Memorial 2007, Part 1: Downplaying Jesus' Sacrifice

by Sacchiel 3 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Sacchiel

  From my blog: astonishingrealizations.blogspot.com

  Memorial 2007, Part 1: Downplaying Jesus' Sacrifice

  "How are we going to treat the Father from now on?"
  
  That was the biggest question at the Memorial I attended on April 2, 2007. Only by the Grace of God did I not go berserk. I had prepared myself not to interfere in the proceedings, out of respect to my family and friends there.
  
  Right from the beginning the onslaught of absurdity and deception was unleashed. The Elder opened the night with a weird guilt trip. He summed up all of creation and the meaning of life into this simple illustration. If a father found his son had crossed the railroad tracks and there was no way to stop the impending train from destroying the young boy other than to derail it and thus killing all of passengers, what would the father do?
  
  "Well, this is precisely what happened", the Elder continued, face still intact. "The Father, Jehovah, sacrificed his Son, Jesus Christ, so that all of you may live! How would we act towards that human father? How much more should we feel towards our Heavenly Father that went through that?".
  
  I am not completely aware how people took his illustration, but I couldn't stomach it. First of all, how WOULD we feel if a Father did just that? I would feel grateful if he let me live, in a strange kind of way, but how would the man's wife and, if the case, other children react to this?
  
  The analogy breaks down even faster. It wasn't just a few that were inside this train, it was the entire human civilization, past, present, and future! Even if the human Father allowed that to happen from inside the moving train, did the Son go there unknowingly?
  
  Not only did God send his Son, but His Son volunteered to take on our deserved punishment and die for us! The ficitious little boy was evidently unsupervised by his Father in the first place and wandered off into a danger zone by mistake. How ungodly to make such comparisons to the Holy Father and Son.

  John 10:17The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father."
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  NanaR

  Excellent article!!
  
  I didn't attend the Memorial this year, as my husband didn't ask me to (he didn't go either, thankfully). All aspects of the way in which the JWs claim to "commemorate" Jesus' sacrifice seem blasphemous to me now, but most particularly the way in which Jesus himself is virtually left out of the discussion. You are very correct, the illustration used by the speaker (which I have heard at many a "meeting") completely devalues Jesus and what HE did for us. The Witness God sent his son, an angel, to earth and watched him die. The Christian God came to earth Himself and endured the terrible suffering of crucifixtion for US. Which God would you love the more?
  
  While all the rest of the Christian world has been meditating all week on the suffering of Jesus on the Cross and the meaning of that suffering for us, JWs have been continuing to spout their usual garbage. And today, as the rest of the Christian world celebrates the wonder of the resurrection and the glory of God the Son, the daily text for JWs to consider is "How long will you sit on the fence?", from the Old Testament of course.
  
  My answer to them is: "How long will you blaspheme Christ by leaving him out of your so-called Christianity?".
  
  I took a look at your blog, and congratulate you on having found a real relationship with Jesus.
  
  Ruth
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  avidbiblereader

  I have heard the illustration before and never thought of it until you made this difference known, very good point.

  Not only did God send his Son, but His Son volunteered to take on our deserved punishment and die for us! The ficitious little boy was evidently unsupervised by his Father in the first place and wandered off into a danger zone by mistake. How ungodly to make such comparisons to the Holy Father and Son.

  Thanks,

  abr
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  sir82

  The analogy breaks down even farther than that.

  The father is the one who built the train and forced it to hurtle out of control. He built the train, the tracks, the faulty braking system, and put everyone aboard the train.

  And, to top it all off, he knew ahead of time (God of prophecy and all that) that, as soon as the train was built, it would inevitably hurtle out of control.

  Like most WT illustrations, it breaks down completely after engaging more than 2 seconds of thought.