"In bearing testimony of Jesus Christ, President Hinckley spoke of those outside the Church who say Latter-day Saints 'do not believe in the traditional Christ. No, I don't. The traditional Christ of whom they speak is not the Christ of whom I speak. For the Christ of whom I speak has been revealed in this the Dispensation of the Fulness [sic] of Times'"
LDS President Gordon Hinckley, LDS Church News, June 20, 1998

"After Joseph had translated the Book of Mormon from the gold plates, the Lord commanded him to translate the Bible .... Joseph Smith, a man of no education or learning, comparatively speaking, was commanded to translate the Bible by inspiration."
LDS Apostle Orson Pratt, Journal of Discourses, Vol, 15, pp. 247 - 249, 1872.

The most basic doctrine regarding the Godhead in traditional Christian belief is that of the TRINITY.

That there is but one Living and true God, an infinite, all-knowing Spirit, perfect in all His attributes, one in essence, eternally existing in three Persons -- the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - each equally deserving worship and obedience.
Doctrinal Statement - GRACE COMMUNITY CHURCH

And this I suppose to be that blessed Trinity that we read of in the Holy Scriptures. The Father is the Deity subsisting in the prime, un-originated and most absolute manner, or the Deity in its direct existence. The Son is the Deity generated by God's understanding, or having an idea of Himself and subsisting in that idea. The Holy Ghost is the Deity subsisting in act, or the Divine essence flowing out and breathed forth in God's Infinite love to and delight in Himself. And I believe the whole Divine essence does truly and distinctly subsist both in the Divine idea and Divine love, and that each of them are properly distinct Persons.
"On The Trinity", JONATHAN EDWARDS

The doctrine of the unity of God does not exclude the idea of a plurality of persons in the Godhead. Not that there are three persons in each person of the godhead, if we use in both cases the term person in one and the same sense. We believe, therefore, that there are three persons in the Godhead, but one God. Anti-trinitarians represent the evangelical church as believing in three Gods, but this is not true; it believes in one God, but three persons in the Godhead.

The doctrine of the Trinity is, in its last analysis, a deep mystery that cannot be fathomed by the finite mind. That it is taught in the Scripture, however, there can be no reasonable doubt. It is a doctrine to be believed even though it cannot be thoroughly understood.
"The Great Doctrines Of The Bible", WILLIAM EVANS, D.D.

Even though the Book of Mormon is strongly Trinitarian in its content, although some would consider it to be modalistic, the Mormon church rejects Trinitarian belief, and it is precisely regarding the doctrine of the Trinity that the Mormon church takes the greatest exception, and promotes ts own doctrine(s) regarding the nature of Jesus Christ and God.

The Mormon church is radically anti-trinitarian, but just how it approaches the nature of the Godhead and Jesus Christ has varied since the founding of the church.

In his first "vision" [ See: First Vision Accounts ], 1832 handwritten version, Joseph Smith saw "the Lord", meaning Jesus Christ. In his later version of the same vision, published by the Mormon church in 1842 but written by Joseph Smith in 1838, he saw "the Father" and "the Son" appearing before him as two separate persons. Apparently, Joseph Smith wrote two versions of his "vision", each contradicting the other. This was not a problem for the Mormon church, because the first version of Joseph Smith's "vision", 1832, did not come to light until over 100 years after it was written. During that time, the Mormon church taught the second version of Joseph Smith's "vision" in which two separate persons appeared to him. This altered second version led Mormon apologists to formulate their doctrines based on that version, even though it was altered and not true.

From the early days of Christianity, the erroneous doctrine of the nature of God had led to... the conception that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, the Godhead, were One, a unity...

