The 1914 generation is still going strong 100 years later - 2014 study article.

by THE GLADIATOR 443 Replies latest watchtower bible

• 

  DATA-DOG

  An earthly "spiritual paradise" is never spoken of in God's word. In fact, Christians were to experience the opposite in a world dominated by the Devil. Persecution, sacrifices for the Kingdom, physical hardships, material losses and even eventual martyrdom were possible. The only promise that Christians received was the support of the Holy Spirit which would ensure that they had no spiritual breaking point, even in the face of death. There never was and never has been, any promise of a "spiritual paradise" on Earth. Like the term "paradise earth", it does not exist.

  Like TD said, JWs look at their multi-million dollar Assembly Halls, complete with credit card machines, and JW.ORG with JWs "witnessing" to other JWs in a commercial, their photo-shoot/WT pictures and their soon to be finished Warwick compound, all the while equating it with "spiritual paradise." They often accuse others with nice homes as claiming to have their paradise now, JWs are just as guilty.

  I would say the burden of proof is on anyone who claims the Bible teaches the concept of an earthly "spiritual" paradise.

  DD
• 

  caliber

  'salvation' is spiritual state, but the WT tries to sell it more as a materialistic reward:

  A paradise earth, good homes, plenty of good food to eat etc etc. (spiritualized materialism )

  In the past I have heard JW's fantasize about the mansions they'll take over from destroyed "worldly" people after the big A.

  This troubled me ... they were writting off the person but figured their" favoured spiritual state" entitled them to this person's home

  Yet even the Bible speaks of enjoying things by means of your own labour... not a free-loader or free ride

  “The earth itself will certainly give its produce,” the Bible says. (Psalm 67:6; 72:16) All will enjoy the fruits of their own labor, as our Creator promises: “They will certainly plant vineyards and eat their fruitage. . . . they will not plant and someone else do the eating.”—Isaiah 65:21, 22.

  The great happiness now is studing the Bible ( day dreaming about "the real life . ..so near at hand "... with hopes of great joy in eating and drinking and playing

  in "the new order"
• 

  snare&racket

  It is the foundational doctrine of the JW's and most JW's cant explain it anymore as it is no longer regurgitated in the literature.

  Unknown to the average JW:

  1. The teachings on 1914 were changed and refined drastically decades after 1914 and altered retrospectivly.

  2. The date was originally attributed to prophecies left in the great pyramid of giza bu Pastor Russell, not the bible. He measured the length of a corridor and ascribed it biblical and prophetic significance, 1914 inches.

  3. The actual doctrine sounds so ridiculous to me now.... Here it is.... warning, it gets crazy quickly...

  • Seventy weeks of years: Russell believed the Adventist interpretation of the prophecy of the 70 weeks "until Messiah the Prince" at Daniel 9:24-27 could be used to demonstrate the validity of the year-for-a-day rule. He took 454 BCE as the date of Artaxerxes' decree to rebuild Jerusalem, and by converting 69 weeks of seven days (483 days) to 483 years arrived at 29 CE as the beginning of Jesus' ministry. Christ's crucifixion took place at the midpoint of the 70th week; the covenant with the Jewish nation remained in force another "week" (seven years) from the beginning of his ministry and its end was signified by the conversion ofCornelius in 36, when the Gospel was taken to the Gentiles. [49]

  • Times of the Gentiles: Using the year-for-a-day rule, Russell adopted and adjusted the teachings of Miller and Englishman John Aquila Brown, who both taught that the chastisement of the Israelites "seven times" for their sins (at Leviticus 26) indicated a period of 2520 years—seven prophetic years of 360 days each. In Russell's chronology system the period began with the deposing of Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, an event that marked the end of the typical Kingdom of God and beginning of the consequent lease of earthly dominion to Gentile governments, as foretold in Ezekiel 21:25-27. Russell calculated that Zedekiah's removal occurred in 606 BCE, and therefore claimed the "times of the Gentiles" ran from that date until 1914, when the kingdom would be re-established on earth under Jewish leadership. The end of the Gentile times would be marked by a return of the Jews to Palestine. Russell believed the period was also one of degradation for mankind in general, which he believed was prefigured by the account in Daniel 4 of Nebuchadnezzar's dream of a great tree being cut down and restrained from growth for seven years. [50] [51]

