While there are physical bodies, visible and palpable, there are also spiritual bodies, invisible to human eyes and entirely beyond human senses. (1Co 15:44) The bodies of spirit persons (God, Christ, the angels) are glorious.
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“And when He had spoken these things,” (kai tauta eipon) “And as He was saying these things,” as He was concluding saying these things, instructing, comforting, and assuring His witnesses, the church who had been with Him from the beginning of His public ministry in Galilee, Joh_15:27; Act_1:11; Act_1:21-22; Eph_3:21.
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“While they beheld,” (bleponton auton) “As they looked,” or while they were looking on, beholding, watching and listening in rapt attention. They were to continue what Jesus had “done and said,” as doers of the Word, and teachers of His Word, in witnessing unto Him thru the church, after the empowering of the Promised Holy Spirit, Act_4:20; 2Co_5:14.
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"He was taken up;” (eperthe) “He was taken (raised or lifted) up,” bodily and visibly. To Timothy, Paul wrote that He was “received up into glory,” 1Ti_3:16. There at the Father’s right hand He makes intercession for His children (He advocates for them) until He returns in power and great glory, Heb_1:3; Eph_1:20; Heb_7:25; 1Jn_2:1.
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“And a cloud received Him out of their sight.” (kai nephele hupelaben auton apo ton ophthalmon auton) “And a cloud engulfed Him (received Him), took Him, away from their view,” or away from where they could see Him any longer with their eyes. He was “received up in glory,” restored to the glory that He had with the Father before His descension and condescension, Joh_17:5; Php_2:9-11; 1Ti_3:16; He is in glory, awaiting His return and Coronation Day of His preeminent Glory, Rev_4:11; Rev_5:12.
J.
The Bible is very clear when it says: “Christ died once for all time concerning sins . . . , he being put to death in the flesh, but being made alive in the spirit.” (1 Peter 3:18)
Humans with flesh-and-blood bodies cannot live in heaven. Of the resurrection to heavenly life, the Bible says: “It is sown a physical body, it is raised up a spiritual body. . . . flesh and blood cannot inherit God’s kingdom.” (1 Corinthians 15:44-50) Only spirit persons with spiritual bodies can live in heaven.
Well, then, what happened to Jesus’ fleshly body? Did not the disciples find his tomb empty? They did, because God removed Jesus’ body. Why did God do this?
It fulfilled what had been written in the Bible. (Psalm 16:10; Acts 2:31) Thus JEHOVAH saw fit to remove Jesus’ body, even as he had done before with Moses’ body. (Deuteronomy 34:5, 6) Also, if the body had been left in the tomb, Jesus’ disciples could not have understood that he had been raised from the dead, since at that time they did not fully appreciate spiritual things.
But since the apostle Thomas was able to put his hand into the hole in Jesus’ side, does that not show that Jesus was raised from the dead in the same body that was nailed to the stake?
No, for Jesus simply materialized or took on a fleshly body, as angels had done in the past. In order to convince Thomas of who He was, He used a body with wound holes. He appeared, or seemed to be, fully human, able to eat and drink, just as did the angels that Abraham once entertained.—Genesis 18:8; Hebrews 13:2.
I believe I have already answered most of your points…
Your argument depends on…
Redefining “spiritual body” into non-body.
Misreading Greek datives as ontological changes
Importing the idea of annihilation into silence.
And explaining away explicit physical evidence as “materialization”
The New Testament, by contrast, consistently affirms.
The same Jesus.
The same body.
Crucified in the flesh.
Raised in transformed, glorified embodiment.
Not a spirit replacing a body.
But a body raised and made incorruptible.
Am I correct in assuming you don’t believe in the bodily resurrection of Messiah?
