Putting faith in a God whom we have never seen is not always an easy thing to do. It becomes all the more problematic when our faith in God becomes dependent upon others. As in the case of the Watchtower, if those whom we have trusted to tell us the truth about God violate our trust in some way, then we are subject to what the Bible calls "stumbling." Regrettably the Watchtower has done exactly that. They have stumbled untold thousands, perhaps millions of persons, just like yourself. Our challenge is to muster the faith sufficient to surmount all stumbling blocks.

What is the solution? How can we safeguard our fragile faith from being shattered by disillusionment? For that matter, how can we have faith in God in the first place? How can we be sure that God himself is trustworthy? First the question how can we believe that a paradise of God's making is not too good to be true?

Faith is such that it is an act of will. We have to want to believe God. So, our own motives and intentions are the basis for our faith. Paul said that what may be known about God is evident from Creation onward, but faithless men seek to suppress the very knowledge of God. Romans 1:18-21 words it this way: "For God's wrath is being revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who are suppressing the truth in an unrighteous way, because what may be known about God is manifest among them, for God made it manifest to them. For his invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world's creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made, even his eternal power and Godship, so that they are inexcusable; because, although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God nor did they thank him, but they became empty-headed in their reasonings and their unintelligent heart became darkened."

If what may be known about God's invisible qualities is manifest to all creation, why doesn't everyone openly acknowledge the truth? For example, although there is not a shred of evidence that the universe and the complex web of life on earth created itself through millions of accidents of blind evolution; why do supposedly learned people unthinkingly accept evolution as an established fact? Obviously, there is more at work than meets the eye. As Paul states, there is a determined effort by ungodly men to suppress the truth about God.

We must therefore recognize that our own minds and hearts are subject to becoming darkened by the truth-bending powers of evil. We have to face the fact that most people do not want to really know or submit to God. The question is: Do we? Do we want to believe God?

In the verse quoted above, Paul said that what may be known about God is manifest, or evident—even obvious. Like what?

Take for example the seasonal change we are experiencing in the northern hemisphere presently, as winter gives way to spring. What can that tell us about God? For one thing, we can perceive that the earth has great regenerative powers of life built into it. The drab, seemingly lifeless landscape of winter is awakening. The snow has given way to gentle rains. Insects are suddenly awakening from a lifeless state. Trees that appeared dead a few weeks ago are now stirring to life. The first flowers are arising from the thawing earth. Birds are singing again. Life is being renewed!

This annual cycle of life ought to remind us that Jehovah is the Giver of life. It should serve to renew our hope that God can fulfill his promise of life— just as he renews the earth every year.

The world we live in during this present age might be likened to the winter season. Things appear bleak and lifeless. The world is cold and harsh. But, according to Jehovah's promise, just as surely as winter gives way to spring, this present world is going to pass away and a new world shall replace it. Is that so hard to believe? Do you believe in Spring?

Jehovah likens his Word to the rain that falls from the sky, which waters the plants, which then produce food for all creatures; after which the rain then evaporates to fall again. Isaiah 55:9-11 says: "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For just as the pouring rain descends, and the snow, from the heavens and does not return to that place, unless it actually saturates the earth and makes it produce and sprout, and seed is actually given to the sower and bread to the eater, so my word that goes forth from my mouth will prove to be. It will not return to me without results, but it will certainly do that in which I have delighted, and it will have certain success in that for which I have sent it."

If we can appreciate the wisdom and awesome power manifest in the natural water cycle, we should have a deeper appreciation for the reliability of God's Word. God has said that there will be a new world and just as surely as the spring rains make the grass grow—the earth will become a paradise.

You will not find a verse that says what you are looking for. However, there are many places where it is implied that Jesus and Michael the archangel are one and the same. That means that we have to use our reasoning ability to unravel Jehovah's sacred secrets and not expect everything to be simply spelled out.

It should be noted that Trinitarians have a very peculiar way of reasoning on the Scriptures. Although they may insist that Jesus cannot possibly be Michael the archangel because the Bible does not specifically say so, nonetheless, the Trinitarian insists that Jesus is God even though, amazingly, there is not so much as one verse in the Bible where Jesus ever claimed to be God—not even one!

Test it yourself. Ask a Trinitarian to show you one such verse. I can assure you that they will not be able to.

But, the reason we know that Jesus is Michael is because Michael, or an archangel, is ascribed doing all the things that are the sole prerogative of Jesus Christ. For example, Christ is going to perform the resurrection of the 144,000. But in 1st Thessalonians 4:16 Jesus is said to have the commanding voice of an archangel. It reads: "because the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a commanding call, with an archangel's voice and with God's trumpet, and those who are dead in union with Christ will rise first."

Elsewhere, in Revelation, Michael is depicted as leading all of God's angels in warfare against Satan and his demons. But, in the 19th chapter of Revelation Jesus Christ, the Word, is portrayed leading the angelic armies against the demonic forces arrayed against God at Armageddon.

Also, the book of Daniel contains a series of visions that all end the same way—with God's kingdom taking control. For instance, in the second chapter of Daniel we are told that God's kingdom crushes all opposing kingdoms of the world and it rules to time indefinite. In the 7th chapter we are given a more detailed vision, which depicts "someone like a son of man" being given authority over all the nations—a prophecy that Christ personally applied to himself.

In the 8th chapter we are given yet another vision of God's victorious kingdom. That prophecy ends with the Prince of princes destroying the king of fierce countenance. Finally, in the last chapter of Daniel the king of the north, which is obviously the same political entity as depicted in the other visions, comes all the way to his end when the great prince, Michael, stands up as ruler and destroys him.

According to the overlapping prophecies of Daniel it is obvious that the Son of man, the Prince of princes and Michael, the great prince, are the same person.

Those are interesting questions. Jesus certainly did set the example by getting baptized before he embarked on his ministry. Apparently the apostles were also baptized by John before Christ sent them out to preach.

The other side of the coin, though, is the irresponsible way that fundamentalist religions baptize anyone who happens to walk in off the street. But for baptism to have any value in the eyes of God, the person being baptized must have a basic knowledge of the truth. Otherwise baptism is a meaningless ritual. So, there has to be some balance. We don't want to baptize anyone who does not fully understand what they are doing and what is expected of them when they become Jehovah's Witnesses.

But, then, there is the rigidity of organizational policies—as you note.

Isaiah 28:9-10 apparently speaks from Jehovah's standpoint to the formulaic and infantile way the organization teaches God's commands; as if a memorized nursery rhyme. "Whom will one instruct in knowledge, and whom will one make understand what has been heard? Those who have been weaned from the milk, those moved away from the breasts? For it is "command upon command, command upon command, measuring line upon measuring line, measuring line upon measuring line, here a little, there a little."

Perhaps we have to accept the reality that imperfect people can never build anything but imperfect organizations. Try as we might to do the right thing, inevitably, it seems we always fall short.

The real world is full of contradictions. The sinful human nature of even the godliest Christian results in a near constant internal conflict between two antagonistic forces.  That's why Paul wrote at Romans 7:21: "I find, then, this law in my case: that when I wish to do what is right, what is bad is present with me. I really delight in the law of God according to the man I am within, but I behold in my members another law warring against the law of my mind and leading me captive to sin's law that is in my members. Miserable man that I am! Who will rescue me from the body undergoing this death? Thanks to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So, then, with my mind I myself am a slave to God's law, but with my flesh to sin's law."

The same contradictions are also reflected in the Scriptures. For instance, Jesus said his disciples were the light of the world and he told the apostles that they had been blessed to know the secrets of the kingdom. But, shortly after his resurrection Christ said to his apostles: "O senseless ones and slow in heart to believe on all the things the prophets spoke! Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into his glory?"

