Matthew 16:19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

It is by the power of the Priesthood of God that these things are done. Marriage for all time and eternity is done in the temples of God, and it is something that we can read about in the scritpures. It is the binding on earth by these priesthood keys and having it also bound in heaven.

The Lord Jesus Christ also gave this power to Nephi in the Book of Mormon days. He declared:

Helaman 10:6 Behold, thou art Nephi, and I am God. Behold, I declare it unto thee in the presence of mine angels, that ye shall have power over this people, and shall smite the earth with famine, and with pestilence, and destruction, according to the wickedness of this people.

Omni 1:26 And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved.

Mosiah 3:17 And moreover, I say unto you, that there shall be no other name given nor any other way nor means whereby salvation can come unto the children of men, only in and through the name of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent.

18 For behold he judgeth, and his judgment is just; and the infant perisheth not that dieth in his infancy; but men drink damnation to their own souls except they humble themselves and become as little children, and believe that salvation was, and is, and is to come, in and through the atoning blood of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent.

19 For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.

20 And moreover, I say unto you, that the time shall come when the knowledge of a Savior shall spread throughout every nation, kindred, tongue, and people.

3 Nephi 11:37 And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and become as a little child, and be baptized in my name, or ye can in nowise receive these things.

38 And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and be baptized in my name, and become as a little child, or ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God.

Spiritual warfare is taking place right now. All of us are affected in one way or another by it, for good or evil. We need to decide which side we are fighting for, Jesus or His adversary. In the millennium when Satan will be bound, there will be no such warfare.

In Genesis it reads:

Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

God = Elohim

They said let US create man in our image.

'elohiym {el-o-heem'}
Hebrew: noun masculine p
Possible Definitions:
1) (plural)
   1a) rulers, judges
   1b) divine ones
   1c) angels
   1d) gods
2) (plural intensive - singular 
meaning)
   2a) god, goddess
   2b) godlike one
   2c) works or special 
possessions of God
   2d) the (true) God
   2e) God

Alma 40:6 Now there must needs be a space betwixt the time of death and the time of the resurrection.

7 And now I would inquire what becometh of the souls of men from this time of death to the time appointed for the resurrection?

8 Now whether there is more than one time appointed for men to rise it mattereth not; for all do not die at once, and this mattereth not; all is as one day with God, and time only is measured unto men.

9 Therefore, there is a time appointed unto men that they shall rise from the dead; and there is a space between the time of death and the resurrection. And now, concerning this space of time, what becometh of the souls of men is the thing which I have inquired diligently of the Lord to know; and this is the thing of which I do know.

10 And when the time cometh when all shall rise, then shall they know that God knoweth all the times which are appointed unto man.

11 Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection--Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life.

12 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.

There is now and will continue to be ordinances performed by mortals in the temples of God for spirits who await their resurrection. D&C 138 teaches much about the work that is taking place in the Spirit World, and how busy the saints are there in fulfilling the many things to be done, both in missionary work and in redeeming the dead:

D&C 138:58 The dead who repent will be redeemed, through obedience to the ordinances of the house of God,

3 Nephi 13:9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

Helaman 14:18 ...whosoever repenteth the same is not hewn down and cast into the fire; but whosoever repenteth not is hewn down and cast into the fire; and there cometh upon them again a spiritual death, yea, a second death, for they are cut off again as to things pertaining to righteousness.

19 Therefore repent ye, repent ye, lest by knowing these things and not doing them ye shall suffer yourselves to come under condemnation, and ye are brought down unto this second death.

This is what is meant by the general term "hell" which applies to all dwelling places under the Celestial, even the Terrestrial and the Telestial (and outer- darkness). Those who go to the Terrestial or Telestial Kingdoms indeed inherit a "heaven" because satan will not be there, and they have the presence of one member of the Godhead, even Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost, respectively. But they do not ever get to see the face of the Father again, forever. Will this not bring sorrow? I would think, that forever, when one who receives this condition, that whenever they think on their Father and what might have been, they will feel sorrow. But the Father has not left these disobedient ones comfortless. He sends His Son, and the Holy Ghost and their attendant hosts of ministering angels to minister to them. For all who inherit a Kingdom of Glory, these are they who eventually escape the second death. For those that are heir of the Celestial Kingdom (1st Resurrection), they never will experience any part of the second death:

Revelation 20:6 Blessed and holy [is] he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Speaking of the Sons of Perdition, the Lord has said that these are the ones on whom the second death shall have any power;

In what then does the second death consist? John wrote of an event following the resurrection of the wicked and the pronouncement of judgment: "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death." (Rev. 20:14.) The "lake of fire" as elsewhere explained by the Revelator is the abode of Satan and those over whom he has gained power. The second death therefore is final consignment to the dominion of Satan, and, of necessity, banishment from the presence of God and Christ.
(source: James E. Talmage, The Vitality of Mormonism, p.302)

John 20:17 Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and [to] my God, and your God.

