I posted this idea to UncleBruce's thread - I deceded to repost as it's own thought here. I would not be surprised this very kind of article could come out of Brooklyn someday soon. Coming soon to a Watchtower near you! They have written far more outrageous things than this to keep witnesses in line. Could this be how they stop the internet?
Loyalty to God in a Modern World !
'So the sons of Israel did what was bad in Jehovah’s eyes, and they were forgetful of Jehovah their God' Judges 3:7 TEST OVER ISSUE OF WORSHIP
10 With God’s kingdom established in the heavens, the issue facing all professed Christians is critical: To whom will they render worship? To Jehovah Most High who rules as King through his Son? Or to man-made gods and images? (Rev. 11:15, 17; 13:11-18) Helping Christians in their determination never to give in to idolatrous worship is the example of the faithfulness of Daniel’s three companions, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Although they were still slaves, they were appointed over the administration of the jurisdictional district of Babylon. Even as all servants of Jehovah must eventually face tests of faith, Satan was maneuvering those faithful witnesses of Jehovah into direct conflict with the king over the issue of worship.
11 King Nebuchadnezzar had a great image of gold made. (Dan. 3:1-3) It was about nine stories high and nine feet thick. He then began to call the prefects and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the police magistrates and all the administrators of the jurisdictional districts to come to the inauguration of the image. But why did the king make such a costly golden image? Well, history records that King Nebuchadnezzar was extremely religious, so much so that the annals of Babylon give more attention to his exploits regarding religion and worship of the gods of Babylon than they do to his military operations. And here on the plain of Dura this religious-minded king undoubtedly wanted to unite the world empire in worship. No name is given to this image in the Bible; however, it may have been erected in honor of the king’s favorite god—Marduk. Perhaps to put them all in a religious frame of mind, the king arranged for some kind of music to be played. At the king’s command the royal herald cried out loudly:
12 "To you it is being said, O peoples, national groups and languages, that at the time that you hear the sound of the horn, the pipe, the zither, the triangular harp, the stringed instrument, the bagpipe and all sorts of musical instruments, you fall down and worship the image of gold that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. And whoever does not fall down and worship will at the same moment be thrown into the burning fiery furnace."—Dan. 3:4-6.
13 The three Hebrews, obedient to the king’s command to assemble, appeared on the plain of Dura. But what would Daniel’s three companions do? They went as far as they could by assembling with the others—but they refused to bow! Nebuchadnezzar had so much wanted to have 100-percent participation in this exercise, and here these three men were refusing to join in!
14 Today the faithful servants of Jehovah face similar situations. The thirteenth chapter of Revelation, after the previous chapter’s discussion of the establishment of God’s heavenly kingdom, tells about the worship of the "wild beast" and the "image" of the wild beast, and how this idolatrous worship will be enforced in all the inhabited earth, under one guise or another. One of those careful tactics of the devil's organization is to package the temptation to serve other Gods in a way, so as to make it difficult to see and discern. One of those tools used by Satan is the internet. Just as the 'horn, the pipe, the zither, the triangular harp, the stringed instrument, the bagpipe' , were not used directly as idols, the effect of the music was to promote idolatry. As previously discussed, the internet is not wicked as a technology. But playing all the componet parts together, the pornography, both spiritual and fleshly, the deceptive and twisted 'news' reports, the promotion of 'higher criticism', and a proliferation of ungodly attitudes in most all areas of life, make it, like the combination of musical instuments on the plains of Dura, a direct invitation to worship Satan. It is subtle. But the 'Holy Spirit, and we ourselves favor adding no further burden to you except these necessary things'. So, would a Christian Witness who even looked at the internet be guilty of 'idolatry' in the eyes of Jehovah? In previous years the 'faithful slave' has warned of the dangers of the internet. Looking now with God's Holy Spirit as our guide, it would seem to be more than that. Like the instruments played upon the plain of Dura it had the composite effect of promoting worship to Satan. Could a worshiper of Jehovah 'bow down' in this manner and remain clean in the eyes of God? It would seem that the answer is a firm No! In setting the example in the matter, the Governing Body and all the Bethel homes, offices, and facilties have recently taken the lead in removing the internet from all it's computers. Other than a dedicated intranet between factories, our Bethel brothers already are enjoying the freedom that comes from 'carefully keeping themselves' from all that could corrupt thier worship to the Most High. Though removed from the issue of the three Hebrews on the Plains of Dura by 2600 years, the issue today is the same: Will it be worship of Jehovah God or of false gods? And the Devil’s purpose today is the same as formerly: He is trying to compel all at the cost of their jobs and lives to take part in idolatry. The Devil uses extreme, drastic measures, these diabolical efforts being referred to at Revelation 12:17, where we are told that the symbolic dragon goes forth to wage war against the true followers of Jesus Christ. - Acts 15:20
BENEFIT OF DECIDING BEFOREHAND
18 It did not take these men a moment to decide. Their minds were already made up. They knew from their youth up whom they would serve. Without hesitation Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego answered: "O Nebuchadnezzar, we are under no necessity in this regard to say back a word to you. If it is to be, our God whom we are serving is able to rescue us. Out of the burning fiery furnace and out of your hand, O king, he will rescue us. But if not, let it become known to you, O king, that your gods are not the ones we are serving, and the image of gold that you have set up we will not worship."—Dan. 3:16, 17.
19 Some might say that in this day, how could we completely free ourselves from the technology that propels this world? How could a Christian do this effectively and remain 'clean' in the eyes of Jehovah? If one wishes to stay part of the 'congregation of God', how will he make this adjustment? How much time will be allowed before one is expelled from the congregation for idolatry? A detailed discussion of how this was done at Bethel and how it must be done by those who wish to remain Jehovah's worshipers follows in the next article. Jeff