Seeing Contradictions

As I’ve mentioned before, I struggle with the notion of truth and I question this notion within the church, especially when one finds contradictions in many places.

The scriptures is a good place to start. Throughout the scriptures, God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are constantly referred to as one.

John 10:30 states:

        “I and my father are one.”

3 Nephi 11: 27 reads:

        “…the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost are one; and I am in the Father, and the father in me, and the Father and I are one.”

All throughout my church upbringing I have been taught that they are three separate beings, but the words of the scriptures would suggest otherwise. Words that we state as doctrine, as holy, as sacred. Many have told me that it simply means that they are one in purpose, but where is the proof of that, where is the evidence. Perhaps this is my ignorance coming through, but it’s harder to find truth when there is clearly a grey area. In addition to this I find it very confusing when you read through the scriptures and Christ and God are referred to as Lord, who is who?

Ether 2: 12- “God of this land is Jesus Christ

Matthew 4: 7: Jesus said unto him, it is written again, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

So we say that they are three separate beings, but these passages, which are only a few among many would suggest that God and Lord or Jesus Christ are perhaps the same. In addition to this I find contradictions in the portrayal of Christ. Many call him pure, loving, good and kind. Much of his life long ministry portrayed in the four gospels is stated as such. Talking of his healing the sick, raising the dead, forgiving the sinner.

The first section of the Doctrine and Covenants specifically verses 13 and 14 states:

“And the anger of the Lord is kindled, and his sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth.

And the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the day shall cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people.”

I mean seriously this is the God or Christ we worship. Verse 7 disturbs me even more when it states:

        “Fear and tremble O ye people…”

We are told to love the lord thy god with all our hearts and yet how can you love something that makes you fear and tremble, that is angry with you, who will reject you. What kind of love and relationship is that? Of course, yes, I recognise that he died for our sins, (supposedly) and that is the greatest gift of love, so we are obliged to love and follow him, but did his love stop with that sacrifice, is that love conditioned upon that sacrifice.

This brings me to my next contradictory point. It is known that in the pre-existence there was a war between God and Satan. Satan wished to deprive us of free agency and God wished to gift it to us. In this case free agency means the freedom to choose for oneself. So we get that opportunity, we get to choose and yet we are punished if we choose wrong.

D and C 29: 35 states:

“Behold, I gave unto him that he should be an agent unto himself and I gave unto him commandments…”

Right here we have a contradiction, so we have the ability to choose for ourselves, but we should choose him. I just don’t get how we have agency, but we better choose the right thing or we are damned.

2 Nephi 9:24

“if men will not repent, believe in Christ’s name, be baptized and endure to the end, they must be damned.”

So basically if we don’t use our agency according to God's plan and ideas we are screwed, according to scripture anyway.