This false doctrine was laid low by the First Vision. [ See: First Vision Accounts ] Two personages, the Father and the Son, stood before Joseph. The Father asked the Son to deliver the message to the boy. There was no mingling of personalities in the vision. Each of the personages was an individual member of the Godhead. Each one separately took part in the vision.
LDS, "Joseph Smith: Seeker After Truth, Prophet Of God", Apostle JOHN A. WIDTSOE, 1951

If apostle Widtsoe had been true to the versions of the visions, he would have been forced to accept the account of "first vision" instead of the second, but that would have destroyed the doctrine that he conveniently extracted from the "second vision" account. If he had accepted the account of the "first vision", then Jesus Christ would have been the only god, because he was the only personage seen and noted.

Joseph Smith also proceeded through changes in his concept of God and Jesus Christ.

Later, in 1844, Smith said, "I have always declared God to be a distinct personage -- Jesus Christ a separate and distinct personage from God the Father, the Holy Ghost was a distinct personage and or spirit, and these three constitute three distinct personages and three Gods'-- Mormon history does not support Smith's claim about what he taught earlier. Documents from early Mormonism reflect that Smith went from belief in one god to belief in two and later three gods forming one godhead.
LDS, "New Approaches To The Book Of Mormon", MELODIE MOENCH CHARLES, 1993.

The Book of Mormon, which Joseph Smith claimed to have translated, also refers to the godhead in terms of Father, Son and Holy Ghost and actually does appear to be Trinitarian in teaching. It may be that the teaching is modalistic, i.e. that there is one god who manifests himself in three manners, the three natures of the godhead being only three different names for functions of the one god. But that appears to be quite a stretch from the actual words. However, if the teaching is modalistic, it is only one more view of God that replaces a Trinitarian view.

Mormon teaching progressed from one god, in Joseph Smith's "first vision", to two separate gods in Joseph Smith's second version of his "first vision", and then back to one modalistic (Trinitarian?) god with three manifestations or functions in The Book of Mormon. Joseph Smith presented a monotheistic view of god in his "first vision", a polytheistic view in his second version of his "first vision", back to a monotheistic view in The Book of Mormon", and on to a polytheistic view, in 1844, when he declared the Father, Son and Holy Ghost to be three separate gods.

Current Mormon theology is structured so that it MUST view The Book of Mormon not as modalistic or Trinitarian, but as tritheisitc, meaning three separate gods, or polytheistic. Current Mormon theology is radically polytheistic. ALL Mormon men have the potential, by following the teachings of the Mormon church, to attain to exaltation; and at that point, they could all attain to godhood. Since this process has been going on from the infinity of eternity past and will continue through the infinity of eternity in the future, there are, and will be, an infinite number of gods in the universe. This is polytheism taken to the maximum. There are now, and will be an infinite number of gods. God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are seen as only three of an infinite number of gods. They hold no special place in the universe, but only as they relate to this earth. As a result, Jesus Christ is seen as less than is taught in the Bible, because all Mormon men have the ability to become a god, the same as, and equal with, Jesus Christ. The Mormon doctrine destroys the idea of the singular existence of the Godhead, the Holiness of the Father, the unique character of the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ. It brings all three down to the level of humanity, because all three, according to Mormon doctrine, were once men just like humanity. This belief and teaching is heresy taken to the highest degree and is completely rejected and repudiated by Biblical doctrine. Because this Mormon doctrine is repudiated in the Bible AND in Joseph Smith's Inspired Version of the Bible, that is one of the main reasons why the Mormon church rejects the Inspired Version of the Bible as translated by their first prophet, seer and president. If the founder of the church got the doctrine wrong, how many other doctrines are wrong in the Mormon church?

One of the cardinal doctrines taught in the Bible is in relation to the death of Jesus Christ. Christianity is a religion in which an atonement for sins committed must be made in order for those sins to be forgiven. The penalty for committing sins is death of the individual, as noted in Genesis. But the death of an individual is the penalty for the sin; it does not, and cannot atone for those sins committed, thus all men are condemned to death and hell without an atoning work for their sins being done in order to attain a right standing with God. This is the purpose of the death of Christ and that is why it is called an "atoning death". Only Jesus Christ was worthy, by His being God and man, and by His perfect life, to be the "sacrifice" or "atonement" for the sins of the world.

