Correcting a few beliefs of the Jehovah Witnesses

By NiteOwlDave                                       niteowldave@gmail.com

I recently spent five hours with several pleasant Jehovah's Witnesses (JWs) who showed up at our door advancing the message of their cult that combines the Bible and the Watchtower.

The first two visits were with two women in their forties who must have thought I was a possible convert because of the many questions I pitched their way.

The third session was a long one around the dining room table, with the original two women on each side and a forceful woman, more knowledgeable about the Bible and the JW beliefs, seated directly ahead.

We tossed off the gloves and gave it a go. As expected, after three hours we wound up in gridlock.

I was not a whit closer to becoming a JW adherent, and they remained solidly fixed in their positions despite what I thought was a fairly solid presentation of who Jesus Christ really is according to clear biblical references.

In preparation of our round-table discussion, I put together the following overview. If you are dealing with a Jehovah's Witness, you may find this useful.

First, though, a couple of tips –

1. Be polite and listen closely to their presentation.
2. Ask them follow-up questions or say, "Continue".
3. If they ask if they can bring a friend back, be prepared – you are going to be dealing with a JW heavyweight who may have deserted true Christianity a while back and is today a trophy of Satan.

So, on to my paper.

If I understand what you have been telling me, I need to join the Jehovah's Witnesses organization or church because, you claim, it is the only way I can learn Jehovah's will.

Then, if I continue as a faithful Jehovah's Witness for the rest of my life, I will be rewarded with another life on earth because the 144,000 special seats in Heaven with Jesus that you teach are no doubt all taken. You claim the JW way is the only way to God.
 
Upon my death, my body and soul go into the ground but I will be resurrected for another test of good works and obedience for 1,000 years.

If I prove myself to be Jehovah-worthy during the thousand years, I will live on a renewed perfect earth for eternity. That's providing I don't rebel against God.

Sigh. That's too complicated and doesn't offer any positive long-range hope. Let's examine what the Jehovah's Witnesses promote and what the Bible teaches.

We must keep in mind there can be only one truth. Either I'm right, or you're right. There can be no middle road here.

1. No Trinity?
The Bible points out that God exists in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The JWs reject this and preach there is one solitary being, Jehovah God. (Yes, I am aware that the word "Trinity" does not appear in the Bible, but it is taught in the Bible.)

How can one deny a Trinitarian God in face of the following scripture?

Matthew 3:16-17 say, “After his baptism, as soon as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God coming down in the form of a dove.

“And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my beloved Son, and I am wonderfully pleased with him'.”

Matthew 28:19 says, “Therefore go and make disciples in all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

2 Corinthians 13-14 say, “May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. May God's love and the Holy Spirit's friendship be yours.”

Genesis 1:26 says, “Let us (more than one) make a man—someone like ourselves to be the master of all life upon the earth and in the skies and in the seas.”

Job 32:8 says, “But it is not mere age that makes them wise. Rather, it is the Spirit in a man.”

Acts 7:59 says, “And as the murderous stones came hurtling at him, Stephen prayed, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit’.”

Thus, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - the Trinity.

2. Christ is Merely One of God's Creations?

Because Christ was part of the Trinity, He is God. The Jehovah's Witnesses wrongly preach that Christ was God's first-created creature.

John 1:1says, “Before anything else existed, there was Christ, with God. He has always been alive and is himself God.”

Colossians 1:15-19 say, “Christ is the exact likeness of the unseen God. He existed before God made anything at all.                          In fact Christ himself is the Creator...
He (Christ) was before all else began...
He is the Head of the church made up of his people - that is, his church –- whom he began; and he is the Leader of all those who arise from the dead, so that He is the first in everything. For God wanted all of himself to be in his Son.”

Colossians 2:9 says, “For in Christ there is all of God in a human body.”

1 John 5:5-7say, “But who could possibly fight and win this battle except by believing that Jesus is truly the Son of God. We know he is, because God said so with a voice from heaven when Jesus was baptized, and again as he was facing death... "And the Holy Spirit, forever forceful, says it too. So we have three witnesses: the voice of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, the voice from Heaven at Christ's baptism and the voice when he died. And they all say the same thing: That Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
 
"Every born-again believer has the witness of the Holy Spirit - the quiet conscience who lives within. God spoke of His Son when Jesus was baptized. Jesus cried out to the Father just before He died.”

Therefore, the Trinity.

3. Good Works the Way to Heaven?

The Bible says that Christ completed our salvation at Calvary. The Jehovah's Witnesses preach that our admittance into a peaceful afterlife can be achieved only by our good works.

Romans 3:24-25 say, “Yes, all have sinned; all fall short of God's glorious ideal. Yet, now God declares us "not guilty" of offending him if we trust in Jesus Christ, who in his kindness freely takes away our sins.”

Colossians 1:20 says, “It was through what his Son did that cleared a path for everything to come to him...”

