HISTORY AND LEADERSHIP

Transcription

1 Evangelizing Jehovah s Witnesses 2000 Class Syllabus: Understanding Cults and World Religions, by Kurt Van Gorden, instructor for Talbot Institute of Biblical Studies (a program of Talbot School of Theology). The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, headquartered in Brooklyn, New York, are popularly called Jehovah s Witnesses. They are the widest published organization among Americanfounded sects. Most American households and millions of others throughout the free world have become recipients of the doorbell ringing Watchtower representatives. Their flagship publications, the Watchtower and Awake! magazines, sprang from a humble 6,000 copies of the Watchtower in Today the Watchtower is published in 148 languages totaling 51 million copies monthly. The Awake! publishes a few million less copies monthly, but it strongly out produces most Christian publishing houses annually. What began in 1870 as a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Bible study, under the direction of an 18-year old pastor, Charles Taze Russell, has escalated to a worldwide organization in excess of 6.4 million members in 96,000 congregations. They have over 4 million full-time and volunteer workers who spend 1.2 billion hours doing Kingdom work in 235 countries. Over 16 million people worldwide attended their Lord s Supper Memorial Service in No branch of Catholicism or Protestantism has been spared from the hard-hitting conversion methods of the Jehovah s Witnesses, who baptize over 250,000 annually. HISTORY AND LEADERSHIP The Jehovah s Witnesses have grown faster than many Protestant denominations three times their age. The Governing Body, which runs the worldwide operation, is located at their Brooklyn headquarters, but three corporations formed in the year 2000 now shield their decisions. Prior to that, a single anointed leader directed the organization. books Ezekiel and Revelation. Later, the Watchtower Society rejected the seventh volume, although they compiled it! Russell, who died on October 31, 1916, is said to have traveled over a million miles, gave more than thirty thousand sermons, and wrote books totaling fifty thousand pages. Joseph F. Rutherford Following Russell s death, the Society s legal counselor, Joseph Franklin Rutherford, became the Watchtower s second president. Raised by Baptist parents, he followed Russell in 1894 and joined Zion s Watch Tower in Rutherford gave them the name Jehovah s Witnesses, in reference to Isaiah 43:10, You are my witnesses, saith the Lord [Jehovah], at a 1931 Watchtower convention in Columbus, Ohio. Under his leadership, Rutherford moved the Society s headquarters from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Brooklyn, New York. The Watchtower became known as the visible representative of God s rulership (theocracy) where all control, power, and decisions generated. As it grew, an employment workforce called Bethel was set up to accommodate their many workers. Bethel workers receive a small weekly stipend ($20.00 in the 1980s) in addition to room and board in return for their labor. Even though Russell s predictions proved troublesome, Rutherford added his to the pool. For example, Russell claimed Christ s return in 1914, but when it failed, the date was published as When that failed too, the 1914 date was reinterpreted as an invisible return. Rutherford claimed that Christ would judge Christianity in 1918, meaning that Jehovah had designated one organization to represent Jesus on earth, namely the Watchtower Society. Rutherford divided to Witnesses into two classes of people: the 144,000 (the elect, who are born again) and the great crowd, (those not elected, who will have everlasting life on earth). Today s Watchtower publications have anonymous writers, unlike the days when Russell and Rutherford wrote. One hundred books and pamphlets bear Rutherford s name. Charles Taze Russell Charles Taze Russell, born February 16, 1852, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was at one time a Protestant, a member of the Congregational Church, but he abandoned their doctrines for heretical positions. In 1870, as a teenager without any theological training, Russell organized a Bible class and became its first pastor. His Bible classes then spread along the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. At the same time, an Adventist teacher, Nelson Barbour, gained Russell s attention on eschatology. Barbour, who published the Herald of the Morning, in Rochester, New York, taught Russell that Jesus Christ has been invisibly present since Russell published this date for several years, but later abandoned it in favor of his reinterpretation for Christ s invisible return as Imitating Barbour s power of the press, Russell founded a magazine Zion s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ s Presence in 1879, in which he published his unique Bible study interpretations. He organized his Pittsburgh followers as Zion s Watch Tower and Tract Society in His largest publication was the six-volume Millennial Dawn, published in This series was later renamed Studies in the Scriptures. These volumes laid the foundation for today s Watchtower theology. A controversial seventh volume was added to the Studies in the Scriptures in 1917, the year after Russell s death. The volume was complied from Russell s unpublished writings by Watchtower editors, but it baffled readers with its complex mixture of Egyptian pyramids with the biblical 1 Nathan Knorr Rutherford died in 1942 and was succeeded by Nathan H. Knorr, who left the Reformed Church at the age of sixteen to join the Jehovah s Witnesses. Under Knorr s presidency the Society embraced millions of people. It increased from 115,000 members to over two million members living in 207 countries. A training center called the Watchtower Bible School of Gilead was established for educating their future ministers. In 1950, under Knorr s leadership, the society produced an English translation of the New Testament called The New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures. This was later published with their Old Testament version as The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures. He transformed the Watchtower Society s government from a single icon, like Russell and Rutherford, to a Governing Body ranging from seven to of twelve leaders who hold all authority as God s sole channel of organizational truth. Fredrick W. Franz Upon Knorr s dealth in 1977, Frederick W. Franz became the new president of the Watchtower, who followed Knorr s strong leadership style. Franz was the spokesman for the translation committee of the New World Translation Committee. Franz was the only member of the translating committee who possessed New Testament Greek knowledge, although he lacked academics.

