WHO IS GOD?
1. People worship many things. But the Bible tells us that there is only one TRUE God. He created everything in heaven and on earth. Because he gave us life, he is the only One we should worship.—1 Corinthians 8:5, 6; Revelation 4:11.
2. God has many titles but has only one name. That name is JEHOVAH. In most Bibles, God's name has been removed and has been replaced with the titles LORD or GOD. But when the Bible was written, the name Jehovah appeared in it some 7,000 times!—Exodus 3:15; Psalm 83:18.
3. Jehovah has a body, but it is not like ours. "God is a Spirit," says the Bible. (John 4:24) A spirit is a form of life that is much higher than ours. No human has ever seen God. Jehovah lives in heaven, but he can see all things. (Psalm 11:4, 5; John 1:18) What, though, is the holy spirit? It is not a person like God. Rather, it is God's active force.—Psalm 104:30.
4. The Bible reveals Jehovah's personality to us. It shows that his outstanding qualities are love, justice, wisdom, and power. (Deuteronomy 32:4; Job 12:13; Isaiah 40:26; 1 John 4:8) The Bible tells us that he is also merciful, kind, forgiving, generous, and patient. We, like obedient children, should try to imitate him.—Ephesians 5:1, 2.
5. Should we bow down or pray to images, pictures, or symbols in our worship? No! (Exodus 20:4, 5) Jehovah says that we must worship only him. He will not share his glory with anyone or anything else. Images have no power to help us.—Psalm 115:4-8; Isaiah 42:8.
6. How can we get to know God better? One way is by observing the things he has created and thinking deeply about what they tell us. God's creations show us that he has great power and wisdom. We see his love in all that he has made. (Psalm 19:1-6; Romans 1:20) Another way we can learn about God is by studying the Bible. In it he tells us much more about the kind of God he is. He also tells us about his purpose and what he wants us to do.—Amos 3:7; 2 Timothy 3:16, 17.
please comments, questions and your own ideas on comments box:francesca
Published in 1996
Copyright © 2004 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. All rights reserved.
About Me
- Francesca
- Originally Filipina, naturally integrated and become French citizen, 20years living in Nice France,and enjoying the french culture, art , fashion, and food and its elegant living.My blog features my whole life in France and my work in the land of rich and fame, Monaco. It is a soap opera tele series type of blog, where you can laugh, cry, get mad or just enjoy reading it.
12 comments:
If you are a Jehovah's Witness please understand that I am not against you as an individual. I am not an apostate from the Watchtower organization and, of course, I was never baptized as a Jehovah's Witness. However, when I was 17, I studied with the Jehovah's Witnesses for a couple of months, but quit. Unfortunately, they used the Watchtower Magazine equally, and sometime more than the Bible and they couldn't answer all my questions. All I wanted to study was the Bible since that is God's word.
As a Jehovah's Witness you have been taught from the Bible and the Watchtower organization. You’ve attended numerous meetings, and are convinced that what you believe is the truth. You also believe the Trinity is a demonic doctrine and that Christendom is an apostate group preaching a false gospel. Additionally, you are taught the Watchtower organization is the true channel of God’s revelation to His church on earth. You are taught that you are in "The Truth."
But believing it does not make it so. I am sure you agree with this and respond by saying that your beliefs are in agreement with the Bible. After all, you study it deeply and often and have validated your beliefs with the word of God. I don’t deny that you study. But when you study, you study under the Watchtower's guidance and allow it to shape your understanding and thinking of the Bible and its doctrines.
Please consider these quotes from the Watchtower Magazine that verify what I am saying:
"All who want to understand the Bible should appreciate that the "greatly diversified wisdom of God" can become known only through Jehovah's channel of communication, the faithful and discreet slave." (The Watchtower; 10/1/1994; p. 8.)
"Thus the Bible is an organizational book and belongs to the Christian congregation as an organization, not to individuals, regardless of how sincerely they may believe that they can interpret the Bible." The Watchtower, Oct. 1, 1967. p. 587.
In short, you are led by what the Watchtower says the Bible says. But if the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society is from God, then...
Why has it made false prophecies?
Why has it altered the translation of the Bible?
Why does the Watchtower say you will fall into apostasy if you read the Bible without the Watchtower? See their quotes
Why are you not allowed to examine your own organization and its problems?
Why does it tell you what to think and do?
Have you checked the documentation from the Watchtower Magazine? How do you know that the Watchtower is correct? Because it says it is?