Christianity is a religion of atonement distinctively. The elimination of the doctrine of the death of Christ from the religion that bears His name would mean the surrender of its uniqueness and claim to be the only true religion, the supreme and final revelation from God to the sons of men. It is its redemption feature that distinguishes Christianity from any and all other religions. If you surrender this distinctive Christian doctrine from its creed, then this supreme religion is brought down to the level of many other prevailing religions systems. Christianity is not merely a system of ethics; it is the history of redemption through Jesus Christ, the personal Redeemer."
"The Great Doctrines Of The Bible", WILLIAM EVANS, D.D.

It is Jesus Christ, the PERSONAL redeemer, that sets Christianity and the Bible apart from every other religion in the world. Jesus Christ is not only able to redeem men from their fallen nature, inherited from the federal head, Adam; but He is also able to redeem men for the personal sins that they have committed during their lifetime.

The death of Jesus Christ has no meaning in the Mormon church. It is not understood by Mormons why Christ died, because they do not teach a doctrine of personal redemption by the god who created them. The death of Jesus Christ was a personal act by Himself on behalf of humanity that will bring about a reconciliation to God for those who believe and follow Him. Reconciliation to God is not necessarily a concept dealt with by the Mormon church, but they believe that they must deal with their own personal sins committed in this life. However those personal sins have no relation to the death of Jesus Christ. His death does not affect those sins and He cannot forgive those sins. The penalty for the commission of those sins is handled in a very different manner in the Mormon church.

MORMON DOCTRINE - DEATH OF CHRIST NOT SUFFICIENT "It is not fully comprehended why it was necessary that Jesus Christ should leave the heavens, ...and come upon the earth to offer himself up a sacrifice; ...why this should be, why it was necessary that his blood should be shed is an apparent mystery. ...what sins of the world did he take away? We are told that it is the sin which Adam committed."
LDS, "Journal Of Discourses", Prophet John Taylor, Vol. 10, pp. 114 - 115, 1863.

The process by which Mormon apologists proceed with their teachings is found in the above quote. They simply make a statement which is not true, or partially true, and then proceed to teach it as truth without proof and without foundation. In the above statement Mr. Taylor states that there is no explanation sufficient for a person to fully comprehend why Christ died as a sacrifice, and the implication is that the Bible, which is the only source of the teaching on the subject, does not provide an explanation. Then, the teaching that is provided in the Bible, which Mr. Taylor knew was there all the time, is then twisted to say something that is not taught in the Bible, mainly that the death of Christ takes away the sin of Adam only; conveniently ignoring the fact that the death of Christ also takes away the penalty for the sins that individuals commit in this life. If Mr. Taylor could read about the death of Christ, which is found only in the Bible, why could he not also read the explanation for that death, which is also provided in the same Bible? What Mr. Taylor does is a classic case of creating a "straw man" (a premise in which he creates an untruth and then credits it to his opponent, in this case the Bible) and then makes his argument against that premise. The argument sounds great to the listener, but it is an argument against an untruth that he has created, and does not deal with the reality of the evidence against his belief.

What is being taught by LDS Apostle John Taylor is that the death of Christ was only sufficient and able to take away the sins of Adam and Eve as personally applied to them only. The sins of the world, and every individual after Adam and Eve, cannot be taken away by the death of Jesus Christ. His death is not adequate to accomplish the task. The Bible teaches a doctrine that is clearly opposite to Mr. Taylor, and despite his claims to the contrary, the Biblical teaching is very complete, clear and understandable. LDS President Charles W. Penrose continues the Mormon view of sin:

"The sin which our first parents committed in the Garden of Eden is called original sin; and the sins committed individually by the inhabitants of the earth, are called actual sin. ...the apostles sent forth to preach the Gospel by our Savior himself, taught the people that through the shedding of Christ's blood remission of sin might come to all and that mankind might be redeemed from sin, original and actual. But we find this distinction ...that the blood of Christ redeems mankind from the effects of the fall...but that while people had nothing whatever to do with the sin which Adam committed and therefore have nothing whatever to do with the work of atonement for that sin, yet for their own sins there is some action required on their part that they may obtain redemption therefrom, inasmuch as the blood of Christ was shed for original sin unconditionally, but for the remission of actual sin conditionally."
LDS President Charles W. Penrose, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 21, pp. 81 - 82.

