What Fruitage Must True Religion Produce?

Since the earth is to be wiped clean of false religion, what kind of worship will remain? (True worship of those who do not observe or celebrate holidays and birthdays; true worship by also following the Ten Commandments, having works for God, real faith etc.)  How can we determine today which religious group will survive the destruction of Satan's world empire of false religion?  (those who  don't listen to the false prophets of today's churches, those who follow do what  is listed above and read the Bible. The rest is up to God.)  What is the righteous fruitage that this group must produce?  There are at least ten criteria for distinguishing Jehovah's true worship. -Malachi 3:18; Matthew 13:43.

First and foremost, true Christians must uphold the sovereignty for which Jesus died-his Father's sovereignty.  Jesus did not give up his life for any political, tribal, ethnic, social cause.  He put his Father's Kingdom ahead of all Jewish political or revolutionary aspirations.  He answered Satan's offer of worldly power with the words:  "Go away, Satan! For it is written, 'It is Jehovah your God you must worship, and it is to him alone you must render sacred service.' " He knew from the Hebrew Scriptures that Jehovah is the true Sovereign over all the earth.  Which religious group unequivocally supports Jehovah's rulership rather than this world's political systems? - Matthew 4:10; Psalm 83:18. 

A second requirement  is that true worship must magnify and sanctify God's name.  The Almighty revealed his name, Jehovah (rendered Yaweh in some Bible versions), to his people Israel,and it is used thousands of times in the Hebrew Scriptures. Even before that, Adam and Eve, and others knew the name, though they did not always respect it.  (Genesis 4:1; 9:26; 22:14; Exodus 6:2) While Christendom's and Jewry's translators have usually omitted the Divine name from their Bible's, Jehovah's Witnesses have given that name its due position and respect in the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures.  They honor that name, even as did the early Christians.  James testified:  "Symeon had related thoroughly how God for the first time turned his attention to the nations to take out of them a people for his name.  And with this the words of the Prophets agree, . . .'in order that those who remain of the man may earnestly seek Jehovah, together with people of all nations, people who are called by my name, says Jehovah, who is doing these things.' " -Acts 15:14-17; Amos 9:11, 12.


A third requirement for true worship is that it should exalt God's Kingdom as   the only legitimate and viable solution to mankind's problems of rulership.  Jesus clearly taught his followers to pray for that Kingdom to come, for God's  rule to take over control of the earth. Daniel was inspired to prophesy regarding the last days:  "The God of heaven will set up  a kingdom that will never be brought to ruin. . . .It will crush and put an end to all these [worldly, political]kingdoms, and it itself will stand to times indefinite."  Who have shown by their course of action in this 20th century that they render undivided support to that Kingdom-the religions of Babylon the Great or Jehovah's Witnesses?- Daniel 2:44; Matthew 6:10; 24:14.   (from what I have observed and by my research, the Jehovah's Witnesses have a much better chance, along with the people who actually follow God's commandments and standards which are not many. I say this because they are the only ones who actually go by the Bible and read it, as I do)

A fourth requisite for God's approval is that the true servants of God should uphold the Bible as God's inspired Word. They should therefore not become victims of higher criticism, which attempts to reduce the Bible to a simple human literary work with all the failings that this would imply. Jehovah's Witnesses believe the Bible to be God's inspired Word, (so do I and I feel it as i never have before) even as  Paul wrote Timothy:  "All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, that the  man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work."  Therefore, Jehovah's Witnesses take the Bible as their guide, their manual for daily living, and their fountain of hope for the future. -2 Timothy 3:16, 17.

Next time: The Religion of Love, Not Hatred

The Watchtower, 1996