Hi FW,
You said: "
"Why do they insist on calling God by his personal name, when Jesus Christ never said it?"
My mom said, "Right, Jesus called him Father." (!!!)
I told her how Miss K showed me some scriptures, where Jesus said he had come to make known his father's name, sanctify his name. I said, "But nowhere is it recorded, when Jesus told us to CALL God by his personal name. If it had been such an important instruction, then why isn't it recorded anywhere in the gospels?"
Mom said, "That's a good point..."
I said, "Jesus demonstrated how to pray, in the Lord's Prayer... 'Our Father, who art in heaven...' If anywhere he was going to tell us how to call on God, don't you think he would have said the name in that example prayer? Do you think he would have told us how to pronounce it?"
"Jehovah's Witnesses are so fixated on vindicating Jehovah's name... but Jesus didn't even call him that. What makes them think that they should be calling him that? If you go beyond what Jesus taught, then you are actually following the instructions of men. Are they following Christ's example, or the instructions of men?" My mom didn't say anything, but I think she got the piont. She looked confused."
I love it. I have been thinking these points for many years but you expressed them so well. Of course, I've been out since 1977 but I then loathed the addressing of Jehovah (by name) in public prayer (which I detest, as did Jesus). In addition, ever notice how some elders and assembly speakers address Jehovah by name, like a dozen or more times in a single prayer. Heck, I didn't even address my earthly dad by his name, Wesley. I don't remember being told by anyone to do this -- I just did it out of respect. Perhaps Jesus in his model prayer did the same -- as a model.
Len