12/18/01

The Watchtower often provides readers with colorful interpretations of what it wants them to believe as the truth. This is especially true where the issue of Trinity is concerned. Although they profess to have studied the matter, they have done so only enough to fabricate a plausible defense to their already unsupportable doctrines. The following essay will go through the Watchtower’s own studies and show paragraph by paragraph, where necessary, the errors of their teachings.

Additional sites will be provided for further study along the way. Just look for words that are underlined. Everything written in Purple is from the Watchtowers official website. Also although actual gender of the author is unknown by me I have chosen, for the sake of argument, to refer to the author as masculine. (Him, He, etc..)

The areas which will be covered are the documents entitled, ‘The Holy Spirit-God’s Active Force’, ‘What About Trinity “Proof Texts”’ & ‘Worship God on His Terms’. A lot of Catholic ideologies were quoted within these Watchtower essays. I personally am not a catholic and therefore will not defend those areas, which I might also believe to be false. This is not to say that if I omit a defense to a catholic statement that I disagree, and it certainly does not mean that I am supporting the position of the Watchtower.

Before beginning, as a Christian, I would like to make one thing perfectly clear. No true Christian believes in polytheism (Belief in more than one God). Trinity does NOT indicate a polytheistic attitude nor is, as some watchtower members and Muslims ascribe, Mary a member of the Trinity. Trinity is a man-designated title given to the truths that the Bible itself reveals, as will be demonstrated. The word Trinity represents the fact of what the Bible teaches, that Jesus, the Holy Spirit and God are shown as separate in many cases and yet in many other cases it is clear that scripture demands that each of them are God. In each case they either possess qualities, which are unique to the Almighty God, or they possess titles that are only attributed to the Almighty God. Since scripture states very clearly that there is only one God, it then follows that each of them are a part of the one true God. 

1 Timothy 3:16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

One final note before we begin. All scripture will be quoted from the King James Version of the Bible. This version of the Bible is accepted in any Christian church and was used as the official Bible of the Jehovah Witness Organization for quite some time. (Charles T. Russell started the Jehovah Witnesses in 1869. A quote from one of their 1927 articles entitled, “Creation” (pg.117) states the following, “Doubtless there has never been a more masterful and perfect English publication than the Authorized Version of the Bible.” [King James Version], <2>)

Part 1: ‘The Holy Spirit – God’s Active Force’

In the second paragraph of the authors essay we read, “In the Hebrew Scriptures, the word most frequently used for “spirit” is ru’ach, meaning “breath; wind; spirit.” In the Greek Scriptures, the word is pneu’ma, having a similar meaning. Do these words indicate that the holy spirit is part of a Trinity?” It seems to me that the author is trying to say that because the Holy Spirit is described as ru’ach or pneu’ma that He cannot possibly be a part of Trinity. Perhaps the author believes that, as ru’ach or pneu’ma, the Holy Spirit cannot be God. Interestingly enough the Bible says something completely different to what the author just said.

John 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

The Greek Interlinear Text translates this verse as follows:

John 4:24 pneuma o {A SPIRIT} yeov {GOD IS,} kai {AND} touv {THEY THAT} proskunountav {WORSHIP} auton {HIM,} en {IN} pneumati {SPIRIT} kai {AND}  alhyeia {TRUTH} dei {MUST} proskunein {WORSHIP.}

This is just one more example where the Holy Spirit is described in the same fashion as God. The fact that so obvious a verse was overlooked attests to the fact that either the author is not knowledgeable where the scriptures of the Bible are concerned or the author has purposefully blinded himself to what is written in the Bible in order to promote his own personal beliefs rather than the truth. Either way anybody reading this authors essay should be skeptical of it’s validity right from the start. Seeing also that the Watchtower has endorsed this essay, the reader should also be skeptical of the Watchtowers doctrines and beliefs.

Part 1A – An Active Force

 Under the title, ‘An Active Force’ the Watchtower says, “At Genesis 1:2 the Bible states that “God’s active force [“spirit” (Hebrew, ru’ach)] was moving to and fro over the surface of the waters.” Here, God’s spirit was his active force working to shape the earth.” Add this to the first paragraph and we can see that it doesn’t take very long for the author to interject his personal opinion in place of fact. The scripture for the above verse reads:

Genesis 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

Nowhere in this verse does it even come close to saying, “God’s active force”. This phrase is placed here as a personal interpretation with no factual backing whatsoever. By doing this, the author hopes to instill in the mind of the reader that everywhere the Bible writes ‘Spirit’ it can be replaced by ‘God’s active force’. Notice how the author has included the phrase within the quotes of the scripture as though it were a proper translation. It is not. This type of ‘slight of hand’ writing is common throughout all of the Watchtower writings and we should take care not to be fooled by it. “Spirit” is the proper translation.

