20 Questions
Copyright © 1997 by Natalie Pappas
So...you've finally decided NOWS the time to learn what to say to the JWs
who show up to your front doorstep.
Greet the JWs with a friendly smile, because they are usually
very nice themselves. I can only say I've met only one unfriendly JW
who has come to my door. 99% are going to smile back (after they've
recovered from your friendlyness that is). Most JW are met with a scowl
and get the door slammed in the face. This encourages them into
believing they are being persecuted. The word "persecuted" in the Greek
means "to put to flight" to "drive away". Paul, the Apostle of Jesus
Christ, got driven away and "put to flight" by getting stoned, and
whipped, and beaten, and thrown into prison.
I have heard people say to allow the JWs to present what they wish to
say, but I have not found this to work well. Oftentimes, as soon as
they've said their message (which usually takes a couple of minutes to
present), they are on their way to the next house, having done their
duty at yours!
I like to keep a conversation going (and I can usually keep them here an
hour or two), and the only way to do this is to break into their
presentation by asking them if they mind if you ask *them* a question.
By your asking the questions in a logical manner, you *can* control the
conversation and direct it. BUT, if you begin explaining everything,
then you will lose them completely because the minute they stop talking,
they stop thinking. In other words, if you present the Bible verses to
them, they will not hear them. They are not capable of hearing them.
They do not have the Holy Spirit living inside them to bring that
understanding. BUT, if they read the verses, then the Holy Spirit
*will* bring conviction (as John chapter 14 teaches).
So, break into their prepared speech and say, "May I ask you a question,
please?" or "With your permission, may I ask a quick question?" They
will of course say, "yes, of course" or words to that effect. You have
very quickly put an end to their sermonizing and now a REAL conversation
can take place--one where you ask questions and they answer. It *is* a
give and take.
Then ask, "May I ask you what gospel it is you are preaching this
morning?"
This will stop them for a moment. I don't think any JW who has
come to my door has heard that question before. While they are thinking
about that, ask another quick question. Say, "The reason I ask is
because the Bible says that there is only one gospel. Did you know
that?" Before they can answer (and because YOU are asking questions,
they have no choice BUT to be thinking--it is only when YOU start
explaining that they turn you off--so do not explain anything. Let them
come to their own conclusions by asking them questions. That is, after
all, how Jesus did it.), ask again, "Do you have your Bible with you?"
You have just fired off 4 very important questions:
-
May I ask a quick question
- What gospel are you preaching?
- Do you know there's only 1 gospel?
- Do you have your Bible with you?
Practice in front of a mirror until you feel comfortable and are not
nervous. I usually get a little jittery at first because I am always
busy doing something else when they come knocking. I am usually praying
silently during the first 30 seconds or so until I can break in and ask
my first question. Then things just seem to flow after that.
Now, the New World Translation has been mistranslated in a lot of
places, but the places we will talk about are areas which are awkwardly
translated, but are not necessarily heretical and will do just fine.
Ask your new JW friend when he/she says that they do have their Bible
with them, "Will you turn to Galatians chapter one and read the first 10
verses outloud?"
At this point, the one who was talking will probably look up the verses
and read them outloud, but now the second one will assert him or herself
after he finishes reading and take charge of answering the questions.
The quicker the second one takes over the conversation, the newer the
recruit standing beside him. That should be a big clue for you to direct
your conversation to the newer recruit because when you are preaching
the gospel, or rather, leading him/her through it, you may not see instant
results from the one you are speaking with, but chances are you will see
understanding and/or recognition in the new recruit's eyes.
The less indoctrinated they are, the less blinded they are by Satans
lies. The reason the new recruit does the talking initially is so that
they can practice telling others about their new belief system. The more
he/she practices, the quicker he/she can absorb more of the JW teachings,
and
advance in the Organization. But the more mature JW always takes over
the conversation if it looks to be going in a different direction than
they had planned.
So, now the new recruit has read Galatians chapter one, verses 1-10,
which has just stated VERY clearly that one is going to be ETERNALLY
condemned if they believe a DIFFERENT Gospel. Now, at this point it
might become very tempting into going into the Biblical teaching of hell
(which they don't believe exists). But resist the temptation. There are
a lot of places which teach about hell being an actual place, but THIS
IS NOT IT. This only teaches condemnation. The Greek word for
condemnation means "a thing devoted to destruction". Those who preach a
different gospel are DEVOTED to destruction--ETERNALLY.
