The Watchtower Society At Our Doors

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Webers_Home

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For a home-spun religion whose origin is relatively recent, the Watchtower
Society has done pretty well for itself. Beginning with one man shortly after
the American Civil War, it currently numbers approximately 8.2 million
active members spread out in approximately 118,000 congregations
worldwide. (Congregations have been displaced and consolidated in recent
years due to the Society liquidating a number of Kingdom Halls in order to
settle its legal obligations.)

My first encounter with a Watchtower Society missionary (a.k.a. Jehovah's
Witness) occurred in 1969. At the time I was young and inexperienced; and
thus assumed that the hewer of wood, and hauler of water coming down my
dad's driveway was a typical Christian.

But when I talked this over with an elder; he became alarmed; and urged
me to read a little book titled "30 Years A Watchtower Slave" by William J.
Schnell; whom the Society at one time demonized as an agent of Satan. I
would not be surprised if it still does.

After getting my eyes opened by Mr. Schnell's book, I was afterwards
steered towards another book titled "Kingdom Of The Cults" by Walter
Martin. No doubt the Society demonizes Mr. Martin too.

Around late 1980, my wife and I attended a series of lectures sponsored by
a local church titled "How To Witness To Jehovah's Witnesses". The speaker
(call him Pete) was an ex Witness who had been in the Watchtower Society
system for near three decades and was an area manager before terminating
his association with the Society; so he knew the twists and turns of its
doctrines pretty good.

Later on, I read a book titled "Why I Left The Jehovah's Witnesses" by Ted
Dencher. I also read the Society's little brown book titled "Reasoning From
The Scriptures".

From all that vetting, study, and training I quickly discovered that although
the Watchtower Society uses many of classical Christianity's standard terms
and phrases, those terms and phrases mean something entirely different in
the Witness mind than what you'd expect because the Society has re-defined
the meanings of those terminologies.

So your first challenge with Watchtower Society teachings is to scale the
language barrier. That by itself is an Herculean task because you'll not only
be up against a tangle of semantics, but also a Jumanji of twisted scriptures,
double speak, humanistic reasoning, rationalizing, and clever sophistry.
_
 
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amadeus

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@Mister Michael
Just in case you are interested. Questions should be addressed to the writer of the OP.

.
For a home-spun religion whose origin is relatively recent, the Watchtower
Society has done pretty well for itself. Beginning with one man shortly after
the American Civil War, it currently numbers approximately 8.2 million
followers spread out in approximately 118,000 congregations worldwide.

My first encounter with a Watchtower Society missionary (a.k.a. Jehovah's
Witness) occurred in 1969. At the time I was young and inexperienced; and
thus assumed that the hewer of wood, and hauler of water coming down my
dad's driveway was a typical Christian.

But when I talked this over with an elder; he became alarmed; and urged
me to read a little book titled "30 Years A Watchtower Slave" by William J.
Schnell; whom the Society at one time demonized as an agent of Satan. I
would not be surprised if it still does.

After getting my eyes opened by Mr. Schnell's book, I was afterwards
steered towards another book titled "Kingdom Of The Cults" by Walter
Martin. No doubt the Society demonizes Mr. Martin too.

Around late 1980, my wife and I attended a series of lectures sponsored by
a local church titled "How To Witness To Jehovah's Witnesses". The speaker
(call him Pete) was an ex Witness who had been in the Watchtower Society
system for near three decades and was an area manager before terminating
his association with the Society; so he knew the twists and turns of its
doctrines pretty good.

Later on, I read a book titled "Why I Left The Jehovah's Witnesses" by Ted
Dencher. I also read and studied the Society's little brown book titled
"Reasoning From The Scriptures".

From all that vetting, study, and training I quickly discovered that although
the Watchtower Society uses many of classical Christianity's standard terms
and phrases, those terms and phrases mean something entirely different in
the Witness mind than what you'd expect because the Society has re-defined
the meanings of those terminologies.

So your first challenge in coping with the Watchtower Society is to scale the
language barrier. That by itself is an Herculean task because you'll not only
be up against a tangle of semantics, but also a Jumanji of twisted scriptures,
double speak, humanistic reasoning, rationalizing, and clever sophistry.
_
 

Jane_Doe22

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But when I talked this over with an elder; he became alarmed; and urged
me to read a little book titled "30 Years A Watchtower Slave" by William J.
Schnell; whom the Society at one time demonized as an agent of Satan. I
would not be surprised if it still does.

After getting my eyes opened by Mr. Schnell's book, I was afterwards
steered towards another book titled "Kingdom Of The Cults" by Walter
Martin. No doubt the Society demonizes Mr. Martin too.