He told Mary to tell his brethren that he was on his way to ascend to his Father. How clear can this be? Later that same day, Jesus came back, appeared to his Apostles, and they handled him to see that he was not a spirit! Now they could touch him, indicating that He had already initially ascended to His Father. Acts 1:3 indicates that Jesus was seen of the Apostles for 40 days!

I am glad that you and your congregation have begun a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. That is not a rare instance among our faith either :) Nephi said, I and I feel and believe it too:

2 Nephi 25:26 And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.

Zechariah 12:1 THE burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. True it is, God formed our spirits, but at a time before our birth. This truth, that we lived in a premortal existence comes definitively from modern day revelations, but can be verified by the Bible as well. Consider the scripture in Jeremiah 1:5 where the Lord indicates that Jeremiah was ordained before he was born. To be ordained means to give something... we receive the priesthood for example, by ordination from one who already has the priesthood, and it is conferred by the laying on of hands.

Jeremiah 1:5 5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, [and] I ORDAINED* thee a prophet unto the nations. *ORDAINED

nathan {naw-than'}
Hebrew: verb
Possible Definitions:
1) to give, put, set
   1a) (Qal)
       1) to give, bestow, grant, 
permit, ascribe, employ, devote, 
consecrate, dedicate, pay wages, 
sell, exchange, lend, commit, 
entrust, give over, deliver up, 
yield produce, occasion, produce, 
requite to, report, mention, utter,
               stretch out, extend
       2) to put, set, put on, put 
upon, set, appoint, assign, 
designate
       3) to make, constitute

What this means, it that Jeremiah already existed, in order for God to have ordained him BEFORE he was formed in the belly.

We learn a whole lot more from the scriptures in the Book of Mormon which contain an account of the Brother of Jared, who saw Jesus Christ over 2000 years before Christ was born into the world, when He was yet a spirit. The Lord showed himself unto the Brother of Jared and said:

Ether 3:14 Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters.

15 And never have I showed myself unto man whom I have created, for never has man believed in me as thou hast. Seest thou that ye are created after mine own image? Yea, even all men were created in the beginning after mine own image.

16 Behold, this body, which ye now behold, is the body of my spirit; and man have I created after the body of my spirit; and even as I appear unto thee to be in the spirit will I appear unto my people in the flesh.

The Book of Mormon is completely compatible with bible, and that is one of its strong persuasive points. If he believes in the Bible, he will believe in the Book of Mormon. The proof is in what it says. Nephi received the following instruction from the Lord:

2 Nephi 29:10 Wherefore, because that ye have a Bible ye need not suppose that it contains all my words; neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written.

11 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.

12 For behold, I shall speak unto the Jews and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the Nephites and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the other tribes of the house of Israel, which I have led away, and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto all nations of the earth and they shall write it.

13 And it shall come to pass that the Jews shall have the words of the Nephites, and the Nephites shall have the words of the Jews; and the Nephites and the Jews shall have the words of the lost tribes of Israel; and the lost tribes of Israel shall have the words of the Nephites and the Jews.

14 And it shall come to pass that my people, which are of the house of Israel, shall be gathered home unto the lands of their possessions; and my word also shall be gathered in one. And I will show unto them that fight against my word and against my people, who are of the house of Israel, that I am God, and that I covenanted with Abraham that I would remember his seed forever.

And then Nephi summarizes on this particular point:

2 Nephi 33:10 And now, my beloved brethren, and also Jew, and all ye ends of the earth, hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ, and he hath given them unto me; and they teach all men that they should do good.

11 And if they are not the words of Christ, judge ye--for Christ will show unto you, with power and great glory, that they are his words, at the last day; and you and I shall stand face to face before his bar; and ye shall know that I have been commanded of him to write these things, notwithstanding my weakness.

12 And I pray the Father in the name of Christ that many of us, if not all, may be saved in his kingdom at that great and last day.

