Preach the Good News ... how?

by OldSoul 34 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  M.J.

  This is from the WTS website: http://www.watchtower.org/library/jt/index.htm?article=article_08.htm#preach

  If I become one of Jehovah's Witnesses, would I be expected to preach as they do?

  When one becomes filled with the knowledge of the promised earthly Paradise under Christ's Kingdom, one wants to share it with others. You will too. It is good news!? Acts 5:41, 42 .

  Doing this is an important way of showing that you are a disciple of Jesus Christ. In the Bible, Jesus is called "the faithful and true witness." When on earth he preached, saying: "The kingdom of the heavens has drawn near," and he sent out his disciples to do the same. ( Revelation 3:14 ; Matthew 4:17 ; 10:7 ) Later, Jesus commanded his followers: "Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the nations, . . . teaching them." He also foretold that before the end, "this good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations."? Matthew 24:14 ; 28:19, 20 .

  There are many ways of declaring this good news. Conversation with friends and acquaintances often opens the way to do so. Some do it by writing letters or by using the telephone. Others mail literature containing material that they think an acquaintance would be especially interested in. Out of a desire to miss no one, Witnesses go from door to door with the message.

  The Bible contains this warm invitation: "The spirit and the bride keep on saying: 'Come!' And let anyone hearing say: 'Come!' And let anyone thirsting come; let anyone that wishes take life's water free." ( Revelation 22:17 ) Telling others about the Paradise earth and its blessings is to be done willingly, out of a heart filled with a desire to share this good news.

  We are sure that you have other questions about Jehovah's Witnesses and their beliefs. Perhaps some issues are controversial in nature. We would like to answer your questions. Space is limited in this brochure, so we invite you to ask the Witnesses locally. You can do so either at their Kingdom Hall meetings or when they visit you in your home. Or you may send your questions to Watch Tower, using the appropriate address.
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  NeonMadman

  It is interesting to see that in Acts 20 Paul was not talking to the members of the congregation, but to the elders. Thus, imho he was talking about the small congregations gathering in the houses of the individual elders, which had nothing to do with the style of preaching work of the witnesses today.

  Right, which was the point of my original comment. I don't believe that Acts 20:20 can be used in any way to justify a door-to-door solicitation style "preaching" work as JWs engage in. The comtext makes it very clear that what is going on is teaching of those who are already believers in their private homes.

  The context is not so clear in Acts 5:42, so it is possible for the JWs to use it to advocate their type of work. But to do so, they must presume that God requires such a work despite the complete lack of supporting evidence for that presumption in Scripture. Christians were to evangelize, of course, but there is no mention or advocacy anywhere of a work of calling uninvited at the homes of unbelievers in order to proselytize them. Such a style of evangelism also isn't prohibited, but the Watchtower asserts that such a method of preaching is mandatory for all Christians - an assertion that is impossible to support with any reasonable reading of the Bible.
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  hmike

  Out of a desire to miss no one, Witnesses go from door to door with the message.

  That's assuming they can get to the front door, or that a person lives in a dwelling (how do they approach the homeless?).

  Telling others about the Paradise earth and its blessings is to be done willingly, out of a heart filled with a desire to share this good news.

  So what if it's a drudgery--something done with extreme reluctance and displeasure out of duty or pressure? Does the work still count?
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  OldSoul

  JT,

  i have always found it interesting how former jw will argue over going from house to house with jw
  
  jw will say it is biblical , former jw will say it is not, and it is funny to watch this process

  Demonstrating whether an activity is effective or not is different from demonstrating whether it is supported by a specific reference work.

  For instance: Timothy McVeigh demonstrated the effectiveness of a Ryder truck, fertilizer, and diesel fuel for creating a large domestically engineered explosion. However, demonstrating that this method was encouraged by the U.S. Constitution would be quite a different challenge altogether.

  One of the core doctrines of the JWs is that their beliefs are all based solely on the Bible. With regard to preaching from door to door this doctrine is provably untrue, just as it would be provably untrue that the U.S. Constitution encouraged the use of explosives as a means of resolving grievances with our government. However effective it might be, however mightily it might convert many, it is not based on the Bible.

  Enjoy the hilarity!
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  Vanderhoven7

  marked