Please don’t be offended by this. But when a group claims to be the prophet of God, yet mistranslates the Bible, takes verses out of context, makes false prophecies, and misquotes authorities all to make its position valid, its credibility is lost. It cannot be from God.
But you will never know that unless you "examine ALL things." Unfortunately, as a Jehovah's Witness, you are only encouraged to study what the Watchtower and Awake magazines tell you to study. That means you can't really check up on its false prophecies on your own. Instead, you must trust what it tells you about its own false prophecies. In addition, you are instructed to not take any literature from "apostate Christendom." This way, you will have far less opportunity to be challenged, something the Watchtower organization doesn't want to happen.
The Watchtower Magazine teaches by asking the questions and giving the answers. Sometimes it even uses a Bible reference (often times out of context) to back up what it says. It all looks good and sounds good from your perspective. But it is a false method of study. The Watchtower organization tells you what to think and what to do. If you say that is not true and that the Watchtower Organization is God's organization on earth, then you are simply repeating what the Watchtower tells you.
The Bible alone is sufficient. But the Watchtower denies this:
"From time to time, there have arisen from among the ranks of Jehovah's people those, who, like the original Satan, have adopted an independent, faultfinding attitude...They say that it is sufficient to read the Bible exclusively, either alone or in small groups at home. But, strangely, through such 'Bible reading,' they have reverted right back to the apostate doctrines that commentaries by Christendom's clergy were teaching 100 years ago..." The Watchtower, August 15, 1981. (Emphasis added)
What are the apostate doctrines: Trinity? Hell? Jesus is God? Funny thing is that, according to the Watchtower, if you study the Bible by itself, you will come to believe these things! Could it be that apart from the selected questions, answers, scripture quotes, and direction of the Watchtower teaching, that the Bible actually does teach these "apostate doctrines"? If you don't check for yourself, and only believe the Watchtower, you'll never know.
Do you want to trust your eternal soul to the teachings of several men headquartered in Brooklyn, New York who claim to be the directors of God's organization on earth? Do you? Eternity is a long time to be wrong.
wow, thats long, thanks for the time you put into this topic.
May I ask you, what do you propose that is better?
Christianity teaches that there is only one God in all existence, that God made the universe, the Earth, and created Adam and Eve. God created man in His image. This does not mean that God has a body of flesh and bones. Image means the likeness of God's character, rationality, etc. Because we are made in the image of God, every person is worthy of respect and honor. Furthermore, this means that we did not evolve through random processes from a single celled organism into rational, emotional beings.
God created Adam and Eve and put them in the Garden of Eden and gave them the freedom to choose between right and wrong. They chose to sin. Sin is doing that which is contrary to the nature and will of God. For example, God cannot lie; therefore, lying is sin. The sin of disobeying God that Adam and Eve committed resulted in them being expelled from the Garden of Eden as well as suffering the effect of death.
As a result of their sin, their children and all of us inherited a sinful nature. In other words, our offspring are not perfect in nature -- we don't have to teach children to be selfish. They know it naturally. That which is sinful cannot produce that which is not sinful.
Christianity teaches that God is a Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, not three Gods), that Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity, that Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead physically, that all people are under the righteous judgment of God because all people have sinned against God. It teaches that Jesus is the only way to be saved from the coming judgment of God and that salvation is received by faith in the work of Christ on the cross and not by anything that we can do to please God.
Where all other religions in the world teach that we must do some sort of good in cooperation with God in order to achieve the right to be in God's presence, Christianity is the only religion that teaches salvation by grace. This means that we are not made right before God by our efforts, sincerity, or works. Instead, we are made right before God by faith in what Christ did on the cross.
Christianity further teaches that once a person is "born again" (becomes saved) that the Holy Spirit lives in that person and the person is changed: "Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come," (2 Cor. 5:17). This means that God actually lives in the person and the Christian then experiences a true and living relationship with God.
Therefore, "What is Christianity?" is best answered by saying that it is a relationship with the true and living God through the person of Jesus Christ by whom we are forgiven of our sins and escape the righteous judgment of God.
You posted:"faith in the work of Christ on the cross and not by anything that we can do to please God."
My answer:
Faith without works is dead.James 2:17
Illustrations: A young man may court a young lady, telling her that he love her. But if he never asked her to marry him, is he really demonstrating that his love is thorough?