2 Milton G. Henschel Mr. Henschel was Vice-President of the Watchtower Society when Franz died in He was one of the five translators for the New World Translation in the 1950s and 1960s and he was a member of the Governing Body. Henschel reformed the Governing Body by having all members resign so that three new corporations could take the helm in the year The old Governing Body still sits behind the new corporations, but they are effectively shielded form lawsuits by corporate power, since controversy over rejection of blood transfusions and sexual scandals have beset the leadership. The Corporate Government Henschel died on March 31, 2003, which ended the anointed single leaders who followed in Charles Taze Russell s shoes as Watchtower Society leaders. Today, the corporate boards run the organization with Don Adams as the president. THE WATCHTOWER BIBLE AND TRACT SOCIETY Watchtower readers are aware of the Governing Body s leadership in the organization. For example, the December 15, 1971 Watchtower published a flow-chart with Jehovah at the top, Jesus Christ beneath him, and the Governing Body under Jesus. The Governing Body is called the Faithful and Discreet Slave Class and all earthly direction is under them. The flow-chart has Elders in the Congregation and the Ministerial Servants directly under the Governing Body. So vitally important is the Watchtower organization, that Jehovah s Witnesses recognize it as their Mother, while Jehovah God is their Father. They state,... we must recognize not only Jehovah God as our Father but his organization as our Mother (Watchtower, May 1, 1957, p. 274). This Governing Body is considered to be the sole channel of truth for the earth today; recognition of that governing body and its place in God s theocratic arrangement of things is necessary for submission to the headship of God s Son (Watchtower, December 15, 1972, p. 755). The leadership also oversees how the Bible is read, God has not arranged for that Word to speak independently or to shine forth life giving truths by itself. It is through his organization God provides this light (Watchtower, May 1, 1957, p. 274). They believe that Jesus chose the Watchtower Society as his earthly representative in 1918 and consequently He rejected all Christian denominations. They wrote, When Jesus came to God s spiritual temple in 1918 for the purpose of judging men, Christendom was rejected (Watchtower, August 1, 1960). In contrasting the Watchtower to Christianity, they said, Outside the true Christian congregation what alternative organization is there? Only Satan s organization.... (Watchtower, March 1, 1979, p. 24) They openly labeled Christianity as apostate, claiming that they alone have truth, recovery from the apostasy waited until the latter part of the 19th century (Awake!, February 8, 1960). The Kingdom Hall is where the local congregation meets. The Brooklyn headquarters plans services for all Kingdom Halls in advance, including the choice and order of songs. Every service, then, is exactly the same throughout the world, except for the congregation elder who leads it. Circuit overseers supervise the congregation elders by visiting each district Kingdom Hall twice annually. The door-to-door distribution of the Watchtower and Awake! magazines is called publishing. Publishing is the duty 2 for the most faithful Witnesses. Like their services, the topics for discussion are planned in advance with the same opening question being used at each door. The Lord s Supper Memorial Service is the largest attended service for the Jehovah s Witnesses. Quite often they rent stadiums or large facilities to hold the people for this special event. Its attendance also shows the effectiveness of the Society s work. This annual event attracts over 16.2 million people worldwide. Only the anointed class of Jehovah s Witnesses, the 144,000 (supposedly those mentioned in Revelation 7:4-8), can partake of the elements of the bread and wine at this service. The Society estimated that 8,500 remain of the 144,000. The Lord s Supper, although passed around the congregation, is not taken by anyone except the 8,500 in the anointed class. Biblical Analysis of the Watchtower Structure There is no evidence in Scripture that Jesus was discarding Christianity and choosing the Watchtower to represent him in Jesus has always known His people, for he calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out... My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me (John 10:3, 27). Jesus also gave us two parables in Matthew 13 to demonstrate how he will separate the genuine Christians from the counterfeits. In the parable of the tares and wheat and the dragnet of fish, Jesus doesn t judge organizations, but rather, He judges the counterfeits who are in the same field and net with the true believers. The Jehovah s Witnesses speak of Christianity as apostate. In contrast, the Bible says the Church will not fail to exist, having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone (Ephesians 2:20). The Church will remain until His second coming since the gates of hell cannot penetrate it (Matthew 16:18); and it will exist throughout all ages (Ephesians 3:21). The Jehovah s Witnesses contradict the Bible with their Memorial Service. In 1 Corinthians 11:26 we find, For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord s death until He comes. Since the Jehovah s Witnesses claim Jesus returned invisibly in 1914, they have denied the statement till He comes in this passage. The observance of the Lord s Supper was only until He returns. They attempt to have it both ways: their books say He returned in 1914 and the scriptural basis for the Memorial Service says He hasn t yet returned. SOURCE OF AUTHORITY Jehovah s Witnesses are zealous, sincere, and they claim to accept the Bible as their only authority. However, their theology denies every central belief of historic Christianity including the Trinity, the divinity of Jesus Christ, His bodily resurrection, the Holy Spirit s person and deity, salvation by grace through faith, and eternal punishment of the wicked. Pastor C. T. Russell, not known for his humility, made the following statement: And be it known that no other system of theology even claims, or has ever attempted to harmonize in itself every statement of the Bible, yet nothing short of this can we claim (Charles Taze Russell, Studies in the Scriptures, 1:348). Still today the Watchtower Society claims to be the only source for truth: It is God s sole collective channel for the flow of Biblical truth to men on earth (The Watchtower, July 15, 1960, p. 439). Fredrick W. Franz, the fourth president of the Watchtower, relates how their interpretations come from God: They are passed to the Holy Spirit who invisibly communicates with Jehovah s

