I. The Channel
A. The Watchtower claim to be the channel of God.
(1) "The Watchtower is the channel which Jehovah, our God, is using at this time to in the faithful remnant who are keeping the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ." (The Watchtower - Aug. 1, 1930)
(2) "We acknowledge as the visible organization of Jehovah on earth the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society, and recognize the Society as the Channel or instrument through which Jehovah and Christ Jesus give instruction and meat in due season to the household of faith." (The Watchtower - April 15, 1939)
(3) "It should be expected that the Lord would have a means of communication to his people on the earth, and he has clearly shown that the magazine called The Watchtower is used for that purpose." (1939 Yearbook of Jehovah's Witnesses)
(4) "No matter where we may live on earth, God's Word continues to serve as a light to our path and a lamp to our roadway as to our conduct and beliefs. (Ps. 119:105) But Jehovah God has also provided his visible organization, his "faithful and discreet slave," made up of spirit anointed ones, to help Christians in all nations to understand and apply properly the Bible in their lives. 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." (The Watchtower - Dec. 12, 1981)
(5) "God's Appointed Channel: Bear in mind that our heavenly Father has an appointed channel of communication, 'the faithful and discreet slave.' That 'slave; has the responsibility to determine what information is made available to the household of faith, as well as 'the proper time' for it to be dispensed. This spiritual food is available only through the theocratic organization. We should always look to God's appointed channel for reliable information, not to a network of Internet users." (Our Kingdom Ministry - Sept. 2002, p. 8)
B. The Watchtower has claimed that it is a prophet of God.
(1) "As Jehovah revealed his truths by means of the first-century Christian congregation so he does today by means of the present-day Christian congregation. Through this agency he is having carried out prophesying on an intensified and unparalleled scale. All this activity is not an accident. Jehovah is the one behind all of it." (The Watchtower - June 15, 1964)
(2) "However, Jehovah did not let the people of Christendom, as led by the clergy, go without being warned that the League was a counterfeit substitute for the real kingdom of God. He had a "prophet" to warn them. This "prophet" was not one man, but was a body of men and women. It was the small group of footstep followers of Jesus Christ, known at that time as International Bible Students. Today they are known as Jehovah's Christian witnesses." (Watchtower - April 1, 1972)
(3) "In behalf of such individuals who at heart seek God's rule instead of man's rule, the 'prophet' whom Jehovah has raised up has been, not an individual man as in the case of Jeremiah, but a class. The members of this class are, like the prophet-priest Jeremiah, wholly dedicated to Jehovah God through Christ and, by the begettal of Jehovah's holy spirit, they have been made part of "a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for special possession." (The Watchtower - Oct. 1, 1982)
II. The Organization
A. The Watchtower claims that it is God himself that run their organization.
(1) "The Watchtower is not the instrument of an man or any set of men, nor is it published according to the whims of men. No man's opinion is expressed in the Watchtower. (The Watchtower - Nov. 1, 1931)
(2) "Who controls the organization, who directs it? Who is at the head? A man? A group of men? A clergy class? A pope? A hierarchy? A council? No, none of these. How is that possible? In any organization is it not necessary that there be a directing head or policy-making part that controls or guides the organization? Yes. Is the living God, Jehovah, the Director of the theocratic Christian organization? Yes!" (The Watchtower - Nov. 1, 1956)
(3) "New features of the work have required new methods, which has meant revisions and changes from time to time in organization instructions, but it is all a part of the advancement of Jehovah's theocratically controlled organization under the immediate direction of Jehovah God himself. Therefore, these revisions and changes are themselves fully theocratic, so they do not alter in any way the fully theocratic structure of the organization." (The Watchtower - June 1, 1965)
(4) "When our heavenly Father, Jehovah God, speaks, whether through his Word, the Bible, or through his earthly organization, it is all the more important for us to listen and obey, thus proving that we are obedient worshipers who do not ignore the loving reminder: "Did you hear me?" (The Watchtower - April 1. 1988)
B. They claim they are the only organization of God.
(1) "Only this organization functions for Jehovah's purpose and to his praise. To it alone God's Sacred Word, the Bible, is not a sealed book. (The Watchtower - July 1, 1973)
(2) "Consider too, the fact that Jehovah's organization alone in all the earth is directed by God's holy spirit or active force." (The Watchtower - July 1, 1973)
(3) "First, since 'oneness' is to be observed, a mature Christian must be in unity and full harmony with fellow believers as far as faith and knowledge are concerned. He does not advocate or insist on personal opinions or harbor private ideas when it comes to Bible understanding. Rather, he has complete confidence in the truth as it is revealed by Jehovah God through his Son, Jesus Christ, and 'the faithful and discreet slave.' (The Watchtower - Aug. 1, 2001)
