Posts by Ucantnome

You must take responsibility for your own decisions and not blame an organization for hoodwinking you into thinking that you must live your life differently because the end of the world is coming.

I don't think I understand what you mean.

If someone hoodwinks, deceives you I don't think pointing that out is not facing up to the responsibility of making your own decisions.

Just as one gives thanks for his daily bread one would not be so thankful if it made one ill. As everlasting life and faith are involved I think there is reason to discuss these things.

So would you have led your life differently if you were not taught that these were the ‘last days’? And there was no 1914 or generation teaching?

As a true Christian, you should be living your life the same regardless of when the end is to come.

Yes I think I would have. Let me give you some examples.

I left school as soon as I was old enough legally leave and become a full time pioneer. This I believe was encouraged by the Watchtower. My bother in-law did the same thing. Although living thousands of miles away. If you wish I will try and provide quotes from the Watchtower. I understood from the information that was provided from the Watchtower that 1975 ended 6000 years in a 7000 year creative day. The 7th (See God’s Eternal Purpose Now Triumphing for Man’s Good 1974 WTB&TS pg.50/51 & pg. 131 &132) I also believed and had faith in the good news that we preached. The generation that saw the events of 1914 and was of a reasonable age to understand them would not pass away before the tribulation started. There was urgency to our preaching.

At the time of my pioneering a brother in the congregation, at break time from the field service, was encouraging me to go to the same art school he was attending. He had seen my work and felt I should pursue it. My cousin also encouraged me to do similar. The following paragraphs had an effect on my decision

• Awake! 1969 May 22 p.15

"If you are a young person, you also need to face the fact that you will never grow old in this present system of things. Why not? Because all the evidence in fulfillment of Bible prophecy indicates that this corrupt system is due to end in a few years. Of the generation that observed the beginning of the "last days" in 1914. Jesus foretold: "This generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur."-Matt.. 24:34.

Therefore, as a young person, you will never fulfill any career that this system offers. If you are in high school and thinking about a college education, it means at least four, perhaps even six or eight more years to graduate into a specialized career. But where will this system of things be by that time? It will be well on the way toward its finish, if not actually gone!"

I think my life would have been different if I had pursued what I am good at.

A few years later I had a man from the bank come to talk to me regarding my finances. We discussed some insurance policies and it moved on to taking about having a private pension. I could have afforded to start paying into one at this time. However if I had faith that the end would come within the generation that would not pass away I would not need one and I told him this.

Some years later when I had stopped attending the hall, I again had a man from the bank round to my house to discuss my financial requirements and he informed at this time, noticing that I had turned down a pension some years earlier that had I taken the pension policy out then at the earlier time it would have provided me double the amount of income that my pension would provide now, these years later. This will seriously impact on my life.

I could provide you with other examples to do with my life growing up and my marriage but feel this are probably enough. With both of the examples it has nothing to do with being a Christian and living my life as a Christian but has everything to do with having faith in the good news that we preached.

I don't see the point in making a fuss the ore simple a funeral the better. If I felt the need to attend I would if it was,at the hall.

having a port

In the book Man's Salvation Out of World Distress At Hand 1975 Watchtower Bible and Tract Society on page 47 it says,

The glorification of Jesus Christ in heaven after his extraordinary sufferings as a man on earth was good news, Gospel, Evangel "Nevertheless," writes the apostle Paul with special reference to his own people, "they did not all obey the good news. For Isaiah says: 'Jehovah, who put faith in the thing heard [from] us? So faith follows the thing heard. In turn the thing heard is through the word about Christ." -Romans 10:16,17.

Page 48.

A similar thing can be said today. "They did not all obey the good news." This, even after the christian witnesses of Jehovah have spent more than sixty years in proclaiming the the "times of the Gentiles" ended in the autumn of 1914 C.E. amis the first world war and that then Jehovah's "servant " recieved a new elevation by being exalted to the throne of the Messianic kingdom...

