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It is the deep conviction of the reformation movement that the organizational superstructure that has been built up over the years within the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses is being promoted as something greater than it really is. While we appreciate the fine work of the brothers who have taken the lead and all the counsel they offer us in the form of literature, talks, and shepherding, and we trust that they will continue to do this, we are greatly disturbed that absolute power over the spiritual condition of many is invested in the hands of a few, and that the leadership of the organization claims to be God's sole channel of communication between himself and humanity, and that there is no salvation apart from and outside of this organization. The portrayal of the organization in Witness literature has led to idolatry of a very serious type. 

The foundation of this teaching is the assertion that Jehovah’s Witnesses practice the one and only religion approved by God, and from this assumed first principle it is argued that God cannot reveal his truths except through the spiritual leadership of this one true religion. For a discussion of the first issue, that is, whether Jehovah's Witnesses are the only true religion, click here. But for now, let us assume that they are. Let us also assume that no other religious group on earth practices a religion acceptable to God, that Jehovah's Witnesses are the only ones who will be saved in the coming "great tribulation." We now must ask if the leadership of Jehovah's Witnesses can properly claim that they are the ones who speak for God. According to this doctrine, truth does not arise from within and among the ranks of the people of the one true religion, as it did in ancient Israel and the early Christian congregation, but only from a handful of men who have reached the top level of administration. They assert that Jehovah's Witnesses may only go to them for the answers to life's questions and for correct biblical understanding, and that their authority should not be questioned by the general membership.   

At the outset of this discussion, one (perhaps obvious) point should be made: The Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses may claim that it is the only vehicle through which people may gain an approved relationship with God and attain salvation if it can be established that Jesus uses an organized system of human leadership as a mediating entity between himself and humans, and that this system is a standing body of older men, who receive divine information directly from God and Christ and decide how humans are to behave and what they are to believe in a theological sense. Of course, we should expect any and all such proofs to come from the Bible, and since these are important points, we should expect the Bible to be very clear about them. If this is not the case, if the leadership of the organization sets itself up as a master over other people's faith, then it is violating Scripture, mistreating God's sheep and should be held accountable.

According to the heads of Jehovah's Witnesses, "Jesus Christ is not the Mediator between Jehovah God and all mankind. He is the Mediator between his heavenly Father, Jehovah God, and the nation of spiritual Israel, which is limited to only 144,000 members" (Worldwide Security Under the "Prince of Peace" [1986] p.11). Most of these 144,000 are believed to be in heaven. The remaining members of spiritual Israel as a group on earth at any given time, in turn, pass on "spiritual food" to the rest of humanity. They are the go-between. It is the responsibility of every person to submit to this group and serve God under its supervision.

The doctrine of the faithful and discreet slave is used by the leaders of Jehovah’s Witnesses to establish their authority over God's people. It is one of the essential teachings of the organization. 

The scripture at Matthew 24:45-47 talks about a faithful and discreet slave who, because of his good service, is appointed over all of Jesus’ belongings. The Watchtower has identified Jesus’ belongings as “all the spiritual things that belong to Him here on earth” (Wt 3/1/04 p. 12). The slave is identified as the spiritual nation of anointed Jehovah’s Witnesses, the remaining ones of the Israel of God (Wt 3/1/04, p. 10), which amounts to about 8,000 persons within a religion that now numbers over 6 million.

"[Jesus] entrusted "all his belongings" on earth (earthly interests of his Kingdom) to faithful anointed Christians. These ones Jesus called a "faithful and discreet slave." (Matthew 24:45-47) Their reward is someday to share heavenly rule with Christ as "priests" and "kings" in his kingdom. (Revelation 14:1, 4; 20:6) Today, a remnant of this ‘faithful slave’ is still alive on earth. Their duties include receiving and passing on to all of Jehovah’s earthly servants spiritual food at the proper time. They occupy a position similar to that of Paul and his co-laborers when that apostle said of the wonderful truths God gives to his people: 'It is to us God has revealed them through his spirit.' (1 Corinthians 2:9, 10)" (w82 6/1 p. 17)

The question is: How do they arrive at such an understanding from Matthew 24:45-47? The leaders of Jehovah's Witnesses argue that the scripture was fulfilled in the early 20th century, when Jesus came to inspect his spiritual household, that is, the spiritual descendants of the original "slave class" that he commissioned in the first century. At that time, he saw that only the anointed leaders of the Jehovah's Witnesses (or Bible Students, as they were called back then) were performing their duties as the Master Jesus wanted. This is how Jesus recognized them as his faithful slave. A recent discussion of the faithful and discreet slave in the Watchtower tells us:

“This group could be identified clearly because of the fine fruitage it was producing.” (Watchtower, 3/1/04, p. 11)

Although there is mention of the slave being "faithful," and this might suggest to some that the overall behavior of the slave was the criterion Jesus used to distinguish him from others, the scripture makes clear that the faithfulness and discretion are connected with the slave's dispensing of spiritual food. It would be a mistake to focus merely on the general behavior (fruitage) of the slave in order to identify it. We can identify the slave by the food it dispenses. It would also be a mistake to assume that the mere dispensing of food, any food, is the distinguishing mark of the slave, or that the quantity of the food is of importance here. The emphasis here is on quality and timeliness. 

Well, then, the leaders of the Witnesses would no doubt argue that only Jehovah’s anointed Witnesses were dispensing quality (i.e., true) spiritual food at that time (through the literature put out by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, which, by the way, was controlled by one person with absolute authority). The rest of the Christian religions were not doing this. And how do we know that the Watchtower leaders were the only ones dispensing true spiritual food at the time? Well, the present Witness leadership will give you an (edited) outline of what the right spiritual food was and then show you how they provided it. But the reasoning is somewhat circular. They identify the spiritual food simply by describing what they themselves preached. 

Ironically, if we really looked at what the Watchtower writers were preaching back then, we would be surprised at how many untrue messages they were actually delivering. These messages were not, as some might say, minor details or side points in the overall message of the Watchtower Society. These untrue assertions were central to the Watchtower message. They were what made the Bible Students different, unique. There were other religions that talked about God's kingdom coming to earth and that didn't accept the Trinity and hellfire doctrines that were taught by other Christian faiths. The "good news" preached by the Bible Students that made them truly distinct from other religions was as follows:

1. That the "last days" or "time of the end" began in 1799.

2. That in 1874 Jesus Christ's invisible presence on earth began.

3. That Babylon the Great ("false religion") fell in 1878 and would be destroyed in 1914.

3. That Christ would destroy all human governments and bring his kingdom to earth in 1914. 

In 1917, this message was slightly revised. Babylon would fall in 1918 and Christ would destroy all human governments and bring his kingdom in 1920. Most of what they were saying was not true and is no longer accepted as truth by Jehovah's Witnesses. But the present leadership deliberately downplays this fact and tries to pick out what they did get right (for example, that 1914 was "a marked year"). Ironically, they say that the other religions of this time could not have been the faithful slave because they were preaching things that weren't true.

No matter how one looks at it, there is a fatal inconsistency here. Either truth distinguished false religion from true religion at this time, or it did not. If it did, then the Bible Students fare no better (perhaps worse) than other religious groups. If it did not, then the organization can make no claim on the "faithful and discreet slave" title.

Jesus actually identifies the sort of food a faithful slave would provide. He told his disciples, “Work not for the food that perishes, but for the food that remains for life everlasting, which the Son of man will give you” (John 6:27). The food is something that Jesus gave to his disciples. No doubt he is referring to what he taught during his earthly ministry. So the faithful and discreet slave would be responsible for passing down the teachings of Jesus. It therefore would be wrong to identify this food as something beyond what Jesus said. For clarification, his disciples asked, “What shall we do to work the works of God?” (6:28). And here was Jesus’ answer: “This is the work of God, that you exercise faith in him whom that One sent forth” (John 6:19). This is, of course, the responsibility of any true slave of God—to exercise faith in Jesus. It is interesting what Jesus does NOT include in this statement. There’s nothing here about proclaiming dates for his arrival (a common Witness assumption about what constitutes food at the proper time). In fact, he later told them, “It does not belong to you to get knowledge of the times or seasons which the Father has placed in his jurisdiction” (Acts 1:7). Surely food that includes predictions that don't come true may be classified as "food that perishes." In fact, ANY teaching that doesn't last is food that perishes. It is only the food that REMAINS that is the proper food. So if a slave of God serves up perishable food at the table, he is neither faithful nor discreet. 

