TRINITY Challenge for JW's, Unitarians and Anyone Else

by UnDisfellowshipped 457 Replies latest watchtower bible

  • Black Sheep
    Black Sheep

    Funny you bring up John 1:3. That was one of the scriptures that kept me from making the mistake of baptism.

    Isaiah rabbits on from ch 40 to 66 about how Jehovah is the only God and the only creator. e.g. I, Jehovah, am doing everything, stretching out the heavens by myself, laying out the earth. Who was with me? 44:24

    John 1 is not a chapter I would be comfortable discussing with someone well versed in the Trinity who found me banging on his door on a Saturday morning, when he should be playing with his kids.

    Cheers

    Chris

  • leavingwt
    leavingwt

    djeggnog:

    I do not know the dynamic that exists between you and @LeavingWT,

    To my knowledge, this thread was the first time in which I had ever had a dialogue with him.

  • designs
    designs

    Scotch tape was invented in the 4th century so they could cut and paste the Prologue in.................

  • Think About It
    Think About It
    @ Think About It: You probably are the closest mind set I have here... I was born into the Church of England, raised Pentecostal (drew the same conclusions on the Trinity as you have done) and converted to be a JW. Currently, I hold no religious affiliation, but have not abandoned my fundamental belief in an all loving Creator and an orderly, structured Universe. Spiritual but not religious.. I guess.

    Podo........that pretty much sums me up. I went to a few Pentecostal meetings when younger, but the emotions involved in that form of worship made me uncomfortable. More than anything it was the non-trinitarian aspect of the JW's that appealed to me. Been out for 15 yrs and becoming less and less spiritual.

    Think About It

  • peacedog
    peacedog

    Think About It:

    According to the doctrine of the Trinity:

    (1) God is the Father,

    and,

    (2) Jesus is God.

    Therefore, by transitivity, according to the doctrine of the Trinity:

    (3) Jesus is the Father.

    Yet, according to the doctrine of the Trinity, Jesus is not the Father.

    So, according to the doctrine of the Trinity, Jesus both is and is not the Father.

    Straw man.

    Try this instead:

    (1) The Father is God (that is to say the nature of the Father is DEITY)

    (2) The Son is God (that is to say the nature of the Son is DEITY)

    (3) The Father and the Son have the same nature (DEITY)

    Trinitarians know that all heavenly visions and scripture logically point to God & Jesus as being separate persons

    Prolly that's why they believe that the Father and Son are separate persons, huh?

    Podo:

    ....if he was one and the same as Jehovah

    Another straw man.

    Scripturally, he is not "one and the same as Jehovah". His nature is that of the Father - Deity - yet he is positionally subordinate to the Father.

    truthlover:

    Yes to your statements regarding Jesus returning to the Father (per Ecc 12:7) and raising his own body (John 2:19-21).

    when Jesus was created, he too was a spirit, it had nothing to do with god, as such.. you are speaking of Jesus as being the first creation , being god or a god-- so are you saying that Satan is a god also? since he was made by Jehovah/Yhwh??

    I don't believe the bible teaches that Jesus was created. I believe the bible teaches that Jesus is Deity, and as such, uncreated.

    Consider John 1:3: All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

    How much more clearly could it be said?

    Unless Jesus created Himself, he is uncreated.

    The bible calls Satan "a god", but it also says at Phil 3:19 that "their god is their stomach". There is a big difference between being "a god" and being GOD (DEITY) in nature.

  • peacedog
    peacedog

    djeggnog:

    I didn't change the meaning of any of the verses I quoted from Hebrews chapter 1 or in Hebrews chapter 2. Not really.

    "Not really", huh? Convincing response.

    As I laid out in a previous post, the verse without your commentary excludes ANY angel; the verse with your commentary INCLUDES an angel.

    You offered up some examples (NBA, Kentucky Derby), but in each case you've significantly altered the structure of the sentence, omitting a significant element that appears in the NWT (which appears to be your bible of choice):

    nwt: "to which one of the angels did he ever say"

    eggnog: "to which of the horses will the purse be given"?
    and: "to which NBA team will the championship trophy be awarded"

    The verse in Hebrews doesn't say "to which of the angels WILL GOD SAY.....". This is a completely different sentence.

    The verse in Hebrews says "to which of the angels DID GOD *EVER* SAY....."

    A proper comparable (to the sentence in the nwt) would be something like: "To which of the athletes did Dr. Smith EVER administer steroids?"

    Note the difference between this sentence and one that omits the word "EVER": "To which of the athletes did Dr. Smith administer steroids?"

    Do you see the difference?

