watchtower
The Watchtower’s Struggle with Being Born Again
April 1, 2009 Watchtower
I’ve read some past Watchtower magazine articles in an attempt to verify the Jehovah’s Witness teaching about what it means to be born again. I’ve found their teaching on this is truly inadequate. In discussions with Jehovah’s Witnesses, I’ve tried to explain the biblical meaning of born again in many ways. During our conversations, none of my questions regarding the shortcomings of their teaching have been answered.
I was excited when I discovered the April 1 Watchtower cover story was about being born again. I hoped that maybe the writers would attempt to fill in some of the gaps in the teaching. Unfortunately, this article is nothing more than a rehash of articles I’ve already read.
These are some of the questions that remain unanswered concerning the teaching:
- The non-144,000 JWs are not born again. 1 John 5:1 says that everyone who believes Jesus is the Messiah is born again. How can JWs not be born again, yet profess to believe that Jesus is the Messiah?
- The non-144,000 JWs are not considered children of God. I agree that unless you are born again, you are not a child of God. I don’t think the average JW knows that the Watchtower teaches that he or she isn’t a child of God. If they’re not children of God, whose children are they? I believe they remain children of the devil.
- If being born again means having been raised from spiritual death to spiritual life (Ephesians 2:1), and most JWs aren’t spiritually alive, they must still be spiritually dead. Does that not concern them?
- Jesus said that one will not see the kingdom of God unless he or she is born again (John 3:3). Wouldn’t the paradise earth that most JWs aspire to be considered part of the kingdom of God? They won’t even see paradise earth without being born again.
Every time I’ve tried to discuss this with a Jehovah’s Witness, he or she attempts to change the subject to why he or she is satisfied with paradise earth, and why only the 144,000 are born again. Those are interesting topics to discuss, but I’ve tried to keep the conversation on the topic at hand: If you’re not born again, what are you?
In the Bible, some Jews claimed to be children of God, because they were children of Abraham (John 8:41). Jesus corrected their thinking, telling them that they were in fact children of the devil (John 8:44).
The reality is that for Jehovah’s Witnesses (and everyone else who is not born again), there are only two choices: Either you are reborn as a child of God, or you remain a child of the devil.
Africa desperately needs help with combating cults.
I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock . . . – Acts 20:29
Source: Africa Center for Apologetics Research
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See related posts:
Charismania unrestrained: Africa’s witch children
The Hell-bound false prophetess Helen Ukpabio of Liberty Gospel Church in Nigeria
Ten more (very) quick Questions for Jehovah’s Witnesses.
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(Also for LDS)
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(Also for LDS)
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To see the first ten (very) quick questions for Jehovah’s Witnesses, click here.
Dear Jehovah’s Witness: Is the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society an inspired prophet of God or not?
Is the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society an inspired prophet of God or not?
Yes: They claim to be prophets of God.
“So, does Jehovah have a prophet to help them, to warn them of dangers and to declare things to come? These questions can be answered in the affirmative. Who is this prophet?…This “prophet” was not one man, but was a body of men and women. It was the small group of footstep followers of Jesus Christ, known at that time as International Bible Students. Today they are known as Jehovah’s Christian witnesses….Of course, it is easy to say that this group acts as a “prophet” of God. It is another thing to prove it.” Watchtower April 1, 1972 Page 197
No: They deny that they’re inspired.
“However, the Watchtower does not claim to be inspired in its utterances nor is it dogmatic. It invites careful and critical examination of its contents in the light of the Scriptures.” Watchtower August 15, 1950 Page 263
Two Questions.
1). How can you claim on one hand to be a prophet of God, and yet deny being inspired?
2). If the Jehovah’s Witness organization is an inspired prophet of God, then how do you explain the countless false prophecies and doctrinal flip-flops made by a supposed “inspired” organization? If it is not inspired, then what is the final authority for the rank and file Jehovah’s Witnesses?
Check out more Contradictions in Watchtower Theology at CARM.
Seventh-day Adventism exposed.
A fascinating documentary which exposes Ellen G. White as a false prophetess and the SDA’s anti-Christian, anti-biblical, heretical teachings.
Sermon of the week: “The Trinity and the Old Testament” by Don Green.
We wrap up our December series on the deity of Jesus Christ and the doctrine of the Trinity with Don Green’s sermon The Trinity and the Old Testament. For those who have been listening to this series since December 3rd, I hope it’s been a blessing to you all. For those who have missed out on one or more of the sermons on this topic, you can check out those posts below:
Sermon of the week: “An Introduction to the Trinity” by Don Green.