Act 1:9 And Καὶ having said εἰπὼν these things, ταῦτα they αὐτῶν beholding, βλεπόντων He was lifted up, ἐπήρθη, and καὶ a cloud νεφέλη hid ὑπέλαβεν Him αὐτὸν from ἀπὸ their αὐτῶν. - τῶν eyes. ὀφθαλμῶν
Act 1:10 And καὶ as ὡς they were ἦσαν looking intently ἀτενίζοντες into εἰς - τὸν heaven οὐρανὸν as He αὐτοῦ, was going, πορευομένου then καὶ behold, ἰδοὺ two δύο men ἄνδρες in ἐν white λευκαῖς, apparel ἐσθήσεσι stood by παρειστήκεισαν them, αὐτοῖς
Act_1:9. Καὶ νεφέλη] This καί annexes what occurred after the ἐπήρθη (He was taken up, on high, not yet immediately into heaven). The cloud, which received Him (into itself) from before their eyes, is the visible manifestation of the presence of God, who takes to Himself His Son into the glory of heaven. Comp. on Luk_1:35; Mat_17:5. Chrysostom calls this cloud τὸ ὄχημα τὸ βασιλικόν.
Concerning the ascension itself, which was certainly bodily…
If Christ visibly withdrew from the earth He must have really risen from the dead. (2) The confirmation of their faith in Christ’s Messiahship and Divinity. This followed as a consequence from their faith in His resurrection. (3) The verification of Christ’s authority as a Teacher, Christ having before the Crucifixion announced that the Son of man should ascend up to where He had been before (Jhn_6:62).
When the apostles beheld this prediction fulfilled, they must have reasoned that in like manner all His other promises would be Yea and Amen! And in particular that His word about the Holy Ghost would not fail. (4) The necessity of henceforth knowing Christ no more after the flesh. This probably was the import of His word to Mary—“Touch Me not! for I am not yet ascended” (Jhn_20:17). (5) The certainty that they would ultimately follow whither He had gone. This had been promised at the supper table (Jhn_14:3). When, therefore, they saw Christ exalted to the right hand of the Majesty on high, they would no longer fear, if they ever feared, that He might not be able to implement His loving word concerning and gracious purpose toward them. 3. What the Ascension signified in the world.
(1) The trustworthy character of Christ’s redeeming work. His exaltation supplied proof that He was able to save unto the uttermost all that came unto God through Him (Heb_7:25). (2) Christ’s supremacy over all things and persons on earth. This was an unavoidable deduction from Christ’s investiture with all power in heaven and on earth (Mat_28:18; Jhn_13:3). If Christ had “gone into heaven, angels, authorities, and powers being made subject unto Him” (1Pe_3:22), one might rest assured that all things on earth had likewise been placed beneath His feet (Eph_1:22), so that henceforth He should be Lord of both the living and the dead (Rom_14:9). (3) The certainty that Christ would eventually conquer His foes. “He must reign till He hath put all His enemies under His feet” (1Co_15:25; compare Heb_10:12-13).
J.
While Jesus appeared to Thomas in a body similar to the one in which He was put to death, He also took on different bodies when appearing to His followers. Thus Mary Magdalene at first thought that Jesus was a gardener. At other times his disciples did not at first recognize him. In these instances it was not his personal appearance that served to identify him, but it was some word or action that they recognized.—John 20:14-16; 21:6, 7; Luke 24:30, 31.
Consider how the Bible describes the manner in which Jesus left his apostles on his way to heaven: “While they were looking on, he was lifted up and a cloud caught him up from their vision.” (Acts 1:9) So when Jesus began going into the sky, a cloud hid him from the literal eyesight of his apostles. The departing Jesus, therefore, became invisible to them. They could not see him. Then in his spiritual body he ascended to heaven. (1 Peter 3:18) Thus his return also would be invisible, in a spiritual body.
Since flesh and blood cannot inherit God’s kingdom, Jesus could not go to heaven with a fleshly body. “Ah,” some will argue, “Jesus did not here say he was flesh and blood, but flesh and bones.” But would it have been reasonable for Jesus to say, ‘See, I am flesh and blood,’ when no blood was running from his body? But it was easily evident to the senses of sight and touch that he had flesh and bones.
So then, those who refuse to recognize the signs of Jesus’ invisible presence because of looking for his coming in a body of flesh are mistaken. So also those who try to worship him today as the baby Jesus, in the face of the evidence that he grew to human manhood, died and was resurrected a mighty spirit person. It is not the baby Jesus that God commanded all to worship, nor the fleshly body, but Christ Jesus the glorified heavenly King of the new world.
