Praise the FADS - promote the ministry. Essentially the two main teachings of the society these days.
Latest CO Service talk: How much do you appreciate Jehovahs provision of the Faithful Slave
by LUKEWARM 28 Replies latest jw friends
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besty
its a 'do more of this and less of that' multiplying ministry - next time bring a friend and so on.....
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sir82
The Society never seems to figure out that the more they pound home a message by repetition, the quicker people just tune it out.
Remember 2-3 years ago when they started up all their "special campaigns"? In the past they'd have one every 3-4 years, then they started "special campaigns" 3 or 4 times per year.
Memorial invitations, Assembly invitations, "Kingdom News", special Awake editions....
Just going form the reaction in my congregation, which is probably pretty typical....at first people got all wound up, "boy, we gotta cover all our territory, this is so exciting, woo-hoo-hooo..."
Right now we're in the midst of the DC invitation "special campaign". Nobody gives a crap. Nobody cares about covering the territory, nobody cares about "inviting the public", it's now become just another part of the routine.
Likewise, I suspect, with all the "how much do you lo-o-o-o-o-ve the Governing Body" articles & talks. Every single WT since they went to a "Study edition" has at least one, sometimes 4 or 5, references to the "faithful & discret slave" and/or Matthew 24;45-47. Now COs will be pounding home the message.
JWs will start rolling their eyes & yawning at such references soon. Getting hit with the same message, "obey us or die", 3-6 times per month, 12 months per year, when nothing else ever changes, is extremely tiresome.
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Lost-In-Translation
I have not heard the talks listed above. However, the latest talk I heard during the last CO visit is the following.
The talk given by the Circuit Overseer is entitled "Partake of the "tree of life."
The talk starts with the examination of the three categories of trees that existed in the Garden of Eden. He read Genesis 2:9:
Genesis 2:9 - "Thus Jehovah God made to grow out of the ground every tree desirable to one’s sight and good for food and also the tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and bad. "
1st type of tree: Trees that are desireable to one's sight and good for food. These trees were to beautify the Garden and provide a wonderful place for Adam and Eve to live in. These trees were also to provide food for them.
2nd type of tree: Tree of life in the middle of the Garden. If Adam and Eve would have remained faithful, they would have been permitted to partake of the tree of life. Even though they were "perfect" in a human sense - they still had to prove their loyalty to Jehovah God. Up to the point of the rebellion - Adam and Eve had not partaken of the tree of life and had not been blessed with the right of eternal life. Genesis 3:22-24 confirms this when it says:
Genesis 3:22 - 24: "And Jehovah God went on to say: “Here the man has become like one of us in knowing good and bad, and now in order that he may not put his hand out and actually take [fruit] also from the tree of life and eat and live to time indefinite,—” 23 With that Jehovah God put him out of the garden of E´den to cultivate the ground from which he had been taken. 24 And so he drove the man out and posted at the east of the garden of E´den the cherubs and the flaming blade of a sword that was turning itself continually to guard the way to the tree of life."
The reason Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden was so that they could not touch the tree of life. He posted cherubs to block the way back in the Garden "to guard the way to the tree of life."
3rd type of tree: tree of the knowledge of good and bad. As we all know this tree represented Jehovah's sovereignty. Jehovah clearly instructed the first couple to not touch the tree - to do so would be an act of disobediance, thus rejecting Jehovah's right to rule over them.
After explaining the three categories of trees the CO then explained that "trees of life" exist in our day. Guess who symbolically represent those "trees of life"? Yes, you guessed correctly - The Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses who represent the "faithful and discreet slave" class. The only way to attain the gift of everlasting life is only by means of the "faithful slave." Humanity must accept these "trees of life" if they are to be saved. Which means we should willingly accept whatever the Governing Body decides, and follow their direction even though our "imperfect" mind cannot understand the reasons behind the "slave's" decisions.
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tresdecu
"The worship and idolatry of the FDS was a huge factor to my breaking from the mind control of the WTS"
-Robert7
I totally agree, the same thing bothered me, even when I was 100% mentally in. When I prayed on stage as an MS, or gave publics talks, I never said squat about the GB, On purpose. I always cringed when brothers thanked Jah for providing the GB. We even have one MS who still faithfully thanks Jah for providing the WT and Awake during his public prayers. (!!!!!) WTF?! These old men in Brooklyn have created idols in themselves and their "holy writings". Unfrrekingbelievable!
TD
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flipper
To Jehovah's Witnesses the alleged " faithful and discreet slave " is God. It's one and the same
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OUTLAW
Latest CO Service talk: “How much do you appreciate Jehovah’s provision of the Faithful Slave”.......Translation:Get to work you lazy JW Bastards!..Your not doing enough..God wants MORE! ........................LOL!!...OUTLAW
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yknot
It is starting to feel like STAGNATION!
Good time to usher in new structural changes, the JW equivelent to road construction during economic droughts.
Spiritually speaking no one seems to be stepping up in the 'oracle' department...... so all they got is FDS and FS.
They can hope for a Knorr but unless they go 'big' in the lifestyle department it will just fail.
The campaigns focus isn't converts so much as creating 'busywork' for the sheeple.
We did early morning FS.....(read drove out and placed older lit/tracts near people's morning newpapers) and it really struck me how we are still using the new system concept to battle brimstone and fire teachings....... teachings that are no longer the main message in most churches in the USA. Being that I am evil and have friends at every single church in town I know that 'purposeful and Christian life' is the main points discussed in sermons. When you compare the feel good family-Christ focused activities, charitable works, and totally volunteer FS..... forced JW FS and life suck!
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gubberningbody
Ditto Robert.
I got so I hated ANYONE mentioning them. I used to say "How often do you read anything like that in the Bible?" and "If I don't know the names of the faithful angels, then why should I even bother with them? I have the Bible, and if some talk or literature sheds any light on the Bible, then I'm interested, but I could care less what some imperfect human has to rabbinicize about."
Of course, that's why I'm here now.
Can't have elders go around willy nilly telling people to read the Bible and make up their own minds and tell them further that if EVEN AN ANGEL OUT OF HEAVEN tells them something that's not discernible by them as having a firm scriptural foundation, then let that one be accursed.
Nope...
I suppose you can follow Christ, but you can't tail-gate.
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shamus100
The only way to attain the gift of everlasting life is only by means of the "faithful slave." Humanity must accept these "trees of life" if they are to be saved. Which means we should willingly accept whatever the Governing Body decides, and follow their direction even though our "imperfect" mind cannot understand the reasons behind the "slave's" decisions.
Oh, that's why it sounds like bullshit - because my mind is imperfect! How profound!!
See you all later, I'm going back!
Nobody is going to the talk - perhaps we could pay someone to go to it. The problem is how to keep the person awake during it. Frankly, you couldn't pay me enough.