Christianity vs Jehovah’s Witnesses

I have several friends that are proud members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses Church (JW). They are polite, intelligent, hardworking, successful in businesss and generous to a fault. They make good friends and neighbors. They see themselves as Christians who believe in God and Jesus as the Savior of mankind from sin. So, all would seem well on the surface, and this basic understanding of this Church is what attracts new members. But unfortunately, when you only scratch the surface, you discover that while Jehovah’s Witnesses are devout concerning their religion, they are devoutly wrong!

SUMMARY of JW BELIEFS

There is only one God known only by the name Jehovah. He is not Omnipresent nor Omnipotent. There is no Trinity. The spirit of Jesus was not eternal but created and originally belonged to the Archangel Michael. Jesus and Satan are spirit brothers. Jesus' body was created when the spirit of the Archangel Michael entered the egg of Mary. Jesus was fully human and not Devine. Jesus self sacrificed Himself for the sins of mankind and died. His body was not resurrected. It remained buried and decomposed as does all human and animal life. What His disciples saw after His resurrection was a "manifested image" of Jesus not the living physical man. At His ascension, this image of Jesus morphed back into the spirit creature Michael. It is Michael who now stands at the right hand of God.

Therefore, the JW Church teaches that the worship of Jesus is inappropriate and idolatress. The cross is a pagan symbol. Man does not have an immortal soul. At death, 99.999% of humans cease to exist like all other animal life. There is no Hell. There is no Rapture. There is no Antichrist. The Second Coming took place invisibly in 1914. There are two resurrections. Since 1914, extremely devout JW members at death go to Heaven. The total allowable number is 144,000. A second resurrection occurs at the end of the War of Armageddon. Every person who has ever lived will be resurrected. Over the next one thousand years they are tested for virtue. Those found virtuous become immortal. Those found lacking are annihilated, cease to exit and are forgotten. JW members can be shunned for certain offences. To continually worship Jesus is a shunning offence. To receive a blood transfusion is considered the same as drinking blood, an anathemata to God and a shunning offence. To receive an organ transplant was equated to cannibalism. In 1980 it was deemed a 'personal choice' and is no longer a shunning offence. However, if 'all' blood is not first drained from the transplant organ, the result is a shunning offence. At baptism, a JW member pledges allegiance to the JW Organization, and Jesus is explained as only being a part of the salvation plan of Jehovah. Salvation comes by way of faith in Jehovah, works and JW membership. They believe in the Gap Theory {Old Earth}. All religious, personal or civil celebrations are forbidden. Only annual Passovers and wedding anniversaries between a man and a woman are allowed to be celebrated. No pledge of allegiances to any person, place or thing. No singing of any songs other than religious ones with a slow tempo. No dancing {folk recently allowed}, no smoking, drinking of alcohol nor the intake of caffeine. All JW members are conscientious objectors and are not allowed to own or operate firearms. The celebration of Christmas is forbidden as it is in effect the celebration of the pagan Roman sun god. All Christian denominations and all other religions are seen as a continuation of the ancient Mystery Babylon and an abomination to God. The JW Church created their own Bible {NWT} and the Watchtower publication. They are used to authenticate and indoctrinate these and other non traditional Christian beliefs into the minds of JW members.

How the JW Doctrine of Beliefs Was Created

Jehovah’s Witnesses have created a doctrine that is based in part on the Bible, but they have quietly reinterpreted key parts of Scripture using deductive reasoning. Deductive reasoning is in most cases a good thing. Science and theorists use deductive reasoning to reach conclusions that have been of great service to mankind down through the ages. But when the JW Church applied deductive reasoning to the Bible, the traditional meanings of words and phrases were systematically reinterpreted or altered in the name of rationalization. This well intentioned exercise has created shockingly nontraditional theological doctrines. Then, in order to support these doctrines, the Church has created their own bible that supports their new deduced beliefs. The Church states that their bible is simply a more accurate translation of the traditional Bible. However, their bible is universally seen by Bible scholars as one in which key words and verses have been twisted, and in some cases, removed so that they do not refute the deduced doctrine initially developed by their founder. Therefore, the Witnesses have in essence, rewritten the Bible in their own image and published their version under the title, New World Translation Bible (NWT).  

In this way, they can explain to members that their Bible is the only true translation having been divinely inspired by some of the world’s most respected scholars. They do not initially reveal to prospective members the dramatic nontraditional beliefs of their doctrines, and exactly who the translators of their bible were. Instead, their doctrines are slowly revealed over time. In this way the indoctrinated membership can focus on developing relationships with the new inductee making them feel they are part of a larger supportive family. 

The King James Bible

At this point, it might be helpful to review just how the first traditional English version of the Bible was developed. In 1604, King James of England brought together 54 of the nation’s greatest Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic scholars. They were divided into six separate groups with two groups in three different geographical locations. Each group was provided with five previously published English translations and highly regarded commentaries that were translated into six different languages. They were allowed to contact other Biblical scholars throughout the country. A compilation panel reviewed each Bible verse of each edition of the six committees and composed a final translation. After seven years, the English translation process was completed in 1611.  

Over the next three hundred years, older and possibly more accurate manuscripts were unearthed. In 1975, one hundred and thirty of the world’s most respected Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic scholars were commissioned to go verse by verse through the 1611 edition to correct any questionable translations. At the same time, the esteemed panel was asked to take into consideration the 1611 manuscripts originally referenced along with older manuscripts discovered over the past three hundred and sixty eight years. After seven years, the panel had completed its work and ultimately recommended only “minor” changes to the new publication. These changes concerned a slight modern update in language such as using “the” for “thou” and the updating of other archaisms as well as spelling corrections. It also included slightly better suited translations for individual words.   

The panel concluded that the 1611 edition was, by in large, accurate in its translations. This is because the Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic languages do not change. They are frozen in time. Therefore, a language scholar three hundred years ago is as good as a scholar three hundred years later. What the scholars did not have in 1611 were slightly older manuscripts to work with, computers to compare the most minute syntax choices, and three hundred years of biblical scholars combing over their original translation ad nauseum. 

So, for the Jehovah’s Witnesses Church to say today that the 1611 King James Version of the Bible was rife with mistranslations is a complete and utter falsehood. And now, because the New King James Version {NKJV} is available, there would seem to be no need for the Witnesses’ New World Translation {NWT} Bible. But they still insist on the use of their Bible. Why? Because it supports their doctrine whereas, the NKJV refutes their doctrine. In other words, the New King James Version is an inconvenient truth. Later in this Paper we will look at the removal and addition of words in the NWT Bible as well as their re translations of words and phrases.

For those who just want to understand the major tenants of the JW doctrine, please go to the end of this Paper where you will find a detailed comparison between the "Major Tenants of Jehovah’s Witnesses Doctrine verses Traditional Christian Doctrine". 

As with all religions, the founder plays a major role in developing doctrines that followers believe in and that catch the imagination of those searching for a closer relationship with God. So let’s take a quick look at how the Jehovah’s Witnesses Church came to be. 

A Brief History of Jehovah’s Witnesses 

The founder of Jehovah’s Witnesses was Charles Taze Russell. He was born in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. He was raised Presbyterian, but later became a member of the Congregational Church. Thus, his first religious teachings were Calvinist in nature. One of these Calvinist sects was a rationalistic strain that was popular in the New England states. This system was focused on logical consistency, predestination, the human inability to do God’s will apart from grace, and the eternal punishment of the wicked. To be rationalistic is an approach to truth that expects all beliefs to be comprehensible or fully understandable in all its aspects to the human intellect. It also avoids paradox and mystery as much as possible. Rationalism became pervasive in 19th century America, and Russell believed that the average person would appreciate this philosophy being applied to the Bible.  

When Russell was in his teen years, he came to have doubts about Calvinistic beliefs that a judgement of Hell could be dispensed by an all loving God. By the age of sixteen he had discovered the “logic of infidelity”. These are arguments against the fidelity of the Bible and Christian faith. He wrote, “I abandoned faith in the Bible as soon as I began to think for myself.” 