Am I correct in assuming you don’t believe in the bodily resurrection of Messiah? You say you do, but explain the opposite?
J.
JEHOVAH’s Witnesses believe and teach that Jesus was resurrected, and consider that a central and indispensable belief of Christianity.
Let me explain what we believe using the Bible.
Was Jesus supposed to give up his fleshly existence?
This bread is my flesh, which I will give up so that the world may have life. (John 6:51, Expanded Bible).
Then, was he resurrected as a fleshly body again or as a spirit?
Christ also suffered once for sins in our place, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in flesh but was made alive in spirit (1 Peter 3:18, Evangelical Heritage Version).
Christ himself suffered for sins ·once [or once for all; only his suffering has the power to redeem others]. ·He was not guilty, but he suffered for those who are guilty [ …the righteous for the unrighteous] to bring you to God. ·His body was killed [ He was put to death in the flesh/body], but he was made alive in the ·spirit [or Spirit; at his resurrection in a glorified body]. (1 Pe 3:18, Expanded Bible).
Does this mean that he didn’t have a body when he was resurrected?
If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. . . The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven. (1 Corinthians 15:44, 45, 47, New International Version).
Why did Jesus have to give up his sinless, fleshly life?
the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28, Christian Standard Bible).
Is this true?
What Jw’s believe, but won’t initially tell people when they knock on doors and ask if they think the world would be better off without war, suffering, sickness and child abuse:
If you become a JW and then leave them because of their false teachings, you will be literally shunned. You family that remain in the organization will not be permitted to even talk to you!
The Watchtower Society is the only source of truth on earth today and your soul will be destroyed if you refuse their organization.
The Watchtower Society and its followers are all prophets of God today and the Governing Body is directed by angels from God.
The Watchtower and Awake magazines originate with and are treated as equal to the Bible.
They deny the that God consists of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
They deny the deity of Christ (Arian view) Jesus is a created being also called Michael the archangel, and was the first and only direct creation of God.
Jesus was not the Christ (Messiah) until age 30, even though their own bible says in Luke 2:11, “because there was born to you today a savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
They deny the bodily resurrection. After Jesus was buried in the tomb, Jehovah dissolved his body into gases and it disappeared forever.
Jesus rose invisibly in three days, so Jehovah had to “materialize” a fake body for him complete with fake nail prints so His disciples would believe it was really Jesus risen.
They deny the personality of the Holy Spirit (viewed by the Watchtower organization as “God’s active force”, similar to radio waves)
They deny man consciously survives death.
They teach the eternal punishment of the lost is annihilation.
They deny the bodily, visible return of Christ (Christ’s “return” was only His “turning his attention” invisibly toward earth in 1914, and there was an invisible “rapture” of the dead members of the 144,000 in 1918.)
The cross is a pagan symbol of sex worship, and that all buildings or persons displaying the cross are likewise pagan. Jehovah’s Witnesses deny that Jesus died on a cross but a stake. However, recent “new light” in the Watchtower now admits they are not certain about the cross, but will continue to deny it anyway. Further, the watchtower originally claimed it was a cross.
No one goes to heaven but 144,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses.
They teach Christ is the mediator for only the 144,000, not the average Jw.
Teach only the 144,000 must be “born again”, not the average Jw.
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob etc. were to be back on earth as perfect humans in 1925. The Society built a palatial home called “Beth Sarim” for them BUT when the patriarchs failed to show up, the President of the Society moved in.
Their light gets “brighter and brighter”, allowing for many changes and “about faces” on their doctrines. Yesterday’s error is today’s “truth”. Often the “light” bounces back and forth from old to new views and back again! (Might we call this discarded truth… “black Light”?)
Blood transfusions are rejected and if a Witness receives one willingly, it results in his eternal death. However, the society allows Hemopheliacs to consume blood for medical purposes to save their life.
To salute the flag is an act of idolatry.
