tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14825512092913065562024-02-20T23:47:51.106-08:00Servant (Ebed) in Jehovah's Service (Abodah)<center>Hear this, you leaders of the house of Jacob, you...distort all that is right-Micah 3:9, NIV</center>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-47852620172556748712009-08-26T09:51:00.001-07:002009-08-26T09:52:08.532-07:00"Do Not Put Your Trust in...the Sons of Earthling Man"<center><h3><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Welcome Brothers and Sisters</span></h3></center><br /><center>As Jehovah's Witnesses, we must be loyal to Jehovah God and not man. "Do not put your trust in nobles, nor in the son of earthling man, to whom no salvation belongs. His spirit goes out, he goes back to his ground; in that day his thoughts do perish. Happy is the one who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in Jehovah his God...Jehovah is opening the eyes of the blind ones; Jehovah is raising up the ones bowed down; Jehovah is loving the righteous ones."-<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/ps/chapter_146.htm?bk=ps;chp=146;vs=3-5;citation#bk=146">Ps. 146:3-5</a>,<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ps;chp=146;vs=8">8</a></center><br /><br /><center>As the Supreme Ruler of the Universe and the Creator, Jehovah God deserves our full devotion - He expects it of us. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=re;chp=4;vs=11">Rev. 4:11</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/ex/chapter_020.htm?bk=ex;chp=20;vs=4-6;citation#bk=20">Ex. 20:4-6</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ex;chp=34;vs=14">34:14</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=de;chp=4;vs=24">Deut. 4:24</a>) When <i>men</i> make the statement that they deserve our full trust, we have every reason to not trust that. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ro;chp=3;vs=4">Romans 3:4</a>) Even worse, when men make the statement that we can only be saved by trusting them alone we must reject them. Remember: Jehovah's Word says, "Do not put your trust in nobles, nor in <span style="font-style: italic;">the son of earthling man</span>, <b><i>to whom no salvation belongs.</i></b>"</center><br /><br /><center>When we put our full trust in men we are really rejecting Jehovah God. "This is what Jehovah has said: '<span style="font-weight: bold;">Cursed is the able-bodied man who puts his trust in earthling man</span> and actually makes flesh his arm, <span style="font-weight: bold;">and whose heart turns away from Jehovah himself</span>. And he will certainly become like a solitary tree in the desert plain and will not see when good comes; but he must reside in parched places in the wilderness, in a salt country that is not inhabited." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/jer/chapter_017.htm?bk=jer;chp=17;vs=5-6;citation#bk=17">Jer. 17:5-6</a>) Jehovah has provided a man, the Son of Man, that we can look to for salvation. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ac;chp=4;vs=12">Acts 4:12</a>) The devotion that many of our misled brothers and sisters give to the Governing Body should actually go to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and, more importantly, our great God, Jehovah.</center><br /><br /><center>Why can we trust Jehovah and Jesus? We are told, "The name of Jehovah is a strong tower. Into it the righteous runs and is given protection." "Jehovah [is] a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in loving-kindness and truth." Jesus Christ said, "Come to me, all you who are toiling and loaded down, and I will refresh you. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am mild-tempered and lowly in heart, and you will find refreshment for your souls. For my yoke is kindly and my load is light." "The Lamb...will shepherd them, and will guide them to fountains of waters of life."-<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=pr;chp=18;vs=10">Prov. 18:10</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ex;chp=34;vs=6">Ex. 34:6</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/mt/chapter_011.htm?bk=mt;chp=11;vs=28-30;citation#bk=11">Matt. 11:28-30</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=re;chp=7;vs=17">Rev. 7:17</a></center><br /><br /><center>We can also trust the Bible. "Sanctify them by means of the truth; your word is truth," Jesus said. "All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=joh;chp=17;vs=17">John 17:17</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=2ti;chp=3;vs=16">2 Tim. 3:16</a>) So, we can trust Jehovah, Jesus, and the Bible. There is no one else on the earth that deserves our trust, not even the Governing Body. Remember, ones who are of the "faithful and discreet slave" can become the "evil slave." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/mt/chapter_024.htm?bk=mt;chp=24;vs=45-51;citation#bk=24">Matt. 24:45-51</a>) Keeping that in mind, we must constantly check to see if what we are being fed is good food or not. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ac;chp=17;vs=11">Acts 17:11</a>) If we find something there that doesn't quite fit with the Bible yet we find it hard to reject we need to "keep testing whether [we] are in the faith, keep proving what [we ourselves] are."-<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=2co;chp=13;vs=5">2 Cor. 13:5</a></center><br /><br /><center>With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah</center><br /><br /><br />On this site you will find such information as:<br /><br /><b>Is the Watchtower still associated with the United Nations?</b><br /><br /><b>Who Really Is the Man of Lawlessnes?</b><br /><br /><b>What is the Truth About the Year 1914?</b><br /><br /><b>What Did the Society Say Regarding 1975?</b><br /><br />Plus, there is more information on here that you may find enlightening concerning the Watchtower, Bible and Tract Society. <i>I want it to be known before you enter this site that I am in no way trying to make people believe that Jehovah's Witnesses are wrong or even that there is no "faithful and discreet slave". All I want to accomplish is for people to see that the Governing Body gone beyond their assignment and lifted themselves up over us all. Yes, they have tried to take the place of Jehovah God.</i><br /><br /><br /><center><h2><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html">Enter</a></h2></center><br /><center><h2><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Praise Jehovah: Scripture of the Week!</span></h2></center><br /><center>"Praise Jah, you people, For it is good to make melody to our God; For it is pleasant—praise is fitting. Jehovah is building Jerusalem; The dispersed ones of Israel he brings together. He is healing the brokenhearted ones, And is binding up their painful spots. He is counting the number of the stars; All of them he calls by their names. Our Lord is great and is abundant in power; His understanding is beyond recounting."<br />-<b>Psalm 147:1-5, <i>New World Translation</i></b></center><br /><br /><center>I would love to hear from you. Feel free to email me at "ebed.abodah@yahoo.com" anytime.</center>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-2867544909038089792009-08-25T20:55:00.000-07:002009-08-26T09:53:26.106-07:00Faith or Works; Knowing or Knowing AboutMany people outside of the Truth constantly criticize Jehovah's people for our preaching work, claiming that we try to earn our salvation by means of it. These people may claim to see the need for such a work but then try to lead people away from Jehovah and His Son by putting us down for doing it. Fortunately, this has not stopped us.<br /><br />Jesus Christ told us that we had to preach the Kingdom. (Matt. 10:7; 28:19-20) And, like a good leader, he did not make us do something that he himself would not do, unlike the hypocritical pharisees. (Luke 4:43; 8:1; Matt. 23:2, 4) In fact, he knew without a doubt that he could trust his followers to complete this work. - Matt. 24:14; Mark 13:10<br /><br />When we think about the seven million plus Christian's that undertake this monumental task, though, what do we think about? Well, the Governing Body tells us all of the time how enthusiastic Jehovah's Witnesses are when doing this work. Is this actually the case? Are <span style="font-style: italic;">you </span>enthusiastic out in the field ministry? Do you <span style="font-style: italic;">want</span> to do this work or do you feel like it is more of a burden?<br /><br />While there are in fact many Christians who want to do the preaching-work, there are others who are less then enthusiastic or even downright don't like to participate. Is this an indication of spiritual weakness on their part?<br /><br />We all know that the preaching-work is a command, really, and that no commandments of Jesus or Jehovah are burdensome. (Matt. 11:28-30; 1 John 5:3) So, then, why do so many Jehovah's Witnesses fell burdened with this work? Maybe the Bible can help us to figure this out.<br /><br /><center><b>Joyful Proclaimers of God's Will</b></center><br /><br />Proclaiming messages from or for Jehovah is not new. The first person in the Bible to preach was fearless even unto death. That person was Enoch. Concerning him the Bible says, "Enoch prophesied...when he said: 'Look! Jehovah came with his holy myriads, to execute judgment against all, and to convict all the ungodly concerning all their ungodly deeds that they did in an ungodly way, and concerning all the shocking things that ungodly sinners spoke against him.' " (Jude 13-14; Gen. 5:21-24; Heb. 11:5) Then we have Noah who the Bible calls "a preacher of righteousness." (2 Pet. 2:5) He built an ark at Jehovah's command and did all that he could to help others see the need to come aboard with him. - Gen. 6:13-16, 22<br /><br />Moses was someone else who had to speak for Jehovah. He was sent before the most powerful man in the world to tell him that he had to free the Israelites from bondage. (Ex. 3:10) He even had to go before the those same Israelites and convince them that he was indeed sent from Jehovah. (Ex. 3:13-18) This was not an easy task. Moses did it, though.<br /><br />In the times of King Hezekiah of Judah, that righteous king made it his duty to hold a Passover to Jehovah and invite as many people as possible. He set up a campaign to do this. Regarding this the Bible says, "At the king's command, couriers went throughout Israel and Judah with letters from the king and from his officials...The couriers went from town to town in Ephraim and Manasseh, as far as Zebulun, but the people scorned and ridiculed them. Nevertheless, some men of Asher, Manasseh and Zebulun humbled themselves and went to Jerusalem. Also in Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the LORD." (2 Chron. 30:6, 10-12, <span style="font-style: italic;">New International Version</span>) The joy that resulted from this Passover was tremendous.<br /><br />Even when we look at the prophets of Israel, we can see how fearlessly they proclaimed Jehovah's messages. Jeremiah described his desire to do Jehovah's work as "a burning fire shut up in [his] bones." (Jer. 20:9) We can be sure that all of the prophets had that burning desire to do Jehovah's will and Jehovah blessed them for it. (Isa. 6:1, 8) Yes, even the angels wanted to do Jehovah's will. - 2 Chron. 18:19-21; Dan. 9:20-21<br /><br />However, there were people who were less then enthusiastic about doing Jehovah's will. A good example of this was Jonah. He completely ran the other way when Jehovah told him to go to Nineveh and proclaim a judgment message. Despite Jonah's reluctance, Jehovah still used him and even when Jonah's preaching produced fine results, Jonah was still upset. Even though, the Bible does not speak negatively of Jonah. - Jon. 1:1-3; 3:4-7; 4:1-4<br /><br /><center><b>The Early Christians Find Joy</b></center><br /><br />When Jesus formed the Christian Congregation in the first-century, the command to preach was not neglected. With the help of holy spirit, the Christians then were able to preach despite persecution. (Acts 2:14-42; 8:1, 4) Philip the Evangelist was such a zealous brother that Jehovah used him many times to speak to people about the good news. Each of these yielded fine results. - Acts 8:5-6, 12-13, 34-39<br /><br />The Apostle Paul was someone who was someone set aside specifically for people of the nations, although he was not to neglect any Jews who showed interest in the good news. Indeed, he would "by any means incite those who are [his] own flesh and blood to jealousy and save some from among them." (Rom. 11:13-14) His main concern was the preaching work, saying the words that all of us should know and repeat daily: "Woe is me if I did not declare the good news." - 1 Cor. 9:16<br /><br />Paul's knew that his preaching helped him be "clean from the blood of all man." (Acts 20:26) It also helped him to know that he was approved by God. Yes, not preaching would have incurred bloodguilt and Jehovah's disfavor. (1 Cor. 9:27) The one thing that we all neglect in reference to the Apostle Paul's preaching activity is that, while he did it freely, if he had done it "against [his] will" then he would still have had "a stewardship entrusted to him." - 1 Cor. 9:17<br /><br />No matter the circumstances, not only Paul but all the Christian's preached the good news everywhere they went. The disciple Stephen preached to the entire Sanhedrin although he knew that it would probably mean his death. (Acts 6:8-13; 7:2-60) When faced with severe beatings, jail and death, the Christians remained faithful to their commission. - Acts 12:1-5; 14:19-21; 16:25-32<br /><br />How did the early Christians manage to do this? Jesus Christ said, "You will receive power when the holy spirit arrives upon you, and you will be witnesses of me both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the most distant part of the earth." (Acts 1:8) Yes, it was only by the power of the holy spirit that this work was able to be completed. In those days, the holy spirit was very active. - Acts 9:31; 13:2-4, 52; 15:28; 16:6; 19:6; 20:28; 21:10-11<br /><br />Is the holy spirit active today?<br /><br /><center><b>God's Power or Man's Power</b></center><br /><br />How is the world-wide preaching work being done today? Is Jehovah's spirit active among us as Jehovah's Witnesses, declarers of the good news? That is a hard question. The visible evidence suggests that it is and who am I to declare otherwise? On the other hand, the dislike for the ministry on the part of some of our brothers - and believe me, many brothers do not like the ministry - leaves my mind somewhat confused on the matter.<br /><br />If the ministry was loved as much as the Writing Department at Bethel would have us believe, why are there so many articles encouraging us to do more in the ministry? Is it perhaps that the number of irregular publishers is at an alarming high?<br /><br />I have heard rumors of brothers (and when I say brothers I am referring to brothers and sisters) who have falsified their time reports. I know brothers who always quit service after only an hour in the ministry on a Saturday morning.<br /><br />Back in the seventies, there was "new light" and it was taught that sacred service was more then just the preaching activity, like it has previously been thought. Now sacred service was anything that Jehovah required of you as brought out in the Bible. <i>The Watchtower</i> Aug. 1, 1977 said this:<br /><br /><blockquote>"Sacred service also includes doing good to others, sharing things—how we live our lives each day. Our conduct at work, for example, reflects on our worship of God. As Colossians 3:23, 24 says: 'Whatever you are doing, work at it whole-souled as to Jehovah, and not to men, for you know that it is from Jehovah you will receive the due reward of the inheritance. Slave for the Master, Christ.' This would include every facet of our lives—in our witnessing to others, at home, at work—it all reflects on how we respond to Jehovah’s direction.<br /><br />"For example, both men and women have certain God-given responsibilities and assignments to perform within the family circle. Those who recognize Jehovah’s direction in their lives see the applying and the carrying out of such heavenly instruction as a part of their sacred service in the sight of God. Thus Colossians 3:18-22 (Good News for Modern Man) reminds us: 'Wives, be obedient to your husbands, for that is what you should do as Christians. Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. Children, it is your Christian duty to obey your parents always, for that is what pleases God. Parents, do not irritate your children, or they might become discouraged. Slaves [today, employees], obey your human masters in all things, and do it not only when they are watching you, just to gain their approval, but do it with a sincere heart, because of your reverence for the Lord.'<br /><br />"Thus a woman’s devoted care for her family is a part of her sacred service, since Jehovah has given her that assignment. And she should be whole-souled in carrying it out as befits an assignment from God. (Prov. 31:15, 27) The same is true of the husband, for he must carry out his assigned role to provide things needful and to give loving oversight to the family. So wives’ obedience to husbands, husbands’ love for wives, children’s obeying parents—all should be whole-souled to be pleasing to Jehovah."</blockquote><br /><br />When people found out that their sacred service to Jehovah involved all aspects of their life, being good employees, husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, children, Christians, they reasoned that this meant they could spread their time evenly between these duties and their duties as a Christian, namely, the ministry. Hours spent preaching dropped. Although I was not in the Truth at this time, I have spoken to many who were.<br /><br />In a few years, the Society realized this was a problem so in <i>The Watchtower</i> of Aug. 15, 1980 reneged on that previous understanding and went back to the original.<br /><br /><blockquote>"When all Christian witnesses of Jehovah do what the apostle Paul instructs them to do in Romans 13:1-7, they are doing only what is required of all other citizens or alien residents of a country. Properly we do so as good and orderly persons, and this keeps us from getting into trouble with the “superior authorities.” We also do so with a higher motivation, that is, to keep a good conscience and an appreciation of what is right and fitting. But our now acting in this way under the name of Christian witnesses of Jehovah does not automatically change our proper conduct into the Scriptural 'sacred service.' All other law-abiding citizens do the same things, even without the same motivations that we have. So how do we differ in these respects?<br /><br />"However, suppose the authorities of the land forbid us to carry on our worship as Christian witnesses of Jehovah? What now if we take up the words of the apostles of Christ: 'We must obey God as ruler rather than men'? (Acts 5:29) Our continuing to do what all other citizens do not do, in order to obey what God orders his dedicated, baptized witnesses to do keeps what we are doing a service sacred to him. This holds true even though the authorities and other citizens of the land may denounce it as illegal, lawless.<br /><br />"For instance, God’s Word commands: 'Let us hold fast the public declaration of our hope without wavering, for he is faithful that promised. And let us consider one another to incite to love and fine works, not forsaking the gathering of ourselves together, as some have the custom. but encouraging one another, and all the more so as you behold the day drawing near.'—Heb. 10:23-25<br /><br />"Undeniably our obedience to this inspired exhortation, even though we suffer for it at men’s hands, is a sacred service to the Supreme Being, Jehovah God. Let the displeased 'superior authorities' of the land brand it as they choose to do, legalistically.—2 Tim. 2:8-10"</blockquote><br /><br />This "new light" made sacred service <span style="font-style: italic;">only</span> our preaching activity. The hours went up and the Governing Body was pleased.<br /><br />Further back, when the preaching work "virtually stopped", as the Society says in our publications, it wasn't until Rutherford and his associates were released from prison that it started back up again. It seemed the brothers needed a visual figure leading the way. Even before that, when it was first becoming mandatory for brothers to preach to be considered in the truth, many left because they just didn't want to do it.<br /><br />What a contrast between the first-century Christians and modern-day Christians. The holy spirit was working through those ones in an obvious way but, for us today, could it be said it is less obvious? And if the holy spirit isn't as active today is it was back then, the fault only lies with us and the Governing Body. How so?<br /><br />Many of our brothers and sisters preach because it is required of them. They do the bare minimum to remain in the truth and keep their good standing in the congregation. Others who are pioneers go out to get their hours instead of to actually please Jehovah in the field ministry. How often do we hear such ones talk about needing a long day so they can get the required hours before the end of the month? I, for one, hear it quite often and am displeased whenever I hear it.<br /><br />Also not uncommon, is to hear of people who pioneer because they feel pressured into it. About six years ago I read a few random pages from a book by an ex-Witness sister who was a stay-at-home mom. She had been pioneering for two or three years because other sisters would speak negatively of her, complaining that she was weak because she could spend her free time in the ministry as a pioneer but wasn't doing and and, oh, if only they had the time she had!<br /><br />An experience closer to home was when a sister that I worked under lost her job, she told me that she didn't really have to work because her husband made enough money to support the family on his own but she worked because she liked it. When another sister in the congregation expressed worry over this first sister losing her job, I, not really thinking about it, repeated what I had been told. The demeanor of this second sister completely changed. She said, "I thought she was a good sister. If she doesn't have to work then she should be pioneering!"<br /><br />People today feel forced to take part in an activity that they would rather not, even though it is a command, which they know. Why do they do it despite finding no joy in it? In short, fear of what their brothers and sisters in the Truth will think or say about them if they went out for five hours a month instead of ten. Can the holy spirit bless this situation with more of a burning zeal?<br /><br />Another reason we may not have the holy spirit to the extent that the first-century Christians have is because, many times, our spirituality and, therefore, the amount of privileges we have is based entirely on how many hours we get in the ministry. If we get fewer hours, we're supposedly spiritually weak and less trustworthy for congregational privileges.<br /><br />Where, though, is the command to report our time in the field ministry? The Society many times will allude to Mark 6:30 as "Scriptural" backup for reporting time. What they fail to remember though is this Scriptural counsel: "Take good care not to practice your righteousness in front of men in order to be observed by them; otherwise you will have no reward with your Father who is in the heavens. Hence when you go making gifts of mercy, do not blow a trumpet ahead of you, just as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be glorified by men. Truly I say to you, They are having their reward in full. But you, when making gifts of mercy, do not let your left hand know what your right is doing, that your gifts of mercy may be in secret; then your Father who is looking on in secret will repay you." - Matt. 6:1-4<br /><br /><center><b>Following the Model: Failing Where They Failed</b></center><br /><br />Doing the preaching work in this environment is not conducive to success. We are doing it, really, based on our own power and because of being leaned on by man. We can never succeed. The preaching work, and any form of service to Jehovah, is viewed as a necessary burden that has to be shouldered.<br /><br />That is exactly what the Israelites felt about the Law. They viewed it as 600+ rules that had to followed rigidly. They would tell themselves, "Okay, I can do this, I can't do this. I can do that, I can't do that." That is how they saw Jehovah's Law and that is how they followed Jehovah's Law.<br /><br />In actuality, the Israelite's should have known all along that they <span style="font-style: italic;">couldn't</span> follow Jehovah's Law. It was impossible and yet they tried anyway. This led to miserable failure on their part. If they had only realized from the beginning that they couldn't do it on their own and had faith that Jehovah would help them then things may have turned out differently for them. That is why the Apostle Paul said, "Israel, although pursuing a law of righteousness, did not attain to the law. For what reason? Because he pursued it, not by faith, but as by works." - Rom. 9:31-32<br /><br />We have the same problem today. Instead of learning from the Israelite's example, since all this was written "for our instruction," we ignore it and again try to follow Jehovah by works instead of faith. (Rom. 15:4) We have to understand that we <span style="font-style: italic;">cannot</span> follow Jehovah's perfect expectation without <span style="font-style: italic;">His</span> help. When we are forced to do it like we are, we view it as a burden and we begin to dread it.<br /><br />Brothers, we are breaking all of the rules and Jehovah's spirit cannot have a part in that. We have to come back to Jehovah's way. When we follow an Organization run by man, we leave off the path Jehovah tells us to follow for an unknown path. Jehovah is no longer our shepherd but a man is. - Ps. 23:1<br /><br />How can we change this course we are on?<br /><br /><center><b>Changing Course; Finding Jehovah</b></center><b></b><br /><br />Can we return to Jehovah? Well, how can we return to Him if we had never drawn close to Him in the first place? What do I mean?<br /><br />Jehovah says to us through the Apostle James, "Draw close to God, and he will draw close to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you indecisive ones." (James 4:8) How can we "draw close to God" and why do I wonder if we ever did in the first place?<br /><br />In a recent news report about our "Keep on the Watch" district convention the news reporter said at the end we will have "just an analytical approach, [we] promise, to let people know why the end is near." Unfortunately, this is how we do everything.<br /><br />At John 17:3 we read, "This means everlasting life. Their <span style="font-style: italic;">taking in knowledge of you</span>, the only true God, and the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ." The <i>English Standard Version</i> of the Bible translates John 17:3 this way: "T<span class="woj" style="">his is eternal life,<sup class="xref" value="" href="%22#cen-ESV-26751B%22" title=""See"> </sup><span style="font-style: italic;">that they know you</span><sup class="xref" value="" href="%22#cen-ESV-26751C%22" title=""See"> </sup>the only<sup class="xref" value="" href="%22#cen-ESV-26751D%22" title=""See"> </sup>true God, and<sup class="xref" value="" href="%22#cen-ESV-26751E%22" title=""See"> </sup>Jesus Christ whom you have sent.</span>" (Other Bibles read similarly.) The Amplified Bible explains further, saying, "to perceive, recognize, become acquainted with, and understand." Which translation of this verse is better?<br /><br />While many have probably never thought about it, probably reading this verse out of many translations at the door, the wording in the <i>New World Translation</i> is inferior to the wording in the other versions of God's Word. How so?<br /><br />Pick your favorite actor, actress, or musician. How much do you know about them? Do you know their first, middle, and last name? Do you know their life story? Do you know their birthday? Favorite color? Favorite food? Likes and dislikes? Have you ever met them?<br /><br />No matter how much knowledge you have about someone, you still don't <i>know</i> them. You may know all of the above information regarding your favorite actor or singer but you are not friends with them. You have to get to know them or you are just another fan. That is what we are in regards to Jehovah. We are fans. We'll cheer when He walks down the red carpet but we won't feel His emotions when someone He loves hurts Him like the angels in Noah's day or the wayward Israelite's did. We can't really feel His pain when Jesus died or empathize with Him like a close friend would.<br /><br />Everything we do at our meetings is entirely analytical. We <span style="font-style: italic;">learn</span> about Jehovah and the Bible but we never get to know Jehovah. This, in turn, weakens our resolve to do all we can in the preaching word for Jehovah. Our worship of Jehovah is based on works and knowledge, not faith and relationships.<br /><br />Until that changes, we'll be walking down the same path, heading nowhere. Let us change that, starting today. Stop looking at the Bible with an analytical approach, trying to gain intelligence about God's Book. Stop looking at it with physical eyes and look at it with spiritual eyes. We're lost until then.<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"></a><h3><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html">Back to Directory</a><br /></h3>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-83342302148230748082009-08-24T14:52:00.000-07:002009-08-25T09:19:48.967-07:00Who Will Save Us?Throughout the years, the Watchtower has repeatedly pointed to itself as our means of salvation. Statements like these were at one time commonplace in the pages of our publications:<br /><br /><blockquote>"The ark of salvation that we enter is not a literal ark but is God's organization." - <b><i>The Watchtower</i>, June 1, 1950</b><br /><br />"Those desiring salvation must make for God's organization, and find entrance into it and remain there permanently." - <b><i>The Watchtower</i>, Oct. 1, 1952</b><br /><br />"Bible students need to get acquainted with the organization of the 'one flock' Jesus spoke about at John 10:16. They must appreciate that identifying themselves with Jehovah's organization is essential to their salvation. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=re;chp=7;vs=9">Rev. 7:9-10</a>, <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=re;chp=7;vs=15">15</a>) Therefore, we should start directing our Bible students to the organization as soon as a Bible study is established." - <b><i>Our Kingdom Ministry</i>, Nov. 1990</b></blockquote><br />From here, I thought it would be beneficial to look at the Scripture quote they use in the last paragraph from the KM to see if it says the same thing they say.<br /><br /><blockquote>"After these things I saw, and, look! a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes; and there were palm branches in their hands. And they keep on crying with a loud voice, saying: 'Salvation we owe to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb'...That is why they are before the throne of God; and they are rendering him sacred service day and night in his temple; and the One seated on the throne will spread his tent over them." - <b><a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=re;chp=7;vs=9">Rev. 7:9-10</a>, <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=re;chp=7;vs=15">15</a></b></blockquote><br /><br />Tell me, where does it say anything about an Organization? All I can personally see is that "salvation we owe <i>to our God...and to the Lamb</i>." Nowhere is there an indication that we are supposed to go into an Organization for salvation.<br /><br />Even more importantly, though, what does Jehovah have to say on this matter? Only by looking in His Word, the Bible, can we truly find out Who Will Save Us.<br /><br /><b><center>Salvation From Jehovah Alone</center></b><br /><br />"You will not need to be afraid of any sudden dreadful thing, nor of the storm upon the wicked ones, because it is coming. For Jehovah Himself will prove to be, in effect, your confidence, and He will certainly keep your foot against capture." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=pr;chp=3;vs=25">Pro. 3:25-26</a>) The Bible tells us that a storm is coming and that our only means of salvation is Jehovah alone.<br /><br />Lately, I have been having a conversation with a brother who is faithful to the Watchtower Society and he keeps saying over and over in all his emails that the only way we can attain to salvation is to stick to Jehovah's Organization. If we leave that Organization then we will not be saved. However, his major problem is that not even once did he present a Scripture to back himself up.<br /><br />On the other hand, I was arguing in favor of Jehovah. I was telling this brother that only by running into our "Strong Tower" can we hope to be saved through the coming storm. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=pr;chp=18;vs=10">Pro. 18:10</a>) We cannot ascribe to salvation to any other source. Doesn't the Bible tell us to "stand firm and see the salvation of Jehovah?" (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ex;chp=13;vs=14">Ex. 13:14</a>) Yes, although this was in conjecture with the Israelites, we can apply it to today. We have to rely on Jehovah. Moses couldn't save those Israelites. Neither could the "organization" of the past, which the Society claims is the "organization" of priests and sacrifices. There was no hope in that. "It is not possible for the blood of bulls and of goats to take sins away." - <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=heb;chp=10;vs=4">Heb. 10:4</a><br /><br />Even today, only one type of blood can save us and that is The Blood of the Lamb. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=he;chp=9;vs=11">Heb. 9:11-14</a>) Through that blood we have a spiritual deliverance and through the good standing with Jehovah that this blood gives us, we have another deliverance. Psalm 91 explains this deliverance.<br /><br /><blockquote>"I will say to Jehovah: 'You are my refuge and my stronghold, my God, in whom I will trust.' For he himself will deliver you from the trap of the birdcatcher, from the pestilence causing adversities...A thousand will fall at your very side and ten thousand at your right hand; to you it will not come near. Only with your eyes will you look on And see the retribution itself of the wicked ones. Because you said: 'Jehovah is my refuge,' you have made the Most High himself your dwelling; no calamity will befall you, and not even a plague will draw near to your tent. For he will give his own angels a command concerning you, to guard you in all your ways. Upon their hands they will carry you, that you may not strike your foot against any stone...Because on me he has set his affection, I shall also provide him with escape. I shall protect him because he has come to know my name. He will call upon me, and I shall answer him. I shall be with him in distress. I shall rescue him and glorify him. With length of days I shall satisfy him, and I shall cause him to see salvation by me." - <b><a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ps;chp=91;vs=2">Psalm 91:2-3</a>, <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ps;chp=91;vs=7">7-12</a>, <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ps;chp=91;vs=14">14-16</a></b></blockquote><br />Did you notice that last verse? "I shall cause him to see salvation by me" that being after "a thousand will be falling" at Armageddon. Yes, the storm is coming and only by running into the ark of Jehovah can we hope to be saved through it.<br /><br /><center><b>Something Bad</b></center><b></b><br /><br />The Apostle John closed his very first letter with the words, "Little children, guard yourselves from idols." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=1jo;chp=5;vs=21">1 John 5:21</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=1co;chp=6;vs=9">1 Cor. 6:9-10</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=1co;chp=10;vs=14">10:14</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=2co;chp=6;vs=16">2 Cor. 6:16</a>) Throughout the entire Bible we are constantly warned to not have idols. In fact, Christians were not even to eat anything sacrificed to idols, which is how serious this was to Jehovah. - <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ac;chp=15;vs=29">Acts 15:29</a><br /><br />What, though, is an idol? The Insight books explains. "An image, a representation of anything, or a symbol that is an object of passionate devotion, whether material or imagined. Generally speaking, idolatry is the veneration, love, worship, or adoration of an idol. It is usually practiced toward a real or supposed higher power, whether such power is believed to have animate existence (as a human, an animal, or an organization) or is inanimate (as a force or lifeless object of nature)." -<i>Insight on the Scriptures, Vol. 1</i> pg. 1167<br /><br />In a past <i>Watchtower</i> we read concerning idols: "As Christians, we face up to similar challenges today. We cannot take part in any modern version of idolatry - be it worshipful gestures toward an image or symbol or <i>the imputing of salvation to a person or an <b>organization</b></i>." (<i>Watchtower</i>, Nov. 1, 1990) Yet, didn't we always see quotes like these below?<br /><br /><blockquote>"And while now the witness yet includes the invitation to come to Jehovah's organization for salvation, the time no doubt will come when the message takes on a harder tone, like a "great war cry." - <b><i>The Watchtower</i>, Nov. 15, 1981, pg. 21</b><br /><br />"But if we were to draw away from Jehovah's organization, there would be no place else to go for salvation and true joy." - <b><i>The Watchtower</i>, Sept. 15, 1993, p. 22</b></blockquote><br />Whether the Watchtower and its Governing Body wants to admit it, it has unwittingly made itself into an idol by ascribing salvation to itself. Even welling-meaning brothers believe this. Read this excerpt from an e-mail conversation I had with a brother.<br /><br /><blockquote>"Armageddon is coming?! Are you crazy?! If you don't have any more sense than that, seriously you can't convince me of anything! No other group of people has made God's name known all over the world, despite protests from the very powerful ruler of the world. Not even Satan can stop them. The Watchtower CANNOT INTENTIONALLY PRODUCE A FAULT that is going to push me away from them when I know calamity for all the earth is coming."<br /><br />"If you were on a ship and heard an unfavorable rumour about the captain, whether it is true or not do you jump off the boat into the middle of the ocean? Is that considered an intelligent thing to do? Does that rumour make the boat any less of a means of transportation? No one who had a problem with Noah survived the Flood. Last I heard, there were no other boats...Where did YOU go that the group is "thinking upon the name of Jehovah" worldwide? I ALREADY KNOW that you've not found a second 'ark.' There is only one. So why are you standing around trying to persuade those who are already going to live and be unimaginably BLESSED to come out of the ark to practice their breast stroke with you?! I promise you, if I thought a great deluge of waters was coming, Noah COULDN'T PRODUCE ON PURPOSE a fault that would have 'stumbled' me. If he was messing with my mama, I'd just have to deal with it AFTER the Flood. But until then, one ticket for Noah's Ark please."</blockquote><br />This poor brother is imputing salvation to the Watchtower. That was the entire point of our conversation. He has unintentionally made the Watchtower, not only his means of salvation but also his idol. Unfortunately, he is on a sinking ship.<br /><br />Again, who will save us? "Salvation belongs to Jehovah. Your blessing is upon your people." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ps;chp=3;vs=8">Ps. 3:8</a>) "The horse is something prepared for the day of battle, but salvation belongs to Jehovah." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=pr;chp=21;vs=31">Pro. 21:31</a>) "Look! God is my salvation. I shall trust and be in no dread; for Jah Jehovah is my strength and my might, and he came to be the salvation of me." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=isa;chp=12;vs=2">Isa. 12:2</a>) "Salvation belongs to Jehovah." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=jon;chp=2;vs=9">Jonah 2:9</a>) "But as for me, it is for Jehovah that I shall keep on the lookout. I will show a waiting attitude for the God of my salvation." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=mic;chp=7;vs=7">Mic. 7:7</a>) "Yet, as for me, I will exult in Jehovah himself; I will be joyful in the God of my salvation." (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=hab;chp=3;vs=18">Hab. 3:18</a>) Salvation is only through Jehovah.<br /><br /><center><b>Trusting in Men</b></center><br /><br />The Watchtower Society has done a good job making people <i>have</i> to rely on them. Even when brothers and sisters see the truth about the control the Watchtower has over us and that it is wrong, sometimes they have a hard time accepting it. Intellectually they want to follow the Watchtower while emotionally they know the faultiness of that thinking.<br /><br />When something has been drilled into our brain for so long we can have a hard time forgetting it just like we can have a hard time forgetting how to ride a bike or tie a shoe. We just <i>know</i> how to do it and nothing (except for a good conk on the head!) can take it away from us.<br /><br />The Apostle Paul speaks of "strongly entrenched things" that need to be overturned. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=2co;chp=10;vs=4">2 Cor. 10:4</a>) These things are so ingrained in their brains - their way of living - that it can take years to get those out. Even the Apostle Paul, after seeing the Lord Jesus Christ, possibly still had to take time to meditate on the things he had seen and heard. (See <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ga;chp=1;vs=13">Gal. 1:13-17</a>) It is the same with brothers and sisters who finally are able to see the Truth regarding the Governing Body. They need milk at first and not solid food. Yes, they have to start over in a way. - <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=he;chp=5;vs=11">Heb. 5:11-14</a><br /><br />Unfortunately, we are going to have people who, no matter how we explain or how many Bible Scriptures we use, just cannot see the Truth. Like the unbelievers who cannot see the "glorious good news about the Christ", these brothers are having their eyes blinded, no, not by "the god of this system of things" but by the Governing Body, the Man of Lawlessness. - <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=2co;chp=4;vs=4">2 Cor. 4:4</a><br /><br />In ancient Jerusalem, there were basically two types of people. Those who were "sighing and groaning" over the detestable things going on in that city and then there were those who "have loved it" the way it is. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=eze;chp=3;vs=4">Eze. 3:4</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=jer;chp=5;vs=31">Jer. 5:31</a>) The second type of people will never, without Jehovah's help, be able to see the need to change and become the former. They will believe everything the Governing Body tells them to, thinking that the "ark" they need to be in is the Organization. They trust men for their salvation. Jehovah gives a message to all those who are trusting men, telling us their final outcome.<br /><br /><blockquote>"This is what Jehovah has said: “Cursed is the able-bodied man who puts his trust in earthling man and actually makes flesh his arm, and whose heart turns away from Jehovah himself. And he will certainly become like a solitary tree in the desert plain and will not see when good comes; but he must reside in parched places in the wilderness, in a salt country that is not inhabited." <b>-<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=jer;chp=17;vs=5">Jeremiah 17:5-6</a></b></blockquote><br />The ones who trust in men for salvation will find that "no salvation belongs" to them. We can never trust anyone who is a 'son of earthling man'. They will die. "Their spirit [will go] out" and their thoughts will perish. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=ps;chp=146;vs=3">Ps. 146:3-4</a>) In the end, there will only be One Person left that we can put our trust in for salvation. Who is This?<br /><br /><blockquote>"Blessed is the able-bodied man who puts his trust in Jehovah, and whose confidence Jehovah has become. And he will certainly become like a tree planted by the waters, that sends out its roots right by the watercourse; and he will not see when heat comes, but his foliage will actually prove to be luxuriant. And in the year of drought he will not become anxious, nor will he leave off from producing fruit."<b><a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=jer;chp=17;vs=7">Jeremiah 17:7-8</a></b></blockquote><br />Just as we cannot "serve both God and riches", we can trust in both Jehovah and man. (<a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=mt;chp=6;vs=24">Matt. 6:24</a>) We have to pick just one. Will you hold onto the Organization or will you hold onto Jehovah?<br /><br />The Governing Body tells us that Jesus is the Greater Noah and the Organization is the "antitypical ark" that we have to enter for salvation. On the other hand, Jehovah says that He will bring us through the storm that is coming. This makes the "antitypical ark", not the Organization but Jehovah Himself. Like the "Strong Tower" that He is, let us run there for our salvation from the coming storm "for it is coming." - <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=eze;chp=7;vs=5">Eze. 7:5-7</a>; <a href="http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm?bk=pr;chp=1;vs=22">Pro. 1:22-33</a><br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"></a><h3><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html">Back to Directory</a></h3><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><br /></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-58096985946626097962009-08-16T20:23:00.000-07:002009-08-16T20:33:49.247-07:00Interesting Quotes from the Watchtower<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">"If we were following a man undoubtedly it would be different with us; undoubtedly one human idea would contradict another and that which was light one or two or six years ago would be regarded as darkness now: But with God there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning, and so it is with truth; any knowledge or light coming from god must be like its author. a new view of truth never can contradict a former truth. new light never extinguishes older light, but adds to it. If you were lighting up a building containing seven gas jets you would not extinguish one every time you lighted another, but would add one light to another and they would be in harmony and thus give increase of light. So is it with the light of truth; the true increase is by adding to, not by substituting one for another." </span></span><span style="text-decoration: none;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><b>(</b></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style="font-family:arial;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>Watchtower</b></span></i></span><span style="text-decoration: none;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><b> Feb. 1, 1881, Reprints p. 188) </b></span><span style="text-decoration: none;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><br /><br />"Q. Could not an earnest, aggressive organization (or sect), built upon Scriptural lines, be the best means of spreading and publish the real good tidings?<br /></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">A. We believe that a visible organization and the adopting of some particular name would tend to increase the numbers and make us appear more respectable in the estimation of the world. The natural man can see that a visibly organized body, with a definite purpose, is a thing of more or less power. But the natural man cannot understand how a company of people, with no organization which they can see, is ever going to accomplish anything." </span><b style="font-family: arial;">(</b><i style="font-family: arial;"><b>Zion's Watch Tower</b></i><b style="font-family: arial;">, 1883, page 6.)</b></span> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;">"In view of these facts and also of the nature of the harvest work, and the addition. In fact that each one so gathered is expected to enter into the harvest work as a reaper, and will do so to the extent of his ability and opportunity, </span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">it is plain that the forming of a visible organization of such gathered out ones would be out of harmony with the spirit of the divine plan</span></span></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;">; and, it done, would seem to indicate on the part of the Church a desire to conform to the now popular idea of organization or confederacy.” </span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>(</b></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><b>Zion's Watch Tower</b></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>, 1894, p. 384)</b></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><br /><br />"Beware of 'organization.' It is wholly un-necessary. The Bible will be the only rules you need. Do not seek to bind other consciences, and do not permit others to bind yours. Believe and obey so far as you can understand God's word today, and so continue to growing in grace and knowledge day by day." </span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>(</b></span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>Zion's Watch Tower</b></span></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>, </b></span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>Sept. 15, </b></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>1895, p. 216.)</b></span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"></span></span></span><span style="text-decoration: none;font-size:100%;" ><br /><br />“<span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">To the whole series or messages of truth which he gave and which he continues to gives ever since the lighting have been flashing from the temple and upon the record of his word. The expression 'the word', therefore includes every revelation of truth down to and including the book Vindication and whatsoever shall be revealed and published, by the Lord's grace , as long as the remnant is on earth.” (</span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>Watchtower</b></span></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>, April 1, 1932 p. 101</b></span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;">) </span></span></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">"The claim of any individual or religious organization to be the interpreter of Gods sacred Word is false and misleading. No creature or organization on earth can truly presume to sit as the supreme tribunal of interpretation of the holy bible...Jehovah God is therefore the only Supreme Court of Interpretation of His inspired Word.” (</span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><b>Watchtower</b></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>, July 1, 1943, p. 202</b></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">)</span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: normal;"><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" >"The ark of salvation that we enter is not a literal ark but is God's organization." <b>(</b><i><b>Watchtower</b></i><b>, June 1, 1950, p. 176)</b></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="text-decoration: none;font-size:100%;" >“<span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">We should meekly go along with the Lord's theocratic organization” </span></span><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" ><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>(</b></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><em><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>Watchtower</b></span></span></em></span><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" ><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>, Feb. 1, 1952, p. 79-80)</b></span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size:100%;">“</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Those desiring salvation must make for God's organization, and find entrance into it and remain there permanently.”</span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b> (</b></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><b>Watchtower</b></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>, October 1, 1952, p. 603)</b></span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;"><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: normal;">"We are not living today among theocratic nations where such members of our fleshly family relationship could be exterminated for apostasy from God and his theocratic organization, as was possible and was ordered in the nation of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai and in the land of Palestine. 'Thou shalt surely kill him; thy hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. And thou shalt stone him to death with stones, because he hath sought to draw thee away from Jehovah thy God. And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is in the midst of thee.' Being limited by the laws of the worldly nation in which we live and also by the laws of God through Jesus Christ, we can take action against apostates only to a certain extent, that is, consistent with both sets of laws. The law of the land and God’s law through Christ forbid us to kill apostates, even though they be members of our own flesh-and-blood family relationship. However, God’s law requires us to recognize their being disfellowshiped from his congregation, and this despite the fact that the law of the land in which we live requires us under some natural obligation to live with and have dealings with such apostates under the same roof"</span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b> (</b></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><i><b>Watchtower </b></i></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-style: normal;"><b>November 15, 1952 </b></span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b>p. 703-704)</b></span><b> </b></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;">"The slave’s will is Jehovah’s will. Rebellion against the slave is rebellion against God." </span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>(</b></span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>Watchtower June 1, 1956 </b></span></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>p. 346) </b></span></span></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="text-decoration: none;font-size:100%;" >“</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Let us now unmistakably identify Jehovah's channel of communication for our day, that we may continue in his favor. It is vital that we appreciate this fact and respond to the directions of the 'slave' as we would to the voice of God.” (</span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><b>Watchtower</b></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>; June 15, 1957; p. 370</b></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">) </span></span></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">"Whom has God actually used as his prophet?....Jehovah's witnesses are deeply grateful today that the plain facts show that God has been pleased to use them....Jehovah thrust out his hand of power and touched their lips and put his words in their mouths." (</span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><b>Watchtower</b></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>, January 15, 1959, p. 40-41</b></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">) </span></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size:100%;">“</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">To hold to the headship of Christ, it is therefore necessary to obey the organization that he is personally directing. </span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Doing what the organization says is to do what he says. Resisting the organization is to resist him.</span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>”</b></span> <span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>(</b></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><b>Watchtower</b></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>, May 1, 1959, p. 269)</b></span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;">"Make haste to identify the visible theocratic organization of God that represents his king, Jesus Christ. It is essential for life. Doing so, be complete in accepting its every aspect. We cannot claim to love God, yet deny his Word and channel of communication." </span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>(</b></span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>Watchtower October 1, 1967</b></span></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b> p. 591-92) </b></span></span></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: normal;">"If you have a tendency towards 'apostasy', get a hobby and keep yourself busy to keep your mind off of it. Stay away from deep Bible study." </span><b>(GB Member Karl Klein, Address to WT, April, 30, 1980) </b></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;"><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: normal;">"From time to time, there have arisen from among the ranks of Jehovah's people those, who, like the original Satan, have adopted an independent, faultfinding attitude...They say that it is sufficient to read the Bible exclusively, either alone or in small groups at home. But, strangely, through such 'Bible reading,' they have reverted right back to the apostate doctrines that commentaries by Christendom's clergy were teaching 100 years ago."</span><b> (</b><i><b>Watchtower, </b></i><b>August 15, 1981, p. 28)</b></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;"><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: normal;">"Jehovah is using only one organization today to accomplish his will. To receive everlasting life in the earthly Paradise we must identify that organization and serve God as part of it."</span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span><b>(</b><i><b>Watchtower</b></i><b>, February 15, 1983, p. 12) </b></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" ><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">"Jehovah God caused the Bible to be written in such a way that one needs to come in touch with His human channel before one can fully and accurately understand it. True, we need the help of God's holy spirit, but help comes to us primarily by association with the channel Jehovah God sees fit to use." </span></span></span><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" ><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>(</b></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><em><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>Watchtower, February 15, 1983</b></span></span></em></span><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" ><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b> p.17)</b></span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;font-size:100%;" >“</span><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" >Bible students need to get acquainted with the organization of the "one flock" Jesus spoke about at John 10:16. They must appreciate that identifying themselves with Jehovah's organization is essential to their salvation. (Rev. 7:9, 10, 15) Therefore, we should start directing our Bible students to the organization as soon as a Bible study is established.” <b>(</b><i><b>Our Kingdom Ministry</b></i><b>, November 1990, p. 1)</b></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size:100%;"> “</span><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" >A mature Christian must be in unity and full harmony with fellow believers as far as faith and knowledge are concerned. He does not advocate or insist on personal opinions or harbor private ideas when it comes to Bible understanding. Rather, he has complete confidence in the truth as it is revealed by Jehovah God through his Son, Jesus Christ, and ‘the faithful and discreet slave.’” <i><b>(Watchtower, </b></i><b>August 1, 2001, p. 14)</b></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;"><span style=";font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:100%;" >"By submitting to the slave class, God’s people also show their subjection to the Master, Jesus Christ." <b>(</b><i><b>Watchtower, </b></i><span style="font-style: normal;"><b>October 1, 2002,</b></span><b> p. 19) </b></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="text-decoration: none;font-size:100%;" >“<span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">Since Jehovah God and Jesus Christ completely trust the faithful and discreet slave, should we not do the same? After all, the slave has shown itself to be faithful in doing its assigned work. . .The faithful slave is also discreet in that it neither acts immodestly, running ahead of Jehovah, nor lags behind when God's direction on a matter is clear. . .The slave is able to provide wise and timely warnings because Jehovah God and Jesus Christ are blessing it. The slave thus deserves our complete trust.” </span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>(</b></span></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><i><b>Watchtower</b></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><b>, </b></span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b>February 15, 2009)</b></span></span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i>"If the Society told me that this book is black instead of green, I would say, `Y'know, I could have sworn that it was green, but if the Society says it's black, then it's black!'” </i></span><b><span style="font-size:100%;">(Brother Bart Thomson, District Overseer)</span><br /></b></span></span></p><br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a><p></p>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-51326608069412638252009-07-16T13:51:00.000-07:002009-07-23T19:36:03.906-07:00Questions and Answer Regarding RevelationThis is the final entry into our look on the Bible book of <i>Revelation</i>. Since there is so much more that can be learned (although there is much of this book I still don't understand) from Revelation about how the future will play out, I thought that this could be done differently.<br /><br />This article will be more question and answer. If anyone wants to write me a question in the future, feel free to do so. I would love to do the extra research. If I cannot answer it, I will write back in a private email stating that I cannot. If I can, I will add it to the article and leave a note stating that it has been updated.<br /><br /><b></b><center><b>Questions</b></center><br /><br /><b><i>Question #1: </i></b>Can People Who Die During the Great Tribulation Receive a Resurrection?<br /><br /><i><b>Answer:</b></i><b></b> I wrote in <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/did-jesus-become-king-in-1914.html">my very first article</a> that the Bible indicates that the Great Tribulation will start immediately after Jesus Christ becomes King. His first act after receiving the Kingdom will be to destroy Satan's system of things at Armageddon.