Blondie's Comments You Will Not Hear at the 10-14-2012 WT Study (BEWARE)

Uncontrolled speech at home, parents fighting, yelling at their children, yelling at the elders meetings (yes, yes, imagine that, but then there are the elders who speak bad to other elders behind their backs), fear and pressure the organization with the DO MORE philosophy and eternal destruction hanging over the human race to be snatched away by one sin as defined by the WTS.

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Yet, when the elders appointed to examine the case determine, in line with Jehovah’s direction, that a repentant sinner ought to be readmitted to the congregation, it indicates that he has been forgiven by Jehovah.

START OF ARTICLE

HOW WOULD YOU ANSWER?

What self-examination is needed

if you are inclined to be unduly

critical of others?

From the examples of Pilate

and Peter, what can you learn

about not giving in to fear and

pressure?

How can you avoid the feeling

of excessive guilt?

1, 2. What snares of the Devil will we consider in this article?

THE Devil stalks Jehovah’s servants. His goal

is not necessarily to destroy them, as a big game

hunter kills prey. Rather, the Devil’s

main goal is to capture his quarry alive and use the

person as he sees fit.—Read 2 Timothy 2:24-26.

COMMENTS

So he doesn’t stalk non-jws? (Jehovah’s servants = only jws = why not Christians? Is that why most jws if asked what religion they are at the door will answer “one of Jehovah’s Witnesses” or “I’m a Christian”?) jws are afraid of being thought born-agains.

2 To catch prey alive, a trapper may use a snare of

some sort. He may try to get the animal to come

out into the open where he can capture it with a

noose. Or he may use a hidden trap that has a trigger

and takes the animal by surprise. The Devil uses

similar snares to catch God’s servants alive. If we

want to avoid being caught, we must be alert and

heed warning signs indicating that one of Satan’s

snares, or traps, is nearby. This article will consider

how we can guard against three of the traps that the

Devil has used with a measure of success. These are

(1) uncontrolled speech, (2) fear and pressure, and

(3) excessive guilt. The next article will consider two

additional traps, or snares, of Satan.

COMMENTS

God’s servants = only jws

According to the WTS, does Satan have to pursue individuals?

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Just as a boss of organized crime might oversee many illegal operations—drugs, prostitution, theft, gambling, smuggling, and so forth—without personally revealing himself to all his underlings, so Satan uses an organization to control far more people than he could by himself alone. His strategy? Besides harassing individuals, he and the demons treat masses of people as if they were a herd of cattle. No need to direct each one personally. Simply turn a few at the head of the herd, and the majority will follow. Then concentrate on the strays.

QUENCH THE FIRE OF UNCONTROLLED SPEECH

3, 4. Failure to control our tongue could result in what? Give

an example.

3 To flush animals out of hiding, a hunter may set

a section of vegetation ablaze, catching the animals

as they try to escape. In a figurative sense, the Devil

would like to set the Christian congregation ablaze.

If he succeeds, he can drive its members away from

that safe haven right into his clutches. How might

we unwittingly collaborate with him and thus be entrapped

by him?

COMMENTS

Who set the congregation(s) you were/are in ablaze? Who had access to people’s personal information? The elders, their wives, their children. Even at Bethel it was “telegraph, telephone, tell-a-Bethelite.”

Who felt they had the authority to judge and talk about members to other members? The rank and file imitated what they saw the elders do.

If the holy jws cruelly talk and lie about the so-called weak jws, and the “weak” cannot endure, the WTS makes it the weak ones fault.

4 The disciple James likened the

tongue to a fire. (Read James 3:6-8.) If

we fail to control our tongue, we could

start a figurative wildfire in the congregation.

How might this happen? Consider

the following scenario: At a congregation

meeting, an announcement is made

that a certain sister has been appointed

a regular pioneer. After the meeting,

two publishers discuss this announcement.

One expresses joy and has good

wishes for the new pioneer. The other

questions the pioneer’s motives and implies

that she is merely seeking prominence

in the congregation. Which of

those two publishers would you like to

have as a friend? It is not hard to see

which one is more likely to set the congregation

ablaze through her speech.

COMMENTS

So the WTS turns it around on every jw reading this article..who is it more likely to have hurtful, supposedly confidential info?

Of course, the example is 2 sisters, not 2 elders “rightfully” judging the person’s spirituality.

