In what way are men spirit children of their Father in Heaven?

Hello,
I recently read in one of your replies the following: “Spirit children are born of resurrected, exalted parents. They are born in the same manner that mortal children are born. However, when a celestial parent has a child, it is composed of spiritual material, not physical material.” What is the source of this? If it derived only from the word “literal” as used in the scriptures and the TF: APTTW, then surely that is not sufficient. A source would be most helpful.
Chris, from England

Dear Chris,
First, man has the potential to grow to an eternal maturity–i.e., to be an eternal adult, with the same qualities as his Father in Heaven. Here is Paul’s statement in the Book of Romans—

The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together (Rom 8:16-17).

And from modern scripture—

And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord; For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me; And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father; And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him. And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood (Doctrine & Covenants 84:35-39)

They are they who received the testimony of Jesus, and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial, being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the commandment which he has given–That by keeping the commandments they might be washed and cleansed from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power; And who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true. They are they who are the church of the Firstborn. They are they into whose hands the Father has given all things–They are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory; And are priests of the Most High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son. Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God– Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s. And they shall overcome all things (D&C 76:51-60).

God is the literal Father of the spirits of all mankind—

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? (Heb 12:9).

The word, literal, above is my own word. It has no esoteric meaning. It means just what it says. God is in very deed the Father, Progenitor, Engenderer of the spirits that inhabit the bodies of all living souls. The word, Father, is the most frequent appellation given to God in the scriptures. Here are the words of Elder Bruce R. McConkie, an apostle of the Lord, Jesus Christ—

“We are bold to say that there is a God in heaven, an infinite and holy being who is our Eternal Father and whose offspring we are in the spirit; that he ordained the plan of salvation whereby we, his spirit children, might advance and progress and become like him; that he chose his First-born in the spirit to be the Savior and Redeemer in his great plan of salvation; and that ever thereafter, to honor its chief advocate and exponent, this plan of salvation has been known as the gospel of Jesus Christ.” (President Bruce R. McConkie, Conference Report, October 1970, p.126)

The Mormon’s have been chided in the press by the proponents of sectarian Christianity by saying that they [the Mormons] believe that Jesus Christ and Satan were brothers. In doing so, they only expose their own ignorance and gross lack of understanding of biblical scripture (the only scripture in which the say that they believe). How do they interpret—

How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! (Isaiah 14:12)?

Lucifer, i.e., Satan, was called a son of the morning. The name Lucifer (heylel in Hebrew) means “light-bearer, shining one, morning star”. Lucifer, as one of the spirit children of God, was in authority in the pre-existence, before, by reason of his pride and arrogance, he fell from grace. I wonder what interpretation of scripture has been concocted up by the sectarian ministry, that they would disavow that Satan also was a spirit child of God?. We read in the Book of Moses—

And I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying: That Satan, whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the beginning, and he came before me, saying–Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore give me thine honor. But, behold, my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me–Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever. Therefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down; And he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice (Moses 4:1-4).

Those who in mortality choose to follow the Savior and to obey all the laws and ordinances of the gospel are they who achieve an eternal adulthood–who grow to the potential of their Eternal Parent—

They are they who received the testimony of Jesus, and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial, being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the commandment which he has given– That by keeping the commandments they might be washed and cleansed from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power; And who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true. They are they who are the church of the Firstborn. They are they into whose hands the Father has given all things– They are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory; And are priests of the Most High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son. Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God–Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s (Doctrine & Covenants 76:51-59).

Gramps