<br /><br />Keeping this in mind, Revelation 6 gives us the answer to that question. What is Revelation 6 about? Well, the Lamb of God (Jesus Christ) is given a sealed scroll that no one else is worthy to open. When he opens it, the Apostle John sees "a white horse; and the one seated upon it had a bow; and a crown was given him, and he went forth conquering and to complete his conquest." (Rev. 6:2) Who is the rider of the white horse? Revelation 19 reveals him to be Jesus Christ as King.-Rev. 19:11-16<br /><br />How do we know that this white horse is telling us that Jesus just became King? Well, the Scripture says that " a crown was given him" revealing that he received the crown <i>after</i> the vision started. He also goes "forth conquering and to complete his conquest." This shows that Armageddon is still future.<br /><br />The next horse that John sees is "a fiery-colored horse." The one seated on it is spoken of as being "granted to take peace away from the earth so that they should slaughter one another; and a great sword was given him." (Rev. 6:4) So, this indicates that one thing that will happen during the Great Tribulation is that war will take place. This could be World War III. Whatever may happen, we know that it will be bad, for Satan knows that he has an even shorter period of time.<br /><br />The next horse and rider is "a black horse." The one seated upon him has "a pair of scales in his hand." Then John hears a voice say, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the olive oil and the wine." (Rev. 6:6) A denarius was the wage people received for one day of work in the time of the Apostles. So this is telling us that during the Great Tribulation, people will have to work all day just to buy a little bit of food for themselves and their families. In other words, food will be scarce.<br /><br />The next horse is "a pale horse; and the one seated upon it had the name Death. And Hades was closely following him." Unlike the other horsemen of whom the Bible says does not have the authority to kill (although the red horse has the authority to cause people to kill <i>one another</i>), this one does. "And authority was given them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with a long sword and with food shortage and with deadly plague and by the wild beasts of the earth." (Rev. 6:8) The rider of this horse has the ability to kill people with the same plagues the two horsemen before him have but he can also kill them with pestilence and wild beasts.<br /><br />When the Lamb of God opens the fifth seal, then John sees the anointed who have been killed standing underneath the altar. So, the resurrection of the anointed must take place during the Great Tribulation. Jehovah God tells them that more of their anointed brothers still alive must be killed. The number seems to be set.<br /><br />The sixth seal brings about a great earthquake. At this time the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light and the stars of heaven will fall to the earth like a "fig tree shaken by a high wind [casting] its unripe figs." (Rev. 6:12-13; Matt. 24:29) The Bible calls this day "the wrath of the Lamb" and says that it also the wrath of Jehovah. Obviously, this earthquake represents Armageddon.-Compare Zeph. 1:18<br /><br />So, how does this answer the question presented above? Well, the fourth horse, the black one, has the power to kill people. And what is following him? Gehenna or Hades? We know that when someone dies and goes to Hades, they have the hope of a resurrection. And since this time period obviously takes place after Jesus becomes King and, therefore, after the Great Tribulation has begun, then the people who die during the Great Tribulation will still go to Hades and get a resurrection. This goes hand in hand with Jehovah's loving - kindness and mercy.-Ex. 34:6-7; Ps. 136; Eze. 18:23; 33:11; 2 Pet. 3:9<br /><br /><i><b>Question #2: </b>Does the Bible Indicate What the Course of Events Will Be That Play Out in the Future Leading to the Great Tribulation?</i><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Answer: </span></span>The Society says that there are eight prophecies that still remain to be fulfilled:<br /><br />1. The cry of "Peace and Security." (1 Thess. 5:3)<br />2. The Fall of Babylon the Great. (Rev. 18:1-2)<br />3. The attack by Gog of Magog against Jehovah's people. (Eze. 38:10-23)<br />4. Armageddon (Rev. 16:14, 16)<br />5. Satan and Demons abyssed. (Rev. 20:1-3)<br />6. New World and Resurrection (Rev. 22:3-4)<br />7. Jesus returns the Kingdom to Jehovah God (1 Cor. 15:24-28)<br />8. "Final Test" for mankind (Rev. 20:7-9)<br /><br />They say this is the exact order in which these things will take place. However, if you will notice, these things are not listed in any particular order in the Bible and so are open to questioning. How can we be sure that this is the right way?<br /><br />The simple answer? We cannot.<br /><br />However, the book of Revelation gives us a simple time line that we can see to understand.<br /><br />The Watchtower tells us in the Revelation book that this book of the Bible is actually a series of sixteen visions given to the Apostle John. I cannot agree with that. While I do agree that Revelation is actually a series of visions given to John, I believe that the number is far less then sixteen. It is probably closer to five, six, or seven. Understandably, by not knowing where one vision begins and another one ends, we cannot have a perfect understanding of future events.<br /><br />We can be confident, though, that visions that end with Armageddon conclude, like in Revelation chapter eleven and Revelation chapter fourteen, chapters twelve and fifteen start a new vision.* It seems that Revelation 14:6-20 gives us an indication of what we can wait for. **<br /><br />At Revelation 14:6-7 we hear of an angel sounding in mid-heaven. He is shouting, "Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of the judgment by him has arrived, and so worship the One who made the heaven and the earth and sea and fountains of waters." This is part of the "everlasting good news." The Society points to this Scripture as proof that angels are helping us in our preaching work. While they are right about having angelic help (See Hebrews 1:14) this Scripture seems to indicate something more.<br /><br />Before the end, the Bible seems to indicate that we are going to step up our message from one of the declaring the "good news of the Kingdom", the "good news about Jesus", and the "good news of God" and start to preach a judgment message. (Matt. 24:14; Mark 1:1; Rom. 15:16) Right now, our message should be about the Kingdom, Jesus, and Jehovah and only about those. Articles about wealth, rearing children, and other secondary things are fine when people ask for that kind of help but the Bible never instructs us to preach those things. We are told what to preach and we are told what we are going to preach: Judgment from God on this wicked system.<br /><br />After we step up our preaching something will happen that will hinder it a great deal. An angel proclaims: "She has fallen! Babylon the Great has fallen, she who made all the nations drink of the wine of the anger of her fornication!" (Rev. 14:8) Yes, the great harlot, false religion, will crumble. It is revealed that the nations turn against her and destroy her. (Rev. 17:16-17) What does this mean for us? Naturally, it will not be only false religion that will be targeted but true religion also, for the nations cannot distinguish between the two. So, using this as an excuse, it could be as the Society says, Satan will lead the nations in an attack against us. However, this attack comes later, as we will see.<br /><br />After Babylon has fallen, the nations (who have given their power to "the beast", or the United Nations) will want the worshipful devotion that went to the false gods of the people to be directed towards that beast. (Perhaps also this is when 1 Thess. 5:3 will be fulfilled). To accomplish this the beast will cause force everyone to receive a mark "on his forehead or upon his hand." (Rev. 14:9) Is this mark literal or symbolic? For the answer, see question 3.<br /><br />After these things, we are given a word of encouragement from heaven itself. " Happy are the dead who die in union with the Lord from this time onward. Yes, says the spirit, let them rest from their labors, for the things they did go right with them." (Rev. 14:13) We can be sure that major persecution will come. Jehovah's people, we alone, will not stop worshiping formally like the only religions will do. We will not accept the mark of the wild beast. We will have preached an intense judgment message with the assistance of the angels.<br /><br />We will be attacked for all of this. (Eze. 38:10-23) But then what will happen? Either directly before or directly after the prophecy at Eze. 38:10-23 has been fulfilled, we find that our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, will become King! (Rev. 14:14) After a relatively short period of "great tribulation" we will be saved by Jesus Christ at Armageddon. Praise Jehovah!-Rev. 14:15-20; 16:14, 16; 19:11-21<br /><br /><i><b>Question #3</b>: Is the Mark of the Beast literal or symbolic?</i><br /><br /><b><i>Answer</i></b>: Throughout the Bible we are told of various marks that people are given. Deuteronomy 11:18, Ezekiel 9:1-7, and Revelation 14:1 all tell of marks that are spoken of in a context that lets us know that they are without a doubt figurative.<br /><br />Obviously, that does not prove without a doubt that this particular mark is symbolic. Personally, while I cannot be sure, I am of the persuasion that this mark is in fact literal. Why? Well, in all of the other instances mentioned above, none of those people receiving those marks were "under compulsion" or "forced" (<i>New International Version</i>) to receive them. Neither were there immediate physical consequences for not receiving them. The Bible makes it clear that those who do not receive this particular mark will not "be able to buy or sell." If the mark were not literal, how could they tell one person who had it from someone who did not have and thus prevent them from 'buying or selling?' (Rev. 13:16-17) What would be the point in mentioning that those who do not have it can not "buy or sell" if it were only a symbolic mark?<br /><br />We also see that those who take this mark will have to answer to Jehovah for doing this. These people "<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" id="vs10">will also drink of the wine of the anger of God that is poured out undiluted into the cup of his wrath, and [they] shall be tormented with fire and sulphur in the sight of the holy angels and in the sight of the Lamb.</span> <span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" id="vs11">And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever, and day and night they have no rest, those who worship the wild beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.</span>" (Rev. 14:9-11) The description is clear: If you receive the mark on your forehead or right hand and worship the beast you <i>will</i> answer to Jehovah. Evidently, times will be so hard that even Jehovah's people will want to take the mark. That is why the Bible says, "<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" id="vs12">Here is where it means endurance for the holy ones, those who observe the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus." By not taking the mark it will prove our endurance.-Rev. 14:12</span><br /><br />Also, receiving this mark is not synonymous with worshiping the wild beast, as the Society would have us believe. The Bible makes it clear that people who receive this mark must also worship the beast. We are also told from the Bible that those who do not receive this mark will be killed. (Rev. 20:4) Unfortunately, while the Bible is not absolutely clear whether or not this mark is literal, it cannot be faulted against someone to believe that it is. Why not read Scriptures pertaining to this mark before coming to your own conclusion?-Rev. 13:16-18; 14:9-12; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><br />*One exception seems to be Revelation chapter six, which concludes at Revelation 8:1. Revelation 7 seems to be a sort of intermission in the vision or an epilogue to the vision. The Bible purposely does not give us the events following the opening of the seventh seal, only telling us that "a silence occurred in heaven for about a half hour." (Rev. 8:1) Since this occurred after Armageddon (see Rev. 6:16-17) it could possibly be a good silence (Satan abyssed) or a bad silence (the releasing of Satan). Perhaps it is neither. To claim to know definitely would be going "beyond the things that are written."-1 Cor. 4:6<br /><br />**Why not all of Rev. 14? Well, Rev. 14:1-5 is a vision of the resurrection of the anointed. Rev. 6 reveals, though, that this resurrection happens after the start of the Great Tribulation but before the climax of that awful time, Armageddon.-See Rev. 6:1-2, 9-11<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a><p></p>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-44613044956418951122009-07-15T06:57:00.000-07:002009-07-23T19:32:08.056-07:00Revelation Chapter TwentyFrom early days, the Society has taught us that the resurrection of the righteous and the unrighteous was going to take place gradually, over a period of time, and that we were going to have to teach each newly resurrected one the Truth from the Bible so that he or she could have proper knowledge to accept or reject what they have learned. All of this would take place during Christ's Millennial Reign.<br /><br />That idea of a resurrection is certainly Biblical. For example, Paul said, "I have hope toward God, which hope these men [the High Priest and older men] themselves also entertain, that there is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous." (Acts 24:15) Paul even showed that people could be resurrected by resurrecting a young man named Eutychus.-Acts 20:7-12<br /><br />Many people in the Old Testament had this same hope. Daniel was personally told by an angel that he would have a resurrection. (Dan. 12:13) Job acknowledged that Jehovah would bring him back to life. (Job 14:13-15) Abraham's faith in Jehovah's resurrecting power moved him to willingly offer his son at Jehovah's request. (Gen. 22:1-12; Heb. 11:17-19) The most adequate evidence of a resurrection (besides from Jehovah himself) is from his son who said, "For just as the Father raises the dead up and makes them alive, so the Son also makes those alive whom he wants to...most truly I say to you, the hour is coming, and it is now, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who have given heed will live."-John 5:21, 25, 28-29, See also Luke 23:42-43<br /><br />Did you know that the Bible speaks of two different resurrections, a heavenly one and an earthly one? Yes, it mentions that only 144,000 anointed ones receive the heavenly calling. The Bible writer of Hebrews calls these people those "who have once for all been enlightened, and who have tasted the heavenly free gift, and who have become partakers of holy spirit." (Heb. 6:4) Their resurrection to heaven will happen <i>before</i> the Millennial Reign.<br /><br />Regarding these, the Apostle Paul wrote, "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first...caught up together...in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air." (1 Thess. 4:16-17, <i>New American Standard Bible</i>) Now, a look at Revelation 20 will give us a clear outline as to how this resurrection will take place and what will precede it and what will follow it.<br /><br /><b>"And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven with the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he seized the dragon, the original serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. And he hurled him into the abyss and shut it and sealed it over him, that he might not mislead the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After these things he must be let loose for a little while."-<i>Revelation 20:1-3</i></b><br /><br />Revelation 17 and 18 speaks of the fall of Babylon the Great. Revelation 19 tells us that after the fall of that disgusting harlot, Jehovah will turn his attention, using the newly enthroned Jesus Christ, to the political systems and their ruler, Satan the Devil, at Armageddon. Now we see what will happen to their ruler.<br /><br />The destruction of Satan will not come first. He will be bound for 1,000 to be let loose for a little while. Why? The Bible tells us of that a little later.<br /><br />Next we read, <b>"And I saw thrones, and there were those who sat down on them, and power of judging was given them. Yes, I saw the souls of those executed with the ax for the witness they bore to Jesus and for speaking about God, and those who had worshiped neither the wild beast nor its image and who had not received the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand. And they came to life and ruled as kings with the Christ for a thousand years."-<i>Revelation 20:4</i></b><br /><br />After Satan is abyssed, it is then that Jehovah will resurrect the anointed to heavenly life. Unlike what the Society teaches, it is obvious that this did not happen back in 1918-1919. The resurrection to heavenly life is when all of the anointed who have died will go to heaven, but interestingly, the Bible indicates that not all of them will die.<br /><br />The Apostle Paul said, "Look! I tell you a sacred secret: We shall not all fall asleep in death, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, during the last trumpet." (1 Cor. 15:51-52) Contrary to what the Society says, the Bible is clear that not all of the anointed have to die to go to heaven. Yes, they point to 1 Cor. 15:50 to prove that they have to die but Paul addresses that by saying "We shall all be changed...in the twinkling of an eye."<br /><br />To the congregation in Thessalonica Paul says, "We the living who survive to the presence of the Lord shall in no way precede those who have fallen asleep in death...we the living who are surviving will, together with [the resurrected dead who had been of the anointed], be caught away in clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and thus we shall always be with the Lord." (1 Thess. 4:15, 17) The Bible is clear that there will be a sort of rapture*<span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span><a name="fnt1_src" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=1482551209291306556&postID=4461304495641895112#fnt1"></a> to heaven of the surviving anointed.<br /><br />Notice how the Scriptures say that these anointed will only rule for 1,000 years with Christ. This shows that they have a specific reason for going to heaven. It is not, as many in Christendom teach, in fulfillment of Christ's statement at Revelation 3:10: "Because you kept the word about my endurance, I will also keep you from the hour of test, which is to come upon the whole inhabited earth, to put a test upon those dwelling on the earth."<br /><br />The Apostle John continues, <b>"This is the first resurrection. Happy and holy is anyone having part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no authority, but they will be priests of God and of the Christ, and will rule as kings with him for the thousand years."-<i>Revelation 20:5b-6</i></b><br /><br />Again, John tells us what the responsibility of the anointed will be in heaven. He also tells us that these ones are immortal - they can <i>never</i> die again! Unfortunately, this is not the case with those that John spoke of briefly in verse 5.<br /><br /><b>"(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.)"-<i>Revelation 20:5a</i></b><br /><br />The differences in Society teaching and Bible teaching are very pronounced to many people nowadays. For some reason they want to continue to believe that the resurrection of those who have died (who did not have a heavenly hope) will happen gradually over a period of time. This is the clearest verse in the Bible regarding the time of the earthly resurrection.<br /><br />How does the Society explain this Scripture? "The expression 'come to life' has to be understood according to context...all others who are resurrected...must yet be raised to human perfection. This will be accomplished by Christ and his associate kings and priests during the thousand-year Judgment Day, on the basis of Jesus’ ransom sacrifice. By the end of that Day, 'the rest of the dead' will have 'come to life' in the sense that they will be perfect humans."-<i>Revelation - It's Grand Climax at Hand!</i>, ch. 40, para. 14, 15<br /><br />The actual context suggests nothing about humans being perfected and, therefore, coming to life. We can tell by what John tells us later in this same chapter. We will look at that in a bit.<br /><br />Next, John reveals something else: <b>"Now as soon as the thousand years have been ended, Satan will be let loose out of his prison, and he will go out to mislead those nations in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war. The number of these is as the sand of the sea. And they advanced over the breadth of the earth and encircled the camp of the holy ones and the beloved city. But fire came down out of heaven and devoured them. And the Devil who was misleading them was hurled into the lake of fire and sulphur, where both the wild beast and the false prophet already were; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever."<i>-Revelation 20:7-10</i></b><br /><br />This is the reason for Satan not being destroyed immediately. The Society says that we will all be perfected at this point but the Bible gives no indication of this. It seems plausible - even probable - that by this time we will be perfect so that perfect humans have one more opportunity to choose between Jehovah and Satan, something Adam and Eve failed to do. (Gen. 3:1-6) Yes, Jesus Christ proved that a faithful human could maintain perfect obedience to Jehovah but it is time for all of us to prove it.<br /><br />Why, though, will people who have lived under the perfect king, Shiloh (who is Jesus), rebel? Well, it is plausible (and we can only speculate because the Bible is silent about this) that most if not all of the people who go to Satan will be those who are born during the Millennium. Whatever happens we can be assured that Jehovah will destroy Satan because His Word of Truth says it will happen.-John 17:17; Isa. 55:11<br /><br /><b>"And I saw a great white throne and the one seated on it. From before him the earth and the heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and scrolls were opened. But another scroll was opened; it is the scroll of life. And the dead were judged out of those things written in the scrolls according to their deeds. And the sea gave up those dead in it, and death and Hades gave up those dead in them, and they were judged individually according to their deeds."-<i>Revelation 20:11-13</i></b><br /><br />At this point, the rest of the dead will be resurrected, just as John had said. (Rev. 20:5) I do not know why Jehovah sees fit to resurrect them after Satan is abyssed except to say it is due to his infinite love and mercy. How is that?<br /><br />2 Peter 3:9 says, "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but<sup class="xref" value="" href="%22#cen-ESV-30515E%22" title=""See"> </sup>that all should reach repentance." (<i>English Standard Version</i>) What does that have to do with anything? Well, these resurrected ones now have the opportunity to choose Jehovah God without Satan the Devil to 'blind their eyes.'-2 Cor. 4:4<br /><br />Another truth that this verse communicates to us is that Jehovah is not going to judge them by the deeds they committed before they died. "He who has died has been acquitted from his sins...the wages sin pays is death." (Rom. 6:7, 23) The Bible makes it clear that at death our sins are forgiven.<br /><br />Now, once those people have been resurrected, the Bible says that "scrolls will be opened." It is significant that this happens first. Why? Well, right afterward the "scroll of life" will be opened. The Bible makes it clear that "the dead were judged out of those things written in the scrolls according to their deeds." Since these scrolls are opened after the thousand years and we still have eternity to go, they will most likely contain new information pertaining to those resurrected.<br /><br />Do these scrolls apply to all of us? Evidently not, for the Bible says that "the dead were judged out of those things written in the scrolls." No one else is mentioned.<br /><br />Next, the Bible says, <b>"And death and Hades were hurled into the lake of fire. This means the second death, the lake of fire."-<i>Revelation 20:14</i></b><br /><br />We can understand from the Bible that anyone who goes to what the Bible calls Sheol will receive a resurrection. The words of Job indicate that he himself knew that. "O that in Sheol you would conceal me, that you would keep me secret until your anger turns back, that you would set a time limit for me and remember me...you will call, and I myself shall answer you." (Job 14:13, 15) The Greek equivalent of Sheol is Hades. That is why that the Greek Septuagint at Job 14:13 says "<i>hai'dei</i>." So, what does it mean that death and Hades are thrown into the Lake of Fire?<br /><br />Well, John reveals that the Lake of Fire is not literal, it is only "the second death." Yes, the Bible says that people who are thrown into the Lake of Fire are in torment forever and ever. However, what does the term "fire" in the Bible mean in a literal sense? The disciple Jude gives the answer when he says, "So too Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities about them...are placed before us as a warning example by undergoing the judicial punishment of everlasting fire." (Jude 7) But Sodom and Gomorrah are not literally burning; they are completely destroyed. So burning forever and ever means that someone has been destroyed. That is why the Bible says that Jesus will completely "destroy" Satan.-Heb. 2:14, <i>King James Version</i><br /><br />The Lake of Fire, though, must be the equivalent of what the Bible calls Gehenna. What is Gehenna? Well, the Bible only uses the term twelve times, all in the New Testament. In New Testament times, Gehenna was a garbage dump outside of Jerusalem where the bodies of criminals were tossed who were deemed too unworthy to receive a proper burial. Since it was a pit in the ground their bodies (or skeleton) would remain there for all time. This was a perfect description of everlasting destruction.<br /><br />So, from the time of the resurrection at the end of the Millennium, death (from Adamic sin) and Hades (the symbolic place where people go who will receive a resurrection) are done away with. "The last enemy, death" has been done away with. Now Jesus can return the Kingdom to his Father.-1 Cor. 15:24-29<br /><br />The Bible gives the final destination for the people who receive the scrolls badly. <b>"Furthermore, whoever was not found written in the book of life was hurled into the lake of fire."-<i>Revelation 20:15</i></b><br /><br />The people who receive the scrolls badly will be destroyed for all time, never to receive a resurrection. They will be thrown into the symbolic garbage pit never to be taken out.<br /><br />I do not say that everything that I write is correct. I know that no human can have a full understanding of the Bible. (Ecc. 3:11) However, I personally feel that this is closer to the truth then what the Society has written. It also makes more sense. No longer will people have to ask the question presented in the "Insight" book under the heading "Resurrection": "How would it be possible in 1,000 years to resurrect and educate the billions now in the grave?" These people will stand before the throne and Jehovah will instruct them personally.<br /><br />This gives us a new incentive. Many have said that if they die they understand they will be brought back to life during the Millennium and have the opportunity to see the final test, Satan destroyed, and be able to teach others who may not have known the Truth. This is not the case. This is a new incentive for all of us to try to make it through Armageddon so that we can see the fulfillment of all of Jehovah's glorious promises.<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><br />*This is not to say that Christendom is correct in their idea of the rapture. To a Christian the rapture is the time when what they think of as all true Christians will be taken from the earth to heaven to be with Christ. Some of them believe it will take place before the Great Tribulation and Millennium and some believe that it will take place after the Great Tribulation and, possibly, the Millennium.<br /><br />In actuality, the word rapture should not be rejected because it has been employed by many Christian groups. The word rapture is taken from the Latin word, <i>rapios</i> (used in the Latin Vulgate at 1 Thessalonians 4:17) which literally means, "caught up."<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a></p>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-29324613796778874822009-07-13T19:12:00.000-07:002009-08-25T09:24:52.935-07:00The AnointedAs of late, I have been reading, meditating, and praying over the book of Revelation. Before I came into the Truth I was obsessed with this twenty-two chapter book of the Bible. After I came into the Truth my obsession waned. Then, when I really learned <i>the</i> Truth, my interest has suddenly peaked again.<br /><br />You see, I was confused by the Society explanation given in the book "Revelation - It's Grand Climax At Hand!" The "fulfillment's" didn't seem right. How could the trumpet blasts be Witness conventions? For example:<br /><br /><blockquote>"And the first one blew his trumpet. And there occurred a hail and fire mingled with blood, and it was hurled to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees was burned up, and all the green vegetation was burned up."-Revelation 8:7<br /><br />Society Explanation: "The plague scenario reveals that Christendom’s third of the earth is scorched by the searing heat of Jehovah’s disapproval. Her prominent ones—standing like trees in the midst of her—are burned up by the proclaiming of Jehovah’s adverse judgment. All her hundreds of millions of church members, if they continue to support Christendom’s religion, become like scorched blades of grass, spiritually wilted in God’s eyes. How is this judgment message delivered? Generally, not by the world’s news media, which are part of the world and often reproachful of God’s 'slave.' It was proclaimed in a notable way at the second historic gathering of God’s people at Cedar Point, Ohio, September 10, 1922. These unanimously and enthusiastically adopted a resolution entitled 'A Challenge to World Leaders.'"-<b>Revelation - It's Grand Climax at Hand!, chpt. 21, pg. 133-34, para. 17, 18</b></blockquote><br /><br />The explanation that I am about to give about three significant events in <i>Revelation</i> will most likely not be agreed with by some.<a name="fnt1_src" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=1482551209291306556&postID=2932461379677887482#fnt1">*</a> That is okay. I am not saying that what I am about to write will be one hundred per cent correct - but I feel that it is. I have felt Jehovah's holy spirit guiding me of late and I cannot deny - or keep to myself - what I am learning.<br /><br /><b><center>What Will Happen to the Anointed in the Future?</center></b><br /><br />We know without a doubt that the Anointed are going to join Jesus Christ in heaven. (Rev. 14:1-3) However, are they going to stay there? What is the point of their going to heaven? Yes, we know that they will rule as kings and serve as priests. "And I saw thrones, and there were those who sat down on them, and power of judging was given them...And they came to life and ruled as kings with the Christ for a thousand years...but they will be priests of God and of the Christ, and will rule as kings with him for the thousand years."-Rev. 20:4, 6<br /><br />How long, though, will they rule with Christ, who we know is in heaven, as pictured by Mount Zion? "They...will rule as kings with him <i>for the thousand years</i>!"