How Many Gods Do You Believe In
| By: Lorri MacGregor; ©September 1999 |
| By now, many people know what the Jehovah’s Witnesses do with John 1:1. But are there other Scripture verses that they twist to suit their theology? Lorri MacGregor, herself a former Witness, points to some examples in this article. |
In answer to the above question, every Jehovah’s Witness will answer–ONE! Yes, Jehovah’s Witnesses worship and acknowledge only one God, namely God the Father, whom they call “Jehovah.” They believe the Holy Spirit is an “active force” or God’s power, and they reduce Jesus to a secondary god, who is also known as the archangel Michael in their theology. They reject the Trinity.
THERE IS ONLY ONE TRUE GOD
Jehovah’s Witnesses will agree with this statement, and they are right, there is only one true God. Jeremiah 10:10 says, “But the LORD [YHWH] is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King.”
This Scripture is very plain. YHWH [mistranslated “Jehovah”] is the one true God of Scripture. He is the only true God BY NATURE. Galatians 4:8 explains it this way: “However at that time, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those which BY NATURE are no gods.”
Jehovah’s Witnesses will agree with the above statement. YHWH is the only true God by nature.
WHAT ABOUT OTHER GODS IN THE BIBLE?
By biblical definition, all other gods mentioned in Scripture are first of all FALSE, and secondly, CREATED. Space does not permit a discussion of this truth in this article, but for more information we recommend our booklet, “Could Jesus be ‘a god’?”
Even the demons know there is only one God! James 2:19 says, “You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.”
We therefore have the one, true, eternal God of Scripture, worthy of our worship and devotion. All others are false, created ones, and are not true gods by nature.
WHAT ABOUT JESUS?
The one, true God of Scripture has revealed Himself through the pages of the Bible as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This forms the basis of the teaching called the Trinity [triunity]. For further details, please refer to our booklet, “Is the Trinity True?” In the Trinity teaching, these three persons are the one, true God. The three are one. Belief in one, true, eternal God is called “monotheism” and forms the basis of Christianity.
MONOTHEISM VERSUS POLYTHEISM
On the other side of the argument, we find groups believing in polytheism, belief in more than one God. Mormons, Eastern and pagan religions fall into this category. Jehovah’s Witnesses may be surprised to discover that they also fall into this category, since they teach that Jesus is an extra god. Let’s pursue the Jehovah’s Witnesses line of reasoning a little further.
JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES DOCTRINE ON GOD
Jehovah’s Witnesses are taught by the Watchtower Society that Almighty God Jehovah created a secondary god, Jesus Christ. To illustrate:
| O | + | o | = 2 |
| Jehovah (One God) | + | Jesus (Secondary God) | = Belief in Two – both true? |
We have already established that there is ONE TRUE GOD by nature. Now we ask the Jehovah’s Witnesses the key question — Is Jesus a true god or a false god? They will have to admit that Jesus is a true god. This forces them to believe in more than one true god! You can’t believe in two true gods as the Jehovah’s Witnesses do and still be a Christian and a Bible believer! This is a real dilemma for Jehovah’s Witnesses.
I remember presenting this concept to one Jehovah’s Witness. I then asked, “How many gods do Jehovah’s Witnesses believe in?” After thinking over the matter carefully, and pondering at some length, the Jehovah’s Witness finally replied, “one and a half!” The explanation was of course, that they believe Jehovah [God one] created Jesus [god two], but Jesus was at the same time the archangel Michael, so Jesus became “sort of a hybrid being, a god/archangel Michael” at the same time! This reasoning also makes them polytheists, as does their rendering of John 1:1 in their “New World Translation” of the Bible: “In [the] beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god”. No reputable Bible scholars will endorse this [mis]translation. The text should read “and the Word [Jesus] was God”.
JESUS—AN EXTRA GOD OR ALMIGHTY GOD?
Christians need to be able to present the right Jesus Christ to Jehovah’s Witnesses. Here is a presentation that proves that Jesus is Almighty God. This point settles the matter of Jesus’ identity. If He is Almighty God manifest in the flesh, He is not any kind of secondary god! Pray before the arrival of the Jehovah’s Witnesses at your door, and then proceed. They will no doubt mention the “kingdom,” a favorite topic of their presentations. You reply that to discuss the kingdom, we need first to discuss the KING, Jesus Christ. State that you believe Jesus is ALMIGHTY GOD, manifest in the flesh. The Jehovah’s Witnesses will object. Ask them, “ Will you believe that Jesus Christ is Almighty God, if I can show it to you from the Bible?” They will scoff, but just proceed.
THE “FIRST AND THE LAST” WITNESS
I title this presentation, the “First and the Last,” not only because it uses this term, but also because we use the first and the last chapters of Revelation to prove our point. Let’s begin.
REVELATION 1:8, WHO IS HE?
- “I am the ALPHA AND THE OMEGA,” says the LORD GOD, who is and who was and who is to come, the ALMIGHTY.” [Rev. 1:8 NAS]
This Scripture teaches us a few points. The “Alpha and the Omega” is the “Lord God Almighty,” and He is coming.All will agree, and the Jehovah’s Witnesses will point out that their Bible inserts “Jehovah” for “LORD God.” Tell them it is not in the original text and they can see this for themselves in their New World Translation “Kingdom Interlinear Translation.” Say,
“Let’s see if the Bible sheds any more light on the identity of the ‘Alpha and the Omega.’ Turn to Revelation chapter 22.”
“I AM COMING QUICKLY” SPEAKER
There are several speakers in Revelation 22. We are interested in the one who says “I am coming quickly,” since this fits in with Revelation 1:8 which we have just read.
“Behold I AM COMING QUICKLY and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done. I AM THE ALPHA AND THE OMEGA, THE FIRST AND THE LAST, the beginning and the end.” [Rev.22:12,13]
What have we now learned? The ALPHA AND THE OMEGA has two other titles, “THE BEGINNING AND THE END,” and “THE FIRST AND THE LAST.” Remember especially this one, as it will be used again. Resuming our reading in Revelation 22, notice that the speaker does NOT change, but continues on from verse 9 through 16 inclusive. Force Jehovah’s Witnesses to read IN CONTEXT. In verse 16, the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last identifies Himself:
“I, JESUS, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star.” Verse 20 concludes “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming quickly.’ Amen, Come, Lord Jesus.”
Yes, Jesus Christ Himself tells us that He is the Alpha and the Omega, The First and the Last. Now we turn back to Revelation chapter one.
THE VISION OF THE SON OF MAN
Beginning in verse 13 of Revelation, chapter one, we have a vision of a “son of man.” Jehovah’s Witnesses will tell you this is Jesus. Read down to verses 17 and 18, which read:
- “Do not be afraid; I am the FIRST AND THE LAST, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.”
Even a Jehovah’s Witnesses has to admit that this applies only to Jesus Christ. Jesus really is “THE FIRST AND THE LAST,” and the “ALPHA AND THE OMEGA.” Return now to Revelation 1:8 where we began and put in the name of Jesus Christ where it belongs!
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God [Jesus Christ], “who is, who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” [Rev. 1:8]
JESUS CHRIST IS ALMIGHTY GOD!
