Help with Jehovah's Witnesses

[SoulSinger]

All other religions attack the --trinity--and they put Jesus in a lesser spot

Aye..... that seems to be a favorite target of the devil, the trinity and deity of Christ. The emergent churches all do the same thing I've noticed..... including "The Shack"..... feminizing it, humanizing it, and making Jesus less than He is.

Heck, some of these emergent "Christian" churches make JW's seem more "Christian" at times!!!!

[Robert]

: bumping this thread; the info in this thread is extremely valuable and I think our newer members would benefit greatly from it!!

[nillapoet]

Thanks for bumping this thread. Good info. Maybe a sticky?

[mattfivefour]

Hmmm, I have thought about that in the past. OK, consider it done.

[ANY MINUTE]

Very informative thread, thanks for making a sticky.

IMHO, with so much apostasy and turning away of true faith, the J.W.'s seem to be flying under the radar. They are very active in my area, but if the articles and first hand accounts I've seen and heard are true, then thankfully their numbers may be on the decline. On the rare occasions that I see my brother (a devout J.W. who lives about a mile from me) even he says they are struggling to get people to convert. Many that he witnesses to, mostly reject any type of faith though, he's not very effective with anyone with true biblical faith.
I have noticed that they seem to be the most effective with people who:
1. claim to be Christian but have little biblical knowledge or don't practice what they profess
2. people who are suffering from different life exeperiences such as divorce, deaths, sickness, social problems, rejection from other faiths, ect..
These are just personal observations and by no means cover the spectrum of why people turn to this cult for what ever reason.
I wonder if much growth comes from with in, converting spouses, children, other family members? This has been the case with my family.

I have noticed with him and many other family members who are J.W.'s that they seem to take great pride and satisfaction with the inevitable rejection they receive while door knocking. They are taught that it is a form godly persecution and to expect as much from those who reject The Good News (their version), it actually makes him feel better about what he is doing. I have to hope that much of that satisfaction is outward and that he is not so hardened to the truth that he'll never repent.

They have a very structured system in place, their 'organization', and when not out witnessing they tend to stay within their own circles of fellow J.W's or at least around those who aren't hostile towards them.
I can say from my limited experience with them, it is a very manipulative, works based, fear driven, reward seeking group. (sadly many main stream Christian denoms are also)
My brother is very learned in their NWT and when reading anything including his KJV it is always done through the lens of the Watchtower, so I have found it very difficult to share any of Gods unaltered Word with him. He has been so conditioned to reject any outside influence that conversations about scripture tend to get very heated. At this point I have chosen to remain seperated from them because they have so far been unwilling to look at anything outside of their approved sources. If the opportunity is presented again, I hope to be able to put some of the information given in this thread to use. There are also some good books and websites on how to witness to the Witnesses although I haven't seen any data on how effective it is. Doesn't matter though, we just plant seeds at every opportunity God gives us and if only 1 comes to saving faith in Jesus, then it is well worth the effort to be prepared.

ing for all who are lost, with no hope outside of Jesus. Also for the believers who have lost loved one's, it is such a heart breaking experience to know what awaites them.

[mattfivefour]

I agree with everything you have written, bro. Not jsut about the difficultyof reaching JW's, but the reasons people turn to them. (I also agree with your comments about many Chjristian denominations following a legalistic "gospel".

The reason I like the witnessing method outlined in the OP is that it uses their own NWT. Makes it much harder for them to argue with it. They can claim the KJV and all other translations are wrong; but when they see it in their own translation, they are stymied.

[ANY MINUTE]

Thanks mattfivefour, good point about using their own NWT.

Here's one of the sites I research on when dealing with JW's 4witness.org - For Witness to Jehovahs Witnesses and Mormons
If the link is not allowed, I know you'll zap it.

[mattfivefour]

The link is fine. The site is a good one.

[ANY MINUTE]

Here is another link with a wealth of information about the Jehovah Witnesses and what they believe. Interesting the simularities between this and other cults including the Masons which I wasn't familiar with.
Facts about Truth, the Watchtower and Jehovah's Witnesses

[nillapoet]

I had some JWs come by yesterday and was not prepared whatsoever. I alluded to the fact that Genesis says The Word was with God and the Word was God.And that later in the Bible Jesus is referred to as the Word. Well the guy kept saying it's a grammatical error because it's not logical to be with some one and yet be them. I had no idea how else to discuss it with him because he was basically admitting his translation was either wrong or he was (in regards to Jesus and God being one) and he wouldn't admit that he was wrong.

He went on to say that the trinity isn't even in the Bible. I wasn't sure how to handle that claim as I wasn't prepared on that one.

I felt like I was unprepared but it sounds like I did an ok job. What could I have said to point to the trinity as being fact in his Bible though?

[mattfivefour]

There are many places in the bible where the Trinity can be seen. For example, putting the Genesis creation account (where we see God and His Spirit) together with John 1:3, Colossians 1:16 and Hebrews 1:2 shows the Trinity clearly. but in Isaiah 48:16 is one very clear statement of the Trinity: ""Come near to Me, listen to this: From the first I have not spoken in secret, From the time it took place, I was there. And now the Lord GOD has sent Me, and His Spirit." Clearly the one speaking who claims to have been there in the beginning has to be Messiah and HE says God and the Spirit have sent Him. Hence all three persons are there.

The Trinity is plainly revealed in Scripture (both NT and OT) to those whose eyes are opened. But some people refuse to see it because they cannot understand it.

[nillapoet]

Thank you. I knew there were quite a few references. I just didn't have anything off the top of my head at the time.

[Chris]

Don't forget folks we have a large section on Cults, Islam, and Pagan Religions on the Rapture Forums mainsite. Here's the link:

Christian Cults, Islam, and Pagan Religions