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Jehovah’s Witnesses and Christ’s Incarnation and Humanity
The man Christ Jesus—1 Timothy 2:5
“When Jesus was on earth, he was a perfect man, nothing more and nothing less.” [1] We can find little quarrel with half of this Jehovah’s Witness statement. (Incidentally, as an aside, this is what makes the Jehovah’s Witnesses cult so dangerous—they mix a little truth with a lot of error! For more on the danger of cultist teaching, the reader is referred to the special Appendix at the end of this article.) Indeed, whilst on earth Jesus was a perfect man—nothing less. But as we have already proved, in other articless in this little series of articles with the words, “Jehovah’s Witnesses and…” in their titles, from the Word of God, “nothing more” makes this a false statement.
Jesus was more than just a man. Whilst the general teachings of Jehovah’s Witnesses concerning the doctrine of Christ’s humanity is basically similar to that of the true Christian Church—it could hardly be any other—their belief, and therefore their teaching, with reference to His incarnation is very far from the truth. The fact that they state He was nothing more than a man is adequate proof of their falseness.
This article deals specifically with Christ’s incarnation and humanity, and is included in this little series of articles mainly to enable us to have complete understanding of the true doctrine of Jesus Christ, rather than simply to prove Jehovah’s Witnesses wrong; but we cannot ignore completely some of their erroneous statements.
The incarnation (the word means, to embody in flesh, especially in human form), is fully described by Luke in his Gospel. When the time had come that God should be manifest in the flesh in the form of Jesus Christ, first intimation of this great event in history came by way of the angel Gabriel to the virgin Mary. She was to become the mother of the Man Christ Jesus; she was not to become the mother of God. How can God have a mother if He has always been in existence?
Now the Scriptures are very plain as to what actually happened and how it came about. “God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendent of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.” [2] After telling her that she would bear a Son, and that His name would be Jesus, Mary was naturally puzzled—and she voiced her feelings. “How will this be, Mary asked the angel, since I am a virgin? The angel answered, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” [3]
Notice in particular the phrase, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you.” Matthew, in his Gospel, enlarges on this. “She was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit;” and, “what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” [4] Here we have the three-fold work of the Holy Trinity in operation. GOD THE FATHER, THROUGH THE POWER OF GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT, BRINGS ABOUT THE INCARNATION OF GOD THE SON.
It is important to notice that in every divine operation of a major character recorded throughout the Scriptures the Holy Trinity is present. In the creation of the world—“In the beginning GOD created the heavens and the earth...And the SPIRIT of God was hovering over the waters...Then God said, Let US make man in our image, in our likeness.” [5] Then at our Lord’s baptism—“As soon as JESUS was baptised, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the SPIRIT of God descending like a dove and lighting on him: And a VOICE from heaven said, This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” [6] (The KJV uses the phrase, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”)
Two further examples will suffice. In the great commission Christ gave to His disciples—”Go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the FATHER and of the SON and of the HOLY SPIRIT.” [7] And the promise made by Jesus to be fulfilled at Pentecost—“The Counsellor, the HOLY SPIRIT, whom the FATHER will send in MY NAME.” [8] These are but four examples from an abundance of Scripture where the Holy Trinity is present and at work together.
Jesus was more than just a man. Whilst the general teachings of Jehovah’s Witnesses concerning the doctrine of Christ’s humanity is basically similar to that of the true Christian Church—it could hardly be any other—their belief, and therefore their teaching, with reference to His incarnation is very far from the truth. The fact that they state He was nothing more than a man is adequate proof of their falseness.
This article deals specifically with Christ’s incarnation and humanity, and is included in this little series of articles mainly to enable us to have complete understanding of the true doctrine of Jesus Christ, rather than simply to prove Jehovah’s Witnesses wrong; but we cannot ignore completely some of their erroneous statements.
