The Only True Christian Religion?

     In a Bible-believing evangelical church it is not unusual to observe that 5% to 20% of the regular active members are the walk-the-walk variety of Christians while the rest are the talk-the-talk variety. On the one hand this is cause for concern while on the other hand this is a reminder that genuine born again believers are human and a reminder of Bible warnings about false professors and heretics and does not necessarily mean that a particular church is preaching or practicing false religion. If a religious group teaches a salvation by works and practices shunning it should be no surprise to observe that most of the membership appear  to work more and put forth a greater effort to maintain an appearance. Watchtower publications put all other professed Christians in the same category and focus attention on inconvenient or unpleasant realities that are present in any religious group or denomination (including the Watchtower Organization) and compare this to the Watchtower facade and the supposedly superior insights of the Watchtower Society and insist that the Watchtower Organization stands out as the truth, the only true Christian religion, compared to the churches of Christendom. Jehovah’s Witnesses thus learn to view the Watchtower Organization through rose coloured glasses. When you try to witness to Jehovah’s Witnesses be extremely patient and keep in mind that Jehovah’s Witnesses look at the Watchtower Organization through rose coloured glasses.

I was raised in the Watchtower cult. Over time I realized that, although there are good people among the Jehovah’s Witnesses, we were no better than the people we condemned; we were just trained to look at the Watchtower Organization through rose coloured glasses. After I disassociated myself from the Watchtower Organization I was burnt out on religion and avoided church for a long time, but I still wondered if any church or denomination was the right one, and eventually I learned that what I needed was a personal experience with Jesus Christ.

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.” (Matthew 23:15) While the Jehovah’s Witnesses are right to emphasize proselytizing, they have the wrong message. The Gospel being proclaimed by Jehovah's Witnesses is the re-establishment of God’s kingdom commencing with the invisible return of Christ in 1914. The Gospel preached by Christ, the Apostles, and Bible-believing Christians throughout Christian history is the death, burial, and literal resurrection of Jesus Christ through which sinners are justified (declared righteous) through faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ when they repent. (John 3:13-15; Acts 4:15-19; I Corinthians 15:1-4) Salvation is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and is through the finished work of Calvary, not the shed blood of Jesus Christ and additional supplements. (John 3:13-16; Acts 2:21; 10:43; Romans 4:5; 5:1-2,8-11; I Corinthians 15:1-4; II Corinthians 5:17-18; Ephesians 2:8,9; Titus 3:5-6; Hebrews 5:9; I Peter 1:3; I John 5:20) Faith and repentance can be described as the two sides of the same coin, as they are inseparable; repentance is the turning from sin to God, and faith is the turning to Jesus Christ (God in the flesh) for salvation. (Acts 20:21) Repentance is part of saving faith; it is the effective agent for forgiveness and remission of sins. (Mark 1:14-15; Luke 13:3; 24:47; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 11:18; 17:30-31; consider Psalm 34:18; Isaiah 55:6-7; 57:15; 66:2) Is believing in Jesus Christ sufficient for salvation or must we combine faith and good works to qualify for salvation? Note that the New Testament says that salvation is by faith alone without works almost two hundred times. (Consider John 3:15; 5:24; 11:25; 12:46; 20:31; Acts 16:30-31; Romans 3:20; 4:5; Galatians 2:16; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5; etc..; also, compare Acts 16:31 with Acts 16:34 and note that believing in Jesus and believing in God are presented as identical acts) "Exercising faith" by doing good works is not what saves. Good works follow salvation but are not the cause of salvation. While genuine faith produces good works, it is faith alone that brings salvation and not good works. (John 3:16, 18; Romans 1:16-17; 4:5; I Corinthians 3:13-15; II Thessalonians 1:8-10; Titus 1:16; I Peter 1:3-10; James 2:14-16; consider Isaiah 64:6)

“For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.” (Romans 10:2) Like the Pharisees of old, the so-called Jehovah’s Witnesses replace true faith and genuine spirituality with self-righteousness. Self-righteousness makes someone insist that he is just as good as, or better than, those people in the churches instead of recognizing that he is a sinner that cannot save himself and needs the grace of God just as much as those people in the churches. (Proverbs 20:6; 30:12; II Corinthians 10:12)

Jehovah's Witnesses believe they have the only true Christian religion and are part of God's organization and that they must be faithful to the Watchtower Organization to earn salvation. Watchtower publications say that certain identifying marks taught in Scripture verify that they are God’s organization, but the Watchtower Organization does not measure up to the marks that JWs say characterize true Christianity.

"The main identifying quality by which true Christians are recognized is the outstanding love they have toward one another." (Aid To Bible Understanding, p.317) John 13:35 is a favorite JW proof text in this. They insist that love among themselves proves they are the only true Christian religion. But here is a good question for Jehovah’s Witnesses: Do you ever have difficulty getting along with other Jehovah’s Witnesses, and do you ever find it easier to get along with non-JWs than with Jehovah’s Witnesses?

Watchtower publications use I Corinthians 1:10 to teach the importance of complete conformity to the teachings of the Watchtower Organization, and insist that such unity proves that JWs are the only true Christians and that those who do not have such unity are false Christians. Did the lack of unity among believers at Corinth mean that they were not Christians? (I Corinthians 1:2, 11-13) Where is there any reference to an organization in I Corinthians 1:10, and where in I Corinthians 1:10 (or the context thereof) are we told that unity is to be achieved by submitting to an organization?

