How does a Mormon receive eternal life, the gift of God through the cross (atonement)?

Question

Do they make a public confession to Jesus Christ as their Lord & Savior?
Do they believe in their heart Jesus raised from the dead. That Jesus is the first fruits (firstborn) from the dead?

Are they then born again of His Spirit?

mormon4jesus, Public confession is confessing Jesus Christ your Lord in front of others. Jesus said that if we confess Him before others, He will confess us before His Father. And if we deny Jesus before others, then He will deny us before His Father.
In my Church, people go forward & make a public confession to God before the congregation, confessing Jesus Christ their Lord. It is an act of faith. To be born again one confessesses Jesus Christ their Lord & Savior (atonement) and believes in their heart (faith). God does creative miracles by the Word of God & the faith of God. And so, when we do the same, the creative miracle of spiritual birth happens.

Answer 1

Yes to all your questions. As most have stated, we don't believe in public confession. That is done in private, either between us and God, or if the sin is big enough, with a leader of our congregation (Bishop). That is all done before accepting the invitation for baptism.

The first step is Faith in Jesus Christ, that he is our savior, friend, confident and mediator to the Father. We believe that He was the first person ever resurrected and that He still has His body today. We believe that it is only through Christ that we can hope to gain salvation and eternal life.

We do believe that you have to repent continually, and that one time isn't going to do it. We also believe in living our lives as close to Christ as we can. That means following commandments, living up to our promises that we make with the Lord and basically doing good to others. If that means works to some, then yes, it is by our works in this life that we gain eternal life, but it is more then that.

We don't believe, however, that the cross was the only part of the atonement. It started in the Garden of Gathsemany. That's where Christ took upon Himself the sins of the world. The cross was necessary for His death, but not as the atonement. This was done by Himself, with only God and other angels around. Just as repentance is pretty much between God and us. That is why we don't look at the cross as a symbol of Christ. We focus on the resurrection, and atonement in the Garden. Yes, the cross was needed, and was a horrible thing for anyone to have to go through, but it was a means to an end.

Yes, Christ was resurrected. He died for me, atoned for me, and was resurrected so I could live again. He is my savior, my friend, my brother, and my mediator to the Father. It is through His grace that I am saved. I was baptized, and I received the gift of the Holy Ghost. I have that spirit with me always. To me, that is being born of the spirit.

Here is a site that can answer this question and others for you. It's a pretty good one, and gives many biblical references.

Answer 2

Once a month in their meetings, anyone who wishes can stand and testify of things that they know to be true. They frequently testify in other meetings as well. We believe that Jesus Christ is our Lord and our Savior!!!

Yes, we believe that Jesus Christ was crucified and died on the cross, and then was resurrected from the dead 3 days later. We believe that Christ was the first fruit of the resurrection.

"Are they then born again of His Spirit?" You'll have to be more specific about what you mean. This could be interpreted any number of ways. However, to answer your question, they do believe that they must be "Born Again" and that they can only do so through Christ.

Answer 3

Mormons believe that the gift of Eternal Life is the greatest gift given to man from God. The gift of Eternal Life is given through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, but only if we are faithful to Him and keep His commandments.

Mormons do not believe in "public confession." Mormons believe that in order to become perfected in Christ they do need to admit sins and repent, but Mormons usually do that privately, or in some cases to church leaders if the sin is serious. They are also supposed to ask for forgiveness from others as part of the repentance process. If they have harmed someone or treated someone unfairly, they must put things to right.

Mormons DO believe in the Resurrected Christ. That's why they do not focus on the cross-- they celebrate the living Christ, after He conquered death.

After baptisim, new members receive the "gift of the Holy Ghost." They are in a sense "born again," although they do not define it exactly the same way as other churches.

Answer 4

I'm pretty sure this will answer most of the questions. It's from Doctrine and Covenants section 20 verses 29-37,41.
Oh, I was going to c&p it, but it was rather long. Here's a link instead
http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/20
We believe the only way to reveive eternal life is through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. We tend to view the baptism as a public confession (see verse 37 in the link I provided).
Yes we believe that Jesus raised Himself from death (and never died again, He still has His body). This conquered death and allows all of us to be resurrected.