The incarnation (the word means, to embody in flesh, especially in human form), is fully described by Luke in his Gospel. When the time had come that God should be manifest in the flesh in the form of Jesus Christ, first intimation of this great event in history came by way of the angel Gabriel to the virgin Mary. She was to become the mother of the Man Christ Jesus; she was not to become the mother of God. How can God have a mother if He has always been in existence?
Now the Scriptures are very plain as to what actually happened and how it came about. “God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendent of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.” [2] After telling her that she would bear a Son, and that His name would be Jesus, Mary was naturally puzzled—and she voiced her feelings. “How will this be, Mary asked the angel, since I am a virgin? The angel answered, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” [3]
Notice in particular the phrase, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you.” Matthew, in his Gospel, enlarges on this. “She was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit;” and, “what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” [4] Here we have the three-fold work of the Holy Trinity in operation. GOD THE FATHER, THROUGH THE POWER OF GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT, BRINGS ABOUT THE INCARNATION OF GOD THE SON.
It is important to notice that in every divine operation of a major character recorded throughout the Scriptures the Holy Trinity is present. In the creation of the world—“In the beginning GOD created the heavens and the earth...And the SPIRIT of God was hovering over the waters...Then God said, Let US make man in our image, in our likeness.” [5] Then at our Lord’s baptism—“As soon as JESUS was baptised, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the SPIRIT of God descending like a dove and lighting on him: And a VOICE from heaven said, This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” [6] (The KJV uses the phrase, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”)
Two further examples will suffice. In the great commission Christ gave to His disciples—”Go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the FATHER and of the SON and of the HOLY SPIRIT.” [7] And the promise made by Jesus to be fulfilled at Pentecost—“The Counsellor, the HOLY SPIRIT, whom the FATHER will send in MY NAME.” [8] These are but four examples from an abundance of Scripture where the Holy Trinity is present and at work together.
The inclusion of these references is to establish the fact from the Bible that the incarnation of God the Son was not just a miracle, in the accepted sense of the word; nor was it something which happened at the right time, so that it could be called a miracle of timing. Certainly the incarnation was according to God’s time, but this could hardly be called a miracle of timing. The incarnation was a definite act at a definite time according to God’s Divine Plan. The incarnation involved the Holy Trinity.
Let us be positive and definite about this. The incarnation of GOD THE SON was a definite act by GOD THE FATHER through the power of GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT. If this is true—and the Word of God compels us to believe that it is—then no other explanation of the incarnation is acceptable.
What explanation, then, do the Jehovah’s Witnesses give? Let us compare!
They state that Jesus was “conceived by the miracle-working power of Almighty God.” [9] The Bible states, “What is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” [10] Verdict—JEHOVAH’S WITNESS STATEMENT FALSE!
“The life of the Son of God was transferred from his glorious position with God his Father in heaven to the embryo of a human.” [11] The Bible states, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you,” [12] Verdict—JEHOVAH’S WITNESS STATEMENT FALSE!
“By having his perfect, sinless life transferred from heaven to the womb of a Jewish virgin, Jesus was born a perfect human and grew up to be a perfect man, absolutely sinless, guileless, undefiled.” [13] The Bible states, “She was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.” [14] Verdict—JEHOVAH’S WITNESS STATEMENT FALSE!
Whilst on earth Jesus was essentially human in every respect. The Bible states that He was a man; many references prove that He had all the normal characteristics of a man; His mind was human and He was tempted just as all men are. Whilst on earth as a man He needed, like all men, support for His spiritual life in the form of communion and prayer with God, His Heavenly Father.
The actual body of Jesus was the same as any normal healthy body. He was capable of ordinary physical sensations common to all men. For instance, we find more than one reference to Him eating and drinking; and the sensations of hunger and thirst are mentioned, too. One such occasion was when He was in Matthew’s house. “While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and ‘sinners’ were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the ‘sinners’ and tax collectors, they asked his disciples, Why does he eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” [15] Referring to Jesus, “Early in the morning, as he was on his way back to the city, he was hungry.” [16] “The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry.” [17] “Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, I am thirsty.” [18] Even in His darkest hour, Jesus experienced the physical sensation of thirst.
Other physical sensations, such as weariness of the body and sleeping, are recorded. “Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well.” [19] Then there was that memorable occasion when Jesus was in the boat on a storm-tossed sea; the Bible records that “Jesus was sleeping.” [20]
Because of His humanity, there were times when Jesus was emotionally moved. For instance, following the death of Lazarus the Bible says, “Jesus wept,” [21] and in connection with the same incident, “He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled.” [22] In one verse alone we find that Jesus was capable of both anger and grief, of deep distress, for we read, “He looked round at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts…” [23]
We also find reference to the fact that Jesus possessed a human soul. Speaking of His crucifixion, He said, “Now is my soul troubled,” [24] and later, in the Garden of Gethsemane, He said to Peter, James and John, “My soul is over-whelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” [25] The human mind of Jesus developed gradually as His physical age increased, just as any other human child. As a young boy we read of Jesus that He “grew in wisdom and stature.” [26]
Proof of His humanity is further extended by the fact that Jesus learned of things just as we do—mainly by asking questions. When we require information, or the knowledge of someone’s whereabouts, we ask. Why? Because we are human and we do not have all the answers. We find reference in the Gospels of Jesus doing exactly the same thing. Why? Because He was human, and as a man He did not have all the answers. (Of course, as God He was ‘all-knowing’, and would therefore know all the answers! But by asking questions He was demonstrating His humanity.) For example, He desired to know where the body of Lazarus could be found, so asked the man’s sisters, “Where have you laid him?” [27] He enquired of His disciples, when desiring to feed a multitude, “How many loaves do you have?” [28] There are other occasions in the Gospels where He asked similar questions.
Constantly the human soul has to choose between doing God’s will and doing his own; to, in fact, choose between right and wrong. Temptation is the common lot of us all. Temptation is not, in itself, sin—yielding to temptation is! “Yield not to temptation, for yielding is sin,” as the old hymn goes. We can take heart in this aspect of Christ’s humanity, for “we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet was without sin.” [29] The KJV translation is perhaps more familiar. It says, “He was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” Never once did Jesus in His humanity yield to any form of temptation.
Many suppose that Jesus was tempted only three times during His earthly life, as recorded in the fourth chapter of Luke’s Gospel—that is, by the devil in the wilderness. But Jesus Himself said to His disciples, “Ye are they which have CONTINUED with me in my temptations.” [30] The disciples had not been called when the Lord was forty days in the wilderness, during which times He was tempted three times of the devil; but during His earthly ministry many came to Him, tempting Him. From this alone we see that Jesus was essentially human. We also see that He was more than just human, because He never ever yielded to any temptation.
What explanation, then, do the Jehovah’s Witnesses give? Let us compare!
They state that Jesus was “conceived by the miracle-working power of Almighty God.” [9] The Bible states, “What is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” [10] Verdict—JEHOVAH’S WITNESS STATEMENT FALSE!
“The life of the Son of God was transferred from his glorious position with God his Father in heaven to the embryo of a human.” [11] The Bible states, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you,” [12] Verdict—JEHOVAH’S WITNESS STATEMENT FALSE!
“By having his perfect, sinless life transferred from heaven to the womb of a Jewish virgin, Jesus was born a perfect human and grew up to be a perfect man, absolutely sinless, guileless, undefiled.” [13] The Bible states, “She was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.” [14] Verdict—JEHOVAH’S WITNESS STATEMENT FALSE!
Whilst on earth Jesus was essentially human in every respect. The Bible states that He was a man; many references prove that He had all the normal characteristics of a man; His mind was human and He was tempted just as all men are. Whilst on earth as a man He needed, like all men, support for His spiritual life in the form of communion and prayer with God, His Heavenly Father.
The actual body of Jesus was the same as any normal healthy body. He was capable of ordinary physical sensations common to all men. For instance, we find more than one reference to Him eating and drinking; and the sensations of hunger and thirst are mentioned, too. One such occasion was when He was in Matthew’s house. “While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and ‘sinners’ were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the ‘sinners’ and tax collectors, they asked his disciples, Why does he eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” [15] Referring to Jesus, “Early in the morning, as he was on his way back to the city, he was hungry.” [16] “The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry.” [17] “Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, I am thirsty.” [18] Even in His darkest hour, Jesus experienced the physical sensation of thirst.
Other physical sensations, such as weariness of the body and sleeping, are recorded. “Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well.” [19] Then there was that memorable occasion when Jesus was in the boat on a storm-tossed sea; the Bible records that “Jesus was sleeping.” [20]
Because of His humanity, there were times when Jesus was emotionally moved. For instance, following the death of Lazarus the Bible says, “Jesus wept,” [21] and in connection with the same incident, “He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled.” [22] In one verse alone we find that Jesus was capable of both anger and grief, of deep distress, for we read, “He looked round at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts…” [23]
We also find reference to the fact that Jesus possessed a human soul. Speaking of His crucifixion, He said, “Now is my soul troubled,” [24] and later, in the Garden of Gethsemane, He said to Peter, James and John, “My soul is over-whelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” [25] The human mind of Jesus developed gradually as His physical age increased, just as any other human child. As a young boy we read of Jesus that He “grew in wisdom and stature.” [26]
Proof of His humanity is further extended by the fact that Jesus learned of things just as we do—mainly by asking questions. When we require information, or the knowledge of someone’s whereabouts, we ask. Why? Because we are human and we do not have all the answers. We find reference in the Gospels of Jesus doing exactly the same thing. Why? Because He was human, and as a man He did not have all the answers. (Of course, as God He was ‘all-knowing’, and would therefore know all the answers! But by asking questions He was demonstrating His humanity.) For example, He desired to know where the body of Lazarus could be found, so asked the man’s sisters, “Where have you laid him?” [27] He enquired of His disciples, when desiring to feed a multitude, “How many loaves do you have?” [28] There are other occasions in the Gospels where He asked similar questions.
Constantly the human soul has to choose between doing God’s will and doing his own; to, in fact, choose between right and wrong. Temptation is the common lot of us all. Temptation is not, in itself, sin—yielding to temptation is! “Yield not to temptation, for yielding is sin,” as the old hymn goes. We can take heart in this aspect of Christ’s humanity, for “we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet was without sin.” [29] The KJV translation is perhaps more familiar. It says, “He was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” Never once did Jesus in His humanity yield to any form of temptation.
Many suppose that Jesus was tempted only three times during His earthly life, as recorded in the fourth chapter of Luke’s Gospel—that is, by the devil in the wilderness. But Jesus Himself said to His disciples, “Ye are they which have CONTINUED with me in my temptations.” [30] The disciples had not been called when the Lord was forty days in the wilderness, during which times He was tempted three times of the devil; but during His earthly ministry many came to Him, tempting Him. From this alone we see that Jesus was essentially human. We also see that He was more than just human, because He never ever yielded to any temptation.
A final, but important, thought must capture our attention as we read the Gospel narrative of Christ’s life. His humanity was such that it was impossible for Him to do God the Father’s will—just as it is impossible for us humans to do His will—without the necessary spiritual support in the form of divine communion and personal prayer. Time after time we find Jesus going apart from the crowd to be alone with His Heavenly Father. At the moment when He fought, perhaps, His greatest spiritual battle on earth, in the Garden of Gethsemane just before the trial and crucifixion, we find Him with His Father in personal, intensive prayer.
Is it not true to say that, we who are human, find God our Heavenly Father to be nearest at our greatest time of spiritual need? This was also true in the earthly life of Jesus.
One must, therefore, agree that Jesus Christ, whilst on earth, was nothing less than a perfect man. The essential difference between Him and other human beings was that He was perfect in every respect, never yielding to temptation, doing God His Father’s will continually, whilst we who are human often yield to temptation and many times displease God by our disobedience. We cannot, however, accept the statement that Jesus was nothing more than a perfect man.
HERE IS ANOTHER POINT WHERE JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES ARE UTTERLY AND HOPELESSLY WRONG.
If Jesus is nothing more than a perfect man, then the whole of Christian doctrine as taught and believed by the true Christian Church is false. Likewise, the Bible upon which those doctrines are based is also false. We are all, therefore, totally lost spiritually! There is no hope! But thank God this is not the case. Because He was God the Son, it was possible in His humanity for Jesus to be perfect in every respect. It is absolutely essential that we believe this truth. If we cannot accept it, as Jehovah’s Witnesses cannot or will not accept it, then indeed we have no hope, we are lost.
Why, then, is it so important? Because, if Jesus was not God the Son and therefore not more than a perfect man, then others who follow (you and me, for instance) could also set out to be perfect—absolute perfection. We would, in fact, all become “mighty ones”, little “gods”, to use a Jehovah’s Witness description of Jesus. We would rank equal with Jesus in every way. Let us never forget that we were born in sin; Jesus was born of the Holy Spirit. That makes Him different from the start! BECAUSE OF HIS DEITY JESUS WAS ABLE TO REMAIN PERFECT IN HIS HUMANITY. That is vitally important to our faith, and rejected by Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Whilst it is God’s will that we should strive after holiness—that is, spiritual or Christian perfection—we will not attain absolute perfection this side of eternity. Jesus was absolutely perfect here on earth as a man. We believe that Jesus Christ is both true God and true man, and is God manifest in the flesh. We cannot, indeed we dare not, accept the false teaching of Jehovah’s Witnesses in this respect.
“Jesus was...a perfect man possessing all the qualifications requisite to the furnishing of the purchase price of sinful man.” [31] This, of course, is not true. As so often happens with them, they contradict themselves. If Jesus had been just a man He would not have possessed all the qualifications necessary for our salvation. They cannot have it both ways! To accomplish His great work it was needful that the Lord Jesus Christ should be both God and man. Jesus suffered and died as a man on man’s behalf, for man’s sin; as God He was able to atone for the sins of man. We cannot separate one nature from the other if we are to have a complete foundation for our soul’s salvation.
Jehovah’s Witnesses state, “To meet the exactness of God’s perfect law, Jesus must be a perfect man, no more, no less. Thus Jesus could die, not as a spirit creature, but as a perfect human creature, for humankind needing redemption. For these and other reasons Jesus was not a ‘God-man’, for that would be more than the required price of redemption.” [32] Now compare this jargon with the words of the Bible. Thinking of Jesus as a man, and men as the children of God, “Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death – that is, the devil.” [33] I have to confess that I prefer the KJV translation of this verse, which says, “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.”
We are reconciled to God the Father by God the Son; therefore, thinking of Jesus as God, “we also rejoice in God” [the Father] “through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” [34] The KJV uses the phrase, “the atonement,” but in the margin of that version translates “atonement” as “reconciliation”.
“Who do you say I am?” [35] Jesus asked. Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” [36] But later, this same Peter said to the Jews gathered in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost, that Christ was, “Jesus of Nazareth, a man accredited by God to you.” [37] The KJV uses the phrase, “…approved of God.”
The Bible proves the deity of Jesus Christ.
The Bible also proves His humanity, for “there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the MAN Christ Jesus.” [38]
The Bible conclusively proves Jehovah’s Witnesses to be totally wrong!
But what can we expect when they are really a False Cult? Go to the Appendix now to find out why the Jehovah’s Witnesses cult is so dangerous!