I am no fan of general JW
doctrines or culture, a fact that I've made quite clear on this forum. I'm a advocate for letting people explain their own beliefs, and hence visit many other churches. I've told how my visits to JW services and talking with their missionaries ended disastrously. Like I said, I am not a fan.

That being said, Martin's and Schnell's books are extremely inaccurate junk. I would not recommend that miseducation to anyone.

So your first challenge in coping with the Watchtower Society is to scale the language barrier.

NO.

The first challenge of evangelizing anyone is showing them that you honestly care about them. You must first establish that you care, else even preaching with the tongue of angels is just clanking brass.
 

Enoch111

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For a home-spun religion whose origin is relatively recent, the Watchtower Society has done pretty well for itself.
It would appear that all the cults flourish while there is tremendous resistance to the truth and the true Gospel. Which again confirms that Satan is indeed "the god of this world".
 

Webers_Home

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Raymond Victor Franz was a member of the Governing Body of Jehovah's
Witnesses from October 20, 1971 until his removal on May 22, 1980, and
served at the organization's world headquarters for fifteen years, from 1965
until 1980.

Mr. Franz resigned, and stated that the request for his resignation, and his
subsequent dis-fellowshipping, resulted from allegations of apostasy.

Following his departure, Mr. Franz wrote a book titled "Crisis Of Conscience"
relating his personal experiences with the Watchtower Bible and Tract
Society, and his views on Jehovah's Witness teachings. It's a bit expensive in
print form, but as of the date of this writing could be heard audibly for free
on YouTube and/or as a free pdf download.

Mr. Franz's book, and his interviews, are helpful aids for people wondering if
they made the right decision leaving the Society's fold. It's also helpful for
people thinking about becoming a Jehovah's Witness but not too sure
whether they'd be making a really big, life-changing mistake not easily
corrected.
_
 
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Jane_Doe22

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If you want to teach someone the Truth, focus on showing that Truth/love yourself and teaching Truth.
"Exposing" another belief system doesn't teach Truth, rather it just turns people against that "exposed" belief system and most commonly in atheists.
 

Webers_Home

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The first challenge of evangelizing anyone is showing them that you honestly
care about them.

Should someone decide to go head to head with Watchtower Society
missionaries, here's some useful tips passed on by Pete, the ex Jehovah's
Witness mentioned in post No.1

1• Round up a copy of the Watchtower Society's New World Translation of
the Bible, and its Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures.
Sometimes these are available in thrift stores like Good Will and Salvation
Army. Both are available online from amazon dot com.

For some useful insights into a variety of Jehovah's Witness teachings, the
little brown book titled Reasoning From The Scriptures is a must-have. It's
available online too. Be sure to get the Watchtower Society's version instead
of another book by the same name authored by a different agency.

2• Do not let these people get personal with you. You must never ever
assume they are your friends because first and foremost their primary
interest is in making you a life-long slave to the Watchtower Society. You
can be courteous and you can be civil, but it's highly recommended that you
not let them into your life.

3• Do not accept their literature. They will want to come back later and
discuss it with you; thus taking control of both your thinking and the
meeting.

4• Don't let them get too far into their spiel, but at the first opportunity
begin introducing your own questions; thus denying them complete control
of the conversation.

5• Do not debate. You're not a salesman pushing a product, nor a recruiter,
nor a candidate running for an elected office: you're not on a quota, you're
not out to win anything, nor are you required to win-- you're a herald; viz: a
messenger. Your information is best presented as a second opinion for them
to think about; and that's all. No hammering and no pressuring.

The goal is to show missionaries that the Society's isn't the only expert
opinion out there. In other words: the Watchtower Society's interpretations
aren't the only option; nor are theirs eo ipso the right interpretations just
because the Governing Body says so.

6• Avoid getting embroiled in trivial issues like birthdays, Easter, Christmas,
Christmas trees, the design and construction of the wooden device upon
which Christ was crucified, saluting the flag, service in the military, and that
sort of thing. There are much bigger fish to fry than those.

The No.1 issue on their minds when they come to your door will likely be
Jehovah's kingdom, in particular, the portion of His kingdom to be on Earth.

7• Make them listen and pay attention to what you say even if you have to
repeat yourself to do it, or clap your hands, snap your fingers, or raise your
voice. Do not let them digress, change the subject, go off on a tangent, nor
get distracted and/or turn their attention elsewhere while you're speaking. If
they start digging through their bags, shuffling papers, tinkering with their
tablets, or looking up a reference; call them on it because there is no use in
speaking when their minds are elsewhere occupied.

8• Do not permit them to interrupt you and/or talk out of turn. Politely, but
firmly, insist that they hold their peace until you've said your piece.

9• Do not permit them to evade and/or circumvent difficult questions. They
sometimes say that they will have to confer with someone more
knowledgeable. When they do that, the meeting is over. Thank them politely
for their time and then ask them to leave and come back when they have
the information. Do not let them stay and start a new topic of their own.

10• Do not react and/or respond to ad hominems, which can be defined as a
logical fallacy in which an argument is rebutted by attacking the character,
motive, or other attribute of the person making the argument, or persons
associated with the argument, rather than attacking the substance of the
argument itself.

11• These people undergo hour upon hour of training to refute standard
Christian doctrines, so it's very important to show them the Bible not in
ways they've already seen, but in ways they've never imagined.

It is my personal opinion that it's not a good idea to attempt to evangelize a
Watchtower missionary as I can just about guarantee that most experienced
JWs are better at evangelizing you than you are them. If you think that your
own gospel message is some sort of silver bullet; you'll find out right quick
that their silver bullets are bigger than yours.
_
 
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Jane_Doe22

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Should someone decide to go head to head with Watchtower Society
missionaries, here's some useful tips passed on by Pete, the ex Jehovah's
Witness mentioned in post No.1

1• Do not let these people get personal with you. You must never ever
assume they are your friends because first and foremost, these people are
predatory recruiters. Their primary interest is in making you a life-long slave
to the Watchtower Society.

2• Never accept their literature. They will want to come back later and
discuss it with you; thus taking control of the meeting.

3• Don't give them a chance to launch into their spiel, but immediately begin
introducing your own questions; thus denying them control of the
conversation.

4• Do not debate. You're not a salesman pushing a product, nor a recruiter,
nor a candidate running for an elected office: you're not out to win
anything-- you're a herald; viz: a messenger; that's all. The goal is to show
missionaries that the Society's isn't the only expert opinion out there. In
other words: the Watchtower Society's interpretations aren't the only option;
nor are theirs eo ipso the right interpretations just because the Governing
Body says so.

5• Do not get embroiled in trivial issues like birthdays, Easter, Christmas,
Christmas trees, blood transfusions, the design of the wooden device upon
which Christ was crucified, saluting the flag, service in the military, and that
sort of thing. There are much bigger fish to fry than those.

6• Force them to listen and pay attention to what you say even if you have
to repeat yourself to do it, or clap your hands, snap your fingers, or raise
your voice. Do not let them digress, change the subject, go off on a tangent,
nor get distracted and/or turn their attention elsewhere while you're
speaking. If they start digging through their bags, shuffling papers, or
looking up a reference; call them on it because that is a very rude thing to
do when people are speaking.

7• Do not permit them to interrupt you and/or talk out of turn. Politely, but
firmly, insist that they remain silent until you are finished speaking.
_
With all due respect, if you want to have the JW missionaries walk away thinking you don't remotely know Christ, that is a great recipe to follow: de-humanize them, dominate the conversation, obviously refuse to listen them, and attempt to force them to listen to you.

If you want to share Christ with them, follow Paul's guidance in 1 Corinthians 13:1.
 
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Webers_Home

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THE WORD

The Watchtower Society will never accept classical Christianity's teaching
that Jesus Christ is Jehovah incognito simply because the Society's undying
premise is that it is impossible for someone to exist as a spirit being and a
human being simultaneously.

According to the premise: Jehovah's spirit existence would have to be
terminated before He could become a human existence; and I can easily
guarantee that nobody is ever going to convince the Society otherwise
unless they first prove that the Word of John 1:1-4 is impervious to death.
In other words; in order to prove to the Society that it's possible for a spirit
being to exist as a human being simultaneously, it is necessary to prove to
the Society that the Word is an everlasting life; which is a kind of life that
cannot die. Fortunately it's very easy to do because the apostle John did that
part for us in his first epistle.

1John 1:1-2 . .That which was from the beginning, which we have heard,
which we have seen with our eyes, which we have viewed attentively and
our hands felt, concerning the word of life, (yes, the life was made manifest,
and we have seen and are bearing witness and reporting to you the
everlasting life which was with the Father and was made manifest to us,)

The Greek word for "everlasting" in that passage is aionios (ahee-o'-nee-os)
which essentially means perpetual; viz: without interruption.

The Word's human existence as per John 1:14 was as a mortal life and thus
easily interrupted; but seeing as how the Word's spirit existence as per
1John 1:1-2 is an everlasting life, then it's impossible for the Word's spirit
existence to be interrupted.

Jehovah cannot interrupt His existence as God because Jehovah is an
everlasting life (Gen 21:33, Rom 16:26). In the same manner, the Word
cannot interrupt his existence as the Word because the Word is an
everlasting life too. (John 5:26, 1John 1:1-2)

The Word may have temporarily divested himself of his glory when he came
to the earth to live and die as a human being, but he did not, and could not,
divest himself of his spirit existence because in order to do that, he would
have to die; which is an impossibility for everlasting life. If that were not so,
then it would be possible to assassinate Jehovah. In point of fact, it would
even be possible for Jehovah to commit suicide.


NOTE: According to chapter 1, verse 1, of John's gospel, the Word is a god.
Well; seeing as how the Word is an everlasting life, then he's obviously an
everlasting god too; viz: the Watchtower Society's religion has two
everlasting gods in it, and both of those everlasting gods are credited with
the creation of the cosmos with all of its forms of life, matter, and energy.

Precisely how an everlasting creator can exist simultaneously as a created
thing is one of the mysteries of classical Christianity that has to be taken on
faith rather than reason because the 3-pound lump of fatty, flabby organic
tissue housed in a man's bony little skull, and sufficing for a mind, is just too
limited to get it; and not even all three of those pounds are devoted to
cognitive processes.
_
 
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Webers_Home

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CHRIST'S RESURRECTION

Were John Q and/or Jane Doe Watchtower Society missionary to be asked if
they believe that Jesus Christ rose from the dead, I can assure you they
would answer in the affirmative. However, what you may not know is that
you and they would not be speaking the same language as the conversation
would be talking about two very different processes that go by the same
name. In other words: you would find yourself thrown off by semantic
double speak.

The classical Christian understanding of Christ's resurrection is common
throughout the gospels; viz: his dead, crucified body was restored to life as
per John 2:19-22.

"Jesus said to them: Break down this temple, and in three days I will raise it
up. Therefore the Jews said: This temple was built in forty-six years, and will
you raise it up in three days? But he was talking about the temple of his
body. When, though, he was raised up from the dead, his disciples called to
mind that he used to say this; and they believed the Scripture and the
saying that Jesus said."

You see, if Jesus' dead, crucified body had not been restored to life, that
entire passage would be easily proven false. But according to the
Watchtower Society's way of seeing things; Christ's dead, crucified body
didn't return to life at all; and here's why.

In Watchtower Society theology, an angel named Michael volunteered to
come to the earth to die for humanity's sins. But in order to do so; he had to
relinquish his angel existence to become a human existence seeing as how
in Society theology it is impossible for someone to exist as a spirit being and
a human being simultaneously. However, when Michael expired, he didn't go
completely out of existence. Instead, his "life force" remained intact and was
transferred to a human form.

"the transferal of the life of his firstborn Son from the spirit realm to earth.
Only in this way could the child eventually born have retained identity as the
same person who had resided in heaven as the Word." (Aid to Bible
Understanding, 1971, p.920)

"He had to become a perfect man and yet not lose his continuity of life. His
life-force was not to be extinguished but would be transferred to the ovum
of the virgin girl, Mary." (Watchtower magazine, 2-15-82, p.7)

But Michael's existence as a human being was only temporary. When his
human form passed away on the cross, the Society claims that God
transferred Michael's life force back into his angel form thus restoring him to
his former spirit existence; leaving the corpse of his human existence in a
permanent state of decease.


NOTE: The Society teaches that death terminates existence; but apparently
not entirely because the Society also believes that at death, an angel's life
force was transferred to another form-- in Michael's case, from a spirit form
to an organic form; in effect, preserving a portion of Michael's existence so it
could be re-transferred later when God went about restoring Michael to his
former existence.

It could be argued that Jesus lives on in the body of an angel; but that
wouldn't be true seeing as how Jesus' life force was Michael's to begin with.

The Society has to accept the obvious fact that their doctrine implies that
Jesus Christ was never really fully human, rather, he was an amalgam of
angel and human seeing as how it was the life force of an angel that kept
Jesus' human body alive.

In other words: the Society's Jesus wasn't an organic man in the normal
sense, rather; he was an organic angel; because when you get right down to
it; the nature of one's life force is what determines the nature of their
existence. That's easily seen in the very first chapter of Genesis wherein all
the various creatures were given a life force pertinent to the nature of their
species.


FYI: The Society maintains that Michael's crucified human form had to stay
dead so he could be an angel again. But that's not the only reason the
Society gives for keeping Michael's human remains perpetually deceased. An
additional explanation is given on page 237 of the April 15, 1963 issue of the
Watchtower magazine; where it's stated:

"If Jesus were to take his body of flesh, blood, and bones to heaven and
enjoy them there, what would this mean? It would mean that there would be
no resurrection of the dead for anybody. Why not? Because Jesus would be
taking his sacrifice off God's altar."

