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Friend, please read the vast amount of information and please understand that I am concerned about your soul.
The Jehovah's Witnesses' Doctrine of Deception
When Jehovah’s Witnesses knock on doors, they are convinced that they
have the truth. It is important to realize that these people have been
tricked into placing their trust in an organization that claims to be
God’s sole channel of communication. According to the Watchtower
Society, they are the sole source of correct Bible interpretation.
This chapter addresses the willful deception of the Society, their
malicious adding to God’s word, their support of the New World
Translation (a corrupted Bible), and their record of confusion. Finally,
it concludes with the ultimate insult that the organization could make
to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Believe it or not, they currently
teach that Jesus is Abaddon, the fallen angel of the abyss!
Adding to God’s Word
The NWT is a Bible prepared and translated by and for Jehovah’s
Witnesses. As a result Jehovah’s Witnesses embrace it because, according
to them, it is a superior translation. However, according to the Bible,
it is an unscrupulous perversion of the truth. Proverbs 30:5-6 states:
- "Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put
their
trust in him. (6) Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee,
and thou be found a liar."
This passage explicitly teaches that adding to God’s word is
prohibited and without excuse. Though this is the case, the organization
that claims to be God’s sole channel of communication freely violates
this Bible principle. The reason for this is clear: The Watchtower
Society bases its doctrine solely upon a manipulated word of God
contained within the NWT, a Bible with a hidden agenda.
On many occasions, the organization’s anonymous translators
demonstrated their lack of respect for the truth. By adding to God’s
word they have created the NWT, a perverted Bible. They have deceived
many people by misrepresenting the person of Jesus Christ and distorting
many other important doctrinal points. Those who are responsible for
this translation will certainly be held accountable by Jesus Himself,
who will Judge us all (John 5:22). In Matthew 10:33 He said, “But
whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my
Father which is in heaven.”
The following are clear NWT violations of fraudulently adding to
God’s word. These slight-of-hand alterations and additions permit
certain Bible verses to read contrary to their true meaning, thus
promoting a false agenda and enabling a naïve reader to arrive at false
conclusions, especially with the assistance of Watchtower magazines:
1. 2 Peter 1:1
2 Peter 1:1 (KJV) “Simon Peter, a servant and an
apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith
with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.”
In this verse, Jesus Christ is called “God and our Saviour.” However,
the NWT provides a slight change that renders a different meaning. It
states:
2 Peter 1:1 (NWT) “Simon Peter, a slave and apostle
of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained a faith, held in equal
privilege with ours, by the righteousness of our God and [the] Savior
Jesus Christ.”
There is no reason to add the word [the] to this verse. Obviously, it
was done intentionally. The brackets surrounding the word testify that
it should not be there. This translation succeeds in separating God and
Jesus as two separate beings while concealing the fact that “our God and
Savior Jesus Christ” is one being. If this word did not appear in this
verse, how would it read? Would it teach that Jesus Christ is our God
and Savior?
This is a clear violation of Proverbs 30:5-6 and Matthew 10:33.
2. Exodus 24:11
According to Exodus 24:8-11, after Moses sprinkled the blood of the
bullock on the people, Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu and seventy of the
others went up and saw the God of Israel:
“And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the
people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath
made with you concerning all these words. (9) Then went up Moses, and
Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel: (10) And
they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a
paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his
clearness. (11) And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid
not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.”
Exodus 24:10-11 declares that they saw God. Unfortunately, the NWT
translators were so desperate to deny the fact that these men saw God
that they translated Exodus 24:11 as follows:
“And he did not put out his hand against the
distinguished men of the sons of Israel, but they got a vision* of the
[true] God and ate and drank.”
The Watchtower Society teaches the Witnesses that no man has seen
God. In order to promote this false teaching, they isolate certain
verses and take them out-of-context. Men have seen God and Moses is the
perfect example (Numbers 12:6-8, Exodus 34:29-35).
Exodus 24:9-11 records one of many occasions where men have seen God.
The Hebrew word for vision, Strong’s Concordance 4236 or 4758,
which is machazeh or mareh respectively, does not appear
in Exodus 24:11. Regardless, the translators intentionally placed it
there as a willful and desperate attempt to conceal the fact that these
men actually saw God. This is a clear violation of Proverbs 30:5-6.
3. Acts 20:28
According to Acts 20:28, God paid for the church “with his own
blood.” It states as follows:
“Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the
flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed
the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.”
Here, the Greek word haima, Strong’s Concordance 129, is used.
It is used a total of 99 times in the New Testament and always refers
to literal blood. While Acts 20:28 teaches that God paid for us with His
blood, Colossians 1:13-14 testifies that Jesus redeemed us with His
blood:
“Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and
hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: (14) In whom we
have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.”
The combination of Acts 20:28 and Colossians 1:13-14 proves that
Jesus is God. As a result of this connection, the NWT translators
translated Acts 20:28 as follows:
“Pay attention to yourselves and to all the flock, among
which the holy spirit has appointed YOU overseers, to shepherd the
congregation of God, which he purchased with the blood of his own
[Son].”
The Greek word for Son is huios, Strong’s 5207. It does NOT
appear in the Greek New Testament text. The addition of this word is a
willful attempt to conceal the fact that God, who is Jesus Christ, paid
for the church and redeemed us with His blood.
4. Colossians 1:15-17
According to John 1:1-3, God created all things with His Word. John
1:14 teaches that “the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” The
Word of God is God’s only-begotten Son Jesus Christ who made all things.
Colossians 1:16-17 agrees! Regarding Jesus who made all things, the
King James Bible reads as follows:
“For by him were all things created, that are in heaven,
and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones,
or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by
him, and for him: (17) And he is before all things, and by him all
things consist.”
The Watchtower teaches the Jehovah’s Witnesses that Jesus was God’s
first created being and that, through Jesus, all [other] things were
made. Therefore, contrary to the KJV and other Christian Bible
translations of this passage, the corrupted NWT reads quite differently
as follows:
“because by means of him all [other] things were created
in the heavens and upon the earth, the things visible and the things
invisible, no matter whether they are thrones or lordships or
governments or authorities. All [other] things have been created through
him and for him. (17) Also, he is before all [other] things and by
means of him all [other] things were made to exist.”
In this passage, the word ‘other’ has been added four times.
It does not appear in the Greek New Testament text and was added to
support the Society’s flawed theology. Their agenda is to teach that
Jesus is a created being who is before all [other] things, not before
all things. It obscures the fact that Jesus, as God’s Word, made all
things, and incorrectly implies that he made all [other] things AFTER
he himself was created. This perversion could enable a naive reader to
come to this same faulty conclusion.
To support this translation and to teach others that it is correct is
without excuse. It is a violation of Proverbs 30:5-6 that states that
every word of God is pure. God takes these matters seriously, especially
when these additions are a clear attempt to manipulate His word by
attacking the identity of His Son, who is God Himself, who created all
things.
5. Philippians 2:9
The Watchtower Society teaches that God’s name is Jehovah.
Though God’s name is probably closer to Yahweh than Jehovah
(since there is no ‘J’ in the Hebrew language), calling God Jehovah
should certainly be considered acceptable. After all, as long as we
pray to God, He knows that we pray to Him.
God has a name, but no man knows it for sure. When the Old Testament
scribes referred to God’s name in the Scriptures, the Tetragrammaton YHWH
was used. This is because they considered God’s name too holy to be
either written or pronounced.
Though God has a name, His Son also has a name. Philippians 2:9
states, “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and
given him a name which is above every name.”
This verse teaches that God gave Jesus a name above every name. Since
God has a name, and He gave His Son a name above every name, there can
only be one logical conclusion: Jesus must be God!
Naturally, the Watchtower Society could not allow such a thought
since they teach against Jesus’ Deity. As a result, in a vain and
desperate attempt to separate Father from Son, Philippians 2:9 in the
NWT reads:
“For this very reason also God exalted him to a superior
position and kindly gave him the name that is above every [other] name.”
By adding the word [other] to this verse, the translators have
implied that Jesus’ name is second in preeminence to Jehovah’s name
instead of being a name above every name.
These types of additions to God’s word purposely denies the Son, a
violation of Jesus’ own words according to Matthew 10:33. It manipulates
the facts and compromises the truth. For this, there can be no excuse!
6. Acts 10:36
According to Matthew 11:25, Jesus referred to His Father as “Lord of
heaven and earth.” It states:
“At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O
Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things
from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes” (see also
Luke 10:21).
According to Luke 2:11, Jesus Christ was born “Christ the Lord.”
Therefore, He was both Lord and Christ prior to His birth in Bethlehem.
Acts 2:36 teaches that, upon His resurrection, God made Jesus both Lord
and Christ. This is because Jesus’ Messiahship and Lordship were
fulfilled and established at the crucifixion. The applicable verses
follow:
- Luke 2:11 “For unto you is born this day in the city of David
a
Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”
- Acts 2:36 “Therefore let
all the house of Israel know assuredly,
that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord
and Christ.”
Ephesians 4:5 teaches that there is one Lord: “One Lord, one faith,
one baptism”
The following facts apply: Jesus calls the Father “Lord of heaven and
earth” (Matthew 11:25, Luke 10:21), Jesus was born into the world as
Lord (Luke 2:11), Jesus was Lord upon His resurrection (Acts 2:36), and
we have one Lord (Ephesians 4:5). Therefore, there can be only one
logical conclusion with respect to this issue: Like His Father, Jesus is
Lord of all! This is confirmed in Acts 10:36, which states:
- “The word which God sent unto the children of Israel,
preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)”
Acts 10:36 confirms Jesus’ Deity since He is “Lord of all,” and there
is only one Lord according to Ephesians 4:4. However, the Watchtower
Society could not allow such a thought since they teach against Christ’s
Deity. As a result, in another desperate attempt to separate Father
from Son, the NWT translates Acts 10:36 as follows:
“He sent out the word to the sons of Israel to declare to
them the good news of peace through Jesus Christ: this One is Lord of
all [others].”
Has a pattern developed? Once again, the word [other] is added to
imply that Jesus is a secondary Lord. The Watchtower’s intent is to
conceal Jesus’ Deity and manipulate the Bible, a violation of Proverbs
30:5-6. Once again, there is no excuse for this continued deception.
7. John 3:16
One of the most widely known verses in the Bible is John 3:16. It is a
well-known proclamation declaring God’s salvation obtained by grace
through faith in His only begotten Son. It states:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life.”
This verse announces the wonderful Gospel of grace, not works. As the
Bible teaches, we are saved by grace and grace alone as the result of
our faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 13:39, Romans 4:4-5, Romans 11:6,
Galatians 2:16, Ephesians 2:8-9, etc.). Regarding salvation obtained by
grace and faith, Romans 3:27-28 is clear:
“Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of
works? Nay: but by the law of faith. (28) Therefore we conclude that a
man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.”
Contrary to the New Testament’s message, the Watchtower Society does
not teach salvation by grace; it teaches salvation by works. Because of
this, in another attempt to support and promote their agenda, the NWT
translates John 3:16 as follows:
“For God loved the world so much that he gave his
only-begotten Son, in order that everyone exercising faith in him
might not be destroyed but have everlasting life.”
In this verse, the Greek word pisteuo is used, Strong’s 4100.
Its proper translation is not ‘‘exercise faith,'’ but ‘belief through
faith.’ Exercising faith implies that good works are necessary. This is
not what the New Testament teaches!
To prove the inconsistency of the NWT regarding the translation of
the Greek pisteuo, it is necessary to refer to their translation
of 1John 3:23 as an illustration. It states:
“Indeed, this is his commandment, that we have faith
in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and be loving one another, just as
he gave us commandment.”
In this verse, the Greek pisteuo is used, the same exact word
used in John 3:16. However on this occasion, the NWT translators
properly translated it as faith. However, why did they translate
this word incorrectly in John 3:16, such a well-known verse?
Regarding the NWT’s John 3:16, not only did these anonymous
translators demonstrate their sheer absence of credibility, but the
Watchtower Society illustrates its willingness to deceive the public by
altering the true Gospel message of salvation by faith and grace, not
works.
8. Titus 2:13
In the King James Bible, Titus 2:13 reads as follows:
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious
appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.”
This verse foretells the glorious appearing of “the great God and our
Saviour Jesus Christ.” Once again, Jesus’ Deity is confirmed! In
absolute defiance to the truth, the NWT translates Titus 2:13 as
follows:
“while we wait for the happy hope and the glorious
manifestation of the great God and of [the] Savior of us, Christ Jesus.”
The NWT translators repeatedly prove that the addition of a single
word in brackets in a verse can render an entirely different meaning.
Through deception and manipulation, the organization incorrectly conveys
to their followers that Paul was talking about two individuals, not
one. In reality, Paul confirms Jesus’ Deity by calling Him “the great
God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.”
9. Luke 23:43
According to Luke 23:43, Jesus spoke to the thief on the cross and
said:
“…Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in
paradise.”
There are no punctuation marks such as commas and periods in Koine
Greek. In this verse, whether the comma belongs before or after the
words “To day” depends solely upon one’s personal interpretation.
Since Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that there is an intermediate state
of soul sleep until the resurrection, this verse presented a serious
problem for the Watchtower Society. After all, if Jesus told the thief
on the cross that he would be with Him in paradise on that day, their
concept of soul sleep and a future paradise earth after the resurrection
would be in serious jeopardy. In order to support their flawed
theology, the NWT translators moved the comma and placed it after the
word "today,” giving this verse an entirely different meaning as
follows:
“…Truly I tell you today, You will be with me in
Paradise.”
As a result, the Society can now teach that Jesus stated to the thief
on the cross that he was speaking to him “today,” and that he “WILL” be
with Him in paradise in the far future (at the resurrection). Their
explanation seems far-fetched, since it is quite obvious that the thief
was aware that Jesus was speaking to him on that day, i.e. “today.”
Furthermore regarding Luke 23:43, the translators of the NWT should
have maintained consistency when placing commas after Jesus spoke the
words, “Truly I tell you,” which they did not! In the following verses,
they correctly applied the comma after Jesus said the words “Truly I
tell you,” or “Truly I say to YOU,” (Matthew 6:2, Matthew 6:5, Matthew
6:16, Matthew 10:15, Matthew 10:23, Mark 9:1, Mark 14:9, Luke 12:37,
Luke 18:17, Luke 18:29, Luke 21:32, John 3:3, John 3:5, John 3:11,
etc.).
In conclusion, the proper understanding of Luke 23:43 undermines the
organization’s ideological concept of soul sleep. In order to counter
what the Bible teaches, their translators moved the comma after the word
“today” in order to support their own personal theology.
10. Hebrews 1:6
When the wise men came to Jesus after His birth, they worshipped Him
(Matthew 2:11). According to Matthew 8:2, the leper worshipped Him. Even
the man possessed by demons fell down and worshipped Him (Mark 5:6).
After Jesus was raised from the dead, His disciples worshipped Him
(Matthew 28:9). The Bible teaches that Jesus was continually worshipped
as an infant, as a man, and after His resurrection from the dead.
Furthermore, according to Hebrews 1:6, Jesus’ Father declares:
“And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into
the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.”
In these passages the Greek proskuneo, Strong’s 4352 is used.
As a result, the Scriptures teach that both Father and Son are to be
equally worshipped. In John 5:23, Jesus commanded “That all men should
honour the Son, even as they honour the Father.” In this verse,
the Greek kathos, Strong’s 2531 is used. It means just as,
exactly as, or even as. Since worship is a form of honor,
Jesus instructed His followers that He is to be honored and worshipped exactly
as His Father is honored and worshipped.
The translators of the NWT could not allow this matter to go
unresolved. Since Jehovah’s Witnesses deny Jesus’ Deity, they took
action to also deny His worship. In order to resolve their problem, when
Bible verses indicated that men worshipped Jesus, they translated proskuneo
as ‘do obeisance.’ Since only God is to be worshipped, they hid
the fact that Jesus was actually worshipped in order to conceal His
Deity.
The alterations made in the NWT to deny Jesus’ worship have now
created a new set of problems for the Watchtower Society. First, in the
1961 NWT, the translators’ intentions to manipulate the Bible became
apparent when they missed making the change in Hebrews 1:6. It remained,
“And let all God’s angels worship Him.” In later editions, Hebrews 1:6
was altered to read, “And let all God’s angels do obeisance to him.”
Secondly, the definition of obeisance is a bow made to show
respect or submission: also: deference, homage. To prostrate
oneself to Jesus as a god according to Watchtower theology (see John
1:1, NWT) creates a serious violation against Jehovah. Since Jehovah’s
Witnesses are taught that Jesus and Jehovah are separate beings and that
Jesus is a god, doing obeisance to him as a god is a
clear violation of Exodus 34:14 (NWT), which states:
“For you must not prostrate yourself to another god,
because Jehovah, whose name is Jealous, he is a jealous God.”
Finally, denying the worship of Jesus Christ is a violation of the
Watchtower Society’s own Church Charter. The Church Charter, filed in
the Allegheny County Pennsylvania Charter Book Volume 70 states the
intent and purpose of the Society:
“for public Christian worship of Almighty God and
Jesus Christ.”
Jehovah’s Witnesses should be told that by failing to worship Jesus
Christ, they are in violation of their own Church Charter. According to a
Charter Amendment filed in 1945, the penalty for non-conformance to
Charter rules is as follows:
“…a member may be suspended for a period or expelled
for cause upon willfully violating any of the by-laws, reasonable rules,
or ordinances of the Society, or upon becoming out of harmony with any
of the Society’s purposes….”
According to this Amendment, regarding the denial of the worship of
Jesus Christ in accordance with the rules of the Watchtower’s Church
Charter, all Jehovah’s Witnesses should resign or be expelled from the
organization.
The Use of Jehovah in the NWT
In the NWT, the name Jehovah appears 6,973 times in the Old
Testament and 237 times in the New Testament. When the Tetragrammaton YHWH
or the Hebrew Adonai, Strong’s Concordance 136, appears in the
Hebrew Scriptures, the English translation in the NWT is properly
rendered as Jehovah. In the New Testament, when the Greek word kurios,
Strong’s Concordance 2962 is used, it is also rendered as Jehovah,
except when referring to Jesus.
Since the Jehovah’s Witnesses emphatically deny Jesus’ Deity, this
inconsistency became necessary. For example, if the anonymous
translators of the NWT were consistent in their translation of kurios
as Jehovah, Jesus’ Deity would be obvious to everyone according to
Romans 10:9 and Philippians 2:11, which state as follows:
- Romans 10:9 (NWT) “For if you publicly declare that ‘word
in your
own mouth,’ that Jesus is kurios, and exercise faith in your
heart that God raised him up from the dead, you will be saved.”
-
Philippians 2:11 (NWT) “…and every tongue should openly
acknowledge that Jesus Christ is kurios to the glory of God the
Father.”
What would happen if the NWT translators were consistent and properly
translated kurios as Jehovah instead of Lord in these two
verses? Would the truth finally come out that Jesus is Jehovah?
The Great Flip-Flop
Since the Watchtower Society claims to be God’s sole channel of
communication, they should maintain a high degree of consistency and
accuracy in their teachings. Since God is consistent and accurate in
every way, these qualities should be apparent in the organization’s
teachings.
In the Bible, God’s words are consistent. In contrast, the Watchtower
Society’s teachings are inconsistent. Regarding their publications, the
Watchtower Society’s history provides a testimony and witness to their
false claim as God’s sole channel of communication. As an example, will
the Sodomites be resurrected according to the Watchtower Society? The
answer depends upon which Watchtower-sponsored publication we read. Here
lies the proof of the Watchtower’s record of confusion regarding the
resurrection of the Sodomites:
“The men of Sodom will be resurrected.” Watchtower 7/1879, p. 8
“The men of Sodom will not be resurrected.” Watchtower 6/1/1952, p. 338
“The men of Sodom will be resurrected.” Watchtower 81/1965, p. 479
“The men of Sodom will not be resurrected.” Watchtower 6/1/1988, p. 31
“The men of Sodom will be resurrected.” LIVE FOREVER, early editions, p.
179
“The men of Sodom will not be resurrected.” LIVER FOREVER, later
editions, p. 179
“The men of Sodom will be resurrected.” INSIGHT, Vol. 2, p. 985
“The men of Sodom will not be resurrected.” REVELATION, p. 273
These inconsistencies prove beyond doubt that this organization could
not possibly be Jehovah’s sole channel of communication, because the
true God is not a God of confusion. When the LORD wanted to destroy the
children of Israel for making a golden calf, Moses changed His mind,
ONCE! However, God does not change His mind this much.
Who is the Angel of the Abyss?
Charles Russell was the founder of the Watchtower organization. The
Watchtower Society claims that the material in his books “All came from
God” (Finished Mystery, p. 387).
Regarding Russell’s Studies in the Scriptures Vol. 7 – the Finished
Mystery, Abaddon, also known as Apollyon, is none other than Satan
himself. Revelation 9:10-11 states:
“And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were
stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. (11)
And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless
pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue
hath his name Apollyon.”
In the Finished Mystery, Russell applied his analysis to this passage
as follows:
“And there were stings---Revivals in which the attendants were stung,
doctrinally and financially. AND in their tails WAS their power to hurt
men five months---One hundred and fifty years, from Wesley’s ordinance
in 1738 to the casting off of Methodism in 1878--Rev. 9:5
They have THEIR king---the same king as exercises general rulership
over the ecclesiastical affairs of the present evil world. The angel of
the abyss---“the prince of the power of the air” ----Eph. 2:2
Whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon---and he is “a bad one”
sure enough---2Cor. 4:4.
But in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon---That is, Destroyer.
But in plain English, his name is Satan, the Devil.”
Contrary to Russell's teachings, his successor J.F. Rutherford taught
differently. According to his Light Vol. 1, the following change in
doctrine was adopted and established within the Watchtower Society and
is currently being taught to its members, the Jehovah's Witnesses.
Rutherford stated:
"In Hebrew his name is Abaddon, meaning "Destruction,” and in Greek
it is Apollyon, meaning "Destroyer." All this plainly identifies the
"angel" as picturing Jesus Christ, the Son of Jehovah God."
Because of Rutherford’s writings, the organization now teaches that
Jesus is Abaddon, the angel of the abyss. They state:
“The symbolic locusts must follow their King, Jesus Christ. John says
of them: "They have over them a king, the angel of the abyss. In Hebrew
his name is Abad´don, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon." The
resurrected heavenly Jesus Christ is the "angel of the abyss," for he
holds the "keys of death and of Ha´des." In the finale of the universal
war of Armageddon he will bind and pitch Satan the Devil and his spirit
demons into the abyss of deathlike inactivity. (Rev. 20:1-3) When Jesus
was on earth as a man, he was a Hebrew, and now in his capacity as
Jehovah's royal Executioner he is called by the Hebrew name Abad´don.”
-- Watchtower 12/1/1961, p. 719.
“This is a campaign extraordinaire, one that will be memorialized for
all time. Wave upon wave of insects, most prominently locusts,
devastate the land. What does this mean? Revelation 9:1-12 also speaks
of a plague of locusts, sent forth by Jehovah under "a king, the angel
of the abyss," who is none other than Christ Jesus. His names Abaddon
(Hebrew) and Apollyon (Greek) mean "Destruction" and "Destroyer." These
locusts picture the anointed remnant of Christians who, now in the
Lord's day, go forth to devastate Christendom's pastures by completely
exposing false religion and proclaiming Jehovah's vengeance upon it.” --
Watchtower 5/1/1992
The Watchtower’s founder Charles Russell taught that Abaddon is
Satan, and in The Finished Mystery p. 387 the Watchtower Society
insisted that his material “All came from God.” Meanwhile, his successor
J.F. Rutherford instructed that Abaddon is Jesus. Think about it!
Before Rutherford came into the picture, Jehovah’s Witnesses knocked on
people’s doors proclaiming Abaddon as Satan. Now they declare that he is
Jesus. With such diametrically opposing viewpoint, the Watchtower
claims to be God’s sole channel of communication? After pondering this,
even the most devout Jehovah’s Witness should find this difficult to
believe.
In summary, this material represents a mere percentage of the
incorrect teachings and false information taught by the Society and
spread by the Jehovah’s Witnesses. It is not intended to insult the
Jehovah’s Witnesses in any way. Most of them have a tremendous passion
and zeal for God. The objective is to bring the darkness before the
Light and expose it as untruth.
Should a Christian be given the opportunity to dialogue with a
Witness, it should be taken seriously since their salvation is of the
utmost importance. How they respond after receiving the truth, and
whether or not they decide to remain in these false teachings is
entirely up to them. Remember three things: only God can change minds,
the battle belongs to the LORD, and prayer is of the utmost importance.
Everyone who reads this material should share it with others and
encourage them to do the same. We as Christians have been called to
proclaim the true Gospel of Jesus Christ to everyone, so that by
hearing, they might believe (Acts 15:7, Romans 10:14). We are commanded
to always give an answer to every man that asks “with meekness and fear”
(1Peter 3:15).
1Corinthians 9:23-24 encourages us to be strong and to run the race
until it is finished:
“And this I do for the gospel's sake, that I might be
partaker thereof with you. (24) Know ye not that they which run in a
race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.”
No matter the results, we should not be discouraged, but always
encouraged. Since God is in control, His words do not return void. It
will accomplish all that God pleases (Isaiah 55:11). 2Corinthians 4:1-5
states:
“Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have
received mercy, we faint not; (2) But have renounced the hidden things
of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God
deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to
every man's conscience in the sight of God. (3) But if our gospel be
hid, it is hid to them that are lost: (4) In whom the god of this world
hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the
glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto
them. (5) For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and
ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.” Amen
Sincerely and In Christ,
The King Messiah Project
The Bible vs.
The
Jehovah's Witnesses
|
In 1870, at the age of eighteen, an ex-Congregationalist by the name of
Charles Taze Russell started a Bible class in Pittsburgh. In 1876, the
class elected Russell as their Pastor.
He founded the "Herald of the Morning" in
1879, which eventually developed into what is known today as "The
Watchtower Announcing Jehovah's Kingdom." Today this publication
has grown to over seventeen million copies per month in over one hundred
languages.
In 1884, Russell incorporated the "Zion's Watch
Tower Tract Society" at Pittsburgh. Today this organization has
branches in over one hundred countries, and it has missionary works in
over two hundred and fifty. With over one-half million volunteer
workers, the Jehovah's Witnesses have become a serious threat to Bible
believers throughout the world.
Russell died in 1916, and Judge J.F. Rutherford took
over the Society's leadership. It was under Rutherford's leadership
that the group took the name "Jehovah's Witnesses," and Society
headquarters moved to Brooklyn. Rutherford died in 1942, and Nathan
Knorr took control and boosted the membership to over two million. In
1961 the Society published its own "translation" of the scriptures,
called "The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures." Knorr
died in 1977, and Frederick Franz took over the leadership of the
Watchtower Society. Franz is the current leader of the Jehovah's
Witnesses (1991).
Rather than bore ourselves with the corrupt history
of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, we shall get straight to the
main issue at hand: What does the Bible say about their DOCTRINES? The
true Bible-believer realizes that the primary purpose for the Lord
giving us the Scriptures is DOCTRINE (2 Tim. 3:16), and we are supposed
to KNOW sound doctrine from false doctrine. Many have departed from the
faith and have given themselves over to "doctrines of devils" (1
Tim. 4:1), and it is our Christian duty to check these people and arm
ourselves against their false teachings.
The main false doctrines taught by the "JW's"
(Henceforth used to abbreviate "Jehovah's Witnesses") are as follows:
(1) that God is not a Trinity, (2) that Jesus Christ did not physically
rise from the dead, (3) that there will be no literal and physical
Second Coming of Christ, and (4) that there will be no place of eternal
torment for the wicked. These are the major heresies taught by the
JW's, and we shall examine each of these in light of God's pure and
preserved words. Let us begin with a look at the Trinity.
Is God A Trinity?
According
the Bible, God is a Triune Being. As all humans are a trinity (soul,
body, and spirit--1 Ths. 5:23), God is also a Trinity. In Genesis 1:26,
God said, "Let us make man in our image. . ." In Genesis 11:7,
God said, ". . . .let us go down, and there confound their language. .
." The terms "us" and "our" obviously refer to the
Holy Trinity. So the Trinity is found in the very early chapters of the
Bible.
In the New Testament, we can see all three Members of
the Trinity at the Baptism of Jesus in Matthew chapter three. God the
Father is speaking from Heaven. God the Son is being baptized, and God
the Holy Ghost is descending like a dove. When Jesus gave the Great
Commission in Matthew 28:18-20, He said in verse 19, "Go ye
therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." 1 John 5:7 tells us
that there are THREE that bear record in Heaven: ". . . the Father,
the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." (The
"Word" is Christ according to John 1:1-3, 14, and 1 John 1:1-3.)
God is a Trinity. He isn't three Gods, like the JW's
accuse us of believing, but He is ONE Triune God. The pagans who
worshipped three gods did so because they knew from observing the
creation that God must be in some way associated with the number
"THREE." They never fully understood the Holy Trinity, but you must
admit that they came much closer than the JW's.
As a man is a soul, a body, and a spirit, God the
Father is the Soul of the Trinity, God the Son is the Body, and God the
Holy Ghost is the Spirit.
According to Psalm 19:1 and Romans 1:20, God's
creation actually declares the Trinity doctrine. One can see PROOF of
the Trinity everywhere in the universe. The universe consists of three
parts: Time, Space, and Matter. Time consists of three parts: Past,
Present, and Future. Space consists of three parts: Length, Width, and
Height. Matter consists of three parts: Energy, Motion, and
Phenomena. There are three heavens in 2 Cor. 12:2, and on earth there
are three forms of life: Man, Plant, and Animal. These forms of life
are found in three places: Land, Sea, and Air. God is continually
showing us through His creation that He is a Trinity.
A perfect example of this is the sun. The sun has
three kinds of rays: chemical rays, light rays, and heat rays.
Chemical rays cannot be seen or felt, but they can be very powerful.
When one receives a sunburn, it is from the sun's chemical rays. This
is a type of God the Father. Light rays are sometimes visible to the
human eye. This is a type of Jesus Christ, the "light of the world"
(John 8:12) and the "Sun of righteousness" (Mal.4:2). Heat
rays are a type of the Holy Ghost for they bring comfort to us by
warming our bodies, just as the Holy Ghost, the Comforter (John 16:7),
brings comfort to us.
So one can clearly see that God's word and God's
creation both testify to the fact that He is a Trinity. However, some
people aren't getting the message. The book, "Let God Be True",
(Watchtower Bible & Tract Soc., 1952) says the following on page
92:
"The trinity doctrine was not conceived by Jesus
or the early Christians."
Then on page 93, this book says:
"...the plain truth is that this is another of
Satan's attempts to keep the God-fearing person from learning the truth
of Jehovah and His Son Jesus Christ."
On page 102 of the 1946 edition of "Let God Be
True," the JW's make a very blasphemous statement concerning the
Holy Trinity: "...Sincere persons who want to know the true God and
serve Him find it a bit difficult to love and worship a complicated,
freakish looking, three-headed God."
Such a remark is entirely uncalled for and is a blank
misrepresentation of what Christians really believe about the Trinity.
The JW's cannot UNDERSTAND the Trinity, so they CONDEMN the Trinity.
They fail to realize that it is not our job to tell God WHAT HE IS or to
even FULLY UNDERSTAND how He can exist. Our responsibility is to
BELIEVE WHAT HE SAYS, AS HE SAYS IT, WHERE HE SAYS IT, WITHOUT CHANGING A
SINGLE WORD! The Scriptures already presented in this study clearly
show that God is a Trinity. Your responsibility is NOT to attempt
reasoning out the eternal decrees of God in your small finite mind.
Your responsibility is to BELIEVE WHAT GOD SAYS. Now either you DO, or
you DON'T. The JW's DON'T.
The JW's believe that Jehovah is God the Father, and
that Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are not God. They're wrong. The
Bible tells us that Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are both Deity.
Jesus Christ Is
Deity
As
the Second Member of the Trinity, Jesus Christ stands co-existent in
Eternity with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. There are many
proofs in the scriptures for the Deity of Christ. We shall now list
several of them.
(1) In Zechariah 12:10, Jehovah speaks of the future
return of Christ and says, ". . . They shall look upon me whom they
have pierced, and they shall mourne for him, as one mourneth for his
only son . . . ." This is spoken again in Revelation 1:7, which is
clearly a reference to Christ Himself, but in Zechariah 12:10 GOD
said, ". . . They shall look upon me whom they have pierced .
. . ." The One that they pierced was Jesus Christ! So, in
Zechariah 12:10, God is saying that He is Jesus Christ.
(2) In John 1:1, John 1:14, 1 John 1:1, and in 1
John 5:7, Jesus is called "the Word," and John 1:1 says that
"the Word was God."
(3) Thomas referred to Jesus as "My Lord
and my God" in John 20:28, and Jesus did not see the need to correct
him.
(4) Isaiah 7:14 gives us the prophecy of the Virgin
Birth of Christ and states that His name would be "Immanuel."
Matthew 1:23 tells us that this word means "God with us."
(5) In Isaiah 9:6, Jesus is called
"Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The
Prince of Peace." The Bible certainly would not say this about
anyone less than God.
(6) In John 10:30, Jesus says, "I and my Father
are one." Jesus is not a lesser god; He is ONE with the Father.
(7) Micah 5:2 tells us that Jesus is "from
everlasting."
(8) In John 8:58, Jesus tells the Pharisees,
"Before Abraham was, I am." He claimed to be the "I AM" of
Exodus 3:14, which is God Almighty.
(9) Jesus allowed others to worship Him (John 9:38;
Matt. 14:33; and Luke 24:52), which was forbidden, unless He was God
(Rev. 22:9).
(10) Jesus forgave sins (Mark 2:5), which only God
can do (Mark 2:7).
(11) The Lord Jesus Christ is omnipresent
(Matt. 18:20; 28:20; II Cor. 13:14; I John 5:7). We know He is God
because He is capable of being everywhere at once.
(12) Jesus is omniscient (Mark 11:2-6; Matt.
12:40). He is God because He knows all things.
(13) The Lord Jesus is also omnipotent (Rev. 19:6;
Matt. 28:18). He has all power.
(14) According to John 1, 1 John 1, Colossians 1,
and Hebrews 1, Jesus Christ is the Creator of Genesis 1!
(15) Jesus never sinned! Romans 3:23 says that ALL
HAVE SINNED and come short of the glory of God, but Jesus did not sin (2
Cor. 5:21; 1 Peter 3:18). So Jesus had to be God.
Now, if you've taken time to check these references,
then the Holy Spirit has attempted to show you one great truth: The
LORD JESUS CHRIST IS GOD. That much is clear to any honest Bible
student. The Jehovah's Witnesses are not honest Bible students. One
only has to pick up a copy of their "New World Translation of the
Holy Scriptures" to see how dishonest and unfaithful they are with
God's word. We shall list a few examples of how the New World
Translation ATTACKS the Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ:
(1) It changes Zechariah 12:10 to read, ". . .
they will certainly look to the one whom they pierced. . . ."
(2) John 1:1 in the N.W.T. says that "the
Word was a god," instead of "the Word was God." The definite
article "the" is replaced with "a," and the capital
"G" is replaced with a lower case "g." The last half of 1
John 5:7 is omitted in the N.W.T., because it says that the Father, the
Word (which is Christ in John 1:14), and the Holy Ghost "are one."
(3) The Virgin Birth is attacked in Isaiah
7:14 of the N.W.T. by translating "maiden," instead of "virgin,"
even though Matthew 1:23 TOLD THEM that it should read "virgin!"
The JW's will attack anyone or anything associated with the Lord Jesus
Christ.
(4) They change "from everlasting" in Micah
5:2 to read, "time indefinite," which is not the same at all.
(5) John 8:58 is where Christ said, "Before
Abraham was, I am." This matches God's statement to Moses in Exodus
3:14, meaning that Christ is God. However, the N.W.T. says, "Before
Abraham came into existence, I have been." This destroys the
valuable cross reference to Exodus 3:14. The JW's believe that Jesus
was "a god" before the time of Abraham, but that He was NOT the "I
AM" of Exodus 3:14.
(6) In John 9:38, Matthew 14:33, and Luke 24:52, the
JW's have replaced the word "worshipped" with the words "did
obeisance," which is not the same (See Gen. 37:7, 43:28; Exodus
18:7; 2 Sam. 1:2; 2 Chr. 24:17).
The matter is clear: the JW's will attack the Lord
Jesus Christ every time they have a chance. Their "bible" proves it.
Their WRITINGS also prove it. Here are a few blasphemous remarks made
by the JW's over the years concerning the Lord Jesus Christ:
". . . he was the first and direct creation
of Jehovah God" (The Kingdom is at Hand, p. 46, 47, 49).
"If Jesus were God, then during Jesus'
death, God was dead in the grave" (Let God Be True, p. 91).
". . . the true Scriptures speak of God's
Son, the Word, as 'a god'." He is a "mighty god," but not the
Almighty God, who is Jehovah" (The Truth Shall Make You Free, p.
47).
"The very fact that he was sent proves he
was not equal with God, but was less than God his father" (The
Word: Who is He, p. 41).
This is how a cult deals with the written word of
God. HUMAN REASONING is the final authority of all cults. Rather than
to take God at His word BY FAITH, a cultist will always REJECT God's
word and attempt to reason things out for himself. All cults will ADD
TO, SUBTRACT FROM, OR IGNORE the written revelation of God.
For those of us who BELIEVE the scriptures, we are
now well aware of the fact that Jesus Christ is God. Those who believe
otherwise will have to CHANGE or IGNORE the Bible, because the Bible
testifies of none other than the Lord Jesus Christ Himself (John 5:39).
The Holy Ghost Is
Deity
The
JW's believe that the Holy Ghost is only "God's active force." They
deny the scriptural teaching that the Holy Ghost is a Member of the Holy
Trinity:
"The Scriptures themselves unite to show
that God's holy spirit is not a person but is God's active force by
which he accomplishes his purpose and executes his will" (Aid to
Bible Understanding, pg. 1543).
"The Holy Spirit is the invisible active
force of Almighty God that moves his servants to do his will" (Let
God Be True, pg. 108).
Not only do the JW's deny the DEITY of the Holy
Spirit, they even deny that He is a person. So, in this sense, Satan
has been exalted ABOVE the Holy Ghost by the JW's! The reason given by
the JW's for the personality of Satan is that:
". . . the Bible calls Satan a manslayer, a liar, a
father (in a spiritual sense) and a ruler. (John 8:44, 14:30) Only an
intelligent person could fit all those descriptions." (See
"Awake!", December 8, 1973)
We agree, but how can any honest person say that and
then DENY the personality of the Holy Ghost? The Holy Ghost ALSO has
attributes that only a PERSON can have. For example:
(1) Only a person could SPEAK, which the Holy Spirit
does (Acts 2:11; 13:2; Rev. 2:7).
(2) Only a person could TEACH and COMFORT (Jhn. 16:7,
13).
(3) Only a person could have a MIND (Rom. 8:27).
(4) Only a person could possess the POWER that the
Holy Spirit possesses (Rom. 15:19).
(5) Only a person could be INSULTED and GRIEVED (Heb.
10:29; Eph. 4:30).
So the Holy Ghost certainly IS a Person, but more
than that, He is GOD, the Third Member of the Holy Trinity. There are
several scriptural proofs for the Deity of the Holy Ghost:
(1) In Acts 15:3 Peter accuses Ananias of lying to
the Holy Ghost, and then in verse four Peter tells him that he had lied
unto GOD. The Holy Ghost is God.
(2) The Holy Ghost says in Acts 13:2, "Separate me
Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them." GOD
is the one who calls men to do His work (Rom. 8:28; Gal. 1:6; 1 Ths.
2:12; 4:7; 2 Ths. 2:13-14); so, the Holy Ghost is God.
(3) Only God could perform all the great wonders that
the Holy Ghost performs (Psa. 104:30; Jhn. 14:16, 26; 16:8-14; Job
33:4; 1 Cor. 6:11; Eph. 1:13; 4:30).
(4) The Holy Ghost is God because blasphemy against
Him shall not be forgiven (Mat. 12:31).
(5) The Holy Ghost is God because He is ETERNAL (Heb.
9:14).
(6) The Holy Ghost is God because He is OMNIPRESENT
(Psa. 139:7-8).
(7) The Holy Ghost is God because He has the power to
give life (John 3:6; 6:63).
(9) The Scriptures are God's word, and 2 Peter 1:21
says that the Holy Ghost INSPIRED the Scriptures. Therefore the Holy
Ghost is God.
The Bible clearly reveals to us that the Holy Ghost
is a Member of the Holy Trinity. To deny this truth is to openly deny
God's word.
The Trinity doctrine is a BIBLE doctrine. It is true
that Satan has counterfeited the Trinity doctrine for many centuries in
many pagan religions, but that doesn't change the truth. God's word
declares that He is a Trinity, and it is our responsibility to BELIEVE
it.
Did Jesus Christ
Rise Physically From the Dead?
According
to the JW's, He did not. The Bible speaks of a literal and physical
resurrection, but the Watchtower Society teaches that Jesus only rose
from the grave spiritually. Their literature speaks for itself:
". . . So the King Christ Jesus was put to
death in the flesh and was resurrected an invisible spirit creature."
(Let God Be True, pg. 138)
"Therefore the bodies in which Jesus
manifested himself to his disciples after his return to life were not
the body in which he was nailed to a tree. They were merely
materialized for the occasion, resembling on one or two occasions the
body in which he died..." (The Kingdom Is At Hand, pg. 259)
"Our Lord's human body . . . did not decay
or corrupt . . . whether it was dissolved into gasses or whether it is
still preserved somewhere . . . no one knows." (Studies In The
Scriptures, Vol. 2, pg. 129)
According to the words of Jesus Christ Himself, He is
NOT merely a spirit being. He is a literal and physical risen Savior.
In Luke chapter twenty-four, beginning at verse thirty-six, the
disciples see the risen Christ and they supposed they had seen a spirit
(vs. 37); but Jesus cleared the matter up for everyone when He said,
". . . Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?
Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see;
for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have." (Luk.
24:38-39)
He then SHOWED them His hands and feet, and
they believed. What did they believe? They believed that He was a
literal and physical being in a literal and physical body.
When Jesus appeared to Thomas He said, ". . .
Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand,
and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing."
(Jhn. 20:27) The risen Christ had the crucifixion scars in His body to
PROVE that He had been physically resurrected from the dead.
If Jesus didn't rise physically then He lied in John
2:18-22 when He said that His "body" would rise in three days.
He didn't say His spirit would rise. He said that His BODY would rise.
When He arose His disciples actually REMEMBERED this prophecy and
believed. Too bad the JW's can't do the same.
The JW's claim that Jesus appeared in different
bodies after His so-called "spiritual resurrection." Their "proof" for
this is the fact that the Emmaus disciples didn't recognize Him in His
resurrection body, so it couldn't have been the same body. That's
nonsense. Luke 24:16 tells us why they didn't recognize Him. It had
nothing to do with a spiritual body. The problem was their EYESIGHT: "But
their eyes were holden that they should not know him."
The bodily resurrection of Christ is a
fundamental Bible doctrine. The salvation of a person's soul rests upon
this doctrine, because if Jesus didn't physically rise from the dead AS
HE SAID HE WOULD, then we're all lost and going to Hell according to 1
Corinthians 15:12-19 (JW's included).
Will There Be A
Literal and Physical Second Coming?
If
the Lord Jesus Christ was resurrected literally and physically from the
dead, and if He appeared physically to His disciples, then His Second
Coming must also be literal and physical.
Acts 1:11 tells us that Jesus will return "in
like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven." Jesus ascended
into Heaven literally, physically, and visibly, so He will return "in
like manner."
The JW's deny this. They insist that the
Second Coming of Christ will be SPIRITUAL, rather than literal and
physical:
"Christ Jesus comes, not again as a human,
but as a glorious spirit person." (Let God Be True, pg. 196)
"Since no earthly men have ever seen or can
see the Father, they will be unable to see the glorified Son." (Let
God Be True, pg. 197)
"It is a settled Scriptural truth,
therefore, that human eyes will not see him at his second coming,
neither will he come in a fleshy body." (The Truth Shall Make You
Free, pg. 295)
The word of God says otherwise. Paul says in Titus
2:13 that we should be LOOKING for that blessed hope and the glorious
APPEARING of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ. If the JW's are
right in saying that we will not be able to see Christ, then why did
Paul tell us to be LOOKING for His APPEARING?
The New World Translation has very conveniently
removed the word "appearing" from Titus 2:13 and replaced it with
"manifestation." The same has also been done in 1 Timothy
6:14, 2 Timothy 1:10, and 2 Timothy 4:8. (You can make the Bible
teach ANYTHING if you just CHANGE THE WORDS!)
Now we know that the Second Coming of Christ
will NOT be a spiritual and invisible return. Revelation 1:7 says, "Behold,
he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they
also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because
of him. Even so, Amen." In Matthew 24:30, Jesus Himself says,
"And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and
then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the
Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great
glory." Zechariah 14:4 says, "And his feet shall stand in
that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the
east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward
the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley;
and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it
toward the south." The literal and physical feet of Luke 24:39 will
literally STAND upon the literal, physical, and very visible mount of
Olives. That's perfectly clear to anyone with reading ability.
There's nothing spiritual or invisible about the
Second Coming of Christ. The "clouds" will be literal (Rev. 1:7), as
will the "fire" (2 Ths. 1:8), the "saints" (1 Ths. 3:13), the "mountains
and rocks" (Rev. 6:16), and, of course, the thousand-year reign (Rev.
20:1-7). A "spiritual" or "invisible" Second Coming is totally foreign
to the written revelation of God.
Now, it is also noteworthy to point out that the JW's
have quite a record when it comes to DATING the Second Coming. Listed
below are five separate instances where the JW's have predicted the
Second Coming and missed:
(1) In 1897, a book titled "The Battle of
Armageddon" stated on page seventy-five that Jesus' Second Coming
had ALREADY HAPPENED INVISIBLY in the year 1874, and the Watchtower
publication re-stated this in the September 15th issue of 1922 and also
in the January 1st issue of 1924.
(2) On January 15th, 1892, the Watchtower
claimed that Armageddon began in 1874 and would end in 1914. This
became quite an embarrassment for the JW's because 1914 was the
beginning of World War I!
(3) The book Millions Now Living Will Never Die claimed
that the year 1925 would actually bring about the return of Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob and the faithful prophets of old. Page eighty-nine of this
book claimed that "the earthly phase of the kingdom shall be
recognized." However, when the January 1, 1925, issue of the Watchtower
was published, it said, "This may be accomplished. It may not be."
(4) The December Watchtower for 1941
claimed that World War II would turn America and England into
dictatorships, that the end of Nazi rule would mark the end of demon
rule, and that God would rule when the Nazis were defeated.
(5) In 1942, the JW's were still talking about
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob returning "any day now!" (Consolation,
May 27, 1942, Pg. 13)
So the Watchtower Society will continue right along
with it's foolish date setting--keeping it's members in constant fear
and confusion. It is true that the Bible gives us many definite signs
which indicate the Lord's return is getting very near, but no one knows
the day nor the hour (Mat. 24:36).
Is Hell A Literal
Fiery Place?
The
JW's have traditionally believed and taught that there is no eternal
punishment for the wicked:
". . . the Bible hell is mankind's common
grave..." (Let God Be True, pg. 92. Page ninety-eight of this book
refers to the doctrine of Hell as a "God defaming doctrine.")
"The doctrine of a burning hell where the
wicked are tortured eternally after death cannot be true . . . ." (Let
God Be True, pg. 99)
We call it to the reader's attention that it was none
other than the Lord Jesus Christ who first used the term "hell fire"
(Mat. 5:22), and it was Jesus Christ who said in Matthew 25:41, ". . . Depart
from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and
his angels." When the JW's attack the Hell doctrine they are
attacking the very words of Christ.
A JW believes that Hell is only the grave that
everyone goes to at death. He believes that the saved ones in the
graves will be given eternal life on earth after the White Throne
Judgment of Revelation 20:11-15, while the unsaved in the graves will be
annihilated once and for all in the Lake of Fire. JW's refuse
to believe that God will punish the wicked forever in the Lake of Fire.
Of course, the Scriptures say something entirely different:
(1) There is no FIRE in the grave, but there
certainly is fire in the "hell" of the Bible (Luk. 16:23; Deu. 32:22;
Mat. 5:22; 18:9; Jas. 3:6).
(2) No one PRAYS from the grave, but they certainly
do in Hell (Luk. 16:24; Jon. 2:2).
(3) Hell was originally made for the Devil and his
angels (Mat. 25:41), but the grave was not.
(4) A Christian's SOUL does not go to the grave at
death (Phi. 1:21-23; 2 Cor. 5:1-10; 1 Ths. 5:10). Only the BODY goes to
the grave. An unsaved man's body also goes to the grave at death, but
his SOUL goes to a place of TORMENT and FLAMES (Luk. 16:22-23).
(5) The grave cannot possibly be Hell because Jesus
said it would be better to enter into life (eternal life) without a
hand, a foot, or an eye, than to go to Hell (Mat. 18:8-9). How could it
be "better" if Hell is only the grave where there is no suffering at
all? According to Jesus Christ, Hell is a lot WORSE than losing a hand,
a foot, or an eye forever.
(6) Annihilation cannot be true because the Bible
uses such terms as "shame and everlasting contempt" (Dan. 12:2) and
"torment . . . forever" (Rev. 14:11). Shame and torment are sufferings
that are experienced by a LIVING BEING, not an annihilated corpse.
God is an ETERNAL Being; therefore, an eternal
payment is required for sin (Mar. 9:44-48; Isa. 66:22-23). You can have
a FAIR TRIAL, or you can have a FREE PARDON. In a fair trial before
God, you will be eternally damned to Hell because you are a sinner
against a Holy God. God will have no choice but to sentence you to Hell
forever.
If you are wise you will receive God's FREE PARDON.
Jesus Christ has ALREADY paid for your sins, but you must RECEIVE Him as
Savior. John 1:12 says, "But as many as received him, to them gave
he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his
name:"
Friend, have you ever turned from your sins and
received the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior? The Bible says, "For
God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting
life." (Jhn. 3:16)
Many have the idea that our good works can
save us and get us into Heaven, but the Bible says this isn't so:
"As it is written, There is none righteous, no,
not one:" (Rom. 3:10)
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of
God;" (Rom. 3:23)
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that
not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man
should boast." (Eph. 2:8-9)
We have no really "good" works, because we're all
SINNERS by nature. We were born into this world as sinners (Psa.
51:5), and this is why Jesus said we must be "born again" (Jhn. 3:3).
This new birth is given to us freely, and was made
possible when Christ died and shed His blood at Calvary for our sins.
By receiving Jesus Christ as your Savior, trusting Him alone to save
you, you can be born again. You can have eternal life TODAY by faith in
Jesus Christ. Romans 10:13 says, "For whosoever shall call upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:9-10 says, "That if
thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in
thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the
mouth confession is made unto salvation."
Friend, why not turn from your sins right now and
call upon the Lord to save your soul? Receive Jesus Christ as your
Savior and serve Him faithfully until He returns.
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Copyright © 1991 James L. Melton
THE
DNA OF REVELATION 1:7-8
Using DNA is a foolproof way to identify
any person. Revelation 1:7-8 has DNA that identifies the person that is
coming in Verses seven and eight. There is only one who is coming and
He is clearly identified throughout the Book of Revelation. This same
DNA identifies the one who is the first and the last, the beginning and
the ending, and the Alpha and Omega. This DNA evidence will convict
anyone who attempts to deny the identity of the one who “cometh, who is
the Alpha and Omega, who is the first and the last, the beginning and
the end.”
1. Jehovah said that He alone is the first and the
last—there is none besides Him. There can only be one who is the first
and last. This same DNA is used to identify Jehovah in the NT. The
evidence cannot be denied but it can be rejected, if one puts his
organizational teachings above the Pure Word of God.
Isa 44:6 Thus
saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I
am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.
2.
Who is coming in Verse 7 and in Verse 8? In Verse 7 Jesus is identified
as the pierced One who is coming. The same person that is coming in
Verse 7 is coming in Verse 8 and is identified as the Almighty. This
coming takes place in Chapter 19 which begins at Armageddon.
Rev
1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they
also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail
because of him. Even so, Amen. 8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and
the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to
come, the Almighty.
In Rev 22:13 Jesus Christ is all of the
above: Rev 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the
first and the last.
This prophecy of His piercing was given in
Zech 12:10: And I (Jehovah is speaking) will pour upon the house of
David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of
supplications: and they shall look upon me (Jehovah) whom they have
pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son,
and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for
his firstborn.
Rev 1:11 Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first
and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto
the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and
unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto
Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.
Rev 1:17 And when I saw him, I
fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying
unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:
Rev 2:8 And unto
the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first
and the last, which was dead, and is alive;
Rev 21:6 And he said
unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I
will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life
freely.
Rev 22:12 And, behold, I (Jesus/Jehovah) come quickly;
and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall
be. 13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and
the last. Re 22:16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you
these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David,
and the bright and morning star.
The Bible or the teachings of
your organization, the choice is yours. This DNA evidence will be used
to convict all who deny it now, but at the Great White Throne Judgment
in Rev 20 these Verses will be used to convict the guilty ones who have
denied the DNA that proves that Jesus is Jehovah
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