Greater or better? Is there a difference?
Jehovah's Witnesses essentially believe that there is no difference because they are taught that John chapter 14 verse 28 from the Bible proves that Jesus is inferior to His Father, when He said to His disciples, "My Father is greater than I."
The key to understanding this verse is the way in which the expression 'greater than I' is used. Is Jesus saying that His father is naturally better than He is? Not at all! There is a New Testament word that means better in nature or being that Jesus could have, should have, and would have used, if that were the truth about Himself that He wanted to convey to His closest of followers.
Hebrews 1:4 provides an example of this meaning. Referring to Jesus it reads,
'...having become so much better than the angels as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.'
However, in John 14:28 Jesus did not speak in these terms. The word He did use carries the connotation, greater in rank, not in nature.
Perhaps this may help. Earlier
in the same chapter Jesus uses this same expression in verse 12 saying that anyone who believes in Him will do the same and even greater works than He was doing. We all know that no could ever do better works than Jesus. Greater works is meant to say more
works, because Jesus explains that He very soon won't be on earth with them but with His Father. Works greater in number, not better. The Lord was comforting His disciples, not confusing them.
Here is an illustration: I am a father and I have a son. Utilizing these same words, my son might exclaim, "My father is greater than I," but in no sense would he be even suggesting that I am better than he is. We share the same human nature but not the same position in rank. That's the difference! This, then, is the typical, loving, respecting father/son relationship. Now, I realize that analogies are not perfect comparisons, but they can help our understanding. For example; the General is greater than the Captain; the teacher is greater than the student; and in keeping with this usage, the Father is greater than the Son... not better.
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Let's add, the keys to Death and Hades (Revelation 1:18) the key of David (Rev. 3:7) the key of knowledge (Luke 11:52) and the keys of the kingdom of heaven (Matt.16:19) only given to Simon/Peter.
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The Mormon Religion was officially founded by Joseph Smith Jr. on April 6. 1830 after the Book of Mormon (BOM) was published in that same year.
Joseph Smith Jr. was born in Vermont on December 23, 1805. He claimed that when he was 14, he received a vision from God the Father and Jesus Christ in a grove of trees near his home where he received instructions not to join any of the Christian churches because they were all wrong.
Three years later, Smith claimed that an angel named Moroni (a character found in the BOM) appeared to him in his bedroom whom he said revealed to him that he was selected to translate "Reformed Egyptian" (a language that does not exist) from gold plates into old English. These plates were supposedly hidden near Palmyra, New York and are said to be written around the 4th century. The BOM was named after Moroni’s father, Mormon. Mormons view the BOM as sacred. No one is able to study the original plates because Joseph Smith claimed the angel took them back on May 2, 1838 (History of the Church 1:60).
Smith had a scribe named Cowdery. Smith did not actually translate directly from any plates. Rather, in his writings, he said he placed a "seer stone" in a hat and covered any light from entering it as he placed his face in the hat. According to Martin Harris, “By aid of the seer stone, sentences would appear and were read by the Prophet . . . , and when finished he would say, ‘Written,’ and if correctly written, that sentence would disappear and another appear in its place, but if not written correctly it remained until corrected,” Smith said, “By the power of God I translated the Book of Mormon from hieroglyphics".
Despite such methods of translation, there have been at least 3,913 changes made in the BOM from the time it was first published. Joseph Smith stated, “I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.” Smith also claimed that John the Baptist appeared to him on May 15, 1829 while he was translating the BOM, and instructed him to restore the church by preaching the only true gospel.
Mormons regard the BOM as sacred writings, and view it in higher standing than that of the Holy Bible. Mormon Missionaries will ask you to pray that it is true. (See our page Pray to Know)