Participation in any civil holidays, mothers day, birthdays brings condemnation of God.
Only persons who use the true name of God, Jehovah, will have their prayers heard by God. No salvation is possible without using the name “Jehovah.”
Please confirm brother @Gospel .
Johann.
JEHOVAH’s Witnesses believe that death, according to the Bible, is not just a transition, but a state. A state of non existence (Ecclesiastes 9:5). So, it is Jesus’ death as a fleshly human being, which pays for our sins. Jesus as a human being is dead right now, because that is the payment for my sins. Now it is up to me to take advantage of that payment, so to speak.
That’s why we believe that Jesus couldn’t have taken back his flesh when he was resurrected, because he would have canceled that ransom sacrifice. While the Bible says that he sacrificed his flesh and blood “once for all time.” (Hebrews 9:12).
It is true that spirits are invisible, but the Bible also shows that angels, who are spirit beings, can take on human form. That may explain why resurrected Jesus appeared into locked rooms (John 20:19, 26), why he disappeared suddenly (Luke 24:31) or why even his close friends didn’t recognize him at first, but only by what he said or did (Luke 24:30, 31, 35; John 20:14–16; 21:6).
You don’t seem willing to answer questions brother, why is that?
J.
JEHOVAH’s Witnesses Have Nothing to Hide.
They live and work in the midst of other people. They have nothing to hide. In fact, they desire to tell anyone who is willing to listen about everything that they believe.
They are in no sense a secret society. Their Bible-based beliefs are fully explained in publications that are available to anyone. Additionally, they put forth special effort to invite the public to attend meetings to see and hear for themselves what takes place.
Disfellowshipping/Expulsion is based on the principles found in the Scriptures. In order to maintain God’s favor and to be used by Him and to represent Him, the congregation must remain clean. Otherwise, God would expel or cut off the entire congregation. (Re 2:5; 1Co 5:5, 6.)
Examples and precedents have been set by the apostle Paul when he ordered the expulsion of an incestuous fornicator who had taken his father’s wife. (1 Cor. 5:5, 11, 13) He also exercised disfellowshipping authority against Hymenaeus and Alexander. (1 Tim. 1:19, 20)
The Christian congregation is admonished by Scripture to stop socializing with those who are disorderly and not walking correctly but who are not deemed deserving of complete expulsion. Paul wrote: “Stop associating with him, that he may be ashamed. And yet do not be considering him an enemy , but continue admonishing him as a brother.” (2 Thess. 3:6, 11, 13-15).
The Bible mentions some of the offenses that could merit disfellowshipping from the Christian congregation: fornication, adultery, homosexuality, greed, extortion, thievery, lying, drunkenness, reviling, spiritism, murder, idiolatry, apostasy, and the causing of divisions in the congregation. (1Cor. 5:9-13; 6:9,10; Tit. 3:10,11; Rev. 21:8)
As a protection to the congregation, preventing it from becoming harsh and unforgiving, the principle enunciated in the law applies that that two or three witnesses must establish evidence against the accused one; and also for those who have been expelled, they may be received back into the congregation if they demonstrate sincere repentance. (2 Co 2:5-8; (1 Tim. 5:19)
This.
Death is non-existence (Ecclesiastes 9:5)
Refutation: Ecclesiastes 9:5 (οἱ ζῶντες γινώσκουσιν ὅτι ἀποθανοῦνται, οἱ δὲ νεκροὶ οὐκ οἴδασιν οὐδέν) describes death from the perspective “under the sun” (human observation), not ultimate reality.
Jesus contradicts annihilationism**: “God is not the God of the dead, but of the living”** (Matt. 22:32). Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are alive to Him.
Revelation 6:9–10 shows the souls of the slain crying out, conscious existence after death.
- Jesus is still dead as a human, because His flesh was the ransom
Hebrews 9:12 says He offered Himself once for all, Romans 6:9 insists: “Christ being raised from the dead dies no more; death no longer has dominion over Him.”
