Anyone can answer, but since I am taking a serious look at the Jehovah’s Witnesses, I would like for you to state what you are, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Church of Christ, Mormon, Hindu or what ever. Again, anyone can answer but I am very specifically looking at what the Jehovah’s Witnesses have to say, and it is especially important to me that you identify yourself as one, if I do not already know who you are. If I do know you already, then it is up to you, although you may want to do it for the benefit of other readers. While there are times that doing a copy and paste is perfectly OK, and while most of the time I appreciate any Internet links, what I am mostly interested in this time is your own personal definition of God. An Internet link is OK, but if you give me a link, I still want to know what your understanding of God is. And if you could, try to answer without using the word “deity” or the word “being” in your answer. Of course, if you have to use one or both of those do so. And if that fits better than anything else, feel free. But I am hoping to hear from several of you that can give me a definition without using those words.
Thank you!
Disclaimer:
Please note, I have set some ground rules and explained myself in another question. I am going to put this link at the bottom of each and every question that I ask that is directed to the Jehovah’s Witnesses. If you read it once, there is no reason to read it again.
Jehovah’s Witnesses, do you understand this and is this acceptable to you?
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=201207...
Update:Some very good answers. Wish I could award more than one Best Answer.
Putting Jehovah's Witnesses under a microscope? I am, but it is a very kind, gently, friendly and (I think) fair microscope..
Answers & Comments
Verified answer
Dear friend
Many who believe in God think of him as a force, not as a person. In certain cultures, for example, gods have been identified with the forces of nature. Some who have examined evidence gathered through scientific research into the structure of the universe and the nature of life on earth have concluded that there has to be a First Cause. Nevertheless, they hesitate to attach a personality to this Cause.
Yet, does not the complexity of creation indicate that the First Cause must have had great intelligence? Intelligence requires a mind. The great mind responsible for all creation belongs to the person of God. Yes, God has a body, not a physical one like ours, but a spiritual body. "If there is a physical body," says the Bible, "there is also a spiritual one." (1 Corinthians 15:44) Explaining the nature of God, the Bible clearly states: "God is a Spirit." (John 4:24) A spirit has a form of life that differs greatly from ours, and it is invisible to human eyes. (John 1:18) There are invisible spirit creatures as well. They are angels —"the sons of the true God." —Job 1:6; 2:1.
Since God is an uncreated person with a spiritual body, he logically has a place of residence. Referring to the spirit realm, the Bible tells us that the heavens are God's "established place of dwelling." (1 Kings 8:43) Also, the Bible writer Paul states: 'Christ entered into heaven itself to appear before the person of God for us.' —Hebrews 9:24.
The word "spirit" is also used in the Bible in another sense. Addressing God in prayer, the psalmist said: "If you send forth your spirit, they are created." (Psalm 104:30) This spirit is not God himself but a force that God sends forth, or uses, to accomplish whatever he wishes. By means of it, God created the physical heavens, the earth, and all living things. (Genesis 1:2; Psalm 33:6) His spirit is called holy spirit. God used his holy spirit to inspire the men who wrote the Bible. (2 Peter 1:20, 21) Hence, the holy spirit is the invisible active force that God uses to fulfill his purposes.
Sorry that there are a lot of scriptures to look up, but we do believe that the Bible is the word of God, so if we just give our own opinions then you would get a lot of different answers!
This is a link to our online publication, "What does the Bible Really Teach" I have given it to you in the past but that is OK as it will explain a lot of how we teach what comes from the bible.
http://www.watchtower.org/e/bh/article_00.htm
Also if you look at my profile you will see two questions I asked other people that claim to be Christian, as you will see they are quite deep !
Regards
Terry
I am just wondering if you are a lawyer, lol! You are putting a Disclaimer at the end of every question, why is that? Is this the way your questions usually go as far as your demeanor on Yahoo? You seem polite but yet there seems to be something between the lines. It is not for me to judge and I only got on here to read the answers and give thumbs up.....I could never expound on the answers that are on here, or not to that deep of a level. I just was curious about how you seem to be putting Jehovah's Witnesses under a microscope. Of course, we are already used to it by now.
I will say that my concept of God is that He is all loving, wise, just and the epitome of Agape Love. Have you read of that sort of love? Open your Bible to 1Cor. 13:1-8 and that will tell you my love for God and how I believe the whole world should be acting. If they did, we would be in that new system of things.
Hi yes i am one of Jehovah Witnesses and to me God is the creator of the universe, with qualities of Love, Wisdom, Power, and Justice. Yes he has many of qualities like forgiveness and patience. He is a God that does not lie and i can fully trust that i will see my grandmother again and live in a world full of righteous people and an earth paradise conditions being perfect as Adam and Eve were and still have free will, but who i will serve indefinitely. Who listens to my prayers and I can pour my heart out to and helps me get through many trials.
Hi there, God is the almighty creator. He is a spirit being in the spirit realm.
Our reference Insight on the Scriptures states:
The true God is not a nameless God. His name is Jehovah. (De 6:4; Ps 83:18) He is God by reason of his creatorship. (Ge 1:1; Re 4:11) The true God is real (Joh 7:28), a person (Ac 3:19; Heb 9:24), and not lifeless natural law operating without a living lawgiver, not blind force working through a series of accidents to develop one thing or another. The 1956 edition of The Encyclopedia Americana (Vol. XII, p. 743) commented under the heading “God”: “In the Christian, Mohammedan, and Jewish sense, the Supreme Being, the First Cause, and in a general sense, as considered nowadays throughout the civilized world, a spiritual being, self-existent, eternal and absolutely free and all-powerful, distinct from the matter which he has created in many forms, and which he conserves and controls. There does not seem to have been a period of history where mankind was without belief in a supernatural author and governor of the universe.”
Good day, I'm Josh, a servant of the Most High God Jehovah, as to your question "What I am mostly interested in this time is your own personal definition of God" That in itself cannot be answered with any real truth because we all learn or are taught from an external source weather it be the Bible or oral tradition or other history books etc so all of our thoughts are in a way influenced from these sources add to that our own uniqueness and life experiences and God will be seen in a variety of ways. For example some say God is a woman or that many roads lead to Him ( I DO NOT share these views) In fact my views of God are largely influenced by what I read in the Scriptures. Not because someone told me to or because my parents influenced me but because after doing things my way for nearly 30 years I decided to give it a chance to see if it could teach me about God and equally important if it could live up to it's own claim that it is indeed the word of God. So my personal definition harmonizes with all that I read about Him,here are just 10, that He is
1 The Father of all Creation (Hebrews 3 , 1- 4)
2 The extent of His wisdom and power is unfathomable from a human standpoint (Job 38, 4-41)
3 That he is the epitome of Love (1John 4-8)
4 He hates violence (Psalms 11-5)
5 He is a lover of righteousness (Psalms 33, 4-5)
6 He is the perfect Father (Mathew 7, 7-11)
7 He disciplines those whom he receives (Hebrews 12, 5-6)
8 He is merciful and slow to anger (Exodus 34 -6)
9 He is our Judge and statute giver (Isaiah 33-22)
10 He will fulfill all of his purposes regarding mankind (Isaiah 55-11)
I hope these definitions are as pleasing to you as they are to me.
in Islam
god is the creator and the only one who should be worshiped. there is no one like him or anyone who has his abilities. he knows what will happen to each individual in this universe and what there future caries before they are born. god is not like humens but people carry some of his characteristics that he gave to them such as (mercy, anger, love, hate, and so on). he has no son and no partner. he is not a male or a female. he is the god of all creations and he has a name "Allah".
Hi
My name is Andrew and I am a Jehovah's Witness.
References from the NWT of Holy Scriptures
Jehovah God is the most high = Psalms 83:18
Jehovah is the father of creation, he is the ultimate source of life, there is no conscience with out God's consciousness, there is no knowledge without the knowledge of existence.
