Lucifer the Brother of Jesus?

During Mitt Romney's 2008 candidacy for President, Mike Huckabee took a jab at Romney's LDS faith by asking the loaded question in a New York Times interview, "Don't Mormons believe that Jesus and the devil are brothers?" This question and the tone and context in which it is asked has been a popular attack on the LDS faith by Evangelical Christians.

1. The question is asked in an attempt to elicit a very negative "shock and awe" emotional response in those naive of true LDS doctrine by twisting a beautiful and simple doctrine into something sorted and evil.

2. The question and it's tone and context attempt to convey that LDS believe that the power of Satan is equal and opposite to that of Jesus Christ.

4. The question purposefully attempts to convey that LDS believe that Satan is the child of God in the same way Jesus Christ is the only begotten of the Father.

5. Those that ask this question in this context and tone are trying to convey that LDS diminish the Divinity, Godhood, glory, and power of Jesus Christ while at the same time elevating Lucifer.

What do the LDS really believe:

6. Satan and Satan's power is not equal and opposite to Jesus Christ. Lucifer before becoming Satan, was an archangel about the same statue as Michael and Gabriel. Notice that the Bible says that Michael fought against the dragon in Revelation and not Jesus Christ. If Christ were fighting alone, it wouldn't be a fight for Satan has zero power against God.

7. Jesus Christ is the Only Begotten Son of the Father. Jesus Christ is the only Being that has this literal and direct relationship to the Father.

8. Jesus Christ is God and a member of the Godhead.

9. The origin of the Lucifer and Christ are brothers is a corruption of the LDS belief that all angelic beings and humans are spiritual offspring/creations of the Father. Jesus Christ in addition to being the Only Begotten Son of the Father according to the Flesh is also spiritually begotten of the Father and is called by the Bible the Firstborn of the Father.

10. Therefore, because of our common kinship as children of the Same Heavenly Father, all mankind can be considered spiritual brothers and sisters even if we do not think the same or share the same religious beliefs. In other words, "you don't have to be Christian for me to call you my brother."

Acts 17: 28-29 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device.

Heb. 12: 9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?

Eph 3:14-15 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,

Heb. 2: 11 For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,

Ps. 82: 6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.

Col. 1: 15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

Rom. 8: 29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate dto be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

11. Yes, LDS believe that Jesus Christ and Lucifer and both spiritually begotten of God the Father. God spiritually beget Lucifer, mankind, and Jesus Christ who is referred to by the Bible as the "First Born." That said, Lucifer does not share the same power or unique relationship with the Father as the only Begotten Son in the flesh.

12. I think the dilemma is some Christians are taught to believe that only Christ is begotten while all other spiritual beings are made no different than plants and animals or "dung beetles" (as an Evangelical friend of mine put it). How is the Evangelical doctrine that all human kind in relation to God are created beings the same as "dung beetles" any better that the Evolutionist belief that man are evolved from "pond scum"?

13. The purpose, beauty and power of the underlying doctrine behind the question is meant not to diminish God, or elevate Lucifer, but to elevate all mankind as spiritually begotten children of our Heavenly Father.

14. Finally, the Bible teaches that anyone who is lead by the Spirit of God is considered a son or daughter of God. Because Satan no longer follows the Spirit of God, Satan and Jesus Christ are no longer brethren in this sense.

Does the LDS Church teach that Jesus and Satan are brothers?

The Church of Jesus Christ does not make Jesus equal to Lucifer. Jesus is God. Lucifer was an archangel equal in stature to Michael. Lucifer (son of the morning) fell and became Satan. The Church of Jesus Christ understands that the intelligence and spirits of Christ, and Lucifer, and all men are eternal and self-existence and co-eternal.

John 1: 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. (suggests somethings didn't require making and are self-existent)

Why is this important? Because the will of Lucifer is his own and the Father did not created the will and intelligence of Lucifer or give Lucifer his will. Our will or mind is self-existant and didn't need making. God did not create evil and did not create Satan. God accepted Lucifer as a son and gave him every opportunity (agency) to do good, but Lucifer used his own self-existent will to reject God and became Satan, the Father of lies. Father allows Satan to operate for a little season for His purposes. But, the Father is not the father of lies, Satan is. Our will is our own and is why the Bible says we are purchased possessions.

Jesus Christ is not a creature in that He was created from the Father but was generated from the Father and is the Only Begotten Son according to the flesh. Christ was the firstborn of the Father. This not only means pre-emminant, but also first. The only reason firstborn wasn't the firstborn to the Jews is because of sin and the birthright needing to go to another child other than the first. But we cannot use the reasoning of sin to seperate the meaning of firstborn from the word.

The spirits of men are also generated from the Father who is the Father of Spriits. We are the Offspring or same kind or species as God. But we fall when we come to Earth. If we fall, then we must have fallen from somewhere higher then we are now. We become children of the devil. And Christ came to save us and turn us to Him. He makes the first move. Christ comes to our door and knocks. And if we accept Christ, we then become adopted sons and daughters of Christ who becomes the author, Father, and source of our eternal life.

So, while there are many in the world who are not my brother and sister in faith. All mankind are by spritual brothers and sisters of the same Heavenly Father. And all mankind have the seeds within them to become like our Heavenly Father and gain eternal life and be exalted and glorified through Christ to be worthy to be "called gods." Therefore, you don't have to be Christian for me to consider you my brother.

Eph 3:14-15 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,

Are Jesus and Satan Brothers?

Some LDS talk about Jesus Christ, Lucifer, Michael the Archangel, and the angel gabriel as being spirit brothers. However, this sense of brotherhood is only in the sense that God the Father is the father of all spirits. In that same sense LDS speak of all mandkind as spirit brother and sisters of Our Heavenly Father.

But even relating to Jesus Christ in this way, we do not consider Christ to be on an equal level spiritually as man or Satan. Jesus Christ is a member of the Godhead from the beginning with God the Father and the Holy Ghost. The Bible teaches that Christ stands at the right hand of the Father and revelation teaches that Christ was the first spirit son of God as well as the only begotten Son of God according to the flesh. So, in a spiritual sense, Jesus Christ can honorably be considered our Elder Brother.

The Bible teaches that Satan was known as Lucifer before he fell from heaven. Lucifer (son of the morning) was an archangel but was not at all on the same level as Jesus Christ is power or glory. Lucifer was more on the same spiritual level as Michael and Gabriel. That is why Revelations teaches that Michael was organized to fight against the Dragon. Michael and Lucifer were of the same stature.

The Bible also teaches that Jesus and Lucifer should not be considered to have equal but opposite powers. There is no ying and yang upon which the universe balances. Satan in attempting to thwart the plan of God actually ends up serving his purposes. But, what the LDS believe about the power of Satan in relation to the power of Jesus can be summed up by a scripture in Genesis when the Serpent is being cursed by God for tempting Adam and Eve and the Atonement of the Savior is being foreshadowed: "ye may have power to bruise his heal, but he shall have power to crush thy head"