<br /><br />Interestingly, when speaking of the reigning of the Anointed, the Bible gives two different time periods as to the length of their reign. One is "for the thousand years" and the other? "They will rule as kings forever and ever." (Rev. 22:5) Why the seeming contradiction? And did you notice: In Revelation 20:4, 6 the Scriptures say that they will rule <i>with Christ</i> for the thousand years. Revelation 22:5 does not say that they will rule with Christ. Why? Because Christ will not reign forever and ever.<br /><br /><blockquote>"After that the end will come when he will turn the Kingdom over to God the Father, having put down all enemies of every kind. For Christ will be King until he has defeated all his enemies, including the last enemy--death. This too must be defeated and ended. For the rule and authority over all things has been given to Christ by his Father; except, of course, Christ does not rule over the Father himself, who gave him the power to rule. When Christ has finally won the battle against all his enemies, then he, the Son of God, will put himself also under his Father's orders, so that God who has given him the victory over everything else will be utterly supreme."-<b>1 Corinthians 15:24-28, <i>The Living Bible</i></b></blockquote><br /><br />So, how come Christ is said to rule for only a thousand years but the Anointed are going to rule forever? Well, simply put, their rule will be on the earth and not in heaven.<br /><br />However, some may say, doesn't Revelation 5:10 say "you made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings <i>over the earth</i>?" No, it doesn't.<br /><br />If you quote this Scripture from the <i>New World Translation</i> you are reading it from a biased source. The Proclaimers book admits as much. "Nathan H. Knorr...first proposed that the Society produce a fresh translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures. Actual work on the translation got under way on December 2, 1947. The complete text was carefully reviewed by <i>the entire translation committee, all of them spirit-anointed Christians</i>." (Proclaimers, ch. 27, pg. 607, para. 17) These men, if they knew Greek (which I think they did) absolutely knew that the Greek term rendered "over" in the NWT, which is <i>e‧pi'</i>, actually means "on." That is why most translations of the New Testament say at Revelation 5:10: "They will reign on the earth." (NIV; NASB, NLT, KJV, ESV, CEV, NKJV, NCV, ASV, YLT, HCSB, NIrV, TNIV read similarly)<br /><br />If you look in the <i>Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures</i> you will see that the original Greek word is translated as "upon". If you look at the <i>Emphatic Diaglott</i>, you will see that the original Greek word is translated as "on." The Watchtower admits their mistake for all to see!<br /><br />Make no mistake, the Anointed are going to heaven to rule for only a thousand years! They are coming back!<br /><br />But, why? To answer that, we must first look at one other thing.<br /><br /><center><b>The New Jerusalem</b></center><br /><br />In his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul said, "For I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy, for I personally promised you in marriage to one husband that I might present you as a chaste virgin to the Christ." (2 Cor. 11:2) The Anointed are the bride of Christ. That also makes them the New Jerusalem.<br /><br />"I saw also the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God and prepared as a bride adorned for her husband...and there came one of the seven angels...and he spoke with me and said: 'Come here, I will show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife.' So he carried me away in the power of the spirit to a great and lofty mountain, and he showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God and having the glory of God." (Rev. 21:2, 9-11) So, the New Jerusalem and the Anointed are spoken of as the Bride of Christ. And since Christ only has one Bride, these two must be the same!<br /><br />Now, notice two things concerning the New Jerusalem, or the Anointed. First, they are <i>coming down out of heaven <b>from</b> God</i> and, second, they have the glory of God. What does this mean?<br /><br />In the Revelation book the Society explains this (the City coming down out of heaven) by saying, "The 'bride comes down out of heaven,' not literally, but in the sense of directing attention to the earth." (ch. 42, pg. 301, para. 3) Yes, they teach that these are the blessings that come to the people of the earth from the Anointed in heaven. But they are wrong. This is literal.<br /><br />In Revelation 21:2, right after John says that the New Jerusalem comes down out of heaven, he says, "Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his peoples. And God himself will be with them. And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away." (Rev. 21:3, 4) Yes, now that the Anointed are on earth, the "tent of God is with mankind!" As the original Greek puts it, "and they are reigning upon the earth" (<i>KIT</i>) or "and they shall reign on the earth."-<i>ED</i><br /><br />The statement "and having the glory of God" is revealing also. While this could be literal, like in the case of Moses after seeing Jehovah's glory, it could also be symbolic. Remember, Jesus Christ was "the image of the invisible God", the "reflection of his glory and the exact representation of His very being" because he had been in heaven with Jehovah and knew him intimately. (Col. 1:15; Heb. 1:3) That is one of the reasons Jesus Christ was such a kind, gentle man, and why he will be a kind, gentle King.<br /><br />Now, the Anointed have had the opportunity to get to know Jehovah God intimately for a thousand years. By this time they know all about Jehovah and will be able to reflect his qualities and personality, if not perfectly, then pretty closely - just like Jesus Christ.<br /><br />So, after getting to know Jehovah for one thousand years they will return to the earth, this time as true representatives of Him. They will be good, perfect rulers. We could never ask for anything more nor expect Jehovah to give us anything less. What a wonderful plan our God has! Praise Jehovah!<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br />(If you have any thoughts, questions, comments, or complaints about this article I would like to hear them. "ebed.abodah@yahoo.com")<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a><p></p>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-91008004049514635202009-07-12T06:56:00.000-07:002009-07-12T21:30:50.808-07:00Out of ContextWe are always being reminded by the Society that we should "make sure that [our] use of quotations and statistics harmonizes with the context from which they are taken." (Ministry School Book, Ch. 40, para. 11) And they absolutely right. We don't want to be so desperate for secular backing that harmonizes with our beliefs that we misquote someone. That shows dishonesty on our part.<br /><br />When he was on earth, Jesus Christ noted the hypocrisy of the priests. They always told the people what they should do but then failed to do it themselves. He said, "All the things they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds, for they say but do not perform." (Matt. 23:3) Why would I quote this Scripture in regard to taking quotes out of context? Keep reading.<br /><br /><b><center>"Clean Up, Give Up, Or Turn Around"</center></b><br /><br />In <i>The Watchtower</i>, Feb. 1, 1996, page 5, paragraph 8, the Society quotes "one of America's best-known evangelists" but then refuses to give his name. The man they are quoting is, in fact, Billy Graham. They say his of words:<br /><br /><blockquote>"One of Jesus’ disciples warned that ungodly men were 'turning the undeserved kindness of our God into an excuse for loose conduct and proving false to our only Owner and Lord, Jesus Christ.' (Jude 4) How might we, in fact, turn God’s mercy 'into an excuse for loose conduct'? We could do so by assuming that Christ’s sacrifice covers deliberate sins that we intend to keep on committing rather than sins of human imperfection that we are trying to put behind us. Surely we would not want to agree with one of America’s best-known evangelists, who said that you do not have to <b>'clean up, give up, or turn around.'</b>"—Contrast Acts 17:30; Romans 3:25; James 5:19, 20</blockquote><br /><br />This quote from Billy Graham seems pretty horrible, doesn't it? We don't have to change our ways to be saved? We can accept Jesus sacrifice but then continue to do bad things? Well, that isn't what he says. His exact words are these:<br /><br /><blockquote>"All you have to do to be born again is to repent of your sins and believe in the Lord Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour. You don’t clean up, give up, or turn around yourself, you just come as you are. This is why we sing the hymn 'Just As I Am'"-<b>From the book <i>How to Be Born Again</i>, pg. 156</b></blockquote><br /><br />What Billy Graham was actually saying was that when you are convinced in your heart that you can have salvation nowhere else except in the shed blood of Jesus Christ and believe firmly that he can save you and repent of your sins, right there, in that moment, you can be saved. You don't have to "clean up, give up, or turn around" in that moment but in the days, weeks, and months afterward. (Compare Acts 2:38, 41; 8:5, 9, 12-13; 16:30-34) That is what Graham is telling his readers. He was not referring to past, present, and future sins but only to past sins. As far as I am aware, Graham believes that after you first repent you have to change your life in the future.<br /><br />Some "Christians", but not all, believe that you don't have to turn around after you first "repent and accept Jesus". The Society was having us believe that Billy Graham was one of these.<br /><br /><br /><center><b>"As a teenage boy...I was already saved"</b></center><br />Another person that the Society misquotes is a lesser-known evangelist named Zane Hodges, who died in November of 2008. I am pretty sure that Zane Hodges was a believer in "Free Grace Theology" which says that you only have to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and you are forever saved. No matter what you do in the future, you can never lose your salvation.<br /><br />The mis-quote that the Society made of Zane Hodges was this:<br /><br /><br /><blockquote>"Paul did not make converts, as some TV evangelists do, by saying: 'Accept Jesus right now, and you will forever be saved.' Nor did he have the confidence of the American clergyman who wrote: "As a teenage boy, . . . I was already saved." More than 20 years after Jesus personally chose Paul to carry the Christian message to people of the nations, this hardworking apostle wrote: 'I pummel my body and lead it as a slave, that, after I have preached to others, I myself should not become disapproved somehow.'"-<b><i>The Watchtower</i>, Feb. 1, 1996, pg. 6, para. 7</b></blockquote><br /><br />Not only is this a mis-quote, but it is also a misleading one. The idea of what constitutes being saved is different with what most of Christendom believes and what Jehovah's Witnesses believe. How so? Christendom uses the term "saved" as a substitute for having repented of your sins, accepted Jesus Christ sacrifice, and receiving him as your savior. So when Zane Hodges said that he was saved as a teenage boy he meant that he had repented of his sins and put faith in Jesus.<br /><br />The real quote by Zane Hodges was this: "Many years ago, <b>as a teenage boy</b>, I attended a series of evangelistic meetings in a small Baptist church in Hagerstown, Maryland. Although <b>I was already saved</b>, the meetings made a lasting impression on me as a young believer." (From the book <i>Absolutely Free</i>, pg. xiii) As Jehovah's Witnesses, we use the term saved to mean our future salvation when we survive Armageddon into the Kingdom. The Society knows the differences between what we mean by "saved" and what Christendom means by "saved" but decides not to tell that. <br /><br /><b><center>The Trinity Brochure</center></b><br /><br />The Trinity Brochure is full of quotes taken out of context. However, we will look at only one. On page 6 of this brochure, paragraph <br /><br /><blockquote>"Jesuit Fortman states: 'The New Testament writers...give us no formal or formulated doctrine of the Trinity, no explicit teaching that in one God there are three co-equal divine persons...Nowhere do we find any trinitarian doctrine of three distinct subjects of divine life and activity in the same Godhead.'"</blockquote><br /><br />The real quote is this:<br /><br /><blockquote>"If we take <b>the New Testament writers</b> together they tell us there is only one God, the creator and lord of the universe, who is the Father of Jesus. They call Jesus the Son of God, Messiah, Lord, Saviour, Word, Wisdom. They assign Him the divine functions of creation, salvation, judgement. Sometimes they call Him God explicitly. They do not speak as fully and clearly of the Holy Spirit as they do of the Son, but at times they coordinate Him with the Father and the Son and put Him on a level with them as far as divinity and personality are concerned. They give us in their writings a triadic ground plan and triadic formulas. They do not speak in abstract terms of nature, substance, person, relation, circumincession, mission but they present in their own way the ideas that are behind these terms. They <b>give us no formal or formulated doctrine of the Trinity, no explicit teaching that in one God there are three co-equal persons.</b> But they do give us an elemental Trinitarianism, the data from which such a formal doctrine of the Triune God may be formulated.</blockquote><br /><br />The problem with this quote is not so much that it does not say what the Society says it does but that they mislead us in the personal beliefs of those who made the quotes. They make us think that these people are firmly against the Trinity when, in fact, they are not. This is true of Jesuit John L. McKenzie quoted on page 28, Jesuit Edmund Fortman quoted on page 6, and writers of the <i>The Illustrated Bible Dictionary</i>. These people <b>DO</b> believe in the Trinity although the candor of their quotes helps us to see that they are digging a hole for themselves. <i>These quotes are misleading because they misrepresent the viewpoint of the speaker.</i><br /><br /><b><center>"A Kind of Innocence"</b></center><br /><br />In the new book given at the 2009 "Keep on the Watch!" District Convention, the Society misquotes the writer of the book <i>Truth in Translation: Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament</i>. How do I know this? I owned Dr. BeDuhn's book for a short while and read it in two whole days! I remembered this quote because of how much it stood out to me and was even discussing it with a relative a few days before I received the new book.<br /><br />The quote from the new book from the Watchtower is this: <br /><br /><blockquote>"In his book <i>Truth in Translation</i>, Jason David BeDuhn, associate professor of religious studies at Northern Arizona University in the United States, wrote that Jehovah's Witnesses approach the Bible 'with a kind of innocence, and [build] their system of belief and practice from the raw material of the Bible without predetermining what was to be found there.'"-<b>Pg. 105, see box at 'Jehovah's Witnesses build their beliefs on the Bible'</b></blockquote><br /><br />Dr. BeDuhn's quote is actually differentiating between the Protestant Reformation and how they approached the Bible and made their doctrines and the way Jehovah's Witnesses approached the Bible to make their doctrines <i>when each of these first started.</i> Out of all the quotes that I have found this one is the most misleading. Dr. BeDuhn is not referring to the modern-day Jehovah's Witness approach to the Bible but the approach we took in the 1880's and 1890's.<br /><br />The actual quote is this:<br /><br /><blockquote>"<B>Protestant forms of Christianity</b>, following the motto of sola scriptura, <b>insist that all legitimate Christian beliefs (and practices) must be found in, or at least based on, the Bible</b>. That's a very clear and admirable principle. The problem is that Protestant Christianity was not born in a historical vacuum, and does not go back directly to the time that the Bible was written...<b>For the doctrines that Protestantism</b> inherited to be considered true, they had to be found in the Bible. And precisely <b>because they were considered true already, there was and is tremendous pressure to read those truths back into the Bible, whether or not they are actually there</b>."</blockquote><br /><br />On the other hand, contrasting the Protestant approach to the Bible with that of Jehovah's Witnesses, Dr. BeDuhn writes this:<br /><br /><blockquote>"This movement has, unlike the Protestant Reformation, really sought to re-invent Christianity from scratch. Whether you regard that as a good or a bad thing, you can probably understand that it resulted in the Jehovah's Witnesses approaching the Bible <b>with a kind of innocence, and building their system of belief and practice from the raw material of the Bible without predetermining what was to be found there.</b>-<b><i>Truth in Translation</i> by Dr. Jason BeDuhn, ch. 13, pg. 163-165</b></blockquote><br /><br />When I first saw this misquote, I was appalled. I've always had a lot of respect for Dr. BeDuhn and when I saw his quote misquoted I was a little upset. Oh well, I guess it could have been worse. They just took what Dr. BeDuhn said about Jehovah's Witnesses in the past and applied it to Jehovah's Witnesses today. <br /><br /><b><center>A History of the Same</b></center><br /><br />The Society has done this for many years, taking quotes out of context. Interestingly, their own words in the book <i>Qualified to be Ministers</i>, pg. 199, condemn them. They say, "Be very careful to be accurate in all statements you make. Use evidence honestly. In quotations do not twist the meaning of a writer or speaker or use only partial quotations to give a different thought than the person intended. Also if you use statistics use them properly. Statistics can often be used to give a distorted picture." <br /><br />Yes, Jesus Christ's own words remind us that we are not to follow this same course of taking words out of context. Remember what he said? ""All the things they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds, for they say but do not perform."-Matt. 23:3<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-72596576191747979952009-07-03T23:46:00.000-07:002009-07-17T07:53:46.649-07:00Regarding Elder's and Ministerial ServantsThe Governing Body says that all Elder's and Ministerial Servants are actually appointed by holy spirit working through them. Ultimately, they are the ones who decide who becomes Elder's and Ministerial Servants after the Circuit Overseers decide they are spiritual enough. Is this the way the Bible says it should be?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Question #1: Who Should Make Appointments in the Congregation?-Titus 1:5</span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><br />"<span style="font-style: italic;">For this reason I left you in Crete, that you might correct the things that were defective and might make appointments of older men in city after city, as I gave you orders.</span>"<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Who is supposed to make appointments? "For this reason I left you in Crete, that you...might make appointments of older men in city after city." If Titus was the equivalent of our Circuit Overseers then it is obviously their job to make appointments, not the Governing Body.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Question #2: Are appointments actually made by holy spirit?-Acts 20:28<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;">"<span style="font-style: italic;">Pay attention to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the holy spirit has appointed you overseers, to shepherd the congregation of God</span>."<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Yes, the Bible indicates that holy spirit does in fact appointed qualified men to positions of authority in the congregation of God. However, how can we be sure today if the men appointed were appointed in the power of the holy spirit or the power of the Governing Body? It all goes back to <span style="font-style: italic;">who</span> is supposed to be the physical servant of God that the holy spirit works through. Obviously, the Bible does not agree with the idea that Elders and Ministerial Servants are appointed by the Governing Body. How can the holy spirit work through men who are blatantly going against the Holy Bible and taking responsibility that does not belong to them?<br /></div></div><br /></div><span style="font-weight: bold;">Question #3: What are the Qualifications for Elders?-1 Tim. 3:2-7; Tit. 1:6-9<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;">"<span style="font-style: italic;">The overseer should therefore be irreprehensible, a husband of one wife, moderate in habits, sound in mind, orderly, hospitable, qualified to teach, not a drunken brawler, not a smiter, but reasonable, not belligerent, not a lover of money, a man presiding over his own household in a fine manner, having children in subjection with all seriousness; (if indeed any man does not know how to preside over his own household, how will he take care of God’s congregation?) not a newly converted man, for fear that he might get puffed up [with pride] and fall into the judgment passed upon the Devil. Moreover, he should also have a fine testimony from people on the outside, in order that he might not fall into reproach and a snare of the Devil.</span>"<br /><br />"<span style="font-style: italic;">If there is any man free from accusation, a husband of one wife, having believing children that were not under a charge of debauchery nor unruly. For an overseer must be free from accusation as God’s steward, not self-willed, not prone to wrath, not a drunken brawler, not a smiter, not greedy of dishonest gain, but hospitable, a lover of goodness, sound in mind, righteous, loyal, self-controlled, holding firmly to the faithful word as respects his art of teaching, that he may be able both to exhort by the teaching that is healthful and to reprove those who contradict.</span>"<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">There are numerous qualifications that a Christian man needs to have to be considered eligible for appointments. However, the Governing Body goes beyond these listed qualifications and adds more. How can we expect the holy spirit to assist in this if we are not following the spirit-inspired Word of God?-2 Peter 1:21<br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></div></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Question #4: "What are the Qualifications for Ministerial Servants?"-2 Tim. 3:8-10, 12<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;">"<span style="font-style: italic;">Ministerial servants should likewise be serious, not double-tongued, not giving themselves to a lot of wine, not greedy of dishonest gain, holding the sacred secret of the faith with a clean conscience. Also, let these be tested as to fitness first, then let them serve as ministers, as they are free from accusation...Let ministerial servants be husbands of one wife, presiding in a fine manner over children and their own households.</span>"<span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></div><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span></span></span>Unfortunately, I was held back from being appointed for a long time because of things <span style="font-style: italic;">not on this list</span>. The Elders in my hall were always complimenting me on my knowledge of the Scriptures (or knowledge of Watchtower Teachings) and could never give me a good reason why I was being held back. At first I let it bother me but then realized that being ministerial servant or elder was just not that important.<br /><br />The point of this is that the Governing Body and Circuit Overseers are not following true "Biblical Theocratic Order." They bypass Bible teachings for what is better for them. Is this brother active enough in the field ministry, Do people look up to this brother, etc. Jehovah cannot bless this and the holy spirit, I am willing to bet, will not work through it because it is not the arrangement given us from the Scriptures.<br /><br />We all can hope that one day we, as imperfect humans, can have true freedom in Christ to follow the Bible and Jehovah's preferred way. Yes, may the day come soon when we can "be as free people" in "our freedom which we have in union with Christ Jesus" to follow the Lord and our God the way they approve without fear of being expelled "from the synagogue", or congregation of God.-2 Pet. 2:16; Gal. 2:4; John 16:2<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a></div></div></div>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-79404667169308434102009-06-20T15:56:00.000-07:002009-06-20T15:58:58.055-07:00Are We In a Spiritual Paradise?Although the term cannot be found in the Holy Word we often hear the Society speak of a "spiritual paradise". This "spiritual paradise", to them, is what we as God's people enjoy inside the organization - the spiritual peace and prosperity. To them, there are no problems in our organization. They have led us astray by "saying, 'There is peace!' when there is no peace." (Eze. 13:10) Jeremiah warns of people like this, " 'they will fall among those who are falling; in the time that I must hold an accounting with them they will stumble,' Jehovah has said."-Jere. 6:13-15<br /><br />Another thing that we are told over and over is that since we are doing the work of Jehovah God we are not burdened. 1 John 5:3 says, "For this is what the love of God means, that we observe his commandments; and yet his commandments are not burdensome." Many times I would quote this Scripture and tell myself that I did not feel burdened and weighed down when I really did. It was inconceivable to me that Jehovah would break his promise. I realized he didn't.<br /><br />You see, most of us feel like we are "toiling and loaded down" and wonder why Jesus hasn't proved true to his word to "refresh" us. Didn't he say that his "yoke is kindly and [his] load is light" and that we'd find "refreshment for [our] souls" if we followed him? (Matt. 11:28-30) Has he broken his promise? Has Jehovah broken his?<br /><br />Never may that be so! Neither Jehovah nor Jesus lie. (Num. 23:19; Tit. 1:2; 1 Pet. 2:22) The problem has to lie somewhere else. <br /><br />In a recent talk given by a brother in my congregation he said (and I am paraphrasing): 'There is much to do spiritually. We shouldn't ever feel bored. If we cannot figure out something to do we can always study for the meetings. If we've studied for the meetings we can read the newest magazines or read the yearbooks or read any of the other publications. We can write letters or make phone calls or even try to find a group of people to accompany us out in the field ministry. Yes, there is much to do "in the work of the Lord" and we should never find ourselves with nothing to do.'<br /><br />Couple this with the constant urgings to "Auxiliary Pioneer, Regular Pioneer, do more, can you do more?, can you display the pioneer spirit?, or even if you can pioneer and you choose not to you are not doing enough and Jehovah may not spare you at Armageddon for being complacent" and we are being bombarded from every side, made to feel worthless or lazy. <br /><br />Then we have the shepherds who beat the flock. Jehovah says to them that they have done awful things. "You...have also eaten the organism of my people, and have stripped their very skin from off them, and smashed to pieces their very bones, and crushed them to pieces." (Mic. 3:3) While this may be directed towards the religious leaders of Micah's day the same can be said of happening in our day. Yes, these men, these shepherds, "feed themselves without fear."-Jude 12; Eze. 34:2-3, 8<br /><br />It is true that many Elders are abusive. At one time in my circuit there was a CO who was so cruel that the Elders would literally get sick every time he visited because of how mean he was. This is not what is supposed to be happening. When CO's visit it is supposed to be an "interchange of encouragement." (Romans 1:12) Do not get me wrong, many Elder's and CO's today are wonderful men who are true examples to the flock. However, some are not and yet they are allowed to stay in their position of oversight. Many realize that these should be removed as Elder's if they are not fulfilling their responsibility as explained by Isaiah.-Isaiah 32:2<br /><br />A vision by the Apostle Paul is explained as his seeing our "spiritual paradise" today. He says, "I know a man in union with Christ who, fourteen years ago - whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know; God knows - was caught away as such to the third heaven. Yes, I know such a man - whether in the body or apart from the body, I do not know, God knows - that he was caught away into paradise and heard unutterable words which it is not lawful for a man to speak." (2 Cor. 12:2-4) The Society teaches that he was indeed taken into the future to view our paradise today. Unfortunately, this cannot be proven. We do not know and cannot know of what Paul was speaking. Many people believe that he was given a vision of heaven, something not uncommon.-2 Kings 22:19; Isa. 6:1; Dan. 7:9-10; Rev. 4:2-4<br /><br />Paul said that this vision was a revelation, a vision. (2 Cor. 12:1) A revelation reveals something future. So it can be said that if this was a revelation of a spiritual paradise then it was not in existence in Paul's time. But how could that be? How could there be a spiritual paradise in the Christian congregation today but there is not one in Paul's time?<br /><br />In Paul's time there were many things that plagued the Christian congregation including people who "lord[ed] it over" the flock, false teachers, and slanderers. (1 Pet. 5:2-3; 2 Tim. 2:13; 2 Cor. 10:10, 11:5-6) We have these same problems in the congregation today. There always have been and always will be problems in the congregation in this system of things. (1 Cor. 5:9-12; Acts 20:28-30) It cannot be said that we are in a spiritual paradise. Ask yourselves: What makes the Christian congregation a paradise in our day but not one in Paul's day? Wouldn't it be the opposite since now is the time when we live in "critical times hard to deal with"?-2 Tim. 3:1<br /><br />What is the point of claiming that we find ourselves in a spiritual paradise? Well, after making claims like this the Society always says things like "which is filled with peace and unity", is "filled with a flock of holy persons", being in it makes us "free from many problems of the world around us", and we "partake of nourishing spiritual food...moved to 'cry out joyfully because of the good condition of the heart.'" Really, by making claims like these, <i>it makes us believe there are no problems with the Society and in the organization today!</i> If they didn't make these claims, which people want to believe so much, the problems would be much more pronounced in our minds.<br /><br />All of the prophecies in the Bible that speak of good conditions in a paradisaical state are literal, pointing to a coming physical paradise. Do not be taken in by the idea that we are in a "spiritual paradise" and completely ignore the bad things happening in the congregation, things Jehovah promises to stop, and so begin to "love it that way."-Jer. 5:31 <br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-21136182231396302342009-06-17T14:55:00.000-07:002009-08-25T12:52:57.559-07:00"Be Glad, You Nations, With His People""You heard that it was said, 'You must love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'" (Matt. 5:43) With these words, Jesus made it understood that the teachings of the Pharisees, the teaching which made them arrogant, was not the Law of the land - literally.<br /><br />The words "and hate you enemy" are thought by many to be part of the inspired record in the Mosaic Law. Yet Christ was not quoting from the Law when he said those last words. Nowhere in the Bible will you see the command to hate your enemies. The Pharisees, spurred on by others around them, made it nearly impossible to love any foreigners. Their "tradition" invalidated the "word of God."