Saturday, May 30th - Then people will kill you

[Watchman]

These are the true sayings of God.—Rev. 19:9.

We must keep busy in Jehovah’s service right up to the end. Anointed ones must remain watchful in order to be “taken along” by Jesus to their heavenly reward. (Matt. 24:40) With great anticipation, such ones look forward to “being gathered together” to Jesus in heaven. After the war of Armageddon, they will share as Jesus’ bride in the marriage of the Lamb. (2 Thess. 2:1) Though judgment is fast approaching, there is no reason for us to be afraid. If we remain faithful, our loving heavenly Father will give us “the power beyond what is normal” so that we “may succeed . . . in standing before the Son of man.” (2 Cor. 4:7; Luke 21:36) Whether our hope is heavenly or earthly, we will please our Father if we heed the warnings found in Jesus’ parables. Through Jehovah’s undeserved kindness, our names will be “found written down in the book” of life.—Dan. 12:1; Rev. 3:5. w24.09 24-25 ¶19-20

It would appear that the Watchtower has adopted the Evangelical's rapture without calling it the rapture. What does it mean to be "taken along"? Taken where? The Governing Body assumes that those taken along are immediately raptured to heaven. Is there any other way to read it?

Have Jehovah's Witnesses become so dumbed-down, so spiritually stupefied, that they cannot discern that all of the anointed must die in order to attain their heavenly reward? Why do you suppose Jesus straightforwardly said, "Then people will hand you over to tribulation and will kill you..."?

As for heeding the warnings in Jesus' parables, that is not really possible for anyone under the Watchtower's 1914 delusion. For example, after explaining the parable of the wheat and the weeds, Jesus concluded it by saying: "At that time the righteous ones will shine as brightly as the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. Let the one who has ears listen." According to the Watchtower, the harvest began during the First World War, and hundreds of millions of churchgoers were uprooted from among the Bible Student movement, bundled up, and burned in the fire. Who knew? Given the nonsensical explanation that Jehovah's Witnesses are required to accept as a genuine inspired expression, how is it possible for anyone with ears to hear the actual meaning of the harvest illustration?

And what does it mean that the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father? The Watchtower used to claim that all anointed persons were already shining as brightly as the sun. Apparently, though, they realized the absurdity they were espousing and dropped it. But instead of discerning the truth about Christ's future, visible parousia, they instead opted to explain away Jesus' profound statement by claiming that the chosen will shine brightly in heaven. If that is true, what did the inspired apostle mean when he stated that all creation was waiting for the revealing of the sons of God? Will it be an invisible revealing like Jesus' parousia phantasm? If so, what would be the point of an invisible revealing? How is that even possible?

And this standing before the Son of Man...is the Son of man the same person as the messenger of the covenant? The Watchtower recognizes this to be true. In that case, how is it that the messenger of the covenant supposedly already came and the Bible Students successfully stood before him?

And here is another lie that is coming unraveled: This business of having one's name written in God's book of life. According to the Watchtower, the image of the beast came to life first as the League of Nations and then as the UN. And since 1922, people have been marked for permanent death, not having their names written in the book of life, merely because they thought the League was a good idea. Sadly, it is not humanly possible to disabuse the leadership of Jehovah's Witnesses of the operation of Satan that they have embraced. Only terror will make them understand.

And yes, they will be very much afraid when the Son of man arrives like a thief in the night, whenever it is, they are saying "peace and security."

One will be taken along and the other abandoned

Part four After describing all these things destined to occur, Jesus spoke a series of illustrations---each showing the same outcome. The lesson is, there will be a decisive separation among Christians. Jehovah’s Witnesses have no realistic expectation of such a thing. The

e-watchman.com

Chapter 29 - THE END - Jehovah Has Become King

Read the final chapter of Jehovah Has Become King. Face the reality of the coming unique calamity, the collapse of the system, and the day of reckoning.

jehovah-is-king.com

 

[BARNABY THE DOG.]

It appears very much as though watchtower is stripping itself as to exclusivity of the WORD in that they are now getting alongside with other religions. It appears as though they are seeking to be concealed from public scrutiny by relaxing the strict protocols they had in the past where one had to prove their loyalty.

It appears to be a stealth mode of operation. Eighteen year olds becoming elders, children being baptised, relaxing biblical laws on blood, promoting government initiatives as Jehovah’s gifts, seeking the pay for governments, having shares in the stock market, shows of wealth and prosperity, seeking “donations” - the list goes on. I wonder when someone is going to stand up and heal someone or speak in tongues. Every day, watchtower does something to anonymise itself into the realm of religion instead of standing out like a beacon of truth before all others.

 

[Spoilmerotten]

It appears very much as though watchtower is stripping itself as to exclusivity of the WORD in that they are now getting alongside with other religions. It appears as though they are seeking to be concealed from public scrutiny by relaxing the strict protocols they had in the past where one had to prove their loyalty.

