COMMENTS YOU WILL NOT HEAR AT THE 8-24-03 WT STUDY Reviewer comments are in black and parentheses ()
WT article quotes are in
red and quotes ""Quotes from other WT publications are in
dark blue
DO YOU HAVE"A WAITING ATTITUDE"?
"What sort of persons ought you to be in holy acts of conduct and deeds of godly devotion, awaiting and keeping close in mind the presence of the day of Jehovah!'-- -2 PETER 3:11, 12. 2 Peter 3 (MSG)11 Since everything here today might well be gone tomorrow, do you see how essential it is to live a holy life? 12 Daily expect the Day of God, eager for its arrival. The galaxies will burn up and the elements melt down that day—
Opening Comments:
I had certain expectations when I read the title of this article. I remembered an article in 9/1/00 "Show A Waiting Attitude" which addressed the fact that the end had not come yet where the elderly are told not to lose hope that the end will come in their lifetime, not to slowdown in the preaching, and it is only apostates who are unwilling to wait.
But this is not the focus this time. This is a bait and switch. JWs are going to be flogged and told that they are drifting into bad behavior because the end has not come yet.
How often have JWs been advised to "wait" on God? But as JWs continue to wait for the end (1879 to 2003 = 124 years) to come, five areas start to sag.
Not being holy in conduct = too much immorality
Not enough "deeds" of godly devotion = slow down in preaching
Outward spots = Not looking good to the world (child abuse issues?)
Blemished = Inward support for WTS starting to wane
Not in peace = After waiting for so long, the faithful are fighting more than ever among themselves
START OF ARTICLE
The first paragraph has a lame illustration. Can you think of something in your life that you eagerly waited for?
Was it a phone call letting you know you bagged that job?
Was it a letter from a loved one far away?
Was it the first ripe tomato from your garden?
Was it the return of a spouse after being gone on a month-long business trip?
(Put your own here)
But instead the WTS offers this chauvinistic view of the ideal family.
PICTURE in your mind a family that is expecting guests for dinner. The set time for their arrival is rapidly approaching. The wife is busy putting the finishing touches on the meal. Her husband and their children are helping to make sure that everything is" in order. Yes, the whole family is eagerly awaiting the arrival of the guests and is looking forward to a delicious meal and fine fellowship.
(probably because no one ever offers hospitality to them at the KH)As Christians, we
(remember only JWs are genuine or real Christians) are waiting for something even more important.9/15/93 WT
9/15 p. 20Today, the clergy of Christendom portray themselves as shepherds of the so-called Christian congregation.
6/15/92 WT
p. 4However, many of the 3,500,000,000 non-Christians of the world (twice the number of so-called Christians) find the idea of a ransom very difficult to grasp.
For what? Why, all of us are waiting for "the day of Jehovah"! Until it arrives, we need to be like the prophet Micah, who said: "It is for Jehovah that I shall keep on the lookout I will show a waiting attitude for the God of my salvation." (Micah 7:7)
But does waiting mean doing nothing? No because the WTS is a performance-based organization.
Does that imply inactivity? No. There is much work to be done.
And we know what that is, preaching, preaching, preaching.
The apostle Peter helps us to have the proper
attitude while waiting.Yes, we must have the proper attitude
as molded by the WTS.9/1/00 WT
p. 7Jesus demonstrated a proper attitude in other ways. He never expressed impatience with Jehovah but patiently waited for the outworking of His purposes
However, if we wish Jehovah to reveal to us the proper attitude, we must do our part. Prayerful study of God’s Word with the help of Christian publications
provided by "the faithful and discreet slave" will enable those "mentally inclined otherwise" to develop a proper attitudeKingdom Ministry 9/00
p. 1However, it is also true that the life prospects of earth’s billions depend upon their attitude toward Jehovah God and his Kingdom by Jesus Christ. A proper attitude can be based only on "accurate knowledge of truth."
The Greek word here rendered "keeping close in mind" literally means "speeding up." Of course, we cannot literally ‘speed up’ the day of Jehovah. For that matter, we "know neither the day nor the hour" when Jesus Christ will come to execute judgment upon his Father's enemies.
(1874, 1914, 1925, 1975) . (see http://quotes.jehovahswitnesses.com/ for quotes on these dates)With "the great and fear-inspiring day of Jehovah" now so near
, we should have the same mental attitude.Yes in their day 1914, 1925, 1975 were also "now so near" and it is 28 years after 1975.
Wait With "Holy Acts of Conduct"
If we are "ardently desiring" to survive Jehovah's day, we will make that evident by our "holy acts of conduct and deeds
of godly devotion."Again the WTS is a performance-based organization. Salvation can be gained only through works (acts and deeds). For an overview of this topic and a book you might want to read see http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/3658/subtle.html.