3 Witnesses--and the Publicity Department (Scottish Daily Express, November 24, 1954). The Watchtower Society issues no articles of faith or authoritative doctrinal statements. They present their theological views in various publications, including books, pamphlets, and The Watchtower and Awake! magazines. Since the Governing Body controls these publications, then their statements are authoritative and binding upon the members. Individuals who reject the doctrines are subject to discipline or disfellowshipping. Beginning with Russell, the decisive factor for biblical truth became reason. Their publications still use the same test, Is it reasonable that we should believe...? In this way the Bible became subjected to man s reason rather than the reverse. Russell, for example, said, Let us examine the character of the writings claimed as inspired, to see whether their teachings correspond with the character we have reasonably imputed to God.... This does not mean that the Jehovah s Witnesses are following truly rational or logical reasoning in their conclusions, but they have persuaded over 16 million people that they are. Strangely, while claiming to be God s sole channel of truth, they sometimes needed to correct past predictions and theology. When mistakes are made, they claim that the light gets brighter as they get closer to the truth. Through the columns of The Watchtower, they explain, comes increased light on God s Word as Jehovah makes it known (Watchtower, August 1, 1972, p. 460). The Governing Body can at any time overrule former teachings. Judge Rutherford, in his book series Vindication, claims that nobody in the past 2,500 years understands the book of Ezekiel as well as what he does (that includes Russell on Ezekiel in volume seven of his Studies in the Scriptures!). Whether the former teacher is rejected or respected, the current teachings always have the greater weight of the brighter light. The Watchtower Magazine The Watchtower magazine gives spiritual food from the faithful and discreet slave, the Governing Body. It is the oldest and most authoritative of any Jehovah s Witness publication. They show it succession, Since 1879 the Watch Tower magazine has been used by this collective group to dispense spiritual food regularly to those of this little flock of true Christians (Watchtower, October 1, 1967, p. 590). Jehovah s Witnesses do not believe that the Watchtower magazine replaces the Bible. However, they believe it is the only source for true biblical interpretation, It is through the columns of The Watchtower that Jehovah provides direction and constant Scriptural counsel to his people... (Watchtower, May 1, 1964, p. 277). This statement makes Jehovah the real source of Watchtower articles. If this were true, then they create enormous problems each time the correct the predictions and teachings that are directed by Jehovah. Awake! Magazine and Other Publications The five services held by the local Kingdom Hall are the public talk, the Watchtower magazine study, the book study, the Theocratic Ministry School, and the Service Meeting. The public talks are similar to church services, except an elder gives a talk instead of a Pastor preaching. Following the Sunday morning service is the Watchtower study, where a Watchtower article is read and the questions are asked that accompany the article. In the midweek book study, which is informally held in a home, the members read a prescribed Watchtower Society book. The other two services are instructional meetings and preparation for publishing 3 work. These center upon the New World Translation, Awake! magazine, and a newsletter called Our Kingdom Ministry. The Watchtower Society is Jehovah s sole visible channel, through whom alone spiritual instruction was to come, (Watchtower, October 10, 1967, p. 590). All publications are authoritative: the resolutions adopted by conventions of God s anointed people, booklets, magazine, and the books published by them, contain the message of God s truth and are from the almighty God, Jehovah, and provided by him through Christ Jesus and his under officers (Watchtower, May 1, 1938, p. 143). Studies in the Scriptures Charles Taze Russell began publishing the Millennial Dawn series in These, later renamed Studies in the Scriptures, became the springboard for doctrine in the emerging church. The combined sales of volume one, The Plan of the Ages, including all splinter-group sales, was estimated at 10 million by Russell tried to make his followers dependent upon his writings. He wrote: If the six volumes of Scripture Studies are practically the Bible, topically arranged with Bible proof texts given, we might not improperly name the volumes the Bible in an arranged form, that is to say, they are not mere comments on the Bible, but they are practically the Bible itself. Furthermore, not only do we find that people cannot see the divine plan in studying the Bible by itself, but we see, also, that if anyone lays the Scripture Studies aside, even after he has used them, after he has become familiar with them, after he has read them for ten years--if he then lays them aside and ignores them and goes to the Bible alone, though he has understood his Bible for ten years, our experience shows that within two years he goes into darkness. On the other hand, if he had merely read the Scripture Studies with their references and had not read a page of the Bible as such, he would be in the light at the end of two years, because he would have the light of the Scriptures (Charles Taze Russell, The Watchtower, September 15, 1910, p. 298). The Studies in the Scriptures became foundational for later Watchtower teachings even though the Society stopped marketing them within a few years of Russell s death. Research proves that his main doctrines have never been repudiated. PROPHETS AND LEADERS The Jehovah s Witnesses do not claim to have a prophet. The organization itself is defined as their prophet: This prophet was not one man, but was a body of men and women. It was the small group of footstep followers of Jesus Christ... Today they are known as Jehovah s Christian Witnesses (Watchtower, April 1, 1972, p. 197). Complimenting this, the prophet whom Jehovah has raised up has been, not an individual as in the case of Jeremiah, but a class (Watchtower, October 1, 1982, p. 27). Through its publications, the organization does the prophesying, the facts substantiate that the remnant of Christ s anointed disciples have been doing that prophesying to all the nations... (Holy Spirit, WTB&TS: Brooklyn, 1976, p. 148). Even their interpretations of biblical prophecies are considered the voice of Jehovah: The interpretation of prophecy, therefore, is not from man, but is from Jehovah... it is his truth, and not man s (Watchtower, May 1, 1938, p. 143). False Prophecies Not one prediction from the Watchtower Society has