The question is not which one of the sisters you would want for a friend, but why the one sister doesn’t tell the one who questions motives that it is unchristian, and then not associate with her? This is probably her best friend and better to have the other trashed than lose a gossipy friend.

Without someone listening to the gossip and passing it on, gossip would die and outwardly the WTS espouses this advice. Where is it in this paragraph?

***g99 2/22 p. 19 Listening—The Other Side of Gossip

It takes at least two people to engage in gossip—a speaker and a listener. While the listener may seem less culpable than the speaker, the Bible presents a different slant on the matter. At Proverbs 17:4, we read: “The evildoer is paying attention to the lip of hurtfulness. A falsifier is giving ear to the tongue causing adversities.” So the listener of gossip bears a heavy responsibility. “In some ways it is even worse to listen to gossip than to speak it,” says writer Stephen M. Wylen. Why is this so? “By providing an eager audience,” Wylen continues, “you encourage the speaker to go on.”

What should you do, then, when hurtful gossip reaches your ears? Without taking on an air of self-righteousness, you could simply say: ‘Let’s change the subject’ or, ‘I don’t really feel comfortable talking about this. After all, she is not here to defend herself.’

5. To quench the fire of uncontrolled speech,

what self-examination would we do well to conduct?

5 How can we quench the fire of uncontrolled

speech? Jesus said: “Out of

the abundance of the heart the mouth

speaks.” (Matt. 12:34) So the first step is

to examine our own heart. Do we shun

the bad feelings that fuel destructive

speech? For example, when we hear that

a brother is reaching out for some privilege

of service, do we readily believe

that his motives are pure, or do we suspect

that he is driven by self-interest? If

we have a tendency to be cynical, it is

good to remember that the Devil questioned

the motives of God’s faithful servant

Job. (Job 1:9-11) Rather than being

suspicious of our brother, we would do

well to consider why we are critical of

him. Do we really have good reason for

being that way? Or has our heart been

poisoned by the unloving spirit so prevalent

during these last days?—2 Tim. 3:

1-4.

COMMENTS

Since the WTS says elders cannot read hearts or minds how do they determine if someone’s “motives are pure” or “driven by self-interest”?

While the rank and file can be judged by the elders, how do they do it if they cannot judge motives or read hearts or minds?

Why then do elders approach people with accusations by others as if they are true rather than assuming them innocent till proven guilty?

Or rather has many a jw’s heart been disappointed and deliberately hurt many times by those who claim to be closer than a brother?

Have they been carefully taught to be cynical, suspicious, having been poisoned by the spiritual food they trusted.

6, 7. (a) What are some reasons why we might

be critical of others? (b) How should we respond

if we are reviled?

6 Consider some other reasons why

we might be critical of others. One could

be that we desire to make our own accomplishments

more noticeable. In effect,

we may be attempting to look taller

by pushing others down. Or we may be

trying to excuse our own failure to take

positive action. Whether pride, envy, or

insecurity is driving us, the result is destructive.

COMMENTS

The real message in this are that the rank and file are pointing out true and serious flaws of the elders, and other WTS administrators. After all who sit in the elders room and decide a brother isn’t qualified to have a privilege because his sideburns are ¼ inch too long? Or who are the ones who excuse their failures hiding behind their human imperfection? The WTS may talk the talk but they do not walk the walk.

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There is another way you can show that you understand what is involved in having been baptized in the name of the Son. God “subjected all things under [Jesus’] feet, and made him head over all things to the congregation.” (Eph. 1:22) Thus, you need to respect the way Jesus directs those dedicated to Jehovah. Christ is using imperfect humans in the local congregation, particularly the spiritually older men, the appointed elders.

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Like any other member of the congregation, an elder is an imperfect human, subject to making mistakes in word and action. As the disciple James acknowledged: “We all stumble many times. If anyone does not stumble in word, this one is a perfect man.” (Jas. 3:2) In view of their weaknesses and imperfections, elders therefore must be careful that they do not allow their personal views to influence their teaching, counsel or correction.

Were elders to handle matters on the basis of personal opinions, likes and dislikes, they would themselves be guilty of ignoring Christ’s headship . They would be lifting themselves up above Jesus Christ, implying that there is something incomplete about the guidance he is giving to the congregation.