    To which of the athletes did Dr. Smith administer steroids?

    To which of the athletes did Dr. Smith EVER administer steroids?

    The second sentence includes a negative assertion and it is this negative assertion that tells us the question is a RHETORICAL QUESTION. This is why many Bible translations render the sentence as an equivalent assertive statement, ie: "God never said to any angel...."

    You go on to harp on the significance of the word "one" in Hebrews 1:5 and 13:

    Looking at [1], the words "which one of the angels" mean that only one angel is being singled out from all of the other angels. If the verse had said "which two ... angels," then this would indicate that two angels are being distinguished from among the rest of the angels.

    Presumably you are unaware that the NWT has inserted the word "one" into the verse. Grab your Kingdom Interlinear or just compare with any unbiased translation. This being the case, there is no reason to discuss the word.

    Does it not give you pause that you must RE-WORD the sentence, or insert (or ignore) words in order to have it line up with your theology? It really should. So far I've seen you insert the word "other"; I've seen you ignore the word "ever"; I've seen you build a case around the word "one", which is an insertion by the nwt....

    Not to mention your entire argument is based on the faulty premise that these are NOT rhetorical questions when every Greek scholar on the planet would tell you they are.....

    You accused me in this last post of yours of being dishonest, you have impugned my motives in adding the word "other" in my explanation of Hebrews 1:5 and Hebrews 1:13,

    No. I didn't. You inferred that. And it's not important, so let's not get sidetracked.

    The explanations I have provided here do not 'reek' of anything having a foul-smelling odor

    I said nothing about foul-smelling. Once again, you inferred. Once again, it's not important. Why are you bringing it up?

    Why wouldn't an angel be appointed by God to sit at His right hand?

    Erm, because Hebrews 1:13,14 says: "God never said to any of the angels, "Sit at my right side until I make your enemies into a footstool for you!" Angels are merely spirits sent to serve people who are going to be saved."

    Repetition for emphasis:

    "God never said to any of the angels, 'sit at my right hand...'. Angels are merely spirits sent to serve..."

    John 1:1 means, that Jesus existed at the beginning of Jehovah's creative works

    If this is true, then when Deut 32 was penned, Jesus existed, was "a god" (according to you) and was "with God". In which case you have a problem, given that Jah said THERE ARE NO GODS TOGETHER WITH HIM.

    Now that's unfortunate, @peacedog. Do the agreed-upon terms of this discussion/debate no longer matter to you? Do you feel you're losing ground and feel a change of strategy is now in order

    I have no idea what you're talking about.

    Given that you're a JW, and someone who has no qualms about inserting or ignoring words in the text, I'm making about as much headway as I expected to...

    TRINITY Challenge using ONLY the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures -- Let us debate and reason on the Scriptures about whether God Almighty is a Trinity, or is only One Person.

    I see. My bad. I missed this, and certainly never agreed to it. Have fun with that.

    You next go on a rant about the CEV. I believe I've answered your concerns already. The text at Hebrews 1:5 and 1:13 are rhetorical questions and as such may be properly rendered as an assertive statement. I'm sorry you seem to have difficulty in comprehending a rhetorical question or at least the significance of a rhetorical question. No one else seems to be having this difficulty. All I can suggest is that you do some research on rhetorical questions and negative assertions..

    Secondly, the CEV is hardly the only bible translation to render the rhetorical questions as assertive statements:

    NLT:

    5For God never said to any angel what he said to Jesus: “You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.” God also said, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son.”

    13And God never said to any of the angels, “Sit in the place of honor at my right hand until I humble your enemies, making them a footstool under your feet.”

    NCV:

    5This is because God never said to any of the angels, "You are my Son. Today I have become your Father." Nor did God say of any angel, "I will be his Father, and he will be my Son."

    13And God never said this to an angel: "Sit by me at my right side until I put your enemies under your control."

    GW:

    5God never said to any of his angels, “You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.” And God never said to any of his angels, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son.”

    13But God never said to any of the angels, “Sit in the highest position in heaven until I make your enemies your footstool.”

    NIRV:

    5 God never said to any of the angels, "You are my Son. Today I have become your Father." Or, "I will be his Father. And he will be my Son."

    13 God never said to an angel, "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your control."

    You might also consider the Worldwide English rendering:

    5Did God ever say to any of the angels, `You are my Son, and I am your Father today'? Did God ever say to an angel, `I will be your Father and you will be my Son'?

    13But did God ever say to any of the angels, `Sit down beside me until I put your enemies under you'?

