Posts by Check_Your

5

Christian perspective: Anything wrong with designing targeting systems?

by Check_Your_Premises in

jw
friends

just curious what any might think

How I am dealing with "The Bible says you have to go to all the meetings!!"

by Check_Your_Premises in

here is the basic approach i am going to use.

my wife is a newly dunked dub, and my kids have been hearing the propaganda for about 3 years now.

i figured out it was a cult about 6 months ago.

Check_Your_Premises

When we are in attendance at congregation meetings, God’s holy spirit has a powerful influence on us,

So the Holy Spirit only directs us when we are with other Christians?

This is my wife's jugular methinks. I suspect, and she has stated as much, that all the meetings keep her mind on spiritual matters and away from a mindset that might allow sin.

I think that to rely on such human constructs is actually a lack of faith. It shows that a person does not believe or trust in the Holy Spirit to perfect us. Instead we want to rely on outside social pressures to keep us in line.

From Randy's site

The difference is, God has given us the new birth and a new nature (1 Peter 1:23). A "seed" of righteousness is planted in us when we are born from above. God comes to live IN us (through the Holy Spirit), enabling us to partake of his holiness (Romans 8:9-11). Jesus made this possible through his death and resurrection (Heb. 9:11-15). We are redeemed and declared righteous. Jesus then takes that "seed" in us and forms it into a mature Christian, thereby sanctifying us. He trusts us to walk in that new nature that we now possess. We die to the old, corrupted nature of the fallen flesh (2 Peter 1:3,4). Were it not for this new birth and its accompanying grace, our condemnation would be greater than under the Law of Moses, for Jesus' standards are more exacting and comprehensive than the Mosaic Law. Jesus said we are to be perfect (Matt. 5:48).

and...

Because we lack the faith that God controls this process of perfecting his saints, we suggest to our brother that if he would only correct the symptom, his heart will change for the better. We believe that if "Mark would only stop smoking, he would not feel so guilty and could approach the Lord easier." "If Joan would quit watching soap operas, she would love the Lord more and her marriage would improve." "If Johnny would quit watching Music Television (MTV), he could read the Bible more." Seldom do we stop and think that we are approaching the whole thing backwards. Why not get them interested in the things of God, and let God do the work? If you can't get them interested in spiritual things, stripping them of their fun certainly won't work! Besides, we may be reading the symptoms wrong in the first place.

17

Plain Truth Magazine plug: It is basically all anti-cult all the time!!!

by Check_Your_Premises in

i got a free subscription from ptm.org for one year.

for those of you not familiar with the story of the world wide church of god, they were a cult remarkeably similar to the jw doctrinally.

it was founded by herbert armstrong.. after his death they went through a remarkeable and turbulent reformation.

Check_Your_Premises

They have totally rejected British-Israelism.

Keep in mind, I am not plugging WCG. I have never attended a single congregation.

I am plugging this magazine though. It does not mention by name ANY other religion. It does not judge or condemn any other religions. It simply describes and debunks all aspects of control, legalism, and reverence to human authority.

It does not appear to be attacking cultism to deflect any criticism anyone might level against them for being cultic. They openly and loudly proclaim their cultic past and label it as such. They appear to be interested in using their experience to help others not to make the same mistakes.

17

Plain Truth Magazine plug: It is basically all anti-cult all the time!!!

by Check_Your_Premises in

i got a free subscription from ptm.org for one year.

for those of you not familiar with the story of the world wide church of god, they were a cult remarkeably similar to the jw doctrinally.

it was founded by herbert armstrong.. after his death they went through a remarkeable and turbulent reformation.

Check_Your_Premises

I got a free subscription from ptm.org for one year.

For those of you not familiar with the story of the World Wide Church of God, they were a cult remarkeably similar to the jw doctrinally. It was founded by Herbert Armstrong.

After his death they went through a remarkeable and turbulent reformation. Now they claim to be a fairly mainline, orthodox church. I have heard claims that they are still cultic. However after reading the last 3 issues of PTM, I find that very hard to believe.

The magazine is OUTSTANDING. It is basically all about the dangers of legalism and authoritarian control in churches. Maybe that will play out intellectually, but I think they feel they have alot of atoning to do. Not to Jesus of course, but to all their fellow Christians.

