The Watchtower teaches that salvation is a reward for faithfulness: “Jehovah rewards his faithful servants with life, but life of what kind?” (What Does the Bible Really Teach?, p. 192)
Likewise an online article states, “Jesus saved faithful humans when he gave his life as a ransom sacrifice. (Matthew 20:28).” (emphasis added)
Faithful humans?
If faithfulness is a prerequisite to salvation, we are all in serious trouble because our faithfulness to God is spotty at best.
The verse cited—Matthew 20:28—doesn’t mention faithfulness, not even in the Watchtower translation: “Just as the Son of man came, not to be ministered to, but to minister and to give his life as a ransom in exchange for many.”
The Watchtower explains:
After Armageddon, mankind will be under just one government, God’s Kingdom. That Kingdom will do God’s will and bring wonderful blessings. For example, it will remove Satan and his demons. (Revelation 20:1-3) The power of Jesus’ sacrifice will be applied so that faithful humans will no longer get sick and die. Instead, under Kingdom rule they will be able to live forever. (Read Revelation 22:1-3.) The earth will be made into a paradise. Thus the Kingdom will cause God’s will to be done on earth and will sanctify God’s name. What does this mean? It means that eventually under God’s Kingdom everyone alive will honor Jehovah’s name. (What Does the Bible Really Teach?, pp. 82, 84) (emphasis added)
But Jesus didn’t come for faithful people, but for sinners.
Matthew 9:13: “Go, then, and learn what this means: ‘I want mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came to call, not righteous people, but sinners.” (Watchtower translation)
That’s because when he came, there were no righteous people to call!
Romans 3:9-10: “What then? Are we in a better position? Not at all! For above we have made the charge that Jews as well as Greeks are all under sin; just as it is written: “There is not a righteous man, not even one…” (Watchtower translation)
Jehovah’s Witnesses will cite Hebrews 5:9: “And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him.” (KJV, emphasis added)
Concerning this verse, Warren Wiersbe comments:
Does the phrase “them that obey Him” suggest that if we do not obey Him, we may lose our eternal salvation? To “obey God” is the same as “to trust God,” as “them that obey Him” is a description of those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ… Once we have put our faith in Jesus Christ, and thus obeyed His call, we experience His eternal salvation. (The Bible Exposition Commentary, New Testament, Volume 2, p. 294)
This view is in accord with John 6:27-29: “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” (ESV)
Romans 5:6-11 explains further:
For, indeed, while we were still weak, Christ died for ungodly men at the appointed time. For hardly would anyone die for a righteous man; though perhaps for a good man someone may dare to die. But God recommends his own love to us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more, then, since we have now been declared righteous by his blood, will we be saved through him from wrath. For if when we were enemies we became reconciled to God through the death of his Son, how much more we will be saved by his life, now that we have become reconciled. Not only that, but we are also rejoicing in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation. (Watchtower translation, emphasis added)
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