One of the things I liked about Mormonism when I first encountered it was its positive focus. In my prior experience, other Christian sects spent much of their sermon time preaching about hell, how bad it would be, and how faith in Jesus kept you from going there. If you asked them what heaven was like, it was like, "Ummmmm." But they could tell you in great detail what hell was going to be like.
We generally don't preach hellfire and damnation in the Church. We invite people to come unto Christ. There have been cases in our history where persecution led the elders to cast the dust off their feet as a testimony againt certain individuals, and anecdotally, we have heard of bad things happening to them. We like to preach a positive gospel message and appeal to the better angels of men.
But what happens when they have no better angels? In my Internet sharing of the gospel, anti-Mormons and apostate ex-Mormons are drawn like a moth to the porch light. They prove to be deprave, in many cases. In one discussion forum where they were attacking the Church, they posted horrid pornographic images of transsexuals or worse as their "reply." In another forum, they gather an Internet mob and attack. I used to just leave, with their mocking words ringing in my ears, like Alma turning his back on the city of Ammonihah. However, Alma was told by an angel to return and tell the inhabitants of that wicked city to repent or be destroyed.
Hell is a real place. Not the lake of fire and brimstone of the Baptists or Catholics, but it is a kingdom. Those who fight against the gospel, especially those who were once enlightened by the Holy Spirit will end up in outer darkness. I have presumed lately to tell them and warn them of the consequences if they don't repent. If we don't shake them from their anti-Mormon delusion and make them reconsider their path, their ends will be unimaginably bad.
Missionaries rarely tell people to repent nowadays. We rarely tell them of the consequences of disobedience. In my life, I have felt the Lord's chastening hand at times. If such chastizement has befallen me, who deeply cares and desires to live the gospel, I can't imagine what awaits those who fight against Zion.
Don't be afraid to tell them to repent. Brigham Young warned people of hell's reward. We need to do the same today. If you encounter one of these bold (because they are anonymous) apostates on the web, tell them to repent and that hell awaits them. You're not doing them any favors by walking away. Sometimes, like Joseph Smith did with a false prophet named Matthias who came to visit him, you have to cast the devil out in bodily form.
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