by passwordprotected 29 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Simple cult technique....1] Invent a message that is unique to yourself, can be expressed in pseudo credible terms but nobody else will agree with it..2] Find a scripture that fortels that at the time appointed a message will br preached..3] Bingo! you have the prophecy that gives a meaning to your work.
After all - the scripture says that the message must be preached, and nobody but you is preaching it, so you must be fulfilling prophecy...Arent you favoured..???....
Good points but to play devil's advocate, the dubs do preach by internet, phone and TV (yes they have had commercials).
The point is, however, that no matter how the Society tacitly nods to other forms of preaching, perhaps even using technology to facilitate it, they still rely heavily on door-to-door. If any dub in a land where full religious freedom can be practiced replaced door-to-door with internet or radio witnessing they'd find themselves being questioned, scrutinised, and if a brother, removed and denied privileges in the cong (you need to have a 'seen share').
Yea the definitely can't argue out of the fulfillment part. The best excuse I've heard is that by going door to door it's more intimate and questions can be answered better.
Luke 10:1-7 "After these things the Lord designated seventy others and sent them forth by twos in advance of him into every city and place to which he himself was going to come. … "Wherever YOU enter into a house say first, 'May this house have peace.' And if a friend of peace is there, YOUR peace will rest upon him. But if there is not, it will turn back to YOU. So stay in that house, eating and drinking the things they provide, for the worker is worthy of his wages. Do not be transferring from house to house."
great points. also perhaps they don't want the big media because they don't want to ignite too much controversy.
StoneWall, i really like the one of Luke 21
I prefer the simple approach.
The bible is just horsesh*t, so I don't care about JW's silly slant on a book written by men.
Your take is very interesting, though.
@ truthseeker;
Exactly. And what blows my mind is you can safely, within the Greek, replace the word Christ with anointed. False anointed...
I was looking over some of the archives in "The Best of" section of JWD and found some very important Quotes of the Watchtower that may be of use to all. Keep in mind the warning in Galations 1: 6-9
***
Rbi8Galatians1:6-9***6
I marvel that YOU are being so quickly removed from the One who called YOU with Christ’s undeserved kindness over to another sort of good news. 7 But it is not another; only there are certain ones who are causing YOU trouble and wanting to pervert the good news about the Christ. 8 However, even if we or an angel out of heaven were to declare to YOU as good news something beyond what we declared to YOU as good news, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said above, I also now say again, Whoever it is that is declaring to YOU as good news something beyond what YOU accepted, let him be accursed.Now check out the following admissions of the Watchtower.
***
w881/1p.21"TheGoodNewsHastoBePreachedFirst"***8 In "the last days," the good news of the Kingdom involves more than it did when Jesus was on earth. Jesus preached that the Kingdom had drawn near, drawing attention to the fact that he was among the people as the Messiah and King. (2 Timothy 3:1; Matthew 4:17; Luke 17:21) The good news preached by the early Christians included the matter of Jesus’ resurrection and ascension to heaven, and it encouraged meek ones to put faith in the coming Kingdom. (Acts 2:22-24, 32; 3:19-21; 17:2, 3; 26:23; 28:23, 31) Now that we have reached "the conclusion of the system of things," the preaching of the good news of the Kingdom includes the striking message that the Kingdom is established in the heavens.—Revelation 11:15-18; 12:10
***
w815/1p.17IfGodHasanOrganization,WhatIsIt?***3 Let the honest-hearted person compare the kind of preaching of the gospel of the Kingdom done by the religious systems of Christendom during all the centuries with that done by Jehovah’s Witnesses since the end of World War I in 1918. They are not one and the same kind. That of Jehovah’s Witnesses is really "gospel," or "good news," as of God’s heavenly kingdom that was established by the enthronement of his Son Jesus Christ at the end of the Gentile Times in 1914. (Luke 21:24)
***
w6712/15pp.753-754WhatNowDistinguishestheGoodNewstoBePreached***What
NowDistinguishestheGoodNewstoBePreachedEVER since the end of the Gentile Times in 1914 something of very present importance has been added to the "good news of God" that Jesus Christ used to preach in the Middle East,
preaching to as many cities as possible, just as he said on one occasion: "Also to other cities I must declare the good news of the kingdom of God, because for this I was sent forth." (Luke 4:43; 8:1; 16:16) After his death and resurrection and his glorification in heaven, his apostles and faithful disciples preached the good news of the coming kingdom of God. (Acts 20:24, 25; 28:30, 31) What vital thing has now been added to the good news of the kingdom of God that Jesus Christ and his zealous apostles used to preach nineteen hundred years ago? This, namely, the birth of God’s Messianic kingdom in the heavens at the end of the Gentile Times in 1914. And after the ensuing war in the invisible heavens and the ouster of Satan the Devil and his demons from heaven and down to earth, this announcement was sounded forth, to be added to the good news, as stated in Revelation 12:9-12:2 "Now have come to pass the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ, because the accuser of our brothers has been hurled down, who accuses them day and night before our God! . . . On this account be glad, you heavens and you who reside in them! Woe for the earth and for the sea, because the Devil has come down to you, having great anger, knowing he has a short period of time."