13 And now, my beloved brethren, all those who are of the house of Israel, and all ye ends of the earth, I speak unto you as the voice of one crying from the dust: Farewell until that great day shall come.

14 And you that will not partake of the goodness of God, and respect the words of the Jews, and also my words, and the words which shall proceed forth out of the mouth of the Lamb of God, behold, I bid you an everlasting farewell, for these words shall condemn you at the last day.

15 For what I seal on earth, shall be brought against you at the judgment bar; for thus hath the Lord commanded me, and I must obey. Amen.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is exciting!! Very exciting, but it is a spiritual excitement of which I speak, one of teary eyes and personal manifestation. When Jesus Christ visited the Nephites, they were spiritually excited indeed, even overwhelmed unto many tears, for they did bathe the feet of the resurrected Christ with their tears.

3 Nephi 17:10 And they did all, both they who had been healed and they who were whole, bow down at his feet, and did worship him; and as many as could come for the multitude did kiss his feet, insomuch that they did bathe his feet with their tears.

All eyes were red, noses running, and humility abounding. Everyone hushed, reverent and quiet. How often do you see this kind of reaction at the churches in the world today?

Joseph Smith History 1:33 He called me by name, and said unto me that he was a messenger sent from the presence of God to me, and that his name was Moroni; that God had a work for me to do; and that my name should be had for good and evil among all nations, kindreds, and tongues, or that it should be both good and evil spoken of among all people.

D&C 61:14 Behold, I, the Lord, in the beginning blessed the waters; but in the last days, by the mouth of my servant John, I cursed the waters.

15 Wherefore, the days will come that no flesh shall be safe upon the waters.

16 And it shall be said in days to come that none is able to go up to the land of Zion upon the waters, but he that is upright in heart.

17 And, as I, the Lord, in the beginning cursed the land, even so in the last days have I blessed it, in its time, for the use of my saints, that they may partake the fatness thereof.

18 And now I give unto you a commandment that what I say unto one I say unto all, that you shall forewarn your brethren concerning these waters, that they come not in journeying upon them, lest their faith fail and they are caught in snares;

19 I, the Lord, have decreed, and the destroyer rideth upon the face thereof, and I revoke not the decree.

But he that is upright in heart... those are key words. For satan can have no power over us except we let him have it. With Jesus Christ and the power that comes along with true faith in His name, we are protected. But as all have not faith, there is a general rule against being in the water for all missionaries.

One interesting parallel story along these lines from the Book of Mormon is the instance when Lehi and his family were upon the ship on the ocean and traveling to the promised land, and when Laman and Lemuel and the rebellious ones tied up Nephi and made threats to the rest, it was then that the storms arose and the spirit of satan reigned. Lehi and his wife almost died because of the terrible scene which lasted 4 days. When Nephi was finally loosed by his wicked brethren, he immediately prayed and the storm was calmed, and the boat ceased from sinking, and satan lost his power over the circumstance. On the boat, Nephi recorded the following event:

1 Nephi 18:10 I, Nephi, began to speak to [my brothers] with much soberness; but behold they were angry with me, saying: We will not that our younger brother shall be a ruler over us.

11 And it came to pass that Laman and Lemuel did take me and bind me with cords, and they did treat me with much harshness; nevertheless, the Lord did suffer it that he might show forth his power, unto the fulfilling of his word which he had spoken concerning the wicked.

12 And it came to pass that after they had bound me insomuch that I could not move, the compass, which had been prepared of the Lord, did cease to work.

13 Wherefore, they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch that there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest, and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days; and they began to be frightened exceedingly lest they should be drowned in the sea; nevertheless they did not loose me.

14 And on the fourth day, which we had been driven back, the tempest began to be exceedingly sore.

15 And it came to pass that we were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea. And after we had been driven back upon the waters for the space of four days, my brethren began to see that the judgments of God were upon them, and that they must perish save that they should repent of their iniquities; wherefore, they came unto me, and loosed the bands which were upon my wrists, and behold they had swollen exceedingly; and also mine ankles were much swollen, and great was the soreness thereof.

16 Nevertheless, I did look unto my God, and I did praise him all the day long; and I did not murmur against the Lord because of mine afflictions.

17 Now my father, Lehi, had said many things unto them, and also unto the sons of Ishmael; but, behold, they did breathe out much threatenings against anyone that should speak for me; and my parents being stricken in years, and having suffered much grief because of their children, they were brought down, yea, even upon their sick-beds.

