by BoogerMan 13 Replies latest watchtower bible
NotFormer : There's no precedent for MS ...
Of course there is a precedent for MS, just as there is for elder and overseer. In most churches they are known as deacons, which is a transliteration of Διακόνους (1 Timothy 3:8). However, I would not defend a scriptural basis for CO and DO as such, although the principle of Paul visiting various congregations is used to justify it.
There's a precedent for deacon, not M. S. You said it yourself.
This topic came up a couple of years ago, so I thought I’d repost my comment on it, with a few additions.
Old English cleric and Old French clerc "clergyman, priest; scholar, student," both from Church Latin clericus "a priest," noun use of adjective meaning "priestly, belonging to the clerus"
So, this is the thing that I’ve noticed. The anointed, and yes there are genuine anointed in the organization, who are priests. (Mal 2:7; 1 Pet 2:5,9; Rev 5:9,10) But the doctrine of men says they must not act as priests until after Armageddon. The apostle Paul stated that he was a priest, and he was certainly “active”.
“Nevertheless, I have written to remind you more boldly on some points] because of the grace given me by God to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, serving as a priest of the gospel of God. God’s purpose is that the Gentiles may be an acceptable offering, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.” Rom 15:15,16
So, an active genuine priesthood ended with the advent of the organization. Well then, does the elder body act as priests?
Mal 2:7 – “For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should desire instruction from his mouth, because he is the messenger of the Lord of Armies.”
Sure they do, except they are counterfeit priests acting on behalf of an organization. They guard its knowledge, they instruct the congregations, and they are the messengers for the organization.
They say this: “Representing the royal priesthood are appointed elders, who serve in positions of responsibility in congregations of Jehovah’s people around the earth.” Wt 02/8/1
If they are “representing” the anointed, aren’t they active? This appointment is all bogus, but real. The elders have gone so far as not only acting as a priesthood, but as judges of the “royal priesthood”. And this genuine priesthood of anointed “living stones” are the temple dwelling of God’s Holy Spirit. 1 Pet 2:5, 1 Cor 3:16,17; Eph 2:20-22; Mark 13:14; 1 Thess 2:3,4; Rev 11:1,2
“If any of you has a dispute against another, how dare you take it to court before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? 2 Or don’t you know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the trivial cases? 3 Don’t you know that we will judge angels—how much more matters of this life? 4 So if you have such matters, do you appoint as your judges those who have no standing in the church? 5 I say this to your shame! Can it be that there is not one wise person among you who is able to arbitrate between fellow believers?” 1 Cor 6
But the organization has other ideas.
Wt 02/8/1 - “Rather than challenge their authority, we truly appreciate our hardworking elders!”
That's a pretty arrogant statement. I do believe that the apostle Paul would certainly challenge the elder body’s bogus authority, just as all genuine anointed ones should as well. This statement is like a slap in the face to the anointed ones.
“In fact, you put up with it if someone enslaves you, if someone exploits you, if someone takes advantage of you, if someone is arrogant toward you, if someone slaps you in the face.” 2 Cor 11:20
The organization has made it very clear that the anointed are to remain silent. Why? Because if the genuine priesthood was active as a body (Eph 4:4) and join together under their Head, which is prohibited (see Wt Jan 1,2016 pg. 24, par 8); prohibited because it would be viewed as an act of elitism, even though this is exactly what the GB has created, as well as in the elder body...if the genuine priests were to gather, and are faithfully serving God under their High Priest, Jesus Christ by offering sacrifices of praise in truth (1 John 2:27; Heb 13:25; 1 Pet 2:5), there would be a great conflict of interest - of teachings, of what is truth and what is a lie. Why else would the Wt. even mention that the elders “authority” cannot be challenged? (Rev 13:5-7)
Active and faithful priests under Jesus Christ, would not allow the doctrine of men to be taught; instead, they would be teaching all that Jesus commanded them. (Matt 28:20) Only Christ’s teachings, the word of God, would be on their lips; and ultimately the power of not only the elder body, but also the governing body would dissolved. (Matt 24:48-51) An “organization” built by men and all of the doctrine needed to keep it up and running, would not exist.
As Jesus stated, we are to worship the Father in spirit and truth, not in a physical “mountainlike organization”. (John 4:21-24; Eph 2:20-22; Zech 4:6-10; Isa 2:1-3)
Acts 17:24-25,29 – “God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. 25 Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things.”
What is the foremost push by the organization, but to coerce their members to volunteer their time to build, construct, to maintain and clean what they’ve built, to donate to these buildings, all said to be “God’s house”…and this work is how one makes “friends with Jehovah”? Not according to scripture.
Acts 17:29 – “Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising.”
So yeah, the Wt. business/organization/religion does have a clergy, a massive “priesthood” of elders worldwide that are too arrogant (or blindly ignorant) to realize that God would never condone the replacing of His appointed priests/teachers/living stones of His spiritual temple built on the body of Christ. (Ezek 44:6-9; 1 Pet 2:5,9;1 Cor 3:16-17; 2 Thess 2:3-4,7-10)
Matt 24:24-25; 7:15-16; Acts 20:29-31;1 Tim 4:1; Col 2:8; Rev 13:10,7, 4,11-12,14; John 16:2-3; Rev 13:15
The WTS uses the phrase "paid clergy" to differentiate from this statement is 1971: w71 6/1 p. 330 par. 10 - "Another reason why many feel there is no place for them in the service of God is due to the clergy-laity distinction that is fostered in the churches. However, there was no clergy-laity division in early Christianity, and there is none today in true Christianity. The setting apart of a clergy class dates back to Babylonish, pagan worship. No precedent for it is found in the ministry of Jesus or his disciples."
We do not have a paid clergy in our organization "Weasel Words" (2012)
Yet in 2021 "In contrast, true worshippers of Jehovah have no clergy."
2010 "
“All you are brothers,” said Jesus to his followers. (Matthew 23:8) The early Christians, including the Bible writers, had no clergy class. This Biblical pattern is the one that Jehovah’s Witnesses follow.