Likewise, works are our means of demonstrating the genuiness of our faith and love. If we do not obey God,we do not really love Him or have faith in the rightness of his ways(1John 5:3,4)
Eternal life is a "gift" from God,through Jesus Christ, not payment for our works.
You Posted:
Christianity teaches that God is a Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, not three Gods), that Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity,
Please back this up with the Bible verse?
The Watchtower organization has claimed to be the prophet of God (The Watchtower, April 1, 1972, p. 197) yet it has made numerous false prophecies. The excuse given for their false prophecies has been to quote Proverbs 4:18 which says, "But the path of the righteous ones is like the bright light that is getting lighter and lighter until the day is firmly established." Whether or not the "light gets brighter" or not does not change the fact that the Watchtower made false prophecies. The Bible says in Deut. 18:20-22, "‘However, the prophet who presumes to speak in my name a word that I have not commanded him to speak or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet must die. And in case you should say in your heart: "How shall we know the word that Jehovah has not spoken?" When the prophet speaks in the name of Jehovah and the word does not occur or come true, that is the word that Jehovah did not speak..."
If the NWT condemns false prophesying and states that it is proof that God is not speaking through that prophet, then doesn’t this prove that the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society is not speaking for God?
Why does the New World Translation insert the word Jehovah in the New Testament when there are absolutely no Greek manuscripts that have it in there? Isn’t this playing with the text?
In the book, "Salvation" by J. F. Rutherford, 1939, p. 311, (a Watchtower Publication) it says, "At San Diego, California, there is a small piece of land, on which, in the year 1929, there was built a house, which is called and known as Beth-Sarim. The Hebrew words Beth Sarim mean "House of the Princes"; and the purpose of acquiring that property and building the house was that there might be some tangible proof that there are those on earth today who fully believe God and Christ Jesus and in His kingdom, and who believe that the faithful men of old will soon be resurrected by the Lord, be back on earth, and take charge of the visible affairs of earth. The title to Beth-Sarim is vested in the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society in trust, to be used by the president of the Society and his assistants for the present, and thereafter to be forever at the disposal of the aforementioned princes on earth [italic added]. . . . while the unbelievers have mocked concerning it and spoken contemptuously of it, yet it stands there as a testimony to Jehovah’s name; and if and when the princes do return and some of them occupy the property, such will be a confirmation of the faith and hope that induced the building of Beth-Sarim."
This place was sold in 1942 after Rutherford’s death. Therefore, it appears that the faithful were misled since the house was to "be forever at the disposal of the aforementioned princes." Is this really a testimony to Jehovah’s name as it said? How can it be if they sold the house?
The Watchtower organization states that Jesus died on a stake, not a cross. The typical Watchtower representation of this is with Jesus on a single vertical stake, hands over his head with a single nail in his wrists. If Jesus were crucified on a cross, then two nails would be necessary, one in each hand. How then does the Watchtower organization handle the verse in the Bible that states that Jesus had nails (plural) in his hands: "Consequently the other disciples would say to him: "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them: "unless I see in his hands the print of the nails and stick my finger into the print of the nails and stick my hand into his side, I will certainly not believe" (John 20:25, NWT).
Jesus had one nail in each hand. This is made clear by the use of the word ‘nails’ not ‘nail.’ Jesus must have been crucified on a cross, and not a stake as the Watchtower organization teaches. Why is it, then, that the Watchtower teaches something that is so clearly unbiblical?
The Watchtower organization states that through good works and sincere effort only 144,000 elite JW’s will go to heaven. The 144,000 are mentioned in two chapters in the Bible: Revelation 7 & 14. By looking at the verses it is obvious that the 144,000 are literal Jews of the ancient tribes with no Gentiles among them (7:4-8). They are all males (14:4) and virgins (14:4). If the JW states that the usage of Jewish male virgins is figurative, what gives them the right to state that number of 144,000 is literal?
Where does it teach in the Bible that Jesus is Michael the archangel? Why isn't Jesus called Michael right now since he is in heaven?
