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Jehovah's Witnesses
What Do Jehovah's Witnesses Believe?
The Jehovah's Witnesses look forward to an increasingly better world
that will culminate in God's earthly kingdom. They teach that
God's kingdom on earth actually began in 1914, but they mistakenly
predicted that it would end in 1975. However, they still
contend that since the Bible says that one day is like 1000 years, and the
Sabbath was the seventh day, then the world will end after 7000
years. They teach that it began in 4026 BC. They teach
against
evolution, and they will not fight in wars because they consider
themselves non-fighting priests. They teach baptism by
immersion, and that death is merely oblivion until the resurrection. They do
not believe in a fiery hell. They are adamantly against Pagan customs,
thus they are careful not to observe December 25 in commemoration of
Christ's birth, nor do they believe in symbolic crosses. They
are high on morality, and they are quick to break fellowship upon
disobedient members. They reject blood transfusions on the basis that
the Old Testament taught that we are not to eat (consume) blood.
The Divinity of Jesus
The Jehovah's Witnesses reject the divinity of Jesus Christ. They
cite Colossians 1:15 to show that God created Jesus, and then Jesus, in
turn, created the earth. Thus, they say, Jesus was a created
being, the same as us, and He is not divine. In fact, they use
John 1:1, the very verse we cite to refute their claim, to show that
there is only one god, and therefore, they say, if Jesus were God, that
would make two gods!
Upon confrontation, use Titus 2:13 to show that Christ is both our God
and savior, and John 10:30 to show that God the Father and Jesus the
Son are united as one God.
The Holy Spirit
They also claim that the Holy Spirit is just a power, not a person.
John 14:14-15 to refute this theory refutes this theory.
The 144,000
They believe that the 144,000 in Revelation are not Jews, and that only
these 144,000 will go to Heaven. The rest of us will spend eternity in
a paradise on the new earth. Thus, they "spiritual" the Israel of the
Bible. They even admit sometimes that they themselves are not
a part of the 144,000.
Feedback from a Reader:
I was looking at your web
site regarding different religions and I happened upon the link for
Jehovah's Witnesses. I have to say that some of your information is on
point but some is incorrect. I was raised as a Jehovah's Witness until
age 19, and I know that they do not believe that the world will end in
7,000 years. They staunchly believe that no one knows but Jehovah the
day for the end of the world. I believe it is in the 24th chapter of
Matthew where Jesus tells his disciples that during the last days the
times will be like Noah - men marrying and women given in marriage and
suddenly the day of destruction will be instantly upon them.
I have to say that I am not
a Jehovah's Witnesses because I do not believe in many of their
philosophies but I do strongly believe that Jesus is God's son and that
Jehovah is God. I think it is in Proverbs chapter 8 that it says that
Jesus was God's master worker and first creation. Also, Colossians
1:15-16 describe Jesus as the first born of all creation. In addition,
throughout the Gospel, specifically in Matthew, Jesus always gives
credit to the father and tells his disciples and others to do the same.
Psalms 83:18 and Exodus 6:3 says that God's name is Jehovah. Also,
Jesus stated in Matthew that the greatest commandment is to love
Jehovah your God with your whole heart, mind, soul, and strength; the
second greatest is to love your neighbor as yourself. I know that
sometimes the Bible can seem to be open to multiple interpretations,
but the overwhelming evidence seems to me that Jehovah is God and that
Jesus is his first creation. I'm not trying to upset you or insult you,
but when I saw the 7,000 year thing, I had to speak up. I guess we will
all find out in the end who had the correct interpretation. I hope I
did not mess up your day.
Owen Weber 2009
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