We’ve been going through Don Green’s five-part series on Christ’s deity and the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. This week is part four and it’s entitled An Introduction to the Trinity.
If you haven’t already listened to parts one through three, check them out below:
John 1:1 and the Jehovah’s Witnesses
Don Green has done an outstanding job through this series of defending the faith against those who would deny the deity of Christ and the doctrine of the Trinity.
How the Jehovah’s Witnesses and their New World Translation handles the deity of Jesus Christ.
Sermon of the week “My Lord and My God” by Don Green.
We continue our month long series on the deity of Christ (and the doctrine of the Trinity) with this week’s sermon entitled, My Lord and My God.
Pastor Green does an excellent job throughout this five part series of unpacking the truth of Christ’s deity as revealed in the Scriptures. Next week his message will be, An Introduction to the Trinity and the following week his message will be, The Trinity and the Old Testament. I trust this entire series will be a blessing to you all.
If you haven’t already, I highly encourage you to check out the first two installments on this topic below:
Sermon of the week: “Jesus Declares His Deity” by Don Green.
We continue our month long series on the deity of Jesus Christ and the doctrine of the Trinity with Don Green’s sermon Jesus Declares His Deity. If you did not hear last Wednesday’s sermon of the week by Don Green I highly encourage you to check it out here. It was entitled John 1:1 and the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Sermon of the week: “John 1:1 and the Jehovah’s Witnesses” by Don Green.
DefCon will be examining the deity of Jesus Christ throughout the month of December. Each sermon of the week will feature the next installment of this five-part series by Don Green.
We start off with part one today with the sermon entitled John 1:1 and the Jehovah’s Witnesses. This is a superb journey into the doctrine of Christ’s deity beginning with John 1:1. Don Green also takes this opportunity to tackle the heretical teaching of the Jehovah’s Witnesses where they twist this verse. This is a theology lesson you don’t want to miss.
With the precision of a skilled surgeon, Don Green, cuts into the lies of the Jehovah’s Witnesses with four points that systematically proves that their rendering of John 1:1 as “a god” is not only impossible, it’s not even debatable.
This is a fantastic sermon on the defense of John 1:1 that everyone should hear. Sadly the one’s that need to hear it the most (those who deny the deity of Jesus Christ like Jehovah’s Witnesses) will probably never take the time to listen to it. However, if there are any Jehovah’s Witnesses out there who are brave enough to listen to this sermon I challenge you to do so. And if (after listening to it) you wish to discuss it, you are more than welcome to do so and we will be more than happy to correspond with you.
Ten (very) quick Questions for Jehovah’s Witnesses.
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How seeker-friendly churches skew the Gospel like a cult.
“If the ark and the tabernacle had to be built exactly according to God’s plan, should not the Church also be built according to His plan? Surely the Bride of Christ is of even greater importance than the ark or the tabernacle.”
– Trevor Mcllwain
On this day in history . . .
As most Americans celebrate Halloween today there is a smaller segment that will celebrate Martin Luther’s nailing of the 95 theses to the Wittenberg door in 1517 which sparked the Protestant reformation. But there’s an even smaller segment that will recognize a much-lesser known event that occurred on this day almost a hundred years ago.
A 64 year old man on a train unexpectedly died as the train was approaching Pampa, Texas. That man was Charles Taze Russell, founder of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and on this day in 1916 this wolf in sheep’s clothing quietly slipped into eternity to face the very Christ that he taught was not God, and the very Hell that he denied existed.
It was on this day in 1916 that this false prophet died, being cast into the black darkness that had been reserved for him forever (Jude 13), and leaving a destructive cult in his wake.
A sobering reminder to beware of false prophets.
Blasphemous association or divine doctrine?
Question: Would there ever be an occasion in which you would equate God the Father on the same plane as anything or anyone else?
Would you ever combine or associate God with anyone or anything in which the relation would indicate or imply equality? For example, would you ever assert that God and electricity are on equal footing? What about God and man being equal? What about God and an angel?
Most of you would rightly say, “No! That is not only contrary to the revealed nature of God, but it’s blasphemous.”
For those who are not sure about the point I’m trying to make, permit me to be more specific with the following examples:
– Would you ever do anything in the name of the Father, the force, and the power?
– Would you ever perform any work in the name of the Father, Peter, and Paul?
– Would you ever administer a sacrament in the name of the Father, Gabriel (the angel), and Michael (the arch angel)?
Where am I going with all of this?
Well, I was thinking recently about the Jehovah’s Witnesses and their rejection of the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. There are so many examples in Scripture to support the Trinity and they are used with abundant frequency in its defense. But there’s one that isn’t used quite as much as I believe it should be, especially when dealing with Jehovah’s Witnesses. That example would be found in Matthew 28:19.
