![]() We will highlight in particular the symbolic, salvific, interrelated, additive, retrospective, and anticipatory nature of these ordinances within the allusive and sometimes enigmatic descriptions of John 3 and Moses 6. In this article, we will discuss the symbolism of water, spirit, and blood in scripture as they are actualized in the process of spiritual rebirth. To this requirement of being “born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit,” Moses 6:59–60 adds that one must “be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten … For … by the blood ye are sanctified.” Consequently, belief or unbelief in God is put back where it should be - on individual choice.Ībstract: In chapter 3 of the Gospel of John, Jesus described spiritual rebirth as consisting of two parts: being “born of water and of the spirit.” Evolution is compatible with the simple scriptural accounts of creation. The theory of evolution is a mechanistic description and therefore, like all other scientific principles, is neutral on the question of God’s existence. This reasoning indicates that evolution does not prove atheism and that evolution is a constructive process. If humans use this principle to design machines, solve complex mathematical problems, engineer proteins, and manipulate living organisms, then certainly a super-intelligent being could have used evolution to create life on earth. Evolution involves a random change in an inherited trait followed by selection for or against the altered trait. The conflict is manifest in the common belief that creation means a divine, supernatural process and that evolution denotes an atheistic, accidental event. What I offer can only be the reactions of an Old Testament scholar: are the revelations to Joseph Smith consistent with the situation in Jerusalem in about 600 BCE? Do the revelations to Joseph Smith fit in that context, the reign of King Zedekiah, who is mentioned at the beginning of the First Book of Nephi, which begins in the “first year of the reign of Zedekiah” (1 Nephi 1:4)? Zedekiah was installed as king in Jerusalem in 597 BCE.Ībstract: The crux of the creation–evolution conflict is a futile desire to scientifically prove or disprove the existence of God. I am still, however, very much an amateur in this area. Since that initial contact I have had many good and fruitful exchanges and have begun to look at these texts very closely. I am a biblical scholar specializing in the Old Testament, and until some Mormon scholars made contact with me a few years ago, I would never have considered using Mormon texts and traditions as part of my work. I am not a scholar of Mormon texts and traditions. I should like to take a few of these issues and set them in another context, that of preexilic Jerusalem. Terryl Givens has set Joseph Smith in the religious and cultural context of his time and raised many important issues. For example, "jakarta looks for "apache" and "jakarta" within 10 words of each other. Specify the search words within a double-quoted string immediately before the operator. > or ) or decreases ( tests whether two or more words all start within the specified distance, measured in words.A tilde (~) in front of a word means it should not be present.A space in front of a word means the word is optional, but it should be present.There must be at least one other search term in the same field. A minus (-) in front of a word means it must not be present.A plus (+) in front of a word means it must be present.Parentheses may be used to group words and operators into subexpressions."test phrase" matches "test, phrase" but not "phrase test", or "test or phrase". Phrases enclosed within double quotes (") only matches exactly the same words in the same order.All punctuation marks other than the following operators are ignored. ![]() Common words and words with only 1 or 2 characters are ignored. ![]() "MormoN" matches "mormon", "Mormon", "MORMON", etc.
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