Would Jehovah's Witnesses get nearly as many converts if it weren't for the illustrations?

Question

So are they a comic book religion?

Answer 1

If you are a Jehovah's Witness,

please read this first.

If you are a Jehovah's Witness please understand that I am not against you as an individual. I am not an apostate from the Watchtower organization and, of course, I was never baptized as a Jehovah's Witness. However, when I was 17, I studied with the Jehovah's Witnesses for a couple of months, but quit. Unfortunately, they used the Watchtower Magazine equally, and sometime more than the Bible and they couldn't answer all my questions. All I wanted to study was the Bible since that is God's word.

As a Jehovah's Witness you have been taught from the Bible and the Watchtower organization. You’ve attended numerous meetings, and are convinced that what you believe is the truth. You also believe the Trinity is a demonic doctrine and that Christendom is an apostate group preaching a false gospel. Additionally, you are taught the Watchtower organization is the true channel of God’s revelation to His church on earth. You are taught that you are in "The Truth."

But believing it does not make it so. I am sure you agree with this and respond by saying that your beliefs are in agreement with the Bible. After all, you study it deeply and often and have validated your beliefs with the word of God. I don’t deny that you study. But when you study, you study under the Watchtower's guidance and allow it to shape your understanding and thinking of the Bible and its doctrines.

Please consider these quotes from the Watchtower Magazine that verify what I am saying:

"All who want to understand the Bible should appreciate that the "greatly diversified wisdom of God" can become known only through Jehovah's channel of communication, the faithful and discreet slave." (The Watchtower; 10/1/1994; p. 8.)

"Thus the Bible is an organizational book and belongs to the Christian congregation as an organization, not to individuals, regardless of how sincerely they may believe that they can interpret the Bible." The Watchtower, Oct. 1, 1967. p. 587.

In short, you are led by what the Watchtower says the Bible says. But if the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society is from God, then...

Why has it made false prophecies?

Why has it altered the translation of the Bible?

Why does the Watchtower say you will fall into apostasy if you read the Bible without the Watchtower? See their quotes

Why are you not allowed to examine your own organization and its problems?

Why does it tell you what to think and do?

Have you checked the documentation from the Watchtower Magazine? How do you know that the Watchtower is correct? Because it says it is?

Please don’t be offended by this. But when a group claims to be the prophet of God, yet mistranslates the Bible, takes verses out of context, makes false prophecies, and misquotes authorities all to make its position valid, its credibility is lost. It cannot be from God.

But you will never know that unless you "examine ALL things." Unfortunately, as a Jehovah's Witness, you are only encouraged to study what the Watchtower and Awake magazines tell you to study. That means you can't really check up on its false prophecies on your own. Instead, you must trust what it tells you about its own false prophecies. In addition, you are instructed to not take any literature from "apostate Christendom." This way, you will have far less opportunity to be challenged, something the Watchtower organization doesn't want to happen.

The Watchtower Magazine teaches by asking the questions and giving the answers. Sometimes it even uses a Bible reference (often times out of context) to back up what it says. It all looks good and sounds good from your perspective. But it is a false method of study. The Watchtower organization tells you what to think and what to do. If you say that is not true and that the Watchtower Organization is God's organization on earth, then you are simply repeating what the Watchtower tells you.

The Bible alone is sufficient. But the Watchtower denies this:

"From time to time, there have arisen from among the ranks of Jehovah's people those, who, like the original Satan, have adopted an independent, faultfinding attitude...They say that it is sufficient to read the Bible exclusively, either alone or in small groups at home. But, strangely, through such 'Bible reading,' they have reverted right back to the apostate doctrines that commentaries by Christendom's clergy were teaching 100 years ago..." The Watchtower, August 15, 1981. (Emphasis added)

What are the apostate doctrines: Trinity? h**l? Jesus is God? Funny thing is that, according to the Watchtower, if you study the Bible by itself, you will come to believe these things! Could it be that apart from the selected questions, answers, scripture quotes, and direction of the Watchtower teaching, that the Bible actually does teach these "apostate doctrines"?

Answer 2

I have to admit the Watchtower has had some pictures that do inspire the imagination.