4 come true. The dates they give for future events have always been inconsistent with facts. We will give a few examples of false prophecies: The Millennial Day, the Day of the Lord s rest, following the six thousand years of evil which ended in 1874 (Studies in the Scriptures, 7:301) the battle of the great day of God Almighty (Rev. 16:14.), which will end in A.D with the complete overthrow of earth s present rulership... (ibid., 2:101) The end of the time of the gentiles, referred to in the text above, was reprinted with a new date, which will end in A.D with the complete overthrow of earth s present rulership... (ibid, 1914 ed.) The end of the time of the gentiles was recalculated with new dates in the seventh volume of Studies, and in the light of the foregoing Scriptures, prove that the Spring of 1918 will bring upon Christendom a spasm of anguish greater ever than that experienced in the Fall of Reexamine the table of the Parallel Dispensations in Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. 2, pages 246 and 247; change the 37 to 40, 70 to 73 and 1914 to 1918, and we believe it is correct and will be fulfilled with great power and glory (ibid., 7:62) the fleshy apostates from Christianity... shall be utterly desolated, even all of it. Not one vestige of it shall survive the ravages of world-wide all-embracing anarchy, in the fall of 1920 (ibid., 7:542) Based upon the argument heretofore set forth... that 1925 shall mark the resurrection of the faithful worthies of old... we must reach the positive and indisputable conclusion that millions now living will never die (Millions Now Living Will Never Die, Rutherford, 1920, p. 97) those faithful men of old may be expected back form the dead any day now... In this expectation the house at San Diego, California...was built, in 1930, and named Beth- Sarim... It is now held in trust for the occupancy of those princes on their return (The New World, Rutherford, 1942, p. 104) In view of the short period of time left, we want to do this [pioneer work] as often as circumstances permit. Just think, brothers, there are only about 90 months left [until Oct. 1975] before 6,000 years of man s existence on earth is completed (Kingdom Ministry, March 1968, p. 4) It is possible that A.D marks the regathering of all fleshy Israel from their captivity in death. It is just 70 years beyond 1910, the date when Pastor Russell gave his great witness to the Jewish people... (Studies in the Scripture, 7:62). The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society extols itself as God s oracle, yet their predictions fail when tested by time. Biblically, there is no question that a prophet must be true in every prediction. Deuteronomy 18:20-22 specifically states that all predictions must come true. Jeremiah also spoke against prophets who falsely prophesy, Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their tongues, and say, He saith (23:31). THE NEW WORLD TRANSLATION OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society completed the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures in 1961, which began with their release of the New Testament in We are informed that God helped them in their translation: No uninspired translator or committee of translators can claim any direct 4 command from the Most High God to engage in translating the divine Word into another language... In presenting this translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures our confidence has been in the help of the great Author of The Book. Our primary desire has been to seek, not the approval of men, but that of God, by rendering the truth of his inspired Word as purely and as consistently as our consecrated powers make possible. There is no benefit in selfdeception. More than that, those who provide a translation for the spiritual instruction of others come under a special responsibility as teachers before the divine Judge. Hence our appreciation of the need of carefulness... We offer no paraphrase of the Scriptures. Our endeavor all through has been to give as literal a translation as possible, where the modern English idiom allows and where a literal rendition does not for any clumsiness hide the thought (Foreword to New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures, 1950, pp. 7-8). Questionable Translation The translators of the New World Translation apparently missed their goal. Their work reveals a biased attempt to justify non-biblical doctrines. In terms of scholarship, the New World Translation leaves much to be desired. Dr. Edmund Gruss gives us five reasons for rejecting the validity of the New World Translation (hereinafter, NWT): 1. The use of paraphrasing in contradiction to the stated purpose. Dr. Gruss gives the example of the Greek word en as found several times in John chapter 15. Jesus clearly intended to say that the Christian abides in Me (en emoi), yet the NWT s paraphrase, in union with me, only makes us co-workers, along side of Christ, instead of in a relationship that is in Christ. 2. The unwarranted insertion of words not found in the Greek. Several NWT verses contain unwarranted words that change the meaning. Verses such as John 1:1, Colossians 1:16-17, Philippians 1:23 and Hebrews 9:27 serve as examples where no textual or grammatical foundation exists for the added words. The meaning of John 1:1was changed by inserting an indefinite article a before the last word God, In [the] beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god. It becomes obvious that this insertion is to destroy the clear messages of Christ s deity. The Jehovah s Witnesses have advocated several arguments, which all fall by the wayside, since the addition of the indefinite article in John 1:1 results in two gods. The word other was inserted four times in Colossians 1:16-18, which changes the textual message: because by means of him all [other] things were created... All [other] things have been created through him and for him. Also, he is before all [other] things and by means of him all [other] things were made to exist. If this stands without challenge, then it makes Jesus a created thing instead of the Creator of all things as the original text states. In Titus 2:13 the preposition of was inserted a second time to cast deity away from Jesus, while we wait for the happy hope and glorious manifestation of the great God and of our Savior Christ Jesus. It should state, the manifestation of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus. 3. Erroneous rendering of Greek words. Mistranslating according to theological bias is unfair when people trust you to do honest work. John 8:58 was changed by the Watchtower translators. Instead of Jesus claiming to be I Am, the NWT changed it to I have been. This changes Christ s person from eternal to a mere created being. Christian scholars challenged this mistranslation, so the Watchtower attempted to explain it by

