Posts by JosephMalik

6

"IN MY FATHER'S HOUSE are many mansions"

by journey-on in

what do you think this really means?

JosephMalik

1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. 4 And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

journey-on,

The expression "And whither I go"(hupago) which means 1) to lead under, bring under 2) to withdraw one’s self, to go away, depart. Is the only way to obtain official residence in such a mansion and the Kingdom promises that our Father and now our Lord offers to the human race. This involves faithfulness unto death and the assurance of a resurrection from death that would follow. This was the way our Lord chose and this is what we now choose for ourselves as followers of Him. This is a promise that involves waiting in such death until our Lord returns here to earth once again which is where our Lord will be at this prophecies fulfillment. (Acts 1:11). It does not involve going someplace else to live in such mansions in this Kingdom since those that will administrator it will exist here on earth with Him at this time.

Joseph

11

Heaven..who goes, who stays, and since when????

by oompa in

i had a post the day before memorial about what is wrong with the service, thanks for the many responses.

i have not been comfortable at that service for years (passing and not eating?

), and i was always taught only anointed partake, and that only anointed were in the first century christian congregation.

JosephMalik

Leolaia,

I had some time so I thought to use it and examine the other verses you provided as proof.

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life....He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant, and since we have such a hope, we are very bold.

Here we learn that we represent Christ and even smell like him when preaching to the world. We are ministers of a new covenant which is our hope. And that covenant is what? 26:29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom. Yes, the kingdom and an earthly one that the Father authorized at that complete with wine he will drink with them.

We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away. We, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit...For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal... We have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, for while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling" (2 Corinthians 2:14-16, 3:12-18, 4:17-18, 5:1-4).

Christ was transfigured but unlike Moses radiant face, Christ did not hide his transfiguration which embraced his whole body and our hope is to transfigured just as he was. In both cases the glory that resulted was human. The tent in which they now dwell is this mortal body we got from Adam. That heavenly dwelling they are looking forward to be clothed in dwelling now in the heaven is the immortal human body that Christ in heaven will provide at the resurrection. But nowhere do these verses teach that we go there to get it. Christ returns and provides it here on earth. Our heavenly dwelling is tied into our hope in Christ. Paul made a special point to bring such human immortality to our attention when writing the Corinthians. Christ did it another way by comparing those resurrected to angels. Their long lives attest to this reality.

"You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ . There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus . If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise...God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons...So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir ." (Galatians 3:15-29 , 4:4-7 ).

As Sons of God we are still human but without sin because of our baptism and the conduct we cloth ourselves in. And we are heirs but heirs to what? What was Abraham an heir to? An earthly Kingdom and in this case a Kingdom here on earth ruled by Christ in which such heirs will play an important role. There is absolutely nothing here that teaches that we go someplace called heaven nor are we changed into something non-human. I went through all this back in the early 1970;s and even wrote the WTS a letter about it and so did several others I learned later. People are looking at and abusing words that they do not understand. This has been going on for a long time and no one notices. Even if they see that the verses do not agree they tend to think that scholars and the millions that believe them cannot be wrong. They prefer to be deceived, give up their time and money in the hope that some good will come from such men.

Joseph

11

Heaven..who goes, who stays, and since when????

by oompa in

i had a post the day before memorial about what is wrong with the service, thanks for the many responses.

i have not been comfortable at that service for years (passing and not eating?

), and i was always taught only anointed partake, and that only anointed were in the first century christian congregation.

JosephMalik

There is no "earthly hope" as such in the NT, aside from the apocalyptic scenario in Revelation that sort of merges heaven with earth at the end of time. More to the point, there is no division of hopes or destinies between faithful Christians -- all together share the same hope and reward. Here are some relevant texts:

Leolaia,

On the contrary, there is no heavenly hope such as the WTS and most of Christianity teach today. You are correct in saying that there is no division of hopes or destinies between faithful Christians and the relevant text you use demonstrates this for us: This is also true for the rest of humanity that will be resurrected into this Kingdom along with them.

"Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit -- just as you were called to one hope when you were called: one Lord, one faith , one baptism ; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.... so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.... And so God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus." (Ephesians 4:3-7, 2:6-7).