However, one year later he heard an Adventist minister named Jonas Wendell preach a sermon which denied eternal punishment in Hell. This is the same doctrine held by Seventh Day Adventists and Christian Universalists. Russell was now eighteen years old and had his faith restored. He began teaching a Bible study group that would became known in 1931 as Jehovah’s Witnesses. It was at this time that Russell began to formulate his take on what Bible understandings should be left in, which ones should be changed and which one should be left out.  

There were three doctrines of the Adventist Church that Russell decided to include in his doctrine. A denial of eternal punishment. Instead, he interpreted the Bible as teaching that Hell was the grave, that the soul is not immortal but is annihilated at death. The second doctrine concerns Christ’s Second Coming or Advent. Advent founder William Miller predicted Christ would return in 1843. When Jesus did not appear, he changed the date to 1844. When Jesus did not appear, a humiliated and dejected Miller abandoned Adventism, but his followers continued on. They rationalized that the date 1844 was a chronological marker of events that instead took place in Heaven. Nice save! Therefore, Christ’s advent was invisible as it was spiritual. Russell believed that this explanation was more rational as he had come to believe that the resurrection of Jesus was irrational. The third teaching concerns the Doctrine of God. Although most Adventists today are Trinitarian and believe that Jesus Christ is part of a Godhead, Adventists in the 1800’s did not believe this. They believed that Christ was a powerful angelic being created by God before He created anything else. Russell decided to accept this idea that Christ was a creation as he had come to believe that it was irrational to believe that God would exist as a Triune Godhead. He announced this in 1882 to his growing group of followers.  

Russell then fleshed out his Biblical doctrine by applying rational deduction to the rest of Scripture. His doctrine of annihilation at death avoids the contradiction between God’s love and God sentencing people to eternal torment. He denied the Trinity to avoid the contradiction of three persons in one God. So now God was more reasonable and understandable. His rationalistic desire to comprehend God and His truth, led Russell to accept faith in the Bible on the condition that the Bible be interpreted in keeping with reasoning. For Russell, human rationality functioned as an authority over the Bible, dictating what was and was not possible for God to be and do. To accomplish this, Russell would need to add words to phrases in Scripture, remove some phrases and reinterpret existing phrases out of traditional context. He was also forced to look for other Greek definitions of words that would change the text in order to support his understandings of what Scripture is trying to say in a more coherent way. But it is the translating of a Greek word into an English word that is beyond a reasonable Greek selection of meanings, and out of sync with the context of the thought being expressed, that has Greek scholars doubting the veracity of the NWT Bible translation.   

How One Becomes A Jehovah’s Witnesses 

So, what draws people to the Jehovah’s Witnesses beliefs? First and foremost, many Witnesses believe that because their parents and grandparents were Witnesses, they are bound by tradition to stay in the Church. This is sadly true for most followers in most religions. Tradition is a powerful motivator and family bonds are often tied to a religious denomination. But Jesus made it clear that there is no excuse for the “bind to lead the blind”. However, most people join the JW Church because they have a vague understanding of the Christian religion, and are looking for a friendly, sensible church home. And the JW Church fits this bill. They present themselves as a Christian denomination. They explain that a person should actually study the Bible. Then they replace the traditional Bible with their own revised and corrected bible published in 1950. They explain that JW members are in a very small and very elite family of worshipers who are privileged to learn the real truth about God and His plans for mankind. They teach a doctrine that is simple, straightforward and without the mystery that surrounds most other religions. 

They start by introducing new members with the understanding that Jesus was not eternal but a creation just like themselves. This makes Jesus more human and approachable. They teach that the spirit of Jesus originally belonged to Michael the Archangel and that Lucifer or Satan was his brother. They then produce their bible and show the person that what they are teaching them is Biblical truth. The Scripturally uneducated person becomes excited and captivated by these remarkable revelations. Probably JW’s biggest draw is that they preach there is no Hell. That immediately takes a big weight off of most people’s shoulders. They also have meetings two times a week for further indoctrination reinforcement.  

At the same time, they also focus on letting the new member know they are very interested in solving any day to day problems they might be experiencing. For example, the Church has trades people that regularly volunteer to help with household fixes, car repairs, child care and transportation issues. It is like one big family caring for one another. Unfortunately, many people have no actual Bible study background and dysfunctional upbringings. So for them, the JW Church offers what appears to be a traditional Christian doctrine along with providing an extended loving church home and supportive family they had never before experienced. 

The Jehovah’s Witnesses Church then retains members by teaching that a person’s spiritual growth is directly related to regularly attending JW Church services and conventions. Members are also required to attend social activities and strictly follow the weekly teaching provide by the Church’s Watchtower publications. Some Witnesses attend meetings as many as three times a week. There they talk with like-minded members encouraging each other to keep the JW faith. This is an important part of an ongoing indoctrination process in that, the more a person hears others repeating the same doctorial beliefs, the more they begin to say it to themselves. And the more they say it to themselves, the more ingrained it becomes. And once it becomes ingrained, it becomes a truth that is almost impossible to reason with. So that if an outsider tries to reason with a Witnesses, they have been taught that this person is in league with the Devil and is trying to trick them. 

The Watchtower 

All weekly Church services and teachings, conducted worldwide, come straight out of a publication called the Watchtower. A follower is taught to reference these Watchtower teachings with their NWT Bible. Followers are warned that gaining accurate knowledge in all areas in which the organization has taken a position is essential if they are to be sure of everlasting life. This involves memorizing doctrines and proof texts. Therefore, Witnesses come to believe that they are members of the JW Church because it is the one and only true church, with the one and only true bible, as interpreted by the infallible Watchtower publication. These teaching are clear, simple, and taught to be straightforward answers to today’s complicated questions as revealed by the church’s Governing Body through the Watchtower.  

The Governing Body 

The Governing Body is composed of eight men. These men are regarded by members as having inspiration and authority from God. The Governing Body can create or change doctrine at will when issues arise. Women are not allowed to be members of the Governing Body, nor are they eligible to hold offices within congregations, nor serve as elders or ministerial servants. They are not allowed to hold leadership roles or hold authority over men. And yet 65% of JW members are women. Go figure? The Governing Body has admitted that they have regularly approved what has turned out to be mistaken views. But, they then immediately dismiss their mistakes by claiming the Apostles also had wrong views. This implies that the Governing Body sees themselves as comparable with the Bible’s prophets and Apostles. However, the Apostles immediately corrected their mistakes and the Bible prophets never made false prophecies. The Governing Body has explain that, because they have initiated dramatic changes and even reversals in basic doctrines, this only proves they are actively keeping up with everchanging world events. On the other hand, the JW Church’s record for accurate prophecies is abysmal. Founder Russell said he would be taken to Heaven in 1914, but he was wrong. President J.F. Rutherford predicted men like Moses and David would soon be resurrected and live in the Watchtower mansion in San Diego, but they never checked in. N.H. Knorr and F.W. Franz stated that the generation of 1914 would live to see the end of the world’s wicked system, but that generation has passed and the last time I checked, the world was still wicked. 

Just this year {2025}, the JW Church announced a complete reversal on another major original doctrine concerning salvation during the Great Tribulation Period. Their position had always been that salvation was not possible once the Great Tribulation began. This was never a traditional Christian teaching. They also taught that it would be the prayers of JW members that would cause giant hailstones to fall on and crush the wicked people of the earth. And that only JW members would survive the Tribulation. Now, that doctrine has completely changed. It turns out people will have the opportunity to receive salvation during the Tribulation Period. Thus, JW members must regularly read the Watchtower publication to keep current on doctrinal changes.  

How JW Indoctrination Works 

One must continuously study the NWT bible in order to become and stay a JW member. To have doubts or fears about the JW organization and its authority from God means that a person is under attack from the devil. To lose faith at these times is to lose everlasting life. They also warn members not to read religious literature from other organizations. This is interesting because while they encourage new comers to examine and compare their current religion, they discourage current members from doing the same with other religions. Even though founder Russell wrote, “If anyone knows anything better, let him take it. If you ever find anything better, we hope you will let us know.” (The Watchtower Dec 1, 1990, p.19). However, if a follower resigns their Church membership because they find something better, Church doctrine states they are to be shunned by Church family members and friends. 

