Speaking the Truth in Love to
Jehovah’s
Witnesses
By Clint DeBoer
I was raised as a Jehovah’s Witness and remained one until age 11. Coming out of this cult, I entered my teenage years as a bitter atheist where I remained until I graduated from college. Through God’s amazing grace I was saved in 1994 after reading the Bible and realizing that it was indeed the true Word of God. Repeatedly God has blessed me with the passion and privilege to witness to the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
You’ve almost certainly had them come knocking on your door on a Saturday afternoon and you may have even engaged a Jehovah’s Witness in a theological discussion. In talking to other Christians I find that when presented with a face-to-face encounter with a Jehovah’s Witness there are usually two responses: 1) A "frontal assault" via debate or heated discussion; or 2) A polite "no thanks, I’m already a Christian" followed by an all too abrupt closing of the door. For the Christian, what’s usually missing is the realization that this is a true witnessing opportunity—one that has arrived right at your doorstep. In my earliest attempts at grabbing the proverbial bull by the horns, I tried engaging them in direct debates, often quoting from several texts I had studied regarding the cultic practices of the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
After several failed "conversion" attempts, often ending with thoroughly frustrated Jehovah’s Witnesses unwilling to ever return to my residence, I arrived at a startling realization: Jehovah’s Witnesses are real people, with real needs and real feelings. They can feel frustration, anger, fear, and confusion. I then realized that the reason my frontal assaults on the Jehovah’s Witnesses never seemed to work was because I had not put myself in their place and taken their feelings into account. A wise man once said, "When you want to get someone’s attention, you don’t shine a flashlight in their eyes." In presenting my arguments and facts without giving them time to prepare, I had forgotten that they were human beings searching for the truth. I had not been speaking this truth in love.
Months later, when I was again presented with an opportunity to speak with Jehovah’s Witnesses at my door, I engaged them in conversation, and agreed to do a weekly Bible study with them in order to further discuss what exactly they believed. They agreed, with the understanding that along the way I would ask questions whenever we arrived at a topic or subject with which I disagreed or failed to understand. The amazing difference was that instead of blindsiding them with questions and points of contention, I was giving them an opportunity to prepare themselves for a topic of discussion. More importantly, though, I began to care about them personally and yearn for their salvation. In this way, I am able to meet with Witnesses on a weekly basis and take them off the streets, focusing on critical topics such as the requirement that one be born again to enter the kingdom of God, the unbiblical theology of a two-class system of believers, and the true identity of Jesus Christ.
Excerpted from The Evidence Bible by Ray Comfort
Great suggestions, Ray. I have been a Jehovah's Witness (in The Netherlands) for a major part of my life. Despite my mistakes, and err, (it turned out that being a JW did not make me a perfect human being) I was a hundred percent convinced being a witness, and tried very hard to do all that needed to be done according to "the brothers" (local elders) and the group of leaders in NY, ("the faithful and discrete slave"). Preaching, even pioneering, having a share in the WT study and book study, until at the age of seventeen having my own part in the ministry school, I was repeatedly publicly announced the number one example to all the youngsters, much to my embarrassment. I studied vigorously, had discussions that were considered 'challenging' , like with priests and other learned Christians. The Bible (JW's explanations that is) is always right, was my approach, not afraid of anything, knowing that 'we have all the answers, they don't'. Until... well, a bit embarrassing it took until well into my thirties that I realized that all the questions I had, for which no publication and no elder had an answer, all those spelled: this can't be 'the truth'. By the time I dared to admit it to myself and decided I needed to make a stand for what is really true, I started reading Raymund Franz's books. Especially the first one, 'Crisis of Conscience', was an eye opener; I could place events in the time line that Franz drew in his book, things I remembered, like announcements and teachings, that I could never explain, matched with the book, and explained to me what actually the intentions of the Watch Tower Soc. must have been.
ReplyDeleteI really wish that long before that I had met someone who had your approach and showed me the things that took me so long to discover. It would have prevented many wasted years, unnecessary guilt (for not following perfectly what PEOPLE told me to do), and frustrations for not being able to find the answers to my questions.
I know, most witnesses will put up their shield immediately when they notice opposition to their believes, but there are some that really ARE interested in the (real) truth, even if at that moment they still believe they do have all the answers, some are willing to keep an open mind, believing that God is on their side when they do, and don't look firstly to the organization and its leaders. These leaders that actually are not the honest, or even sacred men, that they present themselves to be.