In the face of the relatively small proportion of the world's population that has put faith in the "thing Heard [from] us" or proclaimes by us, it can truthfully be said: "They did not all obey the good news."

I understood this to mean we should have faith in the 'good news.' 'Faith is the assured expectation of the things hoped for...'Hebrews 11. I believe its been described as the title deed. It's sure, it will happen.

Page 29.

"After all that we have gone through since 1914, our generation would be, of all generations the "most to be pitied". (bold mine)

Think of it, though! Worthy ones of this generation of mankind will be saved alive out of the rest of this world distress so as to survive the worst of it and enter into God's Messianic new system of things and not need a resurrection from the dead to life on earth! This is a valid hope well founded on what was said by Jesus Christ..."

Watchtower June 1 1968 page 331

On the Joyful March to Mankind’s Millennium

'Arguing against a literal future millennial rule by Christ, some have claimed that such a teaching would chill the missionary ardour of Christians to make disciples of all nations. (Matt. 28:19,20) But not so! Today no people are more zealous in carrying out this missionary commission than are the Christian witnesses of Jehovah, who believe that the 1,000-year reign of Christ is literal and future. In comparatively few years these have grown to more than a million. Today they are carrying out this commission in 197 lands and islands of the sea and that in 169 languages. Last year they devoted 184 million hours to this work!

And no wonder. What good news they have to tell the people! They proclaim the good news that the millennial rule of Christ will begin with this generation and that it will mean ever so many blessings for the people :..'

So I feel that if we were to apply Paul's words in Romans 10 about having faith in this good news and it doesn't occur what happens to our faith? Maybe this explains how I come to where I am regarding the Witnesses.

As I understand it part of the apostle Pauls good news that he preached was the resurrection of Jesus Christ and in 1Corinthians 15:15 he talks of being a false witness if this did not occur and says 'because we have bourne witness against God' (NWT) if he wasn't raised.

I think it should be Daniel 2 and not 7.

My being convinced of the establishment of God's Kingdom in 1914 is of great importance if i am to be a Witness and survive Armageddon. At the time of my baptism I understood that the anointed Jehovah's Witnesses had been commissioned to preach or speak as a prophet in the name of Jehovah. In the same book that told me this it also told me that

Shortly, within our twentieth century, the "battle in the day of Jehovah" will begin against the modern antitype of Jerusalem, Christendom

The Nations Shall know that i am Jehovah-How? 1971 Watchtower Bible and Tract Society pg216.

This fitted with the teaching regarding the generation. An elder sat in my dining room many years ago and said to me that if the end doesn't come by the turn of the century then everything is wrong. I think he believed it was all part of the good news, the truth, that we preached from God.

Now having found it changed it causes me to not be convinced of the truth of the good news presented by Jehovah's Witnesses and so if it so important to preach the good news of the establishment of God's Kingdom in 1914 so as to join and support Christ brothers my not being able to be convinced has a greater effect or at least the same effect on my salvation than if i celebrate or don't celebrate Christmas. I do not believe it is my fault, I was taught it as truth.

Maybe i'm wrong Heisenberg.

What is truth?

I think that the word hate can have various shades of meaning. At least that is how I understood it as a Witness. I think that the my being a Witness was tied to the Good News that we preached which I believe was tied to the establishment of God's Kingdom in 1914 and the fulfillment of Daniel 7:44,45

I found that I was no longer convinced regarding what we were preaching and so could not be a witness. I think that the Good News preached in the first century was truth.

You want the truth but then go back to the deepest, darkest pit of deception.

I'm not a lover of Christmas but I don't think it's as you describe it. I was raised to have faith in what we preached and we preached that the tribulation would come before the generation that saw the events of 1914 passed away. This good news was changed. I made some big decisions in my life based on this belief, decisions that have had a far reaching effect on my life. I think a greater effect than Christmas.