C. According to the Watchtower, God does not deal with individuals outside of his organization.
"From a study of God's Word one appreciates that Jehovah does not dispense his dynamic energy through just any organization that chooses to label itself religious. Neither does God deal with individuals independently of his own wifely organization, the 'mother of all those dedicated to God. (Gal. 4:26) He has always had His channel of communication on earth through which his spirit operates." (The Watchtower - July 15, 1961)
D. They also say that every person must agree with the organizations.
"Jehovah poured out his spirit upon them and assigned them the responsibility of serving as his sole visible channel, through whom alone spiritual instruction was to come. Those who recognize Jehovah's visible theocratic organization, therefore, must recognize and accept this appointment of the 'faithful and discreet slave' and be submissive to it." (The Watchtower - Oct. 1, 1967)
III. The Watchtower and Jesus
A. The Watchtower claims that the organization is guided by Jesus himself.
(1) "Similarly today the power of appointment of all servants in congregations rightfully rests with the governing body of the 'faithful and discreet slave' class, which is under the direct supervision of Christ Jesus at the temple. (The Watchtower - June 1, 1955)
(2) "To hold to the headship of Christ, it is therefore necessary to obey the organization that he is personally directing. Doing what the organization says is to do what he says. Resisting the organization is to resist him. (The Watchtower - May 1, 1959)
B. The Watchtower has claimed that it is anointed (i.e. like Christ) and in some sense equal to him.
"This is the great mystery of God which has been hidden from all previous ages, and is still hidden from all except a special class--the saints, or consecrated believers. But what is meant by "Christ in you?" We have learned that Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38, and thus we recognize him to be the Christ--the anointed--for the word Christ signifies anointed. And the Apostle John says that the anointing which we (consecrated believers) have received abideth in us. (1 John 2:27) Thus the saints of this Gospel age are anointed company--anointed to be kings and priests unto God (2 Cor. 1:21; 1 Peter 2:9); and together with Jesus, their chief and Lord, they constitute Jehovah's Anointed--the Christ." (The Divine Plan of the Ages - 1906, pp. 81-82)
IV. The Watchtower and Angels
The Watchtower claims that their organization is direct by angels.
"The scroll was doubtless delivered to Ezekiel by the hand of one of the cherubs in the vision. This would indicate that Jehovah's witnesses today make their declaration of the good news of the Kingdom under angelic direction and support."(The Watchtower - April 1, 1972)
V. The Watchtower and The Bible
The Watchtower claims that reading the Bible alone is of no help. The Bible can only be understood by means of their organization.
(1) "But if each of us were left to himself just because he has a copy of the Bible and were to direct his movements independently as he thought he understood the Word, what? It is likely, or possible, that there would be a great deal of confusion or working in competition among us. Hence, besides individually possessing God's Word, we need a theocratic organization. Yes, besides having God's spirit of illumination, a Christian needs Jehovah's theocratic organization in order to understand the Bible." (The Watchtower - June 15, 1951)
(2) "The world is full of Bibles, which Book contains the commandments of God. Why, then, do the people not know which way to go? Because they do not also have the teaching or law of the mother, which is light. Jehovah God has provided his holy written Word for all mankind and it contains all the information that is needed for men in taking a course leading to life. But God has not arranged for that Word to speak independently or to shine forth life-giving truths by itself. His Word says: 'Light is sown for the righteous.' (Ps. 97:11) It is through his organization that God provides this light that the proverb says is the teaching or law of the mother. If we are to walk in the light of truth we must recognize not only Jehovah God as our Father but his organization as our mother." (The Watchtower - May 1, 1957)
(3) "We all need help to understand the Bible, and we cannot find the Scriptural guidance we need outside the ‘faithful and discreet slave' organization." (The Watchtower - Feb. 15, 1981)
(4) "We have the opportunity to show love for our brothers who take the lead in the congregation or in connection with Jehovah's visible organization worldwide. This includes being loyal to 'the faithful and discreet slave.' (Matthew 24:45-47) Let us face the fact that no matter how much Bible reading we have done, we would never have learned the truth on our own. (The Watchtower - Dec. 1, 1990)
(5) "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 - Sept. 1, 1994)
Any thought?