18 Because of their grief and much sorrow, and the iniquity of my brethren, they were brought near even to be carried out of this time to meet their God; yea, their grey hairs were about to be brought down to lie low in the dust; yea, even they were near to be cast with sorrow into a watery grave.

19 And Jacob and Joseph also, being young, having need of much nourishment, were grieved because of the afflictions of their mother; and also my wife with her tears and prayers, and also my children, did not soften the hearts of my brethren that they would loose me.

20 And there was nothing save it were the power of God, which threatened them with destruction, could soften their hearts; wherefore, when they saw that they were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea they repented of the thing which they had done, insomuch that they loosed me.

21 And it came to pass after they had loosed me, behold, I took the compass, and it did work whither I desired it. And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord; and after I had prayed the winds did cease, and the storm did cease, and there was a great calm.

22 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did guide the ship, that we sailed again towards the promised land.

If you would be blessed, you must pay your tithing...it is a commandment of the Lord. It is not an option, or a low priority, it must be placed at the top to be of any righteous effect. We must place the Lord first.

In the "pecking order" of finance in the world, we usually place some monthly payments above others, especially in a time of need or unemployment... usually the house payment comes first, then others when we can. If you would place tithing at the top, above all else, then the Lord would be glad to bless you to work all the rest out. I have known many individuals/families who seek to pay tithing when it becomes "affordable" and thus deny themselves of the blessings that come from giving to the Lord the sacrifice He has commanded of us.

We do not ask anyone to pay tithing unless they are disposed to do so, but if you pretend to pay tithing, pay it like an honest man. (Discourses of Brigham Young, 1943 edition, 177.)

Keep the commandments of the Lord. All of them. As you do so, He can and will bless you, but the blessings will come in their own due time, not all come immediately, and that is the test of the faith of the saints.

D&C 130:20 There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated--

Moroni 4:1 THE manner of their elders and priests administering the flesh and blood of Christ unto the church; and they administered it according to the commandments of Christ; wherefore we know the manner to be true; and the elder or priest did minister it--

2 And they did kneel down with the church, and pray to the Father in the name of Christ, saying:

3 O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this bread to the souls of all those who partake of it; that they may eat in remembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him, and keep his commandments which he hath given them, that they may always have his Spirit to be with them. Amen.

It also says a similar thing in D&C 20:76, that he shall kneel with the Church. When I was a Priest and did this, I remember kneeling while saying the prayer. The rest of the congregation did not, however, kneel. It is my observation that the Priests still do kneel when saying the sacrament prayers for the congregation. They should.

The prophet Joseph F. Smith said:

This truth was taught by the early apostles in General Conference, and Mary was named. Orson Hyde delivered his address at General Conference October 6, 1854. Brigham Young followed and sanctioned all that was said on the matter.

Is it any wonder then, that Mary was the first to see the risen Lord? She obviously ranked highest, even above the Apostles, in the eyes of Christ, that she would be visited first.

You are right in your line of reasoning, that if Jesus was baptized to fulfill the law which He gave, then it stands to reason that He would follow all of the other commandments and ordinances which He gave.

2 Nephi 31:5 And now, if the Lamb of God, he being holy, should have need to be baptized by water, to fulfil all righteousness, O then, how much more need have we, being unholy, to be baptized, yea, even by water!

6 And now, I would ask of you, my beloved brethren, wherein the Lamb of God did fulfil all righteousness in being baptized by water?

7 Know ye not that he was holy? But notwithstanding he being holy, he showeth unto the children of men that, according to the flesh he humbleth himself before the Father, and witnesseth unto the Father that he would be obedient unto him in keeping his commandments.

8 Wherefore, after he was baptized with water the Holy Ghost descended upon him in the form of a dove.

9 And again, it showeth unto the children of men the straitness of the path, and the narrowness of the gate, by which they should enter, he having set the example before them.

10 And he said unto the children of men: Follow thou me. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, can we follow Jesus save we shall be willing to keep the commandments of the Father?

I am so thankful for the Book of Mormon which has taught me this great truth: that the things of God are to be understood and known by the power of God only, and that even the Bible must be put through the same test. We must pray about it. Speaking about the Book of Mormon the prophet Moroni wrote to us:

Moroni 10:4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

The same is true for the Bible. We must know it is from God by the power of the Holy Ghost, not some other way. Not by proof, not by archealogy, not by verified cities, etc. All of those things do not prove that God inspired it. Only God can tell us that.

