Shining One

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Posts by Shining One

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  157

  Evolutionary establishment tactics

  by hooberus in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  wednesday evenings (august 24th) fox news program "the oreilly factor" featured an interview life after "intelligent design" with dr. richard sternberg, editor, of the peer-reviewed journal "proceedings of the biological society of washington.

  " dr. sternberg's home page discusses the recriminations he faced by certain members of the evolutionary establishment after publishing an arcticle by another person advocating the possibilty of intelligent design in the peer reviewed journal.

  http://www.rsternberg.net/

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  Shining One

  Hey Hawkaw,
  What is 'proper science'? Oh, I know, its science when, "it has a presupposition that evolution and accidental establishment of life is a mandatory premise"! LOL This bunch of naturalists here are ridiculous in their attempts to prop up their ex-JW belief sustem!
  Rex
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  157

  Evolutionary establishment tactics

  by hooberus in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  wednesday evenings (august 24th) fox news program "the oreilly factor" featured an interview life after "intelligent design" with dr. richard sternberg, editor, of the peer-reviewed journal "proceedings of the biological society of washington.

  " dr. sternberg's home page discusses the recriminations he faced by certain members of the evolutionary establishment after publishing an arcticle by another person advocating the possibilty of intelligent design in the peer reviewed journal.

  http://www.rsternberg.net/

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  Shining One

  Hmmmmm, it seems as if the evolutionists are not as altruistic and open-minded as some here would have us believe? Dogmatism is alive and well in 'science' as well as in religion!
  Rex
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  9

  Comparing the 'one, true churches'...

  by Shining One in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  here is a interesting article on churches that claim they are the one, true church: .

  http://www.theholdemans.com/compare.htm .

  rex

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  Shining One

  Here is a interesting article on churches that claim they are the one, true church:
  
  http://www.theholdemans.com/Compare.htm
  
  Rex
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  28

  romans 6 vs 9

  by stillajwexelder in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  (romans 6:8-11) 8 moreover, if we have died with christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.

  9 for we know that christ, now that he has been raised up from the dead, dies no more; death is master over him no more.

  10 for [the death] that he died, he died with reference to sin once for all time; but [the life] that he lives, he lives with reference to god.

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  Shining One

  Hi Heathen,
  I have mentioned some resources that can clue you in on consistent interpretation of scripture.
  
  http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/10/97118/1663605/post.ashx#1663605
  
  Methinks you have not examined your belief structure for WTS misconceptions and inconsistencies:
  Do they know the Bible? - Or just certain proof-texts?
  
  Jehovah's Witnesses give the impression of knowing their Bible. They flip back and forth to their favorite "proof" texts with the greatest of ease, "proving" their points and defeating your arguments -- or at least stirring up enough dust to cloud the issue. But, in reality, most JWs don't know the Bible.
  What they do know is those few dozen "proof" texts, taken out of context by their organization and re-assembled to form arguments far afield from what the Bible actually says.
  The Witnesses are taught to believe they "study the Bible" more than other religions, but their study material actually consists of Watchtower Society publications. Bible verses are quoted, but out of context.
  Not only is the context omitted, but the verses are actually placed in a different context, namely the context of the Watchtower material.
  To grasp how this can change the meaning, think of the entire biblical passage as a cooked turkey breast. Someone cutting into that turkey breast and eating it will know what it tastes like. However, someone who is given just a thin slice smothered with mustard between layers of rye bread will know only what the sandwich tastes like -- not the taste of the turkey itself.
  Similarly, the original flavor or meaning of a Bible verse can be completely lost or changed when sandwiched between introductory words and concluding application in the pages of a Watchtower book.
  Feeding on steady diet of such "scripture sandwiches," Jehovah's Witnesses never really come to know the Bible. But they do learn the Watchtower Society's teachings, along with the proof texts the Society uses to make those teachings appear to be "Bible-based."
  
  Shining One
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  25

  Why 'defining evil' is fruitless

  by Shining One in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i think that terry's answer to his own question about 'defining evil' is incorrect.

  you do not even need to define evil when you have an absolute truth to go by.

  you can go through a lot of speculation in order to define evil.

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  Shining One

  Hi Danny!
  >The problem is that there is no absolute truth even for Christians. Gods laws changed all over the years.1) Eating: First no meat at all, then meat but no pigs etc, than all meat
  
  You are speaking of dietary laws which served a purpose in each dispensation, context, context, and context! These laws were used during (and before) the old Law Covenant and were for Jews, never for Christians. This was strictly a matter of obedience in some cases and in others it was for reasons related to health in a world where no standards were in place…
  
  >2) Sex: First sleeping with many woman ok (salomon for example), then out of the question.
  
  Old Testament practices were just that, God’s people have never been perfect. In fact, if you look at the disastrous consequences of this practice then you see why only God himself could grant this for specific purposes and those were exceptional. By the time that Paul was writing there was no question that polygamy was wrong. You have to remember that scripture was still being revealed through the ages (dispensations) and was not completed till the later part of the First Century.
  
  >3) Slavery: slavery ok, in the whole bible. Is this an absolute truth?
  
  Context, context, context. Bible writer’s first goal was not to abolish slavery; in fact it had some usefulness in the civilizations at the time. It was a grievous error in context that let man continue this practice long after the New Covenant brought with it the Church Age.
  
  >4) Killing: When to kill and when not to kill? If God tells us we can kill. To punish someone we can kill? Our enemies we can kill?
  
  God handles his own wrath, “Vengeance is mine”. God used nations to bring judgment upon other nations and He still does! We do not have authority to kill as individuals, the ‘higher powers’ do have this obligation to protect society from those who would take it upon themselves to kill others!
  How far do you take ‘love thy neighbor’? If you see a person being assaulted should you not do something to stop it? If you see your community being threatened by an outside force, should you not do something (collectively) to stop it? If your country is threatened, if a people can be freed by your nation (Iraq for example), should you not do so?
  Should you not see to the execution of some person who is so far gone as to be a threat to anyone in a peaceful society? You have got to get over this notion that God is somehow bound by the limited interpretation that the cults use. God has divine providence: Satan is ‘God’s ape’ as Martin Luther said; even he has to ask God’s permission to test mankind! Don’t do as they do and mistake anthropomorphisms as some evidence that God will is ever thwarted nor is He surprised, nor does He ignore the future…
  
  >So please tell me where and how can I find this absolute truth? Tell me exactly what is this absolute truth!
  
  Pontius Pilate asked the same thing and he was looking the personification of TRUTH right in the face.
  Rex
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  28

  romans 6 vs 9

  by stillajwexelder in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  (romans 6:8-11) 8 moreover, if we have died with christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.

  9 for we know that christ, now that he has been raised up from the dead, dies no more; death is master over him no more.

  10 for [the death] that he died, he died with reference to sin once for all time; but [the life] that he lives, he lives with reference to god.

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  Shining One

  If "there is way more scripture to debunk the trinity than to support it", can you answer these questions:
  
  1) Why does the WTS have to misquote the opinions of translators like Massey and Robertson?
  2) Why does the WTS resort to a misdefining the definition of the trinity to make it easier to dispute?
  3) Why have Christians worshipped Jesus even before His resurrection?
  4) Why did the early Christians use 'Lord God' for both Him and the Father (in persons) and then also include the personage of the Holy Spirit?
  5) Why have the JW bible translators contradicted themselves (inconsistent translating) and other scripture by changing it to suit their beliefs in over 300 places?
  6) Why does the WTS leadership deny the deity of Christ (just like the Docetians and Nicolatians did) when He claimed to be Lord God Almighty seven times in the book of John?
  
  The only 'scholars' who come remotely in agreement with the heresies expounded by the WTS are those who deny the infallibility of scripture and the deity of God Himself. Even Mormons and the Pentecostal modalists do not deny the deity of Jesus! I used to believe as you do...then I tried to disprove the trinity as valid (in my own mind). What I found out through this research convinced me that the scriptures do teach a tri-unity of three persons and this is exactly what the apostles believed and taught! Otherwise, I could have happily remained a Berean Bible Student and not become a Trinitarian.
  Rex
• 
  25

  Why 'defining evil' is fruitless

  by Shining One in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i think that terry's answer to his own question about 'defining evil' is incorrect.

  you do not even need to define evil when you have an absolute truth to go by.

  you can go through a lot of speculation in order to define evil.