                    Rational Deduction and the Bible 

Here is how the interlocking doctoral beliefs of the JW Church work, and why it is of existential importance that absolutely none of the doctrines be successfully challenged in the mind of a member. You see, both the strength and weakness of the doctrine is based on sequential rational deduction. Therefore, to challenge one doctrine is essentially to challenge them all as they directly rely on each other much like a house of cards. Thus, to prove even one doctrine false to a JW members will bring the whole system down. 

I am going to now put myself in the mindset of founder Russell to explain how he rationally deduced his doctrine starting with the denial of Hell. Everything you are about to read is JW doctrine. You may want to sit down for this. Here we go.

We know there is no Hell because we know that death brings total annihilation. And since this is a rational truth, then Jesus could not have been God because Jesus died and God cannot die and be annihilated. Right? Therefore, since Jesus was not God, then the belief in a Trinity is obviously false. And since there is no Trinity, then the Holy Spirit must not be a separate Divine entity, but instead simply the power of God at work. And since Jesus was annihilated in death, there is no rational reason to believe that His body would be raised from the dead. So we may logically conclude that Jesus was raised not in body, but instead as a spirit. And as such, He logically cannot return physically to the physical earth. Therefore, His Second Advent will be a spiritual presence rather than a physical return. And because His second spiritual presence occurred in October 1914, according to founder and {failed} prophet C.T. Russell, then His reign is currently happening at this time. However, because it is spiritual, it is unseen by all physical beings except those with ‘spiritual sight’ like the Governing Body {convenient}. Now, since Jesus is spirit, He will logically remain in spiritual Heaven and not appear on the earth. But, there is according to Scripture, a bodily resurrection of the dead. So this can only mean there must be two classes of the redeemed. An earthly class and a Heavenly class. Therefore, there must also be different requirements that differentiate each of these two classes. Thus, it makes sense that admission to those who will be physically confined to the physical earth would be required to accomplish works, in addition to faith, to prove themselves worthy. But admission to the Heavenly class, which must obviously be a 'higher privilege', must be based solely on God’s choice which will be a select 144,000 people from the Jehovah’s Witnesses Church {who didn’t see that coming?}. However, this Heavenly class must also fulfill the earthly classes requirements of works plus faith. This would then explain why the NWT bible teaches salvation requiring obedience {faith in Jehovah}, acts of kindness {works}, membership in the JW Organization {allegiance} while at the same time teaching salvation is also a free gift from God. There … how easy and logical was that? Not! 

With this set of doctrines in mind, it is easy to see that to challenge and prove false any of these deductions, makes the entire scenario fail. So, for the JW Church member, you have to believe in the whole system and never allow someone from outside the Church to challenge these doctrines. And, it is because this set of deduced beliefs are not supported by Scripture, the JW Church was forced to write its own bible (NWT) to support its own idiosyncratic doctrines. Thus, they took the Bible and recreated it in the image of the Jehovah’s Witnesses doctrine. One has to wonder if God is happy with all this? Oh, that’s right, He’s not (Galatians 1:8-9)!

Because Jehovah’s Witnesses members are all alone in their unconventional and scripturally unsupported doctrine, one might think they would at least be curious as to why their membership ranks are not swollen. But they are not. They are taught that their unique doctrinal positions and low membership numbers are evidence that they, and only they, have “the truth” in a fallen world. The only place JW membership is growing is in Africa. Surprise Surprise! Here is just one of their beliefs and how they justify it. 

Church members are forbidden to accept blood infusions. They believe that, while this is seen as unusual, it simply means they are blessed that God has revealed His truth only to them in their scripture. JW followers have learned how to interpret virtually everything that happens in a way that reinforces rather than challenges their beliefs. Therefore, when AIDS appeared and infected the blood supply, JW took this as evidence that blood transfusions were immortal and against the law of God. If a JW survives without a blood transfusion, it is proof that God blessed his or her integrity. If a JW member dies because they did not receive a blood transfusion, it is seen as proof that a JW member values obedience to God more than their own lives. So, these dead JW members are actually heroes in the eyes of the Church. Witnesses learn to interpret everything that has happened or could happen as fitting their beliefs.  

The New World Translation Bible (NWT)

The NWT bible has been enormously instrumental in helping Jehovah’s Witnesses to feel continued confidence that their beliefs are biblically supported. The third President of the organization N.H. Knorr oversaw the 1961 publication of this work. The New Testament is referred to as the Christian Greek Scriptures. Here is how this unique translation was created. Again, you may want to sit down for this. 

The translation process began in 1950. The JW Church organized a Translation Committee that it states was composed of “Anointed Witnesses of Jehovah”. So, we are off to a great start? Initially the committee members names were kept a secret as a “symbol of humility”. Ok, so maybe not a great start? But eventually the names were released {no pictures available}. Ok, so now we are back on track. It turns out the Translation Committee consisted of five men who were all heavily involved with the JW Church administration. And, the JW Church officially stated that all of these 'translators' lacked formal educations and qualifications in the original Biblical languages of Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. But this was not seen as an issue as they were all “Anointed Witnesses of Jehovah”. I think we are now starting to come off the tracks again. Only one person named F.W. Franz is cited by the Church as having “some familiarity” with Greek and was “self-taught” in Hebrew. Ok, so now we are definitely off the tracks and plowing through the woods! Therefore, what we basically have here is a ‘brain trust’ consisting of five uneducated laymen not fluent in Hebrew, Greek or Aramaic deciding to sit down and re translate the entire Bible. What could possibly go wrong? The Watchtower organization’s official response to revealing the entire translation processes was that, "It is personal and private”. So, knowing what we now know, that response makes perfect sense. I would not make their translation process public either. And I would especially not tell a JW member who were the people who translated their bible. Just think how confused and disappointed they would be to find out they are in a small religious cult created by a man born in 1852. And that they have faith in a bible created by five uneducated men who saw the task of translating the Bible as no big deal. 

Upon scholarly review, what this stellar Translation Committee did was to apparently, and not so carefully, cut and paste Witnesses doctrinal beliefs into their existing Bible text. In order to do this, they took various accurate original translation citing’s and reworded or in some case deleted them to fit founder Russell’s rational deduced understanding of the Bible. It is legitimate to say, as do all mainstream Christian scholars, that the NWT bible is outrageously bias and has created a false doctrinal narrative completely removed from all other Christian Doctrines. There is no other Bible translation in the entire world that is remotely like the New World Translation. And when a JW member is continually told this, they just smile and say with great pride, “I know, and that what makes us special. Only we know the truth!” Talk about drinking the Kool-Aid! 

As for examining the various changes in the NWT bible, it would take writing a book to present every word that has been intentionally mistranslated, miss interpreted and every verse that was added or deleted in order to change the meaning of the original phrase. So, I will only point out a few examples. Colossians 1:16-20 is a grand summery that flatly states that Jesus was eternal and that He created all things that exist. In the NWT, the word “other” has been artificially added four times. This word is not found in any other Bible translations in the world from the original Greek. It is clear that this word has been added in order to make it appear that Christ is a creation and only a part of creation not Divine or eternal. In this verse, Paul states all thing were created in and for Christ. But the NWT version has Paul stating all “other” things were created in and for Christ. Meaning Christ was just one of the other created things. While the word other can be used to make a sentence smoother, in these cases it is used to dramatically change the meaning of the sentence. We see this word used again in Acts 10:36; Romans 8:32, Philippians 29 and in each of these cases, the intent is to undermine the meaning of the text that Jesus Christ is God incarnate. Philippians 1:23-24 has even been altered so that Paul no longer says that at death he would be with Christ or God. If you would like to look at hundreds of other Scripture changes in detail, please refer to the book, “Understanding Jehovah’s Witnesses” by Robert M. Bowman, Jr.  

