What Does the Bible Really Teach?
Chapter 4 -- Who is Jesus Christ?
The book says:
The book says:
It is important to know Jesus Christ and whether he
was just a man, or a prophet, or God, as some say. Why? Quoting the Bible the
book says “This means everlasting life, their coming to know you, the only true
God and the one whom you sent Jesus Christ”. Then, in the very next sentence,
the Watchtower writers say this promises “everlasting life on a paradise earth”.
The Bible foretold the coming of a Messiah or Christ
-- the “anointed one”. According to the NT accounts, the disciples of Jesus
recognised him as the Christ, promised by God in the OT.
While baptising Jesus, John saw a sign from heaven,
indicating that this was the Messiah. The booklet says that, on “that day,
Jesus became the Messiah”.
Jesus came from heaven. “He is called “the firstborn
of all creation” for he was God’s first creation”. “Jesus is also the only one
whom God used when He created all other things”. Jesus is called “the Word”.
Jesus is not equal to God because he was created. The
Son is “the image of the invisible God”. The heavenly Son’s life was transferred
into the womb of a Jewish virgin named Mary and he was born as a human on
earth. The Gospels tell us about Jesus, his teachings and his works on earth. “Under
the power of God’s spirit”, he performed miracles of healing.
Jesus died “nailed to a stake…… on the third day after
Jesus died, his heavenly Father resurrected him back to spirit life”. Jesus’
death opened the way for us to have eternal life on a paradise earth.
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My response:
There are some serious differences from Christian teaching in this chapter, but a newcomer to the Bible would not know that.
If you had actually read the NT, you would perceive some of the error of Jehovah’s
Witnesses. I shall direct you to several passages which will let you
decide for yourself who is telling the truth.
You will have to make up your own mind whether the
prophecies concerning Jesus are true. By reading the Gospels alone, you will
probably see that this Jesus is a very special and unusual character. If the
testimony of many witnesses is true about his teaching and the miracles he
performed, even raising the dead, he is certainly the promised Christ - even
God in the flesh - and not “just a man” as the Watchtower teaches.
I have shown you one example already of the Watchtower
adding to the Bible’s message. It also changes the Bible, as you will now see.
The Watchtower Society publishes its own version of
the Bible, the New World Translation, to fit in with its doctrines. As we saw
earlier, the “name” Jehovah has been added to the NT 237 times,
replacing the Greek word for “Lord”.
Look at Matthew’s gospel and read the first few
complete chapters. These tell the story of Jesus’ birth.
Notice especially Matthew 1:23 (I am using the Watchtower’s own literal Greek to English version again):
Notice especially Matthew 1:23 (I am using the Watchtower’s own literal Greek to English version again):
“Look! The virgin in belly will have and will give
birth to son and they will call the name of him Immanuel; which is being
translated With us the God”. (this is a prophecy from Isaiah 7:14).
Now look at Luke’s version and read the first few chapters.
You will see that Jesus’ birth is announced by angels to shepherds. Notice in
chapter 2 v11 it says,
“because was born to you today Saviour who is Christ
Lord in city of David” .
So, on the day of his birth, Jesus was the Christ and
not, as the Watchtower teaches, 30 years later, on the day of his baptism.
If that is not bad enough, the next few paragraphs
completely change what the Bible says (“God‘s Word“ say the Watchtower
leaders).
Look at Colossians. Read Chapter 1 especially from
verses 13-20.
In the Watchtower’s New World Translation, there are brackets around the word “other”, indicating a “clarification” (change!), but in their latest, Revised edition, these brackets have been removed, leaving the added word “other” in the text.
In the Watchtower’s New World Translation, there are brackets around the word “other”, indicating a “clarification” (change!), but in their latest, Revised edition, these brackets have been removed, leaving the added word “other” in the text.
Reading from verse 15:
“who is image of the God the invisible firstborn of
all creation [16] because in him it was created all in the heavens and upon the
earth the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or lordships or
governments or authorities; the all through him and into him it has been
created; [17] and he is before all and the all in him it has stood together”.
So, ALL things were created by Jesus, not just “all [other]
things”. And he WAS (he existed) "before all".
Notice another important point: the word “firstborn”
is a title referring to inheritance. It does not mean “the first child born”. We
know this because several Bible characters who were definitely not the oldest
child were called “the firstborn”, King David, Jacob and Joseph among them. So, why do
the Watchtower leaders link “firstborn” and “first creation”?
Now look at John’s gospel, the very first verse. Here
is another example of deliberate mistranslation by Watchtower leaders. Their
version of John 1:1 reads “the Word was a god”. Compare the literal text:
“In beginning was the Word and the Word was toward the
God and God was the Word”.
Why have they changed this?
Watchtower leaders teach that Jesus died on a “torture
stake”, not a cross. We shall return to this later, but if you are still asking
questions and using Google, it should be easy for you to find out about the
Romans’ preferred method of execution of criminals.
Jesus was resurrected. This is a key teaching of
Christianity. But who resurrected him? Look at John chapter 2. Read the whole
chapter, but especially verses 19-21:
“Answered Jesus and said to them, Loose you the divine
habitation this, and in three days I shall raise up it. [20] Said therefore the
Jews, Forty and six to years was built the divine habitation this, and you in
three days will raise up it? [21] That but was saying about the divine
habitation of the body of him”.
So, Jesus raised himself, his own body, from the dead
which isn’t really difficult to understand, if we accept that he is more than “just
a man” or in fact, God in man, Immanuel. This also helps us understand how
Jesus could perform miracles.
Again, the Chapter ends with the promise of life on a
paradise earth, but there are conditions attached to this Watchtower promise.
Further reading:
A Very Short Introduction: Jesus by Richard Baukham (Oxford University Press)
Further reading:
A Very Short Introduction: Jesus by Richard Baukham (Oxford University Press)
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