The doctrine that divides Christians into classes (anointed class and nonanointed class) actually originated with Gnosticism. The Bible describes ALL Christians as anointed ones who need only the Holy Spirit to teach and guide them (2 Corinthians 1:21, 22; 1 John 2:20, 27). The sect of Jehovah's Witnesses divides Christians into the 144,000 anointed ones that are bound for heaven and the Great Crowd (Jonadabs) that are not anointed but have the hope of living forever on a Paradise Earth. Members of the Great Crowd are dependent on the anointed ones, particularly the Governing Body, for their "spiritual food." The two-class system of Jehovah's Witnesses is a Gnostic doctrine that is 100% antithetical to the clear teaching of scripture. An ancient Gnostic philosopher named Valentinus invented the idea of Christians being divided into anointed and nonanointed classes.
As far as the heavenly hope is concerned, the apostle Paul said Christians have only "one hope" instead of two (Ephesians 4:4). Jesus said whoever does the will of the Father is one of His brothers (Matthew 12:50), and Hebrews 3:1 says that all the holy brothers are partakers of the heavenly calling. Anyone who does the will of God the Father is a brother/sister of Jesus and is therefore a partaker of the heavenly calling. Jesus is the firstborn among many brothers (Romans 8:29).
Jehovah's Witnesses are not the only ones who divide Christians into classes. A large number of neo-Gnostic cults were born during the Nineteenth Century; among them were the Mormons, Millerites, Christian Scientists, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists and Christadelphians and many others. About half of all these neo-Gnostic cults have either currently or in the past taught doctrines that divide Christians into superior and inferior classes.
The churches of the Word of Faith Movement and the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) also divide Christians into anointed and nonanointed classes. For example, these churches say that apostles, prophets and prominent pastors have a special anointing from God's Holy Spirit while all other members of their church have either a lesser anointing, or no anointing at all, and are therefore dependent on the anointed church leaders for full spiritual enlightenment. Some of their other doctrines are Gnostic philosophies as well. Even the Roman Catholic Church has divided Christians into classes at different points in its history, with the Pope acting as a secondary mediator with Jesus Christ, followed by the cardinals and bishops, and finally the laity of the church that depend on their superiors.
The Christian apologist Justin Peters said, "If you are here today, and you know Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, you’ve been born again, guess what? You're anointed, and you have the same anointing as does every other Christian. There are no super-Christians with a super-special anointing that the rest of us common schmucks just don’t have. If you’re in Christ, you’re anointed, and you have the same anointing as does every other believer. There are no super-Christians. That’s…that’s a Gnostic idea, the division of Christians into classes, that’s Gnosticism, it’s not biblical." (Peters, 2013, paragraph #15).
This Gnostic practice of dividing Christians into classes has been used by prominent religious leaders (within organized religion) to keep vast numbers of gullible followers dependent on them for spoonfed truth, or for some type of "esoteric knowledge" that presumably can't be found anywhere else. Today's neo-Gnostic cults have exploited this practice to the max, much to the disadvantage of their followers.
Here is a webpage that discusses the two-class system of the Valentianian Gnostics. You will find it under the subheading "The Called and the Elect." As you read it, you will notice how strikingly similar it is to that of today's Watchtower Society of Jehovah's Witnesses:
Brons, David. (2011). Christ and the Church - Valentinus and the Valentinian Tradition. Retrieved on July 29, 2016 from: http://gnosis.org/library/valentinus/Christ_and_Church.htm
Peters, Justin. (2013). The Devilish Puppet Master of the Word-Faith Movement. Retrieved on July 29, 2016 from the Grace To You website: https://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/TM13-10/the-devilish-puppet-master-of-the-wordfaith-movement
Slide borrowed from André Fernandez (2013) at Slideshare.net
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