There is a really, really big flaw in the Society's theology; and that's
Michael's human remains. In order to confirm that his crucified human body
stayed dead, the Society is going to have produce it. A piece of evidence of
that significance can't be allowed to just slip through a crack unnoticed as if
it makes no difference. As Carl Sagan once said: Extraordinary claims
require extraordinary evidence.
_
 
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Nancy

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CHRIST'S RESURRECTION

Were John Q and/or Jane Doe Watchtower Society missionary to be asked if
they believe that Jesus Christ rose from the dead, I can assure you they
would answer in the affirmative. However, what you may not know is that
you and they would not be speaking the same language as the conversation
would be talking about two very different processes that go by the same
name. In other words: you would find yourself thrown off by semantic
double speak.

The classical Christian understanding of Christ's resurrection is common
throughout the gospels; viz: his dead, crucified body was restored to life as
per John 2:19-22.

"Jesus said to them: Break down this temple, and in three days I will raise it
up. Therefore the Jews said: This temple was built in forty-six years, and will
you raise it up in three days? But he was talking about the temple of his
body. When, though, he was raised up from the dead, his disciples called to
mind that he used to say this; and they believed the Scripture and the
saying that Jesus said."

You see, if Jesus' dead, crucified body had not been restored to life, that
entire passage would be easily proven false. But according to the
Watchtower Society's way of seeing things; Christ's dead, crucified body
didn't return to life at all; and here's why.

In Watchtower Society theology, an angel named Michael volunteered to
come to the earth to die for humanity's sins. But in order to do so; he had to
relinquish his angel existence to become a human existence seeing as how
in Society theology it is impossible for someone to exist as a spirit being and
a human being simultaneously. However, when Michael expired, he didn't go
completely out of existence. Instead, his "life force" remained intact and was
transferred to a human form.

"the transferal of the life of his firstborn Son from the spirit realm to earth.
Only in this way could the child eventually born have retained identity as the
same person who had resided in heaven as the Word." (Aid to Bible
Understanding, 1971, p.920)

"He had to become a perfect man and yet not lose his continuity of life. His
life-force was not to be extinguished but would be transferred to the ovum
of the virgin girl, Mary." (Watchtower magazine, 2-15-82, p.7)

But Michael's existence as a human being was only temporary. When his
human form passed away on the cross, the Society claims that God
transferred Michael's life force back into his angel form thus restoring him to
his former spirit existence; leaving the corpse of his human existence in a
permanent state of decease.


NOTE: The Society teaches that death terminates existence; but apparently
not entirely because the Society also believes that at death, an angel's life
force was transferred to another form-- in Michael's case, from a spirit form
to an organic form; in effect, preserving a portion of Michael's existence so it
could be re-transferred later when God went about restoring Michael to his
former existence.

It could be argued that Jesus lives on in the body of an angel; but that
wouldn't be true seeing as how Jesus' life force was Michael's to begin with.

The Society has to accept the obvious fact that their doctrine implies that
Jesus Christ was never really fully human, rather, he was an amalgam of
angel and human seeing as how it was the life force of an angel that kept
Jesus' human body alive.

In other words: the Society's Jesus wasn't an organic man in the normal
sense, rather; he was an organic angel; because when you get right down to
it; the nature of one's life force is what determines the nature of their
existence. That's easily seen in the very first chapter of Genesis wherein all
the various creatures were given a life force pertinent to the nature of their
species.


FYI: The Society maintains that Michael's crucified human form had to stay
dead so he could be an angel again. But that's not the only reason the
Society gives for keeping Michael's human remains perpetually deceased. An
additional explanation is given on page 237 of the April 15, 1963 issue of the
Watchtower magazine; where it's stated:

"If Jesus were to take his body of flesh, blood, and bones to heaven and
enjoy them there, what would this mean? It would mean that there would be
no resurrection of the dead for anybody. Why not? Because Jesus would be
taking his sacrifice off God's altar."

There is a really, really big flaw in the Society's theology; and that's
Michael's human remains. In order to confirm that his crucified human body
stayed dead, the Society is going to have produce it. A piece of evidence of
that significance can't be allowed to just slip through a crack unnoticed as if
it makes no difference. As Carl Sagan once said: Extraordinary claims
require extraordinary evidence.
I think one would have to be quite the spiritual contortionist to believe ANY of that stuff. Wow...so, an angel dies for humans but, not for angels... :rolleyes: God requires PERFECTION, an angel is NOT PERFECT and NOT HUMAN. Jesus HAD to be God as He WAS perfect and from eternity past. God can and does do ANYTHING He wants. I just makes sense that Jesus was 100% human and 100% God. The atonement was for sins and COULD ONLY come from God Himself. Why is it so difficult to understand an Omnipotent God could send His own self/essence to pay for our sins? Jesus is the same from forever...the Arc Angel Michael is a CREATED being and imperfect so...HOW could he atone for HUMANS?? Oh, I know-he can't!
Good post!
 

Webers_Home

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THE IN CROWD

Rom 8:9 . .You are in harmony, not with the flesh, but with the spirit, if
God’s spirit truly dwells in you.


