Mormons call themselves “Latter-day Saints” because they believe Jesus Christ’s original church fell into apostasy and was restored through Joseph Smith in the latter days, with their members being the “saints” of this restored church. The Bible does use both expressions, but it gives them a different framework: the “last days” began with the coming of Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit—not with Joseph Smith’s ministry centuries later (Acts 2:16–17; Hebrews 1:1–2). Likewise, all followers of Jesus are referred to “saints” in the Bible because we are all set apart for God (Romans 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:2; Ephesians 1:1). The Bible never teaches that Christ’s church would completely disappear and require restoration through a later prophet; instead, Jesus promised to build His church and spoke of its enduring existence (Matthew 16:18). Therefore, while the words “latter-day saints” themselves have biblical roots, the LDS claim that they identify a uniquely restored church is not supported by Scripture. The deeper issue is that Mormonism’s teachings about God, Jesus, Scripture, and salvation differ fundamentally from the biblical gospel (Galatians 1:6–9; 2 Corinthians 11:3–4). Our hope is not found in belonging to the right religious label or organization but in belonging to Jesus Christ, who will judge all people and whose gospel alone saves.
Mormons, more precisely members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, refer to themselves as “Latter-day Saints” because they believe they are part of the church of Jesus Christ that was restored to the earth in the “latter days,” the period they refer to as preceding Christ’s Second Coming. They believe that the original church established by Jesus and His apostles eventually fell into a widespread apostasy and that God restored it through Joseph Smith in the 1800s.
The word “saints” is not intended to mean that members are sinless or have reached a special level of holiness. The distinctive part of the name LDS is really “Latter-day,” which expresses their belief that God has restored His church in the last days.
The name also reflects their belief that their church is not simply a new Christian denomination but a restoration of the original church of Jesus Christ. Their official name, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, emphasizes both their claim to belong to Christ and their belief that His church has been restored for the latter days. They appeal particularly to Doctrine and Covenants 115:4, which says, “For thus shall my church be called in the last days, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
It is important for us to remember that, although Latter-day Saints use the same Christian language such as Jesus Christ, God, salvation, and saints, Latter-day Saint theology differs fundamentally from historic biblical Christianity on several core doctrines. Mormonism teaches a different understanding of God, Jesus Christ, the Trinity, Scripture, humanity, salvation, and the afterlife, including the belief that God was once a man and that humans can ultimately become gods. Because these differences concern the very nature of God, the identity of Jesus, and salvation, simply identifying as Christian does not make the LDS faith biblically Christian. The Bible warns that another gospel—even one presented using Christian terminology—is not the true gospel (Galatians 1:6–9), and Jesus Himself warns that not everyone who calls Him “Lord” truly belongs to Him (Matthew 7:21–23).
God—not Christians—is the Judge, and He will judge every person according to His truth in the last days; our responsibility is to live as saints in this world, knowing and following God and lovingly pointing people to the true Jesus, the biblical gospel, and salvation by grace through faith in Him.
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