what is the difference between Christian & Jehovah Witnesses?

Answer 1

Jehovah's Witnesses *ARE* Christians. The bible helps one to understand this matter quite plainly (see Scriptures below).

Meanwhile, trinitarians repeatedly pretend that Jehovah's Witnesses are not Christian. Trinitarians use an artificial, trinity-specific definition of the term "Christian" which excludes anyone who does not believe that Jesus is God Himself, rather than the Son of God. Interestingly, pagans in the first century pretended that Christ's followers were Atheists(!) because the Christians had a somewhat different idea from the pagans about the nature of God.

Jehovah's Witnesses teach that no salvation occurs without Christ, that accepting Christ's sacrifice is a requirement for true worship, that every prayer must acknowledge Christ, that Christ is the King of God's Kingdom, that Christ is the head of the Christian congregation, that Christ is immortal and above every creature, even that Christ was the 'master worker' in creating the universe! Both secular dictionaries and disinterested theologians acknowledge that Jehovah's Witnesses are a Christian religion.

The Trinitarian arguments are intended to insult and demean Jehovah's Witnesses, rather than to give a Scripturally accurate understanding of the term "Christian".

In fact, the bible most closely associates being "Christian" with preaching about Christ and Christ's teachings. Review all three times the bible uses the term "Christian" and note that the context connects the term with:
"declaring the good news"
'teaching quite a crowd'
'open eyes, turn from dark to light'
"uttering sayings of truth"
"persuade"
"keep on glorifying"

(Acts 11:20-26) [The early disciples of Jesus] began talking to the Greek-speaking people, declaring the good news of the Lord Jesus... and taught quite a crowd, and it was first in Antioch that the disciples were by divine providence called Christians.

(Acts 26:17-28) [Jesus said to Paul] I am sending you, to open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light and from the authority of Satan to God... Paul said: “I am not going mad, Your Excellency Festus, but I am uttering sayings of truth and of soundness of mind. ...Do you, King Agrippa, believe the Prophets? I know you believe.” But Agrippa said to Paul: “In a short time you would persuade me to become a Christian.”

(1 Peter 4:14-16) If you are being reproached for the name of Christ, you are happy... But if he suffers as a Christian, let him not feel shame, but let him keep on glorifying God in this name


So why do anti-Witnesses try to hijack the term "Christian" and hide its Scriptural implications? Because anti-Witnesses recognize that it is the preaching work that makes it clear that the relatively small religion of Jehovah's Witnesses are by far the most prominent followers of Christ:

(Matthew 28:19,20) Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy spirit, teaching them to observe all the things I have commanded

Answer 2

As a Jehovah's Witness, I obey God rather than men. I use His word the Bible as a source for guidance from day to day. It is a life-style rather than an acceptance of what has been taught over the centuries, I follow the guidelines Jesus gave us. I do not worship a triune god, nor do I worship a holy spirit, I believe the spirit to be Jehovah's energy, and power I believe that Jehovah is the true God, that Jesus is his son. I believe hell to be the place where those who die go,to sleep, until called by Jesus at the time of the resurrection.

Answer 3

We Witnesses are Christians. I know there are differences in how various faiths follow Jehovah's laws. We try to follow the teachings found in the Bible.

Answer 4

Being a "Christian" today is a very loose term.
What I can tell you is what Jehovahs Witnesses believe.
1.Jehovahs Witnesses believe that the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God,and instead of adhering to a creed based on human tradition,they hold to the Bible as the standard for all their beliefs.
2.They worship Jehovah as the only true God and freely speak to others about him and his loving purposes toward mankind.
3.They believe,not that Jesus Christ is part of a Trinity,but that,as the Bible says,he is the Son of God,the first of God's creations;that he had a prehuman existence and that his life was transferred from heaven to the womb of a virgin,Mary;that his perfect human life laid down in sacrifice makes possible salvation to eternal life for those who exercise faith;that Christ is actively ruling as King,with God-given authority over all the earth since 1914.
4.They beleive that God's Kingdom is the only hope for mankind;that it is a real government;that it will soon destroy the present wicked system of things,including all human governments,and that it will produce a new system in which righteousness will prevail.
5.They beleive that 144,000 spirit anointed Christians will share with Christ in his heavenly Kingdom,ruling as kings with him.They do not believe that heaven is the reward for everyone who is "good".
6.They believe that God's original purpose for the earth will be fulfilled;that the earth will be completely populated by worshipers of Jehovah and that these will be able to enjoy eternal life in human perfection;that even the dead will be raised to an opportunity to share in these blessing.s
7.They believe that the dead are conscious of absolutely nothing;that they are experienceing neither pain nor pleasure in some spirit realm;that they do not exist except in God's memory,so hope for their future life lies in a resurrection from the dead.
8.They believe that we are living now,since 1914,in the last days of this wicked system of things.
9.They earnestly endeavor to be no part of the world,as Jesus said would be true of his followers.They show genuine Christian lvoe for their neighbors,but they do not share in the politics or the wars of any nation.They provide for the material needs of their families but shun the world's avid pursuit of material things and personal fame and its excessive indulgence in pleasure.
These are only some outstanding beliefs of Jehovahs Witnesses but by no means all the points on which their beliefs are different from those of other groups.

Answer 5

I believe christian, means follower of Christ.
Jehovah's witnesses believe that Jehovah is God, and they believe that Jesus is Jehovah's son. They believe that the Bible is to be followed. They believe it is very important to be baptized and to share the Good News of the gospel.
Most so called christian churches don't see the importance of witnessing and they believe in the Trinity( which word in not in the Bible).