    ...and The Message:

    Did God ever say to an angel, "You're my Son; today I celebrate you" or "I'm his Father, he's my Son"? When he presents his honored Son to the world, he says, "All angels must worship him."

    I suppose all of these translations are biased too, huh? (But the NWT isn't when it inserts words into Colossians that simply don't exist in the greek text... lol)

    You quoted the KJV (and ASV):

    5For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?

    13But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?

    Tell me. How do you interpret the wording "at any time"? What do these words mean to you?

    "To which of the angels has he said AT ANY TIME..."

    Do the think the translators of the CEV feel they have a duty to include their own theological understanding of what they believe the apostle Paul to be saying at Hebrews 1:13 in order to help the reader to comprehend the meaning of Paul's words?

    Do you believe the translators of the NWT feel they have a duty to include their own theological understanding of what they believe the apostle Paul to be saying at Colossians 1:16 in order to help the reader to comprehend the meaning of Paul's words?

    I ask the above in order to demonstrate your own prejudice. When (you think) the CEV does 'X', it's WRONG. When the WTS does 'X', it's RIGHT. So sad...

    I believe I already answered you concerns about the CEV translators. Many bible translations render Heb 1:5 and 1:13 as assertive statements because the verses are rhetorical (negative assertion) sentences. It's not about bias. Do some research.

    As the apostle John explains at John 2:21, Jesus wasn't referring to his own physical body,

    Jesus spoke of a "temple" that would be "destroyed" and that he would "raise" in three days. John said that the "temple" Jesus was referring to was the temple "of his body".

    So I guess when his body was destroyed and then raised three days later, it was just a coincidence, huh? Had nothing to do with what Jesus and John were talking about... lol.

    Note how the apostle Paul's own words at 1 Corinthians 6:19 makes this point clear: "Do you not know that the body of you people is [the] temple of the holy spirit within you, which you have from God?"

    And just how is this point made clear? At John 2:21 Jesus spoke of "the temple of his body". 1 Cor 6:19 speaks of "the temple of the holy spirit within you". Apples and oranges...

    Also, Paul makes the very same point at 1 Corinthians 3:16: "Do you not know that you people are God’s temple, and that the spirit of God dwells in you?"

    How is this relevant? At John 2:21 Jesus spoke of "the temple of his body". 1 Cor 3:16 speaks of "God's temple". Apples and oranges...

    Again I'm reminded of debator's words about ignoring the obviousness of scripture...

    1. Temple will be destroyed, 2. in three days I'll raise it, 3. he's talking about the temple of his body.

    Pretty obvious, given that his body was destroyed, and three days later, raised.

  • UnDisfellowshipped
    UnDisfellowshipped

    Peacedog,

    Great post once again! I am very impressed by your knowledge and understanding of the Holy Scriptures!

    Outstanding point you made about the rhetorical questions that demand a negative answer in the Greek! Let's see if djeggnog or any Jehovah's Witness or anyone else who believes that Jesus was a created angel has a detailed response to your last post.

    For djeggnog and others' reading pleasure, Here is a web page that helps to explain even more about the Greek rhetorical questions which demand negative answers:

    http://www.middletownbiblechurch.org/egreek/egreek06.htm

    Also, here a just a few New Testament obvious examples of rhetorical questions that demand a negative answer:

    Matthew 7:9-10 (NWT): Indeed, who is the man among you whom his son asks for bread—he will not hand him a stone, will he? Or, perhaps, he will ask for a fish—he will not hand him a serpent, will he?

    James 2:14-16 (NWT): Of what benefit is it, my brothers, if a certain one says he has faith but he does not have works?That faith cannot save him, can it? If a brother or a sister is in a naked state and lacking the food sufficient for the day, yet a certain one of you says to them: “Go in peace, keep warm and well fed,” but you do not give them the necessities for [their] body, of what benefit is it?

    1 Corinthians 1:13 (NWT): Paul was not impaled for you, was he?

    In the same way, Hebrews chapter 1 uses the same rhetorical questions which demand negative answers:

    Hebrews 1:4-5 (NWT): So he has become better than the angels, to the extent that he has inherited a name more excellent than theirs. For example, to which one of the angels did he ever say: “You are my son; I, today, I have become your father”? And again: “I myself shall become his father, and he himself will become my son”?

    Hebrews 1:13-14 (NWT): But with reference to which one of the angels has he ever said: “Sit at my right hand, until I place your enemies as a stool for your feet”? Are they not all spirits for public service, sent forth to minister for those who are going to inherit salvation?

  • UnDisfellowshipped
    UnDisfellowshipped

    TWO GODS? Or ONE GOD?

    For everyone who believes that Jesus is a 2nd god who was with God in the beginning:

    God CANNOT LIE (Titus 1:2 and Hebrews 6:18). It is Jehovah God speaking in the following verses:

    Isaiah 44:8 (NWT): Does there exist a God besides me? No ...

    Deuteronomy 32:39 (NWT): ... there are no gods together with me.

    Isaiah 44:6 (NWT): ... ‘I am the first and I am the last, and besides me there is no God.

    The Inspired Apostle John wrote this:

    John 1:1-2 (NWT): In [the] beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god. This one was in [the] beginning with God.

    Can any Jehovah's Witness, or ANYONE who believes that Jesus is a second god, give a detailed explanation of how those first Scriptures harmonize with what the Inspired Apostle John wrote?

    1:) Jehovah explicitly says "there are no gods together with me" AND "Does there exist a God besides me? No."

    2:) John wrote that in the beginning there existed a god who was with God.

    Either the Bible is contradicting itself (which is impossible because it is Inspired of God), OR the Logos is ONE GOD together with The Father.

    Would anyone care to offer a detailed explanation of a third possibility?

    Also, the Inspired James, in the Christian-Greek Scriptures, is still teaching that there is only ONE GOD:

    James 2:19 (NWT): You believe there is one God, do you? You are doing quite well.

    But Jesus did say:

    John 10:30 (NWT): "I and the Father are one.”

  • UnDisfellowshipped
    UnDisfellowshipped

    ONE Maker of Heaven & Earth or TWO Makers of Heaven & Earth?

    For everyone who believes that Jesus is a 2nd god who was with God in the beginning and who helped Jehovah create all things:

    God CANNOT LIE (Titus 1:2 and Hebrews 6:18). It is Jehovah God speaking in the following verses:

    Isaiah 44:24 (NWT): “I, Jehovah, am doing everything, stretching out the heavens by myself, laying out the earth. Who was with me?

    The Inspired Apostle John wrote this:

    John 1:1-3 (NWT): In [the] beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God,... All things came into existence through him, and apart from him not even one thing came into existence.

    The Inspired Apostle Paul wrote this about Christ:

    Colossians 1:16 (NWT): because by means of him all [other] things were created in the heavens and upon the earth, the things visible and the things invisible, no matter whether they are thrones or lordships or governments or authorities. All [other] things have been created through him and for him.

    If we remove the inserted bracketed word "other" from that Verse, which is not found whatsoever in the Greek manuscripts, and which the Reasoning Book admits was inserted to make this Verse more clearly harmonize with the belief that Jesus was created by God, then Colossians 1:16 would actually read this way:

    Colossians 1:16 (NWT, without the bracketed inserted words): because by means of him all things were created in the heavens and upon the earth, the things visible and the things invisible, no matter whether they are thrones or lordships or governments or authorities. All things have been created through him and for him.

    So, we can clearly see that:

    1:) Jehovah (who cannot lie) declared that He made heaven and earth "BY MYSELF" and then He asks the rhetorical question, "WHO WAS WITH ME?"

    2:) The Inspired Apostle John wrote that all things were made through a god who existed with God in the beginning, and not even one thing has ever been made without being made through this one.

    3:) The Inspired Apostle Paul wrote that all things were created by means of and through Christ.

    Can any Jehovah's Witness, or ANYONE who believes that Jesus is a second god, give a detailed explanation of how Isaiah 44:24 harmonizes with what the Inspired Apostles John and Paul wrote?

    In addition, the Inspired Psalmist declared this to Jehovah in prayer:

    102:1, 25-27 (NWT): O Jehovah, do hear my prayer; And to you may my own cry for help come. ... Long ago you laid the foundations of the earth itself, And the heavens are the work of your hands. They themselves will perish, but you yourself will keep standing; And just like a garment they will all of them wear out. Just like clothing you will replace them, and they will finish their turn. But you are the same, and your own years will not be completed.

    The Inspired Book of Hebrews says that the words of that Psalm were being spoken TO THE SON:

    Hebrews 1:8, 10-12 (NWT): But with reference to the Son: ... “You at [the] beginning, O Lord, laid the foundations of the earth itself, and the heavens are [the] works of your hands. They themselves will perish, but you yourself are to remain continually; and just like an outer garment they will all grow old, and you will wrap them up just as a cloak, as an outer garment; and they will be changed, but you are the same, and your years will never run out.”

  • designs
    designs

    Half of the Trinitarian world believe Jesus is Jehovah of the OT and the other half believe Jehovah is God the Father.........all brought to you by a Holy Ghost that doesn't get things confused

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