7 It could be that we feel justified in

speaking critically of someone. Perhaps

we have been the victim of his or her uncontrolled

speech. If that is the case, retaliating

in kind is not the answer. Doing

so only adds fuel to the fire and works

in harmony with the Devil’s will, not

God’s. (2 Tim. 2:26) We do well to imitate

Jesus in this regard. When he was

being reviled, “he did not go reviling in

return.” Instead, he “kept on committing

himself to the one who judges righteously.”

(1 Pet. 2:21-23) Jesus was confident

that Jehovah would take care of matters

in His own way and time. We should

have the same trust in God. When we

use our speech to heal, we help to preserve

“the uniting bond of peace” in our

congregation.—Read Ephesians 4:1-3.

Picture: Uncontrolled speech can set

the congregation ablaze with problems

COMMENTS

Sometimes it is necessary to talk “critically” after all the WTS wants the rank and file to run to the elders with the “sins” of others.

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If a Christian becomes aware of a serious sin on the part of a fellow believer, he should encourage that one to confess the sin to the elders. (1 Cor. 6:9, 10; Jas. 5:14-16) If the wrongdoer does not do so, the Christian who has come to know about the sin should report it. Failure to do this in a mistaken effort to maintain peace with the sinner makes one a party to the wrongdoing.—Lev. 5:1

Did Paul fail to counsel Peter for shunning the Gentile Christians, being critical?

(Galatians 2:11-14)11 However, when Ce′phas came to Antioch, I resisted him face to face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before the arrival of certain men from James, he used to eat with people of the nations; but when they arrived, he went withdrawing and separating himself, in fear of those of the circumcised class. 13 The rest of the Jews also joined him in putting on this pretense, so that even Bar′na·bas was led along with them in their pretense. 14 But when I saw they were not walking straight according to the truth of the good news, I said to Ce′phas before them all: “If you, though you are a Jew, live as the nations do, and not as Jews do, how is it that you are compelling people of the nations to live according to Jewish practice?”

So no reviling, this is healing speech? Waiting for God to rebuke them? Remember this were fellow believers he was speaking too, not Gentiles.

(Matthew 23:15) “Woe to YOU, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because YOU traverse sea and dry land to make one proselyte, and when he becomes one YOU make him a subject for Ge·hen′na twice as much so as yourselves.

ESCAPE THE NOOSE OF FEAR AND PRESSURE

8, 9. Why did Pilate condemn Jesus?

8 An animal caught in a snare loses

control over its freedom of movement.

Similarly, a person who succumbs to fear

and related pressure has given up at least

some control of his life. (Read Proverbs

29:25.) Let us consider the examples of

two very different men who yielded to

pressure and to fear and see what we can

learn from their experience.

COMMENTS

(Proverbs 29:25) Trembling at men is what lays a snare, but he that is trusting in Jehovah will be protected.

Who do the rank and file fear…elders…Cos, DOs, GB decisions? When the run to the elders to make decisions for them, fearing that pleasing the elders means the same as pleasing God, that they cannot understand God without the elders and other WTS administrators.

Do jws control their lives? There are multitudinous rules about dress, grooming, where you can work, how many possessions constitute materialism, etc.

9 The Roman Governor Pontius Pilate

knew that Jesus was an innocent man

and apparently did not want to harm

him. In fact, Pilate said that Jesus had

done “nothing deserving of death.”

Nevertheless, Pilate condemned him to

death. Why? Because Pilate succumbed

to pressure from the mob. (Luke 23:

15, 21-25) “If you release this man, you

are not a friend of Caesar,” cried those

opposers, thus applying pressure in order

to get their way. (John 19:12) Pilate

may have feared that he would lose his

position—or possibly his life—if he sided

with Christ. So he allowed himself to be

led into doing the Devil’s will.

COMMENTS

Apparently = means the bible does not say but the WTS will now add to the bible account

How many times have elders not followed the trained conscience to adhere to WTS policy, especially in regards to child sexual abuse? Look up Candace Conti’s story on JWN.

Or elders who come to you and say that some unknown jw and never to be revealed to you is upset by something you supposedly said or did; or something you can do under bible principles and the elders tell you to yield to them for the sake of peace, because the elders are being pressured by this elder or his wife or their own wife. No Matthew 18 involved, do what you want. I remember an elder’s wife (found out later) who was bothered because a crippled sister sat in the mother’s room because the main room chairs were painful for her to sit on. She told her husband to influence the body to force the sister to sit in the main room, not even use a comfortable chair from home. Who do you think he feared?

10. What induced Peter to deny Christ?

10 The apostle Peter was one of Jesus’

closest associates. He publicly declared

that Jesus was the Messiah. (Matt. 16:16)

Peter remained loyal when other disciples

did not grasp the meaning of what

Jesus said and abandoned Him. (John 6:

66-69) And when enemies came to arrest

Jesus, Peter used a sword to defend

his Master. (John 18:10, 11) Later, however,

Peter succumbed to fear and denied

even knowing Jesus Christ. For a

brief time, the apostle was caught in the

snare of fear of man and allowed it to

restrain him from taking a courageous

course.—Matt. 26:74, 75.

COMMENTS

BRIEF TIME?

Peter not only denied Christ three times here but even after being used by God to open the way to the Gentiles, 20 years later Peter shunned Gentiles knowing God’s thinking on it through visions and seeing the spirit fall on unbaptized Gentiles.

11. We may have to contend with what negative

influences?

11 As Christians, we need to resist

pressure to do things that would displease God.

Employers or others may try

to coerce us into being dishonest or may

seek to induce us to engage in sexual

immorality. Students may have to deal

with peers who try to pressure them to

cheat on exams, to view pornography, to

smoke, to use drugs, to abuse alcohol,

or to engage in sexual misconduct. So,

what can help us to escape the snare of

fear and of pressure to do what displeases

Jehovah?

COMMENTS

Christians—only jws

Displease elders/FDS/WTS/GB = displease God

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Christian elders carry a heavy load. (2 Corinthians 11:28, 29) If we fail to cooperate with them, we only add to their load. This would result in their “sighing.” Our showing an uncooperative spirit is displeasing to Jehovah and could prove to be damaging to us.

The WTS has such a CRITICAL opinion of non-jws, like only they induce jws into sexual immorality, most of the immorality in the congregations I was in were jw on jw.

Cheat on exams, PORNOGRAPHY (got to get that in), use drugs (drugs sold in the KH restroom, “brothers” showing up on drugs and drunk at the meetings (including elders), sexual misconduct (molest children at the KH).

12. What lessons can we learn from Pilate and

Peter?

12 Let us see what we can learn from

the examples of Pilate and Peter. Pilate

had little knowledge about Christ. Still,

he knew that Jesus was innocent and

was no ordinary man. But Pilate lacked

humility and love for the true God. The

Devil easily caught him alive. Peter had

both accurate knowledge and love for

God. At times, though, he lacked modesty,

became fearful, and succumbed

to pressure. Prior to Jesus’ arrest, Peter

boasted: “Even if all the others are

stumbled, yet I will not be.” (Mark 14:

29) The apostle would have been better

prepared for the tests ahead had he

taken the same position as that of the

psalmist who put his confidence in God

and sang: “Jehovah is on my side; I shall

not fear. What can earthling man do

to me?” (Ps. 118:6) On the final night

of His earthly life, Jesus took Peter and

two other apostles with him deep into

the garden of Gethsemane. Instead of

remaining alert, however, Peter and his

companions fell asleep. Jesus awakened

them and said: “Men, keep on the watch

and praying, in order that you do not

come into temptation.” (Mark 14:38) But

Peter fell asleep again and later gave in

to fear and pressure.

COMMENTS

Pilate lacked knowledge…no excuse because God will soon destroy all people eternally that have no individual knowledge.

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Today, that prophecy is in the course of fulfillment on an unprecedented scale. True, untouched territories still exist, and it may be that in Jehovah’s due time, a large door leading to greater activity will open. (1 Corinthians 16:9) Nevertheless, the Bible does not state that Jehovah will wait until every individual on earth has received a personal witness. Rather, the good news must be preached to Jehovah’s satisfaction. Then the end will come.—Compare Matthew 10:23.

Remember years later, Peter exhibited fear of the Jewish Christians and shunned his Gentile Christian brothers.

13. How can we resist pressure to do something

wrong?

13 The examples of Pilate and Peter

can teach us another vital lesson: Success

in resisting pressure involves a combination

of such elements as accurate

knowledge, humility, modesty, love for

God, and fear of Jehovah, not humans.

If our faith is built on accurate knowledge,

we will courageously speak about

our beliefs with conviction. This will

help us to resist pressure and conquer

fear of man. Of course, we must never

overestimate our own strength. Instead,

we should humbly recognize that we

need God’s power in order to resist pressure.