-Mark 7:13<br /><br />It had always been prophesied that the Gentiles, people of the nations, would become associated with God's people. But, as with the case of Peter, drastic changes had to be made. Even after many years and the holy spirit working through that man, his actions still held him condemned. Why? Paul says, "For before the arrival of certain men from James, he [Peter] used to eat with people of the nations; but when they arrived, he went withdrawing and separating himself, in fear of those of the circumcised class. The rest of the Jews also joined him in putting on this pretense, so that even Barnabas was led along with them in their pretense. But when I [Paul] saw they were not walking straight according to the truth of the good news, I said to Cephas before them all: 'If you, though you are a Jew, live as the nations do, and not as Jews do, how is it that you are compelling people of the nations to live according to Jewish practice?'"-Gal. 2:12-14<br /><br />The nation of Israel was a nation chosen by Jehovah God. He adopted them as an infant and took care of them, loving them even when they committed spiritual adultery. (Eze. 16:3-42) The same love with which Jehovah loved Israel would be given equally to the nations. "For I say that Christ actually became a minister of those who are circumcised in behalf of God’s truthfulness, so as to verify the promises He made to their forefathers, and that the nations might glorify God for his mercy. Just as it is written: 'That is why I will openly acknowledge you among the nations and to your name I will make melody.' And again he says: 'Be glad, you nations, with his people.' And again: 'Praise Jehovah, all you nations, and let all the peoples praise him.' And again Isaiah says: 'There will be the root of Jesse, and there will be one arising to rule nations; on him nations will rest their hope.'-Rom. 15:8-12; Ps. 18:49; Deut. 32:43; Isa. 11:10<br /><br />If people had continuously acted like Peter and had refused to speak to people of the nations, what would have happened to Christianity? It would have probably have fallen into obscurity and not flourished. People would reject it as a Jewish sect, classing it with Pharisees and Sadducees. But Jehovah wasn't like that. Jesus Christ was a sacrifice to the entire world, sufficient for all men to find rest in him.<br /><br />We find a similar reluctance among people today when it comes to joining the Truth because of harsh and unscriptural beliefs. Due to these beliefs we even find people saying things against Jehovah's Witnesses - things that are completely correct. And it can lead a Christian to ask this question: Who did Jesus Christ die for?<br /><br /><center><b>"The New Covenant by Virtue of My Blood"</b></center><br /><br />The night before he died, Jesus Christ passed a float loaf of bread and said, "This means my body which is to be given in your behalf. Keep doing this in remembrance of me." He then passed a glass of red wine and said, "This cup means the new covenant by virtue of my blood, which is to be poured out in your behalf." (Luke 22:19-20) Christ made it clear that he died for <i>for all of us</i>. He didn't die for just the anointed or the Jews or his disciples of that day. He died for everyone.<br /><br />By his death Christ "abolished the enmity, the Law of commandments consisting in decrees." (Eph. 2:15) The Old Covenant, the covenant made with the Prophet Moses, was gone. No more would strict laws have to be lived by or animal sacrifices given. A New Covenant "by virtue of [Christs] blood" came into effect.<br /><br />That same night, Christ made another covenant with his apostles "a covenant...for a kingdom, that you [his disciples] may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel." (Luke 22:29) We will come back later to this and see why the New Covenant and the Covenant for a Kingdom are different.<br /><br />First, we need to see how the idea that these two are the same has led many of us to feel rejected as inferior or unloved by Jehovah.<br /><br />Even though the Apostle Paul made a good defense to the Romans about the Gentiles becoming God's people, it was not the last time he had to defend this point. The constant pressure to hate the Gentiles carried over into Christianity by Jewish converts.-Rom. 10:12; 1 Cor. 12:13; Gal. 3:28-29<br /><br />Today, the teaching that we of the "great crowd" are not in the New Covenant has made the Society claim things like the "great crowd" are not holy, do not have the holy spirit, and are not deemed righteous. Further, numerous Bible verses that encompass all of Jehovah's people are considered by the Society to only apply to the anointed.-Isa. 60:62; Matt. 10:42<br /><br />The Governing Body goes on and on about how special they are to Jehovah, never failing to mention how "Anointed Christians" are this or that. For many years I felt like an orphan. I didn't belong to Satan and his world but I also didn't belong to Jehovah. I truly felt like I was being tossed back and forth by waves of the sea.<br /><br />However, the Bible doesn't make as many distinctions between the "great crowd" and the anointed as the Governing Body would have us believe. Jehovah loves us as much as He loves the ones with the heavenly hope. How can we know this? Because He has included all of us in the New Covenant.<br /><br />Hebrews chapters eight, nine, and ten deal almost exclusively with the New Covenant. In fact, a New Covenant was prophesied in the Hebrew Scriptures. Jeremiah was inspired to write, " 'Look! There are days coming,' is the utterance of Jehovah, 'and I will conclude with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah a new covenant; not one like the covenant that I concluded with their forefathers in the day of my taking hold of their hand to bring them forth out of the land of Egypt, which covenant of mine they themselves broke, although I myself had husbandly ownership of them,' is the utterance of Jehovah. 'For this is the covenant that I shall conclude with the house of Israel after those days,' is the utterance of Jehovah. 'I will put my law within them, and in their heart I shall write it. And I will become their God, and they themselves will become my people. And they will no more teach each one his companion and each one his brother, saying, "know Jehovah!" for they will all of them know me, from the least one of them even to the greatest one of them,' is the utterance of Jehovah. 'For I shall forgive their error, and their sin I shall remember no more.' "-Jeremiah 31:31-34<br /><br />Regarding this New Covenant Paul says, "Jesus has obtained a more excellent public service, so that he is also the mediator of a correspondingly better covenant, which has been legally established upon better promises." This covenant is mediated by Jesus and not Moses, proving already that this Covenant is something different. Paul then goes on to explain how this Covenant is better then the old one because of the endless rituals the priests had to perform day by day, week by week, year by year.-Hebrews 9:1-7<br /><br />Christ, when he came as High Priest does not have to perform endless rituals or "he would have to suffer often from the founding of the world", "year to year." (Hebrews 9:25-26) In the end, the New Covenant comes down to this: "<span style="font-weight: bold;">When Christ came as a high priest</span> of the good things that have come to pass, through the greater and more perfect tent not made with hands, that is, not of this creation, <span style="font-weight: bold;">he entered</span>, no, not with the blood of goats and of young bulls, but <span style="font-weight: bold;">with his own blood, once for all time into the holy place and <span style="font-style: italic;">obtained an everlasting deliverance for us</span></span>. For if the blood of goats and of bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who have been defiled sanctifies to the extent of cleanness of the flesh, how much more will the blood of the Christ, who through an everlasting spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works that we may render sacred service to the living God?"-Hebrews 9:11-14<br /><br />Due to the fact that he died, was resurrected and ascended to heaven, Christ became our mediator of the New Covenant. He is now the "one mediator between God and man" <span style="font-style: italic;">all man</span>. (1 Tim. 2:5) Yes, the Covenant was made by the blood of Christ and through this we have "the release by ransom through the blood of that one, yes, the forgiveness of our trespasses." (Eph. 1:7; Luke 22:20; Col. 1:13) Christ died for all mankind. The New Covenant was made for forgiveness of sins. Therefore, we are all part of the New Covenant.<br /><br />In the book of <i>Hebrews</i>, the author of that book, in chapter twelve, spoke to ones who were not of the Anointed saying, "<span style="font-weight: bold;">You have approached</span> a Mount Zion and a city of the living God, heavenly Jerusalem, and myriads of angels, in general assembly, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">the congregation of the firstborn who have been enrolled in the heavens</span>, and God the Judge of all, and the spiritual lives of righteous ones who have been made perfect, and Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and the blood of sprinkling, which speaks in a better way than Abel’s blood." (Heb. 12:22-24) So, we have approached heavenly Jerusalem, the angels, the anointed "who have been enrolled in the heavens", Jehovah God and Jesus Christ. Obviously, the ones "enrolled in the heavens" cannot approach themselves and so this cannot be speaking to those. We of the Great Crowd are the ones being spoken to, we of the Great Crowd, too, have a part in the New Covenant.<br /><br />Therefore, when Christ said that we must partake of the memorial emblems, this included all of us. How can we know? Well, first of all, Christ passed the emblems before he made the "Covenant for a Kingdom." (Luke 22:19-20, 29) Second, despite what the Society says, Judas Iscariot was <span style="font-style: italic;">definitely </span>still in the room when the emblems were passed. (Luke 22:19-23) The claim that Luke presented the contents out of order contradicts other statements by the doctor. "I resolved also, because I have traced all things from the start with accuracy, to write them in logical order to you, most excellent Theophilus." (Luke 1:3) Last, at this point <span style="font-style: italic;">nobody</span> was anointed with holy spirit to the heavenly calling. That did not take place until nearly two months later. How could the twelve apostles partake of the emblems without being anointed. On the other hand, if someone uses the excuse that they were going to become anointed in the future and so it might as well have happened already then they have to also explain why Jesus didn't invite all 120 of his future disciples to partake of the emblems that night.<br /><br />Another point in determining if the New Covenant and the "Covenant for a Kingdom" are indeed the same Covenant, we need to see exactly who is included in the "Covenant for a Kingdom." Jesus said, "I make a covenant with you, just as my Father has made a covenant with me, for a kingdom." There is only one Covenant regarding the Kingdom. Jehovah extended it to Jesus Christ and Christ in turn extended it to his disciples - but it is all one covenant! If the "Covenant for a Kingdom" were indeed the same as the New Covenant, and the New Covenant was for "forgiveness of sins", then that would mean that Christ died for himself! (Matt. 26:28) Only sinners are in the New Covenant because only sinners need forgiveness of sins. If anyone claims that the New Covenant and the "Covenant for a Kingdom" are the same then, in my honest opinion, they are guilty of blasphemy. Christ was a perfect man. (2 Pet. 2:22) If you try to argue otherwise then you claim that Christ needed to be forgiven.<br /><br />Perhaps another thing to consider is the way the Old Covenant worked. All of Israel was part of the Old Covenant. All of the Tribes received some inheritance of the earth in the Covenant. However, the Levite's did not receive and inheritance because, as Jehovah said, "I am your share and your inheritance in the midst of the sons of Israel." (Num. 18:20) The priest were set apart as the ones who worked in the Temple of Jehovah our God.<br /><br />Likewise today, the anointed, who will serve as "<span style="font-style: italic;">priests</span> to our God" with Christ as the High Priest, do not receive an earthly inheritance but will rule in the heavens. (Rev. 5:10) Their separated position is not what causes them to be in the New Covenant while the "great crowd" is excluded any more then the priests in ancient Israel were exclusively in the Old Covenant.<br /><br />Unfortunately, the Bible never says that all Christians are in the New Covenant but to Paul, Peter, and the other Bible writers, <span style="font-style: italic;">it wasn't necessary - it was a given</span>! And, even better, all the world can come into this special relationship with Jehovah God through Jesus Christ. (1 John 2:1-2) Interestingly, I felt that this Scripture touched me in a special way, almost as if Jehovah is speaking to the members of the "great crowd" who feel excluded by the arrogant talk of the Governing Body:<br /><br /><blockquote>"let not the foreigner that has joined himself to Jehovah say, 'Without doubt Jehovah will divide me off from his people.' Neither let the eunuch say, 'Look! I am a dry tree.' For this is what Jehovah has said to the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths and that have chosen what I have delighted in and that are laying hold of my covenant: 'I will even give to them in my house and within my walls a monument and a name, something better than sons and daughters. A name to time indefinite I shall give them, one that will not be cut off. And the foreigners that have joined themselves to Jehovah to minister to him and to love the name of Jehovah, in order to become servants to him, all those keeping the sabbath in order not to profane it and laying hold of my covenant, I will also bring them to my holy mountain and make them rejoice inside my house of prayer. Their whole burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be for acceptance upon my altar. For my own house will be called even a house of prayer for all the peoples.' "-<b>Isaiah 56:3-7</b></blockquote><br /><br />We all need to delve into the Bible and understand what the New Covenant was and how different (and better) it is then the Old Covenant so that we can truly appreciate what Jehovah, through Jesus, did for us. We also need to understand how the New Covenant applies to us and see that we are more then just <span style="font-style: italic;">beneficiaries</span> in the New Covenant but <span style="font-style: italic;">participants</span> (since the Governing Body always uses italics when trying to make us feel better about not being in the New Covenant). Yes, while we are not in the "Covenant for a Kingdom", just like not all the Israelite's were in the Priestly Covenant, we are in the "New Covenant" and can receive forgiveness on the basis of the "blood of the Covenant." - Matt. 26:28; Mark 14:23; Heb. 9:20; 10:29<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-30412022467628475042009-06-16T22:10:00.001-07:002009-06-21T15:40:57.156-07:00Praise Jehovah With a Song!"Praise Jah, you people...Praise him with the blowing of the horn. Praise him with the stringed instrument and the harp. Praise him with the tambourine and the circle dance. Praise him with strings and the pipe. Praise him with the cymbals of melodious sound. Praise him with the clashing cymbals. Every breathing thing—let it praise Jah. Praise Jah, you people!"-Psalm 150:1, 3-6<br /><br />King David mentions eight different instruments that we should use when praising Jehovah. Obviously, the Bible is not telling us that we should use only these eight instruments in our praise and worship but that we should use a variety of melodious sounds. Our worship should praise him for his wondrous works and his abundant greatness. Even the words "praise him with...the circle dance" shows that we should dance for joy when singing to Jehovah. <br /><br />After the Israelites crossed the Red Sea the Bible says that Miriam led the women in a joyful dance. "And Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, proceeded to take a tambourine in her hand; and all the women began going out with her with tambourines and in dances. And Miriam kept responding to the men: 'Sing to Jehovah, for he has become highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has pitched into the sea.' " (Ex. 15:20-21) Their sings was accompanied with lively music and joyous dancing.<br /><br />The Bible also tells us that after Jephthah's victory over the Ammonites their was instrument playing and dancing. "Finally Jephthah came to Mizpah to his home, and, look! his daughter coming out to meet him with tambourine playing and dancing!" (Judg. 11:32-34) This joyous occasion, Israel breaking free from the oppressive yoke of the Ammonites, caused the people dance and sing for joy. <br /><br />Another instance of joyful praise was in the life of King David. The Bible reports, "Then the sons of the Levites began to carry the ark of the true God, just as Moses had commanded by Jehovah’s word, upon their shoulders with the rods upon them. David now said to the chiefs of the Levites to station their brothers <i>the singers with the instruments of song, stringed instruments and harps and cymbals, playing aloud to cause a sound of rejoicing to arise</i>...And all the Israelites were bringing up the ark of the covenant of Jehovah with joyful shouting and with the sounding of the horn and with trumpets and with cymbals, playing aloud on stringed instruments and harps." (1 Chron. 15:15-16, 28) The alternate account says that David was "dancing around before Jehovah with all his power...with joyful shouting."-2 Sam. 6:14-15<br /><br />Obviously, our praise and worship of Jehovah should be joyful. There is nothing wrong with using a variety of instruments and dancing like crazy to the wonderful music. Our love and joy in Jehovah should move us to cast aside our embarrassment. We shouldn't be afraid of looking like fools! The Governing Body would say that that is not the way it should be - and it may sound like they are right. But would it be wrong to stop someone from dancing with joy?<br /><br />After King David left the worship celebration and returned home, his wife, Michal, confronted him about his behavior. Does the Bible help us to see if she was right and David deserved to be chastised because of the crazy way he acted?<br /><br />"When David returned home to bless his household, Michal daughter of Saul came out to meet him and said, 'How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today, disrobing [uncovered himself, <i>NWT</i>] in the sight of the slave girls of his servants as any vulgar fellow would [empty-headed men uncovers himself outright, <i>NWT</i>]' David said to Michal, 'It was before the LORD, who chose me rather than your father or anyone from his house when he appointed me ruler over the LORD's people Israel - I will celebrate before the LORD. <i>I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes. But by these slave girls you spoke of, I will be held in honor."</i> And Michal daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death."-2 Samuel 6:20-23, <i>New International Version</i><br /><br />The Bible makes it clear that David's actions were not to be despised or looked down upon. David made himself "undignified" or "lightly esteemed" (<i>NWT</i>) but it was okay. People who truly loved Jehovah would not look down upon him. David knew for sure that the slave girls, who most likely also loved Jehovah, would hold him in honor for his actions. Spiritual lovers of Jehovah love other spiritual lovers of Jehovah. We should never be embarrassed or cautious around our brothers and sisters when it comes to our singing and dancing. <br /><br /><center><b>What's Wrong Today</b></center><br /><br />In the February 2007 issue of the <i>Awake!</i> magazine, it is said of churches today, "Religions that hold services complete with hand clapping and fervent hymn singing or the atmosphere of a rock concert have grown and multiplied." Is there anything wrong with this?<br /><br />When you look at the above account with King David, what do you picture? The "proper" hymns we sing at the Kingdom Hall today or the "hand clapping and fervent hymn singing" that we see in churches today? If David were alive now, based solely on type of music used music and his knowledge of how people in his time worshiped, which would David be more drawn to?<br /><br />Is the "hand clapping and fervent hymn singing" wrong, the way the Governing Body makes it sound? No. The Bible actually upholds this type of worship. If you remember the large number of singers used at the temple and the variety of instruments they used you could get a picture of how praise and worship should be today.<br /><br />Unfortunately, because most of the members of the Governing Body grew up in churches where only soft hymns were sang, they think that it is disrespectful to use anything else. It is wrong to make us hold our joy in Jehovah's service in because the type of music that King David and Miriam the prophetess would prefer to hear in their worship would give the Governing Body a heart attack!<br /><br />Also, look at the wording used in the Israel's Ancient Songbook. <br /><br />The book of Psalms contains 150 beautiful songs that are used in worshiping Jehovah. Our modern song book contains 225 songs with only about 10 really used to praise Jehovah. The song used for the week of June 15, 2009 to open up the Congregation Bible Study/Theocratic Ministry School was one of the few examples we have in our songbook of a song that praises Jehovah.<br /><br />As humans, we have an inherent need to praise and sing to Jehovah. The songs that we sing today do not satisfy that need. We are not doing what Paul recommended for Christians in our worship. "Keep getting filled with spirit, speaking to yourselves with psalms <i>and praises to God and spiritual songs, singing and accompanying yourselves with music in your hearts to Jehovah</i>, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ giving thanks always for all things to our God and Father." (Eph. 5:18-20; Col. 3:16) Our worship to Jehovah is, sadly, lacking. In the brochure <i>What Does God Require of Us?</i> it says that all of our meetings are opened and closed with "heartfelt spiritual songs". (Chpt. 14, Para. 2) This is just not true. In the words of one man who came to our meetings a few times, "Those songs are just plain corny. Nearly every other word has an apostrophe."<br /><br />Even the lyrics of our songs can be faulted. Just by comparing the words in the Psalms with the words in the songbooks, we can see a major difference - our songs do not praise Jehovah! <br /><br /><blockquote>"There’s balsam in fair Gilead; this from God’s Word we hear. It comfort brings to troubled hearts and helps grief disappear. It soothes us when we’re sorely tried or deeply are distressed, or we have lost some loved dear one, who in death’s sleep does rest."-<b>Song #182: Balsam in Gilead</b></blockquote><br /><br /><blockquote>"Praise Jah, you people! Offer praise, O you servants of Jehovah, praise the name of Jehovah. May Jehovah’s name become blessed from now on and to time indefinite. From the rising of the sun until its setting Jehovah’s name is to be praised. Jehovah has become high above all the nations; His glory is above the heavens. Who is like Jehovah our God, Him who is making his dwelling on high?"-<b>Psalm 113:1-5</b></blockquote><br /><br /><blockquote>"When Jehovah decreed that a deluge should destroy wicked men long ago, then to Noah he gave a commission: 'Build an ark! Preach the word! Let men know!' Now, did Noah reject that assignment, since he never had built arks before? No, but he made good use of God’s mercy, and he built and he preached more and more."-<B>Song #215: Extending Mercy to Others</b></blockquote><br /><br /><blockquote>"Praise Jah, you people! Praise the name of Jehovah, offer praise, O servants of Jehovah, you who are standing in the house of Jehovah, in the courtyards of the house of our God. Praise Jah, for Jehovah is good. Make melody to his name, for it is pleasant. For Jah has chosen even Jacob for himself, Israel for his special property. For I myself well know that Jehovah is great, and our Lord is more than all other gods."-<b>Psalm 135:1-5</b></blockquote><br /><br /><blockquote>"Young Samuel to Shiloh when weaned had to go to serve in God’s temple, and there he did grow. A prophet in Israel is what he became, and as a true Nazrite, he honored God’s name. The high priest called Eli had sons that were bad. Would they corrupt Samuel, who was just a lad? No, Samuel was faithful; obedience he’d learned. Away from Jehovah he would not be turned."-<b>Song #221: Youths! Imitate Their Faith</b></blockquote><br /><br /><blockquote>"I will exalt you, O my God the King, and I will bless your name to time indefinite, even forever. All day long I will bless you, and I will praise your name to time indefinite, even forever. Jehovah is great and very much to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable. Generation after generation will commend your works, and about your mighty acts they will tell. The glorious splendor of your dignity and the matters of your wonderful works I will make my concern. And they will talk about the strength of your own fear-inspiring things; and as for your greatness, I will declare it."-<b>Psalm 145:1-6</b></blockquote><br /><br />Can you see the difference between the lyrics of the Psalms and the lyrics in the songbooks. Obviously, the songs of Israel were great and wonderful to sing. They were probably unforgettable. Yes, even Jesus and his apostles sang these spiritual songs. For example, when the Bible says that on the night of the Passover that "after singing praises, they went out to the Mount of Olives." (Matt. 26:30) It is well known that the songs that were sang on Passover were Psalms 113-118.-See <i>New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures</i>-With References, cross-reference Matthew 26:30<br /><br />We are robbing Jehovah of worship and praise that truly belongs to Him. Look inside yourselves: Do you feel spiritually satisfied after singing the authorized songs of the Governing Body? Although a few of you might be, I am sure the majority are not. We want to worship Jehovah - we need to worship Jehovah. We need to do this in a joyous, up-building way. Can it be done?<br /><br />If it doesn't bother your conscience, there are a few up-building praise and worship songs that are not teaching any type of falsehoods. They are just heartfelt songs that are truly worshiping Jehovah in a way that our songs cannot measure up to. Here is just one example: <br /><br />This is a song called <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-06-16T21%3A59%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=1"><i>"Indescribable"</i></a>. <br /><br />Note: <i>This is a Christian song. I understand that there will probably be some brothers and sisters whose conscience will not allow them to listen to this. For that reason, I linked to it instead of displaying it on my site. You are welcome to listen to it. If your conscience, like mine, is not bothered with songs like these you can email me and I will be glad to give you a list of songs that do not say things that are wrong or non-Biblical. I do ask that you please respect my conscience on this matter.</i><br /><br />May the day come soon when we are not hampered in our worship by the Governing Body, the modern-day Michal (since they love Biblical parallels so much) and we can worship Jehovah in a way that is satisfying to us but, even more importantly, to Him.<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-63766904642559864062009-06-16T21:54:00.000-07:002009-07-06T11:30:16.027-07:00Indescribable - Chris Tomlin<div style="width:300px;"><object width="300" height="110"><param name="movie" value="http://media.imeem.com/m/WF-Z9mV1vX/aus=false/"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://media.imeem.com/m/WF-Z9mV1vX/aus=false/" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="300" height="110" wmode="transparent"></embed></object><div style="background-color:#E6E6E6;padding:1px;"><div style="float:left;padding:4px 4px 0 0;"><a href="http://www.imeem.com/"><img src="http://www.imeem.com/embedsearch/E6E6E6/" border="0" /></a></div><form method="post" action="http://www.imeem.com/embedsearch/" style="margin:0;padding:0;"><input type="text" name="EmbedSearchBox" /><input type="submit" value="Search" style="font-size:12px;" /><div style="padding-top:3px;"><a href="http://www.imeem.com/ads/banneradclick.ashx?ep=0&ek=WF-Z9mV1vX" rel="nofollow"><img src="http://www.imeem.com/ads/bannerad/152/10/" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.imeem.com/ads/banneradclick.ashx?ep=1&ek=WF-Z9mV1vX" rel="nofollow"><img src="http://www.imeem.com/ads/bannerad/153/10/" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.imeem.com/ads/banneradclick.ashx?ep=2&ek=WF-Z9mV1vX" rel="nofollow"><img src="http://www.imeem.com/ads/bannerad/154/10/" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.imeem.com/ads/banneradclick.ashx?ep=3&ek=WF-Z9mV1vX" rel="nofollow" ><img src="http://www.imeem.com/ads/bannerad/155/10/WF-Z9mV1vX/" border="0" /></a></div></form></div></div><br/><a href="http://www.imeem.com/artists/chris_tomlin/music/hRNlweBf/chris-tomlin-indescribable-arriving-album-version/">Indescribable (Arriving Album Version) - Chris Tomlin</a><br /><center><b>Lyrics to Indescribable</b></center><br /><br /><center>From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea<br />Creation's revealing Your majesty<br />From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring<br />Every creature unique in the song that it sings<br />All exclaiming<br /><br />Indescribable, uncontainable,<br />You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.<br />You are amazing God<br />All powerful, untameable,<br />Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim<br />You are amazing God<br /><br />Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go<br />Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow<br />Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light<br />Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night<br />None can fathom<br /><br />Indescribable, uncontainable,<br />You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name<br />You are amazing God<br />All powerful, untameable,<br />Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim<br />You are amazing God<br />You are amazing God<br /><br />Indescribable, uncontainable,<br />You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.<br />You are amazing God<br />All powerful, untameable,<br />Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim<br />You are amazing God<br />Indescribable, uncontainable,<br />You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.<br />You are amazing God<br />Incomparable, unchangeable<br />You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same<br />You are amazing God<br />You are amazing God<br /></center>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-48632708189041616022009-06-15T21:30:00.000-07:002009-09-02T18:46:34.018-07:00Directory<u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-08-26T09%3A51%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=1"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Faith or Works; Knowing or Knowing About</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-08-24T20%3A26%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=1"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Who Will Save Us?</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-08-16T20%3A28%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=1"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Interesting Quotes From the Watchtower</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-07-23T19%3A33%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=1"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Questions and Answers Regarding Revelation</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-07-15T11%3A39%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=1"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Revelation Chapter Twenty</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/07/book-of-revelation-pt-one.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The Anointed</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-07-12T21%3A30%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=1"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Out of Context</span></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/1975-what-really-was-said.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">1975 - What Was Really Said?</span></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-07-04T00%3A25%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=1"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Regarding Elders and Ministerial Servants</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-06-20T15%3A56%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=1"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"Be Glad, You Nations, With His People"</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/are-we-in-spiritual-paradise.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Are We in a Spiritual Paradise?</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/praise-jehovah-with-song_16.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Praise Jehovah With a Song!</span></a></u><br /><br /><u><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/interesting-points-from-bible.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Interesting Points From the Bible</span></a></u><br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/watchtower-and-united-nations.html"><u><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The Watchtower and the United Nations</span></u></a><br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/1984-and-watchtower.html"><u><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><i>1984</i> and the Watchtower</span></u></a><br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/man-of-lawlessness-revealed.html"><u><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The "Man of Lawlessness" Revealed</span></u></a><br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/thousands-who-became-adulterers_02.html"><u><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The Thousands Who Became Adulterers</span></u></a><br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/bible-reading-without-publications.html"><u><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Bible Reading Without the Publications</span></u></a><br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/did-jesus-become-king-in-1914.html"><u><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Did Jesus Become King in 1914?</span></u></a><br /><u><u><br />------------------------------------------------------<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a></u></u>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-80757164789175870502009-06-15T14:24:00.001-07:002009-07-10T19:57:32.758-07:00Interesting Points From the BibleHas anyone else noticed the trend going on in the <span style="font-style: italic;">Watchtower</span> articles lately? They are all about how we as Christians should conduct ourselves in our daily life or about how to apply Bible examples (people or events). We are hardly taught anything new.<br /><br />Take Job for example. We have studied Job many times in the past few years in Watchtower studies. While that isn't bad in itself, we never learn anything new. We only learn about how he kept his integrity and we should keep ours.<br /><br />Or David. David sinned but repented. If we sin, we should repent. Or Moses. Moses did exactly what Jehovah said even though it was hard at times. Abraham. Joseph. Solomon. Daniel. We know so much about those men and how we can apply their examples in our lives but we never learn anything new about them or their writings.<br /><br />Think about all the articles we have about how husbands and wives and children should act in the congregation and in the family unit. We have so many articles about the preaching work. We have articles about how Christian's should act in general: No "backbiting". (1 Peter 2:1) No fornication. Etc.<br /><br />There is nothing wrong with articles like these every once in a while. It <span style="font-style: italic;">is</span> imperative that we continue to walk worthily of Jehovah. We should constantly "pummel" our bodies so that "after [we] preach to others [we] should not be disapproved somehow." (1 Corinthians 9:27) Reminders like these are good for us.<br /><br />However, the public talks are topics that we know intimately being geared towards the new and interested ones. The <span style="font-style: italic;">Watchtower</span> articles are all the same, how to act. The School and Service Meeting are all about the field ministry. Never do we learn anything new.<br /><br />So, I was thinking that we could...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><center>...Dig Deeper</center><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;">Something that I learned that I found interesting was about the book of 2 Corinthians. The tone and theme of 2 Corinthians 1-9 and 2 Corinthians 10-13 are completely different. During 2 Cor. 1-9 Paul is being kind and gentle with the Corinthian congregation. In 2 Cor. 10-13 he is markedly different. "I already gave you a warning when I was with you the second time. I now repeat it while absent: On my return I will not spare those who sinned earlier or any of the others, since you are demanding proof that Christ is speaking through me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you."-2 Corinthians 13:2-3, <span style="font-style: italic;">New International Version</span><br /><br />Although we were not there we can come to a good conclusion as to what Paul was talking about. He said to the congregation in Corinth earlier in 2 Corinthians, "For, as it is, if someone comes and preaches a Jesus other than the one we preached, or you receive a spirit other than what you received, or good news other than what you accepted, you easily put up with him. For I consider that I have not in a single thing proved inferior to your superfine apostles. But even if I am unskilled in speech, I certainly am not in knowledge; but in every way we manifested it to you in all things." (2 Cor. 11:4-5) It seems that false apostles were coming into the congregation and teachings things contrary to what the brothers and sister in Corinth has originally been taught. They even built themselves up by putting Paul down!-2 Cor. 10:10<br /><br />By really paying attention to what we read, we can get a good background of 1 and 2 Corinthians. It seems that altogether, Paul wrote four letters to the Corinthians, two inspired letters and two uninspired. (See 1 Cor. 5:9-11; 2 Cor. 2:3-4) We find out that Paul wrote his very first letter to the Corinthians (not 1 Corinthians), which was not understood so he clarified his words in 1 Corinthians 5. After writing 1 Corinthians, Paul evidently wrote another letter, sometimes dubbed "The Severe Letter". Why? Something bad happened in the Corinthians congregation, something that hurt Paul, so he says that he wrote "The Severe Letter" with tears because he was experiencing "much tribulation and anguish of heart" regarding this.<br /><br />Some may counter and say that he was speaking of the first letter to the Corinthians but there is nothing in 1 Corinthians that could explain his saying that he wrote it "with many tears." So there had to be another letter. Uninspired letters are not unheard of in the Christian Greek Scriptures.-Col. 4:16<br /><br />What happened with this letter? Well, there are some theories. One group says that due to the difference in tone and subject, 2 Corinthians 1-9 and 2 Corinthians 10-13 were two different letters. Perhaps, some say, 2 Corinthians 10-13 is the severe letter that Paul wrote first and it was attached later to 2 Corinthians 1-9. This is probably not the case because there is no evidence of this. There would be something out there to prove this but nothing has been found.<br /><br />Whatever happened to this letter, it must not have been important or else Jehovah would have seen to it being preserved to our day.<br /><br />Interestingly, it seems that the Corinthian congregation was not unaccustomed to writing Paul letters of inquiry in certain subjects. (1 Cor. 7:1; 8:1) Maybe someone wrote Paul a letter explaining that some people were speaking against him. This may have prompted him to write "The Severe Letter", sending it along with Titus.-2 Cor. 12:18<br /><br />After the incident of the riot caused by Demetrius and his fellow silversmiths, Paul might have left Ephesus and gone to Troas. (Acts 19:23-34; 1 Cor. 16:8) Upon arriving at Troas, Paul says that "a door was opened to me by the Lord." However, he "had no rest in [his] spirit because [he] did not find [our] brother Titus" and so he "said good-bye to them and left for Macedonia." (2 Cor. 2:12-13, <span style="font-style: italic;">Holman Christian Standard Bible</span>) Many say that perhaps Paul was anxious because he wanted to know how "The Severe Letter" was received by the Corinthians.<br /><br />After he left Troas, Paul went into Macedonia. He talked about his body having no rest due to "fights without - fears within." Titus then arrived with the report from Corinth (because he had been there earlier) and it was good, effectively encouraging Paul from what had been troubling him.-2 Cor. 7:5-7<br /><br />The people who hold this viewpoint say that the inspired letter stayed in Corinth and was worn out from use, Jehovah not moving anyone to copy it. They also go on to explain about the difference in word and tone from 2 Cor. 1-9 and 2 Cor. 10-13. They say that while Paul was writing 2 Corinthians 1-9, word came to him that some people in Corinth were still causing trouble about Paul's position and authority as an apostle. This caused him to continue on and write the last four chapters.<br /><br />Of course, there is no proof to back either of these viewpoints. We can not know if 2 Corinthians 10-13 is "The Severe Letter" or if 2 Corinthians 10-13 was added on later because Paul got a report that some people were still causing trouble after receiving the severe letter. No one can say for sure or else they would be going "beyond the things that are written" but we can see that <span style="font-style: italic;">something</span> happened to Paul in between 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians because of 2 Cor. 2:4, 12-13.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">"Interesting Points from the Bible"<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;">In the April 1, 2007 <span style="font-style: italic;">Watchtower</span> on page 23, the Governing Body made this statement: "The collective steward would not simply be a group of intellectuals who explain interesting points from the Bible." While this may be the case, it wouldn't be wrong to branch out and do this. There are many, many, many "interesting points from the Bible" that are neglected all the time because we focus on the same subjects far too much.<br /><br />We can learn a lot from really, really looking at the entire Bible. For a long time, the Governing Body was really good at doing that and then they just stopped. While there is only vague evidence supporting the above overview, the evidence is there. It is interesting to learn. And even though we cannot be sure right now if all of those scholars who hold the above to be possible we can learn from this.<br /><br /></div></div>Going back to the above statement from the April 1, 2007 <span style="font-style: italic;">Watchtower</span>, there is nothing wrong with explaining interesting points from the Bible. Even Jesus explained interesting points from the Bible. (Matt. 17:10-13; Mark 9:10-13; Malachi 4:5-6) Why can't we do the same?<br /><br />For now, the Governing Body will do as it pleases.<br /></div></div><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-7948599945677558552009-06-14T13:34:00.000-07:002009-07-06T12:21:48.435-07:00The Watchtower and the United NationsIn the October 8, 2001 issue of the "Daily Guardian" newspaper in the United Kingdom, it was revealed the the Watchtower Society had been a member of the United Nations for about ten years. Within a week, the Society withdrew membership from that organization.<br /><br />Or did it?<br /><br />Recent evidence has come to light that different corporations used by the Watchtower are actually NGO's in the United Nation. Evidence for this can be found <a href="http://www.osce.org/documents/odihr/2007/09/26586_en.pdf">here.</a> Just scroll down to the subheading "Non-Governmental Organizations" and look at numbers 10, 93, 94, 243, and 328. Five different international corporations used by Jehovah's Witnesses are registered NGO's! Why does the Society insist on continuing membership with these?<br /><br />I pray that incidents like these do not stumble our faithful, sincere brothers and sisters throughout the world. We should all continue to serve the King of Glory, Jehovah God. (Psalm 24:7-10, <span style="font-style: italic;">Recovery Version</span>) No matter what happens in the coming weeks, continue to believe that Jehovah will "by no means leave <b>you</b> nor by any means forsake <b>you</b>."-Hebrews 13:5; Deuteronomy 31:6, 8<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br />ADDED June 17, 2009: A brother on another website (which I choose not to publish due to major discrepancies) used this 1971 Questions from Readers to illustrate why the Watchtower joining the United Nations was wrong.<br /><br /><blockquote>"w79 1/1 p. 31 Questions from Readers<br />"... In joining the YMCA as a member a person accepts or endorses the general objectives and principles of the organization. He is not simply paying for something he receives, such as when buying things being sold to the public at a store. (Compare 1 Corinthians 8:10; 10:25.) Nor is his membership merely an entry pass, as when a person buys a theater ticket. Membership means that one has become an integral part of this organization founded with definite religious objectives, including the promotion of interfaith. Hence, for one of Jehovah’s Witnesses to become a member of such a so-called "Christian" association would amount to apostasy.<br /><br />Some individuals have on occasion not become members but have paid a onetime admission fee, viewing this as simply paying for a commercial service available. Even in this regard it is wise to consider whether this course will adversely affect the consciences of others.— Cor. 8:11-13."</blockquote><br /><br />The Society says that they joined the UN organization to achieve access to an off-limits library. Using their own reasoning we can come to a drastic conclusion...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><u>Links to the two </u></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"><u>Daily Guardian</u></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><u> articles are below:</u></span><u></u><br />http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2001/oct/08/religion.world<br />http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2001/oct/15/religion.unitednations<br /><br /><b><u>Watchtower Response to Above Article and Branch Offices</u></b><u></u><br />http://www.randytv.com/secret/gillies.jpg<br />http://www.randytv.com/secret/wt11012001.jpg<br />http://www.randytv.com/secret/ccjwresponse.jpg<br /><br /><b><u>UN Response to Large Number of Inquiries Regarding WT/UN Association</u></b><u></u><br />http://www.un.org/dpi/ngosection/pdfs/watchtower.pdf<br />http://www.randytv.com/secret/unfax.jpg<br /><br /><u><b>Did the Watchtower Need to Become an NGO for a Library Pass?</b></u><br />http://www.randytv.com/secret/emailNGO.htm<br /><br /><b><u>Has the Criteria for Association With UN Changed Since Their Inception?</u></b><br />http://www.randytv.com/secret/unmarchletter.jpg<br /><br />*Note: The OSCE is an ad hoc organization under the United Nations charter (Chapter VIII) concerned with early warning, conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation.<br /><br />The United Nations has authorized this organization to be made, kind of like a subsidiary of the UN. The OSCE tries to dissolve disputes in its region but sends them to the United Nations Security Council if the matters are too big for the OSCE to handle. So it resembles the setup that Jethro encouraged Moses to take when he realized that the job of settling disputes was too big for Moses.-See Exodus 18:13-26<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a></u></u>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-26082848593094115472009-06-11T09:43:00.000-07:002009-06-16T07:07:45.738-07:001984 and The WatchtowerLet me ask you: Have <i>you</i> ever read the book <i>1984</i>? If you have, many things may now be going through your head in regard to the Watchtower. Is he trying to connect the Watchtower and Big Brother? Indeed I am.<br /><br />In the book <i>1984</i> by George Orwell, the world has been divided into three governments called Oceania, Eurasia, and East Asia. These three governments are always at war with one another. Although the book doesn't go into the divisions of the countries, I came to the conclusion that Oceania was made up of the former North America, South America, and West Europe and possibly Africa or parts thereof and Australia. The rest of the world was made up of East Asia and Eurasia. It was mentioned in the book that an East Asian man had oriental features.<br /><br />The state of Oceania was where the main character, Winston Smith, lived. He resided in a rundown apartment complex sparsely decorated with necessary furniture including bed, kitchen table - and the all important telescreen.<br /><br /><blockquote>"Winston turned a switch and the voice sank somewhat, though the words were still distinguishable. The instrument (the telescreen, it was called) could be dimmed, but there was no way of shutting it off completely."-<b>Part 1, Chpt. 1, para. 3</b></blockquote><br />The interesting thing about the "<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">telescreen</span>" was that, while it worked like a regular television, it was also two way.<br /><br /><blockquote>"The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it, moreover, so long as he remained within the field of vision which the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard. There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment. How often, or on what system, the Thought Police plugged in on any individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time. But at any rate they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to. You had to live -- did live, from habit that became instinct -- in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized."-<b>Part 1, Chpt. 1, para. 5</b></blockquote><br />It is mentioned in the book that <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">fear-inducing</span> propaganda is visible <i>everywhere</i>.<br /><br /><blockquote>"On each landing, opposite the lift-shaft, the poster with the enormous face gazed from the wall. It was one of those pictures which are so contrived that the eyes follow you about when you move. BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU, the caption beneath it ran...Outside...The blackmoustachio'd face gazed down from every commanding corner. There was one on the house-front immediately opposite. BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU, the caption said, while the dark eyes looked deep into Winston's own.-<b>Part 1, Chpt. 1, para. 2, 4</b></blockquote><br />Interestingly, aren't we kept in fear all the time by our own "Big Brother", the Watchtower Society? They say that we have relative freedom but then we realize that don't. Case in point, a study that we had in the book, <span style="font-style: italic;">Keep Yourselves in God's Love</span>.<br /><br /><blockquote>"As servants of Jehovah, we rightly want to look our best, which means dressing in a way that is neat, clean, in good taste, and appropriate for the occasion...Above all, we want to bring honor to Jehovah and his people and to recommend ourselves as God’s ministers, doing “all things for God’s glory"...Our dress, grooming, and cleanliness are even more important when we are engaging in the field ministry or attending a Christian meeting. Ask yourself: 'Do my appearance and personal hygiene draw undue attention to me? Do they embarrass others? Do I consider my rights in these areas to be more important than qualifying for service privileges in the congregation?' "-<span style="font-style: italic;"><b>Keep Yourselves in God's Love</b></span><b>, Chpt. 5, para. 11-15<br /><br /></b></blockquote>The paragraph ends by telling us that it is up to us - our own personal choice - how we want to dress. However, did you see the threat at the very end of the above paragraph? They pretty much say, 'You can dress however you want as long as we tell you that it is okay. If you do not dress in a manner that we approve, you will lose all of your privileges in the congregation.' It was so subtle that many didn't notice it for what it was. Now, is the Society wrong for telling us that we need to dress in a manner befitting to a Christian? Absolutely not! That is Biblical. But we are not allowed to dress how we want to. We even have a list of appropriate dress and grooming at Bethel and, we all know how we should dress at congregation meetings.<br /><br />Little things like that show that this is a form of control. In <span style="font-style: italic;">1984</span>, the form of control is, 'if you do not do what we command we will kill you." It is true that the Bible says, "<span style="background-color: rgb(241, 243, 230);" id="vs1-2"></span>If any man is reaching out for an office of overseer, he is desirous of a fine work." (1 Timothy 3:1) We should want to receive privileges in the congregation - there is nothing wrong with that. However, the Society makes everyone overly excited about privileges, even making it seem like if someone has not received privileges or been appointed, that something is wrong with them.<br /><br />The Bible does have a list of qualities that a man needs to display (or not display) before he can become an elder or ministerial servant. (1 Timothy 3:2-13; Titus 1:6-9) I was held off from being appointed by things other then what Paul presented in his two list. I had even made auxiliary pioneer time for months and was still kept from being appointed. This, obviously, disappointed me for some time until I realized that it doesn't really matter. <span style="font-style: italic;">The Society</span> makes us want appointments so bad, mainly because it will allow us to stand out. We yearn for it and get jealous when others get it and we don't. We do everything they tell us to so we can hear our names called from a platform. They use this to control us.<br /><br />There is an example of this in <span style="font-style: italic;">1984</span>. In the book, not everyone is controlled by Big Brother. There is a street people in the book that live in a government-sanctioned area called the "Proles". To keep the Proles in line, preventing a revolution, which would have succeeded due to sheer numbers if they had enough sense to rise up, Big Brother created a <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">lottery</span> scam, awarding large sums of money to fake people.<br /><br /><blockquote>"The Lottery, with its weekly pay-out of enormous prizes, was the one public event to which the proles paid serious attention...Winston had nothing to do with the running of the Lottery, which was managed by the Ministry of Plenty, but he was aware (indeed everyone in the party was aware) that the prizes were largely imaginary. Only small sums were actually paid out, the winners of the big prizes being non-existent persons..."-<b>Part 1, Chpt. 8, Para. 18</b></blockquote><br />This lottery, for the Proles, really was the only thing that gave them hope. They had no reason to live except on the hope that they would win even some small fortune from this game. Can not it be said that many people remain in the Truth only to bear the title of Ministerial Servant? I know I did, until I realized that being a Ministerial Servant or an Elder was not truly important. When I stopped trying to be one of these - stopped trying to win the "lotto" - my life as a servant of Jehovah took on a new meaning. Indeed, the "pay-offs" of this "lotto" are the small sums, not the big prizes, which are always given to "non-existent person".<br /><br />Another thing that is forbidden by the Society is something that George Orwell named "<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Thoughtcrime</span>", or the idea that anything you think in your head, even if you never utter it nor plan to teach it, is an offense.<br /><br /><blockquote>"He had committed -- would still have committed, even if he had never set pen to paper -- the essential crime that contained all others in itself. Thoughtcrime, they called it. Thoughtcrime was not a thing that could be concealed for ever. You might dodge successfully for a while, even for years, but sooner or later they were bound to get you."-<b>Part 1, Chpt. 1, Para. 45</b></blockquote><br />Thoughtcrime is something that we all know is condemned by the Society. In his book, <span style="font-style: italic;">Crisis of Conscious </span>(of which I have only read excerpts of on the internet)<span style="font-style: italic;">,</span> Raymond Franz mentions how "thoughtcrime" was labelled and then condemned under the threat of disfellowshipping and being labelled an apostate. The letter, presented in his book, says this:<br /><br /><blockquote>"Keep in mind that to be disfellowshipped, an apostate does not have to be a promoter of apostate views...Therefore, if a baptized Christian abandons the teachings of Jehovah, as presented by the faithful and discreet slave, and persists in believing other doctrine despite Scriptural reproof, then he is apostasizing. Extended, kindly efforts should be put forth to readjust his thinking. However, if after such extended efforts have been put forth to readjust his thinking, he continues to believe the apostate ideas and rejects what he has been provided through the 'slave class', then appropriate judicial action should be taken."-<b>Letter to Circuit Overseers, 1980</b><br /></blockquote><br />This letter effectively banned free thought. Now, even thinking things contrary to what "the faithful and discreet slave" (Governing Body) says can get you disfellowshipped! Raymond Franz said, This "is something like saying that a man's accepting and obeying a King's written message is no guarantee that he is loyal; it is accepting and obeying what a slave messenger claims the ruler meant that decides this." (<i>Crisis of Conscious</i>, Chtp., para. ) Yes, even if you firmly believe that what you believe is backed up by God's Word, you are still dissenting against Jehovah - because you are abandoning "the teachings of Jehovah <b>as presented by the faithful and discreet slave</b>."<br /><br />While we have freedom of speech (and thought) under the Bill of Rights, this was hindered in the Watchtower Society because it would cause people to leave the Truth as presented by, not "the faithful and discreet slave" but the Governing Body.<br /><br />Other things that were done in George Orwells book was that Big Brother would say one thing was factual until it no longer suited them and then they would completely contradict themselves but everyone would believe that what they were now teaching was the absolute inerrant truth until, of course, they said it wasn't. To do this, the masses would have to employ "<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">blackwhite</span></span>" and "<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">bellyfeel</span></span>.<span style="font-style: italic;">"<br /><br /></span>Blackwhite, as described by George Orwell himself is "a loyal willingness to say that black is white when Party discipline demands this...also the ability to believe that black is white, and more, to know that black is white, and to forget that one has ever believed the contrary. This demands a continuous alteration of the past." Bellyfeel is a blind, enthusiastic acceptance of an idea. Together, these two terms describe what the Watchtower demands of us when it has "new light."<br /><br />Take for example the "generation" teaching. It has changed numerous times - 1927, 1942, 1949, 1995, and 2008 - five times in all! Each time only a small fraction of people leave the Truth, the rest blindly and enthusiastically accepting the new idea. Why? The Watchtower uses one out-of-context Bible verse to support their flip-flopping doctrine: "But the path of the righteous ones is like the bright light that is getting lighter and lighter until the day is firmly established."-Proverbs 4:18<br /><br />The Society has quoted this verse over and over, drilling it into ours heads all the while giving us a false interpretation. They claim that this was a <span style="font-style: italic;">prophecy</span> about our time, even though the context of the Scripture leaves the reader considering otherwise. This is a Bible truth, not a prophecy. Certain issues of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Watchtower</span> magazine alluded to this verse after making a statement that we can consider a correct interpretation, namely, that as each <span style="font-style: italic;">individual</span> follower of Jehovah grows in the Truth, his spiritual understanding will grow, illuminating the Truth more and more until "the day is firmly established."-Proverbs 4:14-19; See the <span style="font-style: italic;">Watchtower</span> of Nov. 15, 2008, pg. 11, para. 14; Dec. 1, 2008, pg. 30, para. 6; Feb. 15, 2000, pg. 27, para. 7<br /><br />As followers of Jehovah, he expects us to find out what is Truth and what is not. He commands that we do this as the Beroeans did, searching the Scriptures always in our continued spiritual walk. (Acts 17:11) Only by doing this can we truly know if what we are being taught is truly God's Word or if we're being cheated.<br /><br />One example of this involved me. About two years ago at an assembly, a certain parable of Jesus recorded at Matthew 13:47-50 was explained. As they explained it one way I kept thinking that this wasn't right, it couldn't be right. The parable would make no sense if what the brother from the stage was saying was correct. About a year later a "refined" explantion came out. This can be found in the <span style="font-style: italic;">Watchtower</span> of July 15, 2008, page 20. When I was at the assembly, the explantion as put forth in the aforementioned article was almost exactly what I was thinking of. The only difference between the 7/15/08 <span style="font-style: italic;">Watchtower</span> and the explantion that I hold is this: The article says that the separating work is now, I say that it is in the future. Why? Jesus said that the separating work will be done "in the conclusion of the system of things" when "the angels go out and separate the wicked from the righteous." This means that there will be unrighteous ones <span style="font-style: italic;">within</span> the congregation at the conclusion and they will be winnowed out at Armageddon - completely destroyed. Of course, the Society cannot admit that Jehovah is allowing wicked ones to remain in the congregation or it would cause problems.-Compare Matthew 13:24-30<br /><br />It is sad that so many people give in to what George Orwell called blackwhite. One prime example of blackwhite is presented in Raymond Franz's book, <span style="font-style: italic;">Crisis of Conscious</span>. He related an experience that he had heard of.<br /><br /><blockquote>"Perhaps epitomizing the spirit that the Society’s pronouncements, including this letter, produced is an incident occurring at a Circuit Assembly meeting for elders of a section of Alabama. The District Overseer, Bart Thompson, held up a Society publication that had a green cover. He then said to the assembly of elders, 'If the Society told me that this book is black instead of green, I would say, "Y’know I could have sworn that it was green, but if the Society says it’s black, then it’s black!" ' "-<b>Chapter 12, pg. 345, para. 1</b></blockquote><br /><br />This District Overseer would willingly use blackwhite, <i>willingly</i> convincing himself that black is white (or in this case green is black) because the Watchtower, Big Brother, said so.<br /><br />There are many other examples that could be listed to show the similarities between Big Brother and the Watchtower but this, perhaps, will suffice.<br /><br />George Orwell was a brilliant man who perfectly created a dictatorial society. The Governing Body has fallen right into that mold, perhaps unknowingly. The only difference is, we do not have to be controlled by the Watchtower like Winston (the main character of <i>1984</i>) was controlled by Big Brother. Yes, if we want to help liberate people from the perfect mind control used by the Society, we need to stay in the congregation in good standing and not voice our beliefs for all to hear.<br /><br />The Jehovah's Witnesses have much of the Truth. They do not have all. Is that bad? No. The Bible tells us that no one can have the entire Truth. (Ecclesiastes 3:11; Daniel 12:4) The Jehovah's Witnesses have more of the Truth then any other religion that I have ever seen. This is the way Jehovah wants us to worship Him, as His Witnesses and not as Watchtower-ites. Do not leave the organization of brothers and sisters because of the sins of the Watchtower. The Bible indicates that at the end there will be wicked people among us but they will be exposed. Trust the Jesus and his angels will know what they are doing.<br /><br />I beg: Be found among us when the end comes.-1 Peter 4:17<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-28265412201695106922009-06-03T15:02:00.001-07:002009-07-23T19:29:39.785-07:00The "Man of Lawlessness" Revealed!When I first learned the "identity" of the "Man of Lawlessness" as presented by the Governing Body of the Watchtower Society, I had problems with it. Coming out of Christendom, I never saw any of Christendom's preachers trying to "lift [themselves] up over everyone who is called "god" or an object of reverence" and "sit down in the temple of The God, publicly showing [themselves] to be a god."-2 Thessalonians 2:3-4<br /><br />As bad as Christendom is, they have never, ever done this. Has anybody ever done this? And how can they sit in "the temple of The God" if the temple no longer exists? Let us see.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Temple of The God</span><br /></div><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span>To really learn who the "Man of Lawlessness" is, we need to figure out what the temple of God is. As said above, since the original temple is long destroyed, there has to be another temple on earth today so that the "Man of Lawlessness" can sit inside of it. Does the Bible reveal what the temple of God is? Yes.<br /><br />"What! Do you not know that the body of you people is the temple of the holy spirit within you, which you have from God? Also, you do not belong to yourselves, for you were bought with a price. By all means, glorify God in the body of you people." (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) So, this temple is made up of true followers of Jesus Christ.<br /><br />In the <i>Insight on the Scriptures,</i> Vol. 2, it is said that the only the anointed are the temple of God and the great crowd are not part of it. Does the Bible teach this, though? No, it doesn't. At 2 Corinthians 6:16, Paul says, "What agreement does God’s temple have with idols? For we are a temple of a living God; just as God said: 'I shall reside among them and walk among them, and I shall be their God, and they will be my people.' " In this Scripture, Paul is quoting Leviticus 26:12. This Scripture is talking about the whole nation of Israel, paralleled by the great crowd and the anointed, and not just the priest, paralleled by the anointed. Require more proof? Here:<br /><br />Jesus Christ is said to be the cornerstone of the temple. "Christ Jesus himself is the foundation cornerstone." The anointed are the foundation of the temple. "You have been built up upon the foundation of the <span style="font-style: italic;">apostles and prophets</span>." Regarding us, the great crowd, "<span style="font-style: italic;">You are fellow citizens of the holy ones and are members of the household of God</span>," the "holy ones" being the anointed. If the "holy ones" are the anointed and the people Paul is speaking to were "fellow citizens of the holy ones", then these ones cannot be those same anointed. The context shows that the "holy ones" are the Jews and the "fellow citizens" are the Gentiles. There is no differentiating between the two. Together, all of us are, Jew, Gentile, Anointed, and Great Crowd, "being harmoniously joined together...growing into a holy temple for Jehovah...a place for God to inhabit by spirit."-Ephesians 2:19-22<br /><br />This is important for all of us to understand because the Bible says, "Do you not know that you people are God’s temple, and that the spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him; for the temple of God is holy, which temple you people are." (1 Corinthians 3:16-17) Yes, "in accord with the Holy One who called you...also become holy yourselves in all your conduct, because it is written: 'you must be holy, because I am holy.'-1 Peter 1:14-16<br /><br />Now that we have seen that we, Jesus Christ, the anointed, and the great crowd make up the temple, we can have a better understanding of what Paul meant when he said that the "Man of Lawlessness" will sit down in the "temple of The God, publicly showing himself to be a god."<br /><br />If we are the temple of The God, the "Man of lawlessness" will elevate himself over all of us and declare himself to be a god. How has he done this, making himself a god? At <a href="http://www.perimeno.ca/">Brother Perimeno's website</a> and on this blog, evidence has been documented showing how the Governing Body, starting in Rutherford's day, has changed the meanings of Scriptures to fit their ideas and elevate themselves over us - and even Jehovah.<br /><br />When anyone takes Scriptures, including Christendom, and changes the meanings of them, they are claiming that they know better then Jehovah God or Jesus Christ, the ones who inspired and uttered these words. We have seen this done with the Watchtower Society's <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/did-jesus-become-king-in-1914.html">1914 doctrine</a>, Jesus' words regarding <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/thousands-who-became-adulterers_02.html">divorce in Matthew 19</a>, and the teachings <a href="http://perimeno.ca/Who_included_in_NC.htm">on the New Covenant</a>. By saying they know better then Jehovah and Jesus, they are elevating themselves over those two.<br /><br />A person may ask themselves, "If these people are really the anointed, and the anointed is the 'Faithful and Discreet Slave', then how can these people be the 'Man of Lawlessness?' " That is a good question and can be answered by going to look at the words of Jesus Christ.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Evil Slave</span><br /></div><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span><span>Just</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span></span><span>as </span>the anointed who have left the Truth become part of the antichrist, so those who do not leave the Society but begin to act contrary to how a member of the 'faithful slave' should act become known as the "evil slave." (1 John 2:18-21) The words of Jesus, presented below, show that this transition is possible. He said:<br /><br /><blockquote>"Who really is the faithful and discreet slave whom his master appointed over his domestics, to give them their food at the proper time? Happy is that slave if his master on arriving finds him doing so. Truly I say to you, He will appoint him over all his belongings. But if ever that evil slave should say in his heart, 'My master is delaying,' and should start to beat his fellow slaves and should eat and drink with the confirmed drunkards, the master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect and in an hour that he does not know, and will punish him with the greatest severity and will assign him his part with the hypocrites. There is where his weeping and the gnashing of his teeth will be."-<b>Matthew 24:45-51<br /><br /></b></blockquote>Now the Governing Body claims that the "faithful and discreet slave" is not each individual anointed but all of the anointed alive at a certain time. This, though, is not correct. Following his pronouncement of the faithful slave and the evil slave, Jesus relates a parable in regard to them. (Matthew 25:14-30) This parable reveals that each anointed individually is a "faithful and discreet slave" charged with feeding the sheep of Christ until his return. That means that each of them can become an evil slave.<br /><br />Furthermore, the words of the Apostle Paul also show that the "faithful and discreet slave" is made up of individual anointed ones when he says, "Let a man so appraise us as being subordinates of Christ and <span style="font-style: italic;">stewards</span> of sacred secrets of God. Besides, in this case, what is looked for in stewards is for <span style="font-style: italic;">a man</span> to be found <span style="font-style: italic;">faithful."</span> (1 Corinthians 4:1-2) The words of the Bible are clear for all to see in this regard.<br /><br />How, though, does one of anointed become one of the evil slave? Jesus said that he would say in his heart " 'My master is delaying,' and should start to beat his fellow slaves and should eat and drink with the confirmed drunkards." The Governing Body has done this, eating and drinking at the "table of demons", who, like their leader Satan, twist the words of the Bible to say what they want. (1 Corinthians 10:21; Matthew 4:5-6) They also beat their "fellow slaves" by taking away their right to dispense "food at the proper time", saying that this is solely their right. Again, this is another way in which they have elevated themselves over the temple of God.<br /><br />The evil slave also makes life very hard for each of us, anointed and great crowd alike, by constantly pressuring us to "do more, do more, do more", by hanging the threat of disfellowshipping over us, by labeling us apostates if we start to believe even the tiniest thing differently then what they say we should be. The evil slave even goes so far as to say that we will die at Armageddon if we do not believe everything they say! Yes, they make the way of the Truth more difficult then it needs to be.-Matthew 11:28-30; 1 John 5:3; Luke 13:24<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">How Do They Manage This?</span><br /></div><br />How do<span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span>they get away with this? How come so many believe that the position the Governing Body is in is their rightful place? By claiming certain prophecies that have not been fulfilled yet have been accomplished, even though they have no Scriptural proof to back them up. What prophecies do they use to back themselves up?<br /><br />1 Peter 4:7-"For it is the appointed time for the judgment to start with the house of God. Now if it starts first with us, what will the end be of those who are not obedient to the good news of God?" The Governing Body teaches that this happened back in 1918-1919.<br /><br /><blockquote>" 'On arriving' to inspect the 'slave' in 1918, Christ found a spirit-anointed remnant of faithful disciples who since 1879 had been using this journal and other Bible-based publications to provide spiritual 'food at the proper time.' He acknowledged them as his collective instrument, or 'slave,' and in 1919 entrusted them with the management of all his earthly belongings."-<b>The <i>Watchtower</i>, April 1, 2007<br /><br /></b></blockquote>Only by saying that Jesus Christ has approved them and placed them over "all his earthly belongs" can they do what they do. However, there are a few problems with this reasoning. The Watchtower Society has said that Christ 'arrived' in 1914 and has been present ever since. How could he have been present since 1914 yet arrive in 1918?<br /><br />Another problem that we find can be seen by "all his earthly belongs." The Bible says that Jesus Christ will place them over <span style="font-style: italic;">all</span> his belongings. By saying that when Jesus came back he appointed the 'faithful slave' over all his earthly belongings, they show a lack of ignorance as to what Christ was going to appoint them over!<br /><br />The last major problem is what will happen when Christ returns to inspect and approve the faithful and discreet slave. As well as approving the faithful slave, Christ will judge the evil slave. This will happen at the same time. The ones approved will be appointed over <span style="font-style: italic;">all</span> his belongings while the ones not approved will be punished "with the greatest severity" and labeled a hypocrite, "where his weeping and the gnashing of his teeth will be."<br /><br />While we see that the evil slave will suffer this fate at the when the master comes, what will happen to the "Man of Lawlessness" when the master comes? We get an idea of what is meant by "where his weeping and the gnashing of his teeth will be" by what we see happens to the evil slave under the title of the "Man of Lawlessness".<br /><br />The Apostle Paul said, "The Lord Jesus will do away with [the Man of Lawlessness] by the spirit of his mouth and bring [him] to nothing by the manifestation of his presence." (2 Thessalonians 2:8) Yes, when Jesus Christ returns, he will "bring to nothing" the "Man of Lawlessness!" What a joy that will be when the evil slave is done away with and we are under the rule of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and his anointed brothers!<br /><br /><br /><center><b>But...</b></center><br /><br />People may ask, "Why should we stay in the world-wide brotherhood if the Governing Body, those who beat us into submission, have taken control and are part of the 'evil slave' and the 'Man of Lawlessness?' "<br /><br />Why? Simply put, it is a command. "And let us be concerned about one another in order to promote love and good works, not staying away from our meetings, as some habitually do, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day drawing near." (Hebrews 10:24-25, <span style="font-style: italic;">Holman Christian Standard Bible</span>) We have to be concerned about each other! If we are concerned for our brothers and sisters who have not seen the truth about the Governing Body and the Watchtower Society, we will stay and try to assist them as much as possible. I have tried this lately, making little statements to gauge the loyalty to the Governing Body on the part of some in our brotherhood. Unfortunately, either they are too scared to say anything wrong or they are completely and unswervingly loyal.<br /><br />Although many people are still loyal and others are starting to fall away from the faith due to confusion, we need to continue to help all to stay in the faith as Witnesses of Jehovah. We need to upbuild ourselves - and others - in our "most holy faith." (Jude 20) We can only do this by continuing to attend the meetings.<br /><br />Another reason we need to stay in the faith is because this is still God's household. (Ephesians 2:19; 1 Timothy 3:14) There is something, though, that still needs to happen concerning this household and it is this: the judging of this household by Jesus Christ. Jesus wants to clean out his congregation. Can we expect anything less? So do not worry. The Governing Body will be punished.*<a name="fnt1_src" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=1482551209291306556&postID=2826541220169510692#fnt1"></a><br /><br />As Jehovah's people, we have a responsibility to not push ahead and try to change the way things are but to wait on Jehovah. "Good it is that one should wait, even silently, for the salvation of Jehovah." (Lamentations 3:26) We also never need to be caught in the trap of approving of the way things are. Jehovah said this about the Israelites, "An astonishing situation, even a horrible thing, has been brought to be in the land: The prophets themselves actually prophesy in falsehood; and as for the priests, they go subduing according to their powers. And my own people have loved it that way." (Jeremiah 5:30-31) While waiting on Jehovah, let us never forget the sins of the Watchtower and begin to 'love it that way.'<br /><br /><br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><br /><p class="fnt"><a name="fnt1" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=1482551209291306556&postID=2826541220169510692#fnt1_src"></a>*Interestingly, the Governing Body teaches that the judgment was over the "faithful and discreet slave" as a group but the Bible reveals that it is actually each individual being judged and is future. "If the <span style="font-style: italic;">righteous man</span> is being saved with difficulty, where will the <span style="font-style: italic;">ungodly man</span> and the sinner make a showing?"-1 Peter 4:17-18; Matthew 24:46-47, 50-51, For More proof regarding the self-exultation of the Watchtower Society, see <a href="http://www.perimeno.ca/Watchtower%20April%201,%202007.htm">past <i>Watchtower</i> articles</a> and an article on brother Perimeno's website called <a href="http://www.perimeno.ca/Faithful_Slave.htm">The Faithful and Discreet Slave</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a></p>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-19540420421632831652009-06-02T21:08:00.000-07:002009-07-27T19:51:08.447-07:001975 - What Really Was Said?We always seem to hear about 1975, the year Armageddon was going to happen. Many people seem to think that the Watchtower Society said the end was coming at that time. I for one did not believe that the Society ever said that or hinted at it for a very long time. I figured that if the Watchtower said something wrong then that would make Jehovah's Christian Witnesses wrong, too. That thinking is completely behind me now. I truly love being one of Jehovah's Witnesses, following the Bible as my "channel of communication" and not the Governing Body.<br /><br />However, even though the Society has been wrong about many things, was 1975 really one of them? Did the Governing Body of the Watchtower Society really say that Armageddon was going to happen that year?<br /><br />No. But they didn't have to.<br /><br />While it is true that the words "1975 is going to be the year that we see the outbreak of Armageddon" were never uttered, nor a derivative thereof, it does not necessarily mean that the Society is completely guiltless. Their words hinted that it was "probable" that Armageddon would happen that year - even admitting as much themselves!<br /><br /><blockquote>"With the appearance of the book <i>Life Everlasting-in Freedom of the Sons of God</i>, and its comments as to how appropriate it would be for the millennial reign of Christ to parallel the seventh millennium of man's existence, considerable expectation was aroused regarding the year 1975...there were...statements published that implied that such realization of hopes by that year was more of a probability than a mere possibility."-<b>The <i>Watchtower</i>, March 15, 1980, pg. 17</b></blockquote><br /><br />In addition to the written word, which we will review later in the article, there were also pictures that appeared in publications that helped to bolster enthusiasm.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0_9fIXouNoEhTAJrQrEYlJXB6GPw2MLqLs0TOh_eDHuJFIJn2UnrOrj3EwYOCHpezuvBknhg3zkqH0WQ7xafGvlLOrkdcxo6aqZ2mCXHcPAdfHz8YjuhUHYjwIfYnJyzNhi2dScayhv7o/s1600-h/1975.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 117px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0_9fIXouNoEhTAJrQrEYlJXB6GPw2MLqLs0TOh_eDHuJFIJn2UnrOrj3EwYOCHpezuvBknhg3zkqH0WQ7xafGvlLOrkdcxo6aqZ2mCXHcPAdfHz8YjuhUHYjwIfYnJyzNhi2dScayhv7o/s400/1975.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342952185365137298" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Even the growth in the numbers of Kingdom publishers before 1975 and a drop afterward shows that something spectacular was supposed to happen in that year. Check out the charts below that measure the growth around that year:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-3Ea5d1lsswo6cIa-MQmqsOwxpAxk1V6ol_EdJ4XfSCgRNVD8PKmnt9RD-R-yp_WKKmdk119RSHsWgmRVCQLfFDlBjBythRjl7GYOz-IcycFiX7XeBnPAmdv2KScfYqtQ5JlGbwpG8iJI/s1600-h/1975_growth.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 294px; height: 204px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-3Ea5d1lsswo6cIa-MQmqsOwxpAxk1V6ol_EdJ4XfSCgRNVD8PKmnt9RD-R-yp_WKKmdk119RSHsWgmRVCQLfFDlBjBythRjl7GYOz-IcycFiX7XeBnPAmdv2KScfYqtQ5JlGbwpG8iJI/s400/1975_growth.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342955058019960866" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlFtzlb7icLNaVAKUbgBVr6F24q9digap-oqHHTUeTWnVR5A0hCpZuAG8m9dOqslBa9SQXcLRCpfycVuok5DYDY6gXb1IkcKrN4pnND7GlnLchsGmEYQ9VlnIQn6hqO5d8Up2vuWFNAJ3f/s1600-h/1975-pub-growth.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 294px; height: 202px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlFtzlb7icLNaVAKUbgBVr6F24q9digap-oqHHTUeTWnVR5A0hCpZuAG8m9dOqslBa9SQXcLRCpfycVuok5DYDY6gXb1IkcKrN4pnND7GlnLchsGmEYQ9VlnIQn6hqO5d8Up2vuWFNAJ3f/s400/1975-pub-growth.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342955007510626130" border="0" /></a><br /><br />On his website, dear brother Perimeno scanned a copy of book that helped to stress "Armageddon's imminence" in 1975. The book can be seen be clicking <a href="http://www.perimeno.ca/1975_&_Life_Everlasting_Book.htm">here</a>. Read for yourself what the Society said on this matter.<br /><br />How exactly did people react with this doom and gloom teaching? Let us see.<br /><br /><center><b>Wait For It! Wait For It!</b></center><br /><br />In the American talk-show, <span style="font-style: italic;">The View</span>, one of the hosts on there was raised as one of Jehovah's Witnesses. After another host on the show received an invitation to the "Keep on the Watch!" District Convention, the conversation turned to the "prophecies" of the Jehovah's Witnesses (Watchtower Society). The woman said, "I remember back when I was young, being a Jehovah's Witness, they foretold that 1975 was the date, that the Armageddon , is what it's called, the Armageddon was going to come and a lot of people sold their property and houses because they thought the end of the world was coming...I waited - waited - it came and went. Now its like, its close."<br /><br />I heard another story that took place in Mexico. A sister (who wasn't in the Truth then) remembers an airplane flying over her city and a man dropping fliers from it. When they picked the fliers up they all read that the end was coming in 1975. It wasn't until later that she found out which religion the man had to have been a part of. We can only hope that this poor brother was not stumbled out of the Truth due to this.<br /><br />The Society, fortunately, tried to stop people from doing and saying these kinds of things. Brother Franz even said at a district convention:<br /><br /><blockquote>"Does it mean that Armageddon is going to be finished, with Satan bound, by 1975? It could! It could! All things are possible with God. Does it mean that Babylon the Great is going to go down by 1975? It could. Does it mean that the attack of Gog of Magog is going to be made on Jehovah's witnesses to wipe them out, then Gog himself will be put out of action? It could. But we are not saying. All things are possible with God. But we are not saying. And don't any of you be specific in saying anything that is going to happen between now and 1975. But the big point of it all is this, dear friends: Time is short. Time is running out, no question about that.<b><i>The Watchtower</i>, Oct. 15, 1966, pg. 631</b></blockquote><br /><br />What was Franz referring to? Well, earlier in that same <i>Watchtower</i> article it was said, "It did not take the brothers very long to find the chart beginning on page 31, showing that 6,000 years of man's existence end in 1975. Discussion of 1975 overshadowed about everything else. 'The new book compels us to realize that Armageddon is, in fact, very close indeed,' said a conventioner. Surely it was one of the outstanding blessings to be carried home."<br /><br />That new book emphasized a great deal about 1975 and people noticed it! They started throwing their hope into that year. Many people came into the Truth because of it. One <i>Kingdom Ministry</i> article even said:<br /><br /><blockquote>"Since the summer of 1973 there have been new peaks in pioneers every month. Now there are 20,394 regular and special pioneers in the United States, an all-time peak. That is 5,190 more than there were in February 1973! A 34-percent increase...<u>Reports are heard of brothers selling their homes and property and planning to</u> finish out the rest of their days in this old system in the <u>pioneer</u> service. <u>Certainly this is a fine way to spend the short time remaining before the wicked world's end</u>."-<b>May 1974, pg. 3</b></blockquote><br /><br />The Watchtower Society made this a good thing. 'Oh how wonderful, selling their homes!' Ask someone today about this, people selling their homes, and they criticize the poor people who were duped into believing the false expectations of the Society despite Jesus' warning: "Concerning that day and hour nobody knows, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father."-Matthew 24:36<br /><br />Other brothers and sisters decided that they should not have children.<br /><br /><blockquote>"Today there is a great crowd of people who are confident that a destruction of even greater magnitude is now imminent. The evidence is that Jesus' prophecy will shortly have a major fulfilment, upon this entire system of things. This has been a<b> </b>major factor in influencing many couples to decide not to have children at this time."-<b><i>Awake!</i> Nov. 8, 1974, pg. 11</b></blockquote><br /><br />It cannot be said that the idea that "Jesus' prophecy will shortly have a major fulfillment" is what influenced these people. It was the idea that Jesus was returning in 1975 that had the influence. But how could that be, since Brother Franz said that we shouldn't be definite about anything involving 1975? The Proclaimers book says that "statements were published on this subject, and some were likely more definite than advisable." (Pg. 104) In a talk entitled, "Choosing the Best Way of Life" the Society (kind of) admitted their guilt in regard to 1975. The effect? "The brothers also appreciated the candor of this same talk, which acknowledged the Society's responsibility for some of the disappointment that some felt regarding 1975."-<b>Yearbook, 1980, pg. 7</b><br /><br />This was good because, at first, the Society blamed the brothers and sisters for raising their expectations:<br /><br /><blockquote>"If anyone has been disappointed through not following this line of thought, he should now concentrate on adjusting his viewpoint, seeing that it was not the word of God that failed or deceived him and brought disappointment, but that his own understanding was based on wrong premises."-<b><i>The Watchtower</i>, July 15, 1976</b></blockquote><br /><br />Actually, though, whose fault was it for raising the brothers expectations? With words like these in articles and publications from the Society, it can be seen without a doubt where the blame lies.<br /><br /><blockquote>"Does God's rest day parallel the time man has been on earth since his creation? Apparently so. …In what year, then, would the first 6,000 years of man's existence and also the first 6,000 years of Gods rest day come to an end? The year 1975. … <span style="font-style: italic;">It means that within a relatively </span><span style="font-style: italic;">few years</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> we will witness the fulfillment of the remaining prophecies</span> that have to do with the "time of the end."<b><i>Awake!</i> Oct. 8, 1966, pg. 19-20</b></blockquote><br /><blockquote>"The fact that fifty-four years of the period called the 'last days' have already gone by is highly significant. It means that only a few years, at most, remain before the corrupt system of things dominating the earth is destroyed by God."-<b><i>Awake!</i>Oct. 8, 1968, pg. 13</b></blockquote><br /><br />Different brothers were giving talks with statements like this one by a District Overseer: "Jehovah has provided meat in due season. Because he's held up before all of us, a new goal. A new year. Something to reach out for and it just seems it has given all of us so much more energy and power in this final burst of speed to the finish line. And that's the year 1975…Well, we don't have to guess what the year 1975 means if we read the Watchtower…And don't wait 'till 1975. The door is going to be shut before the….As one brother put it, 'Stay alive to Seventy-Five.'"<br /><br />One Awake! article even told young ones "you will never grow old in this present system of things. Why not? Because all the evidence in fulfillment of Bible prophecy indicates that this corrupt system is due to end in a few years." (May 22, 1969, pg. 15) Brothers and sisters who questioned these predictions using Matthew 24:36 as a defense were told by the Society, "<span style="font-weight: bold;">This is not the time to be toying with the words of Jesus that "concerning that day and hour nobody knows</span>, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father." To the contrary, it is a time when one should be keenly aware that the end of this system of things is rapidly coming to its violent end."-<b><i>The Watchtower</i> Aug. 15, 1968, pg. 500</b><br /><br />I guess many brothers and sisters were taken in by that statement because the Society continues to request this same thing of us by telling us to ignore clear Scriptural points in favor of their interpretations - and numerous brothers do.<br /><br />1975 was an epoch year for Jehovah's Witnesses. This year was the year that people started to look at our actions and failed predictions and say 'See! Jehovah's Witnesses are false prophets.' Before that, it seemed that they focused more on our doctrine. From this point, the Watchtower Society gave apostates and anti-JW's ammunition to use against us.<br /><br />The Governing Body and brothers on the writing staff continue to make mistakes. For example, the statement was made that "the apostle Paul was spearheading the Christian missionary activity. He was also laying a foundation for a work that would be <span style="font-weight: bold;">completed in our 20th century</span>." (<i>The Watchtower,</i> Jan. 1, 1989, pg. 12, para. 8) Interestingly, later, when the bound volume came out, the statement was changed to "a work that would be completed in our day." Just look on the CD-Rom to see that.<br /><br />Another statement made regarding the end (which was not changed later) was found in another issue of <i>The Watchtower</i>:<br /><br /><blockquote>"In the early 1920’s, a featured public talk presented by Jehovah’s Witnesses was entitled “Millions Now Living Will Never Die.” This may have reflected overoptimism at that time. But today that statement can be made with full confidence. Both the increasing light on Bible prophecy and the anarchy of this dying world cry out that the end of Satan’s system is very, very near!