Jesus himself was long-suffering and typically very gentle, yet he overturned the tables of the money-changers and chased them and their livestock out of the temple with a whip.

Really, all throughout the Scriptures God professes his love for his people and yet he also frequently denounces them.

As one of Jehovah's Witnesses, I recognize that we teach the basic doctrinal truths of the Bible. On the other hand, though, we should also realize that the Watchtower has not coherently interpreted the prophecies.

So, we should not suppose everything is so cut-and-dried. Just as there are contradictions within us individually, there are also contradictions within our organization. For instance, we can be proud of the fact that Jehovah's Witnesses do not share the bloodguilt of Christendom by participating in warfare, but the very same brothers who might resolutely refuse to join the military may justify subtly cooperating with the United Nations.

Or, the same organization may write wonderful Bible story books for children and yet forbid the local elders from exposing known sexual predators who might be lurking in the congregations.

I hope that answers your question.

The problem is that the Watchtower has clung to the doctrine for so long that now it is stuck with 1914. At this point, even if some insightful brothers at Bethel wanted to scrap the whole thing, hardliner brothers would probably oppose it on the grounds that it would create a mass exodus from the organization. And they would probably be right. So, the brothers are forced to keep sewing patch upon patch in what has now become a crazy-quilt of patchwork prophetic interpretation.

Jehovah illustrates the Watchtower's dilemma in prophecy at Ezekiel 13:8-12; describing the present phenomenon to plastering layer upon layer of whitewash to an ill-conceived wall that is doomed to fall. "'Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said: "'For the reason that you men have spoken untruth and you have visioned a lie, therefore here I am against you,' is the utterance of the Sovereign Lord Jehovah." And my hand has come to be against the prophets that are visioning untruth and that are divining a lie. In the intimate group of my people they will not continue on, and in the register of the house of Israel they will not be written, and to the soil of Israel they will not come; and you people will have to know that I am the Sovereign Lord Jehovah, for the reason, yes, for the reason that they have led my people astray, saying, "There is peace!" when there is no peace, and there is one that is building a partition wall, but in vain there are those plastering it with whitewash.' Say to those plastering with whitewash that it will fall. A flooding downpour will certainly occur, and you, O hailstones, will fall, and a blast of windstorms itself will cause a splitting. And, look! the wall must fall. Will it not be said to you men, 'Where is the coating with which you did the plastering?'

Notice, please, the yellow highlighted phrase "in the intimate group of my people they will not continue on." Rather then the false visionaries coming to symbolize the clergy of Christendom, Jehovah's word plainly locates them in the "intimate group of my people." That being the case, the question then becomes: When does God remove them from the intimate group of his people? The answer is when Jehovah causes the whitewashed wall to crash.

In other words, Jehovah's day of judgment is going to arrive in a way that our leading visionaries have not envisioned and it will result in the plastered wall crashing down to the earth. Think about it: Virtually every detail of the Watchtower's prophetic interpretation is connected in some way to 1914.

We have been led to believe that Jesus began ruling the world then.

We believe that Satan was evicted from heaven in 1914 and has been on a rampage for his "short period of time" since then.

We believe that judgment upon the house of God began in 1918. And that the foretold refining has already been accomplished.

We believe that the faithful slave was appointed over all of the master's belonging then—giving the Watchtower virtual carte blanche.

We believe that the door to heaven was slammed shut back in 1935

And on and on it goes; with successive layer after layer of whitewash being plastered on the 1914 doctrinal wall.

However, what happens when Christ actually does arrive? What happens when Satan the Devil is actually thrown down from heaven? What happens when Christ actually initiates the judgment upon the House of God? What happens when Jehovah actually subjects his people to the fires of the smelter's furnace?

That's when the Watchtower's whitewash-plastered wall collapses with a thud.

In the meantime we can only pity those who are determined to add yet another coat of whitewash on a wall scheduled by Jehovah for demolition.