so um what is a newbie and why did i suddenly become one???
oh well guess i've been called worse.
so i'm new here checked it out for a couple of days though.
Do what the others recommend to do and that is keep reading the posts here and the more information you get about this cult the more you will want to run from it - even if it means to leave the man you are dating behind.
I was a JW and dated an elder's son and we still had to lie when we were dating.
This religion is nothing but about control over family, people, lives, and the list goes on.
If you are looking for God - you won't find him there.
my little seven year old went to church with a neighbor kid last wednesday evening.
i thought the class would just be a few bible stories and color something, and since my husband and i want our children to be exposed to all kinds of beliefs and religions, i let her go.
boy, was i wrong.
I was raised a JW and so much was takin from me - many missed opportunities and celebrations. I remember looking at the pictures in their publications that showed destruction and armegdeon. I remember feeling never feeling worthy and that I might never make it alive into the new world. I believed in God but hated attending meetings as a child I dreaded going mostly because I got little out of the meetings.
After 30 years of JW influence, I attended a church that spoke of God's grace and love. This church welcomes all, come and dress as you are to hear God's love.
My kids have never known the JW life what I found incredible was that all 3 of my kids would get excited going to this church. I never had to ask them or force them to go. The church spoke to them about the love of God and the importance of accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior. They did speak of hell but it wasn't a hell and damnation threat or scare the pants off the kids to make them receive.
No one can be forced into receiving salvation - that is between the person and God. Receiving salvation is accepting Christ into your heart and receiving his promise of going to heaven - what is the harm in that?
Would you react the same if the child said they wanted to be in a satanic cult or be a wiccan?
Why is it that people will believe in heaven and not hell. They believe in God and not satan. They believe in some of the bible but not all.
Children are very precious to Him and because their spirit is more receptive to Him they are willing to run to Him with no fear.
There are churches that teach hell and damnation approach and it leaves an impression that God is walking around with a hammer ready to smash someone -- its the complete opposite, He will not invade us or push us around to make that choice, its our freewill to say yes or no.
one of the basic tenets of the wt org.
has been the establishment of a one world government.. you may have noticed news reports today on the g8 summit in italy and the demonstrations and riots associated with it.
there have also been lots of other public discord at some of the earlier international summits like the wto conference in seattle wash.last year.
We certainly are in the era of being conditioned to accept the one world government, one currency, and one world religion. The mark of the beast is hanging off in the balances - you may have heard that they are inserting micro chips in animals and most recently I've heard that they are doing babies and what is being said is to get this chip inserted will have all the information on this being so if it gets lost or stolen the chip can be located easily.
There is a commercial...advertising Quastar (I think - its not coming to me) you place this mechanism in a vehicle and you push a button and a live voice comes on and knows your exact location and asks what do you need.....whatever you need they can do for you......even if you locked yourself out of the car....you call this number and from the satillite it can unlock your car............to many this would convient and wonderful but ultimately in the end the one world government will have a file on every human being and will know every move one makes.
When the moment is right the question will be posed to everyone and the question will be to receive the mark in the forehead or on the right hand because if we don't receive the mark the government will deny jobs, finances, and food - you will not be able to buy or sell.
Read Revelation its all there.
There is a website: digitalangel - this talks about the microchips
i know that the answer is yes, but it would help me to hear your sentiments on this.
.
after you decided that the wbts, and thus jw's were not god's chosen earthly organization did you feel like you wanted to leave and forget god altogether?.
I no longer use the NWT or JW publications for any references because I have found many errors that are not scriptural. I would not use Catholic references as well for several reasons : One is that the religion is man oriented, pray to the saints and to Mary, and other things that the church does which is not biblical.
I have also found that a Roman Catholic Priest help translate the NWT bible and this priest believed in speaking to spirits.
The Bibles I use are NIV and New Living Translation.
Elohim (CREATOR): Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
El-Shaddai (My Supply, My Nourishment) Genesis 17:1 When Abram was ninety nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, I am God Almighty , serve me faithfully and live a blameless life.
i know that the answer is yes, but it would help me to hear your sentiments on this.
.
after you decided that the wbts, and thus jw's were not god's chosen earthly organization did you feel like you wanted to leave and forget god altogether?.
At the age of 5 my mom told the family we were now JWs, that was the day the nightmare began. Me and my younger sister were molested by an elder and my mom denied it happend. My family was ripped apart trying to please mom being the good JW and trying to appease dad being the worldly girl. Wanting to please God but the sin in my life was overwhelming and never felt God loved me - not to mention being repremanded by the elders didn't help matters much. At the age of 25 and married a man who was a Christian and in my mind I was gonna convert him into a JW. Little did I know that his mother knew the JWs were a cult and told him about the organization. Many times we fought who had the right bible and whose answers were right. This fight went on for 13 years and we almost divorced over it. I too, just never felt God loved me but my heart wanted to know Him.
Even though I hadn't attended a meeting in over 15 years and never went to any other church for the fear of really getting God angry, the JW teaching was very engrained into my soul.....I just figured I would die and await what was coming to me and my family -- (I was scared).
Something pretty incredible happened to me about 4 years ago, (I didn't see this coming) my husband and I got into a discussion of the going to church and reading the bible. For the first time, he told me I could go back to the JWs but only if I promised to read the bible. I was excited to go and I was going to attend the Sunday service.....well, on Friday my husband brings home a classified ads magazine and on the front page there was an ad to call a researcher who does research on cults...one of them were JWs. For the first time in my life I didn't get mad or offended that JWs were called a cult rather a curiosity came into my heart....I called the number and met with this man who had overwhelming evidence. As I was receiving this evidence of truth and the anger whelling up inside of me because I am having flashbacks of the hell my family went through and all the sacrafices for nothing. Now, my question is to this man if JWs aren't teaching truth who the heck is? What is God....Is there a God?
This man shared with me only one book and the book was/is the Bible (not the NWT). The questions I had were answered in the Bible and the funny thing about it I understood it. For those who are seeking and wanting a relationship with Him I urge you to buy a bible that you can understand and read the New Testiment. Jesus tells us what each of us individually must do and that is to choose who will be our master: God or satan. God desires to have a relationship with each of us that is why Christ died on the cross - so that we don't have to go to priests and confess because of Christ's death we can go directly to God in prayer and draw close to Him. Satan on the other hand desirs to keep our eyes/ears from hearing and seeing truth - that is why the Watchtower is such a good ploy because it draws many people to what they want to hear. The teachings are very good at twisting scriptures and who God is and the purpose of our being here.
Satan's desires is to keep many from knowing the Father and as long as he can keep us angry at God then his job has been accomplished.
When we accept Christ into our heart we become born again, our name is written in the Book of Life. We are apart of God's family that will reign in the heaven with Christ. This is all written in scripture.....believe me this is not only for the 144,000, its for you and me.
The JWs teachings don't have a clue who God is nor do they teach God's love, grace, and mercy for us.
The only thing that JWs got right about God's name is Jehovah which means The convenant name of God; our Father. But there are other names that are God such as Elohim means Creator, El-Shaddai means My Supply, My Nourishment. The word Hallelujah means Praise Jehovah.
What I can testify to is that He has filled my void, washed my heart clean, the anger towards the organization has in time gone away, I've had a few addictions to fill the void in my heart which was food and money, these too have gone.
God does love us.
in referring to the preflood world, peter said that the heavens and the earth had been stored up with water, and that by those means the world of that time suffered destruction when it was deluged with water.
the christian prophet went on to say: "by the same word, the heavens and the earth that are now stored up for fire and are being reserved to the day of the judgment and of the destruction of ungodly men.
in furtherance of highlighting the apostate's blasphemy that jehovah is going to come streaking out of the clear blue sky one fine day and slaughter billions of innocents while they sleep in their beds, the apostle's brief comments on the topic of jehovah's judgments contains some interesting insights.
Reading the entire 3 pages of debate is incredible. Trying to reason with a JW is impossible, scripture is clear that many claim to have truth and cannot be reasoned with just like the Pharisees (spelling).
JWs are full of pride, they do not bear Fruit of the Spirit which is joy, love, kindness, peace and gentleness.
I don't know what your beliefs are but if you believe in what the Bible says then that should be the first place to seek answers. Jesus said to beware of many claiming truth but we are to run from them. Jesus said that NO ONE knows the day, time or the hour of His coming - even HE doesn't know. So if Jesus doesn't know then why would God tell the Watchtower......
Jesus indicated signs around us to watch for and to know when He will return. There are prophecies needing to be fulfilled before His coming. The heavens and the earth will be restored....not destroyed.
Jesus died for us so that our relationship with God would be restored and that we can have a personal relationship with Him. Jesus said that each of us are responsible for our lives and to choose the free gift of salvation. He said that no religion, pastor, organization can speak for us. The JW teaching is false doctorine that has shown itself time and time again.
i am very interested to know how all of you feel about the subject of death and the future.
do you fear death?
what do you think are the possibilities for the future?.
I can totally relate to the emotions and anxities you described. When I was a JW - I never felt I made God happy or proud of my efforts. I was a JW for 20 years and looking back I don't recall ever a period of time of joy. Thinking about Armgeddon scared me because I never felt "good enough". Because of that feeling I left the organization but the teachings stayed engrained into my soul for another 13 years.
What changed all of this? My heart was searching for God still, I wondered if there was anything else out in this world that had answers about the "end times" other than JWs. I met with a man who does research on cults. This man showed me information on the JWs teachings that blew my socks off and the walls came crashing down around me. I felt lied to all these years what I thought was the truth is nothing more than about an man made organization controlling people,destroying them and the families lives.
My question became......if JWs teachings are false then what is truth....all those questions came flooding. Questions like: Can I go to heaven, is there a hell? Who is Jesus, what is the Holy Spirit?
After meeting with the research I began to read a Bible (not the NWT)and things began to become so clear and for the first time I felt loved. I gave my life to Christ.
Reading the posts concerning death....it seems that many are not sure what will happen. Its so important to know what the truth is before faced with death, we all will face it one day. If you can allow God to move you beyond the clutches of the JW teachings, He can set you free and give you a peace in the heart that I cannot explain, other than its a wonderful feeling. God promises that if any should die before He returns that we will have eternal life in heaven.
Many mentioned that being a JW always felt unworthy.....scripture says that we are unworthy and apart from God if we are not "born again" and ask Jesus into our heart and claim Him our Lord and Savior. Once we do we are sealed and become apart of His family....never to be removed. God loves us outragiously, he desires each and every one of us to have a relationship with and to communicate with.
My prayers have been that all JWs search the truth between themselves and God. Its the ultimate freedom.
hl giancula,.
the signs and wonders that jehovah gave us, added to the bible writings completes the bible's outline directed to us.
by using the animals representing certain people it just makes it easier to understand jehovah's direction.. besides this, the number 144,000 stands alone with its exact numbeerrneeded in heaven.
After the Tribulation ends, Christ and His kingdom from heaven will come down on earth and reign for 1000 years, this is found in Rev. 20, satan will be released for only a short period of time and then he will be thrown into the lake of fire. To answer your question is simple - that all who reign with Christ in heaven - will reign with Christ on earth as well.
JWs don't give Christ the credit he deserves being the Lamb of God he is. They assume that they will cultivate the earth and live happily ever after...........they are soooooo wrong.
this is normie thoughts on the threads about the truth..... i have huge doubts about a lot of things about the org.
i have been a jw for 20 yrs and still active(family reasons).
but nobody but nobody has refuted to my mind, the fact nobody does the evangelizing work jesus did.
I had a few comments about several things here:
The organization doesn't care about leading the lost to Jesus or God. They teach that in order to be in God's good grace, a person needs to work for their salvation, receive a good standing in His presence but in the meantime if you mess up your position in God can be revoked mentality.
Throughout the years during anykind of disaster, I have NEVER seen JWs rise to the occassion and go out and touch those who needed help (be God's extended hand) whether it be food, clothing, money or a shoulder for someone to cry on. I rememeber when I was younger there was a country that suffered a disaster and my mom was going through my clothes to send to only JWs in that country.
Christ said that he didn't come to hang out with the healthy but the sick, the lost and the needy.
The name Jehovah has been around since the beginning of time. He has many other names that describe his attributes:
Elohim (Creator)
Jehovah (The convenant name of God, our Father)
El-Shaddai (My Supply, My Nourishment)
Adonai (Master)
Jehovah-Jireh (Provider and my Vision)
Jehovah-Rophe (My Healer)
Jehovah-Nissi (My Victory)
Jehovah-Mikkadesh (My Sanctifier)
Jehovah-Tsidkenou (My Righteousness
Jehovah-Shalom (My Peace)
Jehovah-Rohi (My Shepherd)
Jehovah-Shamah (He is there, He is present)
Jesus too has many wonderful names that describe His awesomeness:
Head of the church
Rock of salvation
Lamb of God
Immanuel
Image of God
Judge of all the earth
King of kings
Living water
Lord of the Sabbath
Morning Star
Name above all
Risen Lord
hl giancula,.
the signs and wonders that jehovah gave us, added to the bible writings completes the bible's outline directed to us.
by using the animals representing certain people it just makes it easier to understand jehovah's direction.. besides this, the number 144,000 stands alone with its exact numbeerrneeded in heaven.
I've gotta say that the many of the teachings are so off base and the only 144,000 going to heaven is one of them.
Please read the entire chapter book of Revelation and I believe you will walk away with questions needing answered.
This is the last book that prophecy will be fulfilled. Those who have said Yes to Christ being their Lord/Savior await for His return and His calling to come up. Yes, the rapture, I know the word doesn't exist but Christ does say that "in a twinkling of an eye" we will meet Him in the clouds. Those who are living and don't go to meet Christ will be left behind on earth and go through the Tribulation. The antichrist comes to rule the earth and all mankind will be under him, one religion, one world currency, one world government - he will sign a peace treaty for 7 years and all mankind will believe this is it but only God releases the seals and bowls upon mankind - to get man's attention to turn to Him!
The 144,000 are selected members from the 12 tribes (that is true), God knows who these men will be. They will be instructed to go throughout the earth to proclaim Christ. These men will be sealed and protected - no one can harm them and only until they have completed God's tasks will they be called up to heaven.
In Revelation - God will also send 2 great prophets to earth where they will be seen only in the areas where Christ was and they too will proclaim Christ in the streets - many will attempt to kill these 2 but will not succeed. When they have completed what God wants them to do then they will be killed and lay in the streets for 3 days for all mankind to see and they too will be brought back to heaven.
In Revelation there are only 2 areas where the 144,000 are mentioned. But in many areas of the bible God promises that those who accept Christ will go to heaven. Christ says that if we do, he will prepare a place for us - there are many rooms in heaven! Those who say Yes will reign along side with Christ.