LDS President Charles W. Penrose reveals how much confidence that he has in his own scriptural authority, the Book of Mormon, by denying what if says on the subject:

"And the days of the children of men were prolonged, according to the will of God, that they might repent while in the flesh; wherefore, their state became a state of probation, and their time was lengthened, according to the commandments which the Lord god gave unto the children of men. For he gave commandment that all men must repent; for he showed unto all men that they were lost, because of the transgression of their parents."
LDS, Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 2:21

"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."
LDS, Book of Mormon, Mosiah 3:19

LDS President Charles W. Penrose refers directly to the doctrine taught by the Apostles of Jesus Christ, who were themselves personally taught by Jesus Christ, and claims that they were all in error, claims that he is the authority and announces that he has the correct teaching.

THE BIBLICAL TEACHING "For since death came through a man [Adam], the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive."
The Holy Bible, 1 Corinthians 15:21 - 22 (NIV)

"Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned... Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who was a pattern of the one to come."
The Holy Bible, Romans 5:12, 14 (NIV)

It is a difficult, in fact impossible, distinction to be made between the sin of Adam and Eve and the sin of mankind after Adam and Eve. The Bible makes no distinction between the commission of the sin by Adam and Eve and the rest of humanity. All sin is the same and is committed in the same way by the same pattern:

• Doubt the actual words of God - Genesis 3:1
• Doubt the motives of God - Genesis 3:4 - 5
• Doubt the truthfulness of the character of God - Genesis 3:1, 3:3
• Distort what God says - Genesis 3:4
• Deny what God says - Genesis 3:4
• Desire to supplant the position of God and to be God - Genesis 3:5 - 6
• Desire of the body - Genesis 3:6
• Desire of sight - Genesis 3:6
• Desire of pride - Genesis 3:6:
• Taking what is forbidden - Genesis 3:6
• Causing others to sin in the same way - Genesis 3:6

However, Mormon doctrine makes a distinction between the sin of Adam and Eve and the sin of humanity and says that Christ's death was for Adam and Eve only and not for the rest of humanity. The question must be asked; If Christ died for Adam and Eve, who were His actual brother and sister (according to Mormon doctrine), why does His death not apply to the rest of humanity, who are also His actual brothers and sisters (according to Mormon doctrine)? The answer, according to Mormon teaching, is that it does apply to humanity but is "conditional"; not being applied unless individuals satisfy certain requirements or "conditions" that are imposed by the "gospel" as defined by Mormon doctrine. These requirements or "conditions" are human works and are defined by the Mormon church. According to the Mormon church, the shedding of Christ's blood and His death is not powerful enough or adequate to provide for the forgiveness of actual sins committed in this life, but human works, done by sinners themselves, are powerful and adequate to do the job. However, if perfection is the standard, then sin makes a person less than perfect. To attain back to the perfect standard, a person must somehow achieve more than perfection to make up for the difference. Perfection is the standard, but if a person becomes less than perfect through the result of sin, there is no way that a person can again become perfect through any works that might be accomplished. If the Mormon wishes to believe that he can attain to acceptance by god through works, then that acceptance must be based on a standard that is less than perfect, and is a standard approved by a god who establishes less than perfect standards and accepts less than perfect performance. This is in direct opposition to Biblical teaching. The God of the Bible only accepts perfection, and will only accept non-perfect humanity through the faith of humanity in the perfect work of Jesus Christ accomplished through His sinless life, perfect sacrifice and shedding of blood on the cross and His resurrection from the dead.