Now, ask another question. Ask: Do you know where the Bible defines the
gospel?
Chances are you will get a blank look. I always do. At this point they
might pull out a small brown covered book. This is the "Reasoning"
book. But, unfortunately, they have not addressed this topic in that
little brown book, OR any other. (I know because I have them all!)
Not finding any answers, they will say, "The gospel is that the kingdom
of God is near". Or you may not get an answer at all. In both cases,
ask again, "Would you mind turning in your Bible to 1st Corinthians 15
and reading verses 1-11?
At this point you have asked 7 excellent questions. You have asked:
- May I ask a quick question
- What gospel are you preaching?
- Do you know there's only 1 gospel?
- Do you have your Bible with you?
- Will you turn to Galatians chapter one and read the first 10
verses outloud?"
- Do you know where the Bible defines the gospel?
- Would you mind turning in your Bible to 1st Corinthians 15
and reading verses 1-11?
Now, it is very important that you direct your questions to the newer JW
recruit, because, it has been my experience that the more mature JW will
outright LIE to you in the next few questions. It is in your best
interest to go to a second hand bookstore and look for the following
book, which you can purchase for only a couple of dollars, "You too can
live forever in Paradise on Earth". It is not adviseable to pull this
book out and prove what you are about to tell the JW--but it is
important that you look at this for yourself so that if you are lied to,
that you can stand your ground and say, "Oh yes it certainly DOES teach
that!".
1st Corinthians 15:3,4 state that Jesus died for OUR sins (plural),
died, and rose again on the third day.
However, in the red book, "You can life forever in Paradise on Earth" it
teaches that Jesus didn't die for OUR sins, but that he only paid for
Adam's sin of eating the forbidden fruit. So basically, what is taught
is that BECAUSE JWs believe Jesus died for ADAM'S sin, that NOW those
who are GOOD-HEARTED (all loyal JWs and those who have not outright
rejected the Organization) will get a SECOND chance to PROVE THEMSELVES
*worthy* of eternal life in the 1000 year reign of Christ on a perfected
earth.
This is in contrary to what the Bible teaches at John 3:16, that those
who believe HAVE everlasting life, and 1st John 5:13, that one can KNOW
they HAVE eternal life. But in the "Life Forever" book, page 61,
paragraph 12, it says, "Yet, to make is POSSIBLE for us to gain
everlasting life UNDER the RULE OF GOD's Kingdom, Jesus had to pour out
his lifeblood in death." and on page 68, paragraph 28 it says, "To
prove worthy of protection during this coming destruction, we must
exercise faith in Jesus Chrst. (John 3:36) We must become his
disciples and submit to him as our heavenly King. Will you do that?"
The JWs do not believe that God's Kingdom has arrived yet. They might
have even told you this earlier when you asked them what the Gospel was.
They believe that at any second Armageddon will happen and all those who
are loyal to the Organization and all those who are good-hearted who
have NOT rejected the Organization, will live through it--everyone else
will die. Those who were good-hearted and loyal to the Organization will
be resurrected and ONLY now can they REALLY prove themselves worthy of
everlasting life. Where Adam failed, THEY will succeed (or die trying)!
If you understand their teachings on the END times, then you can be in a
position to know which questions to ask them. Now, I personally would
not go into depth with them on this, because then YOU are talking and
they are not listening. But if you go through those pages in the Live
Forever book, it should be clear to YOU that their teaching on Jesus'
death for our sins is warped and DOES not measure up to 1st Corinthans
15:3,4 and you will be able to stand firm.
The second part of the gospel, is that Jesus' body died. JWs do actually
believe that Jesus' body died. The funny part, is that they don't
believe anybody has a "soul" that leaves the body at death. So when
Jesus' body died, they believe his "soul" ceased to exist as well. So
they ADD meaning to the Bible text that are not there. It does not
state that Jesus' soul died. The context is speaking of a physical
body. Jesus' physically hung on the cross (or as they prefer to call
it, a "torture stake"). Ask your new JW friend,
-
Do you believe Jesus died for every one of your sins? That you
are
completely forgiven?
