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Jehovah Witnesses

 
Studying With Jehovah’s Witnesses’
 
INTRODUCTION
 
1. It not uncommon for members of the Watchtower Society to come to your
 front door...
 a. Who refer to themselves as "Jehovah's Witnesses"
 b. A term I hesitate to use
as they've neither seen Jehovah nor do
 they speak for Him
 
2. Their zeal is commendable...
 a. They strongly believe in their faith
 b. They desire to share their faith with everyone
 -- Yet zeal alone will not save one - cf. Ro 10:1-3
 
3. Our heart's desire and prayer should be for their salvation...
 a. That they might know the truth concerning God's righteousness
 b. For which reason we ought to be glad for opportunities to study
 with them
 
4. Yet most opportunities to study with JWs are frustrating and
 unfruitful...
 a. Differences regarding basic Bible doctrines are many
 b. Discussions rarely make progress
and often become heated
 
[Why is this so? What can be done about? Is there anyway to lead a JW
to "the way of God more accurately" (cf. Ac 18:26)? I don't have all
the answers
but the following thoughts might be helpful...]
 
I. THE CHALLENGE IN STUDYING WITH JWs
 
 A. THEIR DOCTRINE IS DIFFERENT...
 1. Their views differ on many Biblical subjects
for example:
 a. The deity of Christ
the person of the Holy Spirit
 b. The nature of man
death
and hell
 c. The bodily resurrection of Christ
 d. The second coming of Christ
 2. Their diverse doctrines make it difficult to communicate
  a. We may use the same words
but they mean something different
 to a JW
 b. E.g.
salvation
spirit
soul
Son of God
 -- This makes it easy to wrangle over words
no matter what the
 topic
even the simple gospel plan of salvation!
 
 B. THEIR AUTHORITY IS DIFFERENT...
 1. They claim to follow the Bible
but...
 a. They accept only their translation (New World Translation)
 as reliable
which is slanted to support their peculiar
 doctrines
 b. They accept only those Biblical resources approved by their
 organization
 c. They do not consider the Bible alone as a sufficient guide
 to learn the truth
 2. So with any topic of discussion...
  a. They will accept only what is supported by their
 translation
their approved Bible study aids
 b. They will not accept any view
even Scripture
that counters
 the official belief of their organization
 -- This makes any effort to discuss the Bible and what it
 teaches to be fruitless and frustrating
 
[Unless we can agree on the same standard of authority
any effort to
study the Bible with JWs or anyone else will not be productive.
Understanding this will help us to realize what is...]
 
II. THE TASK IN STUDYING WITH JWs
 
 A. HELP THEM SEE THE STANDARD OF THEIR AUTHORITY...
 1. That their authority is the Executive Committee (EC) of the
 Watchtower Society
 a. That they believe only the EC is capable of properly
 interpreting the Bible
 b. That they must accept whatever interpretation is handed down
 by the EC
 2. In this regard
they are not much different from other
 religious groups who have a standard of authority different
 from just the Bible alone
 a. Roman Catholics accept the authority of the pope
and church
 traditions
 b. Mormons accept the authority of Joseph Smith
and succeeding
 presidents of their church
 c. Many Protestants accept the authority of their creeds

 catechisms
councils
synods
etc.
 -- Their standard of authority is what separates one religious
 group form another; the JWs are no different
and we must help
 them see that!
 
 B. HELP THEM SEE THE DEFICIENCY OF THEIR AUTHORITY...
 1. This is the same task required with anyone who accepts a
 standard of authority outside the Bible alone; for example:
 a. A Roman Catholic would have to see the fallibility of the
 pope and their traditions
 b. Mormons would have to see that Joseph Smith was a false
 prophet
 c. Protestants who claim to believe in sola scriptura (the
  Scriptures alone)
would need to be shown where their
 creeds
manuals
etc.
contradict the Bible
 2. With JWs
this involves demonstrating:
 a. That the Watchtower Society considers the EC to be God's
 inspired spokesman or prophet today
who alone is able to
 properly understand the Bible
 b. That the EC has made many prophetic statements based upon
 their interpretations which have not come to pass
 -- We must help them see that the EC therefore fails the test of a
 prophet or spokesman for God
and qualifies as a false prophet
 who is not to be heeded - cf. Deu 18:20-22
 
 C. HELP THEM SEE THE SUFFICIENCY OF THE SCRIPTURES ALONE...
 1. This is the same task with anyone who has been dependent upon
 some other source for authority in religion
 a. They must be convinced that the Bible can be understood by
 all alike
 b. While there are parts that are difficult
what is necessary
 for salvation is clear
 2. The problem is many people fall under the control of an
 authoritarian organization...
 a. Before they have read much of the Bible themselves
 b. Then told they cannot understand it on their own
 -- We must develop confidence in the Bible as a book that can be
 understood
and was written to be understood by the average
 person
 
[With these thoughts in mind
I offer the following...]
 
III. SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDYING WITH JWs
 
 A. REVIEW THEIR DEPENDENCE UPON THE EC FOR THEIR AUTHORITY...
 1. You might ask these questions:
 a. Do you believe that anyone
anywhere
who just had a Bible

 and no other literature
could understand it and be saved?
 b. Can the Bible be interpreted correctly only by the
 Watchtower?
 c. Are you allowed to read material by ex-Jehovah's Witnesses?
 2. Some other questions that might help:
 a. Do you believe the New World Translation is the only
 reliable translation? (note: they do accept the old American
 Standard)
 b. Are you willing to consider Bible resources other than those
 approved by the Watchtower Society?
 -- An honest JW will admit his or her dependence upon the EC for
 their authority
 
 B. REVIEW PROPHETIC CLAIMS OF THEIR AUTHORITY...
 1. They believe the Watchtower Society is God's prophet today
 a. "So
does Jehovah have a prophet to help them
to warn them
 of dangers and to declare them things to come? These
 questions can be answered in the affirmative." (They Shall
 Know That A Prophet Was Among Them
The Watchtower

 Brooklyn
NY
April 1
1972
p. 197)
 b. "He had a 'prophet' to warn them. This 'prophet' was not one
 man
but a body of men and women...Today they are known as
 Jehovah's Christian witnesses." (ibid.
p. 197)
 c. "...this group of anointed followers of Jesus Christ
doing
 a work in Christendom paralleling Ezekiel's work among the
 Jews
were manifestly the modern-day Ezekiel
the 'prophet'
 commissioned by Jehovah to declare the good news of God's
 Messianic kingdom and to give warning to Christendom."
 (ibid.
p. 198-199)
 d. "...Jehovah's witnesses today make their declaration of the
 good news of the Kingdom under angelic direction and support
 ...And since no word or work of Jehovah can fail
for he is
 God Almighty
the nations will see the fulfillment of what
 these witnesses say as directed from heaven." (ibid.
p.
 200)
 e. "Yes
the time must come shortly that the nations will have
 to know that really a 'prophet' of Jehovah was among them."
 (ibid.
p. 200)
 f. "...Jehovah is interested not only in the vindication of his
 own name
but also in vindicating his 'prophet'." (ibid.
p.
 200)
 2. They believe the Watchtower Magazine is how God communicates to
 people today
 a. "Its pages gleam with Scriptural and prophetic truths now
 due to be published for the education
comfort and guidance
 of all who desire to take their stand (and hold it) on the
 side of God and His Son
Earth's Rightful Ruler." (from an
 advertisement for The Watchtower).
 b. "Those who believe that God uses 'The Watchtower' as a means
 of communicating to his people
or of calling their
 attention to his prophecies
should study 'The Watchtower'
 with thankfulness of heart and give Jehovah God and Christ
 Jesus all the honor and credit and give neither honor or
 credit to any man." (The Watchtower
Brooklyn
NY
January
 1
1942
p. 5)
 3. An honest and informed JW believes the following:
 a. Their organization has been anointed and commissioned to be
  God's 'prophet'
 b. They are under angelic direction and support
directed from
 heaven
 c. God helps them to understand the Bible through The
 Watchtower magazine
 d. That God will vindicate them as His 'prophet'
 -- Just as Mormons look to Joseph Smith as a prophet
so JWs look
 to their organization as a prophet of God today. Do they pass
 the test of a prophet (cf. Deu 18:20-22)?
 
 C. REVIEW PROPHETIC FAILURES OF THEIR AUTHORITY...
 1. What was supposed to happen to churches in 1918?
 a. "Until 1878 the nominal church had been in a sense God's
 sanctuary or Temple; but He was from then on
culminating in
 1918
to remove it with a stroke or plague of erroneous
 doctrines and deeds Divinely permitted." (The Finished
 Mystery
Watchtower Bible And Tract Society
Brooklyn
NY

 1917
p. 484-485)
 b. "Also
in the year 1918
when God destroys the churches
 wholesale and the church members by millions
it shall be
 that any that escape shall come to the works of Pastor
 Russell to learn the meaning of the downfall of
 'Christianity'." (ibid.)
 2. Who was supposed to be resurrected in 1925?
 a. "That period of time 1575 before A.D. 1 of necessity would
 end in the fall of the year 1925
at which time the type
 ends and the great antitype must begin. What
then
should
 we expect to take place?" (Millions Now Living Will Never
 Die
Watchtower Bible And Tract Society
Brooklyn
NY
1920

 p. 88-91)
 b. "The chief thing to be restored is the human race to life;
 and since other Scriptures definitely fix the fact that
 there will be a resurrection of Abraham
Isaac
Jacob and
 other faithful ones of old
and that these will have the
 first favor
we may expect 1925 to witness the return of
 these faithful men of Israel from the condition of death

 being resurrected and fully restored to perfect humanity and
 made the visible
legal representatives of the new order of
 things on earth." (ibid.)
 c. "Therefore we may confidently expect that 1925 will remark
 the return of Abraham
Isaac
Jacob
and the faithful
 prophets of old
particularly those named by the Apostle in
 Hebrews chapter eleven
to the condition of human
 perfection." (ibid.)
 3. What was supposed to happen in 1975?
 a. "According to this trustworthy Bible chronology six thousand
 years from man's creation will end in 1975
and the seventh
 period of a thousand years of human history will begin in
 the fall of 1975 C.E." (Life Everlasting - In Freedom Of The
 Sons Of God
p. 29)
 b. "That millennium will bring a sabbathlike rest to the earth
 and all those then inhabiting it." (AWAKE
8 October 1968

 p. 14)
 c. "Are we to assume from this study that the battle of
 Armageddon will be all over by the autumn of 1975
and the
 long-looked-for thousand-year reign of Christ will begin by
 then? Possibly
but we wait to see how closely the seventh
 thousand-year period coincides with the sabbathlike
 thousand-year reign of Christ...It may involve only a
 difference of weeks or months
not years." (Why Are You
 Looking Forward To 1975?
The Watchtower
August 15
1968

 Brooklyn
NY
p. 499)
 d. "Reports are heard of brothers selling their homes and
 property and planning to finish out the rest of their days
 in this old system in the pioneer service. Certainly
 this is a fine way to spend the short time remaining before
 the wicked world's end." (Kingdom Ministry
May 1974
p. 3)
 4. How do JWs try to deflect criticism for such mistakes?
 a. By saying they admit their mistakes
while false prophets
 do not
 b. That early Christians in Acts made mistakes
yet were spoken
 of with approval
 c. By claiming that they have been given "new light" to guide
 them more accurately
 d. But no prophet of God made mistakes when it came to
 prophesying the future!
 e. JWs want the authority of a prophet without the
 accountability of a prophet!
 1) They want people to heed the words of the Society as
 authoritative and final
 2) They don't want people to to apply the test of a prophet
 to them
 -- At worst
the Watchtower Society is a false prophet; at best

 it is an unreliable interpreter of Scripture that has
 demonstrated its gross mishandling of the Word of God time and
 again!
 
 D. REVIEW THE ALL-SUFFICIENCY OF THE SCRIPTURES...
 1. The Scriptures were written to be understood
that one might:
 a. Know the certainty of what happened - Lk 1:1-4
 b. Believe in Jesus
and have life in His name - Jn 20:30-31
 c. Have an apostle's understanding of the "mystery of Christ"
 - Ep 3:3-5
 d. Understand the will of God - Ep 5:17
 e. Know they have eternal life - 1 Jn 5:13
 2. The Scriptures are an all-sufficient guide for our salvation
 a. The whole counsel of God has been preached - cf. Ac 20:27
  b. All things pertaining to life and godliness has been given
 - cf. 2 Pe 1:3
 c. The Word can save us
and help us grow - Ja 1:21; 1 Pe 2:2
 d. That incorruptible Word lives and abides forever - 1 Pe 1:
 22-25
  e. It has been revealed once for all - Ju 3
 f. Not even angels or modern apostles have anything new to add
 - Ga 1:8
9
 -- The Scriptures are able to make the man of God "complete

 thoroughly equipped for every good work" - 2 Ti 3:16-17
 
CONCLUSION
 
1. This lesson is not intended to present an exhaustive and complete
 response to the errors of the Watchtower Society; rather
it is has
 been my purpose to...
 a. Identify why efforts to study with them are often so frustrating
 b. Suggest where one needs to begin
if true progress is to be made
 
2. Once a JW is willing to accept the all-sufficiency of the Scriptures

 and not be dependent upon the Watchtower Society to tell them what to
 believe...
 a. Then it might be fruitful to study fundamental issues
 b. Such as the deity of Christ
the plan of salvation
etc.
 
Otherwise
we might easily find ourselves engaged in behavior contrary
to that admonished by the apostle Paul:
 
 "But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes
knowing that they
 generate strife. And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel
 but be gentle to all
able to teach
patient
in humility
 correcting those who are in opposition
if God perhaps will
 grant them repentance
so that they may know the truth
and
 that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the
 devil
having been taken captive by him to do his will."
 (2 Ti 2:23-26)
 
For an indepth study of the Watchtower Bible And Tract Society
its
history
organization
and doctrines
I recommend the following
material:
 
Jehovah's Witnesses
Vols. I & II
Maurice Barnett
 
This material can be ordered from the Florida College Bookstore:
 
http://www.flcoll.edu/bookstor/bkstore.htm
 
You might also find these online websites helpful:
 
History Of The Watchtower Society
http://www.freeminds.org/history/history.htm
 
Jehovah's Witnesses Exposed
http://www.bible.ca/jw.htm

－－《Executable Outlines》