Why have things changed?

by nvrgnbk 38 Replies latest jw friends

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  nvrgnbk

  According to the Old Testament, Yahweh/Jehovah regularly and violently made Himself manifest.

  According to the New Testament, there were miraculous works performed to prove that the Messiah was who He said He was and that His followers were authentic.

  Why are there no such public manifestations of Jehovah/Yahweh/Jesus/Holy Spirit today? I say public because some individuals describe very personal experiences detailing some sort of miracle or divine intervention in their lives, most often at a low or desperate point. I have no interest in discounting such personal experiences. But I must ask why are we not receiving the same benefit of public manifestations of divinity today?

  Watchtower theology answers that times have changed and that all the "proof" we need today of divine activity is the modern-day "miracle" that is the visible organization of Jehovah's Witnesses.

  Why have things changed?
• 

  dawg

  Cause most folks quit doing mushrooms.... or eating bread with argot. Its all bullshit anyway, God in the OT was a murderer and in the new he wants us to love our neighbors.m
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  onacruse

  dawg:

  eating bread with argot.

  Very interesting observation. Correct me if I'm wrong, but here's how I understand it:

  The MidEast environment of an agrarian society was such that grains that were stored (as they must needs be) would typically develop some level of LSD in the grains...and thus, virtually everyone who ate such foodstuffs was, to a degree, "under the influence." I learned a little bit about this some 30 years ago, but really haven't given it much thought since then.

  Can you corroborate?
• 

  loosie

  Years ago when my daughter was 5 she asked a sister in the KH why Jehovah doesn't talk to us anymore. The sister replaied because we have hurt his feelings.

  I say God should stop wearing his heart on his sleeve.
• 

  zack

  I have no answers, only more questions. For instance, why didn't Lazarus stand up and speak about his resurrection? Why didn't Jairus? Or the widow of Nain? These people were either resurrected or had loved ones brought back from the dead. Why did they not record a testimony to this these things? Why didn't their children?

  Slowly I am losing faith.

  Slowly I am gaining KNOWLEDGE.
• 

  Abandoned

  Why has God changed? Dude, God has assigned all miracles of our era to ensuring that a small group of anal-retentive brooklynites do not turn on each other with their legalistic mumbo-jumbo and hypocritical double-speak. Basically, all of God's holy spirit is assigned to holding up a house of cards.
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  restrangled

  Watchtower theology answers that times have changed and that all the "proof" we need today of divine activity is the modern-day "miracle" that is the visible organization of Jehovah's Witnesses.

  I never knew this. This has got to be the dumbest reasoning I have ever heard. It's like sitting down for gourmet dinner and getting served a soggy grilled cheese sandwich.

  R's Hubby
• 

  exwitless

  nvr - I used to wonder that a lot, even as a dub. I never could reconcile in my head how the god of the OT was the same as the one of the NT. I never allowed myself to really question that as a dub, but it always bugged me that murder by god or through one of 'his people' was OK in the OT, or how Solomon could get away with having a bazillion wives, etc.

  One of my major hangups about the existance of god is exactly what you posted: Why the heck does he have to be so secretive, distant, and non-communicative now, when he used to just literally SAY what he wanted in the OT? If he loves humans and really wants the best for us, why does he make it so hard for humans as a whole to believe in him, understand what he wants of us, or to have faith in his powers, etc.?

  Hence the unanswerable question: Does he exist? Did he ever exist? I'm not really searching for that answer. If it is something "god" wants me to know, he'll have to find a way to get my attention and make it crystal clear to me.
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  R.Crusoe

  Because the god Jesus taught about is a different God. Otherwise he would not have been put to death. The God in the minds of the people having Jesus killed was a different God than the one in Jesus mind. It is 100% obvious! A perfect God will not just change from one to the other - ever. He has always been a God of love. Trust your own opinion above all else because you are the one person you are stuck with for as long as you live. Do as you will with a loving heart and compassion for the society and laws of your land. Mix with its people and find friends and enjoy them. This is the best I can say!
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  Narkissos

  We also have many passages in the Bible (especially in prayers, e.g. the Psalms) where the believers refer to Yhwh's miracles "of old" and complain that he doesn't act likewise now, which is quite revealing. See Psalms 44 and 89 for instance.