  • The time of the end: Miller had formulated doctrines drawn from Daniel 12:4,9 on the "time of the end", when the meaning of certain prophecies would be finally revealed. Russell made a slight amendment to the teaching, explaining that it began in 1799 [52] when French general Berthier entered Rome, abolished papal government and established the Republic of Italy. [53] The "time of the end" would last 115 years to 1914. [54] The 1799 date, in turn, had been established by linking the 1260 days of Revelation 11:3 with time periods mentioned in Daniel 2, 7, and 12. Using the year-day principle, the period indicated 1260 years from 539 (when Justinian I recognised the pope as universal bishop) to 1799. [55] [56]

  • Great Jubilee: Russell adopted and amended Miller's teaching of a secondary indicator of the due date for the Millennium. The ancient Jewish law provided for a series of sabbaths, each culminating in the Jubilee year in the 50th year, when slaves were released and leased property returned to its rightful owners. [57] Like Miller, Russell believed the arrangement foreshadowed the release of humans from the debt of sin and bondage through the intervention of Christ. [58] He taught that the Millennium was the antitypical Great Jubilee (the 50th 50-year jubilee) and marked the beginning of the second presence of Christ. Using his calculations of the date of the last jubilee before the Jewish exile, he added 2500 years (50 x 50) and calculated it had begun at the end of 1874. [59]

  • The greath sabbath: Russell embraced Miller's view that because "one day is with the Lord as a thousand years", [60] the seventh thousand-year period after creation would be a 1000-year-long sabbath "day". But whereas Miller had believed 1843 was 6000 years after creation, [61] Russell believed Adam was created in 4129 BC [62] and calculated 1872 as the end of 6000 years. He thought it reasonable that Adam and Eve had lived two years in Eden before sinning, and thus calculated the 6000 years ran from the time sin entered the world to October 1874, when Christ had returned and the times of restitution began. [63]

  • Parallel dispensations: Russell expanded Darby's doctrine of dispensationalism, explaining that events that befell the Jewish nation were prophetic counterparts of events during the Gospel age, with the timing of those events also having prophetic significance. He argued that the Jews had enjoyed 1845 years of favor from the death of Jacob to 33 CE [64] (the Jewish Age) and they would have to endure the same length of time in God's disfavor—thus from 33 to 1878 (the Gospel Age). [65] The Jews' fall from favour was gradual, spanning 37 years from 33 to 70, when Jerusalem was destroyed, and that period corresponded to a gradual restoration of God's favour to them between 1878 and 1914. [66] But although the Jewish nation's fall began in 33, God's favor towards individual Jews continued another 3½ years from Pentecost, during which time the gospel call was limited to Jews. That typified a 3½-year opportunity from 1878 until 1881 when the "high calling" or invitation to become joint heirs with Christ closed. The 3½-year period between Christ's anointing as Messiah and his riding into Jerusalem on an ass, being acclaimed as king and cleansing the temple of money-changers typified the period between his parousia (1874) and his assuming kingly power and rejection of "nominal church systems" (1878). [67] The 40-year "harvest" of the Jewish Age from 29–69 typified a 40-year harvest of the Gospel Age from 1874 to 1914. [68] The Jews expectation of the Messiah's arrival at the time of Jesus' birth, 30 years before his anointing, [69] was correlated with the Great Disappointment, the failure of Miller's prediction of the second coming of Christ in 1844, 30 years before the date indicated by Russell's system. [70]
• 

  Finkelstein

  The return of Christ was seen as a viable and marketable commodity for this religious publishing house.

  From that viewpoint they were right but the time clock is running out fast.

  What to do what to do ?

  Certain doctrines will probably be dropped such as 1914 and a newly reformed Watchtower society will

  be created.

  I would even wager that into the future the Watchtower identity with this organization will be dropped

  altogether, just to wash itself from old doctrines.
• 

  TD

  I do not know what you mean. Give examples where the wts uses the term spiritual to apply it to something material?

  There are subtleties I miss sometimes so correct me if I'm wrong. This is what I understand the following terms to mean:

  "Spiritual activity" = Meeting attendance, Bible study, Door knocking, Literature distribution

  "Spiritual fellowship" = Associating with fellow JW's

  "Spiritual routine" = Regimen of "Spiritual activity"

  "Spiritual habits" = Same as "Spiritual routine"

  "Spirtual goals" = Aspirations within the JW community (e.g. Elder, Pioneer, Bethelite, etc.)

  "Spiritual values" = Degree to which "Spiritual activity" is appreciated

  "Spiritual progress" = Degree to which personal aspirations and expectations within the JW community have been realized.