It appears to be a stealth mode of operation. Eighteen year olds becoming elders, children being baptised, relaxing biblical laws on blood, promoting government initiatives as Jehovah’s gifts, seeking the pay for governments, having shares in the stock market, shows of wealth and prosperity, seeking “donations” - the list goes on. I wonder when someone is going to stand up and heal someone or speak in tongues. Every day, watchtower does something to anonymise itself into the realm of religion instead of standing out like a beacon of truth before all others.

Someone posted a picture yesterday on Reddit of JW.org. One of the GB I was assuming, wearing a Rolex watch while shaking the hand of a Priest wearing thick 24k gold bracelets with a large gold cross dangling off one of the bracelets.

 

[Watchman]

It appears very much as though watchtower is stripping itself as to exclusivity of the WORD in that they are now getting alongside with other religions. It appears as though they are seeking to be concealed from public scrutiny by relaxing the strict protocols they had in the past where one had to prove their loyalty.

It appears to be a stealth mode of operation. Eighteen year olds becoming elders, children being baptised, relaxing biblical laws on blood, promoting government initiatives as Jehovah’s gifts, seeking the pay for governments, having shares in the stock market, shows of wealth and prosperity, seeking “donations” - the list goes on. I wonder when someone is going to stand up and heal someone or speak in tongues. Every day, watchtower does something to anonymise itself into the realm of religion instead of standing out like a beacon of truth before all others.

You are right on the mark. A very keen observation. It is apostasy by stealth. JW's will wake up someday and realize they are in Babylon the Great.

Jesus once told the Jews that he was the light of the world, and later said, "The light will be among you a little while longer. Walk while you still have the light, so that darkness does not overpower you; whoever walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, exercise faith in the light, so that you may become sons of light.”

The same thing is in process now. The light is going out. Whatever truth the Watchtower has published in the past is all the truth they will ever have. Or as Jehovah stated in Micah: "You will have night; there will be no vision; there will only be darkness for you, no divination. The sun will set on the prophets, and the day will turn dark for them. The visionaries will be put to shame, and the diviners will be disappointed. All of them will have to cover over the mustache, for there is no answer from God."

Now that some of the GB have mustaches, it adds some color to the prophecy. In other words, they will have to put their hand to their mouth as if to retrieve words they wish they had never said.

 

[PJ54]

It stings to see the organization become similar to everybody else. Part of the reason we went to the organization in the first place was to get away from the religions of the world. As I read the prophets in the old testament, I can see how the prophecies applies to Jehovah's people. I can tell you one thing for certain; that most people in the religions of the world have no genuine faith & I am believing that it is happening in the organization...

 

[Spoilmerotten]

You are right on the mark. A very keen observation. It is apostasy by stealth. JW's will wake up someday and realize they are in Babylon the Great.

Jesus once told the Jews that he was the light of the world, and later said, "The light will be among you a little while longer. Walk while you still have the light, so that darkness does not overpower you; whoever walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, exercise faith in the light, so that you may become sons of light.”

The same thing is in process now. The light is going out. Whatever truth the Watchtower has published in the past is all the truth they will ever have. Or as Jehovah stated in Micah: "You will have night; there will be no vision; there will only be darkness for you, no divination. The sun will set on the prophets, and the day will turn dark for them. The visionaries will be put to shame, and the diviners will be disappointed. All of them will have to cover over the mustache, for there is no answer from God."

Now that some of the GB have mustaches, it adds some color to the prophecy. In other words, they will have to put their hand to their mouth as if to retrieve words they wish they had never said.

Absolutely!

 

[BARNABY THE DOG.]

It stings to see the organization become similar to everybody else. Part of the reason we went to the organization in the first place was to get away from the religions of the world. As I read the prophets in the old testament, I can see how the prophecies applies to Jehovah's people. I can tell you one thing for certain; that most people in the religions of the world have no genuine faith & I am believing that it is happening in the organization...

Exactly so, and all the more so in the issue of the main religions along with JWs not preparing their surplus of oil - faith. It’s not perhaps that JWs have no faith, but that there is no substance (secure knowledge base) to their faith. They have sold the responsibility for that, and the trust that goes with it, to the Pharisees, the governing body.

The few brethren that I knew back in the early 1970s certainly had faith. Indeed, in those days, there was substance within our congregation to have faith in the teaching of watchtower. Understanding was no further advanced in those days than it is now, but there was the sense of ‘discovery’, developing within one’s self, a ‘deeper understanding’. I felt an eagerness to preach. I was not embarrassed about it as I became later when it became obvious to me that pretence was evident as the opinion of elders gained priority over the reasonableness of the Word and ‘wait upon Jehovah’ became the by-word for ‘I don’t know’. The search for truth effectively ended with the introduction of the body of elders and 1975. That’s only my opinion - it depends largely why people joined in the first place. Watchtower did not give me faith. I already believed as I feel most here, share the same sense of belonging with Jehovah from childhood. It’s just there, is it not?

What watchtower provided was the milk of understanding that set a perspective of discrimination from established religion and divided the two for clarity. But as Robert pointed out - that division has resolved itself adulterously into a union with Christendom and the apostates of men. It will become more clear when the abandonment of Jehovah by the gb is exposed. Not long now I feel. The times are pressing in against them.