COMMENTS YOU NOT HEAR AT THE 2-9-03 WT STUDY
JANUARY 1, 2003 PAGE 8
NOW MORE THAN EVER, STAY AWAKE!
1 Thessalonians 5 (AMP)
6 Accordingly then, let us not sleep, as the rest do, but let us keep wide awake (alert, watchful, cautious, and on our guard) and let us be sober (calm, collected, and circumspect).
And who would the rest be? Other Christians, non-Christians? In 1981 there was a detailed study article about this scripture in the year of the "apostate conspiracy" at Bethel and the fallout thereafter. The theme is much the same now. The WTS views the revelations about the UN and child abuse as tools of the apostate conspiracy in the year 2003. A housecleaning is underway with the visits to the inactive. But who needs to be adjusted, who is really sleeping? Who has really left the teachings of the scriptures and substituted their own?
*** w81 11/15 16-17 'Stay Awake and Keep Your Senses' ***
Any person who wants to survive into Gods righteous new order urgently needsto come into a right relationship with Jehovah and His earthly organizationnow.
Too, Gods servants have full confidence that he will keep his organization well informed, so that they can take the proper steps for survival. (Translation: God directly communicates with the WTS/FDS/GB).
Introductory Paragraphs
This section highlights two disasters. One natural, a volcanic eruption. The other manmade, the destruction of a people.
The first is not a prophetic event.
The WTS emphasizes the depravity of the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum by giving us the count of "118 bars and taverns some of which served as houses of gambling or prostitution. Immorality and materialism were rampant."
Materialism is the hobbyhorse at the assemblies, conventions, and CO talks to the congregation in 2002 and 2003. We are all self-serving materialists, based on their tirades about it. So here immorality carries the same weight as materialism. Good thing we cant be DFd for materialism, at least not yet.
The inhabitants of the cities had a chance to escape after the first explosion and many did but some chose to stay and died because of the superheated gases (much like those who did not leave Mount St Helens when it blew).
THE END OF THE JEWISH SYSTEM OF THINGS**This was a manmade catastrophe that led to the death of over 1,000,000 Jews (97,000 survived). But they had warning (but not an obvious explosion like the 2 previous cities).
Jesus told the Christians living in Jerusalem that when they saw the city surrounded by encamped armies to flee to the mountains. The armies came, left, the Christians fled, the Jews came for the Passover and were trapped in Jerusalem by the returning Roman army.
Fine and good. Yes, heed warnings from the natural world around you or die. Heed warnings from Jesus or die.
TIMELY APOSTOLIC WARNINGSMark 13:33 is quoted: "Keep looking, keep awake, for you do not know when the appointed time is." Unless you are the WTS organization, then you can say 1914, 1925, 1975, 1994.
And what is behind all this materialism in the organization?
Doubts can weaken our sense of urgency, influencing us to drift toward self-indulgence.Remember the flood (Remember the Alamo).
Peter helps his readers to cultivate patience.Since Jehovah lives forever, he can take all factors into consideration and choose the best possible time to act.My personal silly speculation is 2034, 120 years after 1914 because of this verse in Genesis.
Genesis 6:33 after that Jehovah said: "My spirit shall not act toward man indefinitely in that he is also flesh. Accordingly his days shall amount to a hundred and twenty years."
Its just a joke, folks. Im not serious. But the WTS has been telling people that it is just around the corner. Now the WTS is setting the scene for it to be a long time in the future.
According to the WTS, Christians must stay busy in acts and deeds. Deeds = salvation.
We cannot change Jehovahs timetable. His day will come at his appointed hour.Imagine you are waiting for the train. The station manager says the train will come at 19:14, then 19:25, then 19:75, and then 19:94. Whose timetable is faulty? Who has been trying to change Gods timetable?
But take heart.
The time from now until then will seem to pass much more quickly if we are busy in his service. A regular study of Gods Word (translation: WTS publications) and regular association with our brothers at the meetings (all five, weekly) will help us to follow Pauls counsel and to keep our sense of urgency.Yes, stay in a constant state of urgency. Sounds like holding your urine until you positively burst.
MILLIONS KEEP ON THE WATCH (MILLIONS WILL NEVER DIE, oh thats another story)Yes, God is blessing us with an increase of 3.1% and over 6,300,000 gave proof of being spiritually alert by spending 1,202,381,302 hours (I wonder how many are true hours?) talking to others about Gods Kingdom.
This months magazine sermons themes in the Kingdom Manifesto from the WTS: Is there a personal God? Did God mean children to suffer malnutrition? How can we be happy but persecuted? Wouldnt you agree that despite lifes problems, we have reason to be thankful?
Do you see Gods kingdom mentioned? Notice how "Jehovah" is carefully avoided in the introductions.
To highlight the scourge of materialism, a life experience is given. Highlights are, "simplified their lives and entered the full-time pioneer ministry," "shared in the circuit and district work," "sacrificed material comfort," "self-sacrificing spirit."
A second is added for emphasis. "Serving as a ministerial servant. But I cannot tell the brothers to pioneer while I am not setting a good example myself. So I have left a well-paying job (no one ever leaves a crappy job it seems) and am not self-employed (window cleaning?)."
Another buzzword for materialism is "distractions" or "distracted."
A LESSON FROM LOT (DO NOT HAVE SEX WITH YOUR GROWN DAUGHTERS, whoops that is another story) Even faithful servants of God can momentarily lose their sense of urgency. Think of Abrahams nephew Lot.Kept lingering, angels had to drag him.
THE END of the articleOver the years the warning from the WTS has changed substantially. First it will end in 1914. 1914 comes and goes and it is adjusted to 1915. Eventually 1925, then 1975, then 1994. Always any time now. What can a person do that really wants to serve God? What does it matter when the end comes. Did Abraham think the fulfillment of the promise was coming in his lifetime?
Hebrews 11 (NIV)13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.
Next week, "Keep on the Watch," has such highlights from the WTS as "there are things that we do not yet know" and how false alarms about the day of Jehovah did not make the early Christians abandon the faith.
