This good news will be preached to all the inhabited earth.....

by jefferywhat 16 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Jeremy C

  Another major problem in the gospel that the JWs is preaching is the concept of organizational baptism and organizational salvation.

  Nowhere in all of the teachings of Jesus or his apostles is there any indication that a convert had to verbally acknowledge being baptized into a congregation as a prerequisite for immersion. The baptism was carried out in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. There was never any concept of being baptized into or in relation to the congregation doing the baptizing. This is a concept that crept into the Church after the deaths of the apostles.

  Salvation is another major problem. Nowhere in Scripture is there any indication that salvation is contingent upon congregational / organizational membership. The focus was always on relationship with Christ.

  For example: take the case of the congregation in Ephesus; one of the congregations founded by Paul. Upon the death of Paul and the other Apostles, Ephesus slid into false teachings and practices. Did an individual have an obligation to stay in the congregation? Would the individual be in jeopardy of losing out on their salvation for leaving the congregation for conscientious reasons?
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  SacrificialLoon

  I saw the a news article about these people on the BBC site, and they had a couple more pictures. It said they were spotted during one fly over, and when they came back a second time the warriors were painted the red they are in the picture. Defending their tribe from the great sky beast, fascinating.
  
  I could just see someone trying to give these people a Watchtower and Awake. Ha!
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  Olin Moyles Ghost

  JWFacts said:
  A paradox that shows how ridiculous the idea that only JWs will be saved is:
  
  1. If a JW claims these people will die at Armageddon it paints Jehovah as cruel, unfair and lacking in justice for murdering people at Armageddon who have never heard of him and had the chance to worship him - on the other hand
  2. If a JW claims that since these people have not been witnessed to, Jehovah may save them anyway, then being preached to is an unfair dis advantage, as it puts people who have rejected JWs on Jehovah's muderous radar, but gives people unreached by JWs a chance to escape destruction.
  
  
  My reply:
  
  Exactly! I born into the JW religion, but have never believed that only JWs would be saved. Thus, even before I started really doubting that the JWs had the truth, I used to think that the preaching work disadvantaged the people we witnessed to. Perhaps this is why I never took the preaching work seriously...
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  Rapunzel

  Yeah, Sacrificial, just imagine all the trouble that they would have in translating "Watchtower" and "Awake" magazines into the language spoken by these people!

  Seriously though, as someone who is very interested in language in general, I think that it would be very interesting indeed to learn about the language of this group. It would be fascinating to study the language of people who have had no contact with any other groups. I would also like to know if they have any concept of religion. If so, what are their beliefs? Unfortunately, this would be hard to do, since any contact with them on the part of another group would most likely be very harmful to them. History offers countless examples of this idea. Whenever such a group encounters another, more technologically-advanced group, it always to the detriment of the former. In order to learn about these people, contact with them would have to established. But such contact would almost necessarily harm them.
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  White Dove

  I remember them saying that the good news doesn't have to literally be preached to every single person. It just has to be preached in most places. Those people who have not heard it didn't deserve it.
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  BluesBrother

  Defending their tribe from the great sky beast, fascinating.

  Perhaps they knew more than we think? More like "B******r off! ..We are going to charge for our story and pictures if you want them !"

  BTW Mat 24.14 says that the good news will be preached IN all the inhabited earth, not TO all the inhabited earth....but the comments about condemning people who have never even heard the message are so very true. Those thoughts were my first reasoning's that led to my leaving the Borg.
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  White Dove

  Me, too. I couldn't imagine a loving god doing something like that and also kill babies in the flood.

  So, umm..."b.......f" means bugger off? It sounds so mild to my 'merican ears. Bloody's not bad, either.

  Are you eyes burning?