Acts 2:31 (quoting Psalm 16:10 LXX: οὐ δώσεις τὸν ὅσιόν σου ἰδεῖν διαφθοράν) explicitly says His σάρξ (flesh) did not see corruption. Dissolution or annihilation contradicts the text.
The ransom was His death, not His permanent destruction. Resurrection vindicates the ransom (Rom. 4:25).
- If Jesus took back His flesh, He canceled the ransom
This is a logical fallacy. The ransom was paid in death, not in resurrection. Hebrews 10:10–14 says His one sacrifice perfected forever those who are sanctified. Resurrection does not “cancel” sacrifice, it proves God accepted it.
Greek verbs: προσφέρω (“offer”) in Heb. 10:10–12 is a completed action. ἐγείρω (“raise”) in Rom. 4:25 is a separate divine action. They are not mutually exclusive.
- Jesus rose as a spirit creature, appearances were materializations like angels
Luke 24:39: πνεῦμα σάρκα καὶ ὀστέα οὐκ ἔχει καθὼς ἐμὲ θεωρεῖτε ἔχοντα - “A spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.” Jesus explicitly denies being a mere spirit.
John 20:27: Thomas touches His wounds. Continuity of the crucified body is affirmed.
Acts 1:9: He ascends visibly. If He were only a spirit, there would be no visible ascension.
Angels “materializing” is never described with σῶμα (body) language. Jesus’ resurrection is unique: σῶμα πνευματικόν (1 Cor. 15:44)-a real body transformed by the Spirit.
- Disappearance in Luke 24:31 proves spirit-body
The verb ἄφαντος ἐγένετο (“He became invisible”) simply describes His departure. It does not imply He lacked a body. Glorified bodies are not bound by ordinary physics, but they remain bodies.
Paul ties our resurrection to His: “He will transform our lowly body to be like His glorious body” (Phil. 3:21). If His body was dissolved, ours would be too, contradicting Paul’s hope.
Your argument collapses under the weight of the Greek text and the LXX:
σάρξ (flesh) in Acts 2:31 did not decay.
σῶμα (body) in 1 Cor. 15 is always a real body, never immaterial.
Jesus Himself denied being a spirit-only being (Luke 24:39).
Resurrection is not cancellation of ransom but vindication of it (Rom. 4:25).
To deny the bodily resurrection is not careful exegesis, it is twisting the Greek nouns and verbs to fit a system. The NT consistently teaches a bodily, glorified resurrection, not disintegration into “spirit essence.”
How do you answer? And I am not “combative” as I am currently under close scrutiny.
J.
JEHOVAH’s Witnesses have no doubt about it: God’s Word is the highest authority. Not a particular transation, but the Bible.
The Watchtower is not an authority on anything, other than perhaps on being the world’s most widely distributed publication (seriously, look it up). The Bible is.
The Watchtower is based on and has as its only authority God’s word The Bible. Every article therein looks to the Bible, therefore to God, for wisdom and guidance.
The Watchtower is a Bible study aid, make no mistake. It is not to be read instead of it. It uses the Bible to point the reader to Jehovah’s Kingdom, the only hope for mankind and for which Jesus taught us to pray. (Matthew 6:9)
The trinity is the belief that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are three persons who all share a single divine substance. Thus, all of them hold the title of ‘God’. Despite being three persons, according to the doctrine they are still one single God. And despite being distinct in personhood, they are all co-equal and co-eternal.
JEHOVAH’s Witnesses, on the other hand, hold God the Father to have no equal (John 17:3). He is Almighty in power (2 Corinthians 6:18) and eternal in existence (1 Timothy 1:17). He alone posesses supreme attributes (Ephesians 4:6).
We agree with trinitarians that the Father is distinct from the Son in personhood, but in addition we maintain that the Son is a unique individual deity (John 1:1). Thus, the Son is a lesser being than the Father, both in position and in qualities. (John 14:28)
The Holy Spirit, in our view, is not a person, but the name of JEHOVAH’s energy or active force, thag he uses to accomplish anything he wills (Romans 15:13). He has moreover bestown the ability to his Son to use his God’s Holy Spirit. (John 15:26)
Hope this helps
Only God is independent of existing. Since the Son is dependent, he must, therefore, be called a creature. I now put forward a question: “Has God birthed Jesus willingly or unwillingly?” This question can be used to argue that Jesus is dependent for his existence since Jesus exists only because God wants him to be.
