Is it Wrong to Doubt or Even Disagree With the GB? The Watchtower Reasoning....

by freemindfade 22 Replies latest watchtower bible

  • freemindfade
    freemindfade

    This would be a good one for JW apologist who scream and panic with anyone who feels the moral direction of the WT publishing company has gone astray. A comment at the bible highlights last night blew my mind, here is the article that was referenced. BTW this account always bothered me, remember when it was in a drama? But i never thought of it this way before.

    8 Things would have gone well with God’s prophet if he had continued on his journey back home. Almost immediately, however, he faced another test. “A certain old prophet was dwelling in Bethel,” states the Bible, “and his sons now came in and related to him” all that had taken place earlier that day. Upon hearing the report, the old man asks them to saddle an ass for him so that he might catch up with God’s prophet. Not long thereafter, he finds the prophet resting under a big tree and says: “Go with me to the house and eat bread.” When the man of the true God declines the invitation, the old man replies: “I too am a prophet like you, and an angel himself spoke to me by the word of Jehovah, saying, ‘Have him come back with you to your house that he may eat bread and drink water.’” But the Scriptures say: “He deceived him.”1 Ki. 13:11-18.

    9 Whatever might have been the old prophet’s motive, he lied. Perhaps the old man had at one time been a faithful prophet of Jehovah. I hate it when they say perhaps At this point, however, he was acting deceptively. The Scriptures strongly denounce such conduct. (Read Proverbs 3:32.) Deceitful ones not only hurt themselves spiritually but often harm others.

    “He Went Back With” the Old Man

    10 The prophet from Judah should have been able to see through the ruse of the old prophet. He could have asked himself, ‘Why would Jehovah send an angel to someone else with new instructions for me?’ The prophet could have asked Jehovah to clarify the direction, but the Scriptures do not indicate that he did so. Instead, “he went back with [the old man] that he might eat bread in his house and drink water.” Jehovah was not pleased. When the deceived prophet finally got on his way back to Judah, a lion found him and killed him. What a tragic end to his prophetic career!—1 Ki. 13:19-25.*

    Yep! The young prophet from Judah should have seen through the older prophet. If the GB says do this, and its wrong and we go along with it, will the desert god send a lion to eat us???
  • _Morpheus
    _Morpheus
    But they do give us wrong directions! Otherwise we would never have 'new light'
  • freemindfade
    freemindfade

    Then we are F%@#ed... the Lion is coming to eat us, but its the desert god's not satan this time.

  • JustVisting
    JustVisting
    Yea freemindfade, that convention drama had me wondering how that theme got through committee. To many similarities between the "old prophet" in Bethel to the modern version of the old prophet(s) in Bethel.
  • ron rawson
    ron rawson
    . Perhaps the old man had at one time been a faithful prophet of Jehovah. I hate it when they say 'perhaps'....I'm always leary of words like that....also when you see phrases such as ...."What did (......) mean by this?..." or "how should we understand this statement?". These are red flags that 'going beyond what is written' will follow. Strange that God-inspired Bible writers (and in fact Jesus himself) need the BG to explain their statements to us today. Tells me that if you believe what the WT says, you also believe that God didn't really inspire those guys who wrote it in the first place.
  • Crazyguy
    Crazyguy
    This sounds like more ammo to use against the GB
  • Sofia Lose
    Sofia Lose

    If one happens to doubt or disagree, better keep it to yourself or you will be disfellowshipped for apostasy so fast it will make your head spin.

    SL

  • Marvin Shilmer
    Marvin Shilmer
    Yep! The young prophet from Judah should have seen through the older prophet. If the GB says do this, and its wrong and we go along with it, will the desert god send a lion to eat us???

    I've asked many a JW about this over the years. The question boils down to whether the biblical model would have a person support/obey/follow a supposed God-appointee based on the authority the individual supposedly has as a God-appointee without regard for personal sense of right and wrong. The general consensus is that JWs should obey the GB (read: "faithful slave") because it is appointed by God, and if the GB makes a mistake in what it asks of us then we are not guilty for following that mistaken directive/teaching.

    Then I ask the JW why the biblical Aaron was removed from high office and suffered premature death if not his tacit support of a mistaken act by Moses.

    I ask what this biblical object lesson of Aaron and Moses tells us, if anything.

    Then I get deer-in-the-headlight looks in return. Most have no response because they've been conditioned to obey the GB no matter what. They've been conditioned to accept that obedience to the GB equals obedience to God. Yet the biblical episode of Aaron and Moses categorically disputes this.

    When it comes to Watchtower theology, at one point Watchtower expressed the idea that in the instance of Moses' mistaken act (at Meribah as I recall) Aaron should have acted to check Moses' actions, and because he did not then Aaron suffered loss of high office and premature death. But under current Watchtower theology for a JW (in high office or not) to act to check some mistaken act by the GB would achieve the threshold value of "apostate". (And, before I get snotty responses, by "mistaken act" I'm being gracious).

  • Finkelstein
    Finkelstein

    Answer = only when you are asked at JC in the negotiating of your reinstatement.

    Of course high controlling cults like this watch out for vocal dissidents., they are usually muzzled in some way or cast out.

    In actuality the physically disposing of these people and identifying them as evil due to be punished for their behavior, reconfirms the presenting power of the cult leaders or as in ancient times High Priests

  • John Aquila
    John Aquila

    So the old prophet who was false, deceptive, and a liar gets to live.

    While the young prophet who served Jehovah faithfully and makes ONE mistake is executed by Jehovah?

    So who will you serve?

    A person doesn't have to be a genius to answer correctly.

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