Newsgroups: bit.listserv.christia
Subject: Jehovah's Witnessess (2 of 3)
From: j1w@icf.hrb.com (Doug ('Oscar') Works)
Date: 3 Sep 92 09:41:44 EST
Organization: HRB Systems, Inc.

Here's part 2:

BELIEFS            Denying the Trinity
-------            -------------------
JW's               o  Claiming that Satan originated it, they reject and 
                      ridicule the doctrine of the Trinity. [8]
(not sure about)   o  They misstate the Christian position of the Triune God
                      by saying that we believe in three gods.
(these points -DW) o  They say that we oppose the Bible, yet they clearly 
                      believe in two true gods, completely separate beings:
                      1) Jehovah, the Almighty God, and 
                      2) Jesus, the mighty god through whom God made all things.

Scripture          o  According to Scripture, each person of the Trinity:
                    o is eternal................(Ps 93:2; Mic 5:2; Heb 9:14)
                    o has been called "God".....(John 6:27, 20:28; Acts 5:3-4)
                    o has shared in creation....(Ps 100:3; John 1:3; Gen 1:2)
                    o has inspired Scripture....(2 Tim 3:16; 1 Pet 1:10-11;
                                                       2 Pet 1:2) 
                   o In Matthew 28:19, Jesus commands us to baptize in the
                     "name" (singular in the original Greek) of the Father, 
                     Son, and the Holy Spirit.

                                           3

Beliefs (cont'd)   Denying the Personality of the Holy Spirit
------             ------------------------------------------
JW's               o  They claim that "the holy spirit is the invisible active 
                      force of Almighty God which moves his servants to do his 
                      will." [9]  Like electricity, he is powerful, yet 
                      impersonal.  (author's opinion of JW doctrine, not 
                      taught explicitly?)

Scripture          o  The Bible shows the Spirit to have these personal traits:
                      o  He speaks directly........(Acts 13:2; Heb 3:7; Rev 2:7)
                      o  He can be lied to.........(Acts 5:3-4)
                      o  He has a mind.............(Rom 8:27)
                      o  He has a will.............(1 Cor 12:11)
                      o  He gives guidance.........(Rom 8:14)
                      o  He intercedes for us..... (Rom 8:26)

                   Denying Christ's Deity
                   ----------------------
JW's               o  Christ is NOT Jehovah God but exists in God's form. [10]

Scripture          o  We should worship only Jehovah God (Matt 4:10).
                      o  Yet Jesus accepted worship (Matt 8:2; 9:18; 14:33; 
                         15:25; 28:9,17), and
                      o  God commanded the angels to worship Jesus (Heb 1:6).

                   o  Jehovah ALONE created the world (Is 44:24).
                      o  Yet Jesus created all things (John 1:3; Col 1:16-17).

                   o  Logically, they are the SAME (John 20:28; John 8:58, 
                      compared to Ex 3:14;  Heb 1:8; Matt 1:23; Col 2:9).

                   Denying Christ's Bodily Resurrection
                   ------------------------------------
JW's               o  They claim He was put to death in the flesh and was 
                      resurrected an invisible spirit creature. [11]
                   o  The body that died on the cross either dissolved
                      into gases or has been preserved in Heaven as a 
                      memorial. [12]
                   o  They claim that His spirit materialized into bodies 
                      to prove His spiritual resurrection. [13]

Scripture          o "If Christ be not [bodily] raised, your faith is futile 
                      and you are still in your sins." (1 Cor 15:17)
                   o  Jesus said that His body would arise and that He'd do it 
                      Himself (John 2:19-21).
                   o  Thomas touched His wounds (John 20:20-29), and why would
                      a newly materialized (i.e., not His own) body bear scars?
                   o  Jesus Himself, after the resurrection, said that He wasn't
                      a spirit (Luke 24:37,39).
                   o  In Christ ". . . the whole fulness of the deity dwells 
                      bodily. . . ." (Col 2:9)                        ^^^^^^
                   o  The Greek verb used here is in the present tense, even
                      though it was written 20 years after the Crucifixion!

Conclusion         o  Without a risen leader, the Jehovah's Witnesses join the 
                      ranks of every other religion in the world. . . except 
                      Christianity.  Only OUR Leader has risen from the grave.

