by anti-absolutism 4 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
OK this one might seem odd to some people... As Christians, (I personally am not sure if I want to consider myself Christian yet) is the belief that, since Christ gave us the opportunity to have Eternal life, or an immortal soul, that it was only after his death that we had the opportunity? In other words did the people who died before his death not have the opprtunity and therefore are still just dead?
Your response is appreciated, as brief as possible, please. Thank you
Hello!
After disassociating from the WTS I began associating with Evangelical Christians. I was still very much a student of the Bible and even through all of my studies I never heard or read anything that answered that question adequately.
For the most part it appears to be a matter of faith. My question was why would God wait until the first century of our common era to send the Messiah? Why not send the messiah shortly after Adam & Eve (if indeed they existed) "sinned"?
The Watchtower, of course, teaches that this allowed a time for people to show who's side of the issue of universal sovereignty they were on. Sounds good, but it is speculative and can only be "proven" by proof-texting the Bible.
If you read information written by persons who are Jewish (probably the more conservative or orthodox groups) who have responded to the claims of Jesus being the messiah, you'll find that the OT appears to indicate that forgiveness can be given by God without blood, or sacrifice.
These are just some quick thoughts. It will be interesting to hear other viewpoints and learn a bit more. It's a facinating subject.
ExpandedMind
"The mind, once expanded to the dimensions of larger ideas, never returns to its original size." --- Oliver Wendell Holmes
Good question - to offer a "brief" answer:
The scriptures teach that ALL (not only those who died "after" Christ) would be eligible for eternal life. For instance, Jesus specifically mentioned Abraham, Moses, and Elijah being present in the "Kingdom of God". Paul in Hebrews 11:13-16 also refers to the faithful men of old as having citizenship in the heavenly kingdom. Of course, all of these ones would have already died, so technically they would not have "everlasting life" until after their resurrection.
Cheers
Artful
Must have been 1914 eh ?
The way i look at it is it was already done ( christs sacrifice) in Gods mind and purpose. The old Testament phrophets more or less recieved credit although it hadnt happened yet. Kind of like a credit card that would be paid in full at Calvary.
Whats also interesting to note is in Hebrews not only does it explain that they (O.T. Prophets) having seen this promise from afar off and were persuaded of it, but also that they desired a heavenly home. Opposite of JWs who say the O.T. Prophets would be in the paradise earth. Oh well