Especially for you folks who have left JW recently, I would highly recommend getting a free subscription. I leave mine laying around in hopes that they will be read.

Hope springs eternal.

CYP

63

HAS A CUCKOO LAID AN EGG IN YOUR BRAIN? (Ideas: whose are they?)

by Terry in

we are trying to use ideas to understand ideas themselves.

where do these ideas come from?

are your ideas your own?.

Check_Your_Premises

Great analogy and write up Terry.

I have removed many cuckoo eggs from my head over the years, and the motivation was exactly as you described. I had a big fat one, that got me burned really badly. The nice thing about having your entire world fall apart is that YOU get to put it back together. Not all the other people who put all those cuckoo eggs in your head.

I have a feeling that you have shared a similar experience.

Take care Terry.

CYP

55

Were You Appalled When You First Saw "Life Of Brian"?

by Englishman in

jw
friends

there was so much hoo-hah prior to the films release, that i became ever determined to see it as soon as it hit town!.

the church leaders were up in arms about it, mary whitehouse became almost apoplectic, it was almost the end of civilisation as we knew it!.

well, we duly toddled off to see it.

Check_Your_Premises

I loved the Life of Brian.

My favorite part was, "Are you a virgin?"

I commented on another thread how the JW just always glom onto anyone using the name Jehovah as proof that they are the right religion. They are a bizarre sacred name sect that acts like there is something special or about saying a word.

Any moron can say a word, it doesn't mean God chose you!!!

In that sense they also remind me of another Monty Python bit.

The Knights Who Say Neeeeeeeeeeeee!

That is the JW. The Knights Who Say Neeeeeee of Christianity.

CYP

55

Do any jw pubs say "Due time has approached" ala Luke 21:8?

by Check_Your_Premises in

luke 21:8.

8 he said: "look out that you are not misled; for many will come on the basis of my name, saying, i am he, and, the due time has approached.

just curious.

Check_Your_Premises

J,

Yeah but they said it about 1914 falsely. It wasnt the due time. It wasn't true. So they were true prophets who described something that didn't happen?

It would be great to dismiss all that with the "light gets brighter", which was surely prophesying that some obscure Christian sect would be making a bunch of mistakes and need some sort of cover so nobody thought that God wasn't really using them .

But the problem is Christ said these folks were false prophets, and don't be misled by them.

Why would he choose his one true organization in 1919 when they were acting like false prophets that he warned his disciples about?

55

Do any jw pubs say "Due time has approached" ala Luke 21:8?

by Check_Your_Premises in

luke 21:8.

8 he said: "look out that you are not misled; for many will come on the basis of my name, saying, i am he, and, the due time has approached.

just curious.

Check_Your_Premises

Just take a look in one of the printed Indexes at the titles of Watchtower publications down through the years and you'll find more.

Where can I find one of those printed indexes?

55

Do any jw pubs say "Due time has approached" ala Luke 21:8?

by Check_Your_Premises in

luke 21:8.

8 he said: "look out that you are not misled; for many will come on the basis of my name, saying, i am he, and, the due time has approached.

just curious.

Check_Your_Premises

Luke 21:8

8 He said: "Look out that YOU are not misled; for many will come on the basis of my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The due time has approached.’ Do not go after them.

Just curious. A thread recently (I can't remember which one) mentioned that there is a picture of a publication that said EXACTLY THAT.

Anyone? Bueller?

136

You Won't Believe....

by RichieRich in

jw
friends

i don't have much time but... .

i met with the elders, and they restored all my priviledges!!!!.

haha!!!

Check_Your_Premises

Richie,

You are the funniest bastard of a 17 year old I have met since I was 17. (Naturally I cracked myself up)

That picture is just priceless. I was hoping you got my suggestion about snapping a picture of them right when they were df'ing you. I thought that would just be the funniest thing ever. I rushed into work with baited breath hoping to see these 3 dorks trying to be all authoritative and hardass, getting their picture taken just as they realized they have absolutely no power over you. The picture of the stupid look on their faces would make a great jwd tradition.

But this thing you did. Awesome!!! Thanks for the laugh.

I hope what you did here really catches on.

Beautiful!

CYP

Check_Your_Premises

Posts by Check_Your_Premises