NOTE: The Watchtower Society does not acknowledge God's spirit as a
sentient being, rather:

"The holy spirit is the active force of God. It is not a person but is a powerful
force that God causes to emanate from himself to accomplish his holy will."
(Reasoning From The Scriptures, p. 381)

I highly recommend avoiding debate with JWs over the personage of God's
spirit because they will match you scripture for scripture and you're likely to
just end up going round and round in circles and never get to the bottom of
anything.


Anyway; Rom 8:9 informs the Watchtower Society's elite class of 144,000
anointed Witnesses that they are in harmony with God's spirit; seeing as
how it's alleged that the anointed class has God's sprit truly dwelling in
them.

At the same time; it informs the non-anointed class of Witnesses that they
are in harmony, not with God's spirit, but with the flesh; and that is not a
good thing seeing as they that are in harmony with the flesh are Jehovah's
adversaries; unwilling to either please Him or comply with His wishes. If
John Q and Jane Doe non-anointed Witness don't know this; then all I can
say is: they've got some catching up to do.

Rom 8:8 . . So those who are in harmony with the flesh cannot please
God.

There's more.

1John 2:26-27 . .These things I write you about those who are trying to
mislead you. And as for you, the anointing that you received from him
remains in you, and you do not need anyone to be teaching you; but, as the
anointing from him is teaching you about all things, and is true and is no lie,
and just as it has taught you, remain in union with him.

In a nutshell: the anointed class is allegedly able to remain in union with
Christ on their own by means of the one-on-one spiritual guidance that the
anointing provides them. Seeing as how the non-anointed class doesn't have
access to either the anointing or the anointing's one-on-one spiritual
guidance; they therefore are incapable of remaining in union with Christ on
their own.

That, coupled with their resistance to God as per Rom 8:8, leaves John Q
and Jane Doe non-anointed Witness in a defenseless spiritual condition; vz:
they are susceptible to deception by means of clever sophistry, semantic
double speak, and humanistic reasoning.

There's more yet:

Non anointed Witnesses sincerely believe they don't need the anointing
because they obtain their spiritual instruction from anointed leaders.
However, according to 1Cor 2:12-14, non anointed Witnesses will neither
listen to, nor accept, instruction from an anointed teacher because a physical
man does not receive the things of the spirit of God, for they are foolishness
to him; and he cannot get to know them, because they are examined
spiritually.


FYI: "physical man" (a.k.a. natural man) is the Bible's terminology for non
anointed people. Here's the way that non anointed people are described with
language from a classical version of the Bible.

"We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God,
that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we
speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the
Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the
Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they
are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are
spiritually discerned."

Therefore; if non anointed Witness are receiving and accepting spiritual
instruction from their leaders, it's only because their leaders are just as non
anointed as they are, i.e. it is an actual, real-life case of the blind leading the
blind.

_
 
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Jane_Doe22

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Were John Q and/or Jane Doe Watchtower Society missionary to be asked if...
_
If
John Q and Jane Doe non-anointed Witness don't know this....
_

I appreciate your intentions here @Webers_Home , but I assure you I am vey capable of investigating JW beliefs straight from JW, and have done so. I know you mean well here, but it's really not needed and it's rubbing me the wrong way.
 
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Webers_Home

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THE IN CROWD AND THE MEDIATOR

1Tim 2:5 . . For there is one God, and one mediator between God and
men, a man, Christ Jesus.

On page 1129 of the Watchtower publication Aid To Bible Understanding a
mediator is defined as one who interposes between two parties at variance
to reconcile them: an intercessor.

Here's a question that someone wrote in to the "Questions From Readers"
section of the April 01, 1976 issue of Watchtower magazine, asking:

Is Jesus the mediator only for anointed Christians? (a.k.a. the 144,000)

The answer given in the magazine is YES.

The magazine's answer is corroborated on page 1130 of Aid To Bible
Understanding
where it says that the 144,000 are the only ones who have
the mediator; a.k.a. Jesus Christ. (1John 2:1)

Intercession for non anointed Witnesses is accomplished on the coattails of
the 144,000; viz: Jesus Christ is an indirect, second party mediator for the
rank and file via their affiliation with the Watchtower Society.

It's sort of like buying insurance from Allstate. The company doesn't sell
direct; its business is conducted through brokers. In essence, that's what the
Society presumes itself: Jesus Christ's mediation brokerage.

So then; when a Jehovah's Witness either defects or is dis-fellowshipped, it
breaks the pipeline to the mediator that he enjoyed within the Society's fold;
and he right quick loses all contact with God; and finds himself in grave
danger of the Tribulation.

Bottom line: According to Watchtower Society theology; it is impossible for
non-anointed people to be on peaceful terms with God apart from affiliation
with the Society's anointed class, a.k.a. the faithful and wise steward.

