Preaching the Gospel to Non-Christian Theists
So far, we’ve primarily given examples of non-religious theists. In this segment, I want to share with you some of my experiences dialoguing with some more religious theists. Let’s start with two very interesting groups, who identify as Christians but aren’t actually Christians: the Mormons and the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Because they don’t subscribe to basic dogmas of the Christian faith (i.e. the Trinity, the nature of God, the divinity of Jesus Christ), Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses can’t be considered Christians in the full sense of the term. Though they strive to follow Jesus Christ, their religions are drastically different from historical Christianity. These two groups consider themselves “restorationists,” who believe that Christianity was completely corrupted and lost and therefore had to be re-established. The problem is, the historical evidence for their cases just don’t add up. Anyway, Let us first look at Mormonism.
The Mormons have a reputation for being pleasant people. They’ll knock on your door with a “clean-cut” look and smiles on their faces. They’ll very politely ask you questions that tug on your heartstrings. They may even offer to do chores for you. Many folks have been dazzled and distracted by Mormons’ tact and have become attracted to their false doctrines as a result.
But stop for a moment to consider asking a very important question: what does heaven look like for Mormonism? In short, the answer is “eternal progression.”
While it may not be difficult to get Mormons to talk to you (believe me, they absolutely want to talk to you!), it is a somewhat lengthy process to get them to reveal what they really believe, especially when it comes to elaborating on “eternal progression.”
What is “eternal progression?” Here’s a summarized snippet from the middle of a conversation I once had with a Mormon:
[Example of dialog with a mormon]
When you dialogue with Mormons, keep the focus on their end states (their view of heaven) and express your difficulty in accepting the logic in what they propose. More than that, emphasize your solace and joy in knowing that our God isn’t one of many but the One, True God. Also remember that many Mormons are very experienced in explaining their faith. You’re not there to change their mind at that very moment but to give them something to think and pray about, and to follow up on later.
The other group of people who you might encounter are the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Though they also actively go door to door like the Mormons, they are not the same. What I’ve found most interesting about the Jehovah’s Witnesses is their history of believing in several “end times” predictions, and how often I’ve found that they focus on what they think is wrong in other religions rather than explaining the truth of their own. Ask a lot of questions to get them off script.
The following dialogue builds off of a real conversation I once had with Jehovah’s Witnesses:
[Example of dialog with a mormon]
I included the above scenario because not every encounter will be all sunshine and rainbows (to be honest, most encounters won’t be). Don’t blame yourself if things don’t go like you wanted. It’s okay. Many turned away from Jesus Christ Himself (John 6:66) when He was the one doing the evangelizing!