Chances are they will say, "Yes". Ask them:
-
Do you believe that you are only getting a chance for eternal
life? Or do you know for sure you are saved?
They will admit to you that they don't know if they are saved or
not--that only "Jehovah" knows this. Ask them,
- Would you mind turning in your Bible and reading
1st
John
5:13
outloud?
They will now read that the Bible teaches them that they can KNOW they
have eternal life.
At this point you have asked 9 excellent questions. You have asked:
-
May I ask a quick question
- What gospel are you preaching?
- Do you know there's only 1 gospel?
- Do you have your Bible with you?
- Will you turn to Galatians chapter one and read the first 10
verses outloud?"
- Do you know where the Bible defines the gospel?
- Would you mind turning in your Bible to 1st Corinthians 15
and reading verses 1-11?
- Do you believe that you are only getting a chance for eternal
life? Or do you know for sure you are saved?
- Would you mind turning in your Bible and reading 1st John
5:13 outloud?
And so far, you have only asked questions. You do NOT have to explain
WHAT they believe. They KNOW what they believe. They are STILL the
ones doing all of the talking, and they are having to digest what they
have been reading in their Bible. Little by little, all the strongholds
they have had built up by the Organization are being torn down, piece by
piece.
I would not get into a conversation regarding Soul Sleep at this time.
Every person intimitely knows within themselves that will either live
with Christ forever, or without Him forever. Now, jump to the third
part of the gospel:
Question 10: Do you believe Jesus was resurrected?
This is going to pound the nail into the coffin because it is going to
be apparent to even them that they are not preaching the correct gospel
the Bible preaches. Not only do they not believe verses 3 and 4 of 1st
Corinthians, but they never even tell people that door to door.
Instead, they tell people about the "new revelation" that "Jesus
returned invisibly and is now ruling from heaven invisibly". THAT is
the gospel they preach. At least the Judiazers in the book of Galatians
believed the gospel, even if they added onto the gospel with their
works. The JWs do not even believe the gospel: they do not believe Jesus
died for all their sins, they do not believe Jesus was resurrected
either.
They believe that Jesus' body AND soul died and that only his soul was
raised back to life (invisibly of course) and that he manifested a
make-believe body so that he could deceive his disciples (and others)
into believing that he was really alive again. When JWs say that they
DO believe Jesus was resurrected, I ask:
Question 11: Do you REALLY believe Jesus' body came back to life?
This they will readily admit to not believing. They will say that Jesus
only came back to life in a "spiritual" body. The problem with this
view is that the word "spirtual body" is not in even ONE of the verses
which describe Jesus' resurrection.
The word "resurrection" means "to stand up again". Verses 3 & 4 says
that Jesus died for our sins, the context was his physical body. Verses
3 & 4 says that Jesus was buried. The context was his physical body.
Verses 3&4 say that Jesus was resurrected. The context did not change
anywhere--the context was STILL his phsyical body. (Can a spiritual
body hang on a cross? Be buried in a tomb? Resurrect?)
Ask the JWs at your door: "Can a "spiritual body" hang on a cross?
Pay for our sins? Be buried in a tomb?"
Here are a list of the questions so far:
- May I ask a quick question
- What gospel are you preaching?
- Do you know there's only 1 gospel?
- Do you have your Bible with you?
- Will you turn to Galatians chapter one and read the first 10
verses outloud?"
- Do you know where the Bible defines the gospel?
- Would you mind turning in your Bible to 1st Corinthians 15
and
reading verses 1-11?
- Do you believe that you are only getting a chance for eternal
life? Or do you know for sure you are saved?
- Would you mind turning in your Bible and reading 1st John
5:13
outloud?
- Do you believe Jesus was resurrected?
- Can a "spiritual body" hang on a cross? Pay for our sins?
Be
buried in a tomb?
Next ask:
Question 12: Is there anything in the context of these verses
which would
change the context from a bodily death to a spiritual death?
A
bodily burial to a spiritual burial? A bodily resurrection to
a spiritual resurrection?