The word "trinity" is a term used to denote the Christian doctrine that God exists as a unity of three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each of the persons is distinct from the other, yet identical in essence. In other words, each is fully divine in nature, but each is not the totality of the Trinity. Each has a will, loves, and says "I", and "You" when speaking. The Father is not the same person as the Son who is not the same person as the Holy Spirit who is not the same person as the Father. Each is divine, yet there are not three gods, but one God. There are three individual subsistences, or persons. The word "subsistence" means something that has a real existence. The word "person" denotes individuality and self awareness. The Trinity is three of these, though the latter term has become the dominant one used to describe the individual aspects of God known as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Included in the doctrine of the Trinity is a strict monotheism which is the teaching that there exists in all the universe a single being known as God who is self-existent and unchangeable (Isaiah 43:10; 44:6,8). Therefore, it is important to note that the doctrine of the trinity is not polytheistic as some of its critics proclaim. Trinitarianism is monotheistic by definition and those who claim it is polytheistic demonstrate a lack of understanding of what it really is.
The Trinity
God is three persons
Each person is divine
There is only one God.
Many theologians admit that the term "person" is not a perfect word to describe the three individual aspects/foci found in God. When we normally use the word person, we understand it to mean physical individuals who exist as separate beings from other individuals. But in God there are not three entities, nor three beings. God, is a trinity of persons consisting of one substance and one essence. God is numerically one. Yet, within the single divine essence are three individual subsistences that we call persons.
Each of the three persons is completely divine in nature though each is not the totality of the Godhead.
Each of the three persons is not the other two persons.
Each of the three persons is related to the other two, but are distinct from them.
The word "trinity" is not found in the Bible. But this does not mean that the concept is not taught there. The word "bible" is not found in the Bible either, but we use it anyway. Likewise, the words "omniscience," which means "all knowing," "omnipotence," which means "all powerful," and "omnipresence," which means "present everywhere," are not found in the Bible either. But we use these words to describe the attributes of God. So, to say that the Trinity isn't true because the word isn't in the Bible is an invalid argument.
Is there subordination in the Trinity?
There is, apparently, a subordination within the Trinity in regard to order but not substance or essence. We can see that the Father is first, the Son is second, and the Holy Spirit is third. The Father is not begotten, but the Son is (John 3:16). The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father (John 5:26). The Father sent the Son (1 John 4:10). The Son and the Father send the Holy Spirit (John 14:26; 15:26). The Father creates (Isaiah 44:24), the Son redeems (Gal. 3:13), and the Holy Spirit sanctifies (Rom. 15:16).
This subordination of order does not mean that each of the members of the Godhead are not equal or divine. For example, we see that the Father sent the Son. But this does not mean that the Son is not equal to the Father in essence and divine nature. A wife is to be subject to her husband but this does not negate her humanity, essence, or equality. By further analogy, a king and his servant both share human nature. Yet, the king sends the servant to do his will. Jesus said, "For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me" (John 6:38). Does this mean that the one sent must, therefore, be of different nature than the one who sent him? Of course not.
Critics of the Trinity will see this subordination as proof that the Trinity is false. They reason that if Jesus were truly God, then He would be completely equal to God the Father in all areas and would not, therefore, be subordinate to the Father in any way. But this objection is not logical. If we look at the analogy of the king and in the servant we certainly would not say that the servant was not human because he was sent. Being sent does not negate sameness in essence. Therefore, the fact that the Son is sent does not mean that He is not divine any more than when my wife sends me to get bread, I am not human.
Is this confusing?
Another important point about the Trinity is that it can be a difficult concept to grasp. But this does not necessitate an argument against its validity. On the contrary, the fact that it is difficult is an argument for its truth. The Bible is the self revelation of an infinite God. Therefore, we are bound to encounter concepts which are difficult to understand -- especially when dealing with an incomprehensible God who exists in all places at all times. So, when we view descriptions and attributes of God manifested in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, we discover that a completely comprehensible and understandable explanation of God's essence and nature is not possible. What we have, however, done is derive from the Scripture the truths that we can grasp and combine them into the doctrine we call The Trinity. The Trinity is, to a large extent, a mystery. After all, we are dealing with God Himself.
It is the way of the cults to reduce biblical truth to make God comprehensible and understandable by their minds. To this end, they subject God's word to their own reasoning and end in error. The following verses are often used to demonstrate that in the doctrine of the Trinity is indeed biblical.
Matt. 28:18, Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
1 Cor. 12:4-6, Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6And there are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons.
2 Cor. 13:14, The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
Eph. 4:4-7, There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. 7But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.
1 Pet. 1:2, "according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in fullest measure."
Jude 20-21, "But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith; praying in the Holy Spirit; 21keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life."