For this reason, people in general had better get a relationship with God to know the truth of anything, not the least of which is the Book of Mormon.

That said, I will now address your question, which is to show that the Biblical prophets were also inspired to know of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, and in traditional biblical prophecy we do not have the names or the places, but do have the signs and the patterns to let us ponder. The Book of Revelation does not name names, but the prophet John tells of an angel which would fly through the midst of heaven (future tense for him!), having the everlasting gospel to preach unto every nation (which the Church of Jesus Christ of Lattrer- day Saints is doing now), and this angel was indeed the resurrected Moroni from Book of Mormon times:

Revelation 14:6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

Moroni is the one who introduced the ushering in of the Book of Mormon record, which God commanded to be held back for our day. Moroni buried the plates into the ground around 421 AD.

Isaiah also foretold the coming forth of the Book of Mormon by telling of the events surrounding that time. Again, no specific names, but again, no other explanation for these scriptures except that which was fulfilled in truth in the lifetime of Joseph Smith. (See Isaiah 29:9-14)

The wife of Joseph was Asenath, daughter of Potipherah, the high priest of On. Dr. A. H. Sayce, an English scholar and archeologist, states that the name of this priest means "the gift of the sun- god," and the name Asenath probably is not Egyptian. He further says Egyptian law prevented the marriage of Joseph with the daughter of the king as "None but those of the royal blood of Egypt might marry one of the solar race. But the priestly head of the state religion ranked next to the Pharaoh, and in marrying his daughter, therefore, Joseph was taken into the very heart of the royal circle. It placed him at once on a footing of equality with the highest nobles of Egypt.''2

So Abraham, Joseph, and Moses married women of their own race, and we need have no worry over our lineage, because we are of that same race.

(source:Joseph Fielding Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, Vol.1, p.171)

...It is not needful to believe that Potipherah, the father of Asenath, was of the Egyptian race. His name- the gift of the sun god-was the Egyptian translation of a Canaanitish name....he may have been merely a Semite in an Egyptian dress.7

Such is the conclusion of the great Egyptologist, Prof. Sayce. The English historian Bloxam, after thorough inquiry, says, "Asenath would, therefore, appear to have been a Shemite princess, not an Egyptian." M. H. Gayer in his book, The Heritage of the Anglo-Saxon Race, points out that the rulers of Egypt at the time of the arrival of Joseph were the Hyksos or Shepherd Kings, descendants, like Abraham, of Shem, quite a different race from the native Egyptians. "Their high priests were invariably princes of the blood royal; and Potipherah, the father of Asenath, must therefore have been a prince. The genealogy of Joseph's wife is both interesting and important, for she was the mother of Ephraim and Manasseh."8 These sons, therefore, by lineage had a right to bear the Priesthood.

Malachi 3:8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.

9 Ye [are] cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, [even] this whole nation.

10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that [there shall] not [be room] enough [to receive it].

also

D&C 64:23 Behold, now it is called today until the coming of the Son of Man, and verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he that is tithed shall not be burned at his coming.

and from the Book of Mormon:

Alma 13:15 And it was this same Melchizedek to whom Abraham paid tithes; yea, even our father Abraham paid tithes of one-tenth part of all he possessed.

Whether you pay a tithe to the Lord now or not is your own business, but the commandment is binding on all who know about it, and if you feel prompted of the Spirit, you should pay it and feel good about it. It can only help you to offer sacrifice to the Lord. If people only knew that the Lord does not need our money, He owns the world already and can get all the gold He wants, but the law of tithing helps us spiritually to keep the Lord first in our lives. It is a blessing to us, and He sends more blessings as well. In fact, it is no sacrifice at all when one considers the blessings that we get back. Consider what the prophet King Benjamin preached to the Nephites:

Mosiah 2:21 I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another--I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.

22 And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you.

23 And now, in the first place, he hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted unto him.

24 And secondly, he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever; therefore, of what have ye to boast?

2 Peter 1:20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

I do not think of any of the Bible as the writings of ancient poets. If they are not prophets of God, I have little interest in believing their words as the words of God. And so I do not believe that they were ancient poets within no connection to reality or real events in time. But I do recall that when I was in High School, a Catholic Priest came to our class and entertained questions. When asked about Adam and Eve, he told us that this story was just a poetic myth, and that it was not literal. Believing it to be very literal, I asked "so you do not believe that Adam and Eve ever existed on this earth?" and he replied that he did not.

Now I know that this does not mean that all people of that faith believe this, but being a Priest with the white collar I believed then that this was the way Catholics thought. What it literally meant is that this person could read the Bible and pick and choose which events were real and literal, and which events HAD to be poetic or mythical (because if they were of such an impossible nature, they had to be mythical, for there is no such thing as "miracles").

Yes, we really DO take the Bible literally. We do believe in miracles, even today! God is a God of miracles, and His prophets wrote in the manner in which they were inspired to write by God, and even though it may resemble poetry in some instances, it is indeed the words of God and is only to be understood by the same Spirit in which it was received originally. The Holy Ghost.

Mormon 9:10 And now if ye have imagined up unto yourselves a god who doth vary, and in whom there is shadow of changing, then have ye imagined up unto yourselves a god who is not God of miracles.

11 But behold, I will show unto you a God of miracles, even the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and it is that same God who created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are.

12 Behold he created Adam, and by Adam came the fall of man. And because of the fall of man came Jesus Christ, even the Father and the Son; and because of Jesus Christ came the redemption of man.

13 And because of the redemption of man, which came by Jesus Christ, they are brought back into the presence of the Lord; yea, this is wherein all men are redeemed, because the death of Christ bringeth to pass the resurrection, which bringeth to pass a redemption from an endless sleep, from which sleep all men shall be awakened by the power of God when the trump shall sound; and they shall come forth, both small and great, and all shall stand before his bar, being redeemed and loosed from this eternal band of death, which death is a temporal death.

14 And then cometh the judgment of the Holy One upon them; and then cometh the time that he that is filthy shall be filthy still; and he that is righteous shall be righteous still; he that is happy shall be happy still; and he that is unhappy shall be unhappy still.

15 And now, O all ye that have imagined up unto yourselves a god who can do no miracles, I would ask of you, have all these things passed, of which I have spoken? Has the end come yet? Behold I say unto you, Nay; and God has not ceased to be a God of miracles.

16 Behold, are not the things that God hath wrought marvelous in our eyes? Yea, and who can comprehend the marvelous works of God?

17 Who shall say that it was not a miracle that by his word the heaven and the earth should be; and by the power of his word man was created of the dust of the earth; and by the power of his word have miracles been wrought?

18 And who shall say that Jesus Christ did not many mighty miracles? And there were many mighty miracles wrought by the hands of the apostles.

19 And if there were miracles wrought then, why has God ceased to be a God of miracles and yet be an unchangeable Being? And behold, I say unto you he changeth not; if so he would cease to be God; and he ceaseth not to be God, and is a God of miracles.

20 And the reason why he ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief, and depart from the right way, and know not the God in whom they should trust.

Alma 40:11 Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection--Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life.

12 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.

13 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of the wicked, yea, who are evil--for behold, they have no part nor portion of the Spirit of the Lord; for behold, they chose evil works rather than good; therefore the spirit of the devil did enter into them, and take possession of their house--and these shall be cast out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, and this because of their own iniquity, being led captive by the will of the devil.

2 Nephi 14:1 AND in that day, seven women shall take hold of one man, saying: We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel; only let us be called by thy name to take away our reproach.

2 In that day shall the branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious; the fruit of the earth excellent and comely to them that are escaped of Israel.

3 And it shall come to pass, they that are left in Zion and remain in Jerusalem shall be called holy, every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem--

4 When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning.

5 And the Lord will create upon every dwelling-place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for upon all the glory of Zion shall be a defence.

6 And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and a covert from storm and from rain.

The most recent revelation from the prophet, the Proclamation on the Family, specifically states the only approved marriage: that between a man and a woman.

The Family: A Proclamation to the World

The Prophet and Apostles declare:

We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.

There is no room for the homosexual lifestyle in this statement. Any LDS member who is sympathetic towards the homosexual movement does not understand what is happening here. We are under attack, and as laws continue to get passed protecting the right of these misguided and even willful sinners, they will come after us, our religion, and will have the "law" on their side to persecute righteous religion, in the name of their so-called "rights."

Priestcrafts are another thing. It is where someone sets themself up as a light to get gain:

2 Nephi 26:29 [The Lord] commandeth that there shall be no priestcrafts; for, behold, priestcrafts are that men preach and set themselves up for a light unto the world, that they may get gain and praise of the world; but they seek not the welfare of Zion.

