Explain your beliefs (4 mins.) Role-play. ijwfq article 29. Topic: Are Jehovah's Witnesses creationists? (lmd lesson 5 point 5).
Setting: The publisher meets a neighbor in a store. During the conversation, the neighbor mentions a discussion she had with friends about creationism and evolution. She assumes Jehovah's Witnesses support creationism, and the publisher takes the opportunity to explain the differences between creationist ideas and what the Bible actually teaches.
Publisher(s): Hello, [name]. How are you?
Assistant: Hi, I'm fine, thanks. Hey, I wanted to tell you something interesting. Yesterday I was with some friends, and a conversation came up about whether God exists or not. Some were atheists and supported the theory of evolution, while others were creationists and believed that God created everything.
Publisher(s): How interesting!
Assistant: Since I believe in God, I supported friends who defended creationism. Then I thought, "As a Jehovah's Witness, you should also support creationists, right?"
Publisher(s): First of all, I want to congratulate you for believing in God as the Creator of all things. This is something the Bible makes very clear. However, there are some creationist ideas that contradict what the Bible teaches.
Assistant: Oh, really? What are those ideas?
Publisher(s): For example, some creationists maintain that each of the six creative days lasted 24 hours. But in the Bible, the word "day" can refer to a much longer period.
Let me read a text that explains it. It's Psalm 90:4. It says:
“For in your eyes a thousand years are but yesterday, which is past, and a watch in the night.”
You see, what is a thousand years for us can be like a single day for Jehovah.
Assistant: How interesting! To God, a thousand years are like a day.
Publisher(s): Exactly. That shows us that the "days" of creation weren't necessarily 24-hour days. And look at this other text, in Genesis 2:4. I invite you to read it on my cell phone.
Assistant: (Reads from phone.) “This is the account of the heavens and the earth in the time they were created, in the day that Jehovah God made heaven and earth.”
Publisher(s): Notice how it says at the end: “in the day that Jehovah God made heaven and earth.” It doesn’t say “in the days,” but “in the day,” as if Jehovah had created all things in a single day.
Of course, there it refers to a much longer period of time, not a single literal day. The word "day" is used in various ways in the Bible and can refer to different periods of time, even within the creation story itself.
Assistant: Now I understand. It's more reasonable to think that each creative "day" was an extended period. This makes more sense, and it's more in line with what science says.
Publisher(s): Exactly! I'm glad you understood the point. Another belief held by some creationists is that the Earth is only a few thousand years old. However, the Bible states that the Earth and the universe already existed before the six creative days.
Assistant: I understand the position of Jehovah's Witnesses better now. Although they firmly believe that God created all things, they are not proponents of creationism, because some creationist ideas contradict what the Bible teaches.
Publisher(s): I'm so glad you understood. It's very important to base our beliefs on what the Bible truly teaches. If you'd like, I can stop by your house another day to continue discussing this topic or to discuss any other questions you may have.
Assistant: I'd love to. Thank you, [name]. (They both say goodbye cordially.)
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