We need to pray for Jehovah’s spirit

and must let love for him motivate us to

uphold his name and standards. Moreover,

we need to prepare for pressure

before we face a test. For instance, advance

preparation along with prayer can

help our children to respond effectively

when their peers try to induce them to

do something wrong.—2 Cor. 13:7.*

*Parents would do well to discuss with their children

the “Peer-Pressure Planner” that appears in the

book Questions Young People Ask—Answers That Work,

Volume 2, pages 132-133. This material might be

used as part of the Family Worship evening.

COMMENTS

So where was Peter’s accurate knowledge, humility, modesty, love for God and fear of God not humans in Antioch as he shunned the Gentile Christians. Why did one of the 12 apostles who had been with Jesus for 3 ½ years observing him teach and act not get the message? How many other Christians do you think Peter influenced afraid because of this status in the congregation?

Jw peers are the biggest source to induce jw children to do wrong…I grew up in several congregations and saw who offered drugs, seduced, stole, lied. Worse than any non-jw children at school or in the neighborhood, or at least as bad.

AVOID THE TRAP THAT

CRUSHES—EXCESSIVE GUILT

14. Concerning our past mistakes, what would

the Devil like us to conclude?

14 Sometimes an animal trap consists

of a heavy log or stone suspended over a

path where prey often move about. An

unwary animal hits the trip wire, causing

the log or stone to fall, crushing the

victim. Inordinate feelings of guilt may

be likened to that heavy load that crushes.

When thinking about a past mistake,

we may feel “crushed to an extreme

degree.” (Read Psalm 38:3-5, 8.) Satan

would like to have us conclude that we

are beyond the reach of Jehovah’s mercy

and are incapable of meeting His requirements.

COMMENTS

So where does that guilt come from inward, or 5 meetings weekly at the KH designed to remind you are imperfect, flawed, dependent on the jws there to be validated as a good person, not validation from Jesus or God. The DO MORE organization.

Here is the ONE-TWO DO MORE PUNCH

***w10 4/15 pp. 27-28 pars. 13-14 Are You Fully Following the C hrist? ***

It is good to remember, though, that being whole-souled is not a matter of how much time we spend in the ministry. Individual circumstances vary. A person who spends just an hour or two in field service each month may be very pleasing to Jehovah if that really is all his health allows him to do. (Compare Mark 12:41-44.) Hence, to determine what whole-souled service to God means for us personally, we need to make a frank appraisal of our abilities and circumstances. As followers of Christ, we also want to harmonize our viewpoint with his. ( Read Romans 15:5; 1 Cor. 2:16) What did Jesus put foremost in his life? He told the crowds from Capernaum: “I must declare the good news of the kingdom of God, because for this I was sent forth.” (Luke 4:43; John 18:37) With Jesus’ zeal for his ministry in mind, evaluate your circumstances to see if you could further expand your ministry.—1 Cor. 11:1.

A careful consideration of our circumstances may lead us to conclude that we could increase the amount of time we spend in the ministry. (Matt. 9:37, 38) For instance, many thousands of our young people who recently graduated from school have expanded their ministry and are now experiencing the joy that comes from zealously serving as pioneers. Would you like to taste that joy as well? Some brothers and sisters have considered their circumstances and decided that they could move to an area in their country, or even abroad, where there is a greater need for Kingdom publishers. Still others have learned another language to help foreign-speaking people. While expanding our ministry can be challenging, it brings rich blessings, and we may help many others to “come to an accurate knowledge of truth.”—1 Tim. 2:3, 4; 2 Cor. 9:6.

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One excellent way to do more is to auxiliary pioneer.

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It is also wise to consider periodically how we could further simplify our life so as to do more in the ministry

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Can you declare Jehovah’s excellencies more fully by auxiliary pioneering during March, April, and May? Doing so will likely require some adjustments in your daily schedule. (Eph. 5:15-17) You can be sure that making an effort to do more in Jehovah’s service will bring joy and Jehovah’s blessing.

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Jehovah takes note of and appreciates the personal sacrifices we make in order to do more in the ministry. (Heb. 6:10) Knowing that we are pleasing Jehovah by our hard work brings us great joy.—1 Chron. 29:9.

15, 16. How can you avoid the trap of succumbing

to excessive guilt?

15 How can you avoid this trap that

crushes? If you have become involved

in serious sin, act now to restore your

friendship with Jehovah. Contact the elders,

and ask for their help. (Jas. 5:14-

16) Do what you can to right the wrong.

(2 Cor. 7:11) If you receive discipline, do

not become downhearted. Discipline is

a sure sign that Jehovah loves you. (Heb.

12:6) Be determined not to repeat the

steps that led to the sin, and act on that

resolve. After you have repented and

turned around, have faith that the ransom

sacrifice of Jesus Christ really can

cover your errors.—1 John 4:9, 14.

COMMENTS

So what does the WTS consider a serious sin? Slander is serious. How many jws did you know to be df’d for slander? So the same men led by holy spirit who can determine what is porneia cannot determine slander?

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Slander can lead to expulsion from God’s organization; a slanderer may be disfellowshipped, perhaps as an unrepentant liar. However, such action is not to be taken against those guilty of light gossip. Elders should weigh matters prayerfully, drawing a sharp distinction between mere gossip and vicious slander. To be disfellowshipped, the wrongdoer would have to be a malicious, unrepentant slanderer. Elders are not authorized to disfellowship anyone for trivial gossip that is motivated by human interest but that is not false or malicious.

Since elders can neither read hearts or minds, how do the elders determine repentance?

Do you need the elders to tell you that the ransom covers your sins? So can the elders forgive sins? Where does it say here that elders can set a time limit of 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, 8 years, before forgiving a person? How long was the man in Corinth supposedly df’d? 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians were written in the same year 55 C.E.

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The second letter, apparently written only a few months after the first, is a follow-up letter.

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Jesus said: “If you forgive the sins of any persons, they stand forgiven to them; if you retain those of any persons, they stand retained.” Do these words mean that Christians can forgive sins? (John 20:23)

There is no Scriptural basis for concluding that Christians in general, or even appointed elders in the congregations, have divine authority to forgive sins.

16 Some individuals continue to harbor

guilt over sins for which they have

actually been forgiven. If that is true

of you, remember that Jehovah forgave

Peter and the other apostles for

abandoning His beloved Son in Jesus’

greatest hour of need. Jehovah forgave

the man who was expelled from the

congregation in Corinth for flagrant immorality

but who later repented. (1 Cor.

5:1-5; 2 Cor. 2:6-8) God’s Word speaks

of gross sinners who repented and were

forgiven by God.—2 Chron. 33:2, 10-13;

1 Cor. 6:9-11.

COMMENTS

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However, Jehovah does not shield those who commit immorality from the consequences of their actions. The aftereffects may last for years, even a lifetime.

So being told this, wouldn’t you feel guilt years after?

Yes, GOD forgave the man, and only a few months later, not a “suggested” year or more.

17. What can the ransom do for us?

17 Jehovah will forgive and forget your

past errors if you are truly repentant

and accept his mercy. Never feel that Jesus’

ransom sacrifice cannot cover your

sins. To do so would be to fall victim to

one of Satan’s snares. Despite what the

Devil wants you to believe, the ransom

can cover the sins of all who have fallen

into sin and have repented. (Prov. 24:16)

Faith in the ransom can lift the burden

of excessive guilt from your shoulders

and can give you strength to serve God

with your whole heart, mind, and soul.

—Matt. 22:37.

COMMENTS

God…after the elders have the holy spirit drop it into their collective minds and tell them what his judgment is?

Never let any human tell you whether the ransom applies to you!

Never let any human tell you that God does not hear your prayers.

WE ARE NOT IGNORANT

OF SATAN’S DESIGNS

18. How can we avoid the Devil’s snares?

18 Satan does not care which trap ensnares

us, as long as we are caught by

him. Since we are not ignorant of Satan’s

designs, we can avoid being overreached

by the Devil. (2 Cor. 2:10, 11)

We will not be caught in his snares, or

traps, if we pray for wisdom to deal with

our trials. “If any one of you is lacking in

wisdom,” wrote James, “let him keep on

asking God, for he gives generously to

all and without reproaching; and it will

be given him.” (Jas. 1:5) We need to act

in harmony with our prayers by engaging

in regular personal study and by applying

God’s Word. The Bible study aids

provided by the faithful and discreet

slave class shed light on the traps set by

the Devil and help us to avoid them.