2 Corinthians 5:21says, “For God took the sinless Christ and poured into him our sins.”

Ephesians 2:8-9 say, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

John 1:12 says, “But as many as received (Christ), to them He gave the right to become the children of God, even to those who believe in His name.”

To summarize: We are all sinners. Christ took care of our cursed sins on the cross. Salvation cannot be attained by doing good works. Eternal salvation is available free to anyone who will repent of his wickedness and invite Christ into their life as Savior and Lord.

4. Christ's Resurrection Didn't Happen?

Consider these verses:

John 20:24 says, “After greeting them (his disciples, following the crucifixion) he showed them his hands and side. How wonderful was their joy as they saw their Lord.”

John 20:27-29 say, “Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger into my hands. Put your finger in my side. Don't be faithless any longer. Believe.’ Said Thomas, ‘My Lord and my God.’ Then Jesus told them, ‘You believe because you have seen me. But blessed are those who haven't seen me and believe anyway’."

5. Christ Returned in 1914 and Was Invisible?

Matthew 24:30 says, “And then at last the signal of my coming will appear in the heavens and there will be deep mourning all around the earth. And the nations of the world will see me arrive in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.”

(There will be "deep mourning" because those on earth will know they will now face God's wrath. They were not part of the earlier "rapture" of believers.)

Zechariah 12:10 says, “Then I will pour the spirit of grace and prayer on all people of Jerusalem, and they will look on him they pierced, and mourn for him as for an only son, and grieve bitterly for him as an oldest child who died.”

Revelation 1:17 says, “See. He is arriving, surrounded by clouds, and every eye shall see him—yes, and those who pierced him.”

6. Annihilation If You're Not a JW?

The Bible states that eternal punishment awaits those who reject or ignore Christ's gift of salvation. The Jehovah's Witnesses teach that those who do not become a JW will be annihilated with no conscience upon death.

Matthew 13:42 says, “And all who are evil will be thrown into the furnace and there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Let those with ears, listen.”

Matthew 22:14 says, “Bind him hand and foot and throw him into the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Luke 13:23-28 say, “Someone asked Jesus, ‘Will only a few be saved'?"
"And he replied, ‘The door to heaven is narrow. Work hard to get in, for the truth is that many will try to enter but when the head of the house has locked the door, it will be too late.

"Then if you stand outside knocking and pleading’, ‘Lord, open the door for us,’ He will reply, 'I don't know you.'
'But we ate with you, and you taught in our streets.'
But he will say, ‘I tell you, I don't know you. You can't come in here, guilty as you are. Go away.’ And there will be great weeping and gnashing of teeth as you stand outside.”

2 Peter 12:17 says, “...they are doomed to the eternal pits of darkness.”

Jude 1:13 says, “They wander around looking as bright as stars, but ahead of them is the everlasting gloom and darkness that God has prepared for them.”

Revelations 14:9-11 say, “...and they will be tormented with fire and burning sulphur in the presence of the holy angels and Christ.

The smoke of their torture arises forever and ever, and they will have no relief day or night.”

What a horrible, conscious eternity awaits the person who, although perhaps active their whole life in church, never had a one-on-one relationship with everlasting God and never confessed his sin and called out to Christ for His salvation.

He will spend forever, wide-awake in eternal suffering.

Get right with God, now. You could be dead in five minutes. If you're not sure you're going to Heaven, chances are you're not, and Hell awaits.

That's what is so frightening when you poke into the devilish doctrines of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and other cults.

Below is some history of the Jehovah's Witnesses.

Jehovah's Witnesses were founded in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, in 1852 by Charles Russell.

Russell taught that the end-times started in 1799 and that Christ returned in 1874. These dates were later changed in 1914 when Armageddon failed to appear. Prophecies about 1915 also failed.

Russell died in 1916 and was succeeded by Joseph Rutherford who falsely predicted Armageddon would take place in 1918 and 1925.

In 1931, the title Jehovah's Witnesses was adopted.

In 1942, Nathan Knorr succeeded Rutherford. His major accomplishment was overseeing the completion of The New World Translation of the Bible in 1961, with its major false liberties.

The Jehovah's Witnesses name is synonymous with the name Watchtower Bible and Tract Society.
 
Headquartered now in Brooklyn, NY, the governing body of the Witnesses wields absolute authority over its membership and popularizes its doctrines by mass distribution of magazines like The Watchtower and Awake.
 
A Witness is blindly obedient to The Watchtower, which promotes a false gospel as outlined above.

The Witnesses refuse blood transfusions, will not salute the flag or honor any government, will have no part of war, or honor traditional Christian holidays.

The most grievous error in the doctrine of the JWs is their insistence that Christ is inferior to God.

Consider John 8:42 where Christ said, "That is why I said that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am the Messiah, the Son of God, you will die in your sins."

Matthew 16:15-16, also, state, "Then He (Jesus) asked them (His disciples), 'Who do you think I am?'
Simon Peter answered, 'The Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.'"