Where in this text does it teach we go to heaven? Nowhere!. Where in this text does it teach that we will someday exist as non-human beings? Nowhere! Is the body of Christ human? Yes! Are we seated in the heavenly realms as disciples of Jesus Christ while still here on earth? Yes! This goes along with the authority given to us to baptize, making disciples that will function in this Kingdom and preach the word, a commission that originated with God. There is only one hope and that hope does not include the Law. That hope is in Christ and the immortality he will establish here on an earth ruled by Jesus Christ who will return here once again as a human being.

"Holy brothers , who share in the heavenly calling , fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess....[Abraham] was looking forward to the city with foundations , whose architect and builder is God...All these [faithful men of old] were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.... Instead, they were longing for a better country -- a heavenly one . Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them....And so you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God . You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly , to the church of the firstborn , whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant ...For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come " (Hebrews 3:1, 11:10, 13-16, 12:22-24, 13:14).

Is the heavenly calling that we fix our thoughts on much better than the Law which was God’s plan for the human race until then? Yes! It was the function of Hebrews to make this distinction to the Hebrews. The verse does not say that we go to such a place. The word heaven which is their substitute for God simply denotes this fact. Is this heavenly Jerusalem to exist here on earth? Yes! Are the thousands of angels we approach in joyful assembly human? Yes! They are identified as the church of the firstborn whose names are found in the book of life in heaven. Where does this teach that we go to someplace else at this future time? Nowhere! Was the apostle and high priest whom we confess human? Yes! Will this high priest still be human when he will rule here on earth once again? Yes! Acts 1:11.

And the rest of the verses can be shown to apply the same way. The heavenly hope is all based upon the assumption that words like heaven imply something far away, invisible and mystical. But the word simply stands for God and authority from God among other things which will prevail when our Lord returns. The heavenly hope the WTS is selling is fiction as is similar doctrines in other Christian denominations.

Joseph

2

Heaven..who goes, who stays, and since when????

by oompa in

i had a post the day before memorial about what is wrong with the service, thanks for the many responses.

i have not been comfortable at that service for years (passing and not eating?

), and i was always taught only anointed partake, and that only anointed were in the first century christian congregation.

JosephMalik

Oomp,

There is no such thing as a heavenly hope. This is a fiction the WTS and others invented. Why? Because they did not understand the Jewish meaning of some words such as God, Heaven, Spirit. There is only the Kingdom of the Heavens which is the Jewish way of saying Kingdom of God since the Jews used words like Heaven in place of the word for God. This Kingdom is to be established here on earth as an extension of the line of David when our Lord returns in the flesh as promised at Acts 1:11. This Kingdom does not exist yet. It is simply foretold and expected at a future time. The WTS has no idea of what the scriptures teach and mumble along like most of Christianity who find themselves in the same situation. They are taught to disobey Christ by not partaking for stupid reasons like their doctrine on the anointed and non-anointed.

Joseph

P.S. And do not forget about their date setting like the ones you brought out. That has been proven to be stupid as well.

JM

14

question - scriptures that prove a paradise earth

by atpeace in

i was hoping for some help on proving that a paradise earth is in fact a true teaching.

i've only found 3 that use the word "paradise" - but not sure if it refers to an earthly paradise.. thanks!.

.

JosephMalik

atpeace,

The reason that you do not find more on the paradise earth is because it is mostly referred to as the Kingdom of the Heavens or Kingdom of God in scripture. It was called Paradise to the thief that died with our Lord because the word Kingdom implies a position of office (priest in this case) in this Kingdom and Lord did not offer that to the thief. So the word Paradise would refer more to the general public that will also be resurrected while the word Kingdom refers to its administrators. Then again their is the resurrection promise to mankind. That should be enough to understand that we will be restored as humans again. There is no promise of a transmutation in scripture for anyone as a human was sacrificed for us and not a non-human being. Our existence as Jesus who now possess both natures is apart from this sacrifice and was not offered to us. This is why we are promised that Jesus will return once again as a human to rule in this Kingdom. Acts 1:11.

Joseph

18

What survives death?

by JH in

when a person dies, does anything survive?

jw's say no.. my mom, who is baptist now, is sure that the soul lives on.

so, just like a good jw of old, i said to her, "the devil wants you to believe that".. then she said, how about your spirit?