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him." The Holy Bible, Romans 5:8 - 9, (NAS).

The Mormon church actually teaches that there are two kinds of "salvation". But one must remember that "salvation" by the Mormon definition is different than salvation by the Biblical definition. In the Mormon church, there is "general" salvation and "individual" salvation. "General" salvation is given to all men, regardless of belief or conduct. This "general" salvation allows all men, after they have died, to be resurrected again, at which time they will be assigned their place according to the judgement of god. "Individual" salvation is preceded by what men do who believe in the doctrines of the Mormon church. "Individual" salvation can only be accomplished through personal works, i.e. following all the precepts, teaching and duties prescribed by Mormon doctrine. It not only will result in resurrection, as in "general" salvation, but will result in "exaltation" which Mormons equate with eternal life. Both types of salvation, "general" and "individual" are linked back to the death of Christ, but not in the same manner that is taught in the Bible.

"But some one may ask, 'Is there no efficacy, for actual sin, in the atonement wrought out by Jesus Christ? Is there no method by which people can obtain a forgiveness of their individual sins?' Yes, ...and that is the plan of the true gospel, but it does not consist in mere belief in the righteousness of another; mere belief in the righteousness [of] somebody else will not make us any better ourselves."
LDS President Charles W. Penrose, , Vol. 21, pp. 84 - 85, 1880.

As a consequence of this doctrine, as taught by the Mormon church, the action of Christ, and specifically His death, has little or no relationship to the forgiveness of sins. Christ's death is seen as a means to bring all people, even those who reject Him, to the point of the Mormon teaching regarding resurrection. However, Christ's death is relegated to a minor event, with minimal, if no effect on personal sin. Christ's death is seen to have no effect regarding eternal life. What becomes major and important in Mormon doctrine are personal works which give an individual status and standing with god. It is this personal goodness, achieved by the individual sinner, that makes him "better" by his own actions. In other words, the good Mormon can pull himself up by his own boot straps.

• A person cannot believe in "original sin" and receive any benefit from Christ's death on the cross, since the Mormon church does not believe in "original sin".
• The death of Christ provides only a minimal or "conditional" atonement for sins committed in this life, the condition being needed to make it effective is personal good works by the sinner.

MORMON DOCTRINE - FORGIVENESS AND SALVATION DEPENDENT ON WORKS "The Son of God, the Savior of the world, in the way that it has been taught to us, is made to have a great share in it [salvation] and a great deal to do with it. Some suppose that he has done so much, and has made such peculiar kinds of provisions for our wants and necessities, that there is but little left for us to do, ...[Some suppose] that the great plan and work that bring salvation are things that belong to the mission of Jesus Christ. If this is correct, it is what we ought to believe; if it is not, it is that which we should expose; and we should labour to undeceive the people... If there is a work left for us to do, it will be accomplished as the result of our exertions."
LDS Apostle Amasa M. Lyman, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 7, p. 297, 1859.

"For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to god; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do."
The Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 25:23.

"When we cling to what Jesus Christ has done for us, do you not see that our part will never be done?"
LDS Apostle Amasa M. Lyman, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 7, p. 297, 1859.

"I want you to see this, and to comprehend that the whole matter of your salvation is your own business and work. What else has Jesus done? ... You examine principle in the Gospel as it is taught to you, and what requirement of that Gospel has been obeyed for you [by Christ]? None."
LDS Apostle Amasa M. Lyman, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 7, p. 301, 1859.

If one examines what is taught by the Mormon church, then, of course, it is taught that Jesus has not done anything to effect salvation to the individual. That is the point; the Mormon church ignores and rejects what is taught about Jesus Christ and salvation in the Bible.