Yes, we are born again both in the water and in the Spirit.

Answer 5

Immortality is to live forever as a resurrected being. Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, everyone will receive this gift. Eternal life, or exaltation, is to live in God's presence and to continue as families. Like immortality, this gift is made possible through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. However, we believe that to inherit eternal life requires our "obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel" (Articles of Faith).

Repentance is one of the first principles of the LDS gospel and is essential to our happiness. It is much more than just acknowledging wrongdoings - It is a change of mind and heart that gives us a fresh view about God, about ourselves, and about the world. This includes turning away from sin and turning to God for forgiveness. It is motivated by love for God and the sincere desire to obey His commandments. Repentance is an act of faith in Jesus Christ and an acknowledgment of the power of His Atonement. We can be forgiven only on His terms. We believe there are steps to obtaining repentance - those being (1)sorrow for the sin, (2)confession to Our Father in Heaven. Serious offenses (those which could endanger membership in the church) should be confessed to a Bishop. (3)Abandonment of sin, (4)restitution, and (5)righteous living. In other words we are expected to show that we recognize a wrong doing and leave it behind.

The Savior was the first person on this earth to be resurrected. At the time of the resurrection, we will "be judged according to [our] works. . . . We shall be brought to stand before God, knowing even as we know now, and have a bright recollection of all our guilt" (Alma 11:41, 43).

We believe that the eternal glory we receive will depend on our faithfulness. Although all people will be resurrected, only those who have come unto Christ and partaken of the fulness of His gospel will inherit exaltation in the celestial kingdom.

An understanding and testimony of the resurrection gives us hope and perspective as we face life. We find comfort in the assurance that the Savior lives and that through His Atonement, "he breaketh the bands of death, that the grave shall have no victory, and that the sting of death should be swallowed up in the hopes of glory" (Alma 22:14).

We begin the process of being born again through exercising faith in Christ, repenting of our sins, and being baptized by immersion for the remission of sins by one having priesthood authority. We do not say wehave been "born again" in the same context fo other christian faiths, as we believe it is only the first step in a process.

Answer 6

Yes, yes, yes and yes.
We believe in the Atonement of Christ, that all mankind may be saved by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.
We teach Christ, we worship Christ, we testify of Christ in public and in private.
Christ was the first born of the Father in the Spirit and the only begotten of the Father in the flesh. He was the firstfruits of the resurrection. He conquered death and made resurrection available to all of God's children. As in Adam all died, so in Christ shall all be made alive.
We are born of the water (baptism), and of the spirit (Holy Ghost) and of the blood (atonement). All are necessary for salvation and exaltation.
We receive eternal life by following every word which proceedeth forth out of the mouth of God, whether by His own voice, or the voice of His prophets, it is the same.

Answer 7

1 Verily, verily, I say that I would that ye should do alms unto the poor; but take heed that ye do not your alms before men to be seen of them; otherwise ye have no reward of your Father who is in heaven.
2 Therefore, when ye shall do your alms do not sound a trumpet before you, as will hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have aglory of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.

So "public confessions"? No. God knows what's in my heart if I pray silently or if I broadcast on the internet. My belief in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour and Captain of my Salvation (there's a new one for you!) is personal to me (and I do believe).
What we DO is bear witness of Jesus Christ.

We do believe that Jesus was resurrected from the dead. That He is indeed the firstfruits of the Resurrection. That without His Resurrection, there is no hope of Salvation for anyone.

And yes, we are born of His Spirit.

Thanks for asking!

Answer 8

Fourth Article of Faith
We believe the first principles and ordinances of the gospel are: first, faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, repentance; third, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; and fourth the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.

I don't know what you mean by public confession, but if one is interested in membership, the first thing they are asked in their readiness interview is "Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ? do you accept Him as your Lord and Saviour?"

The public acknowledgement that one makes to this effect is their baptism.

Answer 9

Go on the 1st Sunday of the month and you'll hear all your answers.