5 inventing new rules of grammar. The Greek New Testament shows that Jesus spoke in the present tense, I Am. Colossians 2:9 is another example of erroneously rendering the Greek text. They hide the deity of Jesus by translating Godhead as divine quality. 4. Deceptive and misleading footnotes and Appendix. The New World Translation s appendix is replete with denials of major Christian doctrines. Some of these topics are soul sleep, denial of Christ s deity, denial of the cross, and denial of eternal punishment. 5. Arbitrary use and non-use of capitals when dealing with the divine name. The NWT uses god for Jesus (John 1:1, 18), yet any reference for the Father is God. The Holy Spirit is never referred to as a person or as God, but only as holy spirit (Matthew 28:19), the helper (John 14:16), and the spirit of truth (John 15:26). Notice the lack of capital letters here. Biblical Analysis of Watchtower Authority and the New World Translation The clearness of God s word was challenged by Russell s interpretation, namely what we reasonably impute to God. He scrutinized God s Word by human reasoning. Certainly God gave us reasoning abilities, but we must recognize our limitations. God s thoughts are far above ours (Isaiah 55:8), which makes our reasoning inferior to His word. His word should test our thinking and not the reverse. In our study of the cults, Charles Taze Russell is only person audacious enough to say that laying aside his writings and going to the Bible alone leads to darkness. God makes no mistakes in his communication. The Bible s accuracy is so important that the Apostle Paul built a case on the difference between a singular and plural noun, seed and seeds (Galatians 3:16). He relied upon the precise Hebrew text, which shows its trustworthiness. If the original text is accurate, then translations must reflect that. It disrespects God and His Word to make arbitrarily changes to it as what the Watchtower Society does. God has given us a reliable means of understanding Him through the inspiration of His Word (2 Timothy 3:16). Perhaps Solomon realized this too when he said, Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar (Proverbs 30:6). WATCHTOWER THEOLOGY The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society draws their theology form several sources. Their denial of the Trinity can be traced to the fourth century, to the teachings of Arius of Alexandria. He taught that Jesus Christ was created and is not eternally God. Arianism, named for Arius, has surfaced over the centuries, but it has never gained much support until the Jehovah s Witnesses came along. JEHOVAH S WITNESSES ON THE TRINITY The Watchtower Society said, Definition: the doctrine, in brief, is that there are three gods in one: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, all three equal in power, substance and eternity (Let God Be True, New York: Watchtower, 1946, p.81). Notice here how the Watchtower Society misstated the Trinity as three Gods instead of one God in three persons. The Watchtower continued,... Satan is the originator of the trinity doctrine (ibid., p.82). The history of the Jehovah s Witnesses is replete with anti-trinitarian statements by their leaders. 5 JEHOVAH S WITNESSES ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST -- Russell s notion that scripture should be tested by reason is continued by the Watchtower today, that the Father is greater and older than the Son is reasonable, easy to understand and is what the Bible teaches (From Paradise Lost to Paradise Regained, p.164). Stating that Jesus Christ is younger than the Father leads to their doctrine that Jesus Christ is not God and is a created being. In fact, the Jehovah s Witnesses teach that He is Michael the archangel: Scriptural evidence indicates that the name Michael applied to God s son before He left heaven to become Jesus Christ and also after His return... Michael is actually the Son of God (Aid to Bible Understanding, p.1152). In further denial of Christ s deity, they make Him a lesser god in their notes on John 1:1,... The Word, or Logos, is not God or the God, but is the Son of God, and hence is a god (New World Translation, 1950 ed., 775). JEHOVAH S WITNESSES ON THE HOLY SPIRIT -- The Watchtower denies the person and deity of the Holy Spirit,... the holy spirit is not a person and is therefore not one of the gods of the trinity (Reconciliation, Rutherford, New York: Watchtower, p.115). They carefully try not to ascribe personal attributes to the Holy Spirit. The closest metaphor they could find was a radar beam, it is not a blind, uncontrolled force such as the forces of nature ; lightening, hurricanes and the like, but... is at all times under His control... and therefore may be likened to a radar beam (The Watchtower, July 15, 1957, pp ). JEHOVAH S WITNESSES ON THE ATONEMENT -- The Watchtower s view of the atonement is not a true substitution of Christ for all of our sins. The Watchtower embraces the ransom theory of the atonement. Although the word ransom is used within the New Testament, it is not used in the same sense that the Watchtower uses it. The Watchtower representatives call it a corresponding ransom. What they mean is it was the perfect man Adam that had sinned, and so had lost for his offspring human perfection and it s privileges. Jesus must likewise be humanly perfect, to correspond with the sinless Adam in Eden. In that way He could offer a ransom that exactly corresponded in value with what the sinner Adam lost for his descendants. This requirement of divine justice did not allow for Jesus to be more than a perfect man (Things in Which it is Impossible for God to Lie, Brooklyn: Watchtower, 1965, p.232). Missing from the Watchtower s atonement is Christ s substitutionary atonement for our sins and that the God s justice was fully satisfied in the atonement of Jesus. The Watchtower Society denies that the ransom was the justice of God for the sins of man. The Watchtower does not recognize eternal punishment for the wicked. Therefore, they only recognize physical death as God s justice and punishment for Adam s sin. According to them, Justice was satisfied in mankind s suffering death, the just penalty of sin. So the ransom is an expression of God s mercy, His undeserved kindness toward mankind (Let God Be True, Brooklyn: Watchtower, 1946, p.115). Since Adam, in their view, lost perfect human life with its rights and earthly prospects, the death of Jesus Christ was nothing more than a ransom paid by Jehovah God, to Satan, in order to recover the rights and prospects for the human race. They wrote, That which is redeemed or bought back is that which was lost, namely, perfect human life, with its rights and earthly prospects (ibid., p.114). The only one redeemed in their theology was Adam. Everyone else must work out their salvation through Jehovah s kingdom on earth.

6 JEHOVAH S WITNESSES ON THE BODILY RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST -- The Jehovah s Witnesses have denied the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ since the days of Russell. He wrote, Whether it was dissolved into gasses or whether it is still preserved somewhere as the grand memorial of God s love, of Christ s obedience, and of our redemption, no one knows... (Studies in the Scriptures, volume 2, p.129). The Watchtower Society has alternative explanations for Christ s missing body, The scriptures answer: it was disposed of by Jehovah God, dissolved into its constituent elements or atoms (The Watchtower, Sept. 1, 1953, p.518). They insist that He was raised as a spirit creature, so the king Christ Jesus was put to death in the flesh and was raised an invisible spirit creature... (Let God Be True, p. 122). And, He was re-created as a divine spirit creature (Let God Be True, p.116). They explain Christ s appearances after his death as a materialization of His body. Not to be confused with the historic Christian doctrine of the bodily resurrection, this materialization, they insist, is still not the body of Christ that hung on the tree. On this they wrote, Jesus resurrection was not of the same body: He merely materialized flesh and blood to be seen and believed (Make Sure of All Things, Brooklyn: Watchtower, 1953, p.314). JEHOVAH S WITNESSES ON SALVATION -- Charles Taze Russell began teaching that salvation results from works. In his first volume of Studies in the Scriptures, he wrote, They must be recovered from blindness as well as from death, that they, each for himself, may have a full chance to prove by obedience or disobedience, their worthiness of life eternal (Volume I, p.158). The Watchtower s encyclopedic work, Aid to Bible Understanding, clearly presents works for salvation; More is required of true Christians than mere confession of faith. It is necessary that belief be demonstrated by works... those who become Christians repent... and submit to water baptism (Aid to Bible Understanding, Brooklyn: Watchtower, 1971, p.316). The Watchtower magazine outlines four salvation requirements: Four requirements: Jesus Christ identified a first requirement... taking in knowledge... of God s purposes regarding the earth and of Christ s role as earth s new king... many have found the second requirement more difficult. It is to obey God s laws, yes,... a third requirement is that we be associated with God s channel, His organization... the fourth requirement is connected with loyalty. God requires that perspective subjects of His kingdom support His government while loyally advocating His kingdom rule to others.... (The Watchtower, Feb. 15, 1983, p.12). And on self-merit, the Watchtower society stated: Jehovah God will justify, declare righteous, on the basis of their own merit, all perfected humans who have withstood that final, decisive test of mankind. He will adopt and acknowledge them as His sons through Jesus Christ. (Life Everlasting, Brooklyn: Watchtower, 1966, p.400). Another Watchtower teaching is that only 144,000 will be born again. This class, called the elect, the anointed class, or the born again class, was chosen by The second class in the Watchtower Society is the other sheep or Jonadabs who deny they will go to heaven, but instead, look forward to paradise on earth. They explain: An unnumbered crowd of faithful persons now working as Jehovah s Witnesses are sometimes called His other sheep or Jonadabs. They do not expect to go to heaven. They have been promised everlasting life on earth (Let God Be True, p.231). 6 BIBLICAL ANALYSIS OF WATCHTOWER TEACHINGS The importance of providing biblical support for your doctrines cannot be overemphasized. The Jehovah s Witnesses you encounter have been well trained with an arsenal of biblical references that they believe will destroy the doctrines of historic Christianity. It is the Christian s job to know the biblical basis for the doctrine of the Trinity and to explain it to the Jehovah s Witness clearly enough to keep your terms straight and not confuse the issue. Therefore, we admonish Christians to make clear distinctions between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, when discussing the Trinity, so that there is no confusion of the persons by the Jehovah s Witness. We must not confuse the persons nor divide God s essence. If during a discussion, you hear the Jehovah s Witness saying, The Father is not the Son, then you know that there is a confusion of persons by the Jehovah s Witness. A proper response is, We do not believe that the Father is the Son. We believe that there is one God in the Bible who exists in three distinct persons. Therefore, the Father s person is not confused with the Son s. Jehovah is One God in Three Persons There are a number of ways to begin a good discussion on the Trinity or that Jesus is Jehovah. Since Jehovah s Witnesses use the term Jehovah (although the correct pronunciation is debated), it is a word used by Christians of all denominations in past centuries; therefore we encourage Christians to use it in their witness to the Watchtower representatives. Christians should demonstrate one Jehovah in Scripture who exists in three Persons, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jehovah is declared as one in Deuteronomy 6:4, Hear o Israel! the Lord is our God, the Lord is one! (NASB). The word Lord in the Hebrew text is the word Jehovah or Yahweh (depending upon the pronunciation). There is but one Jehovah. Additionally, we find that Jehovah is referred to as the person of the Father in Psalms 103:13 and Isaiah 63:16. Jehovah s Witnesses do not doubt that the Father is Jehovah, so we move on to the Son. Jesus Christ is designated as Jehovah by cross-referencing Old Testament quotations that apply uniquely to Jehovah with New Testament fulfillments in Jesus. Isaiah 35:4-6 twice says that God will come and save his people. When He comes He will demonstrate it with signs, by opening the eyes of the blind, unstopping the ears of the deaf, and healing the lame. Jesus quoted Isaiah s text concerning himself in Matthew 11:5 when the disciples of John the Baptist came to Him and said how do we know you are the coming one or do we look for another? Jesus answer was, The blind received sight and the lame walked, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear and the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. This is a direct reference to Isaiah 35:4-6, which in Christ s words become a selfdeclaration about His nature. He declared Himself as Jehovah who was coming to save His people! There are many Old Testament references about Jehovah that leave no doubt that it means Jesus in the New Testament. We encourage you to become a Bible student and research this wonderful subject in your personal Bible. Zechariah 12:10, for example, clearly states that Jehovah shall be pierced for our sins, yet the only fulfillment of this is found in Jesus when He pierced for our sins upon the cross (John 19:37). Joel 2:32 contains an important passage about Israel s redemption that was familiar to most Jews during Christ s day. It says, Whosoever calls on the