-<b>Jan. 1, 1997, pg. 11, para. 18</b></blockquote><br /><br />What if this system goes on past 2057? 2067? 2077? It very well could, and the Watchtower Society (if there still is one in any of those years), although few will remember that statement, will have been wrong again.<br /><br />This goes to show us that we should "not put [our] trust in nobles, not in the son of earthling man."-Psalm 146:3<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-46351947453988637352009-06-02T20:44:00.000-07:002009-06-16T07:09:45.389-07:00The Thousands Who Became AdulterersIn my opinion, one of the worst things that the Watchtower ever did was botch Jesus statement as quoted in the book of Matthew chapter 19. We read, "I say to you that whoever divorces his wife, except on the ground of fornication, and marries another commits adultery." (Matthew 19:9) Jesus thus made it clear that sex with someone other then the spouse outside of the marriage arrangement is the only clearance for divorce with the option of remarriage.<br /><br />The Governing Body of the Watchtower Society went one beyond. They said, " 'Fornication' is set forth as the only ground for divorce...the term 'fornication' is porneia, which designates all forms of immoral sexual relations, perversions and lewd practices...As to Jesus’ statements about divorce, they do not specify with whom the 'fornication' or porneia is practiced. They leave the matter open...Hence, circumstances could arise that would make lewd practices of a married person toward that one’s marriage mate a Scriptural basis for divorce."-<i>The Watchtower</i>, Nov. 15, 1974<br /><br />By saying all of this, the Watchtower Society twisted Jesus' words and allowed divorce and remarriage for more then just what Jesus said. Even when adultery was not committed, it was now allowable for a divorce to be attained! However, in Jehovah's eyes, this was not the case.<br /><br />In a later article, this viewpoint was retracted and corrected, but the damage was done. Many, many brothers and sisters obtained divorces and remarried. What effect did this have on them? From a human standpoint, probably nothing. From Jehovah's standpoint, these brothers and sisters became true adulterers. The Governing Body of the Watchtower Society was now guilty of leading many people to become adulterers.<br /><br />Obviously, any religious society that openly contradicts the Bible record is not walking by holy spirit.<br /><br />The fallacies behind these arguments are obvious for any clear searcher for Truth. Many people, including <a href="http://www.perimeno.ca/DoesGod.htm">dear brother Perimeno</a>, were not taken in by this. (See the link above, find "My Story" and read paragraphs 25-28) Unfortunately, many people so earnestly believe that everything that comes out of the mouth of the Governing Body of the Watchtower Society is the Truth, that they cannot see the Truth. I was like that for a while until Brother Perimeno helped me to see that I was not the only one having doubts about certain things coming through in our teachings.<br /><br />Can the Governing Body be punished for these things? Yes, one Scripture that can and does apply here was said by our Lord Jesus Christ. He said, "<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" id="vs1">It is unavoidable that causes for stumbling should come. Nevertheless, woe to the one through whom they come!</span> <a name="bk2" class="vsAnchor"></a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" id="vs2">It would be of more advantage to him if a millstone were suspended from his neck and he were thrown into the sea than for him to stumble one of these little ones."-Luke 17:1-2<br /><br />Many people, while perhaps not having been stumbled out of the Truth, were stumbled in that they committed grievous sin due to the Governing Body. Did the Governing Body apologize? Do they ever apologize, ever say, "You know, we realize we were wrong and we apologize for misleading you"? Absolutely Not! They might even turn it around and make you blame yourself, like they did to the people who believed 1975 would bring the end and so made bad decisions.-See the <i>Watchtower</i> of March 15, 1980, pg. 17<br /><br />Many more things are going to happen in the coming future regarding the teachings of the Watchtower Society. There will be changes coming and we do not know what all this will entail. It is my earnest prayer that nothing as drastic as allowing thousands of Brothers and Sisters to become adulterers by divorcing and remarrying without Scriptural backing. Do not be fooled by anything that contradicts the Bible account like that which happened in regard to divorce.<br /><br />Can we trust the Governing Body completely and wholeheartedly? You make that decision.-Psalm 146:3; 1 Corinthians 3:4<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-78352053024996052042009-06-02T07:49:00.001-07:002009-06-16T07:10:20.057-07:00Bible Reading Without the PublicationsWhen the Governing Body of the Watchtower says that disobeying them is the same as disobeying Jehovah, I find problems with that. Could it be that they are "lift[ing themselves] up over everyone who is called 'god'...so that [they] sit down in the temple of The God, publicly showing [themselves] to be a god"?-2 Thessalonians 2:4<br /><br />An example of all of this can be found in a recent Watchtower article where it says: "<span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><blockquote><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Since Jehovah God and Jesus Christ completely trust the faithful and discreet slave, should we not do the same? After all, the slave has shown itself to be faithful in doing its assigned work. . .The faithful slave is also discreet in that it neither acts immodestly, running ahead of Jehovah, nor lags behind when God's direction on a matter is clear. . .The slave is able to provide wise and timely warnings because Jehovah God and Jesus Christ are blessing it. The slave thus deserves our complete trust."-<span style="font-style: italic;">The Watchtower, </span>Feb. 15, 2009<br /></span></blockquote><br />On the other hand, Jehovah God has said, "Do not put your trust in nobles, nor in the son of earthling man, to whom no salvation belongs." (Psalm 146:3) The members of the Governing Body are no different, they are all sons of earthling man.<br /><br />The Governing Body of the Watchtower Society does not encourage what Luke declared was noble, namely, searching the Scriptures to see whether the things they teach are really so. (Acts 17:11) They give us a few Scriptures and expect us to take their word for it. Many do. It can not be that way anymore.<br /><br />In a recent issue of <i>Our Kingdom Ministry</i> (Sept. 2007) it said, "Does 'the faithful and discreet slave' endorse independent groups of Witnesses who meet together to engage in Scriptural research or debate?" The answer, surprisingly, was:<br /><br /><blockquote>"No, it does not. And yet, in various parts of the world, a few associates of our organization have formed groups to do independent research on Bible-related subjects...Throughout the earth, Jehovah’s people are receiving ample spiritual instruction and encouragement at congregation meetings, assemblies, and conventions, as well as through the publications of Jehovah’s organization. Under the guidance of his holy spirit and on the basis of his Word of truth, Jehovah provides what is needed so that all of God’s people may be 'fitly united in the same mind and in the same line of thought' and remain 'stabilized in the faith.'...the 'faithful and discreet slave' does not endorse any literature, meetings, or Web sites that are not produced or organized under its oversight...It is commendable for individuals to want to use their thinking ability in support of the good news."</blockquote><br /><br />At first this sounds well and good, "use your time for supporting the ministry if you want to do something spiritual." Who can argue with that? But then they seem to contradict themselves by encouraging extra Bible study.<br /><br /><blockquote>"For those who wish to do extra Bible study and research, we recommend that they explore Insight on the Scriptures, 'All Scripture Is Inspired of God and Beneficial,' and our other publications, such as those that discuss the prophecies found in the Bible books of Daniel, Isaiah, and Revelation. These provide abundant material for Bible study and meditation, whereby we can be 'filled with the accurate knowledge of God’s will in all wisdom and spiritual comprehension, in order to walk worthily of Jehovah to the end of fully pleasing him as [we] go on bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the accurate knowledge of God."—Colossians 1:9-10</blockquote><br /><br />Did you notice how they turned your attention to the publications, encouraging Bible study in your spare time? Why this shift in the same article? They don't want you studying on your own! Why? The Aug. 15, 1981 issue of <i>The Watchtower</i> has this to say:<br /><br /><blockquote>"From time to time, there have arisen from among the ranks of Jehovah's people those, who, like the original Satan, have adopted an independent, faultfinding attitude...They say that it is sufficient to read the Bible exclusively, either alone or in small groups at home. But, strangely, through such 'Bible reading,' they have reverted right back to the apostate doctrines that commentaries by Christendom's clergy were teaching 100 years ago."</blockquote><br /><br />In other words, many people who were doing individual research were finding that not everything the publications taught was the Truth. Those people, disheartened, left the Truth (Jehovah's Witnesses) because nearly thirty years ago, people still had the idea in their heads that the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society and the Jehovah's Witnesses were the same organization. You couldn't have one without the other.<br /><br />However, you can.<br /><br />A brother who goes by the name Perimeno makes a good point on his website in the answered question: <a href="http://www.perimeno.ca/Letters_1208_our_publications.htm">"How can the 'man of lawlessness' write such scriptural wonderful praises to Jehovah and helpful loving articles for us?"</a> His answer was, "Jehovah has not rejected or abandoned his household, and neither is he going to, simply because there are 'wicked men' and bad shepherds in our midst, especially at the very top where we find the 'man of lawlessness'...Jehovah is still blessing those who are worshiping him with a clean heart and conscience. (1 Tim. 1:5) He still has those who are loyal to their responsibility of feeding the members of his household with 'food at the proper time.' "<br /><br />Yes, we still should listen to the information in the articles but we should have our "perceptive powers trained to distinguish both right and wrong." (Hebrews 5:14) There are things, like in the <i>Kingdom Ministry</i> (Sept. 2007) and the <i>Watchtower</i> (Feb. 15, 2009) that we know are wrong, praising themselves or making themselves more then they are.<br /><br />Further examples of this are in the Oct. 1, 1967 <i>Watchtower</i> where it says, "Thus the Bible is an organizational book and belongs to the Christian Congregation as an organization, not to individual, regardless of how sincerely they may believe that they can interpret the Bible."<br /><br />How can this be the case when the articles constantly say, "<span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span>So we need to take time to read the Bible together. When we get a letter from someone we love very much, we read it again and again. It is precious to us. That is the way the Bible should be to us because it is a letter from the One who loves us most. It is a letter from a loving God." (<i>Learn from the Great Teacher</i>, chapter 2, page 18) Also, how can it be that many letters in the Bible were written to individuals, like Timothy, Titus, Philemon, 2 John, and 3 John and yet still be an organizational book?<br /><br />The Watchtower Society doesn't want to lose members by independently reading the Bible. But don't fear. None of us have to leave the Truth, the Jehovah's Witnesses, because we find out that some of the things that the Watchtower Society teaches are not true. The Bible clearly teaches, "mankind may never find out the work that the true God has made from the start to the finish."-Ecclesiastes 3:11<span style="background-color: rgb(241, 243, 230);" id="vs11"></span><br /><br />It is okay if we don't know the Truth about everything in the Bible. We don't have to think that we must know everything. An angel told the prophet Daniel that in the last days, "the true knowledge will become abundant" but not that "the true knowledge will become complete." (Daniel 12:4) We will never no everything, at least not in this system of things.<br /><br />So when you hear statements like, "We cannot claim to love God, yet deny his word and <i>channel of communication</i>" (The <i>Watchtower</i>, Oct. 1, 1967, pg. 591, para. 3), that is an attempt to discourage people from leaving the Society while elevating themselves over everyone, just like the "Man of Lawlessness" has done.<br /><br />Always remember, dear brothers and sisters, that we need to remain close to Jehovah God and Jesus Christ, not "forsaking the gathering of ourselves together...as the day draws near." (Hebrews 10:24-25) Go to the meetings and out in service and praise Jehovah God as a united brotherhood.<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1482551209291306556.post-51606950477156144062009-06-01T21:28:00.000-07:002009-08-24T20:55:11.130-07:00Did Jesus Become King in 1914?For Jehovah's Witnesses everywhere, 1914 has been a very important date. Any of them that follow Society teachings unswervingly would bet their lives on that teaching. To them, it literally makes or breaks the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society.<br /><br />Unfortunately, their faith in this doctrine is misguided.<br /><br />First of all, I believe that it is important that we look at the main "Scriptural Proof" for this doctrine - what does Daniel 4 <i>really</i> teach?<br /><br /><br /><b><center>Daniel Chapter Four - Imperative to the Society</center></b><br /><br />It was not long ago that I believed in the 1914 doctrine with my entire heart. I knew that the Society used Daniel 4 to prove what this year meant but I could never understand it. If you look in the book What Does the Bible Really Teach?, you will find an appendix about 1914. This appendix does not draw as much attention to Daniel 4 as many publications have done in the past but it does mention it. What does it say?<br /><br /><blockquote>"The account in Daniel chapter 4 holds the key to knowing how long that period would last. It relates a prophetic dream experienced by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. He saw an immense tree that was chopped down. Its stump could not grow because it was banded with iron and copper. An angel declared: “Let seven times pass over it.”—Daniel 4:10-16.</blockquote><br /><br />This explanation seems to be good except one problem. One big problem! Daniel 4 says nothing about God's kingdom! At one publication, the Society said that Daniel 4:3, 17 indicate that this prophetic dream is actually about God's Kingdom, saying they actually have a deeper fulfillment then the one presented in the context. When we look at these verses, is this really true?<br /><br />Before we go into all of this, we need to understand exactly what is happening in Daniel 4. In short, the king, Nebuchadnezzar, has a dream that disturbs him very much. He then gets the meaning of the dream from the Prophet Daniel. From there, Nebuchadnezzar relates to all the people what the dream was and what the meaning of it was. All of Daniel 4 takes place <i>after</i> Nebuchadnezzar goes insane. <br /><br />So, this is where Daniel 4:3 picks up. It is the beginning of Nebuchadnezzar's speech to the people regarding his dream.<br /><br />Before reading this verse, it is of importance that we understand that Daniel 4:3 is <i>not</i> part of Nebuchadnezzar's dream. All he is doing is giving due praise and honor to Jehovah God. He says, "How grand his signs are, and how mighty his wonders are! His kingdom is a kingdom to time indefinite, and his rulership is for generation after generation." He then goes on to relate the dream.<br /><br />The second verse that the Society refers to in this chapter to prove that this prophecy is actually a prophecy about God's Kingdom is Daniel 4:17. This verse says, "By the decree of watchers the thing is, and by the saying of holy ones the request is, to the intent that people living may know that the Most High is Ruler in the kingdom of mankind and that to the one whom he wants to, he gives it and he sets up over it even the lowliest one of mankind." The words contained in the Scripture above is actually a part of a declaration made by an angel. He is simply telling us why these things will befall Nebuchadnezzar - to show that Jehovah is the one who controls the earth and the kingdoms of the earth are only given to those whom Jehovah chooses. Daniel 4:3, 17 are not indications of a greater meaning.<br /><br />When you look at the interpretation of the dream presented right there in the Scriptures, you find that it is only speaking of a punishment meted out on Nebuchadnezzar by Jehovah to keep that arrogant king from imagining that he is more important then he actually is.-Daniel 4:10-17, 20-35<br /><br /><br /><b></b><center><b>The Prophet Daniel Reveals More</b></center><br /><br />Daniel 2:44 is perhaps the most quoted Scripture out in service behind Psalm 37:10-11, 29, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, and Revelation 21:4. We all know what it says: "And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be brought to ruin. And the kingdom itself will not be passed on to any other people. It will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it itself will stand to times indefinite." How exactly does this chapter of the book of Daniel reveal when the Christ will become king of God's Kingdom?<br /><br />Daniel 2 is all about another dream of Nebuchadnezzar's. In this one he sees "a certain immense image." (Daniel 2:31) This image has a head of gold, chest and arms of silver, belly of copper, legs of iron, and feet of iron and clay mixed. (Daniel 2:32-33) As the king was watching, a stone was cut out and it smashed the feet of the statue and ground it into dust. This stone then became a huge mountain and filled the earth. (Daniel 2:34-35) The Prophet Daniel tells us what all this means.<br /><br /><blockquote>"You, O king, the king of kings, you to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the might, and the strength and the dignity, and into whose hand he has given, wherever the sons of mankind are dwelling, the beasts of the field and the winged creatures of the heavens, and whom he has made ruler over all of them, you yourself are the head of gold." (Babylon is the first world power.)<br /><br />“And after you there will rise another kingdom inferior to you; (Medo-Persia) and another kingdom, a third one, of copper, that will rule over the whole earth. (Greece)<br /><br />“And as for the fourth kingdom, it will prove to be strong like iron. Forasmuch as iron is crushing and grinding everything else, so, like iron that shatters, it will crush and shatter even all these. (Rome)<br /><br />“And whereas you beheld the feet and the toes to be partly of molded clay of a potter and partly of iron, the kingdom itself will prove to be divided, but somewhat of the hardness of iron will prove to be in it, forasmuch as you beheld the iron mixed with moist clay. And as for the toes of the feet being partly of iron and partly of molded clay, the kingdom will partly prove to be strong and will partly prove to be fragile. Whereas you beheld iron mixed with moist clay, they will come to be mixed with the offspring of mankind; but they will not prove to be sticking together, this one to that one, just as iron is not mixing with molded clay. (Anglo-American World Power)<br /><br />“And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be brought to ruin. And the kingdom itself will not be passed on to any other people. It will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it itself will stand to times indefinite; forasmuch as you beheld that out of the mountain a stone was cut not by hands, and that it crushed the iron, the copper, the molded clay, the silver and the gold."-<b>Daniel 4:31-45</b></blockquote><br /><br />The key to all of this is the last paragraph. The stone (God's Kingdom) is cut out and immediately crushes the statue of gold, silver, copper, iron, and clay. By having the stone that was recently cut out immediately crush the statue, we realize that the first thing this kingdom will do is "crush and put an end to all these kingdoms." So, Christ receiving his heavenly kingdom will be marked by the immediate fall of the system of things.<br /><br /><br /><b></b><center><b>A Heavenly Vision </b></center><br /><br />Daniel 7 is a vision that reiterates what was revealed to Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 2. We again see a succession of world powers, this time in the form of beasts, that ends with the enthronement of Christ.<br /><br />We first have a lion with wings like an eagle. (Babylon) The second is a bear with three ribs in its mouth. (Medo-Persia) The third is leopard with four wings. (Greece) The last is a beast "fearsome and terrible and unusually strong. And it had teeth of iron, big ones. It was devouring and crushing, and what was left it was treading down with its feet. (Rome) And it was something different from all the other beasts that were prior to it, and it had ten horns. [Daniel] kept on considering the horns, and, look! another horn, a small one, came up in among them, and there were three of the first horns that were plucked up from before it. And, look! there were eyes like the eyes of a man in this horn, and there was a mouth speaking grandiose things."-Daniel 7:4-8<br /><br />This fearsome beast dies and other smaller kingdoms come up into its place. This is revealed when Daniel has a vision of Jehovah God on his heavenly throne. The kingdoms are then given a "lengthening in life." (Daniel 7:9-12) The vision is continued and Daniel sees Jesus Christ take his throne as ruler of God's kingdom. (Daniel 7:13-14) These remaining kingdoms, pictured as horns on the head of the fearsome beast, make war against Jehovah's people, (sounds like the Great Tribulation, compare Revelation 16:14, 16) which ultimately leads to Armageddon. This is a parallel to Ezekiel's vision.-Daniel 7:21-22; Ezekiel 38:15-16, 18-23<br /><br /><br /><b><center>The Revelation Given to John</center></b><br /><br />When on the island of Patmos, John is given many heavenly visions, contained in 22 chapters. The chapter that we want to focus on is chapter 11 when the seventh angel blows his trumpet. What happens?<br /><br />"Loud voices occurred in heaven, saying: 'The kingdom of the world did become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will rule as king forever and ever.' " (Revelation 11:15) So, right after the seventh trumpet blast, Jesus is given his kingdom. The twenty-four elders immediately know what this means - Armageddon is imminent!<br /><br />The twenty-four elders say, "We thank you, Jehovah God, the Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and begun ruling as king. But the nations became wrathful, and your own wrath came, and the appointed time for the dead to be judged, and to give their reward to your slaves the prophets and to the holy ones and to those fearing your name, the small and the great, <i>and to bring to ruin those ruining the earth.</i>"-Revelation 11:17-18<br /><br />The words presented in these two verses reveal that right after the Kingdom is made a reality, it is time for Jehovah to ruin those ruining the earth. Just like in the great earthquake of Revelation 6 and the giant hail in Revelation 16, Armageddon is here pictured by "lightnings and voices and thunders and an earthquake and a great hail."-Revelation 11:19<br /><br />We see that Armageddon is the first event that takes place after Christ receives the Kingdom.<br /><br /><b><center>Subduing in the Midst of His Enemies</center></b><br /><br />"The utterance of Jehovah to my Lord is: 'Sit at my right hand until I place your enemies as a stool for your feet.' The rod of your strength Jehovah will send out of Zion, saying: 'Go subduing in the midst of your enemies.' " (Psalm 110:1-2) Jesus died in the year 33 C.E. He ascended to heaven about 40 days later.<br /><br />This prophecy makes clear that Jesus sat at Jehovah's right hand for an indefinite period of time. During this time, the enemies of Jesus were placed as a "stool for [his] feet." So, during this time, we can come to the conclusion that Satan the Devil and his demons were thrown out of heaven. This could have taken place any time from 33 C.E. until the outbreak of the Great Tribulation. Yes, it could have even taken place in 1914, something that history does seem to back up.-Revelation 12:9, 12<br /><br />The second part of that prophecy now sees Jesus with a rod in his hand. A rod is an object held by a king. What is the first thing Jesus is told to do now that he has the rod? "Go subduing in the midst of your enemies." Yes, Jesus, immediately after receiving the kingship, brings about Armageddon on the earth.-Psalm 110:5-6<br /><br />It is also interesting that the army of angels mentioned in the Bible is first said to belong to Michael and then to Jesus. (Revelation 12:7; 19:19) When Michael becomes king, he is then recognized by the name of Jesus. This first time that we see Jesus in action using the name Jesus is found at Revelation 19.<br /><br />Here we find the outbreak of Armageddon. In this chapter of the Bible, less attention is actually given to the event of Armageddon then it is to the One leading the armies against Satan's wicked system. Read the description of the One leading riding to war.<br /><br /><blockquote>"And I saw the heaven opened, and, look! a white horse. And the one seated upon it is called Faithful and True, and he judges and carries on war in righteousness. His eyes are a fiery flame, and upon his head are many diadems. He has a name written that no one knows but he himself, and he is arrayed with an outer garment sprinkled with blood, and the name he is called is The Word of God. Also, the armies that were in heaven were following him on white horses, and they were clothed in white, clean, fine linen. And out of his mouth there protrudes a sharp long sword, that he may strike the nations with it, and he will shepherd them with a rod of iron. He treads too the winepress of the anger of the wrath of God the Almighty. And upon his outer garment, even upon his thigh, he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords."-<b>Revelation 19:11-15</b></blockquote><br /><br />Why is this observation about the Christ, riding to war, pertinent to this discussion. Well, first, he is said to have many diadems. Second, he has a name written that no one knows, evidently just given to him because this has never been mentioned in the Bible before. Third, the armies of heaven are following him who is not just a chief angel anymore, but king of all creation.<br /><br />Fourth, he come to strike the nations, this being at Armageddon. Fifth, he is has another revealing name. "KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS." Let us pretend that Armageddon is going to happen October 1, 2014. If Jesus had already been king for the past century why would it be important to add all of this stuff, identifying him as a great king? On the other hand, if Jesus was a new king, you could expect nothing less then a full display for him.<br /><br />All the Biblical evidence points to the fact that Jesus' first act as king is to lead the angelic army to war against the nations at Armageddon, not to oust Satan from heaven to the earth.<br /><br />One question still remains: Does Jesus become king before the Great Tribulation or after the Great Tribulation? The Bible does answer this question.<br /><br /><br /><center><b>Standing Up</b></center><br /><br />Daniel was a privileged man to have all of these prophecies about the end of the system of things given to him. Daniel 2, 7, and 10-12. Chapters 10-12 are what we are interested in.<br /><br />Throughout Daniel 10-11, we see an epic struggle taking place between the King of the North and the King of the South. It has been revealed that this struggle started in Daniel's day and continued all the way down to ours, finally ending up with the Anglo-American world power as one of the kings and an unknown as the other king.-Daniel 11:40-45<br /><br />After verse 45 of Daniel 11, the scene changes and we find ourselves at Daniel 12. When you read this in one quick breath you see that it is just a continuation of Daniel 11. What happens at the very end of this, right after the King of the North defeats the King of the South and meets his end?<br /><br />"During that time Michael will stand up, the great prince who is standing in behalf of the sons of your people." (Daniel 12:1a) Michael, another name for Jesus, stands up, or receives his kingship. All of this happens after the King of the North meets his end! Since the King of the North has not met his end in our day, Michael has not stood up yet. Again, the Bible makes it clear that Michael's standing up happens sometime in the future.<br /><br />How does all of this answer the question of whether or not Jesus becomes king before or after the Great Tribulation? Look at the entire verse 12:1. "During that time Michael will stand up, the great prince who is standing in behalf of the sons of your people. And there will certainly occur a time of distress such as has not been made to occur since there came to be a nation until that time."<br /><br />Doesn't this sound like the Great Tribulation to you? Listen to Jesus' words. "Then there will be great tribulation such as has not occurred since the world’s beginning until now." (Matthew 24:21a) When taken by itself, doesn't this seem like a direct quote of Daniel 12:1b? Now, add the end of Matthew 24:21, "no, nor will occur again." (Matthew 24:21b) It is almost as if Jesus is quoting Daniel 12:1 and then adding his own note that this time of distress, called great tribulation in his quoting of it, would never occur again. Yes, believe it! Matthew 24:21 is a quote of Daniel 12:1.<br /><br />What does all of this mean? The start of the Great Tribulation is a clear signal that Christ has received the kingship. Any moment now (from his standpoint, not ours) he will come and rescue us from the nations! That is his first act as king.<br /><br /><br /><center><b>What To Do?</b></center><br /><br />Preach the Good News of the Kingdom with renewed zeal. Jesus, our Lord and Savior, the one who died for us, is going to rule over us. He was once a human and can sympathize with our weaknesses! Preach him and his Father, Jehovah God. Preach the Good News of the Kingdom!<br /><br />No, 1914 was not the year that Jesus received his kingship. That is in the future, indicated by the outbreak of the Great Tribulation, or time of distress. His first act as king will be to lead the angels against Satan and his system at Armageddon!<br /><br />So, should you still teach 1914 to your Bible students and at meetings? That is up to you individually. Perhaps, if you have a part on the school about 1914, you can just skip the meeting or something. None of us wants to be guilty of teaching false doctrine, do we? What about with your Bible students? I don't know how that can be handled.<br /><br />The day is coming when we can worship Jehovah God publicly the way He wants to be worshipped. Stay strong and pray for that day to come.<br /><br />With Sincere Christian Love and Affection,<br />Brother Ebed Abodah<br /><br /><a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/"><h3>Back to Home</h3></a> <a href="http://ebedabodah.blogspot.com/2009/06/directory.html"><h3>Back to Directory</h3></a>Ebed Abodahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09893537033672317312noreply@blogger.com0