Jehovah's Witnesses 101
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Local Mission Field
Local Mission Field
Over the last few years after Covid hit, the Jehovah’s Witnesses have stopped going door to door, and switched to a letter writing campaign. I have received multiple letters, the church has received one and my in-laws have also received a few. These letters are a condensed version of what they do when they come to your door, and contain a promise of a better family life, a community of support, and connection to a coming Kingdom. I am sure many of us just throw those away, but I decided to write back. The problem was that these letters all went to PO Boxes, and I am not sure if anyone actually receives them. I include a tract and a quick Gospel message in my letter in hopes that someone reads these.
This is at least partially why I would like to do this class. I have heard that the JW’s maybe going door to door again in some areas, they are back sitting outside the Greendale library, but even if they are not going door to door here, I want us to be able to
see through the counterfeit Gospel they are offering in these letters and in their door step presentations
To have sympathy for how lost and controlled the people in this cult are and
Be prepared with the true Gospel for them. Whether that comes in a return letter to the PO Box or in person
There is a Kingdom Hall right here in Burlington behind Walmart. But they are a worldwide organization with, as of 2014, 113,000 congregations across the globe. They report having 9.2 million home Bible studies seeking to convert new believers every month, and distribute hundreds of thousands of their Watchtower and Awake magazines in 200 different languages every day (WR&C 192).
This is both a worldwide organization and a local cult that includes our neighbors, our coworkers, and those we see working around town. Really it is a mission field right in our backyards.
Are we prepared to reach them?
This evening I want us to cover
a flyover History of The Watchtower Bible and tract Society, or the Jehovah’s Witnesses
Some common words and phrases that have been twisted and now posses uncommon meanings
Sprinkled throughout some Evangelism talking points to help us witness to these missionaries
Followed by some question and answer time
This study will not be exhaustive, there is always more you can learn and ways you can improve your ability to witness to this group, but the goal is to give you a starting point in understanding the nature of the cult, and confidence in sharing the true Gospel with them.
With that I would like to start with a brief history.
History of the Jehovah’s Witnesses
History of the Jehovah’s Witnesses
The 1800’s was the birthplace for many of the cults we see around us today. The Mormons came out of the 1820’s and 30s, the Seventh Day Adventists came out of the 1850’s, Christian Science and other mind cults like Lawsonomy here in Racine throughout the 1860’s-70’s, and finally the Jehovah’s Witnesses in the 1870’s-80’s.
At first they were not known as the Jehovah’s Witnesses, that would come later. They began as “The Millennial Dawn Bible Society” founded by Charles Taze Russell
Russell was the son of Scotch Irish immigrants and merchants. He was raised Presbyterian in Pennsylvania and worked in his fathers store. As he grew up he left Presbyterianism for Congregationalism, and finally ended up in an Adventist church in the 1870’s. Adventism at that time in history denied the divinity of Jesus and held to an ancient heresy called Arianism, where Jesus is a creation of God, not God. This is where Charles began to drift out of Christianity to form his own religion based in his own understandings of the Bible.
It is important to note that Russell had no formal seminary, college, or Bible teaching at all. He did not know the original languages of Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and had not studied translation or formal theology anywhere. He was building a faith after his own interests and likeness. Rather than recognizing God in His Word and man made in His image, Russell begins making a god in his image and a Bible adjusted to his words.
Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.
He began a Bible study outside of the Adventist church that would turn into “The Millennial Dawn Bible Study” after the members voted him in as pastor. The rest of his life he was known as pastor Russell, but held no formal ordination or recognition from any religious organization other than his own. It was in this Bible study that some of the distinctives of Russel’s theology began to come out.
He rejected
Hell as a biblical doctrine
The Deity of Christ
The Resurrection
As startling as that may be to us, these were all common liberal beliefs coming out of the 1800’s. This was a time known as the enlightenment and a time focused on man’s ability to overcome all the world through our own intellect and reason. The world was getting rid of God and replacing Him with science and reason. Russell was transforming God in this same mindset into something he could understand, something he could agree with, something he could control.
He also began teaching
The end of the world was near
The Kingdom of God was coming to the earth
And Jesus return was imminent
Again beliefs coming out of 1800’s Adventism. As early as the 1840’s some Adventist preachers were declaring the return of Christ and the end of the world by 1844. Russell grabbed these ideas and made them his own.
Russell declared the beginning of the end times started in 1799, then he said that Jesus returned invisibly in 1874. He prophesied that the battle of Armageddon would end in 1914 with the coming of the eternal Kingdom. Russell believed WWI was the battle of Armageddon. That didn’t happen so he changed it to Christ’s invisible presence came in 1914 and the end would come in 1918. Russell died in 1916, but he was wrong again.
His lawyer and the president of the Watchtower Society after him, Judge Rutherford, didn’t learn from Russell’s mistakes, and declared the end of the world would arrive in 1925. After that failure the belief was that the end would come within one generation of those alive in 1914. As anyone born in 1914 would be 109 years old today they have changed their teachings again, and settled on a belief that Jesus returned invisibly to this earth in 1914, that we have been in the end times since then, and Armageddon is soon. (KotC Martin 104-106)
Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.