Why, then, is it so important? Because, if Jesus was not God the Son and therefore not more than a perfect man, then others who follow (you and me, for instance) could also set out to be perfect—absolute perfection. We would, in fact, all become “mighty ones”, little “gods”, to use a Jehovah’s Witness description of Jesus. We would rank equal with Jesus in every way. Let us never forget that we were born in sin; Jesus was born of the Holy Spirit. That makes Him different from the start! BECAUSE OF HIS DEITY JESUS WAS ABLE TO REMAIN PERFECT IN HIS HUMANITY. That is vitally important to our faith, and rejected by Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Whilst it is God’s will that we should strive after holiness—that is, spiritual or Christian perfection—we will not attain absolute perfection this side of eternity. Jesus was absolutely perfect here on earth as a man. We believe that Jesus Christ is both true God and true man, and is God manifest in the flesh. We cannot, indeed we dare not, accept the false teaching of Jehovah’s Witnesses in this respect.
“Jesus was...a perfect man possessing all the qualifications requisite to the furnishing of the purchase price of sinful man.” [31] This, of course, is not true. As so often happens with them, they contradict themselves. If Jesus had been just a man He would not have possessed all the qualifications necessary for our salvation. They cannot have it both ways! To accomplish His great work it was needful that the Lord Jesus Christ should be both God and man. Jesus suffered and died as a man on man’s behalf, for man’s sin; as God He was able to atone for the sins of man. We cannot separate one nature from the other if we are to have a complete foundation for our soul’s salvation.
Jehovah’s Witnesses state, “To meet the exactness of God’s perfect law, Jesus must be a perfect man, no more, no less. Thus Jesus could die, not as a spirit creature, but as a perfect human creature, for humankind needing redemption. For these and other reasons Jesus was not a ‘God-man’, for that would be more than the required price of redemption.” [32] Now compare this jargon with the words of the Bible. Thinking of Jesus as a man, and men as the children of God, “Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death – that is, the devil.” [33] I have to confess that I prefer the KJV translation of this verse, which says, “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.”
We are reconciled to God the Father by God the Son; therefore, thinking of Jesus as God, “we also rejoice in God” [the Father] “through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” [34] The KJV uses the phrase, “the atonement,” but in the margin of that version translates “atonement” as “reconciliation”.
“Who do you say I am?” [35] Jesus asked. Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” [36] But later, this same Peter said to the Jews gathered in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost, that Christ was, “Jesus of Nazareth, a man accredited by God to you.” [37] The KJV uses the phrase, “…approved of God.”
The Bible proves the deity of Jesus Christ.
The Bible also proves His humanity, for “there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the MAN Christ Jesus.” [38]
The Bible conclusively proves Jehovah’s Witnesses to be totally wrong!
But what can we expect when they are really a False Cult? Go to the Appendix now to find out why the Jehovah’s Witnesses cult is so dangerous!
Appendix
Why the Jehovah’s Witnesses Cult is so dangerous!
We said at the beginning of this article that what makes the Jehovah’s Witnesses cult so dangerous is that they mix a little truth with a lot of error! Indeed, herein lies the danger of cultist teaching in general. Of all the cults, probably the Jehovah’s Witnesses are the most dangerous, because they are the most plausible – but plausibility does not make them right!
So, just what is a cult. “A cult is a perversion, a distortion of biblical Christianity and/or a rejection of the historic teachings of the Christian church.” [39] “A cult, then, is a group of people polarised around someone’s interpretation of the Bible and is characterised by major deviations from orthodox Christianity relative to the cardinal doctrines of the Christian faith, particularly the fact that God became man in Jesus Christ.” [40]
One of the major characteristics of a cult (although there are many that could be cited) is their erroneous teaching concerning the person of Jesus Christ, which naturally includes the Holy Trinity – or rather, their total rejection of the Trinity – and is probably the first question one should ask when enquiring into the beliefs of a particular “religious group”. The Jesus Christ of the cults is not the Jesus Christ of the Bible, so any departure from that alone renders their whole platform of doctrine suspect, and the “group” can be rightly classified as a cult.
Jehovah’s Witnesses, as this series of articles demonstrates, do not believe in and teach the truth about the Jesus Christ of the Bible, and so we are justified in labelling them as a cult; and because they are so plausible in the way they mishandle the “truth”, this makes them all the more dangerous.
