In their Examining the Scriptures Daily for 2022, The Watch Tower begin the year with what seems a call to reason your way into the truth:
'From infancy you have known the holy writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. —2 Tim. 3:15.
Timothy’s faith was built on facts that drew him closer to Jehovah. You too must logically reason on what you have learned about Jehovah from reading the Bible. To start with, you need to prove to yourself at least three basic truths.
First, you need to be convinced that Jehovah God is the Creator of all things. (Ex. 3:14, 15; Heb. 3:4; Rev. 4:11)
Second, you must prove to yourself that the Bible is God’s inspired message to mankind. (2 Tim. 3:16, 17)
And third, you need to confirm that Jehovah has an organized group of people who are worshipping him under Christ’s headship and that Jehovah’s Witnesses are that group. (Isa. 43:10-12; John 14:6; Acts 15:14)
This does not require that you become a walking encyclopedia of Bible knowledge. Your goal should be to use your “power of reason” to strengthen your conviction that you have the truth.—Rom. 12:1. w20.07 10 ˚8-9'
Three phrases stand out here:
You must logically reason…facts
be convinced…of facts
you need to confirm...facts
Jehovah’s Witnesses believe they can reason themselves into God’s Kingdom, that they can reason others into the Kingdom.
The Renewed Mind
There is certainly a cognitive element to conversion. Blind faith is a fools faith, and any faith that cannot stand up to intelligent scrutiny is not worth having. Paul writes, ‘God desires all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.’ (1 Tim.2:4) ‘The truth’ appears frequently in the pastoral letters and is another way of saying ‘the gospel.’
However, there are serious obstacles to reason alone leading anyone to a saving faith in Jesus. Paul wrote to Rome of those who, ‘did not see fit to acknowledge God, [therefore] God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done..’ He describes such people as unrighteous, evil, covetous, malicious, filled with envy, haters of God etc; it is quite a damning list, read it for yourself.
Paul goes on to write, ‘Though they know God’s decree, that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.’ (Ro.1:28-32)
It might be argued that this describes some, but Paul later writes, ‘all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: none is righteous, not one; no one understands; no one seeks God. All have turned aside…’ (Ro.3:9-12)
Any message that allows man leverage, something to contribute to his own salvation, is bound to ignore the fallen nature of man. Here we see man cognisant of God’s decree (1:28) yet both practising and approving in others those things God decree forbids. The problem here is summed up later in Paul’s letter:
‘So I find it to be a law (principle) that when I want to do right, evil is close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.’ (Ro.7:21-23)
Anyone with a conscience will identify with this. The problem, and the danger, is we see these things easily enough in others, but not in ourselves; which is part of the problem of course. The seed of your sin is in me, and the seed of my sin is in you.
Metamorphosis not Matriculation
Later still in his Roman epistle Paul writes about the practical outworking of God’s righteousness in the believer’s life. (12:1-15:13) These are the marks of the true Christian, genuine love, abhorrence of evil, patience in tribulation, etc. wise counsel indeed, again read it for yourself.
However, he begins his commentary here with a call to be, ‘transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect [teleios, accomplished, mature, complete] (Ro.12:2)
This is in stark contrast to the debased mind of Romans 1:28. The word translated ‘transformed’ is the Greek metamorphoō, and is used to describe Jesus’ transfiguration in Matthew 17:1,2 and Mark 9:2. It is used one more time, in 2 Corinthians where Paul writes, ‘And we all, with unveiled faces, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed [ metamorphoō] into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.’ (2 Cor. 3:18)
Paul is describing the process of sanctification. The Christian life doesn’t begin with the logic and reason of a debased mind, it begins with the gift of new life in Jesus. He calls it being ‘born again’ (John 3:3). That new life proceeds in the power of the Holy Spirit, who leads us into all truth (John 16:13) and ‘by whom we cry ‘Abba, Father.’ (Ro.8:15) This is the sanctification Paul writes about in 1 Thessalonians 4:3. This is metamorphosis not matriculation.
It is in this process of sanctification that the mind is renewed; a new birth, a new life, a new mind, a metamorphosis. It is only when the mind begins to be renewed that we are able to think clearly about the things of heaven.
‘And we all, with unveiled faces, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed [metamorphoō] into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.’ (2 Cor. 3:18)
John writes:
‘See what kind of love the Father has given us, that we should be called the children of God; and we are...Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.’ (1 John 3:1-3)
This is the sure hope and assurance of a Christian.
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