He is not coming invisibly, but every eye will see Him the Scriptures say.
Again these are common beliefs of this time in history. Man’s wisdom, our reasoning, was the standard of truth and so Russell’s rantings were seen as instep with current cultural beliefs. These were beliefs outside Christianity, but common for the day.
The Millennial Dawn Bible Study began to grow. Seizing on the opportunity and with his teachings gaining traction he sold his family businesses, for many millions of dollars, and bought a news press. Beginning in 1879 Russell started advertising his teaching in a magazine called “The Watchtower”. He would later in 1884 incorporate his Bible Study into “The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society” (WR&C 193).
Through his writing and his speaking, he was spreading his unique readings of the Bible far and wide. Doing a worldwide speaking tour at one point, attempting to spread his message across the globe. By all accounts he was a very charismatic preacher and drew people to his personality. But not only people but their money as well.
Russell was a shrewd business man. He owned 90% of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society and all of its writings and assets. He took donations for his speaking, his writing, and his magazines. Was a syndicated columnists in multiple newspapers, where he would also advertise his writings across the world, bringing in more members and more donations. He bought up multiple buildings in Brooklyn New York, had his own printing presses and offices for his businesses.
He owned farms, and had his followers farming there for free in exchange for room and board. The produce from those farms fed the staff for his factories and offices. The farms and some of the buildings in Brooklyn are still owned by the Jehovah’s Witnesses today.
He wrote 7 books called Scripture Studies and sold them to his members declaring they were the distillation of Scripture and better than the Bible.
“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 the two years, because he would have the light of the Scriptures.” Sept 15, 1910 Watchtower Magazine.
So Russell says, if you read his interpretations of the Bible alone, you are better off than reading the Bible alone. And that is probably true depending on where you want to end up. If you want to end up believing only what Russell taught, then yes read what Russell wrote, but if you want to know what God said, I would stay away from anything Russell wrote.
Russell in his lifetime was the equivalent of a multimillionaire today, and money was at the center of the whole operation. He took in the profits personally, and ran into lots of problems as a result. He began selling magic seed for his farms and advertising it in newspapers and his magazines. He promised miraculous yields and charged miraculous prices for them. The government did not agree and he lost a lawsuit where the government crop testing agency found his seed to be below average, and his advertising to be fraudulent.
His wife divorced him claiming he was controlling and had been inappropriate with a young girl they had together raised in their home. She would not go so far as to say he was unfaithful, but the implications of her statements and the court proceedings indicate just that. Their divorce was finalized and she was granted alimony in 1906.
He also ran into problems with other clergy. A Canadian pastor wrote a tract criticizing Russell's life and credentials along with his faulty theology. Russell was no stranger to lawsuits and had his own lawyer always at the ready. A man by the name of Joseph Franklin Rutherford, also known as Judge Rutherford. Russell and Rutherford sued the pastor for libel.
In court, all the statements made by the pastor in the tract would turn out to be true. Russell claimed under oath to be an educated and ordained minister. He claimed to read and understand Greek and Hebrew. He denied ever having a divorce, and denied paying alimony. By the end of the court proceedings Russell would be shown to have perjured himself publicly before the court.
Walter Martin in the Kingdom of the Cults records the event this way:
“A Protestant minister, J.J. Ross, published a pamphlet calling Russell's religion "the destructive doctrines of one man who is neither a scholar nor a theologian" and who "never attended the higher schools of learning; knows comparatively nothing of philosophy, systematic or historical theology, and is totally ignorant of the dead languages" (Martin, p. 42). Russell sued for "defamatory libel", claiming that Ross' charges were untrue and exposed him to public ridicule and contempt, thereby irrevocably injuring his reputation. In court, however, all of Ross' charges were proven to be true. For example, when asked if he knew the Greek alphabet Russell answered: "Oh, yes." Then when he was asked to identify some letters, he rejoined, "I don't know that I would be able to." Finally, he was asked, "Are you familiar with the Greek language?" He replied, "No." The case, Dr. Walter Martin rightly concludes; "established him beyond a doubt as a premeditated perjurer" (Martin, pages 42-45).”
The Jehovah’s Witnesses of today may back off of their association with Russell, and do not like to be called Russellites, because of the public character flaws of their founder. They are forced to admit he was their first president, but they may back away from claiming any more connection to him than that.
Charles Taze Russell was a known fraud, theologically, personally, and financially. He had no training in the Scriptures, was not a pastor, his personal life was a mess, and his financial life was not much better. He accumulated much wealth in his lifetime, but spent much of his time in court trying to protect it.
Russell died in 1916 and his lawyer, Judge Rutherford took the Presidency of the Watchtower Tract and Bible Society. He continued the very top down, controlling nature of the organization, keeping control of the teachings and the finances. He would amass millions of dollars and multiple properties through his writings, teachings, and workings in the Jehovah's Witnesses.
Judge Rutherford wanting to move away from the bad publicity and negative reputation of Russell popularized the name Jehovah’s Witnesses in place of Russell’s Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. He got it from Isaiah 43:10
“You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me.
What is interesting about this is that this is actually a passage that Jesus declares is in reference to Him. In John 13:19 Jesus says:
I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he.
Jesus is quoting from Isaiah 43:10, using the same words, So that you may believe, and understand, that I Am. Jesus is saying I Am the I Am of Isaiah. I Am Yahweh. I Am God. Jesus is telling his disciples ahead of time, so that when He finishes His work, they will believe that He is the God of Scripture. He is their Creator and LORD.
Rutherford takes this passage as the name for his group, but it is a passage that directly contradicts the teachings of his group.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe Jesus is God, but their name comes form a passage Jesus uses to declare that He is God. We will get into this more later, but their own translation of the Bible, the New World Translation, does not change this passage. Their own Bible shows that Jesus declared himself to be God, but the power of their leaders, the power and control of men like Judge Rutherford is so great that they will believe what they are told rather than what God says.
This is a trait of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. This is a very controlling group. Their lives revolve around what their leadership tells them to do. In a 1994 edition of their Watchtower magazine they write:
“All who want to understand the Bible, should appreciate that the ‘greatly diversified wisdom of god’ can become known only through Jehovah’s channel of communication, the Faithful and Discreet Slave.” (Watchtower study edition, October 1, 1994, p.8) (WR&C 197)
The Faithful and Discreet Slave is their governing body. It consists of the President and a small group of leaders tasked with setting the doctrines and teachings of the church. They have sole authority on the teachings of the church and claim to be commissioned by Jesus himself to being Jehovah’s truth to the world.
As such they are not to be questioned, and there is no room for dissent or personal belief. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe what they are taught to believe and nothing more. You will notice when they come to your door, it is as though they are running through a script. that is because they are. If you ask a question outside of that script, they will continually return to what they have been trained to say, ignoring, or bypassing your question. Free thought is not allowed in this cult, and so they are mercilessly trained in what they are to believe.
All dissent is met with banishment form the organization and shunning from your family and friends. Again from the Watchtower study edition, this time from 2013, they talk about the punishment for going against the governing body.
“Really what your beloved family member needs to see is your resolute stance to put Jehovah above everything else - including the family bond - …Do not look for excuses to associate with a disfellowshipped family member” (Watchtower study edition, January 15, 2013, p. 16) (WR&C 197).
If you disagree with any teaching of the Jehovah’s Witness organization, you are disagreeing with their god, and therefore even your family is supposed to remove all contact with you.
This is one of the reasons this group is so hard to reach. When we ask them to look at the Scriptures for themselves, their founders and teachers have been drilling them to do the exact opposite on pain of losing all relationship with family and friends.
This is why knowing some of this history, and later when we discuss their teachings, this information has value, because it gives us an opportunity to try and show the inconsistencies of their teachers and teachings. Historically this has been one of the ways in which the Jehovah’s Witnesses have lost the most followers.
When Judge Rutherford took control of the organization, he tried to remove as much of Charles Taze Russell’s influence as possible, while still holding to all his teachings. This contradictory attempt to change focus from Russell to the organization Judge Rutherford was trying to create, proved too hard for some of Russell’s original followers to handle, and Rutherford lost 75% of the group between 1919 and 1930.
During both World Wars they continued to lose members as they are often seen as unpatriotic, and disconnected from the rest of society, and that is by plan of their organization. They refuse to honor any flag, join the military, vote, or take part in any civic activities. They believe they are part of Jehovah’s Kingdom and therefore are not part of this world’s kingdoms. They are pacifists and from the beginning of WWI through the 50’s they were looked on as possible enemies of the US. They were thought, falsely, to be communists, and had a hard time explaining their refusal to join in the patriotism common to that era.
Judge Rutherford, and others of the organization were jailed in 1917 on espionage charges, and trying to prevent recruitment efforts.
Rutherford and seven other Watchtower executives were arrested and charged under the 1917 Espionage Act for insubordination, disloyalty, refusal of duty in the armed services, and obstructing recruitment and enlistment. Seven men — including Rutherford — were sentenced to 20 years in prison. - https://www.brownstoner.com/history/jehovahs-witnesses-history-brooklyn-properties-selling/
They were sentenced to 20 years, but he only served 8 months before the Us Circuit courts reversed the sentencing and released him.
Again this shows the control this group has over its members. They want to control, as much as possible the input their members receive. Don’t join community groups, don‘t vote, don’t go to school. the end is near, focus on the Kingdom. No birthdays, no holidays except passover. No Christmas, No 4th of July, no Thanksgiving. No celebrations either religious or civil. They believe the church outside of the Jehovah’s Witnesses is pagan, and so the Christian holidays are pagan as well.
This anti Christian anti US sentiment was a tough sell, and the group floundered. Knowing this is our doorway in. Show them the inconsistencies in their teachings, and the freedom God wants to give them in Christ.
Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.
Paul is very clear here. We are free to celebrate festivals, Sabbath rests. Free to eat and drink, because these things are but a shadow of the things to come. The celebrations of Heaven are greater still, but the joys of earth are meant to point us to them. At the same time, Paul says we are not to judge those who don’t partake, because this too is a choice made in Christ and brings glory to God.
So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses are controlling there people, in ways condemned by God in the Scriptures. Paul tells us not to follow those who abstain from this world as though they were more spiritual, more connected to God, or as the Witnesses believe, that they are the true church because they do not celebrate these things. Paul says do not follow these people, because they are puffed up without reason and have lost connection to the Head of the church, who is Christ.
Again there own Translation has kept this verse in tact and says the same thing. We can show them from their own text, that what they have been taught contradicts, what God plainly taught through the Apostle Paul.
When Rutherford died in 1942, Nathan Knorr became president of the organization. He made a prophecy that would cost the organization another large group of members. He declared the end of the world was going to come in 1975. As 1975 approached, the Witnesses went out in force, quitting their jobs, dropping out of school, selling their homes and properties, and hitting the streets with the message of the approaching Kingdom.
As a side note, we would do well to acknowledge their zeal. It is misplaced entirely, but they are seeking their false god, in ways that most Christians would never dream of doing for the true God. To our shame.
That beings said, obviously the world did not end in 1975, and so many Jehovah’s Witnesses left the organization (ED of WR 253). The inconsistencies and the dramatic changes seem to be the times when the most people leave this cult. So if we can help point them out, this may be an inroad to helping people leave.
While these false teachings of the end, keep happening, the Witnesses still believe the end is near and that is still the focus of their teaching. So much so that it costs them personally. Remember they are not allowed to question their leaders, and this even extends to knowledge outside of theology. They do not ban, but they greatly discourage college, and graduate school education. It is looked down upon to seek higher education, and a waste of resources and time, because they believe the end is near.
This a distinctive of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, the control of thought and discouragement of education outside of their own training. The Mormons in comparison set up schools, and send their brightest pupils to universities, seeking educated leaders. It has cost them over the years, because educated leaders start questioning the beliefs of the LDS and leave. The years since the internet and the availability of information continues to cost the LDS membership.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses have protected themselves from this through their discouragement of education and purposeful separation from the world, but have fallen into their own trap in that their lies and control is not always well tolerated by members, and pointing these thnigs out may lead to their freedom.
Similarly they also stopped publishing the names of the authors of their teachings. They claim it is for humility’s sake, but the truth is, if you don’t know who wrote it, you can never verify their credentials to see if they have any authority to say or write what they are writing. This came up in relation to their reworking of the Bible in their New World Translation.
With that topic however, I want to switch from the history section to the next section of our class.
Common Phrases Different Meanings
Common Phrases Different Meanings
Just because they say they believe the Bible, doesn’t mean it is what we would understand as the Bible. Just because they claim salvation in Jesus, does not mean we are talking about the same salvation or even the same Jesus. there are a lot of people named Jesus, and only one can save you. We better be sure we have the right one. So to make sure we have the right one let us look at these common phrases and their meanings.
We mentioned The New World Translation and it is the Jehovah’s Witness own version of Scripture. It started with just the New Testament in the 1950’s, and then has been revised over the years. The latest edition is the 2013. Since the beginning each revision adds words not found in the original Greek or Hebrew, changes or deletes words and phrases, to bolster the Jehovah’s Witnesses false teachings. They change meanings of whole sections based on Russell’s teachings and not based on the Biblical manuscripts themselves.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses no longer publish who translates and does the revisions, but when it first came out they acknowledged one of the translators was a man named Frederick Franz the then vice president, who would become the President after Nathan Knorr, of the Watchtower society. On November 24 1954 he was examined about this new translation of the Bible and his work on it. Walter Martin records the discussion
Q: Have you made yourself familiar with Hebrew? - A: (Franz) Yes.
Q: So that you have a substantial linguistic apparatus at your command? - A: Yes, for use in my biblical work.
Q: I think you are able to read and follow the Bible in Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Spanish, Portuguese, German, and French? - A: Yes
Later, during the same cross examiniation
Q: You, yourself, read and speak Hebrew, do you? - A: I do not speak Hebrew.
Q: You do not? - A: No.
Q: Can you, yourself, translate that into Hebrew? - A: Which?
Q: That fourth verse of the second chapter of Genesis. - A: You mean here?
Q: Yes. - A: No.
A later discussion between a Biola University professor and Walter Martin revealed that the Biola professor would not pass a first year Hebrew student if he was not able to translate Genesis 2:4 (KotC 93-94)
This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created. When the Lord God made the earth and the heavens—
This is their Biblical scholar, the one who is translating the Bible for the Jehovah’s Witnesses and he cannot translate a single verse from Hebrew into English. This is the real reason they do not publish any of the names on their translating committees, or their writers in their magazines. They can’t afford to.
In the world of the internet and information at our fingertips, publishing the names of translators with no credentials would not turn out so well for them, and so they don’t. With over 100 years of teaching your followers not to get an education, scholarship and degrees are lacking in the organization as a whole.
One of the nice things in dealing with this cult is that they only have the one Scriptures, and so that narrows down the discussion. Lets take a look at some of the changes they make in their New World Translation:
The NWT adds the name Jehovah 237 times into the New Testament, in place of the words Lord and God. The name Jehovah was created in the 1500’s by adding the vowels from the words Adonai, and Elohim, to the name of God found in Scripture. Ancient Hebrew does not have vowels and so most scholars give the letters YHWH the name Yahweh. Either way Jehovah or Yahweh, is not a good translation of Lord or God, it is just another way the Witnesses bring in their false teaching into Scripture.
We can see this plainly in Colossians 3:23-24
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.
Paul is telling us to work as if for our Lord Jesus, that our work will be rewarded by Christ our Lord, and that we are in fact serving the Lord Christ. We can see in this verse Jesus is the reference for the word Lord. Paul states it directly. Also, the word Lord in all three instances is Kurios.
The Witnesses however attempt to change the entire meaning of this passage by changing the word Lord to Jehovah. Look at the NWT of these verses
“Whatever you are doing, work at it whole-souled as for Jehovah, and not for men, 24 for you know that it is from Jehovah you will receive the inheritance as a reward. Slave for the Master, Christ.” NWT Col 3:23-24
The Witnesses would have you believe Jehovah God is who you should act like your working for, and Jehovah will reward you because you are a slave of the master Christ. They are seeking to make two different people out of a passage where Paul is consistently talking about one.
A counter to this is apparent in our ESV translation, but we can even take them to Jude 1:3-4 and show them from their own NWT what Jude warns us about:
Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
Jude says our only master and Lord is Jesus Christ and to make it even more plain Jude continues in verse 5
Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.
This is no accident they are purposely changing what the original text says to fit their own belief system. Jesus Himself tells us, He is God. The NWT denies this by changing the word Lord into Jehovah and in Jude 5 they go so far as to change the name Jesus to Jehovah because they can’t have Jesus saving the Israelites out of Egypt it would go against their false teachings. So they change it to this
“Although you are fully aware of all of this, I want to remind you that Jehovah, having saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those not showing faith.” NWT Jude 5
This is no accident they are purposely changing what the original text says to fit their own belief system. It is as easy as having your bible open when they talk to you. You will see these changes right away, and can point them out. The contradictions are not in differences of opinion in how to translate, but are purposeful destruction of what God said to push their ideology.
The most famous of these comes in John 1:1
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
The Witnesses and the letter a and the teaching of John changes dramatically:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.” NWT John 1:1
The letter a is not found in the Greek and there is nothing in the Greek that would even allow for the addition of this letter. It is strictly added so they can push their doctrine that Jesus is not god, but a god created for the purposes of Jehovah.
They do the same thing in Colossians 1:16
For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
Paul says all things were created through Jesus, by Jesus, and for Jesus. He is the Creator and sustainer of all things. That directly contradicts the teachings of the Jehovah’s Witnesses that Jesus was a created being, and so the text in the NWT has to be changed and they add in the word other.
“because by means of him all other things were created in the heavens and on the earth, the things visible and the things invisible, whether they are thrones or lordships or governments or authorities. All other things have been created through him and for him.” NWT Col 1:16
I added the Bold and Italics to emphasize, but the text has clearly been changed, and changed for a clear purpose. To deny the deity of Jesus and to push their false doctrines. The word other is not found in any Greek manuscripts. At one time the church cared enough about Scripture and the world cared enough about truth that there was a lot of push back on this translation for the addition of the word other in this and many more instances. So much push back that in the 1960’s version of the NWT they put brackets around the word [other] to show that it was not in the original writings. By 1984 however, these brackets disappeared and have not returned. Now it looks like they are part of the text, even though the Witnesses themselves were forced to recognize they never belonged.
Now that we have seen the NWT for what it truly is a false translation that changes Scripture let’s move on to what they believe about God
God
God
JW’s Reject the Trinity
God the father is Jehovah and the only One true God
They believe, as their false translation tells them, that Jehovah is the only name for God.
No one before the 1500’s ever heard of that name, and very few believe it is a reasonable translation of God’s name, but this is where they are.
Jehovah created jesus as the first and greatest of His creation
It can’t be denied from Scripture that Jesus is seen as the creator and they would have to change far more passages than they have so far been able to, in order to omit His hand in things and so they say
He is a god in John 1 and that
Through Jesus all other things were made
as we saw in Colossians 1
Jesus is the Archangel Michael
The Bible’s answer Michael, referred to by some religions as “Saint Michael,” is evidently a name given to Jesus before and after his life on earth. ... Michael lives up to the meaning of his name—“Who Is Like God?”—by defending God’s rulership and fighting God’s enemies.—Daniel 12:1; Revelation 12:7. JW website - https://www.jw.org/en/search/?q=michael
Jehovah took the spirit of Jesus and through his power (what they call the Holy Spirit) transferred it to the Virgin Mary and she gave birth to Jesus
So in Heaven Jesus is a spirit creature the Archangel Michael and on earth he is Jesus
Hebrews 1 refutes both of these teachings
Of the angels he says, “He makes his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire.” But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.
Throughout this first chapter of Hebrews Jesus the Son is set in relationship to the Angels as greater, and in verse 7 they are directly compared.
Angels are ministers, servents, messengers. Powerful yes, but subservient to God. Whereas, the Son is called God whose throne is forever and ever. Jesus is not an Angel, He is the God of Angels.
This is a quote from Psalm 45 and a song speaking of God. The Author of Hebrews is declaring, Jesus is not an Angel, or a mere creation of God, but He is God.
The JW’s know this and that is why they change both the Psalm and this passage in Hebrews. They say in both that the Son sits in the throne of God who is forever. But the Hebrew and the Greek are both clear, the one who sits in the the throne is God Himself.
I will keep driving this home, because this is one of the clearest ways to reach out to those lost in this cult. They need to see Jesus is there God.
To refute these beliefs we can go to some direct passages and show that Scripture declares both Jesus and the Holy Spirit are God, and begin the work of helping them to see the truth of the Trinity.
John 8:58 is a passage I have used personally when helping to show a JW the truth of Jesus divinity
Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.
Jesus declares to the Jews, Ego Eimi, I Am, which is also the way the Greek translates the name of God Yaheweh in Exodus 3:14
John 8:58 - before Abraham was, I Am
πρὶν Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι ἐγὼ εἰμί.
Exodus 3:14 - God said to Moses, “I AM Who I AM”
θεὸς πρὸς Μωυσῆν λέγων Ἐγώ εἰμι
Jesus is using the name of God in John 8:58 and the Jews new it. That is why they picked up stones to stone Him. if the Witnesses are right and Jesus is not God and did not claim to be, then why did they seek to stone him. Because he thought he was older than Moses. There are only a few reasons for stoning allowed by the law.
Idolatry
Witchcraft
Certain Sexual sins
Blasphemy
Which of these fits into John 8? Only blasphemy. Jesus claimed to be God and the Jews knew it and they were prescribing what the law prescribed, they were going to stone Him.
The NWT does change this verse, so Jesus tells the Jews “I have been”, which makes no sense with the stoning that is attempted, and we can point that out, along with the Greek actually found here which is Ego Eimi, I AM.
Another verse that will do it, and that they have not changed in their translation yet, which means we can use their Bible to show the Jesus is God is in John 20:28-29
Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Thomas declares Jesus is his God, and rather than Jesus saying, as would be expected if the Witnesses were correct, no I am a god, but Jehovah is your god, instead Jesus commends him for his faith. Jesus goes so far as to say blessed are those who believe He is God and have never seen Him.
This is the starting point that can untangle all the mess of beliefs the Witnesses hold. If they can see Jesus is God the rest falls apart.
The Holy Spirit is seen as the personal force of Jehovah that Jesus grabbed a hold of to create all other things.
Another place we can take them in, both ours and in their own translation, to show from the Scriptures that the Holy Spirit is God is found in Acts 5:3-4
But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God.”
If you remember this story, it is when Ananias and his wife Sophira sold some property and donated some of the money to the church. They kept some back for themselves, which was fine, except they went around telling everyone they gave it all to the church. Peter calls them out on it in verse 3, and says you have not only lied to me and the church, but you have lied to the Holy Spirit. In the very next verse Peter goes on to say “You have not lied to man, but to God”
Peter declares plainly that the Holy Spirit is not some force or power of Jehovah, but is in all truth God. To lie to the Holy Spirit is to lie to God Peter says.
This can also lead to other conversations about how the Holy Spirit leads, comforts, convicts, and enlightens. These are actions of a personal being, not a force.
Resurrection, Atonement, and End Times
Resurrection, Atonement, and End Times
The cross is seen as a pagan symbol
You will not find them in their Kingdom Halls.
They wont even use the term church, because they believe it is pagan, so they have Kingdom halls.
JW’s believe Jesus was crucified on a stake and not a cross. They see the cross as a disrespectful and pagan remembrance of Jesus death.
It is not really a big deal, the Bible says He was hung on a tree, meaning the cross was made of wood and referencing the Old testament curse. Cursed is anyone who hangs on a tree.
The cross is what has been historically understood, but, stake or cross, either way the important part is that they agree He died.
The issue comes with the rejection of the meaning of His death and therefore losing the cross has lost them more than they know.
Upon death Jesus spirit was released and he returned to Heaven as a spirit creature, the Archangel Michael again.
They believe he can never take on the same body again, and so that is how they understand the confusion after jesus Resurrection
Mary did not recognize Jesus because He took on the body of a gardener
The apostles did not recognize the old fisherman by the lake in John 21 until the fish were caught and Peter jumps in and swims to shore.
The disciples on the road to Emmaus did not recognize Jesus, but it wasn’t, as the text says, because they were kept from recognizing him, but because he was in a different body.
All of these bodies were spirit alone.
After Jesus death he was spirit and not physical
This belief is directly contradicted by Scripture
As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate before them.
This passage is not changed in the NWT so you can have them follow along in their own Bibles as you read this.
Jesus declares He is not a spirit or ghost, but flesh and blood. He died flesh and blood and rose again, flesh and blood.
He even asks them for food to prove He is but a man.
A text we have already seen says much the same thing when Thomas, who was not here at this first appearance, says he will not believe until he puts his hands in Jesus side.
Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Jesus encourages Thomas to touch Him and see that He is real, physical, and that He was raised bodily
all of which contradicts the false teachings of the JW
Jesus Death and Resurrection is only capable of cleansing from original sin.
The cross is not enough.
It is only Adam’s sin that is paid for at the cross. All other sin must be atoned for through death. (WR&C 202-203)
Good works are necessary to achieve eternal life either on earth or in Heaven, depending on your faithfulness, but only death cleanses form sin.
The JW must work at obedience to the teachings of their leaders
They must keep themselves separate from the world.
This means up to 5 nights a week in some instances, learning and serving at the Kingdom Hall or involved in missionary activity.
It can mean up to 80 or more hours a week going door to door, holding watchtower studies, and studying their NWT.
There lives will be judged by God at the resurrection, but no one is guaranteed to reach eternal life.
This is a crushing way to live, without assurance and with no way of knowing whether you will have ever done enough to overcome your sin.
A text that we can take them too in this conversation is similar in both the ESV and the NWT
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The promise here is that Jesus is faithful, His death for sin once for all as Peter says in
For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit,
This death cleanses from all sin, all unrighteousness. There is nothing for us to earn and the promise holds true in John 6:39
And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.
All who place their trust in Jesus will be raised on the last day, because the salvation is His. He defeated sin, He cleanses from all unrighteousness, and He will raise us up in the last days.
The JW don’t know this assurance, when they come to the door we can give it too them.
Whether you believe in Jesus or not, whether you are a Jehovah Witness or not at death everyone is annihilated.
The soul goes back to the energy field that God creates from.
The soul is not a personal you, but the energy that kept your body alive
once your body does not need it, it goes back to Jehovah to be used for his own purposes.
Paul takes a lot o ftime in 2 Corinthians 5 to discuss the groaning for eternal life, that we endure int his world, but in his wording he directly refutes the claims of the JW.
Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
We, ourselves, can be away form the body. After death we go to the Lord, and await a new Body. Scripture is clear, we are not just body and power, but we are body and soul. Who we are stays the same even after we lose this body and gain another.
At the end of time, Jehovah will raise up those He chooses to with new bodies
The rest of humanity stays annihilated
There is no hell in Jehovah’s Witness theology
Only Heaven, earth, or annihilation
Even the devil is annihilated, not cast into hell.
Watchtower magazine from November 2014 says this about the defeat of Satan
Would you like to see the day when Satan no longer exists? You can. The Scriptures foretell a future time when the Devil, who misleads so many, will be “hurled into the lake of fire and sulfur.” (Revelation 20:10) Of course, physical fire and sulfur cannot harm an invisible spirit creature. Therefore, the lake of fire must represent eternal destruction. Satan will be gone forever. What a joyful time that will be for lovers of God!
and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
tormented forever and ever sounds a lot different than eternal destruction. Do you see how they just assume spirit creatures cannot be hurt. How do they know that. Are they saying God cannot create a fire and sulfur that hurts angels? The assumption is Annihilation or eternal destruction, but there is no proof to the claim, and no author to question. A clear reading of the text can be used to show the claims of eternal destruction and the wording of God’s Word, torment day and night forever and ever, are very different things.
There is not a lot of fruit in arguing about hell with them. They will leave if you push this issue to far, but just so we are clear. Scripture teaches of a Hell reserved for the devil, and all unbelievers.
Speaking of the judgment Jesus says some go on to eternal life but others do not.
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
There is torment reserved, Jesus says, for the Devil, his angels, and for will those outside of His grace at the end.
It is just word games by the JW that claim these passages mean annihilation.
Jesus does not return at the end of time
Jesus’ second coming happened already in 1914.
Which is a date that Russell claimed based on a faulty study of numbers in the Bible, and to make his numbers fit with 1914,Russell actually changed the fall of Jerusalem
Jews, Christians, Atheists, Historians all agree the fall of Jerusalem to Babylon occured in 586 BC
The Jehovah’s Witnesses and only the Jehovah’s Witnesses, claim it was actually in 606 BC because otherwise their return of Jesus scenario didn’t work.
Either way, Jesus return was not physical, but He is spiritually here on the earth and working through His one and only communicator to the world, the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen.
This a verse that can be used to point to the false view of an invisible coming of Christ. Jesus Himself declares every eye will see Him. Even the Witnesses own translation has not changed this verse. So when they come to the door you can point out their mistake here.
Jesus will never return physically to the earth, but remains in Heaven to be with the 144,000 who make it to that level of obedience.
Only 144,000 of all history actually make it to Heaven with Jesus
The rest of the followers of Jehovah are sent to live on the earth without Jesus
And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it,
Again the rest of us who think this is all in Russell’s head, are annihilated and will no nothing about any of this.
This is why you can quickly get on the no contact list, and never have Jehovah’s Witnesses come to your door, as I have found myself
They don;t believe in eternal torment, and so if you disagree with them enough they just go away and leave you to your annihilation.
This is certainly enough for one night. There is much more study that can be done and much more that I have not covered here, but this should give you enough to have a start at communicating the truth to those who come knocking at your door. Focus on Jesus. they do not have a Jesus that saves, because they do not have a Jesus that can save. Show them the truth, pray for them, and then leave it in God’s hands. I will end tonight with a short section on evangelism helps, but this is covered in your handout as well.
Evangelism helps
Evangelism helps
The goal with evangelizing the Jehovah’s Witnesses is to get them thinking. Get them considering what the Bible actually teaches, rather than what they have been told they must believe. This is why I have included Scriptures throughout the discussion tonight. Remember leaving this cult will cost them family, friends, and the community they may have grown up in. It is not an easy decision, but if we can show them what God has actually said in His Word, it may be the catalyst He uses to give them the courage to stand with Him opposed to the lies they have been taught.
Some passages to use when they are standing at your door.
“You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me.
I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he.
As we mentioned above this is Jesus claiming to be Yahweh the LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a direct quote showing Jesus considered Himself and declared publicly, He was God. This is also another passage you can take the Witness at your door to and show them form their own translation of the Bible, that Jesus is God, not a god as they are told to believe.
Jehovah does not share his glory with anyone else, but Jesus shares his glory.
Isaiah 42:8 (NWT): “I am Jehovah. That is my name; I give my glory to no one else...” (also 48:11).
John 17:1, 5 (NWT): 1 Jesus spoke these things, and raising his eyes to heaven, he said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your son so that your son may glorify you.” . . . So now, Father, glorify me at your side with the glory that I had alongside you before the world was” (also John 8:54; 16:13-14; Heb. 5:5; Rev. 5:13).
Jehovah is the only Savior, but Jesus is also referred to as the Savior.
Isaiah 43:11 (NWT): "I—I am Jehovah and besides me there is no savior” (also 45:21).
Titus 1:4 (NWT): “May you have undeserved kindness and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior” (also Luke 2:11; Acts 13:23).
Jehovah is referred to as “the Alpha and the Omega,” “the first and the last,” and “the beginning and the end” in Revelation, but Jesus claims these titles for himself.
Revelation 1:8 (NWT): “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says Jehovah God, “the One who is and who was and who is coming, the Almighty”; 21:6-7 (NWT): “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To anyone thirsting I will give from the spring of the water of life free. Anyone conquering will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be my son."
Revelation 1:17-18 (NWT): “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last, and the living one, and I became dead, but look! I am living forever and ever, and I have the keys of death and of the Grave” (also 2:8); 22:12-13 (NWT): “Look! I am coming quickly, and the reward I give is with me, to repay each one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
Questions to ask when the Jehovah’s Witnesses are at your door from Christian Ministries International - https://www.christianministriesintl.org/
The following questions can be asked to highlight the fact that Jesus is fully God and a member of the Triune Godhead, the Trinity. JW’s claim that Jesus is simply ‘a god’, a created being. Ask them, “How can the Word be ‘a god’ (John 1:1) if there are no gods together with Jehovah, as Deuteronomy 32:39 says?”
JW’s claim that Jesus is actually Michael the archangel, the first creation of God. If so, “Why does Michael not dare to bring a judgment against Satan, but instead says, ‘May Jehovah rebuke you’ (Jude 9); yet in Matthew 4:10 Jesus rebukes Satan directly himself?”
JW’s claim that Jesus is ‘a god’ and the first creation of Jehovah, who created all other things (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16). If that is the case, “Why does Jehovah say in Isaiah 44:24 that He created the heavens and the earth by Himself and then questions, ‘Who was with me?’”
JW’s claim that Jehovah alone is God. Ask them, “If Jehovah alone is God, why then does Jesus not condemn Thomas for blasphemy when after the resurrection he calls Jesus, ‘My Lord and my God!’ (John 20:28-29)?”
JW’s affirm the numerous statements in Scripture declaring Jehovah God to be the ‘First and the Last’ (ex. Isaiah 44:6). An interesting question to ask them is, “When did the First and the Last, Jehovah God, die (Revelation 1:17-18)?”
Some Helpful Books on the Subject of the trinity.
Forgotten Trinity - James White
Delighting in the Trinity - Michael Reeves
The Deep Things of God: How the Trinity Changes Everything - Fred Sanders
Some websites for more information.
https://g3min.org/evangelize-jehovahs-witnesses/
https://www.str.org/w/witnessing-to-jehovah-s-witnesses-part-1
https://www.reformation21.org/blog/a-simple-way-to-speak-to-jehovahs-witnesses
https://www.christianministriesintl.org/quick-tips-witnessing-to-a-jehovahs-witness/
Videos and Debates
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pw6xBm91zMQ&t=3729s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L44P8GW94vA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Mr-Q1mRkUc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-L3IoUq-fk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJG1Ahziptc