Have you ever read the Watchtower literature from this early period? Do you know why it is not available for use on the Watchtower CD-Rom? Do you know why it is quoted rarely and only selectively in our current literature? It is because most of it is not in conformity with the present teachings of the organization. In other words, the information it provided was in error. The food it dispensed has perished. Indeed, if you accepted the information it contains as truth, you would be considered an apostate by the organization.

What’s interesting about the faithful and discreet slave doctrine is that the Witness leadership uses Matthew 24:45-47 as a basis for authority over God’s people much the same way as the Catholic Church uses Matthew 16:18. It is a perfect example of taking a scripture out of context. The crucial passage appears right after a prophecy about Jesus’ coming at the end of the system to judge the people of earth (24:29-44). When Jesus talks suddenly about the faithful slave, he gives no indication that he is “backing up” in prophetic time to talk about something that happens earlier.

There are strong indications that the prophecy at Matt. 24:45-51 belongs with the prophecy that comes immediately before it. The parallel version in Luke 12:42-48 confirms this. Here Jesus speaks of the faithful steward in answer to a question Peter asks about something Jesus has just said in connection with his coming at the final judgment (12:35-40). Look very closely at Luke 12:39-40, and then at Matthew 24:43-44. They are the same. Jesus’ words about the faithful steward come next, and the Luke version shows beyond doubt (through Peter’s question) that the appointment of the slave over Christ’s belongings comes when Luke 12:39-40 are fulfilled, that is, when the Son of Man comes at the end of the system.

There is no room for interpretation when it comes to the timing of this event. The Bible speaks for itself. The slave is rewarded when Jesus comes at "the great tribulation."

A recent Watchtower article argues against this interpretation, saying, "It would not be reasonable to say, for example, that the rewarding of the faithful slave...will take place when Jesus 'comes' at the great tribulation. That would imply that many of the anointed will be found unfaithful at that time and will thus have to be replaced. However, Revelation 7:3 indicates that all of Christ's anointed slaves will have been permanently 'sealed' by that time" (Wt 3/1/04, p. 16). In other words, it is clear from Matt. 24:45-51 and Luke 12:42-48 that, when the faithful slave is appointed, there are also some slaves who prove unfaithful and are punished. Therefore, the final sealing of the anointed could not take place until after the unfaithful slaves are disciplined and the faithful slave is rewarded, and since the sealing takes place during the great tribulation, the rewarding of the faithful and discreet slave must take place before the great tribulation. 

The account in Revelation does indeed say that the "winds" of destruction are held back until the sealing of the anointed is complete. However, the release of the winds is clearly the climax of the tribulation and end of it. So the sealing of the anointed does not have to take place until then, and Matthew 24:31 suggests that this is, in fact, the case (note that the tribulation has already started in v. 21). Since the sealing does not occur until the end of the tribulation, it is possible that that some of the anointed will be found unfaithful in an earlier stage of the great tribulation. Matthew 24:23-28 say there will be "false Christs" during the tribulation, who would mislead, if possible, "even the chosen ones," i.e., the anointed. The fact that the Bible speaks of the anointed possibly being misled during the tribulation clearly shows that they could not have been sealed yet. A sealing would guarantee their being saved, and so no warning would be necessary, and it would be impossible for them to be misled. Therefore, the judgment of the slaves would have to take place during the great tribulation, rather than before it. 