Answer 3

Not even a comic geek would join jehovah's Witnesses because of our illustrations. Well, at least in my opinion i wouldn't join a religion because of their drawings. People join Jehovah's Witnesses because they believe in their hearts that they have found the true religion. I did.

Answer 4

We don’t owe it to the illustrations =) I believe it is Jehovah’s spirit that helps a man to decide to offer his life to serve Jehovah. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 3:6  ÃƒÂ¢Ã‚€ÂœI planted, A·pol´los watered, but God kept making [it] grow;” As JW preachers we are just planting seeds of truth in people’s heart and water it. But it is Jehovah that makes it grow.

Regarding illustration, below is the importance of illustration in preaching (be it a visual or imaginary illustration)

(Matthew 13:13-15) This is why I speak to them by the use of illustrations, because, looking, they look in vain, and hearing, they hear in vain, neither do they get the sense of it; 14 and toward them the prophecy of Isaiah is having fulfillment, which says, ‘By hearing, YOU will hear but by no means get the sense of it; and, looking, YOU will look but by no means see. 15 For the heart of this people has grown unreceptive, and with their ears they have heard without response, and they have shut their eyes; that they might never see with their eyes and hear with their ears and get the sense of it with their hearts and turn back, and I heal them.’

(Matthew 13:34) All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds by illustrations. Indeed, without an illustration he would not speak to them;

Jehovah employed memorable visual aids to teach vital lessons. One night he brought Abraham outdoors and said: “Look up, please, to the heavens and count the stars, if you are possibly able to count them. . . . So your seed will become.” (Gen. 15:5) Even though what was promised seemed impossible from a human standpoint, Abraham was deeply moved and put faith in Jehovah. On another occasion, Jehovah sent Jeremiah to the house of a potter and had him enter the potter’s workshop to watch the man shape clay. What a memorable lesson in the Creator’s authority over humans! (Jer. 18:1-6) And how could Jonah ever forget the lesson in mercy that Jehovah taught him by means of the bottle-gourd plant? (Jonah 4:6-11) Jehovah even told his prophets to act out prophetic messages while making use of certain appropriate objects. (1 Ki. 11:29-32; Jer. 27:1-8; Ezek. 4:1-17) The tabernacle and temple features are, in themselves, representations that help us to understand heavenly realities. (Heb. 9:9, 23, 24) God also made abundant use of visions to convey important information.—Ezek. 1:4-28; 8:2-18; Acts 10:9-16; 16:9, 10; Rev. 1:1.

How did Jesus employ visual aids? When the Pharisees and the party followers of Herod tried to trap him in his speech, Jesus asked for a denarius and drew attention to the image of Caesar on the coin. Then he explained that Caesar’s things should be paid back to Caesar but that God’s things should be paid back to God. (Matt. 22:19-21) To teach a lesson in honoring God with all that we have, Jesus pointed out a poor widow at the temple whose contribution—two small coins—was her whole means of living. (Luke 21:1-4) On another occasion he used a young child as an example of being humble, free from ambition. (Matt. 18:2-6) He also personally demonstrated the meaning of humility by washing his disciples’ feet.—John 13:14.

Answer 5

simple minds like and are easily swayed by the pretty colors and all the empty promises inside.

Answer 6

The illustrations?

Jesus used illustrations in his form of teaching others all the time.

or what are you saying?

The pictures in our literature?

Answer 7

They are definitely selling paradise. The pretty pictures and panda bears make it attractive to young children especially and they know this. This is why we have to protect our kids from these people. It is like a shiny object for a fish. One second you are just accepting a leaflet with a panda, the next thing you know you are out there pounding the pavement keeping track of your placements and reporting back to headquarters like a good little soldier and you are giving them all your free time.

Then you tell your kids to pioneer instead of going to college because this system is like a business going out of business, you are separated from all your "worldly" relatives who don't even invite you for Christmas anymore. It just goes down hill from there.

And it all started with pretty pictures of paradise.

Answer 8

1) I began studying the Christian-Greek Scriptures,

these basic sources by themselves;

and came to the cognition;

that Jehovah's Witnesses are telling others about the one true God.

I had no need of the illustrations, to "convert" (your word).

2)No.