In the very next paragraph the Watchtower author goes on to say, “God uses his spirit to enlighten those who serve him.” He then goes on to quote Psalm 143:10 and Numbers 11:17.  By saying that God uses his spirit, the author hopes to create an image of something similar to that of a tool used by God. In the previous paragraph we see how the author describe this tool as an ‘Active Force’ or power used by God. The Bible however shows that the Holy Spirit is NOT a power used or given by God but rather is mentioned separately from God’s power. :  

Luke 1:35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

 Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

 

Acts 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

 

1 Thessalonians 1:5 For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.

 

Another point, which should be clarified is that, the word ‘spirit’ does not always refer to the Holy Spirit. In order to clarify this statement let’s look at scripture. In Luke 4:33 there was ‘a spirit of an unclean devil’. In Luke 13:11 there is a ‘spirit of infirmity’, Acts 16:16 shows a ‘spirit of divination’, Romans 1:4 shows a ‘spirit of holiness’, etc… The word spirit is used many times in the Bible and for many different reasons. Therefore the use of the word spirit does not necessarily point to the member of Trinity known as the Holy Spirit but can be used in many different ways. We should take care that we do not subscribe to the interpretations that the author attempts to foist upon us.

The next paragraph of this study shows the author quoting 2 Peter 1:20 & 21. Instead of a slight of hand interjection of text the author falls back on an omission of text. Watch carefully his words. “Bible prophecy was recorded when men of God were “borne along by holy spirit [Greek, from pneu’ma].” In this, his quote, he writes “by holy spirit”. Compare this with the translation given in the Interlinear Greek text.

2 Peter 1:21 ou gar {FOR NOT} yelhmati {BY THE WILL} anyrwpou {OF MAN} hnecyh {WAS BROUGHT} pote {AT ANY TIME} profhteia {PROPHECY,} all {BUT} upo {BY THE} pneumatov {SPIRIT} agiou {HOLY} feromenoi {BEING BORNE,} elalhsan {SPOKE} oi {THE} agioi {HOLY} yeou {OF GOD} anyrwpoi {MEN.} (Emphasis Mine)

Note: The word ‘the’ is italicized in this translation. The reason for this is because it is not in the original Greek text. This is common among many of the verses of the New Testament where the word “the” is inserted for proper clarification (Most of which the Watchtower do not deny), so technically the author is right in his translation. However Greek experts around the world agree, including those who authored the Interlinear Greek text, that the word ‘the’ should be included as a form of proper grammatical translation. (See what Greek and Hebrew experts have to say about the Watchtowers, New World Translation. This is the Jehovah Witnesses’ version of the Bible.)  

2 Peter 1:21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. {in old time: or, at any time} <KJV>

2 Peter 1:21 For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. <NIV>

2 Peter 1:21 for ^*no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men ^*moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. <NASB>

2 Peter 1:21 because no prophecy ever came by the impulse of man, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. <RSV>

2 Peter 1:21 for prophecy was not ever uttered by [the] will of man, but holy men of God spake under the power of [the] Holy Spirit. <Darby>

2 Peter 1:21 for not by will of man did ever prophecy come, but by the Holy Spirit borne on holy men of God spake. <YLT>

2 Peter 1:21 The prophets did not say what they wanted to say. But the Holy Spirit made them speak. And they spoke God's message. <WE>

The above quotes show, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Greek experts agree that it should read “the Holy Spirit”. The reason for such an extensive look at such a small phrase is that, by dropping the word ‘the’ the author once again tries to twist our way of thinking to his own ends. In every case, when talking about a person in general, you would have to use the word “the”. (E.G.: The man, the woman, the child, the boy, etc..) It should be noted that Christian experts, who have dedicated their lives to studying the Bible, agree that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity and as such we recognize Him as an individual. Can we then say, “I saw Holy Spirit”? The answer is NO. By saying, “I saw Holy Spirit” would be like saying, “I saw boy” or “I saw woman” it is not proper grammatically. You can however do this when talking about an object, for example, “I saw water” or “I saw fire”. So by dropping the word “the” the author hopes to associate in our minds the Holy Spirit as an object rather than a person.

In his very next sentence it says, “In this way the Bible was “inspired of God,” the Greek word for which is The-o’pneu-stos, meaning “God-breathed”. Now although I do not argue the fact that scripture is inspired of God, it is obvious here that he is trying to simplify the Holy Spirit into a type of force or tool, which is utilized by God. (This coincides very well with the authors depersonalization tactic in his previous sentence.) As stated above this is not the case and nowhere does it imply such a sense of utilization.

It seems that the author has gone to great lengths to show that the Holy Spirit is, as in his own words, “The Bible’s use of ‘holy spirit’ indicates that it is a controlled force that Jehovah God uses...” and is “likened to electricity”. The New Lexicon Webster’s Dictionary 1994 Edition describes force as,”the power and might of a ruler or state”. So if the Holy Ghost were the power of God, why then does the Holy Ghost have a power of His own? This would then be understood as the power of the power of God and does not make any sense.

Romans 15:13 Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.  

The Bible describes very clearly the Holy Spirit as a personal individuality. Not only is the Holy Ghost individual, but also, He is a cognitive, reasoning individual spirit that can communicate.

Acts 13:2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

Acts 21:11 And when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.

Indeed in Acts 13:2 we see that, “the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul” and not, “Separate it” or  “Separate to it” as would be proper if the Holy Ghost were but a force and not an individual. Note the Interlinear Greek text says, “aforisate {SEPARATE} dh {INDEED} moi ton {TO ME} te {BOTH} barnaban {BARNABAS} kai ton {AND} saulon {SAUL}” <Emphasis mine>

The authors’ next paragraph shows very clearly his personal opinion but once again fails to provide any evidence to back up this opinion. He says, “The holy spirit impelled Jesus to go into the wilderness…”. This in no way supports the authors claim that the Holy Spirit is an impersonal force but if we look at his very next sentence he writes as though it has done exactly this. “The spirit was like a fire within God’s servants, causing them to be energized by that force. And it enabled them to speak out boldly and courageously. “. Notice, how once again, the author has resorted to his ‘sleight of hand’ penmanship. Here we see how he begins the sentence with the word ‘spirit’ and ends the sentence by calling it a ‘force’. The following sentence then goes on to make reference to the Holy Spirit as an “it”. The idea of the Holy Spirit being just a force is supposed to be the entire thrust of this author’s argument. As yet no proof or scriptural backing has been presented to support this claim. What scriptures he does provide, do not show anything to endorse his opinions. The verses provided are as follows.

The first verse:

Micah3:8 But truly I am full of power by the spirit of the LORD, and of judgment, and of might, to declare unto Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin.

This simply put states that power, judgment and might were given by the spirit. This does not mean that the spirit is an impersonal force. If so then we would have to assume that God also is an impersonal force. (See Power: Genesis 32:28; Exodus 9:13-16 Judgment: Exodus 28:29; Deuteronomy 1:16-18 Might: Judges 6:14; Judges 16:28-30)

The second verse:

Acts 7:55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, 56  And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. 57  Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, 58  And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul. 59  And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. 60  And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

In this sentence, we see that Stephen was able to see “into heaven” where he saw the “Glory of God, and Jesus” because of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Does this kind of divine revelation make the Holy Spirit an impersonal force? If so, then once again, we must consider God nothing more than an impersonal force also.

(Genesis 48:11; 2 Kings 8:10; Psalms 31:21; Zechariah 3:1)

The third verse:

Acts 18:25 This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.

As we saw quite clearly earlier in this rebuttal, there are many uses of the word spirit, not all of which apply to the Holy Spirit. Such is quite obvious here just by looking at the final part of the verse, which says, “knowing only the baptism of John.” This man, whose name is Apollos, was baptized by water and NOT the Holy Ghost. Therefore the spirit referred above does not refer to the Holy Spirit in question. This is further backed up by reading ahead a few verses.

Acts 19:1 And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, 2 He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. 3 And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. 4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. 5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.

It is evident from this that the baptism of John and the baptism of the Holy Spirit are two completely different things. Since Apollos had only the baptism of John, the spirit referred to in Acts 18:25 is not the Holy Spirit.

The fourth verse:

Romans 12:11 Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;

Again, as above, this verse does NOT refer to the Holy Spirit. It is my understanding that to be fervent in spirit is to serve the Lord, being concerned with those things that are of the spirit rather than those that are of the flesh. Jesus himself makes a distinction between the two and cautions that we should follow in the spirit.

Matthew 26:41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

The Final Verse:

I Thessalonians 5:19 Quench not the Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is He that dwells within us when we accept Christ as our savior and give ourselves to God.  He is our Comforter.

