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 Jehovah's Witnesses
    Summary: Jehovah's Witnesses are a sad example of people putting too much emphasis in works and not
    enough emphasis in what the Bible says. JW's mistakenly tie good deeds to salvation and also deny the deity of
    Christ and the reality of a literal and eternal Hell.


  1) Good works (e.g. door knocking) helps you receive salvation.
  2) Jesus Christ is not God (or he is a lesser god).
  3) Hell, a place of eternal real fire and real pain, does not exist.
 

1) The "gift" of Salvation has been and always will be solely by grace through faith in Christ. Salvation has nothing to do with how many doors you knock on or how good of a person you are.
 
Ephesians 2:8-9 "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves,: it is the gift of God: Not of works, let any man should boast."

Romans 4:1-8 "What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin."

Galatians 2:16 "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified."

Galations 2:21 "I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain."

Romans 3:24-28 "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law."

Isaiah 64:6 "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags…"

Romans 6:25 "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

John 3:15 "That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life."

Romans 10:13 "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

Hebrews 10:29 "Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?"
Also read our "Salvation by Grace" tract (click here)

What about James 2? If you do not understand the context, James chapter two, read by itself, might lead you to believe that salvation requires works. The key is to understand that James is talking about what can be seen with the human eye ("Ye see" in verse 24). The true interpretation of this chapter is that if you see a person who does not act, in any way, like he has faith--then he does not have true faith! A faith that does not produce good works is a faith that is dead (see verse 17).  A person with true faith will show it through his works (2:18 "...I will shew thee my faith by my works.").
 
2) Jesus Christ is God. Multiple gods do not exist.
 
I John 2:22 "Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son."

1 Timothy 3:16 "And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory."

John 1:1 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

John 1:14 "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."

I John 5:7 "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."

Matthew 1:13 "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us."

Isaiah 7:14 "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."

Isaiah 9:6 "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

John 10:30 "I and my Father are one."

John 14:7-11 "If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake."

Colossians 1:15-19 "Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell"

Colossians 2:9 "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily."

Isaiah 43:10 "Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me."

According to Isaiah 43 Jesus could not have been a "lesser god" contrary to JW doctrine.
 
3) Individuals who die without accepting Christ as their savior will burn for ever and ever in the literal flames of hell. Total annihilation is not a Biblical belief.
 
Luke 16:19-31 "There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead."

Note: Luke 16 is not a parable because parables do not use common nouns. Luke 16 references Abraham, Lazarus, and Moses.

Matthew 25:41 "Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels"

Mark. 9:43 "And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:"

Also, to address the notion of total annihilation (the idea that people who go to hell simply burn up and out of existence) please note the following:

The Beast was cast alive into the Lake of Fire:

Revelation 19:20 "And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone."

The Beast died in the flames:

Daniel 7:11 "I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame."

Yet, the Beast is still alive in the Lake of Fire:

Revelation 20:10 "And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever."