge the world, every man according to their works, according to that which is written.” (2 Ne. 29:7, 9, 11.)

One of the articles of our faith states: "We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the kingdom of God." (Article of faith 9) As those things are revealed, they are recorded, and become scripture.

The Bible went through much trial to be preserved. Through tireless efforts of some, such as the monks, many were preserved. But some scripture was lost. The Bible speaks of some books that are not present in our modern edition. The index to the LDS scriptures mentions these scriptures that are missing:
"The Bible itself speaks of other authoritative books of scripture including books of Nathan the prophet and of Jehu and Enoch, the prophecy of Ahijah, the visions of Iddo the seer, and even missing epistles of Paul (see 2 Chronicles 9:29; 13:22; 20:34; 1 Corinthians 5:9; Jude 1:14)."

When we think about the many creations of God, and about His ability and power, doesn't it seem limiting to say that His words would only be found in one book of scripture? Why would God speak to men of old, but not men of today? Why would God leave us to our own devices in a day when wickedness is increasing in the world? Some believe that the Bible is enough. But we believe in the "law of witnesses" that was practiced in Bible times: "15 ¶ One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established." Deut. 19: 15 Additional scripture does not take away from the Bible, but acts as a companion witness that Jesus is the Christ. Modern revelation does not detract from ancient revelation, but affirms that God still directs His people today.

I testify that God continues to speak today, and that scripture continues. Another article of our faith states, "We believe the Bible to be the word of God, as far as it is translated correctly. We also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God." (Article of faith 8) We also believe that more scripture could come forth, and that when it does, it will also testify of Jesus Christ. "39 ¶ Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." John 5:39

What Would I Give Up?

Recently, a blogger friend, Livingsword, commented that he felt our church isn't Christian, and suggested that maybe our church should give up and join the other Christian churches. He suggested we should donate our chapels, and in essence absorb in with the other Christian churches. Of course we would never consider this silly notion, we are one of the fastest growing Christian churches in the world today. But I will lay aside the absurdity of this suggestion and give my reasons for why I personally would never consider such a notion.

First of all, which church should I join? There are many different Christian churches, with very differing beliefs. Should I join those who believe in baptism by immersion, or those who believe in baptism by sprinkling, or those who don't believe baptism is necessary at all? Should I join those who believe in being saved by grace alone, or those Churches that believe that grace is accessed through repentance? Should I believe in those Christian churchess who believe in a literal resurrection, or those who believe in no resurrection at all? Should I believe in the Christian church that only uses the New Testament, or one that also uses the Old Testament? Should I join the Catholic church, from which the others broke off, or should I join a church that was started by a man in this generation. Clearly, we can't lump all Christian churches in together, because they aren't all the same.

Because they are so different in their beliefs, should some of them not be called Christian? They all believe in Jesus Christ, but their teachings vary so much that they clearly can't be considered the same. Yet we allow them the freedom to call themselves Christian because they do believe in Jesus Christ. Why do so-called Christians not allow our church the same freedom?

If I were to give up my religion, there would be more that I would be giving up than just a name. For me, the loss would be great. Asking me to give up my religion and join the other churches in the world is like asking a college graduate to give up his college diploma in exchange for a mere high school diploma. Why would I give up the further knowledge and blessings that I have already received for something lesser?

Here are just a few things that I would have to give up:

--I would have to give up having a living prophet to guide me, who receives current revelation for my day.

--I would have to give up additional ordinances that help me progress spiritually. Included in these ordinances are temple ordinances such as eternal marriage, and the eternal "sealing" of families. I would also have to give up the ability to do baptism for my deceased family members who never had the chance.

--I would have to give up the Book of Mormon which has greatly increased my testimony of the Savior Jesus Christ, and has strengthened me and brought me closer to Him.

--I would have to give up my knowledge of the plan of salvation. Our Sunday School teacher today made an interesting observation. The word "plan" does not appear in the bible. It does, however, appear numerous times in the Book of Mormon. Yet most christian churches today refer to the "plan of salvation" that the LDS church has been teaching about for over 150 years.

--I would have to give up my understanding of the pre-existence, and my knowledge that I am a literal spirit child of God.

--I would have to give up a church that has the same organization that existed in the early church, which today has living apostles and prophets, just like the church the Savior set up.

--I would have to give up being a member of a church that has the Priesthood authority of God. This Priesthood authority was lost from the earth after the death of the apostles. It is bestowed on a person by the laying on of hands. After the apostles died, there was no one left to pass on that authority. In modern days, John the Baptist, and Peter, James, and John restored that authority by the laying on of hands, to Joseph Smith, who in turn ordained others.

I could write much more, but suffice it to say that if I left this church for another, I would be leaving much, and gaining no ground. This church has all of the puzzle pieces. This church has the same organization as Christ's early church. I think we could be considered among the truest of fundamentalist Christians because we follow the gospel as it was preached and set up in the early church. We believe that an apostasy occurred, causing the original church to be lost, and we believe it was prophesied by many, including Paul, and Amos. We believe this is truly Christ's church restored to the earth in fulfillment of prophecies about a "restitution of all things".

I have prayed and received an answer from God that these things are true. I invite all to not rely on my words, but to study it out in their own minds, and pray to God to receive their own testimony.

I can remember once seeing a very small child with a $5 bill. An adult, in a teasing manner, offered to trade the child for a $1 bill. The child was very young, but knew that what they had was worth more than what the adult was offering. I too would never trade my religion for one that offers less. I would never sell my birthright for a mess of pottage, even if it did win me acceptance by other Christians.