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*** lv chap. 7 pp. 74-77 Do You Value Life as God Does? ***
Chapter 7 - Do You Value Life as God Does?
"With you is the source of life."-PSALM 36:9.
Q1, 2. What gift from God is especially valuable today, and why so?OUR heavenly Father has given us a priceless possession-the gift of life as intelligent humans who are capable of reflecting his qualities. (Genesis 1:27) Thanks to that precious gift, we are able to reason on Bible principles. By applying them, we can grow into spiritually mature people who love Jehovah and whose "perceptive powers [have been] trained to distinguish both right and wrong."-Hebrews 5:14.
"...spiritually mature people who love Jehovah..." = people who follow the interpretations of the bible as made by the WBTS[have been] - Why are they inserting into the bible again?2 The ability to reason on Bible principles is especially important today, for the world has become so complex that no amount of laws could cover every possible situation that might arise in life. Medical science well illustrates this point, especially in regard to products and procedures involving blood. This is an area of interest and concern to all who want to obey Jehovah. Still, if we understand the relevant Bible principles, we should be able to make wise decisions that both satisfy our conscience and keep us in God's love. (Proverbs 2:6-11) Consider some of these principles.
"...reason on Bible principles..." as advanced by the WBTS...
*** Watchtower 1981 December 1 p.27 ***Jehovah God has also provided his visible organization, his "faithful and discreet slave," made up of spirit-anointed ones ... Unless we are in touch with this channel of communication that God is using, we will not progress along the road to life, no matter how much Bible reading we do.
LIFE AND BLOOD ARE SACRED
Q3, 4. When was the sanctity of blood introduced in the Scriptures, and upon what principles does it rest?3 Jehovah first disclosed the intimate connection between life and blood, as well as their sanctity, or sacredness, shortly after Cain murdered Abel. "Listen!" God said to Cain. "Your brother's blood is crying out to me from the ground." (Genesis 4:10) In Jehovah's eyes, Abel's blood represented his life, which had been brutally cut short. So, in a sense, Abel's blood cried out to God for vengeance.-Hebrews 12:24.
So what was more sacred to God, Abel's blood or his life?4 After the Noachian Flood, God gave humans permission to eat the flesh of animals but not the blood. God stated: "Only flesh with its soul-its blood-you must not eat. And, besides that, your blood of your souls shall I ask back." (Genesis 9:4, 5) This command applies to all of Noah's descendants right down to our day. It reaffirms what was implied in God's earlier words to Cain-that the soul, or life, of all creatures is represented by the blood. That decree also establishes that Jehovah, the Source of life, will hold to account all humans who disrespect life and blood.-Psalm 36:9.
Ok so the "Blood" spoken of in Genesis 9 which God had forbidden them eating was ANIMAL blood
Q5, 6. How did the Mosaic Law show that blood is both sacred and precious? (See also the box on page 78.)5 These two fundamental truths were reflected in the Mosaic Law. Leviticus 17:10, 11 reads: "As for any man . . . who eats any sort of blood, I shall certainly set my face against the soul that is eating the blood, and I shall indeed cut him off from among his people. For the soul of the flesh is in the blood, and I myself have put it upon the altar for you to make atonement for your souls, because it is the blood that makes atonement by the soul in it."-See the box "The Atoning Power of Blood," on page 76.
"...who eats any sort of blood" = ANIMAL blood
6 If the blood of a slaughtered animal was not used on the altar, it was to be poured out on the ground. Thus, in a symbolic way, the life was returned to its original Owner. (Deuteronomy 12:16; Ezekiel 18:4) Note, though, that the Israelites did not have to go to extremes in trying to remove every trace of blood from the animal's tissues. Provided that the creature was properly slaughtered and bled, an Israelite could eat it with a clear conscience, as due respect would have been accorded to the Life-Giver.
Again blood here = ANIMAL blood
[Box on page 76]
THE ATONING POWER OF BLOOD
In God's Word, blood is considered to be equivalent to life. Hence, instead of being condemned because he broke Jehovah's commandments, a repentant sinner in ancient Israel could offer an animal sacrifice on God's altar. (Leviticus 4:27-31) This sacrifice atoned for his sins but only in a provisional way.
As used in the Bible, "atonement" conveys the thought of "exchange" or "cover," as the right lid, for example, would properly cover a container. Of course, no animal could perfectly "cover," or atone for, the sins of a human. Animal sacrifices did, however, provide a shadow of the perfect atonement sacrifice to come.-Hebrews 10:1, 4.
That atonement was provided "through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time." (Hebrews 10:10) Christ's perfect human life, represented by his "precious blood, like that of an unblemished and spotless lamb," corresponded exactly to the life that Adam lost. (1 Peter 1:19) Thus, in an exquisitely beautiful and loving way, justice was satisfied and our "everlasting deliverance" was made possible.-Hebrews 9:11, 12; John 3:16; Revelation 7:14.
[Box on page 78]
RESPECT THE LIFE OF ANIMALS
Although Jehovah allows us to kill animals for food and clothing or to protect ourselves from harm, we must exercise that authority in a balanced, kind way. (Genesis 3:21; 9:3) We do not want to be like the cruel hunter Nimrod, who apparently killed animals for the sheer thrill of it. (Genesis 10:9) Rather, we should imitate Jehovah, who is interested in the welfare of all animals, even tiny sparrows.-Jonah 4:11; Matthew 10:29.
God's interest was reflected in the Mosaic Law. (Exodus 23:4, 5, 12; Deuteronomy 22:10; 25:4) In harmony with that Law, Proverbs 12:10 states: "The righteous one is caring for the soul of his domestic animal, but the mercies of the wicked ones are cruel." Soon both the cruel and their ways will be things of the past.
Q7. How did David show respect for the sanctity of blood?
7 David, "a man agreeable to [God's] heart," grasped the principles behind God's law on blood. (Acts 13:22) On one occasion when he was very thirsty, three of his men forced their way into the enemy camp, drew water from a cistern, and brought it to him. How did David react? "Shall I drink the blood of the men going at the risk of their souls?" he asked. In David's eyes, the water was, in effect, the lifeblood of his men. So despite his thirst, he "poured it out to Jehovah."-2 Samuel 23:15-17.
Why is David glorified so much in the WT publications? As Blondie put it in this weeks review "The man was an adulterer, murderer (and was not put to death per the Law code but rather his son died and his wives were raped), disobeyed God and conducted a census which lead to the death of 70,000 innocent people, and whose hands were considered covered with blood and so he could not build the temple.
Q8, 9. Did God's view of life and blood change with the establishment of the Christian congregation? Explain.8 Some 2,400 years after the Noachian decree and about 1,500 years after the Law covenant was made, Jehovah inspired the governing body of the early Christian congregation to write: "The holy spirit and we ourselves have favored adding no further burden to you, except these necessary things, to keep abstaining from things sacrificed to idols and from blood and from things strangled and from fornication."-Acts 15:28, 29.
"...governing body of the early Christian congregation..." So the group of apostles and older men in Jerusalem were a governing body?? Obviously the writers of this publication were not paying attention when Freddy Franz gave this candid lecture:
9 Clearly, the early governing body discerned that blood is sacred and that misusing it is as morally wrong as committing idolatry or fornication. True Christians today accept that stand. Moreover, because they think in terms of Bible principles, they are able to please Jehovah when making decisions about the use of blood.
"Clearly, the early governing body discerned that blood is sacred and that misusing it is as morally wrong..." What absolute rubbish! The real reason this position was stated can be found here: