Key Scripture: “Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.” (Romans 10:3)
The objective of The Righteousness Approach is to help Jehovah’s Witnesses see that striving to become righteous enough to prove worthy of everlasting life is an impossible task. Continue reading
Christians and Jehovah’s Witnesses agree that all descendants of Adam (except Jesus) are born under condemnation and that faith in Christ’s sacrifice is essential to salvation, but there the similarity ends. The Watchtower salvation system and the Bible’s way of salvation are completely incompatible. The chapter sets out the contrast in a nutshell and then goes on to explain the differences in greater detail. (pp. 55-56) Continue reading
Click image to access this “Bible Teach” chapter on the Watchtower’s website
Can we earn our salvation by our works?
The Watchtower’s answer to that question is, “No.”
Based on that, an unsuspecting Christian might well think, “Oh, I guess the Watchtower accords with Paul.”
Not so!
Ask Jehovah’s Witnesses this question: “Do we have to prove worthy by our works in order to obtain salvation?”
If they are honest, they should answer that question, “Yes.” Continue reading
Click image to access this “Bible Teach” chapter on the Watchtower’s website
“Bible Teach”, Chapter 19, paragraphs 10-14 (pp. 187-189) discusses the importance of continuing to learn about Jehovah (10), to study the Scriptures (11), to think deeply on them (12-13), and to pray sincerely from the heart (14).
Paragraph 11 (p. 188) says, “Jesus wanted his followers to keep their love for Jehovah and for His precious Word of truth alive and burning brightly. After his resurrection, Jesus taught two of his disciples about some of the prophecies in the Hebrew Scriptures that were fulfilled in him. What was the effect? They later said: ‘Were not our hearts burning within us as he was speaking to us on the road, as he was fully opening up the Scriptures to us?’—Luke 24:32.”
We can agree with all of that, but we need to stress that in order for the Word to burn in our hearts—as it did with the disciples on the road to Emmaus—we need to have a personal relationship with Jesus in which he opens the Scriptures to us.
Click image to access this “Bible Teach” chapter on the Watchtower’s website
“Bible Teach”, Chapter 19, paragraph 7 (p. 186) says, “As described in the Bible, love for God is much more than a feeling… The Bible teaches: ‘This is what the love of God means, that we observe his commandments; and yet his commandments are not burdensome.’ (1 John 5:3). To be genuine, love for God must bear fine fruit. It must be expressed in actions.”
What the Watchtower fails to understand is that none of this is possible without the inner transformation provided by the new birth (see The New Birth Approach from my book, Getting Through to Jehovah’s Witnesses: Approaching Bible Discussions in Unexpected Ways, pp. 131-133).
You can drive the point home by asking the Witnesses to tell you honestly how they think they are doing at keeping all of Jehovah’s commandments. Are they certain if they died tonight that Jehovah would consider them worthy to be resurrected? Continue reading
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