In other words: Christ's mediation as per 1Tim 2:5 is accomplished via a
chain of communication that begins with Christ's association with the faithful
and wise steward; and from thence to the rest of humanity. Removing the
faithful and wise steward from the chain cuts humanity off from Christ; thus
leaving them with no way to reconcile with God.
_
 

Webers_Home

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[OTHER]

Below is the text of Col 1:16-17 quoted verbatim from the Watchtower
Society's New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures ©1969.

"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. Also, he is before
all [other] things and by means of him all [other] things were made to
exist."

Note that the word "other" is in brackets. This alert readers that "other" is
not in the Greek manuscript; viz: the Society's editors took the liberty to
pencil it in; which gives the impression that God's son was His first creation;
and thereafter, His son created everything else.

One day, a pair of Watchtower missionaries came to my door consisting of
an experienced worker and a trainee. I immediately began subjecting the
trainee to a line of questioning that homed in on the Society's rather
dishonest habit of penciling in words that go to reinforcing it's line of
thinking.

I had him read the Society's text of Col 1:16-17 and then pointed out that
the word "other" is in brackets to alert him to the fact that "other" is not in
the Greek manuscript. The experienced worker corroborated my statement.

I then proceeded to have the trainee read the passage sans "other". It
comes out like this:

"By means of him all 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 things have been
created through him and for him. Also, he is before all things and by means
of him all things were made to exist."

The trainee's eyes really lit up; and he actually grinned with delight to
discover that Col 1:16-17 reveals something quite different than what he
was led to believe.

Had I pressed the attack; I would have pointed out to the trainee that the
Society is inconsistent with its use of the word "other" by failing to pencil it
into John 1:3 in order to make it read like this:

"All [other] things came into existence through him, and apart from him not
even one [other] thing came into existence."

Now; as to tampering with Paul's letters, and forcing them to mean things
they don't say in writing; this is what Peter has to say about that.

2Pet 3:15-16 . . Furthermore, consider the patience of our Lord as
salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul according to the wisdom given
him also wrote you, speaking about these things as he does also in all his
letters. In them, however, are some things hard to understand, which the
untaught and unsteady are twisting, as they do also the rest of the
Scriptures, to their own destruction.

Untaught people are oftentimes self-taught; and were the Society's
missionaries to check into ol' Charles T. Russell's rather ignoble past; they'd
find that "self-taught" pretty much describes the origin of their theology.


NOTE: The 1984 revised version of the New World Translation omits
brackets around the word "other" in Col 1:16-17. However, it's readily seen
from the Watchtower Society's Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek
Scriptures that "other" is nowhere to be found in the Greek text.
_
 

Harvest 1874

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It is my personal opinion that it's not a good idea to attempt to evangelize a
Watchtower missionary as I can just about guarantee that most experienced
JWs are better at evangelizing you than you are them. If you think that your
own gospel message is some sort of silver bullet; you'll find out right quick
that their silver bullets are bigger than yours.
_

With this last I agree, generally when they go out in pairs door to door a more experienced witness accompanies a lesser trained individual. They not only know what they believe they know their scriptures, something which many professed believers assume they know likewise that is until they're put on the spot. Thus the reason to study, to prove all things that we might be prepare always to give a reason for the hope in us.

As a Bible Student I have had several experiences with JW's coming to the door. It is only polite to listen. If you were going door to door promoting your beliefs you would expect the same courtesy.

I have talked with several individuals, but as soon as I revealed that I was a Bible Student and a follower of the original teachings of Pastor Russell they kindly excused themselves and left. This is because the Watch Tower Society long ago under the leadership of Judge Rutherford who seized control of the organization after the death of Pastor Russell in 1916 immediately began to throw out all the writings of the Pastor and to replace them with his own. Sometime later in 1931 he finished purging the organization of all the rest of the original Bible Students and changed the name of the organization from the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society to the Jehovah's Witnesses.

Hence forth all Bible Students (that is those who adhere to the teachings of Pastor Russell) are considered apostates, the "evil slave class" spoken of in Matt 24:48, unfortunately a review of the history and policies of the JW organization under the leadership of the governing body would quickly reveal that they have it backwards.

JW's are cautioned about associating with Bible Students probably even more than the rest of the professing church.
 

Webers_Home

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Thus far, I've introduced a number of Watchtower Society doctrines; but
that's only because we're on an internet forum viewed by a global audience.
According to some of the ex JWs posting videos on YouTube, it's not a good
idea to introduce a number of topics all at once in discussions with JW teams
that come to our doors.