Trinity: Is Jehovah a Trinity—three persons in one God? No! Jehovah, the Father, is "the only true God." (John 17:3; Mark 12:29)
Jesus is His firstborn Son, and he is subject to God. (1 Corinthians 11:3)
The Father is greater than the Son. (John 14:28)
The holy spirit is not a person; it is God's active force.—Genesis 1:2; Acts 2:18.
The Bible speaks of 144,000 ONLY to go to heaven. If we add the figures, then thats lying agaisnt what the Bible says, dont you think?
May I ask what is the name of Your God? To whom do you pray?
I call my God: Yaweh or Jehovah.
You may find His name in King James Version, the old edition.
When the Bible was written, the name Jehovah appeared in it some 7,000 times!—Exodus 3:15; Psalm 83:18.
Yaweh in Hebrew language, Jehovah in English/American.
Like Michel for french.
Michael for English.
Do you believe that the Bible is the word of God?
Christianity is the one true religion. That may sound awfully dogmatic and narrow-minded, but the simple truth is that Christianity is the only true religion. Jesus said that He alone was the way to the Father (John 14:6), that He alone revealed the Father (Matt. 11:27; Luke 10:22). Christians do not go around saying Christianity is the only way because they are arrogant, narrow-minded, stupid, and judgmental. They do so because they believe what Jesus said. They believe in Jesus, who claimed to be God (John 8:58; Exodus 3:14), who forgave sins (Mark 2:5; Luke 5:20; 7:48), and who rose from the dead (Luke 24:24-29; John 2:19f). Jesus said that He was the only way. Jesus is unique. He was either telling the truth, He was crazy, or He was a liar. But since everyone agrees that Jesus was a good man, how then could He be both good and crazy, or good and a liar? He had to be telling the truth. He is the only way.
Christianity is not just a religion; it is a relationship with God. It is a trusting in Jesus and what He did on the cross (1 Cor. 15:1-4), not on what you can do for yourself (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Buddha didn't rise from the dead, nor did Confucius or Zoroaster. Muhammad didn't fulfill detailed prophecy. Alexander the Great didn't raise the dead or heal the sick. And though there is far less reliable information written about them, they are believed in.
The scripture is right when it says in 1 Pet. 2:7-8, "This precious value, then, is for you who believe. But for those who disbelieve, 'The stone which the builders rejected, this became the very corner stone,' and, 'A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense'; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed." (NASB).
The Mathematical Odds of Jesus Fulfilling Prophecy
"The following probabilities are taken from Peter Stoner in Science Speaks (Moody Press, 1963) to show that coincidence is ruled out by the science of probability. Stoner says that by using the modern science of probability in reference to eight prophecies, ‘we find that the chance that any man might have lived down to the present time and fulfilled all eight prophecies is 1 in 1017." That would be 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000. In order to help us comprehend this staggering probability, Stoner illustrates it by supposing that "we take 1017 silver dollars and lay them on the face of Texas. They will cover all of the state two feet deep. Now mark one of these silver dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a man and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up one silver dollar and say that this is the right one. What chance would he have of getting the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would have had of writing these eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one man."
Stoner considers 48 prophecies and says, "we find the chance that any one man fulfilled all 48 prophecies to be 1 in 10157, or 1 in 10,00,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, 000,000,000,000,000, 000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, 000, 000,000,000,000,000,000,000, 000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 000,000,000."
sorry, any man's ideas not in line what the Bible has to say, for me is nothing of value.
Even he is the most intelligent one living on earth.
The Greatest man on earth is only Jesus Christ.
We Jehovah's Witnesses believe in Him as the Son of God, and He is now a King in heaven sitting in the right hand of His father.
A true religion does not mixed with politics, like JESUS did.
A true religion is known by its fruits. We Jws try to be a good citizen in the land, rspecting the law of man as long as it does not contadict with God's laws.We do not smoke, we do not commit any sinful acts that would displease our God and His Son.
We do not go to war, because we love our fellowmen, we do not want to kill anybody.
We do not approved of Priests give blessings to soldiers and their arms.
We do not vote to any election because we already voted our King, Jesus Christ.We cant have two masters.
We are peacable people, and we rely on Gods' Kingdom to come soon to solve all the problems on earth.
We are more of a Christian than any who would profess they are.
We are alright with God and His Son,according to His laws in the Bible, its all that matters to us.
If i did not know what you believed and how far off God's word the Jws are. I am a born again bible believing Christian.God's word is complete but yet you have another book that you use when no other is needed. Jesus Christ is the only son of God.I will post some of the false teachings that you abide to..
Jesus Christ
The Watchtower says: “The foremost angel, both in power and authority, is the archangel, Jesus Christ, also called Michael.”[i]
The Bible says: Jesus is “....so much better than the angels....Let all God’s angels worship Him”.[ii]
The Soul of Man
The Watchtower says: “The soul dies; it does not live on after death.”[iii]
Jesus says: “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.”[iv]
Salvation
The Watchtower says: “....come to Jehovah’s organization for salvation....”[v]
Jesus says: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”[vi]
Resurrection
The Watchtower says: “Jesus died and was resurrected by God as a spirit creature....”[vii]
Jesus says: “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up....He was speaking of the temple of His body.”[viii]
Works
The Watchtower says: “To get one’s name written in that Book of Life will depend upon one’s works.”[ix]
The Bible says: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith....it is the gift of God, not by works.”[x]
Hell
The Watchtower says: “God’s Word says nothing about eternal torment of lost souls in a fiery hell as being the punishment for wickedness.”[xi]
Jesus says: “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”[xii]
Faith
The Watchtower says: “Put faith in a victorious organization!”[xiii]
The Bible says: “The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God.”[xiv]
Second Coming of Christ
The Watchtower says: “So it was in 1914 that Jesus returned invisibly, without public fanfare and with only his faithful servants being aware of his return.”[xv]
The Bible says: “Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him.”[xvi]
A Tainted Bible
To help justify the Jehovah’s Witnesses unbiblical teachings, the Watchtower Society began publishing its own version of the bible in 1950. This unique rendering, called The New World Translation, is hailed by Jehovah’s Witnesses as the most accurate translation available today. What Witnesses don’t know is that many key verses in The New World Translation have been altered, mistranslated and deliberately changed to support the Society’s biased teachings. In particular, the identity of Jesus Christ as God has been severely manipulated, in order to reduce Him to a created being, inferior to the Father.
For example, instead of rendering Jesus (the Word) as God in John 1:1, as all accurate bible translations do, The New World Translation renders it: “In [the] beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god” (emphasis added). Reducing Jesus to “a god” is a heretical distortion of the Greek text and has been sharply criticized by prominent New Testament Greek scholars. In fact, none of the men on the New World Translation Committee had any working knowledge of the ancient biblical languages. One man on the committee, Frederick Franz, was acclaimed by the Watchtower as having an “outstanding reputation as an eminent Bible scholar”.[xvii] However, in a public court trial in Scotland, he admitted that he couldn’t speak Hebrew nor translate a simple verse from the book of Genesis into the ancient language.[xviii]
A Non-Prophet Organization
The Watchtower Society boldly makes the exclusive claim to be God’s prophet on earth,[xix] the only organization that God uses to communicate to mankind today. The fact is, however, the Watchtower Society has made numerous false predictions regarding the beginning of the battle of Armageddon, the end of the world and the establishment of God’s Kingdom on earth. The end was first predicted in 1914[xx] by the Watchtower’s founder, C.T. Russell. When it didn’t occur the date was changed to 1915,[xxi] and later to 1918.[xxii] Under the leadership of the second president, Judge Rutherford, an aggressive campaign called Millions Now Living Will Never Die was launched. In this campaign it was predicted that in 1925, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and many other Old Testament prophets, would rise from the dead and appear as perfected humans on the earth.[xxiii] After this embarrassing failure the Watchtower carried on, still continuing to set dates for the end. Other prophetic years, ending in disappointment, were 1941,[xxiv] 1975[xxv] and 2000.[xxvi]
Knowing that exposure of its flawed past would be enough to convince truth-seeking Jehovah’s Witnesses to jump ship, the Watchtower conceals much of this information from its members. In addition, it cleverly trains them to view the more well-known prophetic disasters only as mistakes made by fallible men. However, the bible is clear and very direct on the matter. Deuteronomy 18:20-22 plainly warns us that those who claim to be prophets of God, yet make incorrect predictions, are false prophets that should be avoided. Although the Watchtower continues to make light of the adverse repercussions of its erroneous past, sadly, many loyal Jehovah's Witnesses were so convinced of these prophecies that they sold houses and businesses, putting off marriage, children and schooling to serve the Watchtower Society in the final days before Armageddon.