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  Shining One

  Hi Everyone,
  I think that Terry's answer to his own question about 'defining evil' is incorrect. You do not even need to define evil when you have an absolute truth to go by.
  You can go through a lot of speculation in order to define evil. It is the opposite of good, or even better, the opposite of best. I see his message is preached with the slant: believing in any higher power is NOT the way to live your life. I believe that this is an attempt to not be accountable: If there is no 'higher power', then 'Terry' is accountable to no one, nor is anyone else accountable! If there is no absolute truth then there are no bounds to evil, nor any grounds to rein it in!
  All that you have to do is examine the life of Christ and His teachings if you want a solid and consistent moral and ethical guideline. Do not mistake the depravity inherent in man (Christian or 'claimed Christian'), as an excuse to discount the teachings of our Lord.
  Man cannot and will not do any real 'good' on his own: he doesn’t have to be coerced by his society, his ‘religion’ (not a real relationship with God Himself), his peers, his family, his own selfishness and pride. This idea that if man just 'had the right social environment his goodness would then surface' is a crock. EVERY form of government or social order that has emerged during the 'age of enlightenment' has been an abject failure (I include democracy and capitalism in that statement).
  The fatal flaw is in man himself: he seeks to elevate 'self' to Godhood above all else. That is the nature of man, there is no one 'good', except by comparison to one who is thought of as 'worse' (in each one's mind!). All are corrupt or corruptible. We all 'kill, maim, lust and destroy' in our hearts! You name any ferociously evil act or acts. Each one of us is capable of that kind of crime against humanity.
  Secularists have killed hundreds of millions of people in the last century alone, Communism bears the weight of over 200 million, its cousin, National Socialism killed six million Jews alone. Even the Romans were not of this level of cruelty, nor were the inquisitors, nor even the Islamists. When good does not stand against evil, evil will always win. The Nazis leaders did not have to do the ‘dirty work’ that they caused, they had the common man do that work. With the idea that human beings are merely ‘higher evolved animals’, we gave man the means to ethically (in his own mind, "Just doing my job") to justify the most extreme butchery. We see that today in the shrill voices of NARAL and even in the other less extreme supporters of 'abortion on demand'.
  I want to note this one possible exception: our Judeo-Christian civilization has freed hundreds of millions from tyranny, punished and destroyed truly evil governments and their leaders, brought millions out of poverty and freed just as many from superstition and ignorance. Has this entity been above reproach? Certainly not. Has it come the closest to actually benefiting mankind? Absolutely!
  Rex
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  122

  Very good apologetics for honest seekers

  by Shining One in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  are you tired of the arrogant assertions of the elite ex-jw clique here?

  here is some powerful ammunition to "demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of god"!

  http://www.carm.org/evidence.htm .

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  Shining One

  Dear Fellow Christian Jignat,
  Any work that is giving to others is commendable. What's not commendable is compromising with those who seek to destroy the faith that you claim to represent (see 'salt and light', does your church preach the gospel or stand for anything?).
  Rex
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  122

  Very good apologetics for honest seekers

  by Shining One in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  are you tired of the arrogant assertions of the elite ex-jw clique here?

  here is some powerful ammunition to "demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of god"!

  http://www.carm.org/evidence.htm .

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  Shining One

  Hi Jignat,
  I have no idea where you are coming from, nor your foundational beliefs. I cannot presume to comment without some idea. In the final analysis it is really irrelevant. If you have a better, more 'honest' way to 'defend the faith' from naturalists bent on convincing people to have no faith, then be my guest....
  What are you doing to "to always give a reason for your faith'?
  Rex
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  9

  the law was nailed to the torture stake

  by sunshine2 in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  ....this is what the bible says.......then how is it that the wtbts lays up even more rules and regulations then they had in the mosaic law?

  does this not defeat the purpose of christ's death?

  if the law was the tutor leading to christ, now that he died for us, why all these rules?

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  Shining One

  hmmm, why all the rules? The Law is a teaching about the holiness of God and the depravity of man:
  
  1) For our own good; 2) For God's glory; 3) To show us that we are sinners and cannot redeem ourselves.
  
  Jesus came and died to redeem us, simple belief in and acceptance of His sacrifice in our behalf will result in salvation, i.e. John 3.3, 5, 16-19, 5.8; Romans 3.10, 23, 6.23, 10.9-11, Rev. 3.20. It is an exchange: we are forgiven a debt that we cannot hope to repay, in exchange for faith and belief in Jesus Christ, it is imputed. We are given grace, not justice and even that is not a work of ours, nor can we work for it in any way (Eph. 2.8-9)!
  Look at it this way: we are eternal souls who dwell in physical bodies and the hereafter has two sections; smoking or non-smoking.
  Rex