7 name of the Lord (Jehovah) will be delivered. Two New Testament writers quoted this verse, showing its inspired acceptance for fulfillment in Christ. Luke quotes it from Peter s sermon in Acts 2:20-21 and Paul quotes it in Romans 10:9-13. The Old Testament people called upon Jehovah and the New Testament people called upon Jesus for the same salvation. This direct application of one work, salvation, attributed to Jehovah and Jesus, shows that the two are one. A verse frequently quoted by Christians about Jesus in the Old Testament is Philippians 2:10, which says, That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (NASB) This text, from Isaiah 45:23, shows Jehovah s unique status, but Paul directly applied this to Jesus. Truly every knee should bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord. Peter, who applied Joel 2:3 to Jesus in Acts 2, goes further in his first epistle. In First Peter 2:8, he calls Jesus a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. Peter s quotation comes from Isaiah 8: In Isaiah, Jehovah was the stone of stumbling; in Peter s account, it Jesus is the stone of stumbling. There is no question that Jesus is Jehovah in Peter s epistle. In an indisputable passage we find Jesus applying a verse about Jehovah to Himself. Jesus says, in Revelation 2:23, And I will kill her children with pestilence; and all the churches will know that I am He who searches the minds and the hearts; and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds (NASB). Jesus applied Jeremiah 17:10 to himself. Jeremiah says that Jehovah searches the hearts and minds and rewards according to our deeds. In Revelation, Jesus said that he is the one who does this. The examples above are only a few of several biblical cross references where Jehovah was identified as Jesus. Just as we found examples of Jehovah applied to Jesus, we also find the same about the Holy Spirit. In a cross-reference study on the Holy Spirit, He is identified as Jehovah several times. Hebrews 3:7-9 clearly states that the Holy Spirit spoke, but the quotation is actually Jehovah speaking in the Old Testament, as found in Psalm 95:7-11. The Holy Spirit spoke as Jehovah. Similarly, Hebrews 10:15-16, ascribes an Old Testament quotation to the Holy Spirit. In Jeremiah 31:33-34 it is clear that Jehovah is the speaker. In Hebrews 10:15-16, however, the speaker is as the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit and Jehovah are one Being. He is identified in Hebrews as the Spirit of Jehovah. Acts 28:25 is another example, The Holy Spirit rightly spoke through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers. This is followed by Jehovah s quotation from Isaiah 6:8-10. The only way that Paul could only attribute these words to the Holy Spirit is if he believed that the Holy Spirit is Jehovah, coequal with the Father and Son. In summary, we have seen that there is one God who is identified as Jehovah. We have seen that this one God, Jehovah, is addressed as a person, the Father. We have also seen that this one God, Jehovah, is addressed as a person, the Son. We further see that this one God, Jehovah, is addressed as a person, the Holy Spirit. Therefore we conclude that there are three persons within the nature of Jehovah, who is the one true God. Attributes of Jehovah Applied to Jesus Centering our attention upon Jesus, we can examine the parallels of Jehovah s unique attributes that are also found in Jesus. This uniqueness shows their essential nature is one. In Isaiah 42:8, we find that Jehovah alone has the glory and will not share it with 7 any other. Let s compare John 17:5, where Jesus said, And now, glorify thou me together with Thyself, Father, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was (NASB). Since the glory belongs only to Jehovah, then Jesus, by necessity, is Jehovah because He claims to have Jehovah s glory before the world was. Another exclusive attribute of God is light. John 1:9 says that Jesus Christ is the True Light that came into the world. Throughout the Old Testament Jehovah is referred to as the Light, as in Psalms 27:1 and Isaiah 60:20. There are not two true lights, but one true light, and both Jehovah and Jesus share that nature. Revelation 17:14 shows exclusiveness when it says that Jesus Christ is Lord of Lords and King of Kings. Yet in the Old Testament we find Jehovah is our King (Jeremiah 10:10 and Psalms 47:7). We also find Jehovah is our Lord (Deuteronomy 10:17). This does not mean that Jehovah is no longer Lord and King when we see Jesus as King of Kings in the New Testament. It means that there is no conflict between Jesus being King and Jehovah being King, since the two are one Being. The Bible teaches that there is but one Lord (Ephesians 4:5), which again presents no conflict, since Jesus and Jehovah are as Lord and God. Isaiah 43:11 shows Jehovah s nature as Savior, I, even I am the Lord; and there is no savior besides Me. There is no savior besides Jehovah, but the New Testament abounds in declarations about Jesus as our Savior. Acts 4:12 and I John 4:14 serve as examples. There are not two saviors in the Bible, so the only way to explain these passages is that Jesus is Jehovah our Savior. Let these examples work as a catalyst for personal Bible study on the unique attributes of God that are applied to Jesus. Answering Jehovah s Witness Objections Jehovah s Witnesses and others who deny the deity of Jesus Christ usually have two misunderstandings concerning His eternal nature. First, they will confuse the persons of the Trinity. Second, they confuse the humanity of Christ with His deity. In the former situation the argument is usually framed as: Jesus is not God because the Father is not the Son. In this example, where they confuse the persons of the Trinity, the presumption is that the Christian Church confuses the Father and Son. Nothing in our history or doctrines proves this. The Church has always carefully distinguished between the Persons. We say the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit are three Persons of the one God. We must not confuse the Persons of the Trinity. In the second situation, they confuse Christ s deity with His humanity. They understand verses like John 14:28, My Father is greater than I to mean that Jesus is not equal to the Father. But this verse refers to the voluntary subordination of Jesus during His earthly life when He willingly placed Himself in earthly subordination to the Father. It says nothing about His nature as God, only His temporary position in His earthly mission. Thus, the words greater than refers to His position rather than His person. Jehovah s Witnesses also attempt to show that Jesus Christ was created (as Michael the archangel). There are three main passages the Jehovah s Witnesses use to claim Jesus Christ was created. Beginning with the Old Testament, Proverbs 8:20-25 says, The Lord possessed at the beginning of His way... when there was no depths, I was brought forth... before the hills, I was brought forth. The words brought forth in this passage make the Jehovah s Witness think that Jesus was created as Michael the archangel. The context denies this proposition. Proverbs 8 is speaking about wisdom in contrast to creation and merely states that wisdom is older than all creation. By necessity, God s wisdom

