*** w63 11/15 pp. 684-687 The Resolution ***
The Resolution
WE JEHOVAH?S witnesses, met together in [City, State, Country], in one of the ?Everlasting Good News? assemblies being held in a continuous chain around the whole world this year of 1963, do this day declare and resolve as follows:
2 THAT the one living and true God, the Creator of heaven and earth, whose name is Jehovah, is the only God whom we fear and glorify. Him alone will we worship; for him only will we be witnesses in the universal contest now in progress over the question, Who is the Everlasting, All-wise, All-powerful God? and him alone will we urge all peoples everywhere, of whatever race, nationality, tribe, color and language, to worship as the true God without equal;
3 THAT the Holy Bible, written under inspiration originally in Hebrew, Aramaic and ancient Greek, is his written Word. It is the channel of the one revealed religion that is the absolute truth and that is the unerring guide to pure worship acceptable to God;
4 THAT God the Creator, to whom his own written Word gives the name Jehovah thousands of times, is the King of Eternity and the Eternal Sovereign of the universe, and to him we owe our supreme allegiance and unqualified obedience. Only by his permission and tolerance have men set up political governments for what is understood to be the public good. His permission for this was not to continue forever or even indefinitely, but was to be brought to an end by the establishment of the kingdom of his beloved Son, the Messiah or Anointed One, the Christ, who was named Jesus when on earth as a perfect man. In the year 1914 the combination of events began on earth that he said would be a visible sign to us that Jehovah God had taken his sovereign power in that year and had set up the kingdom of his Son Jesus Christ for the government of this earth. According to the published information from the Holy Bible, the time then came for all the political nations to yield their sovereignty in the earth peaceably over to the heavenly kingdom of God?s enthroned Son Jesus Christ. World history shows that, instead, more than a score of nations, led by Christendom, engaged in a global war for world domination. Because of this course the nations entered into the ?time of the end? foretold in the Holy Bible, which will reach a conclusion in their violent destruction;
5 THAT, in order to prevent the destruction of the nations by their own means in war, the nations further refused the surrender of their sovereignty to God?s Messianic kingdom by setting up a society of nations, which, since 1945, has taken the form and the name of the United Nations, with international headquarters at New York city. This international organization stands for world sovereignty by political men. For years men without faith in God?s kingdom have endeavored to get all people to worship this international image of human political sovereignty as the best hope for earthly peace and security, in fact, the last hope for humanity. To date 111 nations have given worship to this political image by becoming members of it. However, we, as witnesses of the Sovereign God Jehovah, will continue refusing to engage in such idolatrous worship, for we see, under angelic enlightenment, that God has smitten such idolaters with a malignant ulcer, symbolically speaking, that will spell death to them as spiritually diseased image worshipers who worship a man-made political creation rather than the Creator of heaven and earth;
6 THAT radical governments have been formed and taken over the control of powerful nations and they rage like the restless sea against the older, traditional forms of human government that have long ruled the earth. The ideal life for mankind will not come by means of such radical, revolutionary governments, which have already proved themselves unsatisfactory and incapable. God the Creator judicially pronounces such radical political institutions to be dead, death-dealing, as dead as a dead man?s shed blood that has congealed. Everyone trying to live in that element must die. We, as witnesses of God the Source of all life, will maintain our Christian steadfastness and have no part in such radical movements, but will hold fast to our Christian neutrality toward all radical and other types of human government over earth;
7 THAT the waters that the people have drunk from the rivers and fountains of human philosophies, political theorists, social organizers, economic advisers and advocates of religious traditions have resulted in no real life-giving refreshment to the drinkers. Such waters have even led the drinkers to violate the Creator?s law concerning the sacredness of blood and to engage in religious persecutions and in shedding the blood of even the holy ones and prophets of Jehovah God; for which reason he has judicially decided that they must suffer the full penalty for shedding blood, doing so either as individuals or as a community. We, however, will avoid this divine judicial decision by drinking only of Jehovah as the Fountain of living water, doing so by means of his Holy Word;
8 THAT we will continue to look to Him as the great Sun from whom comes our enlightenment, guidance and healing. We will glorify him and not join idolatrous men in looking to bright-shining ones of mankind as the source of mental and spiritual enlightenment and of worldly prosperity. In this way we save ourselves from taking part with disappointed men in blaspheming God the Creator because the symbolic ?sun? that they idolized and looked to for enlightenment and a brighter future has scorched them with unbearably hot world conditions rather than with a healing of the state of mankind;
9 THAT we accept the Bible?s proof that Satan the Devil is the ?ruler of the demons? and also the ?ruler of this world,? from whom our Leader Jesus Christ refused to accept any throne of rulership. But ever since the days of Nimrod, king of Babylon, the political system of this world has accepted its throne of political rulership from the satanic ?ruler of this world,? and to this ruler the worldly political system has paid his fixed price for the throne, rendering him worship and service. Since the decisive year of 1914 the political system of human government has refused to vacate this throne and cease rendering service to the ?ruler of this world.? For this reason the darkness of God?s disfavor has settled down on the kingdom of this worldly political system, and there is no political light to show human rulers the way out of the increasing ?anguish of nations.? With no repentance they persist in their works for self-salvation, and blaspheme God for paining them by having His witnesses showing that their doomed condition is beyond healing through human remedies;
10 THAT Nimrod in rebellion against Jehovah God founded his capital city Babylon on the Euphrates River in the Middle East, and by its waters this imperial city protected itself and carried on selfish commerce with the peoples. Ancient Babylon has now a modern counterpart that enriches and protects itself by sitting oppressively upon symbolic waters, the peoples, and even holding a religious kingdom over the political kings of this earth. Now the time has come for God to dry up these wealth-bringing protective ?waters? and bring about the fall and destruction of Babylon?s modern counterpart. As for her political companions, these are marching to the ?war of the great day of God the Almighty.? Under propaganda and programs inspired by demons and voiced by political systems serving the ?ruler of this world,? the kings of the earth and their armies are being led, not to the Euphrates River, but to the battlefield with the Hebrew name HarMagedon (or, Armageddon). We, who are Jehovah?s witnesses, will not obstruct them in their military preparations, and yet we will not march with them to HarMagedon, for we refuse to fight against God Almighty and his kingdom by Jesus the Messiah;
11 THAT, although at present we are obliged to be in this world, we will not breathe in the spirit of this world, for it is not the spirit of God but is the spirit of the devilish ?ruler of this world.? Led by the spirit of its unseen ruler, the world of mankind has for thousands of years cultivated the works of the fallen, degraded flesh. Now the world is reaping the results of breathing in the spirit of Satan the Devil and cultivating the works of their flesh, which is at enmity with God. Babylon?s modern religious counterpart has not cultivated in the people the spirit of God, that they might reap the fruitage of God?s spirit to the attainment of eternal life in His new order of things. The world therefore faces an earthquake of world trouble the like of which it has never known, and all its political institutions and its modern religious Babylon will be shaken to bits, even human institutions as imposing and stable as mountains or isolated like islands disappearing;
12 THAT, therefore, we have immediately ahead of us the most momentous period in the history of mankind; the hour of the execution of God?s righteous judgment is about to strike, and we are in the day of decision. Whereas we see all the nations of this doomed world marching under superhuman demon influence, it is our resolution to remain immovable on the side of the established Messianic kingdom of Jehovah God, ever praying that he will give us more and more of his spirit. And as we endeavor to cultivate the fruitage of the spirit of God and carry on His pure and undefiled worship, we will keep on the full suit of armor of God and continue fighting, not against blood and flesh, but against the ?wicked spirit forces in the heavenly places? until the satanic ?ruler of this world? and his demons are abyssed for the thousand years of Christ?s reign. We thank Jehovah God for the ministry of his holy angels under Jesus Christ in our behalf. With their help and with the help of his holy spirit and Word we will continue to declare to all peoples without partiality the ?everlasting good news? concerning God?s Messianic kingdom and concerning his judgments, which are like plagues to his enemies but which will be executed for the liberation of all persons who desire to worship God the Creator acceptably with spirit and with truth.
(The above Resolution was adopted at all 24 assemblies by a grand total of 454,977 conventioners.)
[Footnotes]
Name of the particular one of the twenty-four cities in which the Assembly is being held.
[Study Questions]
1, 2. Name four points we first of all declare and resolve as outlined in paragraph two.
3. What do we declare regarding the Holy Bible?
4. What are our feelings about Jehovah God the Creator, his King and kingdom?
5. (a) What viewpoint have the nations of this world taken on preventing war, and what is now their aim regarding all mankind? (b) As Jehovah?s witnesses what will we continue to do?
6. What is our resolve regarding radical, revolutionary movements by men?
7. What have the ?waters? of this world caused the drinkers of such to do, and what, then, is our resolve?
8. To whom will we look and give honor?
9. What price have political kingdoms paid for their right of rulership, and what attitude toward God?s witnesses do they take?
10. (a) What is our declaration concerning ancient Babylon?s counterpart today and her political companions? (b) Just how will we conduct ourselves now?
11. (a) Though we are in the world, what do we refuse to do? (b) What has Babylon?s modern counterpart not done, and so what result can be expected?
12. (a) So, then, where is it that we firmly resolve to be in this day of judgment? (b) Finally, what is our resolve as regards the ?everlasting good news??
