One Sunday a couple of weeks ago, I sat at home with baby Clara while Torrie attended Sacrament Meeting. I turned on the TV to see what shows are on Sunday around noon and found some preacher preaching. “Well, I need some religion in my life,” I thought, so I stayed for awhile. He was talking about humility and how we should follow the example of Christ. “That’s a good message”, I thought, as be began reading a scripture from the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible. Philippians 2:5-7:
5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
7 but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
Something just didn’t seem right with that scripture. So I opened my version of the Bible (King James Version, or KJV) and read the same verses:
5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
Do you see the difference? In the KJV, Christ thinks it not robbery to be equal with God. In the NIV, Christ does not consider equality with God something to be grasped. The two are practically opposites!
I've thought a lot about this over the past couple of weeks. I think this is a perfect example of how the LDS church and doctrine differs from other Christian churches:
The message in the NIV is not horrible – it emphasizes Christ’s humility and uses Him as an example for all of us. That’s a good lesson. If everyone in the world was humble like Christ, the world would be a better place.
However, the NIV limits the extent of the teaching. It teaches a damming(sp?) (as in limiting, like how a dam stops a river from flowing) doctrine, that we cannot become like our Heavenly Father. The KJV teaches us that Christ, having been made in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God. And since all of us are made in the image of God, it’s not a huge leap – I would even say it’s logical – that we can become like God.
There’s a difference – an important one - in doctrine there. Also, it’s not that both can be true, since they contradict one another. Again the NIV version does not teach horrible things – following the example of Christ is a wonderful teaching - it’s just that the LDS church doctrine goes deeper and adds more truth and light.
I can understand how good people could be confused by a translation difference like this. How do you know which version to believe? I’m grateful that the Lord has given us, like He promised, more than just one witness (2 Cor 13:1) to establish His word. We have the Book of Mormon, we have the testimonies of modern prophets, and we have the right to ask God personally (James 1:5), and He will answer. I am sure of this.
