Professional Documents
Culture Documents
The Door-to-Door Work of Jehovah's Witnesses
The Door-to-Door Work of Jehovah's Witnesses
By Lorri MacGregor
1
sage was “The Kingdom of heaven is at hand” (verse 7). Notice their activities in verse 8:
“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons; freely you received,
freely give.”
Could we even remotely apply these Scriptures to Jehovah’s Witnesses? Never! They
do not believe in heaven except for 144,000 of their select members, so they are not
preaching the “kingdom of heaven” at the door. Rather, they stress their peculiar doctrine of
living on earth, which is arrived at by out-of-context Scriptures as well.
Secondly, they do not do the same work as the disciples at all. The dynamic ministry of
the disciples bears no resemblance to the dreary and boring presentations of the Jehovah’s
Witnesses at the doors, trying to pass off the Society’s publications as truth! You may wish
to read parallel accounts about the ministry in Jesus’ day in Mark, chapter six, and Luke
chapter nine.
Despite the claims of Jehovah’s Witnesses to be “footstep followers” of Jesus, we can
find no resemblance between their ministry and that of Jesus Christ and his early disciples.
Some of the other times when Jesus and His disciples were spoken of as being in
houses, they were obviously guests, not door-to-door drop-ins. Other times the disciples
were visiting the churches that met in the various houses. In fact, the Bible phrase parroted
by Jehovah’s Witnesses—“house to house”—indicates “church to church,” since believers
were gathered in houses. Disciples traveled from “house to house” (or church to church) for
the purpose of teaching and encouraging believers. They were definitely not unpaid sales-
man, soliciting funds for a multi-million dollar publishing house by knocking on every door
with a sales pitch!
Let’s briefly consider some Scriptures showing that the early church met in houses. In
Paul’s greeting to Prisca and Aquila, he continues in Romans 16:5, “Greet the church that
is in their house...” (see also 1 Corinthians 16:19). Colossians 4:15 instructs, “Greet the
brethren who are in Laodicea and also Nympha and the church that is in her house.”
Philemon 1:2 says “...to Apphia our sister, and to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the
church in your house.”
These Scriptures show that the apostles ministered to the believers gathered in various
houses having meetings. The apostles went “house to house,” but not in the way
Jehovah’s Witnesses think!
Finally, we will consider the all time favorite “proof text” of Jehovah’s Witnesses for going
house to house. Every Jehovah’s Witness has Acts 20:20 at the ready, should anyone
complain about their persistent house-calling. It reads, “...how I did not shrink from declar-
ing to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and from house to house”
(New World Translation of Jehovah’s Witnesses).
Now let’s examine the true context: “...declaring to you.…” Who is this “you”? Verses 17
and 18 of Acts 20 tells us to whom Paul was speaking: “From Miletus he sent to Ephesus
and called to him the elders of the church. And when they had come to him, he said to
them....” Yes, Paul was speaking to the elders of the church, not to random people he
contacted house-to-house! Instructions to the church make up the rest of Paul’s discourse.
Once again, Jehovah’s Witnesses have no biblical basis for their house-to-house work.
There is no biblical command against going house to house, but neither is there a Bible
precedent, and Jehovah’s Witnesses should not attempt to invent one!
Jesus and His disciples did preach in the Jewish temples, and they did speak to crowds
2
out of doors, and to individuals they met, but they did not organize themselves and call
house-to-house on everybody. Rather, people sought them out because of the evident
working of God in their lives, and the witness of others. If modern Jehovah’s Witnesses did
not call door-to-door, who would ever seek them out?
Although Luke 10:7 refers to the disciples seeking accommodation, since Jehovah’s
Witnesses use such Scriptures inaccurately to further their house-to-house work, I suggest
that they use this one also: “Do not keep moving from house to house.”
Since there is little hope that Jehovah’s Witnesses will cease knocking on doors, it is up
to us who are behind those doors to be prepared to witness effectively to them. They are
truly a mission field marching right up to our homes. Be prepared to share the true gospel
of salvation by grace to these earnest, but misinformed workers.
2APMacGregor0702