1 Corinthians 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

To quench something is to get rid of it. If you are thirsty you can get rid of(quench) your thirst by drinking. To quench the Holy Spirit is to get rid of Him so that He no longer dwells within you. You do this by turning your back on Jesus Christ as your only savior thereby turning your back also on the Father. But is the Holy Spirit that dwells in us an impersonal force?

John 14:17Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

Now we have seen that the Spirit of truth can reside is in us and the Holy Ghost can reside in us, but are they the same….let’s see.

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

We now can see from these two verses that the Holy Ghost is the comforter and the Spirit of truth is the Comforter. They are indeed one and the same and with the many references to ‘He’ and Him’ I would have to conclude that the Holy Spirit is NOT an impersonal force. Please note that just because John 15:26 says that the Comforter proceeded from the Father it does not mean that He is an impersonal force. If it did then we would have to consider Jesus as an impersonal force also.

John 16:28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.

John 13:3 Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God;

In the author’s final paragraph we see more of the same, vague references and personal interpretation. It is quite clear from the above-supposed evidence that the author’s entire argument depends solely on convincing the reader through personal opinion, ‘sleight of hand’ writing, misinterpretations and ignorance of the facts. The Bible itself calls the Holy Spirit ‘HE’ or ‘HIM’ in several cases. This is not a vision or parable, nor is it a personification. For example, Jesus was in conversation with his apostles and speaking clearly so that the truth should be made known and believed said:

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

……

John 14:29 And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.

 Part 1B – ‘Power Beyond Normal’

GOD'S spirit can also supply "power beyond what is normal" to those who serve him. (2 Corinthians 4:7) This enables them to endure trials of faith or to do things they could not otherwise do."

2 Corinthians 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

What is this "power", this "spirit" that is mentioned that can enable people to "endure" and "do things they could not otherwise do."? Since the author does not mention it, let's turn to the Bible for the answer and read the verses surrounding this verse so that we might know. We will start at 2 Corinthians and work forward until we reach the verse quoted.

2 Corinthians 3:17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

By going back just a few verses we can see here that the Lord is the Spirit. Is the author implying that the Lord is an impersonal force by which we are given power? In order that this be clearer however let's take a closer look at who the Lord is.

2 Corinthians 4:5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.

Colossians 2:6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:

Philippians 1:19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,

It is evident that Jesus is the Lord and that the Spirit of Jesus can supply those things needed for our salvation. Let's continue. The next verse is 2 Corinthians 3:18 and says:

2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

This verse is rather interesting and can be the focal point for many an interesting discussions, however, for the sake of this study we need only focus on the final part of the verse and determine whether or not the Spirit of the Lord is an impersonal force of the Lord or whether it indicates that the Lord IS the Spirit being discussed. In the Greek translation we see that it says:

2 Corinthians 3:18 hmeiv de {BUT WE} pantev {ALL} anakekalummenw {WITH UNCOVERED} proswpw {FACE} thn {THE} doxan {GLORY} kuriou {OF THE LORD} katoptrizomenoi {BEHOLDING AS IN A MIRROR, TO} thn {THE} authn {SAME} eikona {IMAGE} metamorfoumeya {ARE BEING TRANSFORMED} apo {FROM} doxhv {GLORY} eiv {TO} doxan {GLORY,} kayaper {EVEN AS} apo {FROM THE} kuriou {LORD THE} pneumatov {SPIRIT.}

The Lord the Spirit. The Amplified New Testament writes this verse in the following manner:

2 Corinthians 3:18 And all of us, as with unveiled face, [because we] continued to behold [in the Word of God] as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are constantly being transfigured into His very own image in ever increasing splendor and from one degree of glory to another; [for this comes] from the Lord [Who is] the Spirit.

So this verse also says that the Spirit in question is the Lord and as we have seen, the Lord is Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 4:1-6: Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not; But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. {dishonesty: Gr. shame} But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. {hath: Gr. is he who hath}

They speak the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help them God. They do so in the name of Jesus Christ so that the Father might be glorified and those who do not understand these truths are lost. 

From the verse and comments indicated by the author I must assume that He would have us understand  that Jesus is "God's spirit" and the one who can ' supply "power beyond what is normal"'..  Since the author claims that God's spirit is an impersonal force, he must be trying to say that Jesus is this impersonal force. 

… Currently under construction …

Sources:

http://www.watchtower.org - Everything quoted in Purple is from here. (The quotes can be found in their library section)

http://home1.gte.net/smpc/jw.htm - In Reference to The quote concerning the use of the KJV.

http://www.pnc.com.au/~fichrist/lies.html - In connection with the quotes by Edmund Fortman and other    misquotes used by the Watchtower Organization. <As yet not shown in this rebuttal>