Answer 6

The term Christian has gone the way of the term dating. AT one time, dating meant you were simply seeing someone on a regular basis, but now it means you are also sleeping with them.

These days, anyone can claim to be Christian, regardless of what they do in their personal life. Killers, rapist, thieves, etc. may admit they did the crime, but they still say they are Christian, simply because they believe in Christ. The believe in Christ, but turn their backs on his teachings.

JWs are Christian in that they strive to live their lives in the light of Christ, and not on the edge of the light, being just enough in the light to say they are Christian, but also extending themselves into the dark because it is more fun than being a strict Christian. The Genesis Bible was considered too strict, so the King James Version was commissioned. A Bible that allowed ones to live a little in the dark shadows, while still keeping a foot in the light.

Answer 7

I am no expert on beliefs of the Jehovah Witnesses. However the beliefs are not inline with orthodox Christianity specifically regarding the doctrine of the trinity, salvation, and hell.

(1) They deny the deity of Jesus Christ. They claim Jesus was the first created being.
(2) They deny the person of Holy Spirit and perceive it as God's active force.
(3) They claim that Jehovah is God's name; he has a spirit body and is not omnipresent. Orthodox Christianity recognizes one God that is referred to in scripture by many names.
(4) They deny a conscious existence at death. There is no assurance of salvation, only the hope of resurrection. In doing so they deny the doctrine of Hell, an eternal place of torment.
(5) They believe in two classes of saved people. A 144000 anointed class who go to rule with Jesus at death, and a larger group of "other sheep".
(6) They rely an a single English translation of scripture (New World Translation) that supports their theology.

Answer 8

What do Jehovah’s Witnesses believe? Close scrutiny of their doctrinal position on such subjects as the Deity of Jesus, Salvation, the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, the Atonement, etc., shows beyond a doubt that they do not hold to orthodox Christian positions on these subjects. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe Jesus is Michael the archangel, the highest created being. This contradicts many Scriptures which clearly declare Jesus to be God (John 1:1,14; 8:58; 10:30). Jehovah’s Witnesses believe salvation is obtained by a combination of faith, good works, and obedience. This contradicts countless Scriptures which declare salvation to be received by faith (John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5). Jehovah’s Witnesses reject the Trinity, believing Jesus to be a created being and the Holy Spirit to essentially be the power of God. Jehovah’s Witnesses hold to a ransom theory of the atonement, in which Jesus' death paid only for what mankind lost when Adam sinned - namely, the right to perfect life on earth. Thus, they believe in a faith + works arrangement, where sin and death are freely atoned for by Christ, but physical perfection is attained through personal effort, coupled with faith in Christ.

How do the Jehovah’s Witnesses justify these unbiblical doctrines? (1) They claim that the church has, over the centuries, corrupted the Bible, and (2) They have re-translated the Bible in what they call the New World Translation. The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society altered the text of the Bible to make it fit their false doctrine – rather than basing their doctrine on what the Bible teaches. The New World Translation has gone through numerous editions, as the Jehovah’s Witnesses discover more and more Scriptures that contradict their doctrines.

Jehovah's Witnesses are readily shown to be a cult that is only loosely based upon Scripture. The Watchtower bases its beliefs and doctrines on the original and expanded teachings of Charles Taze Russell, Judge Joseph Franklin Rutherford, and their successors. The Governing Body of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society is the only body in the cult that claims authority to interpret Scripture. In other words, what the Governing Body says concerning any Scriptural passage is viewed as the last word, and independent thinking is strongly discouraged. This is in direct opposition of Paul's admonition to Timothy (and to us as well) to study to show yourself approved of God, a workman that need not be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of God. This admonition, found in 2 Timothy 2:15, is a clear instruction from God to each of His individual children in the Body of Christ to be like the Berean Christians and search the Scriptures daily to see if the things they are being taught line up with what His Word has to say on the subject.

Answer 9

we worship the same god jesus did, and pray to the same god jesus did, we preach about the same god jesus did, and we accept jesus as our savior


Jesus could confidently pray: “I have glorified you on the earth, having finished the work you have given me to do. So now you, Father, glorify me alongside yourself with the glory that I had alongside you before the world was.” (John 17:4, 5) Jesus could say those words to his heavenly Father because he was successfully meeting the test of accountability and was acceptable to God.

Unlike the perfect man Jesus Christ, we are imperfect. Yet, we are accountable to God. The apostle Paul said: “Why do you judge your brother? Or why do you also look down on your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written: ‘“As I live,” says Jehovah, “to me every knee will bend down, and every tongue will make open acknowledgment to God.”’ So, then, each of us will render an account for himself to God.” (Romans 14:10-12) In order that we may do so and find acceptance with Jehovah, he has lovingly given us both a conscience and his inspired Word, the Bible, to guide us in what we say and do. (Romans 2:14, 15; 2 Timothy 3:16, 17) Taking full advantage of Jehovah’s spiritual provisions and following our Bible-trained conscience will help us to find acceptance with God. (Matthew 24:45-47) Jehovah’s holy spirit, or active force, is an added source of strength and guidance. If we act in harmony with the spirit’s direction and the leadings of our Bible-trained conscience, we show that we do not ‘disregard God,’ to whom we must account for all our actions.—1 Thessalonians 4:3-8; 1 Peter 3:16, 21.

Answer 10

There's no difference. Someone above me said that Christians believe in trinity. I have a news for him: so do pagans. Actually many Christian doctrines from nowadays have pagan origins. So, if we, the JW don't believe in them, doesn't that make us true Christians?