  "Spiritual advancement" = Same as "Spiritual progess"

  "Spiritual enlightenment" = Learning JW doctrine (aka The Truth)

  "Spiritual light" = Same as enlightenment above

  "Spiritual assistance" = Encouragment towards "Spiritual activity"

  "Spiritual help" = Same as assistance above

  "Spiritual strength" = A high degree of "Spiritual activity"

  "Spiritual provisions" = Prepared JW material including literature and meetings

  "Spiritual food" = Same as "Spiritual provisions"

  "Spiritual nourishment" = Same as "Spritual food"

  "Spiritual diet" = Regimen of "Spiritual nourishment"

  "Spiritual table" = JW Curriculum of "Spiritual provisions"

  "Spiritual banquette" = A special event like a convention

  "Spiritual treasures" = JW teachings of special value to the individual

  "Spiritual instruction" = "Spiritual provisions provided at the "Spiritual table"

  "Spiritual direction" = Directives provided through JW parent organization(s)

  "Spiritual things" = General term for many of the items above

  "Spiritual matters" = Same as "Spiritual things" only refers more to circumstances

  "Spiritual heritage" = Being raised as a JW

  "Spiritual harvest" = Recruitment of others into the JW faith

  "Spiritual paradise" = Current state of happiness within JW faith for active members

  "Spiritual difficulty" = Discouragement or actual wrongdoing affecting "Spiritual activity"

  "Spiritual wrongdong" Violation of JW standards of ethics and morality

  "Spiritual harm" = Similar to "Spiritual difficulty" only more severe

  "Spiritual ruin" = Similar to "Spiritual harm" only more severe

  It seems to me that you know WTS teaching. What are you really asking?

  You mentioned communion with God. I asked what form this takes in the JW faith.

  Perfect example. My neighbor is Mormon (LDS) Members of this faith have a "Testimony" (i.e. A spiritual witness given to an individual by the Holy Ghost.) For this man, it was a full blown angelic visitation. I'm not saying I believe it happened. (I don't.) The point is that he believes it. It was a very, very special experience for him and tears streamed down his face when he tried to explain the beauty and majesty of a spirit creature. JW's on the other hand are as skeptical when it comes to real, tangible spiritual experiences today as any atheist you're ever likely to meet. (Again in my own experience with them.) So when a JW speaks of communion with God, I'm interested.
• 

  DATA-DOG

  TD.. That was 100% pure awesomeness.

  TD also said, " JW's on the other hand are as skeptical when it comes to real, tangible spiritual experiences today as any atheist you're ever likely to meet."

  YEP!! Try telling the average JW that you read God's word and realized that you are in the new covenant and have sonship with your creator. They will be intantly on guard. As one of the Elders in my many meetings asked, " Have you been watching television Evangelists??" LOL!! I am serious!! He asked it with a straight face too! The average JW really thinks that Holy Spirit is for someone else. The GB somehow have access to the Holy Spirit that other dubs, even other partakers, do not have.

  If you were to say that Holy Spirit leads you to truth as Jesus promised, you will be marked and watched. For instance, imagine what would have happened to you in 2011 if you said that you started partaking and realized that all Christians are domestics, and there was no FDS class.

  DD
• 

  Fisherman

  TD,

  You insist on samples.

  Most people did not believe Jesus. I want to conclude with these 2 verses.

  Compare John 6:30 with Mathew 16:3
• 

  Finkelstein

  Fisherman, the signs of the times as marketed or should I say exploited by the WTS. is just an erroneously

  false assertion used to support their own self proclamation that mankind is living in the end times/last days.

  Its part of the WTS's fear inducing manifesto.

  There is one not ioda of practical evidence throughout human history to support that, thats of course if your educated are not.

  .

  Obviously you've been reading the WTS's literature, now how about learning some real information from out of a University

  or College.
• 

  TD

  You insist on samples.

  Most people did not believe Jesus. I want to conclude with these 2 verses.

  Compare John 6:30 with Mathew 16:3

  If you're saying what I think you're saying, I don't think that's fair. What about Matthew 4:39 or John 4:53 or 7:31 or 11:45?

  I do not insist upon a "Command performance" for my own benefit, gratification or amusement. I do insist that the wheels meet the road at some point though.

  If a thousand odd people are stood up at a convention and proclaimed to be the "Great multitude" of Revelation, then something needs to happen in their lifetimes.
• 

  Fisherman

  If you're saying

  The w's are saying that they discern (material vs "charismatic flavor") the sign.

  So: They have a reason for their faith. And, also, they have a reason for their faith.

  Is that clear?