My friend was telling me that the generation of anointed alive in 1914 now includes their children. I thought that the anointed were not meant to have sex. Am I right or wrong? Cheers
The anointed.
by alexb123 6 Replies latest watchtower bible
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Gopher
My friend was telling me that the generation of anointed alive in 1914 now includes their children.
How serious of a Witness is this friend? Back in 1995, the Watchtower (in a study article) officially severed the 'generation' idea from the year 1914. Secondly, the term "generation" by definition does not include ones children -- it only includes contemporaries.
I thought that the anointed were not meant to have sex.
The JW's don't teach this. The part in Revelation about the anointed being 'virgins' is explained (by the WT Society) to mean that they didn't get defiled by worldly activities such as politics. (Revelation is supposed to be totally symbolic.)
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bennyk
(Revelation is supposed to be totally symbolic.)
Except, of course, for the number 144 000.
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JCanon
Again, more evidence the WTS has been cast into spiritual darkness. They are fulfilling what Matthew said about thinking that their master is delaying so they start to abuse those under their charge. This is "abuse" having them think the generation was something other than what Christ meant in the context it was used, was to assure a limit to how closely the events mentioned were to the events of the second coming or at least the birth of the messiah at the second coming. He was assuring them that there was limited time, that all these things would happen within the generation of those who first experienced the first sign, which was a world war; thus WWI.
The first choice here, of course, is 40 years. That is the context of a "generation" in the scriptures for the Jews the primary reference being the "generation" of 40 years that died out in the wilderness. That would be the generic reference. 40 years. A secondary reference is 80 years per Ps 90:10. A third would be 120 years, the generation of Noah.
But we are now in 2008 and the date of the second coming, or at least the birth of the messiah at the second coming has come and gone! So we can retrospectively test these different generation theories to see what Christ could have meant. Turns out, all the specific things mentioned starting from WWI until the "sign of the son of man" appears does indeed happen within a generation of 40 years.
KEY to thus understanding Jesus did mean a generation of 40 years, is his reference to the fig tree. How you can tell summer is near when it starts to bloom. Many clearly understand this as a reference to the nation of Israel becoming their own independent nation again. Further Luke notes that Christ included the concept of the "appointed times of the nations" in regard to these signs. The two match! When the appointed times of the nations or the "gentile times" end, then that's when the state of Israel is reborn! Simple. But Jesus says when you see the fig tree starting to bud again, "know that he is near at the doors." That's close.
You also have verse 29 that says, "Immediately after the tribulation of those days...." there would be darkness (spiritual) and then the "sign of the son of man" would be seen in the heavens. Now that can be taken to mean that "immediately" after the tribulation, which was the Holocaust, there would be spiritual darkness among Christians regarding the second coming and then the "sign of the son of man" would appear, but one would think that would happen also shortly afterward, not a long time in the future. Thus when Jesus added "this generation would not pass away before all these things", he is limiting the timeframe. The official end of the "tribulation" would be when the Jews returned to their homeland in 1947. The "days were cut short" of the Holocaust, otherwise, truly "no flesh" might have been saved. The Germans were very determined to exterminate every Jew on the planet, and maybe all Jehovah's witnesses along with them. Who knows? Thus the actual Holocaust and WWII might have ended by 1945 but the Jews remained in exile until 1947. So one would expect the messiah would appear on the heels of the State of Israel being set up in 1948. That's what the Bible suggests.
Chronology requires the messiah to be in his 40th year when the 70th week begins at the second coming. 40 years is the period of testing, as Jesus was tested by Satan 40 days. The 70th week begins in 1989 so the messiah would need to be born by 1949-1950 at the least to be in his 40th year by the fall of 1989. 1949-1950 would thus be when the "sign of the son of man" appears, at the birth of the new messiah. Thus everything indeed is fulfilled within a common "generation" reference of 40 years!
The WTS, who have the wrong dates for the fall of Jerusalem and thus the wrong date for the second coming, cannot see how this was fulfilled as it was, so they are stumbling in the dark trying to make it work. It's a laughing matter to the true elect though. But beautiful that we can see how Christ's words came true.
THAT is the subtext going on here. We laugh at the WTS for being false prophets about the "generation" issue, but what is the correct interpretation? Is the Bible really true? Is there any fulfillment that works? Whether Jesus' words came true or not is still an issue!! You can see through a lot of wrong interpretations but what is the true one? We throw out the Watchtower but do we also throw out the Bible?
NO! We don't have to if we have the correct information. The right chronology. The right interpretation. When you have that, then everything is fulfilled just as Christ says! The WTS is in darkness and they are blind and they are stumbling. But that doesn't mean Christ's word and their simple application did not come true. Indeed, it has!
JC
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alexb123
Thanks for the reply's on this. I have thought for many years that the JW's were not as they appeared. However, coming to this site has opened my eyes. Many Thanks
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Seeker4
alex;
I assume you aren't or weren't a JW from these questions. Any average JW would know this stuff.
And JCanon - thanks again for taking a simple answer and making it complicated beyond all reason! Love Ya! You're the new CT Russell and Freddie Franz all rolled into one anti-typical fulfillment!
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heathen
They abandoned the generation dogma since they couldn't offer eternal life to the 1914 "anointed" anymore . That's what I've read on the board anyway. Now it's an invisible generation since they now claim they can't determine what a generation is exactly .I don't have a problem with the replacement dogma since it is clear that many in the first century did not hold on to the faith , jesus even had parables about how the "anointed" would be judged .It would not be a cake walk as many mainstream religions portray their wealth and prosperity as showing they were blessed in some way .The "anointed" IMO are not literal virgins but as the apostle John used it figurative in his previous letters to show that they keep themselves without spot from the world and of course jesus is the bride groom and once he arrives in kingdom power it's called the wedding feast , all figurative stuff but I do believe the "anointed" have to give up a lust for flesh thus making themselves as eunuchs . I believe they also die as martyrs as a final test ,it's more or less a death pact . Without trying to compete with Jcanon I humbly submit my opinion ...............