8 is as eternal as He is, since there has never been a time when God has lacked wisdom. But most devastating to the Watchtower s argument is that wisdom is addressed as she (feminine gender) in verses 2-3, she takes her stand... She cries out by the gates. Wisdom, in Proverbs 8, is not the preexistent Jesus, since it is feminine. Although some Christian commentators see metaphoric parallels with Christ, we must never carry it too far and claim that it is actually Christ s personal nature in Proverbs 8. Colossians 1:15 is another passage where Jehovah s Witnesses say that Jesus was created. It says, And He is the image of the invisible God, the Firstborn of all creation. The Watchtower assumes that Jesus was the first one created. In contrast, the passage states that Jesus is the creator of all things (vs ), not a created being. The title Firstborn refers to His preeminent position, not that He was the first thing created. The term Firstborn can mean one of two things: the first one born or the one in first position. The meaning here is determined by its context, where verse 18 specifies it as preeminence. Jesus is both firstborn of all creation and firstborn from the dead, so that in all things he might have preeminence. Verse 18 confirms the context. Jesus is firstborn of creation (verse 15) and firstborn from the dead (verse 18), that in all things (creation and resurrection) He might have preeminence. Firstborn cannot be read aside from the context of first place or preeminence. This same difference on the meaning of firstborn is shown in Exodus 4:22, 23. Israel, as a nation, is called God s firstborn, but God spoke to Moses in verse 23 and told him that He would slay even the firstborn son of Pharaoh meaning the first one born of Pharaoh. Israel is firstborn by position and Egypt s firstborn sons were the first ones born. Colossians 1:15 is telling us that Jesus made all things, visible or invisible, whether in heaven or earth, which makes Him the origin of all creation. In Revelation 3:14, Jesus is called... the beginning of the creation of God. Jehovah s Witnesses believe that this says He is created here. The word beginning, in the Greek New Testament, is the word arche which means the source or origin of creation. Dr. Bruce Metzger answers the Watchtower argument. He points out that the Greek New Testament requires the preposition hupo rather than tou theou (of God) if it meant that Jesus was created by God (Theology Today, Bruce Metzger, 1953, pp.79-80). The missing preposition prevents their interpretation. So the text is claiming that Jesus is the creator instead of the created. Interestingly, the same word beginning (arche, Greek) here is found in John 1:1, In the beginning. The Watchtower s first New Testament translates arche in John 1:1 as Originally was the Word (NWT, 1950 ed.). If they apply their own translation of arche to Revelation 3:14, it shows that Jesus is the origin of the creation of God. They cannot deny it can be translated this way when they did so themselves in John 1:1. The Watchtower has nullified the power of Christ s blood atonement for our sins by making it only a ransom to buy back our perfect human life, earthly rights, and prospects. The atonement of Jesus Christ is far more than a ransom. The atonement is clearly a result of God s love for us (Romans 5:8), But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (NASB). According to the Bible His atonement was necessary. Hebrews 9:22, And without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (NASB). Scriptures say the atonement cancels our condemnation, which does infinitely more than just a ransom. Romans 8:1 says, There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (NASB). Jesus vicarious 8 atonement is the propitiation that changes the wrath of God into mercy (Romans 3:25, Hebrews 2:17 and I John 2:2). It is the very blood of the lamb that has purchased the church and us as individuals (I Peter 1:18,19 and Acts 20:28). The bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ, which is rejected by the Watchtower Society, is so vital to Christianity that Paul said if the resurrection had not happened, then all our faith is in vain and all our preaching is in vain (1 Corinthians 15:14). Jesus did not materialize a fake body or a counterfeit body. Such an act by him would have deceived his disciples instead of telling them the truth. Therefore, His body was real and not a deception. He said, Touch me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have (Luke 24:39, NASB). When Jesus showed His hands and His feet to Thomas in John 20:27, He offered the evidence of His bodily resurrection saying,... reach here thy finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and be not unbelieving, but believing (NASB). When it comes to the Jehovah s Witnesses, our recommendation is the same as Jesus command to Thomas, do not be unbelieving, but believing. CONCLUSION A close examination of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society has demonstrated that it is not what it claims to be: the sole collective channel for the flow of biblical truth. It is guilty of false prophecy, unbiblical theology, and misrepresentation of the truth. Jehovah s Witnesses would do well to take this admonishment from the Society and apply it to their organization. They wrote: We need to examine, not only what we personally believe, but also what is taught by any religious organization with which we may be associated. Are its teachings in full harmony with God s Word, or are they based on the traditions of men? If we are lovers of the Truth, there is nothing to fear from such an examination (The Truth That Leads to Eternal Life, 1968, p. 13). Such an examination will show the shortcomings of the man-made doctrines of the Watchtower and the all-sufficient perfection of Jesus Christ, our great God and Saviour (Titus 2:13). WITNESSING TIPS Christians have an opportunity to put their teachings into practice when Jehovah s Witnesses come to their door. Do not try to share your faith with them if you feel unprepared. Instead, ask another Christian to join with you. We should look at Jehovah s Witnesses as we do anyone else in need of salvation. Show the love of Christ to them by sharing the truth of His Word. Pray and allow the Holy Spirit to guide you in a discussion on one or two topics. Look up each Scripture as they are cited and make sure there is an understanding of it before you proceed to the next verse. Keep looking for the opportunity to share what God has done personally in your life and continue to let the Jehovah s Witness know he can have the same. Contact: Kurt Van Gorden Jude 3 Missions P. O. Box 780 Victorville, Ca (760) [This is an updated and edited edition of the chapter on Jehovah s Witnesses from The Deceivers, by Josh McDowell, Don Stewart, Assisted by Kurt Van Gorden (Here s Life, 1992) Currently Out of Print. This is a class syllabus for educational purposes.]