"What is it that frees us from sin? ... Truth exists all around us to a vast infinity, yet we pass on in our darkness from year to year, and add folly to our transgressions, and still continue to hope that yet, through Jesus, we shall be redeemed; but it will be when, by our own actions, we shall be released from the thraldom of sin."
LDS Apostle Amasa M. Lyman, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 7, p. 299, 1859

In order for LDS apostle Amasa M. Lyman to teach this doctrine, he had to, first, ignore his own prophet, seer and first president of the Mormon church, Joseph Smith, who "translated" by "inspiration" Ephesians 2:8 - 9 from the Bible which says:

"For grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; but it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast"
LDS Joseph Smith, "Inspired Version of the Bible"

With this verse, the Mormon church contradicts itself, because Joseph Smith also "translated" the golden plates into The Book of Mormon which states:

For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.
LDS, The Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 25:23

It is with great difficulty that one tries to understand what part "grace" has in Mormon salvation if sins are atoned for by "works". Grace cannot be applied if one is working as a payment. Grace is a free gift. It is an oxymoron to state that one has grace by works or is working for grace.

"Has Jesus done anything that will bring salvation to you and me? The chief of what he has done is that he has revealed the plan of the Gospel -- the scheme of human redemption, and manifested himself among his brethren; and we may say he has done a great deal more, for he has shed his blood for it. So have others shed their blood. But whose blood has cleansed you and me? It is said that the blood of Jesus cleanses from all sins. Then why is it that we remain sinners? It is simply because the blood of Jesus has not cleansed us from sin -- because it has not reached us. What is the reason? It is because we have not been found in that perfect path of obedience that ensures us a freedom from sin [works]"
LDS Apostle Amasa M. Lyman, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 7, p. 298, 1859.

It is difficult to understand how, when human beings are capable of sinning, they can after being sinners, elevate themselves to acceptance in the godly realm through their good works. Can a person achieve more than perfection in order to make up for the negative aspects of his sins? The Mormon church claims that keeping the Ten Commandments, given by God in the Bible, is necessary for salvation. But the Ten Commandments are God's Law, and perfection in keeping them is the standard, even for the Mormon, although they do not understand their own doctrine. They claim the verse in the Book of Mormon that salvation is "after all we can do" (2 Nephi 25:23). But "ALL we can do" means perfection. The word "ALL" means exactly that - there can be no failure, there can be no instance where a person did not do everything that was possible. If a person has not accomplished "ALL" then the standard of "ALL" is not met. What does the Mormon do then? The Mormon cannot look to Christ for mercy or grace, because the standard of "ALL" is not met. No Mormon can claim to have done "ALL" - there is always one more thing that could have been done, one more good deed, one more second of prayer, one more whatever. The Mormon church wishes salvation to be conditional, based on the performance of good works, but they do not wish to actually admit to the standard. If works is the standard, then law is the standard; and the law must be met perfectly.

The desire of the Mormon church to do good works in order to obtain salvation is a perfect example of the reaction of the children of Israel when God told them, through Moses, that He was going to give them the law. Their response was just like Mormon belief:

So Moses came and called the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which the Lord had commanded him. All the people answered together and said, "ALL that the Lord has spoken WE WILL DO"! And Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord.
The Holy Bible, Exodus 19:7 - 8 (NAS)

The fact became readily apparent and has been shown through history, that no human being has ever perfectly kept even one of the Ten Commandments from God, let alone all of them. Only one individual has kept the Law, and that was Jesus Christ, and Mormons reject His ability to provide for the forgiveness of sins. Instead, they substitute their own inability to be perfect in order to provide forgiveness for their own sins. This is indeed a very strange belief. The Law of Moses (the Ten Commandments) was given by God, not as a means to obtain salvation, but to reveal to humanity the impossibility of becoming reconciled to God through "works" of the law. It is impossible for any human being to perfectly obey the Ten Commandments. Only one person was able to do that, and that was Jesus Christ. That is why He is the foundation of the Christian faith and why He is the only means, through a personal relationship, by which man can become right with God.

Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.
The Holy Bible, Romans 3:20 (NIV)

Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Holy Bible, Romans 5:18 - 21 (NIV)