COMMENTS

Remember that Satan’s snares are everywhere even in the WTS. If you had been an Israelite in Jeremiah’s or Isaiah’s time, the danger would have been from the false worship of the Israelites, who brought idols into the temple and tossed their children into the fire. Would you have followed them because of their protestations of being the descendants of Abraham and “blessed” by God.

Why is God not able to shed light using only the Bible? Did Abraham need study aids or weren’t the words of God enough? What study aids did the Jews need? Didn’t Jesus counsel the religious leaders of his day for adding to those words?

(Matthew 15:3-9)3 In reply he said to them: “Why is it YOU also overstep the commandment of God because of YOUR tradition? 4 For example, God said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Let him that reviles father or mother end up in death.’ 5 But YOU say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother: “Whatever I have by which you might get benefit from me is a gift dedicated to God,” 6 he must not honor his father at all.’ And so YOU have made the word of God invalid because of YOUR tradition.7 YOU hypocrites, Isaiah aptly prophesied about YOU, when he said, 8 ‘This people honors me with their lips, yet their heart is far removed from me. 9 It is in vain that they keep worshiping me, because they teach commands of men as doctrines.’”

*** w9010/1p.11par.4***

Pharisaic self-righteousness was rooted in oral traditions. These had been initiated in the second century B.C.E. as “a fence around the Law” to protect it from the inroads of Hellenism (Greek culture). They had come to be viewed as a part of the Law. In fact, the scribes even rated the oral traditions above the written Law. The Mishnah says: “Greater stringency applies to the observance of the words of the Scribes [their oral traditions] than to the observance of the words of the written Law.” Hence, instead of being “a fence around the Law” to protect it, their traditions weakened the Law and made it void, just as Jesus said: “Adroitly you set aside the commandment of God in order to retain your tradition.”—Mark 7:5-9; Matthew 15:1-9.

19, 20. Why should we hate what is bad?

19 Prayer and Bible study promote in

us a love for what is good. But it is equally

important that we develop a hatred

for what is bad. (Ps. 97:10) Meditating

on the consequences of pursuing selfish

desires can help us to avoid them. (Jas.

1:14, 15) When we learn to hate what is

bad and truly love what is good, the bait

that Satan places in his traps repels us;

it holds no allure.

COMMENTS

Hatred of WHAT is bad…the WTS says but they also mean WHO by their definition. Once again the WTS talks out of both sides of its mouth and manages to do it with the OT.

*** w95 6/15 p.7***

God does not condemn all hatred. Regarding Jesus Christ, the Bible says: “You loved righteousness, and you hated lawlessness.” (Hebrews 1:9) There is a difference, however, between hating the wrong and hating the person who commits the wrong.

*** w93 10/1 p.19 par.15***

Regarding them, the psalmist said: “Do I not hate those who are intensely hating you, O Jehovah, and do I not feel a loathing for those revolting against you? With a complete hatred I do hate them.They have become to me real enemies.”(Psalm 139:21, 22) It was because they intensely hated Jehovah that David looked on them with abhorrence. Apostates are included among those who show their hatred of Jehovah by revolting against him. Apostasy is, in reality, a rebellion against Jehovah. Some apostates profess to know and serve God, but they reject teachings or requirements set out in his Word. Others claim to believe the Bible, but they reject Jehovah’s organization and actively try to hinder its work. When they deliberately choose such badness after knowing what is right, when the bad becomes so ingrained that it is an inseparable part of their makeup, then a Christian must hate (in the Biblical sense of the word) those who have inseparably attached themselves to the badness.

20 How thankful we are that God

helps us so that we are not overreached

by Satan! By means of His spirit, Word,

and organization, Jehovah delivers us

“from the wicked one.” (Matt. 6:13) In

the following article, we will learn how

to avoid two more traps that the Devil

has found to be effective in catching

God’s servants alive.

COMMENTS

The WT trinity:

His spirit, Word, and organization

*** w103/15 p.18 par.17***

Through God’s Word and his spirit-directed organization, holy spirit will move you in the right direction.

*** w09 4/15 p.8 par.3***

Today, Jehovah does this by means of his Word, his organization, and his holy spirit.

*** w08 7/15 p.28 par.7***

In principle, this verse tells us that Jehovah adequately qualifies Christians for the ministry by his Word, his holy spirit, and the earthly part of his organization.

Where’s Jesus?

PICTURE: You can shed the burden of excessive guilt

CONCLUDING COMMENTS

Next week, STAND FIRM AND AVOID SATAN’S TRAPS!