The Logos was a divine being created by God the Father before the world’s creation, serving as the medium for creation, and that the Son of God is subordinate to the Father. The concept of the Logos refers to an inner attribute of God associated with wisdom. Jesus is identified as the Logos due to a resemblance to this inner aspect of God’s nature.
A verse from Proverbs spoke of the creation of the Son by God: “The Lord created me at the beginning of his work.” Therefore, the Son was the very first and the most perfect of God’s creatures, and he was called “God” only by the Father’s permission and power.
Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe in the traditional doctrine of the Trinity. Here I will give overview of their beliefs: God the Father, the unbegotten Almighty, is the only true God. The Son of God, Jesus, the “only-begotten god”, was begotten before time began. The Holy Spirit is the illuminating and sanctifying power of God. Using 1 Corinthians 8:5–6 as a proof text:
Indeed, even though there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as in fact there are many gods and many lords/masters—yet for us there is one God (Gk. theos – θεός), the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord/Master (kyrios – κύριος), Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.
Principally, the dispute between Trinitarianism and us is about two questions:
- has the Son always existed eternally with the Father, or was the Son begotten at a certain time in the past?
- is the Son equal to the Father or subordinate to the Father?
We believe that:
- since Jesus said, for example in John 6:51, that he would give his “flesh in behalf of the life of the world” and the Bible in 1 Peter 3:18 says that Jesus “was put to death in the flesh but made alive [resurrected] in the spirit, and
- since the tomb was empty after Jesus’ resurrection (Luke 24:3),
we conclude that God must have disposed of the physical body in an unspecified manner; but we do not state anything specific if the Bible doesn’t.
We believe that the miraculous gifts of the spirit (including the gift of inspired prophecy) were no longer given to earthly men after the death of the last Apostle.
The Governing Body is a small group of mature Christians who provide direction for Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide. Their work is twofold:
- They oversee the preparation of Bible-based instruction through the publications, meetings, and schools of Jehovah’s Witnesses.—Luke 12:42.
- They supervise the worldwide work of Jehovah’s Witnesses by directing our public ministry and overseeing the use of donated assets.
We base our beliefs about the significance of 1914 on biblical chronology, which tells us the destruction of Jerusalem and the beginning of the Babylonian captivity both occurred in 607 BCE.
Daniel chapter 4 prophesied a period of 2,520 years starting with 607 BCE and ending at 1914 CE.
This period is the same as the “Gentile Times” or “the appointed times of the nations” (Luke 21:24). When the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem, the line of kings descended from David was interrupted, and God’s throne was “trampled on” from then until Jesus began ruling in 1914.
This is confirmed by world events since 1914, including wars, famine, earthquakes and increasing lawlessness, which are a fulfillment of the “sign” of Christ’s presence. Our preaching is also part of that sign (Matthew 24:14).
A Witness offered to build a house for Rutherford because he was under a doctors’ order to spend winters in San Diego since his remaining lung was damaged. Rutherford relented and agreed on the condition that it only be used for work furthering the Christian preaching. And he insisted that it be deeded also to the “Ancient Worthies” such as Abraham and Isaac whom they felt would be soon resurrected. It would thus serve as a testament to the belief in the resurrection.
Brother Rutherford had a severe case of pneumonia after his release from unjust imprisonment during 1918-1919 because of his faithfulness to Jehovah. Thereafter he had only one good lung. It was virtually impossible for him to remain in Brooklyn, New York, during the winter and still carry out his duties as the Society’s president. In the 1920’s he went to San Diego under a doctor’s treatment. The climate there was exceptionally good and the doctor urged him to spend as much time as possible in San Diego. That is what Rutherford did ultimately.
By November of 1941 Brother Rutherford’s condition compelled him to return to Beth-Sarim for his final illness. He died there January 8, 1942.