At some point, your meetings with any given pair of Jehovah’s Witnesses will come to an end. The chances that both of them will be ready to come to saving faith in Christ at the same time are very slim.

In fact, you will need to be alert in order to detect that you have gotten through to even one of them. That Witness won’t want to let his partner know that his faith in the Watchtower organization is wavering. If he does, he will soon find himself being summoned to explain himself to the elders. In the worst case scenario, he could be disfellowshipped (excommunicated) for apostasy. As a result, he would be completely shunned by all Jehovah’s Witnesses, including his own family.

One way to deal with this reality is to make it clear at some point that you would be happy to meet with either of the Witnesses alone if trying to meet together becomes inconvenient. The unwavering Witness won’t do that. The other one might, though secretly.

The other option would be to find a time when the two Witnesses have separated momentarily and make the offer privately to the one you think is open to the gospel.

Let’s assume that you do get an opportunity to share the gospel with that Witness one-to-one. What points do you need to make sure he understands?

1. Good works are the product of salvation, not a prerequisite of salvation.

As Keith Walker of Evidence Ministries puts it,

It’s NOT Faith + Works = Salvation

It’s Faith = Salvation + Works

2. Salvation depends solely on their personal relationship with Jesus, not with any organization.

3. Salvation is a free gift to be received, not a reward to be earned.

4. Salvation requires repenting of sin, coming to Christ in prayer, and trusting in his atoning sacrifice alone.

5. Salvation is an event that can take place in a moment, not a process that takes a lifetime.

6. Because of the foregoing, by the end of your meeting he can make sure and know for certain that he has been saved.

Of course, it may take some time for you to show him all this from the Scriptures. That will depend on how much he understands already based on the discussions that have already taken place.

If he doesn’t get it right away, be patient. Don’t rush things. Also, be sensitive to the fact that if he does come to salvation in Christ he is likely to be disfellowshipped. His decision will likely cost him all of his Jehovah’s Witness family and friends, and he is likely to have a lot of residual issues to work through. You will need to offer him continuing support.

Should you invite him to come to church with you? Generally, I recommend against doing so immediately. The Watchtower has created a lot of negative triggers in the minds of Jehovah’s Witnesses about the supposed evils of the churches of Christendom. This includes many things that seem normal to you—displaying of the cross, praying to Jesus, passing collection plates, taking communion, and the like.

I recommend that you let him know that you understand there are many issues like this which might make it very uncomfortable to him to attend a church. Tell him that he is welcome to come with you but that you will certainly understand if he doesn’t want to do so. Make sure he is clear that you are not going to press him to become a member of your church or donate money to it.

If he does come to church with you at any point, help him with the transition. Sit next to him. Get together with him immediately afterwards and invite him to be open with you about anything that seemed wrong, made him feel uncomfortable, or didn’t make sense to him.

Your turn:

Have you been privileged to lead a Jehovah’s Witness to Christ? Which of these issues did you find the most challenging?

Share your thoughts in the comments.

Coming next: Stage 6 of a Witnessing Relationship, Scenario 2: Walking Away