ACCUSATION: "Mormons believe that they can become like God!"

Well, of course we do!

God is our Father in Heaven. He created us in His image. Most Christians believe that we are the children of God - that, though the animals of the world have thoughts and feelings, and though they were created by God as well, they are mere creations, while we are His children. However, as soon as one begins to make the logical conclusions about this assertion of divine parentage, many believers try to back out of it, suggesting that such conclusions are blasphemous. But if we are not the same species of being as God, in what way are we His children? In what way are we higher than the animals?

Jesus Christ's purpose of coming to Earth and atoning for the sins of Man was to accomplish this goal of making us like God. As He says:

To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. (Revelation 3:21)

And again:

And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. (John 17:11)

Is it blasphemous to assume that we can inherit the Father's glory and wisdom? Is it blasphemous to think that our relationships to each other can ever approach the perfection of the relationship between the Father and the Son? If so, Jesus Christ is guilty of blasphemy.

Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. (Matthew 5:48)

Many say that this verse is meant to be read as a commandment that applies to us in this life rather than the next, and that the perfection of which the Lord speaks is simply the status of being a devout Christian. However, let's not ignore the second part of the verse: "...even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." This goes far beyond the fundamentals of Christian ethics. I don't know about you, but I have never met a mortal man who was perfect like God. Though this commandment should influence decisions we must make in this life, it clearly does not apply exclusively to this life, as it is utterly impossible for any man to even come close to abiding by such a commandment while in this short mortal life. If such a commandment were meant to apply to this life alone, it would be utterly ludicrous - and I doubt Christ would ever issue a ludicrous commandment. (Though He often issues difficult ones.) Christ told His followers to become like God because He intended them to do so.

For those who assume that they have a clear picture of what the exaltation of the valiant will be in the life to come, we should bear in mind this verse from Corinthians:

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. (1 Corinthians 2:9)

The glory which we are meant to inherit surpasses our understanding. So no, we will not simply be plucking harps and singing hymns forever. God is not trite.

"But if we were to ever become like God, we would overthrow Him! He must keep us from reaching that level in order to maintain His position."

God is not a tyrant. He does not glory in His children's subjugation, but in their exaltation. Since His glory is based on His perfection rather than on our deficiencies, He is not threatened by our continuing progression.

Another problem with this argument is its simplistic understanding of virtue and glory. Originally, the word "virtue" was synonymous with "power." And I would contend that it still is: Virtue is power. As we gain the knowledge and power of God, will we not also gain His virtue? And, gaining His virtue, will we not be filled with the love that embodies it? Being filled with divine love and virtue, why would we ever want to stage a rebellion against our dear Father?

"The desire to become like God is what caused Lucifer to fall."

Virtually all sin of commission results from a desire for something good coupled with an unwillingness to follow the necessary steps to attain it. Lucifer's desire to progress was good, but he did not want to follow the path prescribed by the Father; he wanted to take an easier path, even though he knew it meant rebellion. That was Lucifer's sin. We, on the other hand, seek to follow the path that God has laid out for us and obtain the blessings that He has promised us. (Such as the ability to sit in His throne, as noted above.)

"I am good, I believe in God, I have faith that Jesus Christ is the Savior, but I have no desire to become like God."

Then you will not.

"God would not have created us for such a purpose."

For what purpose did God create us? To say that God does anything without purpose or intent is to suggest that God is imperfect, as carelessness and lack of foresight are both imperfections. So the question remains: Why does a perfect God need to create lower beings? Most Christians say that He created us so that He would be glorified, but again, if He already has all glory, how is it that He gains glory through our existence? The truth is that, though all glory belongs to God, the total measure of all glory continues to increase as God continues to create and as His creations continue to progress. That eternal progression on our part - that ongoing journey in which we draw closer to Him - glorifies Him much more than ignorant praise or subjugated obedience ever could.

"We will never understand God's purpose for us."

This response just stems from intellectual cowardice. Do not pretend that the answer to a question can never be known when the answer is actually quite obvious and rational. Those who do so in this case are only motivated by a need to cling to prejudices and preconceptions. The very existence of the Bible is proof that God quite earnestly wants us to understand His purpose for us.

"I don't believe in this idea of all of these ascended Mormon gods and goddesses inhabiting the various worlds in this universe."

Some people read about our belief in apotheosis and get a mental picture of some sort of celestial feudalism, in which the Father is the God of the whole universe and we are lesser gods who have control of various worlds. (At which point a plot straight from a science fiction novel ensues, in which various power-hungry semi-gods connive and compete for primacy.) There is no doctrinal validity to this image, however, and those who propagate it are being disingenuous and simplistic. Just as God's glory is incomprehensible to us, the glory that we are capable of attaining will in no way resemble something written by Frank Herbert.

God, being an all-loving Father, wants us to grow and obtain all that He has. This fact lies at the very core of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and none can deny it. God does not hold us back from progression: if we inherit anything less than all God has, it will be because we were unwilling to receive His gifts, and not because He was unwilling to give them to us.

To close, if the Bible and plain reason are not enough for you, I give you C. S. Lewis:

[God] said (in the Bible) that we were “gods” and He is going to make good His words. If we let Him—for we can prevent Him, if we choose—He will make the feeblest and filthiest of us into a god or goddess, a dazzling, radiant, immortal creature, pulsating all through with such energy and joy and wisdom and love as we cannot now imagine.

And again:

It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible Gods and Goddesses. To remember that the dullest, and most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship.

God wants us to be like Him, and the entire work of creation was set in motion for that purpose. To attach a lesser purpose to God's highest creation would be to insult and abase God.