In my opinion, what appears in this week’s and next week’s posts are the Watchtower’s best arguments and proof texts against the deity of Christ as well as the most effective ways to respond to them. Continue reading
Tag: John 17:3 (page 1 of 2)
Click image to access this “Bible Teach” chapter on the Watchtower’s website
“What is the greatest gift you have ever received?” (paragraph 1, p. 47)
It’s obvious from the title of Chapter 5 of “Bible Teach” that you are supposed to answer that it’s the ransom (or atoning) sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
But that’s not the answer I would give. While not wanting to minimize the importance of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice, I would say that the greatest gift I have received is Jesus Christ himself. Continue reading
Click image to access this “Bible Teach” chapter on the Watchtower’s website
Paragraph 12 of Chapter 4 (p. 42) of “Bible Teach” refers you to the Appendix entitled “The Truth About the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” (pp. 218-219). I will call this “The Anti-Trinity Appendix.”
If you have decided to discuss the full doctrine of the Trinity at this point in your study with the Witnesses, you will want to discuss this appendix in some depth. If you prefer to leave that discussion for later (Chapter 10 or Chapter 15), you can come back to this discussion at that point.
The appendix begins with this statement (p. 201): “PEOPLE who believe the Trinity teaching say that God consists of three persons—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each of these three persons is said to be equal to the others, almighty, and without beginning. According to the Trinity doctrine, therefore, the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God, yet there is only one God.”
That is actually a good statement of the Trinity doctrine!
But p. 202 follows that up by saying, “Many who believe the Trinity admit that they are not able to explain this teaching. Still, they may feel that it is taught in the Bible.”
That statement provides a springboard for you to discuss anything I covered in The Jesus Is the God-Man Approach and The Holy Spirit Is God Approach from my book, Getting Through to Jehovah’s Witnesses: Approaching Bible Discussions in Unexpected Ways, including presenting a positive biblical case for the Trinity rather than just a response to Watchtower proof texts. Continue reading
Click image to access this “Bible Teach” chapter on the Watchtower’s website
So far, I have discussed the first three topics in Chapter 1 of “Bible Teach.” Today, I’ll move on to the next subject.
Topic #4: How to draw close to Jehovah
Paragraph 18 (p. 15) of Chapter 1 is headed, “Can You Be Close to Jehovah?” Paragraph 19 (p. 16) quotes Jesus as saying in John 17:3, “This means everlasting life, their coming to know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.”
Interestingly, an earlier edition of the Watchtower Bible and of “Bible Teach” renders that verse differently: “This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.”
If they quote the earlier edition at any point, you can ask, “Which is it? To me, there’s a big difference between taking in knowledge of someone and actually knowing that person. How do you see that?”
Try to get them to express their views them on this subject. They need to see for themselves that getting close to the Father and the Son is a matter of a personal rather than organizational relationship.
What type of rhetoric do you find more persuasive—long, carefully crafted arguments or concise, easy-to-remember soundbites?
By “soundbites,” I mean brief, catchy comments or sayings that convey the essence of your message and stick in the minds of your audience. Continue reading
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