The Watchtower quoted above also argues that if God found some anointed ones unfaithful during the great tribulation, he would have no one to replace them. Yet we know that, according to the Watchtower's own interpretation of Scripture, an innumerable great crowd will also be there, a host of people who have proved themselves faithful too. Any of these could easily fit the shoes of any anointed ones who have not remained faithful until the very end. 

It is not our intention here to show that our knowledge of Scripture is better than anyone else's, but only to demonstrate that Scriptures are being twisted by others in order to give them the right to have control over people. We should not try to make the Scriptures fit a preconceived idea. If they say that judgment does not take place until the end, then we should believe it. Now what does this mean in the case of the faithful slave? It means that Jesus has not yet appointed anyone over all of his belongings. He’ll do that after the judgment during the tribulation. Even if, indeed, there is a religious hierarchy that should be identified as the faithful slave right now, no one has jurisdiction over all of Christ’s belongings yet. To even claim such authority is presumptuous to the extreme.

There are even greater repercussions of this doctrine. Members of Jehovah’s Witnesses are told that, because the anointed ones of their organization are the faithful and discreet slave, God and Jesus work only through that organization and none other. Therefore, no spiritual information coming from another source is valid, and no member of Jehovah’s Witnesses is permitted to get their spiritual food from any source other than the “slave.”

“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.” (Watchtower; Oct. 1, 1994; p. 8).

“We all need help to understand the Bible, and we cannot find the scriptural guidance we need outside the ‘faithful and discreet slave’ organization.” (Watchtower, February 15, 1981, p.19).

“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. For this reason the Bible cannot be properly understood without Jehovah's visible organization in mind.” (Watchtower Oct. 1, 1967, p. 587).

"Jehovah God caused the Bible to be written in such a way that one needs to come in touch with His human channel before one can fully and accurately understand it. True, we need the help of God's holy spirit, but its help also comes to us primarily by association with the channel Jehovah God sees fit to use." (Watchtower 2/15/81 p.17).

“Unless we are in touch with this channel of communication that God is using, we will not progress along the road to life, no matter how much Bible reading we do." (Watchtower; December 1, 1981, p. 27)

These are significant statements, and they presume a lot. What basis do they have for saying these things? Are they using or misusing the Bible? 

An interesting fact is that, although the entire "faithful and discreet slave" is said to be responsible for "receiving and passing on" spiritual food to God's servants, nothing of the sort actually happens. The Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses has designated itself as the representative of the "slave" and claims to speak on its behalf. They claim that "in the first century, a group of anointed Christians from among the faithful and discreet slave class were chosen as its representatives" (Organized to Do Jehovah's Will [2005] p. 17). We know of no scripture or historical record that says such a thing. When? By whom? Furthermore, although the Governing Body claims to be the "slave's" spokesperson, it does not, and has never, consulted with the rest of the "slave" (the 8,000 or so anointed ones) to get clarification or understanding about spiritual matters, nor did it consult with the "slave" when it appointed itself as its spokesperson. The "slave" itself  is merely a figurehead with no voice of authority. The Governing Body is its voice through a sort of spiritual ventriloquism. Indeed, individual anointed ones are expected to comply with the rules that the leadership lays out just as much as any other member of Jehovah's Witnesses. In effect, therefore, the entire religion is under the authority of a select few men, who appoint their own members and who operate as the only channel through which God and Jesus communicate with their people. 

The Bible says that there is “one mediator between God and men, a man, Christ Jesus” (1 Tim. 2:5). A mediator is somebody who acts as an ambassador, a channel of communication between two parties. By claiming to be such a channel, the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses is usurping some of Christ’s role. They are careful not to call themselves a mediator and hide behind the designation "faithful and discreet slave," but their job description is the same as that of a mediator. Instead of the spiritual direction going from God to Jesus to humans, they are claiming it goes from God to Jesus to "the faithful and discreet slave" (represented by the Governing Body) to humans.

