Vol. 8, No. 9, 1991

Encountering Jehovah's Witnesses

Craig Branch

The average home in America is visited three times a year by the 850,000 plus Jehovah's Witnesses going door to door.

This encounter has often been called a "mission field on your doorstep." More and more Christians are beginning to see their responsibility to share the gospel, in word and deed, to these well meaning but deceived people for whom Christ also died.

There is much effective information available in the pages of The Watchman Expositor, whether it be articles, books, study guides and tapes. However, more and more often the Watchtower has devised methods to try to prevent their members from examining or questioning their organization.

This has left some Christians frustrated and perplexed as to how to proceed. This article will help you understand the mind control and psychology of a typical Jehovah's Witness and will give you some insight as to how to break down some of these barriers.

The most effective witness is one which has some rapport established. Those who have an acquaintance, neighbor or relative has the best chance of a long term dialogue.

Because the Watchtower discourages its members from "outside" association, most Christians have brief only encounters.

When a JW comes to your door, do not try to have lengthy dialogue with them, as they are usually covering a territory just to test for interest. They usually do not have time.

Arrange another scheduled appointment by saying something like, "Yes, I am interested in talking with you about God and eternal life. I have heard some things about Jehovah's Witnesses and would like to talk with you. Could we set up an hour or two appointment when I can get my questions answered?"

This will give you time to prepare and enlist an intercessory prayer group to begin the real battle of Spiritual warfare.

Some Christians who are armed with answers to Jehovah's Witnesses issues and with the documentation exposing the Watchtower's errors have become frustrated because the JW will not look at the information or doesn't seem to be affected by it.

Three powerful techniques of mind control are information control, isolation, and fear. The Watchtower has mastered the imposition of these on its members so that they often refuse to look at documentation or they become irrational in trying to dismiss the obvious.

The JW is conditioned to put his trust in the organization rather than in God. The following are suggestions as how to break through the headlock and help the JW to think for himself:

1. Do not attack the Watchtower directly. Refer to the deceptive methods of other groups, such as Moonies or Mormons. Allow him to make the connections with the Watchtower without agreement.

2. Ask questions. Good questions normally do not cause defensiveness but can help establish rapport, communicate interest, and the answers can often be used to demonstrate the conflict with the Watchtower.

The following are questions suggested by Bethel Ministries:

1. Do you believe the Bible was written to all people?

2. There are so many false groups out there which lead people away from true Christianity. Lets see if we can agree on characteristics they have in common.

3. Do you think a person should examine not only the teachings but also the history of any religious organization before deciding it is the truth?

4. Both Deuteronomy 18:20-22 and Matthew 24:11, 23-27 warn us about false prophets. What are the marks of a false prophet from these verses?

5. Before I joined or even after I joined a group and discovered fraud and false prophecies in the leader(s), what should I do?

6. What would you think about any religious group that would not allow their members to read any outside literature or to dialogue with anyone that is critical of or can expose the corruption of that organization?

These type of questions can begin to "plow the ground" so that the seeds of your witness have a better chance of taking root.

Contact Watchman Fellowship for more information concerning breaking through the mind control, as well as step-by-step "how to" information and documentation "correcting their errors" and "teaching the truth" (2 Timothy 2:24-26), and exposing the fraud and corruption of the Watchtower Society.