3 What a joy-inspiring addition or enlargement to the good news now to be preached! Now has come the victorious kingdom of our God together with the authority of his Christ, his Messiah! As for Satan the Devil and his demons, they have only a short period of time until they are bound and imprisoned in the abyss after the "war of the great day of God the Almighty" at Armageddon.All this additional wonderful information has been true since the end of the "appointed times of the nations" in 1914, and particularly since World War I closed in the year 1918. Not before the "appointed times of the nations" ended in the fall of 1914 could the good news be preached of the newborn, established heavenly kingdom of God and of his Messiah. This, then, must be the good news that Jesus Christ in his prophecy said had to be preached first in all the nations. (Mark 13:10) This generation of human society that has seen and experienced the world events since the Gentile Times closed in 1914—this is the "generation" that will not pass away until all the things foretold have happened, including the preaching of the good news first in all nations.
4 Jesus’ prophecy in Mark 13:10, "Also, in all the nations the good news has to be preached first," has not been undergoing fulfillment during the past nineteen centuries. It is only since the second decade of our twentieth century that this prophecy has been undergoing fulfillment. This began to be realized by the International Bible Students Association and the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society since the end of the second decade of our century. In the magazine issue of July 1, 1920, of TheWatchTowerandHeraldofChrist’sPresence the article was published entitled "Gospel of the Kingdom" and based on the theme text, "‘And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.’—Matthew 24:14." In the last six paragraphs it said:
5 "It will be noted he does not say the gospel that has been preached to the meek throughout the entire Gospel age shall be preached. What gospel then could he mean? The gospel means good news. The good news here is concerning the end of the old order of things and the establishment of Messiah’s kingdom. It means the dark night of sin and sorrow is passing away. It means that Satan’s empire is falling, never to rise again. It means the sun of righteousness is rising rapidly, its healing beams penetrating the darkness and driving back that which obscures the truth and bringing to the people that which will bless, comfort, strengthen and uplift them. . . .
6 "It will be observed that in the order named this message must be delivered between the time of the great world war and the time of the ‘great tribulation’ mentioned by the Master in Matthew 24:21, 22.This message could not have been delivered prior to the beginning of the world war. Clearly, then, the Master intended for us to understand that a time would come when the church must declare to the world as a witness that the old order is ending and will shortly pass away forever. . . .
7 "What a blessed privilege the church now has of being the ambassadors of the Lord’s kingdom and engaging in delivering the good news."—Pages 199, 200.
8 Since the publishing of that new, up-to-date understanding of the prophetic words of Jesus Christ more and more evidence has piled up in the world events and conditions and in the experience of the International Bible Students to prove that God’s Messianic kingdom was indeed born in the heavens at the due time in 1914 and that "this good news of the kingdom" means the fresh, brand-new information that tells of God’s established kingdom. No news of the day could surpass that for real goodness. For this reason the whole world of mankind deserved to hear this good news, "this gospel of the kingdom." (Matt. 24:14, AV;NW) And according to Jesus Christ all the world of mankind has to hear it. "In all the nations the good news has to be preached," said he.—Mark 13:10.
Show these Quotes to the next witness that tells you that Jehovah's Witnesses are the only ones preaching the same "Good News" that Jesus and the apostles preached.
Rockhound
@ Rockhound;
I JW recently told me that we don't mention Jesus as much in the 'ministry' these days because that's what was needed back in the 1st C. They needed to know about him back then. Nowadays people need to be warned about Armageddon instead of being told about Jesus.