30 Behold, the Lord hath forbidden this thing; wherefore, the Lord God hath given a commandment that all men should have charity, which charity is love. And except they should have charity they were nothing. Wherefore, if they should have charity they would not suffer the laborer in Zion to perish.

31 But the laborer in Zion shall labor for Zion; for if they labor for money they shall perish.

The Lord has given the Priesthood and the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ to comfort and heal us. Anything that takes away from the importance and central role of Jesus Christ is part of the church of the devil.

1 Nephi 14:9 And it came to pass that he said unto me: Look, and behold that great and abominable church, which is the mother of abominations, whose founder is the devil.

How would Christ atone for the murderer? or sin against the Holy Ghost? Jesus said that there is no forgiveness for this sin:

Matthew 12:31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy [against] the [Holy] Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.

And what this means is that these will go away into everlasting punishment as sons of perdition, to dwell with satan and his angels forever and ever. They will not escape the second death. They will not be forgiven in time.

Yet we know, because of the three Kingdoms of Glory, that all others will be eventually forgiven after they have suffered for their sins that were not covered by Christ's atonement.

President Harold B Lee said:

It would seem very clear, then, that those born to the lineage of Jacob, who was later to be called Israel, and his posterity, who were known as the children of Israel, were born into the most illustrious lineage of any of those who came upon the earth as mortal beings.

All these rewards were seemingly promised, or foreordained, before the world was. Surely these matters must have been determined by the kind of lives we had lived in that premortal spirit world. Some may question these assumptions, but at the same time they will accept without any question the belief that each one of us will be judged when we leave this earth according to his or her deeds during our lives here in mortality. Isn't it just as reasonable to believe that what we have received here in this earth life was given to each of us according to the merits of our conduct before we came here?
(source:Harold B. Lee, Stand Ye In Holy Places, p.11)

Acts 19:15 And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?

16 And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

And so we see, that evil spirits are not necessarily subject to those not in authority, but to those that have been commissioned of Jesus Christ, AND who have faith in Him, they will prevail against any evil spirit.

Having faith to be delivered and having authority are two separate things. To call upon the name of Jesus in faith for delieverance is anyone's privilege for themselves, but to command an evil spirit in the name of Jesus Christ for the benefit of another person, well, that requires specific authority from Jesus Christ in the form of Melchizedek Priesthood. We can not act in the name of Jesus Christ for and in behalf of others without Priesthood authority. I believe this example in Acts was to help this truth be known.

Here is another example of how important authority is, and how it is obtained:

Acts 8:18 And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,

19 Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.

20 But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.

Truly Peter had the power of the Lord, and it was bestowed by the laying on of hands, but it can not be purchased for money or gain. It is a gift and a stewardship. It is the Priesthood.

Faith is the operative for making things happen with the Priesthood, that is what the scriptures you cite are teaching us. We must have faith, or these acts of the Priesthood are even of no effect, as we also see from the scriptures when the Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ could not cast out an evil spirit. Jesus told them, basically, that their faith was not strong enough:

Matthew 17:19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?

20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

Mosiah 23:14 And also trust no one to be your teacher nor your minister, except he be a man of God, walking in his ways and keeping his commandments.

Some might think this to only pertain to our Church, but there are so many faith-destroyers in the school system as well, that this scripture ought to get us to think. Do we trust those teachers over at the school unconditionally? We shouldn't trust anyone, unless we know that they are "men of God."

The Church has not addressed this issue directly, and for good reasons! It is too controversial and people feel too strongly about it on both sides. There are many General Authorities who feel strongly about it one way or another. Reed Benson told me that his father Ezra T. Benson homeschooled, FWIW, and that was a long time ago when it was ultimately more "controversial."

In a regional priesthood meeting here in Sacramento, President Hinckley entertained questions, and a home school proponent (BTW, we homeschool in our family because we love it) asked the Prophet "What is the Church's position on home school?" to which President Hinckley, I would say, "dodged" the controversial question, because he turned back and while looking at President Faust, who was also there, and said "I was raised in a public school system, and turned out OK, how about you?" and President Faust nodded. So there we have it! Official reaction to the Sacramentans.

Home schoolers, I will tell you, do not need, really, a reassurance from the Prophet, for it has been a hard and determined decision to step into this way of thinking in the first place. Home schooling is a huge commitment on the part of the Mother who runs the program. It beats up your house, there are dishes to do for every meal, there are more messes, more chores, and the kids will learn more too if they apply themselves, because they will learn the meaning of hard consistent work, they will learn to study the things that interest them and which they love... and they will expand their talents in great ways, IF they apply themselves. The bottom line is, they have more time to do the things that they love and are interested in.