"We should follow the instructions that the Head of the Christian congregation, Jesus Christ, gives through "the faithful and discreet slave," the appointed channel of God’s organization here on earth." (w90 10/1 p. 30)

"How vital it is for everyone in God’s family to submit loyally to the teachings and arrangements of the Great Theocrat, Jehovah, and his King-Son, Christ Jesus, as transmitted through the ‘faithful slave’ on earth! Since theocratic order begins with Jehovah himself and extends downward, never would we want to imitate Satan the Devil by becoming independent of theocratic rule." (w82 6/1 p. 17)

"Make haste to identify the visible theocratic organization of God that represents his king, Jesus Christ. It is essential for life. Doing so, be complete in accepting its every aspect. We cannot claim to love God, yet deny his Word and channel of communication." (w67 10/1 pp. 591-92)

“Obeying Jehovah’s voice means obeying Jesus’ voice, for Jehovah himself told us to do so. (Matthew 17:5) What does Jesus, the Fine Shepherd, tell us to do? He teaches us to make disciples and to trust ‘the faithful and discreet slave.’ (Matthew 24:45; 28:18-20) Obeying his voice means our eternal life.” (w04 9/1, pp. 17-18)

"By submitting to the slave class, God’s people also show their subjection to the Master, Jesus Christ." (w02 10/1 p. 19)

"This governing body is the administrative part of a 'faithful and discreet slave' or 'steward' class concerning which Jesus promised: 'His master . . . will appoint him over all his belongings.' (Matt. 24:45-47; Luke 12:42-44) So, recognition of that governing body and its place in God’s theocratic arrangement of things is necessary for submission to the headship of God’s Son." (w72 12/15 p. 755)

"The visible governing body of Jehovah’s organization has also been given authority by Him to direct the work of His worshipers on earth at this time. (Matt. 24:45-47) The congregation and its overseers show their proper view of authority by accepting willingly its counsel provided through the printed page, letters or its traveling representatives." (w72 5/1 p. 272)

Now, Jesus told us to do many things, but where does he say that we are to submit to the faithful and discreet slave? Granted, the faithful slave is portrayed by Jesus as a ‘good guy,’ but Jesus speaks about the slave as if his listeners personally have a chance to be the slave. Yet the Watchtower is making it sound as if Jesus commanded us to obey the faithful and discreet slave. Is there any such command in Matthew 24:45 or anywhere else? How can obedience come into play when there’s no command? Moreover, the Governing Body is equating obedience to the faithful and discreet slave with obedience to the Governing Body, which chose itself as the faithful slave's representative, rather than the other way around. How might God and Jesus feel about the Governing Body wanting to place itself in an intermediary position between Jesus and humans?

Of course, you could say that, all throughout history, God used human prophets as channels of communication. And they weren’t usurping Jesus’ position as mediator. And that’s true. But the difference here is that the organization insists that, in order to reach God, one must approach God through them. A person cannot reach God by going around the faithful and discreet slave. A person can’t get eternal life without connecting with God through the faithful and discreet slave. There’s a big difference between that and what the prophets did. The prophets simply gave messages. Somebody like Isaiah or Jeremiah never said that people were to approach God only through them and no one else. One didn’t have to be in the “prophets association” to be accepted by God. Indeed, if someone was on the ball, he could simply obey the Law, and the criticisms of the prophets wouldn’t even apply to him (because most of their messages were addressed to those breaking the Law). God used the prophets and the early Christian apostles to get his message out. Jesus is the only one who said, and who had the right to say, "No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). By proclaiming God's messages, the prophets and the apostles functioned as God's spokespersons. But God didn’t always use the same spokespersons, even at one time. And, like the various prophets, priests, judges, and kings of old time, the various early Christians had moments of inspiration. God picked somebody to communicate a message through. Then he picked somebody else, then somebody else. A bit here, a bit there. And inspiration didn't need the approval of a governing body. As Paul says, “When God, who separated me from my mother's womb and called me through his undeserved kindness, thought good to reveal his Son in connection with me, that I might declare the good news about him to the nations, I did not go at once into conference with flesh and blood. Neither did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles previous to me” (Gal 1:15-17). Compare also Luke 9:49-50. Since their understanding was imperfect, the early Christians didn’t always agree on everything, even Peter, Paul, James, etc., nor did they always hammer out all the doctrinal details in a group setting. However, they did agree to work together, which is the important thing. Have you ever noticed that none of the letters that made it into the canon of the Christian Greek Scriptures comes from the so-called Governing Body? They're all from individuals! And how many of those individuals were on the Governing Body? The Bible doesn't say. In fact, the Bible never speaks of a standing governing body. What does that say to us? God has channels, yes. But not one. When Israel was God's favored nation, he used various channels within it, and now when it's the whole world, he uses various channels too.

