4. Salvation: Work Hard, Pray Harder, Hope You Make It
Both Jehovah’s Witnesses and Armstrongism have a fun little tradition where salvation is a work-in-progress. Grab your spiritual hammer and start building — salvation is a DIY project that requires constant effort. Forget grace; it’s all about earning your place in the next life.
Jehovah’s Witnesses turn salvation into a spiritual to-do list. To make it, you’ve got to get your door-to-door evangelism in, obey the rules (no birthdays, no Christmas, no blood transfusions), and keep up with the constantly shifting doctrines of the Watch Tower Society. Just when you think you’ve checked all the boxes, they throw in a new rule, and you’re back to square one. You could live a spotless life for 80 years and still not be sure if you’ve done enough. But don’t worry! If you’re not part of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, it’s game over — extinction at Armageddon, no second chances.
Armstrongism is no less enjoyable. Instead of “saved by grace through faith,” Armstrongism suggests you can earn salvation by obeying Old Testament laws — because who needs the New Covenant when you can go full Leviticus? Not only must you observe the Sabbath (on Saturday, not Sunday), but you also must follow dietary laws and make sure you’re fulfilling your role in the Millennial Kingdom (coming soon to a near-future near you). Jesus? He’s not here to save you — He’s here to oversee the kingdom you’re preparing for Him.
On the other hand, traditional Christianity teaches that salvation is a gift, not a prize for the most active member of a spiritual to-do list. You don’t earn it; you receive it by faith in Christ’s finished work on the cross. It’s like someone just handed you free tickets to paradise and said, “Don’t worry about the rules — Jesus handled all that. You just accept the gift and enjoy the ride.”
5. The End Times: Who Needs a Hopeful Future When You Can Have an Apocalypse?
Both Jehovah’s Witnesses and Armstrongism are obsessed with predicting the end of the world — it’s like a game of prophetic one-upmanship. Who can predict the end of the world more accurately? These guys act like if they keep forecasting Armageddonyear after year, they’re eventually going to get it right. In the meantime, they can make everyone feel anxious and miserable.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses went big with their prediction for 1914 — the year that Jesus supposedly returned invisibly (because why would the Son of God want to show Himself when He can do it in stealth mode?). When that didn’t quite work out, they just moved the goalposts. But don’t worry! They’re still hanging onto the idea that Armageddon is just around the corner, and everyone who doesn’t have a Watch Tower membership card is toast.
Armstrongism didn’t stop at “the end of the world”. Oh no, Armstrong had big dreams of a Millennial Kingdom — complete with divine rule, eternal peace, and a new world where you might even get a nice little mansion, if you did everything right. Forget about Jesus’ return to bring salvation; He’s coming to reign and settle in as the ultimate cosmic landlord. If you were hoping for a Savior who would deliver you from sin, Armstrongism offers you real estate instead.
Meanwhile, traditional Christianity doesn’t waste time trying to predict the date of the Second Coming — that’s just God’s business. We don’t need to be obsessed with apocalyptic scenarios because we’re already living in hope and grace, knowing that Jesus will return in His own time, to make all things new. We don’t need the anxiety of “the end” because we know that eternity with God is already secured. No need for millennial predictions — just live faithfully and trust in God’s promises.
Conclusion: The Unfortunate Trend of “Do-It-Yourself” Christianity
When you take a hard look at Jehovah’s Witnesses and Armstrongism, you realize they both have one thing in common: they think they know better than the Church. Whether it’s rewriting Scripture or imagining new doctrines about Jesus and the end times, they’ve somehow decided that 2,000 years of traditionneed a little tweaking.
But the good news is that traditional Christianity has survived despite all the fanfare and flair of these new “prophets.” We have the Bible, we have the Church, and we don’t need to rewrite anything or predict the end of the world to have hope. Jesus is enough. ✝
Comparing Cults: JW vs. WCG © 2025 by Ai-COG is licensed under CC BY-ND 4.0
2 comments:
Any organization that practices censorship of one form or another will become cult-like.
Don't know and love Jesus? 1John 2:3,4; 3:22,24; 5:2,3; 2John 1:6
Post a Comment