The biggest trap = WTS

Love, Blondie

WTWizard

Here they go again, blaspheming Father Satan. Rather than ensnaring mankind, Satan wanted to free us from the bondage of slavery to Jehovah. I would hardly call that "a trap". Of course, the perpetrator of such a grand injustice would view Satan's attempt to free us from such tyranny as "a trap".

Turning the other cheek isn't always the wise thing to do. A mistake is one thing. But, when someone intentionally tries to ruin your life, you are doing everyone a disfavor by turning the other cheek. They bind your soul for eternity, they use guilt and shame to strip you of material things that are good, they make you waste assets with stupid rules or by keeping you out in field circus beyond reasonable and prudent limits, and they always take the strict interpretation and bind you forever to that interpretation. This is no mere mistake or slip-up! THOSE SCUMBAGS DESERVE BLACK MAGICK USED ON THEM! If they start experiencing bad luck or become terribly sick or destitute, they will be hampered in their ability to do it to someone else. Turn the other cheek, and before long they are doing the same thing to everyone they can.

And what about when you do something that is "a conscience matter" (listening to real music), and your teacher goes to the hounders to get a mob effect to guilt you out of it? When I was going in, my "teacher" did just that. When I wouldn't throw away all my music, he simply went to the hounders and had them collude to guilt me into just listening to kingdumb sxxx. Now, had he suddenly got evicted from his apartment with a loss of job (and having future work falling through on him) immediately after doing this, he would think twice before doing that to someone else. If he continued binding me to the strictest interpretation or damning my soul, he would have to worry about being homeless with nothing more than his underwear, or getting extremely sick, or both. And that would make him think twice before doing that rubbish on someone else--knowing it's bad luck to gang up on people to impose more guilt is a deterrent to anyone who might pull that crap. More so than a washtowel article that will probably be forgotten in the next week or so, as it's right back to guilt trips as usual.

Perhaps Satan would have done better "Beware of Jehovah's Snares". It would have been far more accurate.

JW GoneBad

The very first sentence of paragraph 1 states:

‘The Devil stalks Jehovah’s servants.’

Yah, like the Devil doesn’t have anything better to do with his time.

The JWs wish they could blame the Devil for all their problems. The truth of the matter is that JWs bring all their problems on themselves.

JWs would be better off if they cut themselves loose from the control of the WTBTS!

ÁrbolesdeArabia

The devil is smarter than this, using military strategies (we assume the Devil knows War well) you wound a soldier that costs more manpower. In Afghanistan if a "sniper" is able to shot the Taliban's knee cap off, this drains the forces of two to three fighters as they tend to their injured.

The "writing department" needs new help, they lost their touch years ago. Is it me, or does anyone else notice the dumbing down of the magazines?

nancy drew

That article is ridiculous. There's a monster under your bed or in your closet and he's after you.

Ding

"Yet, when the elders appointed to examine the case determine, in line with Jehovah’s direction, that a repentant sinner ought to be readmitted to the congregation, it indicates that he has been forgiven by Jehovah."

Now the elders can decide or discern whether or not a person has been forgiven by Jehovah???

Notice that it's assumed that the elders' decisions are "in line with Jehovah's direction."

This assumption is quite a leap, given that after 130 years the GB supposedly is only now getting the "correct" understanding of who the "faithful and discreet slave" really is. And even that is subject to change on a moment's notice.

DesirousOfChange

Is it me, or does anyone else notice the dumbing down of the magazines?

THAT is their audience. Thus, the new Simplified Version.

Doc

jgnat

Note the qualifying term, "excessive" guilt. The WTS is not above putting guilt on it's members, as you so wonderfully illustrate, to "do more".

One of the teachings in my church is to distinguish between condemnation and conviction. Conviction comes from God, and condemnation from, well, the other place.

Condemnation separates you from God as you do not feel worthy, separating you from the place of healing, restoration. Condemnation is always wrong. I have met so many Witnesses who do not feel worthy, that they have fallen short of the mark. This includes anyone who had the audacity, say, to marry a non-witness.

Such arrogance, on part of the WTS, to condemn large swaths of their congregation, because they feel that they could "do more".

Quarterback

As usual, Blondie, job well done.

QB

Quarterback

As usual, Blondie, job well done.

QB

Blondie's Comments You Will Not Hear at the 10-14-2012 WT Study (BEWARE)

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