When they say no (and they don't DARE say yes to that--if so, ask them "Where?" And if they appeal to other verses, you say, "but those aren't
the verses we were discussing".) Then ask:
Question 13: Did you know that Jesus himself prophesized that his
resurrection
would be bodily?
(Question 14) When they look at you in amazement, ask them to please read
John chapter 2:13-25. This may be a good time to mention (as they are
looking this up) how much you enjoy reading your Bible, how you can never
read ENOUGH of the Bible, how much you appreciate their love of the Bible,
to stand there with you and make sure of ALL things, and that you very
much ADMIRE them for reading through the entire context, even if it is
MANY MANY verses.
Look over their shoulder and read along as they are reading. This will
also give you an idea of how awkward their New World Translation really
is: it is horribly rendered! BUT only one member of their translating
committee had any training in the Koine Greek language, and only 2 years
at that. It is hardly enough training to translate the Bible, but the
passages that were mistranslated could easily be translated by any FIRST
year Greek student. That gives an excellent indication that it was most
likely a deliberate attempt to decieve others into believing a lie. Why?
I think it is a money issue, myself. The WTB&TS owns some of the most
expensive property in New York City and LOTS of it.
Now that they have read the disciples saying that by the temple being
destroyed and rebuilt that Jesus meant his BODY--now ask them to please
turn to John chapter 20, because the Apostle Thomas had an extremely
hard time believing in the resurrection. He refused to believe until he
had himself SEEN the nail marks in Jesus' hands, and the wound in His
side. (verses 24-29)
Now, ask:
Question 15: Would you please read John chapter 20 and read
verses
24-29?
Question 16: Was Jesus saying, "Here, Thomas, reach your
finger and
see my
FAKE
hands, my FAKE side?"
Question 17: Is it in Jesus' character to be deceptive?
Question 18: Can one be a perfect Savior and then turn around
and be
deceptive?
Now the JWs at your door have a great deal to contemplate on the way
home. But before they go ask them two more questions:
Question 19: Do you go door to door and preach the
gospel as it is defined
from
the Bible?
Question 20: Are you going to change the gospel you preach
now when you go
door
to door?
So, either way they answer , thank them for coming to your door and
ALSO thank them for the opportunity to preach the gospel and that you
ALWAYS enjoy preaching the gospel every chance you get! Say something
like, "I want to thank you for caring enough about my eternal future to
come and talk to me about religious things. However, I want to thank you
even more for the opportunity to share the Gospel with you and explain
from the Bible where the Gospel is defined.
During this time of discussion, if they introduce a new topic, like the
Trinity, or Hellfire, or Soulsleep, I have learned to say, "That's very
interesting. I'd like to talk about that in a little bit after we've
covered this question over here first. Okay?" (smile REAL big)
So, here are the questions to ask:
- May I ask a quick question
- What gospel are you preaching?
- Do you know there's only 1 gospel?
- Do you have your Bible with you?
- Will you turn to Galatians chapter one and read the first 10
verses outloud?"
- Do you know where the Bible defines the gospel?
- Would you mind turning in your Bible to 1st Corinthians 15
and
reading verses 1-11?
- Do you believe that you are only getting a chance for
eternal
life? Or do you know for sure you are saved?
- Would you mind turning in your Bible and reading 1st John
5:13
outloud?
- Do you believe Jesus was resurrected?
- Can a "spiritual body" hang on a cross? Pay for our sins?
Be
buried in a tomb?
- Is there anything in the context of these verses which would
change the context from a bodily death to a spiritual death?
A
bodily burial to a spiritual burial? A bodily resurrection to
a spiritual resurrection?
- Did you know that Jesus himself prophesized that his
resurrection
would be bodily?
- Would you please read John chapter 2:13-25?
Do you see how Jesus himself define and prophesy that his
resurrectoin body would be physical?
- Would you please read John chapter 20 and read verses 24-29?
- Was Jesus saying, "Here, Thomas, reach your finger and see
my
FAKE
hands, my FAKE side?"
- Is it in Jesus' character to be deceptive?
- Can one be a perfect Savior and then turn around and be
deceptive?
- Do you go door to door and preach the gospel as it is defined
from
the Bible?
- Are you going to change the gospel you preach now when you go door to door?
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