God's Family

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Who is God?

Who are We?

Sin & the Law

Grace, Faith & Works

Forgiveness

Eternity

Additional Teachings

What does the Bible teach about God's family?

The Bible teaches that only true believers have been given the right to become children of God. Believers are adopted into the family of God through faith.

In Adam, all humanity fell. Consequently, all are born in sin and are enemies of God. Sin makes us children of wrath deserving condemnation and eternal separation from God. But through faith (trust) in the work of Jesus, the enemies of God are reconciled to him and made his children!

Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.

John 1:12

He does this through his word and the waters of baptism, where he joins us to Christ, gives us his name, and seals us with the Holy Spirit as a down payment of our inheritance (Galatians 3:26–27; Titus 3:5–7; Ephesians 1:13–14).

What does Mormonism teach about God's family?

In Mormonism, all human beings are considered literal spirit children of Heavenly Parents, born in the pre-mortal realm before coming to earth. Every person begins as part of God’s family but must “prove worthy” to return to Heavenly Father’s presence and eventually receive exaltation—life as a god in an eternal family.

This worthiness depends on obedience to laws and ordinances, including baptism, temple endowments, marriage sealings, and lifelong faithfulness to church teachings. God’s family is something you start in, but staying in it—especially to inherit the highest blessings—depends on your performance.

Man, as a spirit, was begotten and born of heavenly parents, and reared to maturity in the eternal mansions of the Father, prior to coming upon the earth in a temporal [physical] body.

Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph F. Smith [1998]

Why This Matters

Mormonism’s teaching about God’s family can sound comforting at first. Who wouldn’t want to believe that all people are automatically God’s children? However, this teaching downplays the seriousness of sin, and even more importantly, it undermines the sacrifice and work of Jesus. If we are already God’s children by nature, then the cross becomes unnecessary, and grace becomes something optional rather than essential.

The Bible tells a more complex truth and a far better one. We are not born into God’s family. In our natural state, we are separated from him, not because he is unloving, but because we are sinful. We are not God’s children by birth; we are, as Scripture says, children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3), enemies of God (Romans 5:10), and spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1). That’s a frightening reality, but one that makes the gospel shine all the brighter.

For those who trust in the person and work of Jesus, God doesn’t just tolerate us. He doesn’t merely offer a second chance. He makes us his own. Through the finished work of Jesus and his perfect life, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection, God adopts us. He washes us clean, gives us new hearts, and calls us sons and daughters. This adoption isn’t a reward we earn. It’s a gift he gives.

When Mormonism teaches that spirit children become worthy to re-enter God’s presence through obedience and ordinances, it subtly shifts the focus from God’s grace to human achievement. But the Bible says the opposite: we are welcomed into God’s family not because of what we do but because of what Christ has done.

Our identity as children of God doesn’t rest on our worthiness—it rests on Jesus’ worthiness, credited to us by faith.

That’s what makes this truth so comforting. If being part of God’s family depended on us, we’d always wonder if we were doing enough. But because it depends entirely on Jesus, we can rest. We don’t work our way into God’s household—we are brought in, seated at his table, and given an eternal inheritance as heirs with Christ.