So how different is the JW doctrine from the Bible? I will now sight a number of JW doctrines to help explain why a lot of Scriptural changes in the JW bible were necessary. But for a more complete list, please refer to the "Christian Doctrine vs Jehovah’s Witnesses Doctrine" found at the end of this Paper. The following is only a sneak preview of what is to come.  

Differences Between Traditional Christianity & the JW Church 

The purpose of the Bible is primarily to bring people into a saving relationship with God, and only secondarily to instruct them in a system of doctrine. It is expected that a person who reads the Bible with the illumination of God’s Holy Spirit will immediately come to a basically sound understanding of who God is and what He requires of those who He saves. So, it is more than a little suspicious that the JW Church strictly requires members to refer only to their their NWT bible. That members must only receive instruction from Church teachers and the Watchtower publication. That members are never to consult with outside religious influences. That they are required to attend church services, bible studies and social meetings several times a week. It is these types of doctrinal demands that give the JW Church its cult status among traditional Christian denominations. The Watchtower organization continually insist that the Bible is unintelligible to those who do not accept the society’s authority and interpretations. This is the same with official Catholic doctrine. But in reality, the Bible is clear and should be read by everyone as it is completely understandable. And even if it is read by a person with no Scriptural knowledge, they will immediately understand that salvation comes by way of faith in Christ plus nothing else. Therefore, it appears the Jehovah’s Witnesses Church has put up many unnecessary requirements between the simple saving grace of Christ and the organizations seemingly complex objective of membership control over salvation. Jesus saw this with the Jewish first century Temple system, and all protestants see this same issue with the Catholic Church system. 

The JW Church motto concerning their members is “faithful and discreet slave” (Matthew 24:45-47). Witnesses believe that their organization and its Governing Body makes them God’s only channel for providing spiritual food to His people. Witnesses insist the Jesus was speaking not to individuals when He spoke their motto, but instead a group of His followers who He considered members of an organization. They use this understanding to convince followers that they need to belong to the JW organization in order to receive the full benefit of the Gospel. And the next step is to convince a follower that the JW Church is the only organization God recognizes as faithful and true.  

However, Luke is clear that Jesus was speaking to individuals not an organization. Jesus said, “Indeed, everyone {person} to whom much is given, much will be demanded of him {person}; and the one {person} whom people put in charge of much, they will demand more than usual of him {a person}.” (Luke 12:48) Jesus is also speaking to individual responsibilities in Matthew 25:14-30 and Luke 19:12-27. It is interesting that the Governing Body applies these parables to individuals, while applying the “faithful and discreet slave” parable to an organization (Matthew 24:45-51). Therefore, their interpretation is inconsistent with the intent of Scripture and has been twisted to support their misusing a quote from Christ to authorize an organization which is designed to exercise unnecessary control over its individual members. Something Jesus was adamantly against! 

Interestingly, President F.W. Franz the great {self-taught} translator of the NWT was fired from his leadership role with the JW Church. He publicly announced that God does not deal with individual people through an organization like Jehovah’s Witnesses, and that there was no Scriptural support for this foundational JW position. He stated that the Church’s position on this issue was obviously just a form of control over an individual by an organization which is itself controlled through the decisions made by eight men.  

Jehovah’s Witnesses seek to justify their man-made doctrines by changing the true interpretation of Scripture instead of first seeking to understand Scripture, and then creating a doctrine which best fits the text. They interpret a Biblical text deductively rather than inductively based on the particulars of the text. They regularly abuse and ignore the concept of context by broadening it to include their hypothetical reconstructions of how a statement was understood originally, rather than basing their interpretation on the immediate written text. In short, JW have no problem pitting one part of Scripture against another part to force the Bible to agree with their doctrine. 

Conclusion 

Currently there are over eight million Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide. The largest growth is found in Africa and Asia. Jehovah’s Witnesses take great pride in calling themselves the one and only true Church of Jehovah. This is the reason they chose to call themselves Jehovah’s Witnesses. But ironically, the passage of Scripture on which this name is based indicates that they are not faithful witnesses to Jehovah. This passage states that the primary truth to which these Witnesses were to testify was that Jehovah is the only God and the only Saviour of mankind … full stop! (Isaiah 43:10-11).  

But, by teaching that Jesus was a created being just like all other creations, Jehovah’s Witnesses prove themselves to be unfaithful witnesses. They insist that members must mindlessly rely on the twisted translations and edicts of a small elite group of men. They insist that members can only achieve salvation by way of an association with their church. They insist that to leave their church means they are to be shunned and that their eternal salvation has been lost. All of this is directly opposed to Scripture. 

A true witness of Jehovah will accept the traditional Bible as Jehovah’s inspired Word preserved intact for thousands of years. A true witness of Jehovah would reject the NWT bible translation which adds to God’s Word in order to pervert its clear teaching concerning who Jesus was, God’s plan or mankind in life and in death, and the Second physical Coming of Christ. They would realize that Jehovah grieves their use of His Holy name in order to spread an unauthorized false Gospel narrative. One that denigrates Jesus as the eternal Word of God. That He was the visible incarnation of an invisible Triune Godhead. That His ministry, death, resurrection and ascension are truthfully detailed in Scripture. That there will be a Resurrection and Rapture of all the faithful and not just 144,000 devoted Jehovah’s Witnesses.  

They have diminished Jehovah’s greatness by denying that He knows all things, denying that He transcends space and time, and denying that He was willing and capable of causing the eternal Spirit of His Holy Word to indwell the body of Jesus who is the Christ. True Witnesses of Jehovah would follow the teachings of Jesus the Messiah who taught His disciples that He, the Holy Spirit and God the Father are one and reject the NWT false teachings of no Triune Godhead (Romans 10:9-13; I Corinthians 12:3; Philippians 2:9-11; Hebrews 1:10-12).

MAJOR TENANTS OF THE JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES DOCTRINE  

Jehovah is the Only Name of God: God’s one true name, the only name by which He must be referred to is, Jehovah. However, the Old Testament tells us God has five major recognized names and a dozen or more titles that are variations on these names. For example: Yahweh (Jehovah); Elohim (plural for El or God); Adonai (LORD or Master); El Shaddai (God Almighty); Other names include El Eyon (Most High God); El Roi (God Who Sees); Yahweh-Jireh (The Lord Will Provide); Yahweh tesba’ot (The Lord of Host) etc.  

In the New Testament of grace and mercy, Jesus referred to God as simply “Father” in Greek Pater or Papa: (Matthew 6:9) as did the Apostles (I Corinthians 1:3). 

There is No Trinity: Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that the Trinity is unbiblical because the word is not found in the Bible and their own bible emphasizes there is only one spiritual entity known as Jehovah. There are many theologically adopted words used by Christians that are not in the Bible. But these nonbiblical words or terms are used to simply clarify and communicate logical ideas or concepts within the Christian faith. Some of these terms are Trinity, Rapture, Incarnation, Evangelism, Omnipresence, Omnipotence and Age of Accountability. The word Rapture is widely used as a way to better explain the Greek term “snatching away”. The word Trinity has been adopted over time because it accurately and succinctly expresses the Scripturally sound understanding that there is only one God inextricably composed of three separate distinct yet equally eternal and powerful entities all of one essence or substance. The idea of the Trinity is found in many places throughout the Old and New Testaments. In fact, the Jewish term for God is Elohim which is in the plural tense. 

The Triune Godhead is cited as in Scripture as three separate entities each performing the works of Deity such as creating the universe and having conversations among themselves. (Genesis 1:26; Genesis 3:22-24; Psalm 104:30, Psalm 110:1; Isaiah 48:6; Matthew 28:19; John 5: 7-8; John 14: 16-17, 26; John 1: 1-3; John 10:30; John 14:16-17; John 14:26; I Peter 1:1-2; Hebrews 1:2; I Corinthians 12:4-6; II Corinthians 13:14). 

