One-a-Day...for the Heart: Jehovah's Witness
I was tediously cleaning the small glass panels on an outside light by our door when an unfamiliar car drove up the driveway and parked close to the stepladder I was on. The strangers inside the car smiled, and two women got out of the car and approached me. I did not recognize them, but I did recognize the spirit they carried and knew they were Jehovah’s Witnesses. I stayed on the ladder as they introduced themselves as friends in my neighborhood who like to share a message of hope.
They seemed surprised when I asked if they were Jehovah's Witnesses, and they admitted they were, as one established the common ground we shared that the world today needs hope. She quoted Jesus’ words from The Lord’s Prayer and asked how I interpreted, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven”? My spirit leaped as I thought, “Hot dog! Here we go!” and while standing on the top step of my ladder, I explained that Father God has a purpose and destiny for each of us to accomplish here on earth. Bringing heaven’s purposes and plans to earth—doing things God’s way and not our way—helps bring His Kingdom, will, and purposes to earth right now. We do well to pray that God shows us His way, His will, and His purpose in life’s situations.
The woman mentioned Jesus several times, though not as a Savior or a personal Lord. After one of her comments, I smiled and told the ladies how very real Jesus Christ is to me. I matter-of-factly told them that because of the blood Jesus shed on the cross and His finished work there, I do not have multiple sclerosis, nor has a Stage IV cancer diagnosis claimed my life, as predicted by doctors in 2012. The reality of Jesus Christ and His power is undeniable to me. They became a captive audience.
Their smiling faces turned quite serious as they each took a slight step backward, away from my pulpit stepladder. It was the easiest sermon I’d ever preached, and I sensed the Lord’s great love and kindness toward the two women. There was a noticeable silence, and the PING! of a Holy Spirit seed dropping in their searching hearts was almost audible.
As their smiles returned, the spokeswoman thanked me for my time and said it was nice chatting with me. She said they usually come by my home about once a year, so maybe they would be back. In the meantime, I began praying for them that day as I thought of their search for truth and the veil of deception they had embraced.
Who is Jehovah? Do these women who carry the title of being witnesses of Jehovah even know Him? Who was Jehovah in the Bible? "Jehovah" is the Hebrew Bible's proper name for the God of Israel. He is the only almighty, true, personal, holy Being, a spirit, and "the father of spirits," (Numbers 16:22). Jehovah comes from a Hebrew verb meaning “to become” or “I am,” and suggests God’s eternal nature as the Creator and Fulfiller of His purpose (Biblestudytools.com).
He is our Father God, and the only way we can know Jehovah is to know His Son, Jesus. In His own words, Jesus said in John 14:6 (NKJV), “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
It gets better! Jehovah Himself, not wanting any of us to perish and face the fires of hell, is the One who draws men to Jesus, as evidenced in Jesus’ words recorded in John 6:44 (NLT), “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him.” Moreover, Jesus explains how we get to know Father God—Great Jehovah-- intimately in John 14:8-9, when He responded to Philip’s question: Philip said, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.’ Jesus replied, ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father! So why are you asking Me to show Him to you?’” The better we know Jesus, the better we know Jehovah. It cannot happen otherwise. Jesus said so.
I used to be a bit afraid of engaging Jehovah’s Witnesses, thinking they could possibly bring evil to my doorstep. Some Christian circles even teach us to shoo them away like crazed lunatics or escaped convicts. That is not the Father’s heart toward them, and we are His ambassadors.
Simply witnessing to them the reality and power of Jesus Christ in my life was a true “witness” of Jehovah’s great power to heal and save. MY Jehovah is Jehovah Rapha (The Lord who Heals), Jehovah Shalom (The Lord is Peace), Jehovah Jireh (The Lord will Provide), Jehovah Sabaoth (The Lord of Hosts), Jehovah Nissi (The Lord My Banner), and so much more!
Friends, let’s declare that we will not shrink back from witnessing about our Great Jehovah! Searching hearts and lost souls are hungering to hear our personal stories of what Jesus Christ has done for us. As we point them to Jesus, we are leading them to Jehovah!
© 2023, Chris Custer Werre