I find it pathetic that they are still trying to tell you what you must believe when they say "we cannot deny that he is using a worldwide congregation as he did in the apostle's day". There is (naturally) no scriptural reference given to back this claim up, but you have to accept it anyway because we said so. I love how they're always comparing themselves to the first century congregation, yet there is no biblical reference to the first century Christians having to meet 5 times a week, or go out banging on doors on the Sabbath, or keep tract of how many scrolls they placed. There's no evidence that any brother who had a beard couldn't be an elder or MS......I could go on but I'm sure you get the picture. There's virtually nothing similar between those who met 2,000 years in private homes and the WTB&TS today.
Yep, same old, same old!
My two cents' worth on this:
It seems to me that the WTS (and many ex-dubs) fail to appreciate or even understand that the New Testament was written to a different culture at a different time. This is not to dilute the importance of the Bible to Christians but it needs to be remembered that when we read the words of, say, the apostle Paul, we need first of all to determine the context. ("Words taken out of context are no pretext".) Paul is often criticised as a mysogynist simple because his writings are being interpreted in a 21st century context. The WTS then is fond of speaking about there being elders and ministerial servants in each congregation. Of course, the congregations in the first century were nothing like the WTS model that is seen today, but rather, as Mary rightly points out, they met in small house churches with meetings much, much different to those of JWs at their KHs. They met together for the breaking of bread and singing of psalms and songs and prayer, not for a public speaking school, an evangelising meeting, a public lecture and a paragraph by paragraph Q&A of "The Watchtower" magazine.
we cannot deny that he is using a worldwide congregation
The WTS are very fond of claiming that God must have an organisation today because He's always had one and He had one in the first century with the early christian church. But there's no similarity between the early christian church and the multi-million member corporate organisation known as Jehovah's Witnesses. Indeed, the model of the first-century church is very difficult to apply in a modern setting; I've seen it tried and it failed. Large denominations have arisen over the centuries for various reasons - the important thing to remember though is that they are united in that they all name Christ as Saviour. True, there could (should?) be more unity but there's nothing in scripture to indicate that christians will only be found as members of one organisation; indeed, the scriptures indicate that Christ calls his own and they know his voice.
There is certainly nothing wrong with Christians meeting to discuss scriptural matters and it is encouraged that Christians do so. However, it is insane and scripturally dishonest to imply that those who aren't attending all the meetings are somehow inferior to those that do.
Nevertheless it is only natural that christians will want to fellowship with other christians and by doing so are "building up the body of Christ"; but not does it mean that we have to attend only Anglican churches if we are usually Anglican, Presbyterian if we are regularly Presbyterian, and so on. It simply means the fellowshipping with other believers wherever they are. We probably remember the text we used to recite as Dubs: "not forsaking the gathering of ourselves together" - meeting with other christians, not JWs only!!
didnt' Jesus say " . . .For where there are two or three gathered together in my name, there I am in their midst.. . .(Matthew 18:20) ??
Yep, he did, but here again the WTS takes it out of context. They should read the preceding verse (verse 19) "Again, I tell you that if two of you on agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven".
Then it goes on :"For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." So what was the gathering? It was for prayer, not a meeting like at the KH!