Winds of Change
Further proof that the Watchtower Society is not God’s channel of communication to man can be demonstrated by reviewing some of the doctrinal changes it has made throughout its history. A Jehovah’s Witness who was in good standing with the organization 70 years ago would be promptly expelled today if he still believed the same doctrines as once taught to him. Even a Witness currently going door-to-door has no assurance that his present beliefs won’t change in the future, making what is being taught as today’s truth, tomorrow’s error. Some changes made over the years are as follows:[xxvii]
Early Years
Now
Christ's Invisible Presence Began in 1874 Christ's Invisible Presence Began in 1914
Jesus Should be Worshipped Jesus Should not be Worshipped
Smoking Permitted Smoking Forbidden
Saluting the Flag and
Voting Permitted Saluting the Flag and
Voting Forbidden
Jesus Died on a Cross Jesus Died on a Stake
Jesus is not the
Archangel Michael Jesus is the
Archangel Michael
All Witnesses will go to
Heaven Most Witnesses will Live
Forever on Earth
Blood transfusions Allowed Blood transfusions Forbidden
Called God, Lord Call God, Jehovah
Celebrated Holidays Holidays not Celebrated
Could go to War Can not go to War
Vaccination Forbidden Vaccination Allowed
Although these changes and reversals are alarming to the average person, to a Jehovah’s Witness this is one of the proofs that the Watchtower Society is God’s visible organization on earth. The Society instructs them that truth is revealed in installments and that the above changes are actually just minor adjustments progressing towards further light. To support this, one will frequently hear a Witness quote Proverbs 4:18: “But the path of the righteous ones is like the bright light that is getting lighter and lighter until the day is firmly established” (NWT). In reality, however, the Watchtower is pulling Proverbs 4:18 completely out of its proper context in order to excuse and explain away over 120 years of contradictions, errors and false teachings.
Flip-flops
The Watchtower’s use of Proverbs 4:18 becomes ineffective when pointing out that the Society has flip-flopped back and forth on a number of doctrinal issues. That is, it has reverted backwards to a teaching that it once taught as truth, abandoned as incorrect, and adopted as truth again. For example, the Society taught in 1916 that the superior authorities in Romans 13 were earthly governments.[xxviii] In 1953 it taught that they were Jehovah God and Jesus Christ,[xxix] and in 1980 the superior authorities became the earthly governments once again.[xxx] The Watchtower has also flip-flopped trying to answer the question of whether the men of Sodom will be resurrected to face judgment. It has gone back and forth so many times on this issue that even the most studious Jehovah’s Witness would have a hard time remembering which view is the current teaching.
Because Watchtower teachings, like old milk, are subject to expiration dates, a Jehovah’s Witness must constantly continue reading the Society’s publications to keep up with the “new light” presented in them. In fact, the average Jehovah’s Witness is relentlessly inundated with extra-biblical literature by the Watchtower. Most Jehovah’s Witnesses spend so much time reading the current week’s requirements that it is difficult for them to simply read the bible by itself and thus benefit directly from the truth of God’s Word. Many ex-Witnesses testify that once they put down Watchtower publications and began reading the bible by itself, they began to seriously doubt and question the Watchtower’s distorted teachings.
Today, thanks to the Lord and Christians who care, many Jehovah’s Witnesses are being freed from the gripping control of the Watchtower Society and are experiencing a loving and personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ. They are learning that going door-to-door, studying Watchtower publications and going to weekly meetings will never save them, but that salvation is a free gift through faith in Christ’s finished work on the cross. Be aware, however, that leaving their religion is a frightening and difficult decision. Due to harsh Watchtower rules, Jehovah’s Witnesses who move on are required to be callously shunned by their friends and families who are still attending the Kingdom Hall. How wonderful it would be if the next Saturday morning, when we are visited by two strangers knocking on our door, we shared the true gospel of Jesus Christ with them and told them about God’s amazing grace and unending love!
Each one of us has its own faith.
And works to please God.
I do not agree on what you say, but I respect your personal opinion about us JWs.
All the slandering you posted, I am not bothered.
There is Jehovah God that looked after His Organisation through His Son. Nothing escape in God's eyes.
I leave it to Him and His Son to look after it. Why should I give worries to myself?
And why do you worry about my standing before God? I am happy to be a witness, going door to door, going to meetings, and assemblies.
Its better than going to stupid places, take drugs, and go silly,dont you think?
Now, if you propose better, then I will see, but dont count on it that I will change.
A vow for me is sacred, especially a vow to God.
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