Why do Jehovah's Witnesses believe in a physical Resurrection for the faithful witnesses that have passed?

Question

Yet they deny that Christ had a physical Resurrection?

OK...some here are going to make me be more perfect in my question...Here goes...Yes the Witnesses believe that a small number will go to heaven...But the majority will gain earthly reward and get the earthly bodies (perfected) as a resurrection...they do not believe that Christ was resurrected in bodily form before his assention....there!

Answer 1

Doesn't make sense does it. They say Jesus was only resurrected in spirit, yet we will experience a physical resurrection. If Jesus is the model that we follow after, wouldn't it be both? His resurrection was BOTH spiritual and physical, as will be ours. Why would His be one way and ours be another if His resurrection is the one that will be ours also?

Again, they contradict themselves with their own teachings. In one sense it's laughable; in another its sad because their cultish hold is so strong on people that they will ignore the and REJECT the plain truth of the Watchtower even when its right in front of them.

Answer 2

EDITED:

1 Cor 15:44 – sown PHYSICAL body, raised up a SPIRITUAL body.

Notice it doesn't say sown a Physical Body raised up as a SPIRITUAL AND PHYSICAL BODY.

Jesus' body was raised up a SPRITUAL body not PHYSICAL.

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God gave those who have part of the first resurrection with a spiritual body, that is, it was first a physical body(human) then “stand up” again with a spiritual body(spirit). A spirit has spiritual body not with a physical body.

1 Cor 15:42-45 talks about the resurrection of the dead. For the holy & anointed ones and also Jesus, they were given a spiritual body not physical. Please notice the contrast.

1 Cor 15:42-45
42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption, it is raised up in incorruption. 43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised up in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised up in power. 44 It is sown a physical body, it is raised up a spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual one. 45 It is even so written: “The first man Adam became a living soul.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.

1 Cor 15:44 – sown PHYSICAL body, raised up a SPIRITUAL body.
1 Cor 15:45 – Adam became a soul(i.e. with PHYSICAL body) , the last Adam became a life-giving SPIRIT (i.e with spiritual body).
Notice the context is talking of the resurrection of the dead.

REv 21::3-4 talks about the MANKIND. These MANKIND have PHYSICAL bodies otherwise they should have been called SPIRITS.

Jesus of course can take the form of a physical body anytime he wishes to, just like in the case of Luke 24:36,37.

Abraham gave food to the angels that materialized and they all ate. Do these angels who are spirits at that time have physical bodies? Yes. This is the same thing that Jesus did, when he showed himself to his apostles. Notice that the glorified Jesus is the “exact representation of [God’s] very being”. God is a spirit and has no physical body but instead with spiritual body, so Jesus just went back to his previous state, that is his being a spirit (no physical body). Heb. 1:3; 1 Timothy 6:16.


Jesus assured the apostles that he was no apparition, which he was not, but that it was indeed he; and he did indeed have a fleshly body which he MATERIALIZED for the occasion. In other words, Jesus was assuring them that he was not the product of their imagination, neither was he someone else, but in truth and in fact the very Jesus they had known before his death.

Also, Jesus materialized to the exact same body that he has when he was a human, so that all of his apostles will believe, esp Thomas, that he is ALIVE. Notice the physical body that Jesus had has wounds, but in all the other occasions, it doesn’t and the apostles do not recognize him immediately. The glorified body of Jesus definitely does not have wounds & holes, but is perfect. He only materialized into the body with wounds so those who do not believe will believe that he is alive and it is him not a ghost.

A spirit does not have a physical body but a spiritual body. But a spirit can materialize to a physical body. 1 Cor 15. See 1 Pet 3:18 also.


Jesus did not remain as a man as Gal 1:1 states “Paul, an apostle, neither from men nor through a MAN, but through Jesus Christ”.


The physical body of Jesus was not in the tomb because he gave it to the person of God. Heb 9.

Jesus has became lower than the angels (spirits) when he became human (physical). After resurrection, Jesus is higher again than angels (spirits).If Jesus retain his physical body then he is still lower than angels.

Answer 3

What are you talking about?

EDIT: After a person dies, what is resurrected? It is not the same body that died. The Bible shows this when it describes the resurrection to heavenly life. (1 Corinthians 15:35-44) Even those who are resurrected to life on earth do not receive the same body they had when they lived before. That body probably decayed and returned to the ground. In time the elements of the dead body may have become a part of other living things. So God resurrects not the same body but the same person that died. To persons who go to heaven, he gives a new spiritual body. To those who are raised to live on earth, he gives a new physical body. This new physical body will no doubt be similar to the one the person had before he died so that he will be recognized by those who knew him.

***Does Jesus have his fleshly body in heaven?

1 Cor. 15:42-50, RS: “So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. . . . It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body. . . . Thus it is written, ‘The first man Adam became a living being’; the last Adam [Jesus Christ, who was a perfect human as Adam had been at the start] became a life-giving spirit. . . . I tell you this, brethren: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.” (Italics added.)

1 Pet. 3:18, RS: “Christ also died for sins once for all, . . . being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit [“in the spirit,” NE, AT, JB, Dy].” (See page 334.)

Illustration: If a man pays a debt for a friend but then promptly takes back the payment, obviously the debt continues. Likewise, if, when he was resurrected, Jesus had taken back his human body of flesh and blood, which had been given in sacrifice to pay the ransom price, what effect would that have had on the provision he was making to relieve faithful persons of the debt of sin?

It is true that Jesus appeared in physical form to his disciples after his resurrection. But on certain occasions, why did they not at first recognize him? (Luke 24:15-32; John 20:14-16) On one occasion, for the benefit of Thomas, Jesus appeared with the physical evidence of nail prints in his hands and a spear wound in his side. But how was it possible on that occasion for him suddenly to appear in their midst even though the doors were locked? (John 20:26, 27) Jesus evidently materialized bodies on these occasions, as angels had done in the past when appearing to humans. Disposing of Jesus’ physical body at the time of his resurrection presented no problem for God. Interestingly, although the physical body was not left by God in the tomb (evidently to strengthen the conviction of the disciples that Jesus had actually been raised), the linen cloths in which it had been wrapped were left there; yet, the resurrected Jesus always appeared fully clothed.—John 20:6, 7.

Answer 4

that is so easy , the people that will live in this planet after their resurrection need a body to live in this planet a physical body , but the people that are going to heaven need an spiritual body as the bible says in 1 Corithians 15:45-50...

Answer 5

Who says they deny Jesus' Physical Resurrection? They dont!

JW's believe that the faithful will live in "Heaven on Earth" while 144,000 chosen ones will descend to heaven and join Jesus in governing the Earh. Pretty similar to the rapture theory believed by many other Christian groups.

Answer 6

it's part of the doctrinal structure that allows for them to believe in "heaven" and an after-life, but to be able to deny the full deity of christ. To the JW Jesus is "a god" not "the God" which, is polytheistict, and contradictory to the scripture text of the Bible. In the Watchtower 'religion' Jesus Christ is stripped of all rightful diety and made to be a creation of God's as mankind is.
Denying the physical resurrection is also another means to irradicate the doctrine of hell by misinterpreting the Greek & Hebrew words for 'hell' though Jesus himself said there was one.
It is not necessarily really entirely their fault, as it is the doctrine of the Watchtower that propogates such contradictory theologies that is a fabrication and misrepresentation of scripture. ♥

If christ did not rise, then he is not the Messiah; his resurrection is as important to his testimony as is his crucifixion. if he did not rise, he is just another man; and we are all in trouble. BUT, they deny this aspect of His life/death as a means to justify unfounded contradictory theologies within their own doctrine that claim Jesus Christ was created and not the Eternal God at all; which is contradictory to the Word of God. (The Bible)♥

*edit* in terms of the 'small number' that will go to heaven, this too is contradictory to the word of God. Jesus himself said that heaven was available for all. The 144,000 that is refered to in the book of Revelation is in regards to the original tribes of Israel, 12,000 from each; it is not in regards to salvation available for mankind. The concept of 'perfected bodies' also comes from the N.T, but this Watchtower doctrine too stands contradictory to the Word of God. Jehovah's Witnesses are not bad people, but the doctrine of their church is heretical, there's no nice or easy way to say that. Not one thing taught by the Watchtower is in line with the Word of God (Bible) as a whole.

*edit* again: VOT: Reasoning from the Sciptures? I own a copy of several Watchtower Publications.... why don't you and i go for coffee or tea, my treat, and i will show you the error? Respectfully, of course.

Answer 7

Why do you believe your own myths you were taught?
Same thing. It works for you, that works for them. To me, they are all the same-pretty stories (or not so pretty) that somehow comforts you.

Answer 8

They are their own gods, they even accepted the twisted NWT instead of the true Word of God. God's rules does not apply to them if the organization does not let them.

Answer 9

it all man made ... a man made it like that was his beliefs were and people started ot follow him i guess not too sure though...