CHRIST

Reason 13

Also see Reasons 8 and 12

LDS claim the true gospel was lost then restored by Joseph Smith, their founding prophet for the latter days. The LDS prophet leads and guides the church in these last days, and all worthy temple going members must sustain the current prophet. Joseph Smith is the head of the church, which claims to be the one true church.
     D&C 132:40
I am the Lord thy God, and I gave unto thee, my servant Joseph, an appointment, and restore all things. Ask what ye will, and it shall be given unto you according to my word.
     D&C 28:2-6
But, behold, verily, verily, I say unto thee, no one shall be appointed to receive commandments and revelations in this church excepting my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., for he receiveth them even as Moses. And thou shalt be obedient unto the things which I shall give unto him, even as Aaron, to declare faithfully the commandments and the revelations, with power and authority unto the church. And if thou art led at any time by the Comforter to speak or teach, or at all times by the way of commandment unto the church, thou mayest do it. But thou shalt not write by way of commandment, but by wisdom; And thou shalt not command him who is at thy head, and at the head of the church;

I never understood why only Joseph Smith is named. God would know the names of future prophets.

However, the Bible tells us that Jesus is the Only Head of the Church.
     Colossians 1:18
And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. 

And the Bible also tells us that Jesus Christ is the foundation, or chief cornerstone, of the Christian Church.
     Ephesians 2:20
having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone,

And the Bible also says the Prophet for the last days is Christ.
     Galatians 4:4-5
But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
     Hebrews 1:1-2
God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;

So who is the Head, the Foundation, and the Prophet of the Church; Jesus or Joseph Smith?

And the Bible also says the Word of the LORD goes on forever.
     1 Peter 1:25
But the word of the LORD endures forever." Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.

If the word of the LORD goes on forever, then how did it get lost and need restoration from Joseph Smith? The "gospel" was not taken from the earth.--quotes are used because the LDS definition of "gospel" is completely different than the Christian definition of gospel. This will be a later reason.

The LDS church has offices of high priest and believe only LDS have authority to baptize, ordain, etc. They have a two-part system of priesthood-Melchizedek and Aaronic. Thousands of LDS hold Melchizedek Priesthood.
     D&C 107:1-21
lds.org/scriptures/dc/107

However, Jesus Christ is the only High Priest according to the Bible.
     mormonhandbook.com/priesthood
     Hebrews 2:17
Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
     Hebrews 3:1
Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus,
     Hebrews 4:14
Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.
     Hebrews 5:9-10
And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, called by God as High Priest "according to the order of Melchizedek,"
     Hebrews 7:26
For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens;
     Hebrews 8:1
Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens,
     Hebrews 9:11
But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.
     Hebrews 9:15
And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.
     Hebrews 9:25-26
not that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood of another-He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.

     mormoninfo.org also explains how the Aaronic priesthood was finished at the cross and the Melchizedek priesthood is unique to Christ. (THE PRIESTHOOD?)
The Aaronic priesthood was done away at the crucifixion of Christ, since He has become our permanent high priest. There is no more need for Levitical priests to offer imperfect sacrifices on behalf of the people in the temple. Jesus alone is worthy to hold the Melchizedek priesthood. Any believer today who has been called out of darkness into the light, regardless of age, race, or sex, is a member of the holy and royal priesthood. The believer operates in the highest authority that is offered today, viz., that of being a child of the Lord Omnipotent. Christians have the true priesthood, since they have the true God who gives it to them. (Jn. 1:12; Gal. 3:26-9; 1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 4:14; 5:9-10; 7:11-8:2; 9:24; 1 Pt. 2:5 and 9; and Rev. 1:6; 20:6).

So what does all of this mean? I disagree with the LDS teaching of prophets, the head of the church, the foundation of the church, and high priests. The Bible mentions nothing about the "true church" needing to be restored. The Bible mentions nothing about Joseph Smith being a prophet in the last days. In fact, the Bible does not tell us there will be a man to serve as prophet on the earth in the last days and that we should follow and listen to latter-day prophets; except Christ, of course. Prophets were on the earth at the time they were needed. Christ replaced the office of the prophet. The Bible does not tell us that Joseph Smith will be the head of the "one true church." Jesus will always be the Only Head of the Church. The Bible does not tell us that the foundation of the church will change because some gold plates will be found and translated into another book that will surpass the Bible. Christ's apostles are our apostles today. Jesus, and only Jesus, is My High Priest and My Foundation.
     1 Timothy 2:5
For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus.

God Will Not Give His Glory to Another, not even Joseph Smith.
     Isaiah 42:8
I am the LORD, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, Nor my praise to carved images.

One more contradiction: Deacons in the LDS church are 12-year-old boys.
     From lds.org
And office of the Aaronic Priesthood, A boy is normally ordained a deacon when he is 12 years of age or older. Some of a deacon's responsibilities are to pass the sacrament and collect offerings.
In the Church today, worthy male members may receive the Aaronic Priesthood beginning at age 12. These young men, typically ages 12-17, receive many opportunities to participate in sacred priesthood ordinances and give service. As they worthily fulfill their duties, they act in the name of the Lord to help others receive the blessings of the gospel.

     1 Timothy 3:8-13 in the Bible explains Deacons much differently.
Likewise deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy for money, holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience. But let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless. Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things. Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a good standing and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.

These are 2 completely different definitions of Deacons.

Excellent article on prophets for today.
     mormoninfo.org/prophets-for-today

Another article about Priesthood Authority
     carm.org/priesthood-authority-and-mormonism

This guy does a great job explaining Priesthood.
     www.ldsvideo.org/2011/03/mormon-priesthood.html

In other words, Jesus is the ONLY way. No one else has any keys or ordinances. Christ did not need Joseph Smith's help. If the church needed restoring, which it didn't, then Jesus would have been able to "restore" the church all by Himself.

     Acts 4:12
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

My unanswered question was:

Do I need someone other than Jesus to be my High Priest or to help me get to heaven?

I was initially devastated when I received this answer, yet overjoyed to find the truth that Jesus is my only High Priest and He always will be; no other will be sufficient!