In contrast to this, because of the faithful slave doctrine, Witnesses are taught that the things other Christian religions do and teach do not come from God, and that these religious groups get their power, not from God, but from the Devil.

“The churches of Christendom claim to be children of God, but they cannot be, for they grossly disobey God’s commandments on love and ‘slaughter their brother.’ They can only be children of ‘the wicked one.’” (Watchtower, May 1, 1989, p. 28)

“It is evident that the antichrist, the apostate man of lawlessness, “the mystery of this lawlessness,” is Satan’s masterpiece in the form of an organization. It is an imitation of organized Christianity and so an opposer of it. As a replacement of true organized Christianity, it finds its expression in present-day Christendom, this name meaning the realm of Christianity. That is certainly a deceptive name, for Christendom is really the most powerful part of Babylon the Great, the world empire of false religion, under the emperorship of Satan the Devil.” (Watchtower, May 1, 1981, p. 14)

“Outside the true Christian congregation what alternative organization is there? Only Satan's organization.” (Watchtower, March 1, 1979, p. 24).

“People who are members of false religions may sincerely believe that they are worshiping the true God. But they are really serving Satan. He is ‘the god of this world.’—2 Corinthians 4:4.” (rq lesson 4, p. 8)

This position leads to a violation of one of Jesus’ teachings, which has very serious consequences. When Jesus was on the earth and performing miracles, the religious leaders of his day attributed his actions to the Devil (Mark 3:20-22). Here is one of the things Jesus said about it: “Truly I say to you that all things will be forgiven the sons of men, no matter what sins and blasphemies they blasphemously commit. However, whoever blasphemes against the holy spirit has no forgiveness forever, but is guilty of everlasting sin” (Mark 3:28-29). Here Jesus implied that the sin of the scribes (to attribute Jesus’ works to Satan) was an unforgivable sin. We know this for sure, because Mark says: “This, because they were saying: ‘He has an unclean spirit’” (Mark 3:30). Now, in reference to today, if Jesus has not yet picked a “slave” to appoint over all his belongings, then it is entirely possible that others might be doing his work, that others might have God’s spirit, and that others might have some truth. If we attribute their good works to Satan, are we committing the unforgivable sin?   

For these reasons, the Jehovah's Witnesses Reformation Movement is calling for a change in the way the leadership operates and presents itself to its people. Instead of maintaining a humble stance before Jehovah, it exalts itself to the level of on idol. It sees itself as a visible representation of God himself, as is seen in comments it makes: 

"Would not a failure to respond to direction from God through his organization really indicate a rejection of divine rulership?" (w76 2/15)

"The slave’s will is Jehovah’s will. Rebellion against the slave is rebellion against God." (w56 6/1 p. 346)

"As Ezekiel did not raise up or appoint himself as a prophet, so God’s visible organization did not create or appoint itself. It did not spring from human will or effort. The divine Chariot Rider caused this organization to come into existence. Empowered by God’s spirit and backed by holy angels..." (w91 3/15 p. 14)

It is time for the "organization" to come back down to earth and serve alongside Jehovah's Witnesses as a brother, instead of above it as a parent.

See further, the articles, "We Have Concluded a Covenant with Death,"  "My Own Idol Has Done Them,"  "The Idolatry of 'Jehovah's Visible Organization" and "Hosea: A Timely Message for Jehovah's Witnesses" on the e-watchman site.