People
seriously devoted to discipleship. That is how in my last two weekly columns I
have described not evangelical Christians but members of the heretical cult,
the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Their devotion and the programme of discipleship to
which they are devoted are in part responsible, I believe, for their apparent growth
at the present time. But there is one final factor, namely doctrine.
The
Jehovah’s Witnesses are very clear as to what they believe and also what they
do not believe. JW “Publishers” tend to know these beliefs quite well, and if
they are at all uncertain about something, they have but to find the relevant
article in their Watchtower or Awake magazines, or pull out their smart devices
and do a quick search of the many articles on the Jehovah’s Witnesses official website.
The same beliefs that they explain to people on the doorsteps or on the streets
are front and centre each time they assemble at a Kingdom Hall and invariably
their somewhat mistranslated Bible, the New World Translation (NWT), is cited as support. They believe in the absolute truth of the NWT and the Watchtower
Society’s interpretation of it.
The
apparent and unyielding conviction of many Witnesses in unabashedly believing
and explaining their doctrines no doubt plays a role in convincing people to
believe in their warped understanding of Scripture. The doctrines themselves
also have pragmatic appeal. In a world of suffering, they diminish the
sovereignty of God and emphasise the power of the devil. In a world of idolatry
where humanity makes gods in its image, they deny the Trinitarian uniqueness of Yahweh
and with it the deity of Jesus Christ and personality of the Holy Spirit. Even
as our lives can be so often full of confusion, surprises, and sudden twists,
they make their Jehovah as relatable as possible – he doesn’t really know everything but has an eternally selective
knowledge that chooses not to know some things. They don’t believe in the
literal bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. They don’t believe in the
resurrection of the righteous and the wicked to face the judgement of God. They
don’t believe in the everlasting punishment of the wicked in hell. I have met
many people in recent days, who although they do not yet self-identify as
Jehovah’s Witnesses, are more in agreement with them than they are with me.
Christianity
without doctrine is spiritual nakedness, and yet some seem to believe that by
throwing on this threadbare garment they will appeal to the masses and build a healthy relationship with them. There is no ultimate profit in this approach – people want
something to believe and they will find their beliefs by examining those of
others. How can they examine the beliefs of biblical Christians if biblical Christians do not give them beliefs to examine? Will we let the lies of a recently founded organisation take more prominence than the tried and true unchanging word of the incomprehensible but imminently knowable Triune God? Fruit is found when we are faithful, and faithfulness at the practical level is demonstrated in how we handle God's word in explaining (doctrine) and applying (doing) it.
But suppose we are faithful and people still reject us? Jesus
Christ - God with us - was faithful and he too was rejected. Unless the Holy
Spirit gives them life so that through us they behold the light of the gospel
of the glory of Christ, people will believe all manner of foolishness. The
problem is not our light - provided it shines - it is their lifelessness. We press on in belief that God will awaken the dead to see and raise the dead to walk and when he does it will be by his awesomeness working through the gospel we believe and proclaim. If the
Jehovah’s Witnesses can so publicly ask “What does the Bible really teach?”, we might helpfully ask back, “What does the Bible really teach?” and be ready with the answers.
This was printed in the worship bulletin of Grace Baptist Church (Wood Green) on 09 November 2014. Third and final part in a series.
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