God is Not Omnipresent: God is not omnipresent. He can only be in one place at one time. He is therefore primarily located in Heaven. Scripture is clear that God or the Triune Godhead is omnipresent. This means that God is fully present throughout all of creation at all times. Nothing happens in all creation that God does not ordain and is instantly aware of. The Bible tells us that God has numbered and named every star, He knows every person down to the number of hairs on their head and is aware when even a sparrow dies. (Psalm 146:4; Matthew 10:29-30; Psalm 138:7-10; 24:1; Jeremiah 23:23-24; Jeremiah 32:27; Acts 17:26-27).  

God is Omnipresent: (Psalm 139:7; I Kings 8:27; Proverbs 15:3; Jeremiah 23:23-24; Isaiah 66:1; Hebrews 4:13; Ephesians 4:6; Colossians 1:17; Matthew 10:29; Matthew 28:20; Luke 12:7). 

God is Not Omnipotent: The JW Church teaches that, while God knows all things and all possibilities, He cannot know the final outcome of human events. This JW doctrine has come about by way of a remarkable misunderstanding of the idea of predestination. The Church wrongly thinks that if God knew the outcome of events, this would mean that all life on earth was predestined. But Scripture is clear that mankind was endowed with a superior intellect that allows them to freely chose their own destination in life and in death. God has and will never negate man’s inalienable right to choose to return His love, or reject it. In short, just because God can see how events will play out, it does not mean they are predestined. People make their own decisions base on their God given gift of 'free will'. Therefore, if an event turns out bad for a person, they have no one to blame but themselves. The Unforgivable Sin is a person who has sinned against God, knows they have sinned against God, but adamantly refuses to ask for forgiveness. Thus, their sin is unforgivable and their fate is certain.

Jesus Was Originally the Archangel Michael: Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that the spirit of Jesus was first created by Jehovah and indwelled the Archangel Michael before the physical world came into existence. Then this same spirit indwelled Jesus only to return back to Michael after Jesus ascended back into Heaven. Therefore, while Jesus is a powerful and special spirit being, He is not God nor a co-equal with Jehovah.

Scripture teaches that Jesus or God the Word is eternal as is God the Father and God the Holy Spirit meaning, they had no beginning nor ending. Jesus was originally referred to as the Word of God or God the Word. In His capacity as a member of the Godhead, He spoke all things seen and unseen, spiritual and physical into existence. Thus, Jesus created the angels including Michael and Gabriel. God the Father commanded the impregnation Mary through the power of the Holy Spirit. In this way the body of Jesus was created without the original sin curse of Adam. This also allowed the body of Jesus to be fully indwelled by the power of the God the Word. Thus, Jesus was fully human, fully Divine and a perfect sacrifice for the sins of mankind. The Spirit of the Word of God indwelled the body of Jesus at His birth and was fully realized at His baptism when the Triune Godhead appeared. Therefore, because Jesus the Word created Michael, they are two separate entities. One is eternal and one is a creation. 

What Happened to Jesus' Physical Body: The JW Church teaches that Jesus had a physical body, but at the cross He sacrificed His body for the sins of mankind. Therefore, that body in dying, ceased to exist as do all dead human bodies. And because it was sacrificed, it cannot be brought back for any reason. While Jesus did meet with the disciples and preach, what they saw was not an actual body, but a temporary manifestation of His body. Mohammed also wrote in the Koran {c. 610 A.D.}, that Jesus was not crucified, but instead a manifested image appeared to die and was buried. Perhaps this is where Founder Russell got this idea? The JW Church believes that at His ascension, His manifested body ceased to exist and His spirit transitioned back into the non-human, powerful spirit creature Michael the Archangel. This is how Jesus now appears in Heaven, and because He is spirit, He will not be able to physically return to the earth. 

This is completely unscriptural. Jesus appeared to many of His disciples after His resurrection looking and speaking exactly as they remembered Him. He still carried His crucifixion scares and told His disciples to touch them. His disciples said they touched Him, talked with Him and He ate many times with them over a forty day period. Paul states He was seen and peached to over five hundred people at one time. His disciples eye witnessed His ascension into Heaven. The Apostle John {c.95 AD.}, said He saw in a vision the now physically immortal Jesus sitting on the Throne of God and previewed His literal descent to the earth at His Second Coming. What in the world are the Jehovah’s Witnesses talking about? The Books of Acts and Revelation are in their NWT bible. Have they not read it? 

Jesus and Satan Are Brothers: Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Jesus was initially a spirit being called Michael and was created by God the same as the angel Lucifer now known as Satan making them spirit brothers. An article in the Watchtower explains their relationship this way, “In the beginning, God had {created} two sons, that were named Word and Lucifer. Although Lucifer was not as favored as the Word was  ….” (Watchtower Society. P.26, 33- c.1912). They also teach that Satan and the fallen angels were cast from Heaven down to earth in October of 1914. The fallen Angels are now demon spirits. 

Scripture is clear that Jesus was originally {eternally} known as God the Word. He is an eternal Deity and existed with God the Father before anything was created (John 1:1-4; John 1:10-12). In fact, Scripture teaches that the Word of God was the entity that spoke all things into creation, both spiritual and physical, on behalf of God the Father through the creative power of the Holy Spirit. Scripture also states that the Word of God was made flesh by incarnating His spirit into the physical body of Jesus (John 1:14). Therefore, the Word or Jesus was never the angel Michael nor a brother to the angel Lucifer. He was their Creator!

Lucifer Fell With His Demons to the Earth in 1914: The prophet Isaiah tells us that Lucifer oversaw the installation of plant life in the Garden of Eden that would provide food for Adam and Eve. It was a some time after this assignment was completed that he fell from grace. Still, God decided to use Lucifer to test the virtue of Adam and all his descendants. So, Lucifer did not fall in 1914, but instead fell after the creation of the Garden of Eden. It was then that he was allowed by God to tempt Adam the first man. Lucifer has also been allowed by God to have a temporary kingdom in the heavens of the earth. Lucifer still reports to God when he is commanded to do so (Job 1:6). Lucifer will be cast down onto earth 3.5 years into the 7 year Tribulation Period (Revelation 12:12). It is then that he and his son the Antichrist will try to rule the earth and annihilate the Jewish race. They will both be judged by Jesus their Creator and confined into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:10). It may have been the great flu pandemic of 1916 that caused the JW Church to create this false doctrine as a way to explain 700,000 deaths in the United States.

The Immaculate Conception: Jehovah’s witnesses believe that Jesus was immaculately conceived, but born as a normal human being and not God in human flesh or incarnate. First, Mary gave the Apostle Luke a detailed understanding of what was said when she met with the angel Gabriel in her parents home just prior to her being impregnated. Gabriel said that God the Father would be Jesus’ biological Father and therefore Jesus would be born Holy or without original sin (Luke 1:31-35). Scripture is clear who Jesus was, “For in Him the whole fulness of Deity dwells bodily.” (Colossians 2:9) The word “fullness” in Greek is pleroma which means the sum total. The word “Deity” in Greek refers to the nature, being, and attributes of God (Phil 2;6-7). Therefore, the incarnation of Jesus was the sum total of the nature, being, and attributes of God in a bodily form. Jesus was truly Immanuel, or “God is with us” (Matthew 1:23; Isaiah 7:14; John 1:1; John 1:14 John 1:18; John 10:30; John 14:9-10).

Jesus:  The JW Church believe that Jesus was not eternal. Instead, He was originally created by God in the spirit form of the Archangel Michael. Therefore, Michael is just another name for Jesus who was later physically conceived when the spirit life force of Michael was transferred into the egg of Mary. Jesus was born without sin, but was not Divine or eternal because He was just another form of Michael. While the Church uses the word "god" concerning Jesus, they use this word to mean he {Michael} is "special" and "powerful". But that he is not considered a God in the usual sense of the word. Instead, he is the powerful spirit being Michael. Therefore, the JW Church believes that the worship of Jesus or Michael is inappropriate and idolatrous. The Church also teaches that Jesus was crucified on a stake and not a cross which is considered by the JW Church as a pagan symbol. He only arose spiritually from the dead and appeared to His disciples as a "spiritual manifestation". He ascended spiritually into Heaven and His spirit returned back to the Archangel Michael. He, as Michael, now sits at the right hand of God, but not as a coequal of God. His Second Coming occurred in 1914, but was not physically seen as Michael as an angelic spirit being. Therefore, because there is no physical Jesus, there is no possibility of a Second Coming. There is only a two part Resurrection. Part one is the ongoing spiritual resurrection of 144,000 righteous people {JW members} from the grave who will live eternally in Heaven. The rest of mankind will be resurrected and live on an earth transformed into a paradise. After one thousand years, the unrighteous will be annihilated as there is no Hell. 

