What do the Watchtower articles have to offer that 2 Timothy 3:16-17 hasn’t offered Us already?

The deeper parts they wouldn’t be able to explain at all. In our early days we didn’t understand a lot of it ourselves and that is why we still used the cross in worship and celebrated Christmas and took some wrong turns.

The Ethiopian Eunich was at a loss to understand it and sought assistance. So there are capable men who can help others to understand it.

The Watchtowers are only as good as how closely they stick to the Bible. If they just promoted their own thoughts and outright contradicted the Bible they would be useless.

Now there have been times that they were off base here or there but a Sociologist who is trained in cults (and declared us not to be a cult) said that for quite some time we have been free of any major changes in belief. So we have been pretty consistent, with tweaks here and there. So I would say our literature is pretty reliable. And we are much more careful to avoid speaking dogmatically.

If we don’t understand something for sure we will say: “It appears to be…” or “It is likely that this is the meaning…” I have seen our magazines humbly say “In the past we believed such and such but with new understanding we have adjusted that view…” or something like that. I made up those words but you get the picture.

So to clarify you are saying not just the watchtower but ALL bible study aids/concordances /bible word dictionaries/bible commentaries are superfluous to requirements?

Hi thanks for the reply. I would kindly suggest that the watchtower magazine does not add anything new, it merely aids with understanding. All christian faiths have their interpretation of the bible. All christian faiths look to the organised elements of their faith for increased understanding. JW’s are just one of many. But there is not a single doctrine discussed in the watchtower magazine that cannot be backed up using scripture. People may disagree with that interpretation (as most christian denominations do, hence the diversity) but for JW’s it is still bible based. We often call the watchtower magazine a bible study aid.

Very good question! 2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us that the bible makes one “fully competent” and “completely equipped”. But the JW organization tells us the bible is not enough to make us “fully competent” and “completely equipped” because we need them. So let me see if I get teh JW logic straight: God gave us the bible so that we can know the truth and set things straight doctrinally and otherwise – so that we aren’t misled by men. Yet we need men to tell us what the bible means so … uhm … haven’t we just circumvented the protection from the error of men that the bible is supposed to offer since we are going back to men to have them tell us what the bible really means? Duh!

It is obvious that what the bible itself says has to be the final authority and we should not let anyone mislead and cajole us into dependence on them by their use of emotional manipulation through their appeal to a false sense of loyalty and through twisted self-serving interpretations of scripture to portray their organization as being God’s organization. It is plain to see that the JWs are actually contradicting 2 Timothy 3:16. The organization’s motive is clearly to have others dependent on it so that it can control them, use them. Ever wonder why JWs preachers are called ‘publishers’ instead of ‘preachers’? Because their organization is a publishing company and it’s members are duped, unpaid slaves.

Since God’s holy spirit is acting upon the faithful and discreet slave and the governing body, they write study articles to help members understand God’s word more clearly. If you say ney, then explain why so many who call themselves Christians believe all saved, good people, go to heaven when they die when the Scriptures do not teach that?

So, all you can do is thumbs down with no reply to my question? My point is proven, thank you.

in reference to an answer above:

How do you know God’s spirit even exists?

How do you know that it acts on the governing body?

How do you know the governing body is the faithful and discreet slave, other than their word?

How do you know you are not being misled?

Nothing is proven. It’s just guessing (small group of men doing all the guessing by the way), which is fine. But why do they make the doomsday claims about everyone not being a JW dying at armageddon if its just guessing. That can really screw people up, the Governing Body incredibly irresponsible.

The watchtower articles have tried to replace and pervert the teachings in the Bible.
Galatians 1:6-9 applies to them and they are accursed for teaching something beyond God’s word.