“No matter what the particular beliefs of any cult may be, the one common denominator they all possess is a denial of the biblical teaching on the deity of Jesus Christ.” [41] “The sure mark of a cult is what it does with the person of Jesus Christ. All cults ultimately deny the fact that Jesus Christ is God the Son, second Person of the Holy Trinity, and mankind’s only hope.” [42]
THE JESUS CHRIST OF THE JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES IS NOT THE JESUS CHRIST OF THE BIBLE. THEY ARE A DANGEROUS CULT!
So, just what is a cult. “A cult is a perversion, a distortion of biblical Christianity and/or a rejection of the historic teachings of the Christian church.” [39] “A cult, then, is a group of people polarised around someone’s interpretation of the Bible and is characterised by major deviations from orthodox Christianity relative to the cardinal doctrines of the Christian faith, particularly the fact that God became man in Jesus Christ.” [40]
One of the major characteristics of a cult (although there are many that could be cited) is their erroneous teaching concerning the person of Jesus Christ, which naturally includes the Holy Trinity – or rather, their total rejection of the Trinity – and is probably the first question one should ask when enquiring into the beliefs of a particular “religious group”. The Jesus Christ of the cults is not the Jesus Christ of the Bible, so any departure from that alone renders their whole platform of doctrine suspect, and the “group” can be rightly classified as a cult.
Jehovah’s Witnesses, as this series of articles demonstrates, do not believe in and teach the truth about the Jesus Christ of the Bible, and so we are justified in labelling them as a cult; and because they are so plausible in the way they mishandle the “truth”, this makes them all the more dangerous.
“No matter what the particular beliefs of any cult may be, the one common denominator they all possess is a denial of the biblical teaching on the deity of Jesus Christ.” [41] “The sure mark of a cult is what it does with the person of Jesus Christ. All cults ultimately deny the fact that Jesus Christ is God the Son, second Person of the Holy Trinity, and mankind’s only hope.” [42]
THE JESUS CHRIST OF THE JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES IS NOT THE JESUS CHRIST OF THE BIBLE. THEY ARE A DANGEROUS CULT!
REFERENCES
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[1]
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Reconciliation—p.111
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[2]
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Luke 1:26,27
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[3]
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Luke 1:34,35
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[4]
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Matthew 1:18,20
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[5]
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Genesis 1:1,2,26
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[6]
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Matthew 3:16,17
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[7]
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Matthew 28:19
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[8]
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John 14:26
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[9]
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Let God Be True (Second Edition)—p.36
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[10]
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Matthew 1:20
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[11]
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Let God Be True (Second Edition)—p.36
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[12]
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Luke 1:35
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[13]
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Let God Be true (Second Edition)—p.39
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[14]
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Matthew 1:18
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[15]
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Mark 2:15,16
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[16]
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Matthew 21:18
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[17]
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Mark 11:12
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[18]
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John 19:28
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[19]
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John 4:6
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[20]
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Matthew 8:24
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[21]
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John 11:35
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[22]
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John 11:33
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[23]
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Mark 3:5
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[24]
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John 12:27 (KJV)
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[25]
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Matthew 26:38
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[26]
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Luke 2:52
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[27]
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John 11:34
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[28]
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Mark 6:38
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[29]
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Hebrews 4:15
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[30]
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Luke 22:28 (KJV)
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[31]
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Salvation—pp.171,172
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[32]
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The Truth Shall Make You Free—p.250
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[33]
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Hebrews 2:14
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[34]
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Romans 5:11
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[35]
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Matthew 16:15
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[36]
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Matthew 16:16
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[37]
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Acts 2:22
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[38]
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1 Timothy 2:5
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[39]
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Concise Guide to Today’s Religions – p 17
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[40]
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The Rise of the Cults – p 12
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[41]
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Concise Guide to Today’s Religions – p 22
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[42]
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Concise Guide to Today’s Religions – p 26
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