|
#15 The Facts on Jehovah's Witnesses
Analysis and Critique: Does God Speak
Only Through the Watchtower Society?
Four Tests Examining This Claim
=====================================================================
TEST TWO: If the Watchtower Society is the sole channel for God on earth, then
according to the Bible its prophecies must come true. How reliable have its
prophecies been?
=====================================================================
15. What does the Watchtower Society teach and claim about prophecy?
In the Watchtower,
March 1, 1975, Jehovah's Witness leaders declared, "The Bible itself establishes
the rules for testing a prophecy in Deuteronomy 18:20-23 and 13:1-8 . . ." (p.
151). Its own rules, with which we agree, are biblical and are our standard;
they demand 100 percent accuracy for any prophecy that is made. The
Society's publication Aid to Bible Understanding teaches Jehovah's
Witnesses that prophecy includes "a declaration of something to come" and that
"the source of all true prophecy is Jehovah God." This publication further
states that "correct understanding of prophecy would still be made available by
God . . . particularly in the foretold 'time of the end; . . ." (p. 1346). (In
context, "time of the end" here includes the emergence of the Watchtower
Society.)
Aid to Bible Understanding further defines a "prophet"
as "one through whom the divine will and purpose are made known" (p. 1347).
(What's more, the Watchtower Society makes the astonishing claim that it is the
true prophetic mouthpiece for God on earth at this time.) Furthermore, the
Watchtower earth at this time.) Furthermore, the Watchtower tells all Jehovah's
Witnesses that "the three essentials for establishing the credentials of the
true prophet" are 1) speaking in Jehovah's name, 2) "the things foretold would
come to pass," and 3) these prophecies would promote true worship by being in
harmony with God's already revealed Word. The Watchtower claims that the true
prophet would "express . . . God's mind on matters . . . [and] every prediction
[will be] related to God's will, purpose, standards or judgment."
In light of these lofty claims, the Society has succinctly
declared its position and authority. It claims to speak in the name of Jehovah,
to be His prophet predicting future events, and to be in harmony with His Word.
It confidently predicts that what it says must "come to pass." The Watchtower,
September 1, 1979, declared, "For nearly 60 years now the Jeremiah class [the]
Jehovah's Witnesses] have faithfully spoken forth Jehovah's word" (p. 29).
Let us examine some of the implications of the Society's
claims to be speaking for God.
John Ankerberg & John Weldom
|