Revelation 4:11 says:
"You are worthy, Jehovah, even our God, to receive the glory and the honor and the power, because you created all things, and because of your will they existed and were created.”
I will take a look at your link
Keep asking questions, keep seeking truth, the greatest man that ever lived said
“Keep on asking, and it will be given YOU; keep on seeking, and YOU will find; keep on knocking, and it will be opened to YOU. 8 For everyone asking receives, and everyone seeking finds, and to everyone knocking it will be opened. = Jesus' words at Matthew 7: 7&8
Almighty & Father of all creation. But my favorite definition of God was explained by the Apostle John at 1 John 4:8 that says "God is Love"
I have not read all your answers, I just scanned them, lol! But, I do think that you have a lot of good ones.
A person could become very philosophical in their approach but what we need to know is what he tells us in scripture. It does take some digging but that is what is mentioned as well (like hid treasure).
He (God) and we call him Jehovah (English) is so much that volumes of writings have been given on the subject. No doubt it has caused people to become agnostic or atheists because they see the false teachings in religion and equate that to God. They do not understand that there are answers in the scriptures for whatever you want to know.
The scriptures are "inspired" by God. If they were not, OR if you did not WANT to accept that fact, then we could go on and on, but it is like turning wheels that are spinning in place, preventing the vehicle to move forward. Isn't that true.
I will leave you with is and I hope your day is pleasant:
1 My son, if you will receive my sayings and treasure up my own commandments with yourself, 2 so as to pay attention to wisdom with your ear, that you may incline your heart to discernment; 3 if, moreover, you call out for understanding itself and you give forth your voice for discernment itself, 4 if you keep seeking for it as for silver, and as for hid treasures you keep searching for it, 5 in that case you will understand the fear of Jehovah, and you will find the very knowledge of God. 6 For Jehovah himself gives wisdom; out of his mouth there are knowledge and discernment. 7 And for the upright ones he will treasure up practical wisdom; for those walking in integrity he is a shield, 8 by observing the paths of judgment, and he will guard the very way of his loyal ones. 9 In that case you will understand righteousness and judgment and uprightness, the entire course of what is good. Proverbs 2:1-9
I am a Jehovah's Witness and since you asked "what I am mostly interested in this time is your own personal definition of God", I would be glad to give you for I think we all know the bible definition and can base our own definition of what it means to us personally.
God is a spirit that has a name, Jehovah. I cannot personally give him a definition of what he means to me without me including his name. It sets the relationship. Jehovah means "He causes to Become". This is very important to me because it means whatever I need, a fellow believer, a non believer or a situation that is happening, he will become whatever is needed to fulfill his purpose. If I need in Jehovah a Comforter so I can move forward with my service to him, he becomes a Refuge for me. If I need discipline so I can move forward with a clean conscience for my service to him, then he becomes like a perfect, loving Father. If I need guidance and direction to move forward in my service to him, then he becomes my Counselor and my Teacher. He becomes whatever is needed so I can fulfill my dedication and my obligation to serve him with a complete heart. Jehovah is God. He has a name. He has a personality as mentioned that encompasses the quality of love, justice, wisdom and power. None of these qualities comes forth without the other. He is perfect in all ways. His wisdom cannot be matched nor should it be challenged. We, as Jehovah's Witnesses, humbly accept his authority and we show this by our conduct that is layed out for us to adhere to in his word the bible.
If someone is to ask my definition of a father, it adds an impersonal definition. If someone asks me a definition of William (his name), then it sounds awkward because it makes him to be an object. You ask me how does William, your father mean to you. Ah, that is better. Same as your question about God. If you ask me my definition of God, he is portrayed as an object. If you ask me what does God mean to me, it is better for at least he is no longer an abstract object, but an existence that I can have an emotional tie to. Add a name, and now you get a wealth of information that includes all my emotions, thoughts and experiences that can take a book for me to tell you. That is why his name is of grand importance.