The JWs are ardent proponents of the name “Jehovah” as being the most important name in the universe (in spite of some solid biblical text proving otherwise). So when baptizing new believers into the faith (in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit), why does Jehovah share the uniqueness and holiness of His name with Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit who the JWs claim are just an angel and an “active force” (like electricity)?
Let me be more clear; would a jealous God who will not give His glory to another, allow Himself to be associated with Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit in the administration of one of the two sacraments of Christianity in a manner that makes Him and His name equal to that of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit if they were not equal to Him?
It is hardly comprehensible to imagine Jehovah would do such a thing, especially when He has asked, “Who is like Me” knowing that no one is like Him. Why would Jehovah not only permit but instruct believers to be baptized “in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,” if they were not equal?
“Do I qualify for the kingdom?”
Apologies from former Jehovah’s Witnesses.
How do you read Romans 1:16?
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes . . . Romans 1:16
How you read Romans 1:16 tells a lot about you. Which of the following best resembles how you interpret the text?
For I am not ashamed of the gospel (the death burial and resurrection of our Lord and Savior), for it (the preaching of that gospel and absolutely nothing else) is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes (not a superficial shallow mental ascent, but a complete dependence and trust upon Christ) . . .
– Christian
For I am not ashamed of the gifts of the spirit, for they are proof of the power of God and proof of your salvation to everyone who believes . . .
-Charismaniac
For I am not ashamed of pleading for money, for sowing your faith seed offering is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes . . .
-Word of Faith Charismaniac
For I am not ashamed of Mary, the Pope, and the Mother Church, for they are the power of God and the only way to salvation to everyone who believes and receives the sacraments, attends meritorious masses, is baptized, keeps the law, does good works, purchases indulgences, endures purgatory, etc. . . .
– Roman Catholic
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of the New Earth that we peddle door to door, for the Watchtower is the only ones who speak for God and is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes and exhaustively works their tails off for the Watchtower almost every waking hour of the day for their entire life to obtain Jehovah’s favor, which is not guaranteed . . .
– Jehovah’ Witness
For I am not ashamed of the restored gospel, even though I am ashamed and embarrassed about our church history and the things our church prophets have said (that was just their opinion and they were not speaking for God when they said all those awful things) for the Melchizadek Priesthood which only we have is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes and follows the following conditions as outlined in Gospel Principles pages 303-304 (1997 edition): 1.) We must be baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ. 2.) We must receive the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. 3.) We must receive the temple endowment. 4.) We must be married for time and eternity.In addition to receiving the required ordinances, the Lord commands all of us to– 1. Love and worship God. 2. Love our neighbor. 3. Repent of our wrongdoings. 4. Live the law of chastity. 5. Pay honest tithes and offerings. 6. Be honest in our dealings with others and with the Lord. 7. Speak the truth always. 8. Obey the Word of Wisdom. 9. Search out our kindred dead and perform the saving ordinances of the gospel for them. 10. Keep the Sabbath day holy. 11. Attend our Church meetings as regularly as possible so we can renew our baptismal covenants by partaking of the sacrament. 12. Love our family members and strengthen them in the ways of the Lord. 13. Have family and individual prayers every day. 14. Honor our parents. 15. Teach the gospel to others by word and example. 16. Study the scriptures. 17. Listen to and obey the inspired words of the prophets of the Lord. Finally, each of us needs to receive the Holy Ghost and learn to follow his direction in our individual lives.
– Mormon
For I am not ashamed of the value found in all religions regardless of whether or not they conflict with one another on core issues , for whatever truth is for you, it is the power of God, gods, goddess, no god, or whatever you believe for a better world to everyone who believes or chooses not to believe . . .
– Universalist Unitarian
For I am not ashamed of shameless church marketing, for the end justifies the means and pragmatism is the power of God for filling seats on Sundays to watch our awesome worship rock band followed by our hip and and oh, so cool pastor and we’re also giving away free gas cards to everyone who attends our local campus . . .
– Seeker-Friendly
For I am not ashamed of supporting any socialist cause or liberal issue, for a woman’s right to choose and a homosexual’s right to marry is the power of self–empowerment for salvation from the oppressive chains that the white, Anglo-Saxon, Capitalist, fascists have placed on the backs of everyone in this nation . . .
– Liberal
Romans? Is that in the Bible?
– Emergent / Emerging
** Update ** This post was picked up by Todd Friel and featured on Way of the Master Radio. To find out more, click here.
Christ Alone Wyoming 