If you recall, before there were Lamanites, there were the many descendents of Joseph through his sons Ephraim, and all the rest of Manasseh which did not come under the conditions of Laman and Lemuel.

Verse 15 of 2 Nephi 3 says that this prophet will have the name Joseph. This chapter also says that he will be instrumental in bringing to pass the words of Judah and Joseph together (a fulfillment of Exekiel 37) for the purpose of enlightening Israel and convincing the Lamanites of the Bible. That is one of the purposes of the Book of Mormon: to convince the Jew and Gentile and the Lamanites that Jesus IS the Christ! It will come forth by way of the "Gentile" but this is not to say that we are Gentiles, only by association by virtue of living in the land of the Gentiles. It's like having a unique racial origin, and living in America and being called an "American."

Moses was a righteous prophet, and did great miracles. He had more than one wife.

Jacob/Israel was a righteous prophet (House of Israel), and had more than one wife.

There are many examples from the Bible which show us that it was the righteous people who practiced polygamy. It has been a commandment of the Lord for a long time now. When Joseph Smith was commanded of the angel to begin the practice, he hesitated greatly because of the customs of this land which were against it.

In the Book of Mormon, the teachings of Jacob which predate the New Testament, he indicates that the practice of polygamy was something that was only done when commanded of the Lord. Otherwise men were to have one wife only.

Alma 42:30 O my son, I desire that ye should deny the justice of God no more. Do not endeavor to excuse yourself in the least point because of your sins, by denying the justice of God; but do you let the justice of God, and his mercy, and his long-suffering have full sway in your heart; and let it bring you down to the dust in humility.

When we have become aware of the gravity of our sin, we can condition our minds to follow such processes as will rid us of the effects of the sin.

I am curious as to who is giving the idea that the Church Leadership will change and be turned over to the Lamanites. If you believe that, and also that Joseph Smith was anot a literal descendent of Israel, then you are not aware of the words of the prophets, who have declared:

"There is the fact revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith, who was of the lineage of Joseph through the loins of Ephraim, that the majority of the people who have been first to receive the gospel and priesthood of the latter-day dispensation, are descendants of some of the house of Ephraim scattered among the nations (see Hos. 7:8; 9:16-1), and therefore, the stick of Joseph- the Book of Mormon-is in their hands."
(see also FD Richards, Contributor, v 17 p 428)

"It is Ephraim that I have been searching for all the days of my preaching, and that is the blood which ran in my veins when I embraced the gospel. If there are any of the other tribes of Israel mixed with the Gentiles, we are also searching for them, Though the Gentiles are cut off, do not suppose that we are not going to preach the gospel among the Gentile nations, for they are mingled with the house of Israel.... You understand who we are; we are of the house of Israel, of the royal seed, of the royal blood."
(Brigham Young J of D v2 p 268- 269.)

President Brigham Young also said:
"You have heard Joseph say the people did not know him; he had his eyes on the relation to blood- relations.... His descent from Joseph that was sold into Egypt was direct, and the blood was pure in him. This is why the Lord chose him, and we are pure when this blood-strain from Ephraim comes down pure. The decrees of the Almighty will be exalted-that blood which was in him was pure, and he had the sole right and lawful power, as he was the legal heir to the blood that has been on the earth and has come down through a pure lineage."

What more can I say? The prophets have made it clear, our Patriarchs have made it clear in our Patriarchal Blessings, and we KNOW that we are literal descendents of Joseph, having the blood of Israel in our veins before baptism.

This fact is important, because if one does not realize it, they may get the idea that those verses in the Book of Mormon are pointing to another, but 2 Nephi 3 points almost entirely to Joseph Smith. Verse 24 especially. It says:

2 Nephi 3:24 And there shall rise up one mighty among them, who shall do much good, both in word and in deed, being an instrument in the hands of God, with exceeding faith, to work mighty wonders, and do that thing which is great in the sight of God, unto the bringing to pass much restoration unto the house of Israel, and unto the seed of thy brethren.

Joseph Smith did rise up mighty among the Lamanites, he did do might wonders and brought to pass much restoration to the House of Israel, as well as to the Lamanites. He is the prophet of the Restoration. He is the one of which this scripture is speaking. He is the Joseph named after his father, after Joseph of Egypt, and he is a literal descendent of Joseph of the House of Israel.