JosephMalik

I said, yeah, "I think that when a person dies, the bible says that the spirit goes back to God".

JH,

That is correct. Just what that spirit is we do not know but it is enough to restore us back to ourselves as if we just slept when we are resurrected in the Kingdom.

Joseph

18

How do you talk/reason with a Jehovah's Witness?

by misspeaches in

hi guys, yesterday someone asked me on how they could reason with a jehovah's witness.

the question just stumped me!.

from my own perspective, the people i know that have left the borg have had varying triggers... problems with flip flopping, dates, abuse, scandals, exhaustaion to name a few.

JosephMalik

misspeaches,

The reason it was so eerily quite is because if you did not know the answer then you are not ready to talk to them. General conversation will usually not work. You must know their doctrines, tactics, and the scriptures better than they do. You need to make their brains hurt with information they cannot handle or refute. They look down on outsiders and that needs to be reversed. Not everything needs to be scriptural but it helps and it should be something important that they need to change. And somehow you need to let them know that their slogan that they have the truth is wrong. Learning here on JWD is a good way to start. Only then when they know that they cannot fool you with their slogans and tactics and you can show them their errors and make them squirm. Most will be nice and run for cover. But at least that would be a start. In short you need to be tooled up for the job, Then you will know how to do it without asking.

Joseph

25

Repudiate "Valueless Things" 4/15/08 WT

by bud2114 in

hot off the presses - just some of the latest garbage coming out of brooklyn as found in the 1st study article - repudiate "valueless things" (4/15/08 koolaid edition wt): .

par 17: another example of valueless words is found among the religious leaders of christendom.

these claim to speak in god's name, but most of their utterances are not based on the scriptures, and what they have to say is basically worthless.

JosephMalik

Bud 2114,

Good article. Let them keep speaking out like this. This makes it easier for the Messiah to judge them all. This faithful slave once said: Matt.12:36 But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. 37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Joseph

39

Mary imperfect, Jesus perfect

by heyfea in

my husband never ceases to amaze me with the things he asks me.

yesterday night he asked me: why was jesus born perfect when mary was not perfect?

i said to him that it should be the same as having a surrogate mother.

JosephMalik

"Mary was free of sin." Is this anywhere in the bible?

heyfey,

No! But then again Mary did not originate the life she bore to maturity. That is where the secret of sin is hidden. We can not see it or even understand it but this life is held in high regard by God. Without it we are dust. It is this life that comes to us from Adam, propagated and maintained by the blood we all have that condemns us. So we all sinned since Adam sinned, like it or not. Our life came from him and we all share this same (singular) life. All this business about perfect and imperfect is a smokescreen that hides what is really going on. False meanings are attached to these terms to confuse us. When Adam sinned he could not propagate sinless life anymore. And Adam never attained immortality. He was prevented from gaining that. His life had to be redeemed. The life that Mary bore did not come from this human source. It was the life of the Word that created Adam in the first place under God' authorization. This life (and the blood it produced) was without sin and could replace all of the human race it originated through Adam if sacrificed for us. We call this the Ransom even if we do not really grasp it. This is why resurrection will be the key. Our life at the time of this resurrection will come from this Word now called Jesus and not from Adam. This exposes another false doctrine many still have. Everyone must die or be changed. There is no walking into the kingdom alive by anyone in this mortal, sinful human body even if its sins are forgiven. The sinless body the the Word will give will still be human but without sin and immortal. Immortality is also something that Adam lost for us when he sinned which is why we all die even after our sins are forgiven.

Joseph

31

I Missed Memorial - First time in 30 years! Thanks to you!

by Witness 007 in

last year i turned up to make everyone happy.......but this year i just could'nt force myself to go.

some witnesses called on the day to "encourage" us to go....my mum called to make sure i go.....but i just couldn't put my tie on!

after being on this site for awhile i feel like i have moved on.

JosephMalik

Witness007,

You know that you can still make it this year. Just get yourself a nice bottle of red wine and some matzah at the grocery and observe it yourself at home on Saturday, April 19 after dark. That is when the Jews have their Passover this year and even if you are a month late that is ok and was allowed. All this bunk about it is only for the anointed? They made that up you know to control you. Paul was talking against the gluttons and the drunks and not anointed and non anointed disciples. Everyone that is baptized is supposed to partake.

Joseph