Jesus' Resurrection: Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Jesus was resurrected from the dead as the spirit creature Michael and not physically. At His ascension, He returned back to his original spirit state as the Archangel Michael. However, Scripture is clear that Jesus physically arose from the dead on Sunday morning. That He first met personally with Mary Magdalene, then talked with a group of women who came to His tomb to find His physical body gone. He then met and talked at length with two disciples on their way back home to their village of Emmaus. Paul tells us He met privately with Peter and finally, He met with His disciples in an upper room during supper. There He chastised them for their disbelief that He could physically raise Himself from the dead as He had repeatedly said He would. They examined and touched His crucifixion wounds. He ate fish and honey to prove He was not a spirit being. He later disappeared from the locked and shuttered dining room (Luke 24:36-41). Over the next 40 days He regularly met and ate with His disciples and is cited as preaching to a crowd of over five hundred in attendance (I Corinthians 15:6). Then, ten days before the Feast of Pentecost, He bodily and publicly ascended from the Mount of Olives for all to see and disappeared into the clouds (Acts 1:9). All of this is listed in detail in the Gospels and the Book of Acts. To say that Jesus did not bodily resurrect Himself from the grave is ludicrous, and a blatant Christian theological act of heresy (John 10:18). 

Sign of the Cross: The Jehovah’s Witnesses recognized and used the sign of the cross in all of its publications from 1872 until 1936. At that time, the Governing Body concluded that Jesus did not die on a cross and that the cross was a pagan symbol. Instead, He died on a single wooden spike. From then on it was official Witness doctrine to reject the sign of the cross as a pagan symbol of idol worship. However, the Greek word used is “staurus” which can mean stake or cross. But the common understanding of the word is cross. The early church believed it was a cross and drew sketches of it where they worshipped. John describes a cross (John 19:23). When Jesus appeared to His disciples, He showed them the nail holes in His hands {wrists}, feet {heels} and the spear wound in His chest. Thomas said he wanted to see the scars in His hands and feet (John 20:25). Jesus told Peter that his death would come when he would be force to stretch out his arms (John21:18-19). Peter was later crucified upside down with his arms stretched out. So, all Scriptural evidence points to Jesus having been crucified with His arms stretched out on a Roman cross. 

Further, archeologists have found the remains of three men, two in Israel one in Italy, all crucified by Rome in the first Century. All three had nail holes in both their wrists and both their heels. One body had a nail still lodged in his heel. Proving, without a doubt, that Jesus was crucified with His arms spread open and nailed through His wrists while His heels were nailed to either side of the base of His cross.  

The Second Coming Has Already Occurred : Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that the Second Coming was not physical but spiritual and occurred in October of 1914. Jesus, John and Paul taught that the Second Coming will be physical and will take place during the final day of the War of Armageddon also known as the Day of the Lord (Revelation 19:11-16; II Peter 3:10). At that time, Jesus will physically arrive with His Resurrected immortal Saints and be seen by the entire population of the earth. Then, Jesus will speak a Word and instantly destroy all the wicked and unrepentant around the world. It is at that time that He will begin to physically rule the earth, possibly from the Third Temple in Jerusalem, for the next one thousand years (Matthew 24:29-30; Acts 1:9-11; Titus 2:13; Revelation 1:7).  

Salvation: Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that salvation requires faith in Jehovah, Jesus, works and an association {membership} in the Jehovah’s Witnesses Church. An association means strict obedience to Jehovah’s Witnesses beliefs and rules as pronounced by the Governing Body and made public through the Watchtower publication. Traditional Christianity doctrines states that salvation comes through faith in Christ plus nothing else.

Scripture is clear that obedience to a religious organizations rules and regulations is the exact reason Jesus was sent to the Jewish people and mankind. He, as God incarnate, was against their organization, rules and regulations. He was clear that God His Father was now against all religious manmade rules, regulations and traditions. His Son's sacrifice made all rules and traditions inconsequential and superfluous. His command from God the Father was to spread the Good News {Gospel} that God wanted for His followers to have faith in Him and love their fellow man plus nothing else. Church organizations are necessary for teaching the true Gospel, helping those in need and for having like-minded individuals regularly meet, socialize and pray together. But additional rules, regulations and traditions that a church might create for its members to follow do not apply, with the exception of baptism and Communion. And participation in either of these is not a requirement to be saved. Salvation is base wholly on God’s unmerited favor or grace through faith. It is not based on a particular denominations rules or a believers performance. That said, it is expected that a person, truly in the will of God, will perform random acts of kindness and that these acts will be credited to that person by God as righteousness (Genesis 15:6; Galatians 1;16).

Baptism: The JW Church believes in a full water emersion baptism. However, they do not recite the phrase "...in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit" in the traditional way. The JW Church does not perform the traditional Scriptural baptism. Instead, they ask the person two questions. First question is, do they repent of their sins, dedicate themselves to Jehovah and accept His way of salvation through Jesus Christ. So far so good ... right? But not so fast. The JW Church rejects the understanding that Jesus was Devine, and arose from the dead. In fact, you are not allowed to worship Jesus as the Church sees this as an abomination. So much for the use of Jesus in their baptism ceremony. The second question is, do they understand that their Baptism identifies them as one of Jehovah's Witnesses in association with Jehovah's Organization? Sounds like a person now needs a lawyer to ask some pertinent questions. This is obviously not Scriptural. Scripture quotes Jesus as saying one should be baptize in the name of God the Father, God the Son/Word and God the Holy Spirit. He did not mention the Jehovah's Witnesses organization (Matthew 28:19-20). In fact, no where in Scripture does it say a person should be baptized in association with any organization. Baptism is between the Triune Godhead and the person (I Corinthians 4:6) . Point being, a person baptized as a Jehovah's Witnesses is not baptized according to the direct dictates of Christ who was speaking on behalf of Jehovah.

The Governing Body must be getting real push back from the members on this issue. They have officially rescripted these two questions six times between 1945 and 2020. And the latest enlightenment directly from Jehovah has completely removed the term Holy Spirit and the words "spirit-directed organization" from the script. The current script now ends with the baptism candidate being told to, prayerfully consider these two questions in advance so they can answer in harmony with their personal convictions. So, one would wonder that if the candidate said they wanted to be baptized the way Jesus said it was suppose to be done per Matthew 18:19, what would their answer be? The answer would be a big fat no! You cannot be baptized according to Scripture in the JW Church. You can only be baptized according to the rules of the JW organization, and these rules are made-up by men. So while the JW Church states that "they do not go beyond things written", they obviously do not follow their own motto. In the JW organization, the dictates of men overrule Scripture as with the Catholic Church.

So, a person baptized by the JW Church is pledging there is only Jehovah, that Jesus was only a 'special' man who self sacrificed himself, and the Holy Spirit is only an extension of the power of God. In doing so, they have denied the Divinity of Christ, the existence of the Holy Spirit as an entity, and the existence of the Triune Godhead. They have also declared that their salvation also depends on their pledging allegiance to the JW Church organization, and to ever leave the Church is to lose one‘s salvation. Totally unscriptural! Jesus is God the Word, there is a Triune Godhead, and belonging to any Church or organization has nothing to do with salvation. Salvation comes by faith in Christ plus nothing else.

Two Types of Redeemed Peoples on the Earth:  Jehovah’s Witnesses believe there are two peoples of God: (1) the "Anointed Class" 144,000 who at death become 'spirit creatures', go to Heaven and rule with Christ/Michael; and (2) the “other sheep” or all the dead who will be slowly resurrected at the end of the War of Armageddon, hopefully rehabilitated and live in a paradise on earth. However, Scripture states that there are only two types of people. The saved and the unsaved. Also known as the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:32). God has been invisibly separating these two peoples spiritually at death since the days of Cain. Today, the spirits of those who have faith in God go immediately to be with Christ (II Corinthians 5:8). The JW Church denies this. Scripture states that those who have no faith in God and die unrepentant of their sins, are confined down in Sheol. The JW Church denies this. But the first visible sign of the existence of this judicial system will be publicly displayed by way of an event called the Great Rapture. The JW Church denies a Rapture event. In a nano second, 2.5 billion Christians will be instantaneously taken up into Heaven. They will be accompanied by an additional 2.2 billion children. A child being all those under the Age of Accountably which according to Mosaic Law is nineteen. This inexplicable supernatural event will instantaneously cause catastrophic civil upheavals throughout the earth.

In an effort to bring order out of chaos and peace out of war, the world will support a brilliant autocrat known in the Bible as the World Leader {Antichrist}. The JW Church do not believe in an Antichrist as a person. An assassination attempt will leave him near death. At that time, Lucifer will offer him the kingdoms of the world if he will worship him. He will accept this offer, be indwelled by a powerful demon spirit and emerge as the Antichrist, son of Satan. The JW Church teaches that the Antichrist is not a man but an anti Jehovah movement. It is during his 3.5 year tyrannical rule that God will create the largest Christian revival in the history of the world. Up until 2025, the JW Church did not believe salvation was possible during the Tribulation Period. This revival will include the appearance of 144,000 messianic Jews from the 12 tribes of Israel. The JW Church teaches the 144,000 people are Heaven bound devout JW members. These Messianic Jews will appear during the rule of the Antichrist and yet be protected by God in order to proselytize the entire earth. The JW Church teaches that members will experience persecution during the Tribulation Period, but Jehovah will, more or less, protect devout members and eventually answer their prayers by causing giant hailstones to crush the anti Jehovah armies of the world.

There is No Immortal Soul: Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that humans have an immortal nature. The soul is simply a mortal life force that ceases to exist when the body dies. However, Scripture teaches that humans consist in three parts. The flesh body, the mind or intellect that controls the body and an eternal spirit. While many life forms on earth have bodies and instincts, only mankind was given by God a superior intellect and an eternal Spirit. This spirit along with a tremendous intellect is what makes mankind in the image of God (Genesis1:26; Genesis 2:7). And it is this intelligent spirit that leaves the body at death. Whether a person’s spirit is drawn to God, or is repulsed by God determines their eternal destination. The Bible is clear that God breathed an eternal Spirit into Adam along with the miracle of life. The Bible is also clear that this Spirit leaves the body at death. Jesus said from the cross, “Father, into Your hands I deliver My Spirit” (Luke 23:46). So there is definitely an intelligent Spirit that exist in all people and it automatically leaves the body at death. The real question is, does a person have faith and a desire for their Spirit to be with Christ in Heaven, or would they rather go down to Sheol to await the Great White Throne Judgement of God? In not making a decision, a person has made a decision.

Spirits survive death (Genesis 35:18; Revelation 6:9-10). Spirits in conscious distress (Matthew 13:42; 25:41; 46:1; 16:22-24; Revelation 14:11). Spirits in conscious bliss in Heaven (I Corinthians 1:9; II Corinthians 5:6-8; Phil 1:21-23; Revelation 2:17; Revelation 21:4). 

There is No Hell: Jehovah’s witnesses believe Hell {Sheol} is not a place of eternal suffering but is rather the common grave of mankind. It is a place of unconscious non-existence. The thought of Hell is distressful to every Christian. There is not a single Christian that wishes a single person to experience Hell. The thought of even the world’s worst criminals suffering in Hell is very upsetting to Christians. Still, according to Scripture, and according to direct quotes from Christ, Hell is a real place down in the earth where the intelligent spirits of the unrepentant dead are initially assigned at death. The Jewish term for this place is Sheol, in Greek Hades and in English Hell. There these spirits are removed from the presence of God. Again, Hell is down in the earth and not to be confused with the Lake of Fire. The Lake is not located on the earth, and no one is currently in the Lake at this time. 

All people are creations of God. All people, whether they like it or not, exist or live in the presence of a spiritual God. As a creation, to be removed from the presence of God their Creator at death brings anxiety and suffering. At death, a person’s life spirit is either in the presence of God in Heaven with Christ, or they are removed from the presence of God. Those removed to Sheol have been judged as having lived lives of resolute, unrepentant immorality, and have shown by continuous thought and deed they absolutely do not want to be in the presence of a Holy and Righteous God. Therefore, they are removed to a place that is not in the presence of God. A place filled with like-minded individuals from Cain to the Antichrist and Satan. They have judged themselves by refusing to repent to their Creator, and are now receiving their just reward for a life lived in sin, as opposed to those in Heaven who are receiving their just reward for a life lived in faith, love and service (Matthew 5:22; Matthew 25:41; Matthew 25:46; Jude 7:7; Revelation 14:11).  

JW members are taught that at death, the vast majority of people cease to exist. However, since 1914, a very select few who die are now translated into "spirit creatures" and go to Heaven to rule with Christ. The sum total of this select class will be 144,000. This is known as the First Resurrection. A second "General Resurrection" of the "other sheep" will begin at the end of the War of Armageddon. During this ongoing resurrection, both righteous and unrighteous people will be resurrected during the one thousand year Reign of Christ from Heaven. At that time, all people will live in an earthly paradise, and the unrighteous will be given an opportunity to correct their ways and demonstrate their ability to live in the will of God. However, while all people are immortal, they will not be endowed with an immortal spirit nature like the select 144,000. At the end of the Millennial Reign of Christ, Satan is released and allowed to tempt mankind one last time. Those that follow him are annihilated, and only a fully tested and glorified human race will remain on earth.

However, Scripture is clear that there are only two separate Resurrections and Raptures. The First Resurrection and Rapture of the righteous, occurs at the End of the Age of the rule of mankind on earth. This event will probably trigger the 7 year Tribulation Period that ends with the War of Armageddon and the physical Second Coming of Christ accompanied by His followers. Christ will then instantly destroy all the unrighteous of the earth and rule mankind for one thousand years. This time period is also known as the Millennial Reign of Christ.

A Second Resurrection and Rapture of the Unrighteous will occur at the end of the Millennial Reign of Christ on earth. At that time, Satan is released and allowed to tempt mankind. This final rebellion is instantly crushed by God. This event is immediately followed by the Resurrection and Rapture of the Unrighteous dead confined in Sheol or Hell. They are now resurrected and raptured from Sheol, judged and remanded to the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20: 5-6; Revelation 20: 7-15).

According to the Book of Revelation, on the final day of the Millennial Reign of Christ, a New Jerusalem descends to the earth (Revelation 21:2-4). At that time, the righteous of the earth are individually introduced to their new home specifically designed by Christ to suite their every desire (John 14:2). This magnificent structure will be the eternal home of God's Children. At the exact same time, the incorrigibly unrighteous of Sheol are individually judged, sentenced and placed in their eternal home the Lake of Fire. Even Sheol itself will be pulled up out of the earth and thrown into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:14-15). This Lake is not on the earth. Some theorize it is a star while others a Black Hole. But it’s contents and even it’s existence will be covered over. This means that all remembrances of Sheol and the people now contained in the Lake will be erased from the memories of the righteous. It will be as if they never existed (Revelation 3:5; Psalm 96:28). 

That said, God loves all people and sincerely wants them to become a member of His family (II Peter 3:9). However, God will never take away a person’s inalienable right to decide if they want to love Him in return, or turn their back on Him and go their own way (Matthew 7:13-14). Therefore, we can rightly say that the “Unforgivable Sin” is one in which a person refuses to ask their Creator to be forgiven for their sins. Thus, they are unforgiveable and have judged themselves. 

There is No Antichrist: The JW Church teaches that the Antichrist is not a single person but a corrupt system that works against the teachings of Christ and persecutes the people of God. Scripture is crystal clear that the Antichrist is a man. It gives us six names that he will be known by. Scripture tells us about his talents such as; he is a great peace maker, orator, charismatic and a successful military leader. He has an assassination attempt made on his life that temporarily has him bordering on death. That he recovers and appoints a man to serve as the leader of his one world religious system. So the JW Church is denying all that Scripture has to say about this man and his plans to rule the world and be worshipped as a god.

The Age of the Earth: The JW Church believes in the Gap Theory {Old Earth Theory} first published in 1814. This theory teaches that the earth is not six thousand years old {Young Earth Theory}. Instead, the earth with all its life forms were intelligently created in the extreme distant past by Jehovah. Later, the earth was brought into a state of chaos for unspecified reason(s). They believe the Bible states the initial creation of earth in Genesis 1:1. The Bible then infers a time “Gap” between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2. Then the Bible picks back up with its abbreviated Creation Timeline with God lifting the curse by allowing light to reenter the earth’s atmosphere and thus life resumed. Therefore, life remerged or was "replenished" over a six day period, but was not recreated over a six day period (Adam: Genesis 1:28; Noah: Genesis 9:1).

 No Participation in Civil Affairs: Jehovah’s Witnesses do not vote or participate in politics. They teach that God’s Kingdom is the only legitimate form of governance. They also believe that because the War of Armageddon is looming, why waste time debating politics. They are also forbidden to participate in military service so, all Witnesses are consciousness objectors. They are not allowed to bear arms for militarily or personal protection. They are not allowed to make any pledge of allegiance to any country or person. Nor are they allowed to salute a flag or a person nor to sing any nationalistic songs as these are all seen as forms of false religious worship. 

No Celebrating Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentines Day, Easter, 4^th of July, Halloween, Birthdays, etc.: Jehovah’s witnesses do not celebrate any religious, political, social or civic holidays or festivals because of possible pagan or mind controlling undertones. Interestingly, in 1647 the Puritans outlawed the celebration of Christmas in Boston because they saw it as a non-Scriptural tradition that clashed with their strict religious beliefs. Similarly, while the Witnesses originally celebrated Christmas, in 1928 the Governing Body concluded that the Christmas was just a cover name for the pagan practice of sun worshipping. This fallacious decision was based on  several somewhat confusing ancient Roman holiday dating issues. Basically, the Roman calendar did not have in place a system that regularly compensated for the slightly irregular orbit of the earth around the sun. So, Rome announced that the Winter Solstice would, for a time, be moved from the 21st to the 25th. Today, with our modern calendar, we know that the Winter Solstice falls on either the 21st or sometimes the 22nd. Also, Rome did celebrate the Festival of Saturnalia that ran from December 17th through the 25th. However, there has never been any credible documentation found to date that December 25^th was consciously chosen by the early Christian Church to replace a pagan holiday. This theory was, and continues to be nothing more than an urban legend with absolutely no basis in fact. Please see related: “How the Modern Calendar Was Created “and “The Actual Birth Date of Jesus Revealed”. 

The JW Church has only two annual celebrations. One is called the Memorial of Christ’s Death, or The Lord’s Evening Meal. This service takes place on the same date the Jews celebrate Passover. The second is a wedding anniversary in which the couple consist of a biological male and a biological female. JW’s do not believe in same sex marriage or pre-marital sex. 

Smoking, Drinking Alcohol and Caffeine: Jehovah’s Witnesses’ are forbidden to smoke. If a Witness is caught smoking, it is a shunning offence. Witnesses’ are cautioned against drinking alcohol and the consumption of caffeine as both can cause addiction and impair judgement. 

Dress Code: JW females are not permitted to wear pants. However, in 2014, the Governing Body made a anointed filled decision to allow women to wear pants. However, they must wear a dress if they are involved in a Church meeting or service program.

Prophecy Within the Organization: Jehovah’s Witnesses have produced several prophets who have made several modern day prophecies all of which did not occur. Founder C.T. Russell taught that Christ had invisibly returned to earth in 1874 and He would visibly return in 1878. When Christ did not appear, he revised this date to October of 1914. When Christ did not return on this date, the prophecy was revised again. The Church now explained that Jesus did not return to earth on that date because instead, He began to rule the Kingdom of God in Heaven in the form of Michael the Archangel. It remains an important date for Witnesses as it also marks the start of the end times countdown. It was also prophesied that members alive in 1914 would be the generation to witness Armageddon. However in 1995, the Governing Body revised the Generation Doctrine and the Witnesses now believe that Armageddon will begin within the lifetimes of those whose lives overlap with the 1914 generation. Clear as mud. It was also prophesied that 1975 would be the start of the Seventh Millennium. This was supposed to be the date that marks the start of Christ’s Reign. But this date has come and gone and the Governing Body has yet to set another new date for this event. Maybe they decided to get out of the prophecy business? 

No Blood Transfusions: Jehovah’s Witnesses believe blood is sacred and its ingestion is prohibited by God’s law. Biblical references are interpreted to also include taking blood into the body by way of transfusions.  Therefore, Witnesses carry a No Blood Advance Directive document at all times as do their children. They only use medical facilities that practice bloodless surgery. To accept a blood transfusion will cause the person to experience disfellowship from the Church. And that’s a bad thing? But more importantly, they are taught that Jehovah will turn His back on them, and they risk losing their eternal salvation. 

Up until the time of Christ, it was a common practice for a person worshiping a certain pagan God to ingest blood. Typically this was through eating the undrained meat of a sacrificed animal. It was thought that the sacrifice was touched by the gods. Therefore, drinking it’s blood, or the animal’s life force, allowed the person to be imbued with the power of the animal‘s spirit and receive the blessings of that god. But there were times when actual blood was drunk from a cup. This is still a traditional practice in Africa, Nepal and China. However, Jewish Law forbids the consumption of blood. So, when Paul explained to the Apostles that he was going to evangelize the pagan gentiles, the council told him that anyone who accepted Christ must not drink blood. Therefore, the Witnesses have obviously taken this simple straightforward prohibition to an extreme. Imagine that. To receive an intravenous infusion of blood is not the same as drinking blood. And anyone who has faith in Christ cannot lose salvation because they eat something that is against the dietary laws of a religious sect, or have their eternal life lost by way of a transfusion. Jesus made it clear that it was not what went into a person that defiles them. Its what comes out of a person that can defile them (Matthew 15:11). 

Organ Transplants: Originally, the JW Church doctrine was that, To receive an organ transplant was the same as practicing cannibalism. Then, in 1980 the Governing Body reversed this prohibition {what else is new} and stated that, "Accepting an organ is a personal decision". However, the organ must first have all its blood drained out before being transplanted. Otherwise, the JW organ recipient would be considered as having received a blood transfusion and therefore be shunned by the JW congregation. Said all dead JW's who needed a transplant to the Governing Body, "Now you tell me?"

 Higher Education: Members are discouraged from attending college.  There are three reasons for this understanding. First and foremost, Armageddon could occur at any moment, so what is the use of wasting time on higher degrees when they could be out evangelizing people to becomes a member of the JW Church and be saved. Second, higher education often brings about additional wealth which can lead to distractions from time spent evangelizing society. Third, liberal education can cause a person to question religious constructs which is strictly forbidden in the JW organization. 

No Windows in Most Kingdom Hall Facilities: In an abundance of caution, this architectural design practice is due to ongoing vandalism and persecution problems against Jehovah’s Witnesses throughout the world.  

Limited Associations: Witnesses are required to have limited association with non JW persons as contrary religious views and questions can cause unnecessary doubt and confusion. 

 How to Stop Witnesses From House Calls: Tell a Witnesses that you renounced the JW Church. They will immediately leave the premises as they are strictly forbidden to be in the presence of a former member due to their practice of shunning past members who have rejected Church doctrine.