                                           4

Beliefs (cont'd)   Denying the Visible Return of Christ
-------            ------------------------------------
JW's               o  ". . . it is a settled scriptural truth. . . that human 
                      eyes will not see him at his second coming, neither will 
                      it be in a fleshly body." [14]
                   o  For years to come, this statement made it easy for them 
                      to claim Christ's invisible 2nd coming in 1874. [15]
                   o  This also made it easy to claim that ". . . millions of 
                      people around the world have come to recognize Christ's 
                      presence since the eventful year 1914." [16]

Scripture          o  NOWHERE in Scripture is Christ's 2nd Coming invisible.
                      o  Matthew 24:23-27 says that those who claim it is hidden
                         are false prophets.
                      o  Titus 2:13 speaks of the ". . . glorious appearing of 
                         our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ."
                      o  We are told that "every eye will see Him" (Rev 1:7).
                         (see also Zechariah 12:10-14)

                   Denying Immortality
                   -------------------
JW's               o  They believe that the soul is a life force which animates
                      the body, and that when the body dies, the soul ceases to
                      exist.  Therefore a person at death is similar to a beast
                      and no different from a dead dog. [17]
                   o  Their philosophy gives no continuity to the person of 
                      Christ.  According to their teachings:
                      o  Jesus pre-existed as Michael, the Archangel,
                      o  Jesus became human and Michael ceased to exist, and
                      o  when Jesus died, no part of him continued to exist, so 
                         God simply re-created him as a spirit-being again.

Scripture          o "Death" for the Christian means being present with the 
                      Lord (Phil 1:21-24; 2 Cor 5:6-8).
                   o  It is that same Person who persists throughout all phases
                      of the Savior's existence.

                   Denying Hell
                   ------------
JW's               o  They define Hell as humanity's common grave.  The idea of
                      it as a place of punishment "cannot be true." [18]
                   o  This is one of the leading attractions of Witness theology

Scripture          o  In the Bible, Jesus speaks more on the subject of Hell 
                      than He does of Heaven!
                   o  Hell was originally prepared for Satan and his angels,
                      but people joined in his open rebellion against God,
                      and will share in the punishment (Matt 25:41).
                   o  It is clearly defined as a place of suffering 
                      (Matt 13:42; 25:46).

                                           5
Beliefs (cont'd)   Limiting Heaven 
-------            ---------------
JW's               o  They interpret Revelation 7:4 to mean that the only ones 
                      to make it into God's presence will be 144,000 of the best
                      Jehovah's Witnesses.
                   o  Most Witnesses have no hope of a heavenly kingdom in 
                      the presence of the living God.  Instead, they believe
                      that they will spend eternity on earth, separated from
                      God's loving presence.

Scripture          o  Trusting God as your personal Savior gives you assurance
                      of an eternal dwelling place with God (Luke 23:39-43; 
                      John 14:2,3; 1 Thess 4:13-18; 2 Cor 5:8).

OTHER
DISTINCTIVES       o  These beliefs and practices are used as tactics to involve
                      people in discussions of little or no theological value.

                      o  They reject blood transfusions.
                         o  They base this belief on their interpretation of
                            Genesis 9:4 and similar O.T. passages.
                         o  What these verses actually prohibit is the eating 
                            of flesh with the blood still in it.
                      o  They reject the celebration of all birthdays and 
                         holidays, including Christmas, as a form of creature 
                         worship.
                      o  They reject human government, military service, and 
                         flag saluting as idolatry.
                      o  They believe that Christ died on a torture stake, 
                         rather than the traditional cross.

                   o  The "Faithful Servant"
                      o  They twist the parable in Matthew 24:45-47 into a 
                         prophecy that portrays the Society as the "faithful 
                         and wise servant."
                      o  Through the _Watchtower_, the servant "feeds" the 
                         members their "meat (i.e., spiritual food) in due 
                         season." [19]
                      o  Thus, they assert that their interpretation of 
                         Scripture comes directly from Jehovah.
                      o  Russell first taught that the "servant" consisted of 
                         all loyal Watchtower Society followers. [20]
                      o  In 1896, his wife suggested that since "servant" is 
                         singular, it must mean Russell himself.  [21]
                      o  Even after his death, the Society continued to 
                         teach that Russell was exclusively this servant. [22]
                      o  It was taught not only as a "fact" but as a 
                         "necessity of faith."
                      o  They also showed how doubting Russell would lead to
                         a complete overthrow of the faith.
                      o  Suddenly in 1927, Russell was dethroned, and the 
                         Society taught that the Christian congregation itself 
                         (speaking through Watchtower Society leaders), was 
                         now the "faithful servant." [23]
                      o  It further asserted that those who regarded Russell
                         as "that servant" (the very position that the 
                         Society had advocated for 30 years) were guilty
                         of promoting creature worship, a sectarian act most
                         repulsive to Jehovah.
-- 
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....    |         "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep,             ....
....  --+--              to gain what he cannot lose."                      ....
....    |                                           - Jim Elliot            ....
....    |                                                                   ....
.......................  Internet: j1w@icf.hrb.com .............................
................................................................................
    J. Douglas Works * HRB Systems, Inc. * State College, PA  16804  USA
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU