Jehovah's Witnesses
A thirteen-part in-depth teaching series that looks at what the Jehovah's Witnesses believe and teach and how as Christians we are to respond. Please click on the PDF links to read each article in full.
Part 1 - An Introduction to the Jehovah's Witnesses
As of 2023, there are approximately 8.8 million Jehovah’s Witnesses globally, spread across 239 countries. Between September 2022 and August 2023, 1.8 billion hours were spent in the field of service publishing the news of Jehovah’s Kingdom with an average of 7.3 million Bible studies being conducted each month. If you compare this with the average amount of hours spent in outreach by Evangelicals, it is shameful on the part of us who profess to have the truth. Concerning missionary zeal, one cannot fault Jehovah’s Witnesses for their witnessing endeavours – it’s in their DNA. What do they have to show for all of this effort? Last year saw just short of 270,000 people baptised into the dedication of Jehovah’s service. That’s just over a quarter of a million people, won over to a cult!
In this introductory teaching, we peel back the veneer of the exterior to uncover what Jehovah's Witnesses believe and teach.
Part 2 - A History of the Jehovah's Witnesses
As one traces the history of the beginnings of Jehovah’s Witnesses, two names are indispensable to the formation and development of this cult: Charles Taze Russell and his successor, Joseph Franklin Rutherford. In the 1830s, a Baptist minister from New York by the name of William Miller began sharing his new-found belief, that Jesus Christ was going to return around the year 1843. This belief began to gain momentum across denominations, and by 1840 it had become a nationwide campaign. This was the birth of what became known as Adventism and it was from this influence that the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society would emerge.
In this teaching, we examine the history of the Watch Tower cult from its beginnings until the present day. We review some of its teachings that have changed during this period and critique its peculiar version of the Bible, the New World Translation.
Part 3 - The Doctrine of the Trinity
Jehovah’s Witnesses, like all true Christians of every denomination, are monotheistic in their expression of belief. They, like us, believe in one eternal God. The point of divergence comes however when they maintain that the singular being of God is without a plurality of persons. The doctrine of the Trinity affirms that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society deny this truth and aggressively attacks this position in its written literature.
In this teaching, we take to task the literature of the Watch Tower and counter its heretical claims with Biblical truth. For Jehovah’s Witnesses, the name of God which it maintains is Jehovah is everything. But is His name Jehovah? Does history bear this out? How should the divine name of God (Tetragrammaton) be transliterated? What if, from the Watch Tower’s own Bible, one could prove that Jesus is Jehovah? We endeavour to answer all these questions, proving conclusively that Jesus Christ is God.
Whenever the doctrine of the Trinity comes under enemy fire, it is a direct assault upon the persons of the Godhead and thus a direct assault on God Himself. The Apostle John understood this when in his day he contended earnestly for the verity of the Christian faith against an early form of Gnosticism called Docetism. John shot it straight and made no bones, saying, “Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also” (1 Jn. 2:23). Meddle with the Son and you meddle with the Father; deny a cardinal tenet of Christ’s nature, and you lose the Father in the process! You cannot have it both ways and yet the irony is, the cults insist you can. Whether it be Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, or Christadelphians, each attack the deity of the Son of God, stripping Him of His eternal glory while at the same time insisting that they still have the Father! Concerning the person of Christ, Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that Jesus is a created spirit not differing in substance to an angel. They believe and teach that there was a time when the blessed Son of God was not!
In part 4 of this teaching series, we confront this error and present Biblical evidence proving the deity of Christ.
Part 5 - Is Jesus Michael the Archangel?
To deny the deity of Jesus Christ is to be left with a question of paramount importance that demands an answer. If Jesus is not God, then who is He? The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society have their answer to this question as do the Muslims and the New Agers. However, when one looks at the alternatives being offered, it becomes deplorable. Heretics think that by robbing Christ of His place in the Triune Godhead and stripping Him of His deity, they automatically disqualify themselves from needing to provide a rigorous argument for their claim. When one puts the question to Jehovah’s Witnesses, “Who was Jesus Christ before coming to earth” the answer that they will give is Michael the Archangel. In the absence of any meaningful biblical support, we shall weigh this claim against a mountain of evidence to the contrary and demonstrate that Jesus is none other than God.
Part 6 - The Bodily Resurrection of Jesus
The dictionary definition of the word resurrection is “the act of bringing someone back to life”. Resurrection is not resuscitation. When someone is resuscitated, they are brought back to life very soon after death. Resurrection, however, is bringing again to life after the person has been legally pronounced dead. In both cases, the bringing back to life involves a physical body. A resurrection without a body is nonsense. Imagine if when Lazarus was raised from the dead, one party claimed to see him alive while the women were seen carrying his corpse away. Rumours might well surface of seeing the "spirit" of Lazarus but everyone would agree, that Lazarus is dead since a resurrection requires a bringing again to life of the body. Jehovah's Witnesses have a bizarre dilemma facing them. On one hand, they teach that Jesus was raised from the dead, but on the other hand, they teach that Jehovah destroyed His body! Whatever spin one may desire to put on this, one is left with the same problem, a supposed resurrection without a body!
In this sixth teaching part, we examine the Watch Tower's teachings regarding Jesus's resurrection and compare them with what is taught in the Bible.
Part 7 - Did Jesus Return in 1914?
The long-anticipated event in the calendar of the Christian Church is not Christmas or Easter, but the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Paul writing to Titus, refers to this event as “…that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ” (Tit. 2:13). Peter refers to this day as “…the day of the Lord” (2 Pet. 3:10), while Jesus calls it “…that day” (Mt. 24:36). Whatever name one wishes to call it by, the fact that Jesus is coming again is the clear testimony of Holy Scripture. What if a group started teaching that Jesus had already come but no one saw Him? Would you believe it? How could you refute such a claim from the Word of God
Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that Jesus came spiritually in 1914. They claim it was an invisible coming despite Jesus stating that His coming would be in the clouds in great glory (Mt. 24:64). How does one get around such a clear statement as “ Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him” (Rev. 1:7)? We shall consider these questions along with others in this seventh teaching part.
Part 8 - The Person of the Holy Spirit
So far, the studies in this series have largely focused on the person of Jesus Christ. Whilst Jehovah’s Witnesses are monotheistic in belief, they are aggressively antitrinitarian in expression. They, like us, believe in one eternal God. The point of divergence comes however when they maintain that the singular being of God is without a plurality of persons. The doctrine of the Trinity affirms that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society denies this truth and attacks this position throughout its written literature.
The purpose of this teaching is to address the heresy of the Watch Tower as it relates to the person of the Holy Spirit. Jehovah’s Witnesses deny the person of the Holy Spirit and instead teach that the Holy Spirit is God’s active force. Journey with us as we examine this heresy in light of Biblical truth.
Part 9 - The Immortality of the Soul
When one begins collating the teachings of the Christian cults, it’s no coincidence that there are many shared common beliefs that the Church has long rejected as heretical. The doctrine in question in this ninth teaching part is no different. While it may not be on the same damnable par as the rejection of the Trinity, the deity of Jesus Christ or the personhood of the Holy Spirit; to deny the immortality of the soul is a false teaching and one that must be strongly repudiated. It should come as no surprise to learn that the Watch Tower along with its siblings – Seventh-day Adventists and Christadelphians, reject the belief in the immortality of the soul. What is surprising is that increasingly, Evangelicals are choosing to adopt the same position as the cults regarding this doctrine.
In this teaching, the doctrine of the immortality of the soul is defined and the beliefs of Jehovah’s Witnesses are examined and refuted from the Word of God.
Part 10 - The Doctrine of Hell
Jehovah’s Witnesses have long been a cult that has aggressively opposed the doctrine of hell, as can be seen in their literature and publications. Charles Taze Russell, the founder of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, was himself an ardent opponent of this doctrine, as has been every presiding president over Jehovah’s organisation since. Though beginning within the ranks of conservative orthodoxy, by the time Russell had outgrown his teens, he had left both Presbyterianism and Congregationalism because he could not reconcile the idea of a loving and merciful God sending billions to an eternal hell. To this day, after nearly a century and a half, Russell’s disciples continue to hold to his beliefs and teachings.
In this teaching, we examine the beliefs of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society as they relate to the doctrine of hell and contrast this with what the Bible teaches.
If one has ever been greeted by a Jehovah’s Witness at the door, after the short and brief courtesies of “Hello, my name is… etc.”, the conversation will inevitably begin with a question like; “What do you think of all the wars in the world today?” or, “Do you think the world is a nice place to live in with all the evil that is in it?”. These questions are leading and are designed to provoke a response of sympathy from the hearer. From this point on, the Witness at the door will proceed to tell of a coming kingdom of peace on earth where wars will cease, and death will be no more. For Jehovah’s Witnesses, Paradise Earth is what the Millennial will be for Christians, except for a few major differences. Firstly, Paradise Earth in Watch Tower eschatology is not restricted to a thousand years but is forever! Secondly, and more importantly, Jesus will be nowhere present on Paradise Earth, He will be in heaven with Jehovah and the angels, governing over the affairs of the earth with the 144,000! I have a question for Jehovah’s Witness: "How can paradise be paradise without Jesus being there?”. Furthermore, what about the new heaven and the new earth which the Bible speaks of, along with the new Jerusalem wherein shall dwell the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb forever, and the Saints shall come in through the city gates? These things along with more shall be the focus of this eleventh teaching part as the beliefs of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society are compared with the Bible.
Anyone who has had any interaction with a Jehovah’s Witness will know that it doesn’t take long for the topic of the 144,000 to arise. There is almost an obsession with this number. In sharing personal testimony with the Witness at the door of how one came to be a child of God by grace through faith – the adoption as children, the sealing of the Holy Spirit, the heavenly calling and the heavenly hope, one will discover upon the face of the Witness a look of pity. “Oh, they say, you’re talking about the 144,000, not the great crowd It’s the 140,000 who have the heavenly hope, the great crowd have only an earthly hope! Only 144,000 have been adopted as children. Theirs is the seal of the Holy Spirit, the heavenly calling, to them alone belongs the heavenly hope!” If one has never heard these sentiments expressed, one may be taken aback! “The great crowd? 144,000? I remember reading somewhere in Revelation about a great crowd that no man could number in Revelation Chapter 7. But if my memory serves me right, they were standing before the throne of God in heaven? If they have an earthly hope as you say, what are they doing in heaven? Regarding the 144,000; Revelation 7, says that they are literal Israelites and Revelation 14 that they are virgins. Are these the 144,000 that you refer to with the heavenly hope? I’m confused!!” In this teaching, all shall be revealed and brought into the light of God’s Word.
Part 13 - The Way of Salvation
Every cult without exception denies the doctrine of salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. Although they may utilise concepts such as grace and faith, what is written outside the box is never what’s inside. In the world of cults, grace becomes synonymous with payment because when everything has been said and done, the cult member is working to earn salvation. At the very best Jesus died on the cross to give mankind the possibility of obtaining salvation. He has merely opened the narrow gate but now it’s left to those who would obtain it to labour. It is for this reason that whether Jehovah’s Witness or Seventh-day Adventist; whether Mormon or Roman Catholic, when the question is put to them; “If you die tonight, do you have 100% assurance that you are saved”? The answer that one will be met with again and again is; “I can’t say for sure, it’s up to God”. With this one simple question and the answer returned, the futility of the cult's works-based system of salvation is revealed for what it is, vanity of vanities!!
There is a world of difference between what the Bible teaches about how a man is saved, and what the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society teaches. In this final teaching part, these differences shall be discovered and the way of truth exposed.
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