by minimus 34 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Remember when we used to use words such as 'the truth', 'great crowd', 'little flock', 'john class' and 'the faithful and discreet slave'
I still use those words. They are stuck in my head. Can't get them out ..... HELP!
Seriously, does anyone else have some of the JW programming terms so stuck in their mind that they just pop out during conversation, even though you know they are wrong?
Odrade
min,
"Jehovah is sifting those that aren't taking the Truth seriously now."
I figure that is true but the good ones are being sifted out of the meetings. 39 out of what normally?
I believe there were about 78 publishers. So half of that is a pretty poor showing......My mother also believes that there are less and less "real" Jehovah's Witnesses and that God will sift them out too. I said, "That means that the majority of Witnesses will be sifted out by Jehovah." She said, "Yes. That's what it means." Then I said, "So, in reality, you're saying that God is actually going to sift out the majority of Jehovah's Witnesses and that means they're going to die." She said, "I can't read hearts but I do think most of the Witnesses are not serious about the truth".
I suppose the Jews felt that way about the Christians, min.
Blondie
As I recall, this idea of "sifting" has been in long use by the Watchtower Society to explain major defections from the organization. I heard this same argument by the older members in the early 1950s to explain why so many left during the Russell/Rutherford transition.
But I have heard that the younger ones in the congregation do not have the same drive and zeal that was seen in the early period of the movement. Perhaps, we are seeing evidence of a moderation in the organization that is starting from bottom up. What do you think?
Because the Watchtower has a way of dancing around major issues.
Devon
This organization is slowly withering from WITHIN. They are dying a slow, internal death. They are like a tree that may be very, very old but still exists on the outside but is clearly dead on the inside. The religion will continue but the hardcore advocates are all nearly dead.
min, that is a good illustration.
Thank you Blondie. I am somewhat "inspired" today.
I think the witnesses have a knowing sense abou them being the "true" religion because they are part of the "temple" organization that was prophesied to be active and public, preaching the "good news" worldwide in fulfillment of prophecy. The JWs are thus, generally, a special part of "spiritual Israel" whereas the Jews are "fleshly Israel". Note that both groups were targets of the Nazis, specifically. The HOLOCAUST was the "great tribulation" that was prophesied that would come about.
At any rate, the most confusing aspect of identifying JWs with being the "true religion" is obviously because they have so many false prophesies, how can that be?
The answer is in close examination of scripture wherein we find this organization is like a field that was sown first with good seed but then, before that seed even came up the Devil sewed weeds. Thus when the new blades came up, both wheat and weeds were together. What to do? It was decided to let the "wheat and weeds growup together until the harvest"...then there would be a separation.
Thus the organization that is chosen to fulfill the preaching of the "good news" and to be associated with other special "God's chosen people" and "temple" issues, is an organization that will be mixed with wheat and weeds.
Thus when Christ returns, to the wheat in this organization full of weeds he says: "Have no fear LITTLE FLOCK for I intend to give you the kingdom..." and he goes in and separates the wheat from the weeds, the sheep from the goats. Thus he takes out of this organization his sheep and leads him to "other sheep, not of this fold."
Another unfortunate event that occurs within the organization, of course, is the apostasy of the leadership, the GB. This organization also becomes the oganization of the "evil slave" and the "man of lawlessness" and the "false prophet".
So basically, even though this organization will preach the "good news" and basically have more critically accurate Biblical understanding than the religions of Christendom, they still would end up with a false prophet as a leader and thus when Christ comes at the time of "harvest" he will lead out his sheep from this organization after which this organization along with Christendom will be thrown into the lake of fire "while still alive".
COVENANT ENDS FOR ALL "CHOSEN PEOPLE" IN 1996.
I won't go into the chronology details now, but basically, as a final note, the two "chosen people", Jews and JWs, the focus of the Nazis during the Holocaust are connected with a "covenant" that wil be in force until the end of the 70th week. But that implies the covenant will end at the end of the 70th week too, and thus it does. After 1996, therefore, there are no official "God's chosen people" set aside, neither Jew nor JWs.
The 70th week determination is easy, though. Since we know Christ died at mid-week of the 70th week in 33CE and began his ministry at the beginning of the week in 29CE, that 70th week ends in 36CE. We need only count succeeding periods of 70 weeks from 36CE, therefore, to get to our day. 4 x 490 is 1960. 1960 plus 36CE is 1996. Thus the last 70th week ends in 1996 and that's when the Jewish convenant ends and also the covenant with the "temple" organization, Jehovah's witnesses. After 1996, God does not recognize either of these groups as his chosen peopl. But both groups are fulfilled in Heavenly Spiritual Israel, the "144,000" which is really 1,440,000 who create the final "temple" and "chosen people"
So, in the end, though both "chosen people" had their problems they both served their purposes and their covenants end in 1996 at the end of the last 70th week.
You know, it's interesting that JWs thus understand WHO they are in relation to these prophecies even though nearly all of them are incorrect now. But anything about the "evil slave" the "false prophet" or the Lamb-Dragon beast is a reference to the Governing Body, and the anointed ones of JWs are basically the "sons of the kingdom" that fail to get in for the most part.
Actually, apparently about half get in. The ten virgins represent the witness group, who both nod off spiritually speaking just before the Messiah arrives. When he does they get up and get their lamps together but only 5 of them have extra oil, the other five don't. When they do finally get their lamps burning though, they find out they are locked out of the kingdom and someone else took their place. So it looks like about half of the witnesses who should have become part of the kingdom of 144K miss out. But half of them DO make it and these are called out of the witness organization, spritually speaking, and joined to another camp fo Christ's followers.
JC
