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A conversation at the door
Posted by Derrick
on
22:53
I had a chat with some JWs today. It was the first time that I have had a chance to do so. I was a little nervous at first but thankfully I did have a Bible near the door. I started off by saying that I was a Christian and they said that they were too (!).
There were two or three main points of discussion. Firstly, they insisted that the Trinity wasn't mentioned in the Bible. Therefore, Jesus cannot be God. I asked if they thought that Jesus left the tomb and they agreed that he did. I then pointed out that if the absence of the word Trinity meant Christ was not God then the resurrection wasn't true because nowhere does it say empty tomb. I felt good giving a defence of the deity of Jesus. I don't know what impact it had but I will pray it did have some impact.
We talked about the translation of the Bible they used. Why are there no translators listed like there are in the NIV? What were the qualifications they had (a little bit of research tells you that they don't have any qualifications) and could their translation be trusted? The focus was on John 1 and particularly verse 1. Practically every English version says that 'and the word was God' but the NWT says 'a god'. They tried to make out that theirs was the correct version but I didn't accept that and told them I would never do so until they could tell me more about the translators. Sadly they couldn't ...
There were also lots of words about Revelation and who would be in heaven. They insisted that only 144000 would be. They let themselves dowm somewhat by insisting that the 144000 were symbolic Jews but that the verse should be taken literally. I pointed out thay Rev. 7:9 clearly places an awful lot more in heaven. They wouldn't have it. We also talked through several other passages but I had lost the will to really debate with them.
Disfellowship was discussed and they flatly denied it. They also denied thay their church taught the world would end in 1975. They clearly said that Christ has come back invisibly (ignoring that the Bible says everybody will be able to see!). These were the silliest points they raised.
Now, I noticed a couple of things. I know that travelling in twos is good for the safety of those going around but it puts the person at the door at a disadvantage. Who answers the door with someone else? I don't. Not every Christian would feel comforable with this situation and I don't think it's totally fair.
Secondly, they do like to pick and choose their verses. Admittedly, they were ok with me using the NIV and choosing passages and verses but I felt that had I not been so sure of my Bible (and the concordance it has at the back), I would have felt quite uncomfortable.
I shall do some writing over the next few days to look at how to refute their tactics and their teachings. Maybe a pamphlet or something to keep by the door to help me out next time. Although, I may be on a list of doors to avoid now ...
There were two or three main points of discussion. Firstly, they insisted that the Trinity wasn't mentioned in the Bible. Therefore, Jesus cannot be God. I asked if they thought that Jesus left the tomb and they agreed that he did. I then pointed out that if the absence of the word Trinity meant Christ was not God then the resurrection wasn't true because nowhere does it say empty tomb. I felt good giving a defence of the deity of Jesus. I don't know what impact it had but I will pray it did have some impact.
We talked about the translation of the Bible they used. Why are there no translators listed like there are in the NIV? What were the qualifications they had (a little bit of research tells you that they don't have any qualifications) and could their translation be trusted? The focus was on John 1 and particularly verse 1. Practically every English version says that 'and the word was God' but the NWT says 'a god'. They tried to make out that theirs was the correct version but I didn't accept that and told them I would never do so until they could tell me more about the translators. Sadly they couldn't ...
There were also lots of words about Revelation and who would be in heaven. They insisted that only 144000 would be. They let themselves dowm somewhat by insisting that the 144000 were symbolic Jews but that the verse should be taken literally. I pointed out thay Rev. 7:9 clearly places an awful lot more in heaven. They wouldn't have it. We also talked through several other passages but I had lost the will to really debate with them.
Disfellowship was discussed and they flatly denied it. They also denied thay their church taught the world would end in 1975. They clearly said that Christ has come back invisibly (ignoring that the Bible says everybody will be able to see!). These were the silliest points they raised.
Now, I noticed a couple of things. I know that travelling in twos is good for the safety of those going around but it puts the person at the door at a disadvantage. Who answers the door with someone else? I don't. Not every Christian would feel comforable with this situation and I don't think it's totally fair.
Secondly, they do like to pick and choose their verses. Admittedly, they were ok with me using the NIV and choosing passages and verses but I felt that had I not been so sure of my Bible (and the concordance it has at the back), I would have felt quite uncomfortable.
I shall do some writing over the next few days to look at how to refute their tactics and their teachings. Maybe a pamphlet or something to keep by the door to help me out next time. Although, I may be on a list of doors to avoid now ...
