October 07, 2003
We had a short visit from a couple of Jehovah's Witnesses this morning. They spoke with us for a few minutes about whether God cares for us here on earth, the new heavens and the new earth, and how believers can know the truth about what the scriptures are teaching. They asked us a lot of questions but didn't really delve into any of the divergent teachings they hold from Christianity.
One thing that I hadn't heard before was their interpretation of Isaiah 65:17, that the "new heavens" is a "perfect heavenly kingdom, or government, that will rule over this earthly society of people." They proposed that this government would be what brought about the "peaceful new world" described in the tract they left with us.
I mentioned that I hadn't heard this interpretation before, and they asked what I had heard. I stumbled a bit but mentioned that different Christians have different theories about how to interpret prophecy, specifically Revelations. They then asked if I thought that God would give us some way to know the truth. Going further, they asked if God would be responsible for people having wrong beliefs if He didn't provide a way for us to know what true doctrine is. I assumed that this was going to be a launching point for them to say how the JW church or some prophet of theirs was that way. They actually decided to leave, sharing just one more scripture with us before leaving (John 4:23). They emphasized the word "truth" from the verse and mentioned that they would like to come back at another time and talk about how to know the truth.
I know about some of the larger errors of JW beliefs -- denying the full diety of Christ, denying the Trinity, etc., but I don't feel confident enough to really engage them and try to show them what the scriptures teach about these issues. I do feel like they were very sincere in their beliefs, and to an extent, I feel like it would be a disservice to not try and show them areas where they are being falsely taught and show them the truth. On the other hand, they've probably heard all of the objections before, and may even be trained in how to respond to those most common. Presenting my views could do more harm than good if I do it poorly, so I'm really not sure what to do. Any suggestions?
Posted by JohnH at October 7, 2003 10:42 AM | TrackBackYou may have seen this before, but Walter Martin's Kingdom of the Cults is the standard for dealing with cults and has a 100 pg section dealing with JW's. I think he's unnecessarily harsh on JW's, but it is a good, indepth study of the major tenets and errors of JW, as well as good discussions of how to witness to them.
Posted by: maphet at October 7, 2003 12:46 PMSorry in advance for being long-winded.
I think that presenting your views will do more good than harm if you do it in humility and in the spirit of Christ. My husband began witnessing to me when I was starting to question Mormonism, about 6 years ago. I look back and I see that he was wrong about some things (things that we now agree on), but as long as you are not completely off base, I think you should give yourself more credit.
Also, I think that it is more helpful just to preach the gospel then to go through detailed expositions of the text and compare and contrast your religious views. If you speak of the Trinity with supporting Biblical texts, then it doesn't matter if you know a lot about the JWs...it just matters that you know your own faith.
Mormons aren't Mormon and JWs aren't JWs because they never question their faith... it's just that their community is very comfortable to them. I once heard from an ex-JW, that she left her church after meeting with an older Christian woman for several weeks in a row. The woman never argued with her, but just invited her in and shared her love of Christ.
Posted by: kate at October 7, 2003 04:53 PMI suggested two books for you a couple of weeks ago and the one by Paul Little is one i seriously think you should get now. Don't get old print. Find the new print of Paul Littles tachings where his wife has updated his teachings to reflect more of what is going on in society today. There is some mentions of other faiths like the JW's in his book , but more importantly it teaches you what you need to know about your own faith. I found the book to be very enlightening and continue to look at it more and more as i am flawed and need guidance. I think the best thing you can do is allow the JW's to visit you again and show your own compassion for them rather than find ways to counter their contridictions. You know the bases behind their belief. They are the watchtower society or something like that. I grew up right beside a JW church and we have were visited many times in the past. Whatever it is my dad said to them must have stuck though because they never returned after those first few times. It's the one challenge my dad would never back down from because i consider him so well versed and understanding of the bibles prophecies.He would not be sidestepped into believing something that wasn't true. As i read Paul Little's book "Know why you believe" I came to understand that the most important TRUTH is knowing that God did come to us in human form through his son Jesus Christ. The real truth is believing the miracle of Jesus. His birth, death and resurrection are all we need to assure us that he came to save us from our sins. Jesus shows through his resurrection that his power is enough to offer us eternal life and His suffering demonstrates the extent of his love for us. Without a doubt I cannot refute the evidence of my lord and savior Jesus Christ. Unfortunately the watchtower society doesn't believe in the trinity. They are eternally damned i think. I am not judging them. Only the word can do this.
Have a good day.
Yeah. I agree with Kate.
Remember that the Holy Spirit lives in you and quickens your thoughts. The Word of God dwells in you and is living and active. He will speak what needs to be spoken and sanctify your words so that they communicate what needs to be communicated to them at this time. Trust in his ways!
Be possessed with the desire for their salvation, not with any shred of a desire to prove them wrong.
The bottom line of what we believe is not this doctrine or that doctrine, or a statement on page q of Boice's blue doctrine book, but the firm hope that while we waste away day by day, inwardly we are being renewed. And that one day we will look upon the bleeding hands and feet of our savior...not because we are good enough, but because he first loved us and he is faithful where we are faithless.
Posted by: Krista at October 11, 2003 05:16 PM