In its issue of July 15, 1976, The Watchtower, commenting on the
inadvisability of setting our sights on a certain date, stated:
“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.
These persons having to do with the publication of this
information were none other than members of the Governing
Body of the Society. They are the same people who claim to be
spirit-appointed by God and responsible for providing spiritual
food at the proper time, for those they claim to communicate
with on God’s behalf. Were they now saying that had only been
guessing, and the ”wrong premises” that members had based
their hopes on was them? Is this really the same group of men
who had referred to themselves as God’s prophet as recently as
1972 in an article entitled the prophet?
However, Jehovah did not let the people of
Christendom, as led by the clergy, go without being warned
that the League was a counterfeit substitute for the real
Kingdom of God. He had a “prophet” to warn them.
Known then at that time as International Bible Students. Today they
are known as Jehovah's Christian Witnesses. They are still
proclaiming a warning, and they have been joined and
assisted in their commissioned work by hundreds of
thousands of persons who have listened to their message with
belief.”
“Of course it is easy to say that this group act as a prophet of
God. It is another thing to prove it. The only way that this can
be done is to review the record. What does it show?”
Watchtower - 1 April 1972 Page 197
Quotes from - Opening the Door to Jehovah's Witnesses.