Chapter 19: Remain in God’s love

This post is part of a series of posts summarising chapters of the Jehovah Witnesses' booklet, "What does the Bible really Teach?", and seeking to evaluate those chapters against Scripture somewhat briefly. Those posts were introduced at the Introduction, and a contents page will be added to that entry once this run of posts has finished.

Chapter 19: Remain in God’s love

Life has many hard times, during which we need to keep ourselves in God’s love.

Recognise and respond to God’s love: God has made the world, gave us the Bible, sent his Son to die, and established his kingdom. How loving this is. The bigger question is how we will respond to God’s love: By loving him, which needs to be shown in obedience and not just in feelings; such obedience is not a burden but a chance to show our gratitude.

Draw ever closer to Jehovah: Keep learning about him, so that your love for him keeps burning, and keep praying.

Find joy in your worship: Bible study and prayer are private matters, but public worship and speaking to others about what we believe matters too. Telling others helps you stay in God’s love. Preaching to others today is urgent because the great day is near; we also need the encouragement of meeting with others.

Reach out for “the real life”: We eat and breathe now, but there is a life that is truly life to take hold of. We don’t earn this by good works, but by receiving it. “However, Jehovah delights in rewarding those who serve him faithfully.” (193)

Evaluation

Certainly, reading the Bible, praying, meeting with others, and sharing your faith are good ways to grow in love and knowledge of God. It is unclear whether these things help us to keep loving and trusting God, or whether these things are actually necessary for us to be “in God’s love”.