Now let's look at another so-called identifying mark: "Jehovah's Witnesses believe that the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God, and instead of adhering to a creed based on human tradition, they hold to the Bible as the standard for all their beliefs." (Reasoning From The Scriptures, p.199) Also: "Because Jehovah's Witnesses base all of their beliefs, their standards for conduct, and organizational procedures on the Bible, their faith in the Bible itself as God's Word gives them the conviction that what they have is indeed the truth. So their position is not egotistical but demonstrates their confidence that the Bible is the right standard against which to measure one's religion." (Reasoning From The Scriptures, p.203-204) Here are a few questions for Jehovah’s Witnesses: Does Watchtower leadership encourage personal study, discernment, and growth, or do they require a child-like dependence? What would happen if a JW followed the example of the Bereans and critically examined Watchtower teachings to personally discern if Watchtower teachings really are taught in Scripture? (Acts 17:10-11; also consider I Corinthians 2:5; Colossians 2:8; II Timothy 2:15; 3:16, 17)

Do JWs "hold to the Bible as the standard for all their beliefs?" Try applying questions like these to specific Watchtower teachings: What does the Bible say about this? Have you read Watchtower proof texts in context to see for yourself if this is what the Bible teaches or if this is what someone thinks the Bible ought to say? What would be your response if an unbeliever asked why you believe this or why something is true or false or right or wrong? (Proverbs 2:6; 3:5-7; Matthew 15:3, 8-9; 22:29; II Timothy 2:14-15; 3:16-17) How important is this in relation to other matters and what Bible truths and principles or standards apply? (Matthew 23:24; Romans 14; I Timothy 1:5-7) Was this true in the distant past and will this still be true in the distant future? (Psalm 33:11; 119:89; Proverbs 19:21; Ecclesiastes 1:9-10; James 1:17)

JWs interpret Matthew 24:45-47 to mean that Watchtower leadership is the sole channel of God's truth. There was a time when JWs believed and taught that Charles Taze Russel is the "Faithful and Discreet Slave" ("Faithful and Wise Servant," KJV) of Matthew 24:45-47. For a long time Watchtower publications said that the "Faithful and Discreet Slave" is the remnant of the anointed class of Jehovah's Witnesses and are represented by the Watchtower Governing Body. Watchtower publications now say that the Watchtower Governing Body is God's "Faithful and Discreet Slave" that guides people in their understanding of Scripture and is God's only channel of truth. But the Watchtower interpretation of Matthew 24:45-47 would mean that for eighteen or nineteen centuries God did not have any true representatives on earth, which contradicts Ephesians 4:11-16.

Jehovah's Witnesses use II Peter 1:20-21 to discourage independent Bible study and insist that people must heed and submit to the teachings of the Watchtower Society, but this is another case of replacing what a Bible passage says with what the Watchtower Society says the passage means. Look carefully at the wording: II Peter 1:20-21 is dealing with the origin of Scripture and this is another way of saying that the Bible is inspired of God. (II Timothy 3:16)

Watchtower publications use Acts 8:30-31 to say that the Watchtower Society is God's only Bible-interpreting organization and that people cannot understand Scripture without the Watchtower Society. While the Bible certainly does not condemn the use of Christian literature and Bible study helps, and Christian books and magazines (and other materials) can be helpful, where does the Bible indicate that Christians must submit to the infallible views and interpretations of an organization or its publications? While Acts 8:30-31 does indicate that people occasionally need help understanding Scripture, where in this passage or the context is there any indication of an organization? Since the Ethiopian eunuch never saw Philip again, where is there any indication that the Ethiopian eunuch had to join or submit to an organization or anyone? Did Philip use the Bible alone to expound upon the meaning of Scripture or did he use additional literature? If the Bible alone was sufficient for Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch, doesn't this indicate that the Bible itself is sufficient for us also? Scripture itself is the key to the interpretation of Scripture, and while there is need for ministers, teachers, and Christian books, and there are difficulties in the Bible, for the most part the Bible is self-interpreting and self-explanatory when one is familiar with its contents. (Psalm 119:104-105, 130; Proverbs 2:3-6; Acts 20:28; Ephesians 4:11-12; II Timothy 2:15; 3:16-17)

Watchtower publications use John 17:3 to prove the necessity of the Watchtower Society’s Bible study. “This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.” (John 17:3NWT) “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:3 KJV) A look at the literal rendering of the Greek text of John 17:3 shows that the Watchtower Society has mistranslated John 17:3 in their New World Translation. The Greek word for “know” used in this context indicates a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ and not just a general knowledge of the Bible, and this harmonizes with other Scriptures that teach that general knowledge of the Bible is insufficient in itself for salvation. For example, is knowledge of Scripture sufficient for salvation according to the words of Christ in John 5:39-40? “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.” (John 5:39-40 KJV) In line with this the New Testament also refers to those who were “ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (II Timothy 3:7 KJV) Bible study is very important but filling your head with knowledge will not make up for not actually knowing Jesus Christ in a personal relationship.

The Bible does not teach the us-only pride or the we-versus-they complex that characterize the so-called Jehovah’s Witnesses. (Psalm 119:63; Mark 9:38-42; Philippians 1:18) JWs point to Bible passages such as Matthew 7:13-14, 21, and Ephesians 4:5 to prove that there is only one true Christian religion. It is true that there is one way: Jesus is the way, not a man-made organization. (John 14:6)

Further reading:

WITNESSING TO JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES