Are we Saved by an Organisation?

The Watch Tower Society's definition of salvation is:

“Preservation or deliverance from danger or destruction. That deliverance may be from the hands of oppressors or persecutors. For all true Christians, Jehovah provides through his Son deliverance from the present wicked system of things as well as salvation from bondage to sin and death. For a great crowd of faithful servants of Jehovah living during 'the last days', salvation will include preservation through the great tribulation.” - Reasoning from the Scriptures, WBTS, 1985, p.356.

This, at first glance, seems right but when you look further qualifications begin to appear.

“Remember, though, that you must work hard to receive these blessings. It will cost you time and effort ...We therefore urge one and all to lay hold on God's promises and to trust him fully. By continued diligent study of the Bible and by application of its wise counsel you may attain to the grandest of blessings, including everlasting life in a paradise earth!” - The Watchtower, 1 July 1984, p.6. (Emphasis added)

“Salvation cannot be earned by attendance at meetings or in any other way. It is free, a gift from God. Yet, Jehovah God does require efforts on our part if we are to receive his gift of everlasting life.” - The Watchtower, 15 January 1986, p.10. (Emphasis added)

This is like winning a 'free' holiday and finding you have to pay hundreds of pounds for insurance to collect it! The gift is free but we must pay before we receive it.

Two-Tier Salvation

The Watchtower teaches that the Old Covenant has been replaced and the New Covenant alone provides forgiveness of sin. The Society teaches that only 144,000 are born again into the New Covenant. The rest the 'great crowd' have to settle for a place on paradise earth without ever seeing Jesus.

“The new covenant, which is made operative by Jesus' shed blood, replaces the old Law covenant. It is mediated by Jesus Christ between two parties-on the one hand, Jehovah God, and on the other, 144,000 spirit-begotten Christians. Besides providing for forgiveness of sins, the covenant allows for the formation of a heavenly nation of king-priests.” - The Watchtower, 1 July 1990, p.9.

This is a two-tier salvation. The Bible teaches that the only Covenant that can bring us eternal salvation today is the New Covenant. In saying only 144,000 are in this Covenant, the Society removes the hope of eternal salvation from the ‘great crowd.’ The Society keeps Jehovah's Witnesses so busy arguing over ‘technicalities’ they miss the real Gospel message, and the fact they do not have true salvation.

Bible Teaching

Christ has already died for our sins, including the sins of Jehovah's Witnesses. This is an important point to stress - Christ died once for all as we learn from Hebrews 9:28 and 10:10. We can have faith in Christ right now and be saved (See Romans 10:9.) The Watchtower Society has made a big thing about the shape of the cross and misses what happened on it.

The Watchtower views the concept of Christ dying on a stake (they reject using the word 'cross' as they say it is a pagan symbol) in a negative light. See for instance Awake!, 8 November 1972, p.27. The Jews too considered the cross a shameful thing, but the apostle Paul boasted of the cross of Christ (Galatians 6:14).

Christ sent Paul to preach the message of the cross. (1 Corinthians 1:17-18) He knew some would stumble over the cross, that others would consider it foolishness, but to Christians the cross is the power and wisdom of God! God deliberately chose the weak, foolish and despised things of the world to make His point.

This has been the message of the church throughout the centuries - Jesus died on the cross for our sins. He is now alive and can live through us - (1 Corinthians 15:1-3; Luke 24:45-47). This message however can only be understood fully with the help of God's Spirit and so groups using intellectual persuasion often miss the true meaning.

Paul also uses the cross as a symbol for the cause of Christianity, as well as the death of the old nature. We see this in Phillippians 3:18, Colossians 2:14, Galatians 2:20 and 5:24. Repeatedly Paul considers the cross a sign of victory, not defeat. He boasted in the cross!

Christians are not afraid of the cross nor do they worship it. It is a symbol representing the greatest act of love in the universe!

The Way of Salvation

The Bible is clear about both the means and the way of salvation.

Romans 3:23 - All have sinned and need to be saved.

2 Peter 3:9 - God wants no one to perish but all to be saved.

John 3:16 - God sent His Son to make salvation possible.

Acts 4:12 - Salvation is only in Jesus.

1 Peter 2:24 and Romans 4:25 - Christ took our sins in His body and died in our place.

John 3:3 - To see God's kingdom we must be born again, and become a new creation 2 Corinthians 5:17

2 Corinthians 13:5 - The true definition of salvation is "Christ in you" - this is the true translation from the Greek, not "in union with you," as the NWT puts nearly 100 times.

1 John 5:11-13 - The result of salvation is we know if we have the Son, we have life.

John 10:28 - Christ gives life.

This last point is very important for a Jehovah's Witness; they need to see that it is possible to have assurance of eternal life right now. They are taught that this is presumptuous, we need to show them this is what Jehovah says in the Bible.

Ask the Witness if they believe that Jesus is the Christ? If they do, then show them that the following verses apply to them.

“Everyone believing that Jesus is the Christ has been born from God ...I write you these things that you may know that you have life everlasting, you who put your faith in the name of the Son of God. “- 1 John 5:1,13, NWT.

Ask them again, why does the Watchtower Society say - "Come to Jehovah's organisation for salvation" (The Watchtower, 15 November, 1981, p.21,) when we read in the Gospel of John:

“Owing to this many of his disciples went off to the things behind and would no longer walk with him. Therefore, Jesus said to the twelve: ‘You do not want to go also, do you?’ Simon Peter answered him; ‘Lord, whom shall we go away to? You have the sayings of everlasting life; and we have believed and come to know that you are the Holy One of God.’" - John 6:66-69, NWT.

A Final Reminder

The Watchtower tells Jehovah's Witnesses that they should be "Working hard for the reward of Eternal Life" [see The Watchtower, 15 August 1972, p.491.] But evangelical Christians believe that they no longer have to keep working to earn eternal life, nor do they have to worry if they will survive Armageddon; if they truly accept Jehovah's way of doing things. Encourage them to receive the value of Christ's sacrifice in their place. He has paid the penalty for their sins, past, present and future. Ask them to believe Jesus when He tells them:

“Most truly I say to you, He that hears my word and believes him that sent me has everlasting life, and he does not come into judgement but has passed over from death to life.” - John 5:24, NWT.