Are Jehovah Witnesses a Cult?

There are about 8,699,000 Jehovah Witnesses around the world, who offer about 5 million free home Bible courses and have about 117,000 congregations worldwide.

You have probably come across them at one point or another, but are they part of Christianity or are they a cult? Here are some things you should consider.

The Origin of Jehovah’s Witnesses

To know the origin, we have to go back to the Adventist background. William Miller, a farmer, announced in 1831 that the end of the world would come in 1843. About 50,000 to 100,000 people followed his teachings at the time, but soon realized that the world did not end. His associates revised the date to October 22, 1844, but again realized the end still didn’t come. Shortly after, the movement split into various Adventist organizations, including the Seventh Day Adventist.

One of the Adventist teachers was Charles Russell, who founded the International Bible Students Association in 1872. He denied the existence of hell, the Trinity, and the divinity of Jesus. He taught that Jesus’s presence had returned invisibly in 1874 and that He would set up His visible millennial kingdom in 1914. Russell set up the Watchtower Bible and the Tract Society of Pennsylvania in 1884 and moved the headquarters to Brooklyn, New York.

Russell’s Failed Predictions of 1914

Russell expected to be raptured in 1878, but it didn’t happen. He then taught that the dead were taken to heaven in 1878, and claimed that 1881 would be the year for the living souls to go to heaven, but it also failed to happen. In 1914, he predicted the end of preaching work, religion, government, the Great Tribulation, and Armageddon, and that Jesus’s kingdom would be established on earth; however, none of these predictions came to pass.

Russell passed away in 1916, and Joseph Franklin Rutherford took over in 1917, renaming the movement to Jehovah’s Witnesses. He also failed in predicting the end of the world.

10 Beliefs That Make Jehovah’s Witnesses Not Christians

1. Jesus is Really the Archangel Michael

Jehovah’s Witnesses believe Jesus was the first being Jehovah created. Jehovah then created all things through Michael/Jesus. They believe that Jesus is not God, but rather a God.

Christians, on the other hand, believe Jesus is the Son of God, fully God and fully man. This fundamental difference separates Jehovah’s Witnesses from mainstream Christianity.

2. Jesus is Not to be Worshipped

Jehovah’s Witnesses also do not worship Jesus because they don’t believe that He is Almighty God.

Christians, however, worship Jesus because the Bible says God has exalted Jesus’s name above every name, and every knee will bow at the name of Jesus (Phil. 2:9-11). We even see that the disciples worshiped Jesus after His resurrection, acknowledging Him as the Messiah (Mat. 28:17).

3. Jesus Was Not Resurrected with a Physical Body but as a Spirit Being

Another key belief held by Jehovah’s Witnesses is the idea that Jesus was resurrected as a spirit but and not with a physical body.

Christians believe in a physical resurrection, as Jesus ate food with His disciples and allowed them to touch His wounds (Luke 24:39-43). The physical resurrection is a core belief held by Christians, symbolizing the restoration of creation and the hope of the believers’ future resurrection.

4. Jesus’s Second Coming Has Already Occurred Invisibly in 1914

Additionally, Jehovah’s Witnesses believe Jesus’s second already occurred and happened invisibly in 1914.

This is a very different held belief than what is held by Christians. Christians await His physical return, expecting events like the manifestation of the antichrist (2 Thes. 2:3-4), the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem (Dan 9:27), the Great Tribulation (Mat. 24:21), and the rapture of the church (1 Thes. 4:16-17). These events have not yet occurred, contradicting the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ claims.

5. The Holy Spirit is Not a Person

Jehovah’s Witnesses also believe that the Holy Spirit is a ghost rather than a Person.

Christians believe the Holy Spirit is a Person, using personal pronouns and performing functions such as teaching, guiding, convicting, speaking, and comforting. Jesus called the Holy Spirit “another Comforter,” indicating He would continue Jesus’s ministry as a person (Jn 14:16-17).

6. There is No Trinity. There is Only God, Jehovah

They also deny the Trinity, believing in one God, Jehovah, which is contrary to what many Christians believe.

Christians believe in one God in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This belief is supported throughout the Old and New Testaments, though it may be difficult to fully comprehend.

7. Salvation is by Faith and Especially by Works

Another distinctive belief lies in the idea of salvation by faith and works, requiring adherence to the Watchtower Society’s rules. Christians believe in salvation by grace through faith, not by works.

8. Only 144,000 Saved People will go to Heaven

Jehovah’s Witnesses also believe that only 144,000 will go to heaven, with spirit bodies, while others will remain on earth in physical bodies.

This is not a belief held by the Christian Church. Christians believe people from every tribe, tongue, and nation will be in heaven with physical resurrected bodies, as taught in the Bible (Rev 7:9; 1 Cor. 15:42-44).

9. Humans Do Not Have an Eternal, Immortal Soul

Next, Jehovah’s Witnesses believe humans do not have an eternal soul and cease to exist upon death unless resurrected by God.

However, the Christian belief is that every human has an eternal soul, which will exist forever either separated from God or with God. This belief underscores the importance of salvation through Jesus Christ.

10. There is No Hell

And lastly, Jehovah’s Witnesses deny the existence of hell. This is a belief upheld by Christians–hell is a real, eternal place that is a separation from God. Jesus taught extensively about hell, emphasizing the need for salvation to avoid this place of torment (Mt. 10:28; Mrk. 9:43-48; Lk. 16:23-24).

If you are a Jehovah’s Witness, I love you and pray for you. I encourage you to read the scriptures with an open heart, and you will find the truth in Jesus Christ. Repent of your sin and place your trust in Him as your only salvation.

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