The ex JWs suggest specialization. In other words; restrict your discussions
to just one topic per visit; preferably a topic wherein you are very proficient
and really know your stuff. It's imperative that you know their stuff too so
you're fully prepared to counter their rebuttals intelligently and proficiently.
And above all; do not let teams evade your one topic by going off on a
tangent or changing the subject because you'll just end up frustrated and
accomplish nothing.

The goal is not to take the Watchtower Society down all at once; rather, to
chip away at it, i.e. start a crack in the dam, so to speak; a crack that over
time will widen by driving additional wedges into it until the dam fractures
enough to set the water behind it free. And besides; it's not a good idea to
give people too many new concepts to think about all at once because
they're not likely to absorb very much of anything like that.

Needless to say; Christian newbies should never attempt to go head to head
with Watchtower missionaries; not until they themselves have been properly
and sufficiently brought up to speed as per Eph 4:11-14.
_
 

Webers_Home

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THE FIRSTBORN

Col 1:15 . . He is the firstborn of all creation

The Watchtower Society has appropriated that verse as evidence that God's
son was the first thing created before everything else in the cosmos.

However, the New Testament Greek word for "firstborn" in that verse is
prototokos, which never means created first; no, it always means born first.
The correct Greek word for created first is protoktistos.

The average Watchtower Society missionary doesn't know the difference
between prototokos and protoktistos; and no doubt would care little about it
anyway. To some of them; born first and created first are essentially one
and the same.

But are they the same? No. Birthing requires a parent while creating
requires a craftsman. Birthing produces progeny while crafting produces
projects. God's son wasn't a project; no, he's God's progeny.

However; firstborn doesn't always refer to birth order. The term also refers
to pay grade, so to speak, and as such is transferrable from an elder to a
younger, e.g. Jacob and Esau (Gen 25:23) Manasseh and Ephraim (Gen
48:13-14) and Reuben and Joseph (Gen 49:3-4, 1Chr 5:1).

There was a time when David was God's firstborn (Ps 89:20-27). The
position was later transferred to one of David's sons (Dan 7:13-14, Ps
110:1, Matt 22:42-45, Phil 2:9-11). So for now and forever; neither
anything nor anybody is higher up on creation's chain of command than
Christ.

You'd think that the Jews' religious experts of Jesus' day would have known
about this.

Matt 22:41-46 . . Now while the Pharisees were gathered together Jesus
asked them: “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They
said to him: “David’s" He said to them: “How, then, is it that David by
inspiration calls him ‘Lord,’ saying, ‘Jehovah said to my Lord: “Sit at my right
hand until I put your enemies beneath your feet” ’? If, therefore, David calls
him ‘Lord,’ how is he his son?”

Jesus referred to Psalm 110:1, which reads like this in the NWT.

The utterance of Jehovah to my Lord is: “Sit at my right hand until I place
your enemies as a stool for your feet.”

The Hebrew word for "Lord" in that verse is 'adown (aw-done'); a very
common title of respect for one's superiors in the Old Testament. Sarah
revered her husband Abraham as 'adown (Gen 18:12) Rachel revered her
dad Laban as 'adown (Gen 31:5) and Jacob revered his brother Esau as
'adown (Gen 33:8). So then; Psalm 110:1 can be translated like this:

The utterance of Jehovah to my superior: "Sit at my right hand until I place
your enemies as a stool for your feet."

David is the paterfamilias of his own line of royalty, making him superior to
all of his male progeny; none of them outrank him, all are his subordinates.
But Ps 110:1 speaks of one of David's male progeny who somehow breaks
the rules; and the Jews' religious experts were utterly baffled by it.

Matt 22:46 . . And no one was able to answer him a word

The Jews' religious experts were no doubt aware, by means of their Old
Testament studies, that the rank of firstborn can be moved around among
siblings, but nobody even dreamed that a father's superiority could be taken
from him and given to one of his children, making that child the head of the
house over its parents.

This was something strange to their Jewish way of thinking; yet there it is in
black and white in their own scriptures. They had somehow failed to catch
the significance of Ps 110:1 until Jesus drew their attention to it.

Eph 1:20-21 . .It is according to the operation of the mightiness of his
strength, with which he has operated in the case of the Christ when he
raised him up from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the
heavenly places, far above every government and authority and power and
lordship and every name named, not only in this system of things, but also
in that to come.

Phil 2:8-11 . . God exalted him to a superior position and kindly gave him
the name that is above every other name, so that in the name of Jesus
every knee should bend of those in heaven and those on earth and those
under the ground, and every tongue should openly acknowledge that Jesus
Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Q: What is the name that is above every other name?

A: Jehovah

Q: Is that another reason why Jesus is superior to David?

A: Yes. Jesus has the God-given right to use Jehovah's name as his own
name; which allows him all the respect and reverence that the name
deserves; viz: failure to revere Jesus as Jehovah dishonors the name of God
the Father.
_
 
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