To be holy, we must maintain physical, mental, moral, and spiritual cleanness.
It is not easy today to maintain such purity because the moral standards of the world are steadily deteriorating.
While the WTS concentrates on haircuts, facial hair, color of shoes, ties and suit jackets, it sidesteps the truly moral issues of physical and sexual abuse of women and children.
Are we finding the gap between our moral standards and those of the world widening?
Could it be that our personal standards, though higher than those of the world, are eroding?
And what is this all leading up to? With the advent of pornography on the Internet and because of the privacy in which it is available, (how is that possible if they believe God sees everything; are they worshipping men or God?) some who once had no access to immoral material are now finding" an infinite supply of sexual opportunities," says one medical doctor. If we were to seek out (that’s right sometimes they just pop-up unbidden, not!) such unclean Internet sites, we would certainly be ignoring the Bible’s command to "touch nothing unclean." The talks at the assemblies and conventions must not be working. And why should it when too many people at the hall are doing things for the eyes of men. not by way of eye-service as men pleasers, but as Christ’s slaves, doing the will of God whole-souled. 7 Be slaves with good inclinations, as to Jehovah, and not to men, (Ephesians 6:6,7) not with acts of eye-service, as men pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, with fear of Jehovah. 23 Whatever YOU are doing, work at it whole-souled as to Jehovah, and not to men, (Colossians 3:22,23) Or might we be mentally postponing that day, reasoning that even if we are polluting our mind with filthy material, we still have time to clean ourselves? Now haven’t we heard that before, postponing God’s day to do bad thinking we have time to get back in, holding off baptism is one issue this is applied to. The vast majority of Jehovah's Witnesses, young and old, are sticking to God's high moral standards and avoiding this world's immoral enticements. That they know of. How many are living double lives even at Bethel?Wait With "Deeds of Godly Devotion" So, then, should not our godly devotion stimulate us to intensify our efforts to help people to learn about Jehovah and imitate him? Translation: You’re not going out in the field ministry enough….and that means you are materialistic. Our life will abound with deeds of godly devotion if we seek God's Kingdom first. (Matthew 6:33) This involves our having a balanced view of material things.Although it may be hard to picture ourselves becoming blinded by the love of money, we do well to note that "the anxiety of this system of things and the deceptive power of riches" can "choke the word" of God. (Matthew 13:22) It may not be easy to make a living. In some parts of the world, many therefore reason that to live a better life, they have to move to a more affluent land, perhaps leaving their family behind for years at a time. Even some of God's people have reasoned in this way. By going to another land, they may be able to supply their family with modern conveniences. However, what may happen to the spiritual state of their loved ones back home? Without the exercise of proper headship in the home, will they have the spirituality needed to survive Jehovah's day?A migrant worker from the Philippines learned Bible truth from Jehovah's Witnesses in Japan. Upon learning about the Scriptural responsibilities of headship, he realized that he needed to help his family to become worshipers of Jehovah. (1 Corinthians 11:3) His wife back home strongly opposed his newly found faith and wanted him to keep sending money instead of returning home to teach the family his Bible-based beliefs. Spurred on by the urgency of the times and concern for his loved ones, however, he went home. His patience in lovingly dealing with family members was rewarded. In time, his family became united in true worship, and his wife entered the full-time ministry.Our situation might be likened to that of individuals in a burning building. Would it be wise to run around frantically in order to retrieve material things from the blazing structure that is about to collapse? (no Lot’s wife story?) Instead, would it not be far more important to save lives--our own and those of our family and others occupying the building ( notice what order they put this in: yourself, your family and then others )?
Well, this wicked system of things is rapidly heading for its collapse, and lives are at stake.Yes, the end is near as this system "rapidly" heads to its collapse which has been predicted since 1879, 124 years ago.
We Need to Be "Spotless" Emphasizing the importance of maintaining a waiting attitude,This requires that a person exercise faith in Jesus' sacrifice and become a dedicated and baptized servant of Jehovah. (yes, people must be dedicated and baptized JWs to survive the coming day of Jehovah)Are we keeping our garments of Christian conduct and personality spotless, not tainted by the world? When we notice a spot on our clothes, we immediately try to remove it. If a favorite garment is involved, we are especially meticulous about cleaning it. Do we feel the same way if our Christian garments become stained, as it were, because of some flaw in our personality or conduct? (Of course, if an elder has a flaw in his personality or conduct pointed out to him, he will say, "we’ll only imperfect men.") As Jehovah's present-day servants, we stand out as different from the world because we observe divine laws and principles. (when I went to high school an elder’s daughter was pregnant at 15, an elder’s son ended up in rehab…) For instance, we maintain moral cleanness, we respect the sanctity of blood, and we avoid idolatry of all sorts. (Except the idolatry of self practiced by child molesters)We Need to Be "Unblemished" A blemish indicates that something on the inside is wrong, at fault.Keep doing all things free from murmurings and arguments, that you may come to be blameless and innocent, children of God without a blemish. (Philippians 2:14, 15) serve God out of a pure motive .Is it a pure motive when children are sacrificed to maintain the "good" reputation of the WTS?
Moreover, we will continue to proclaim the good news even though people in general may not comprehend why we volunteer our time in an effort to help others to learn about God and his Word, the Bible. (publications!!!)They don’t comprehend why JWs are at their door and don’t know after they leave. After years of preaching, people think of the WTS as a group that doesn’t celebrate birthdays and the holidays, don’t salute the flag and don’t take blood transfusions. Where is the kingdom of God and Jesus in that?
Desirous of being found "unblemished," we do well to examine our motives in all our pursuits. We have left the world's way of doing things for selfish reasons, such as striving to obtain riches or power. If we are reaching out for privileges in the Christian congregation, may our motives remain pure and may we always be motivated by love for Jehovah and for others.It is refreshing to see spiritual men "reaching out for an office of overseer" with joy and a humble desire to slave for Jehovah and their fellow believers.You can take time out now for a vomit moment.
Indeed, those qualified to serve as elders "shepherd the flock of God... willingly; neither for love of dishonest gain, but eagerly; neither as lording it over those who are God's inheritance, but becoming examples to the flock."Does that sound like a description of the elders you know or do they do only the minimum because they either are loaded down with personal and family responsibilities, have no real love for people, or enjoy having power over others even if they have "good intentions."
We Need To Be "in Peace" In order to live up to this requirement, we need to be at peace with Jehovah and our neighbor. Peter emphasizes the importance of having "intense love for one another" and of maintaining peace with our fellow Christians.Can you think of long-term feuds in your congregation? Elders and their families that have nothing to do with other elders and their families? Sisters or brothers that can’t be put in the same book study or car group?
To maintain our peace, we must have love among ourselves. (John 13:34, 35; Ephesians 4:1, 2) Our love and peace are particularly evident when our international conventions are held.At a convention in Costa Rica in 1999, a vendor at the airport became upset because the local Witnesses welcoming arriving delegates inadvertently limited the visibility of his business place. On the second day, however, he noticed the love and peace demonstrated in the enthusiastic welcome that the delegates received, though the local Witnesses did not know them personally. On the final day, the vendor joined in the welcome and requested a Bible study.But it doesn’t say that he progressed to baptism. If he had he would have found that the local Witnesses don’t greet the people they "know" personally at the KH.
Our sincerity in pursuing peace with our spiritual brothers and sisters may well have a bearing on how earnestly we are awaiting Jehovah's day and his promised new world. (Psalm 37:11; 2 Peter 3:13) Suppose we find it difficult to maintain peace with a certain fellow believer. Can we see ourselves dwelling with him peacefully in Paradise? If a brother has something against us, we should promptly 'make our peace with him.'Yes here is the true motive for making peace with your brother. You won’t get into Paradise unless you do.
And our expectation of living in the peaceful new world is reflected in our pursuit of peace with our fellow worshipers now. Concluding CommentsNot much new here, just being flogged with the same stick. But what it does show is that the rank and file are getting tired of waiting and are starting to slow down in the preaching and finding enjoyment in day to day. Personally, I am not an advocate of pornography in any form. But JWs are kept so busy in unfruitful study of WTS publications at meetings, not the Bible, empty hours trying to place WTS publications rather than preaching the message Jesus preached, they have no time for relaxation to relieve the stress of living in a challenging world. It is not surprising that they peck at each other at the KH and have to hope for peace until the new world.
Finally, I have always had my own "waiting philosophy." Imagine 2 people waiting at the bus stop. One is always getting up and looking down the street, then looking at their watch, then sitting down; then getting up and looking down the street, then looking their watch. The other is sitting and reading a book, then eating their lunch, then pulls out some knitting as they wait.
The first person spends all their time anxiously waiting, tied to a watch, accomplishing nothing. The other person just continues to live life, not putting things on hold. But both are waiting.
The mistake that the WTS has made is telling people they will see the end in their lifetime. Better to be like Abraham
Hebrews 11 (NLT)13 All these faithful ones died without receiving what God had promised them , but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed the promises of God. They agreed that they were no more than foreigners and nomads here on earth.
Blondie