Topics Started by Ding
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169
Rich Man and Lazarus
by Ding ini have never understood the watchtower's explanation of the rich man and lazarus story jesus told in luke 16. of course, they don't believe jesus is talking about what happens in an "afterlife" after people die.. but from the watchtower's point of view:.
1. who are the five brothers?.
2. why can't lazarus go witness to them?
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123
1969 "fact": You will never grow old in this present system of things
by Ding inawake!
"if you are a young person, you also need to face the fact that you will never grow old in this present system of things.
because all the evidence in fulfillment of bible prophecy indicates that this corrupt system is due to end in a few years... therefore, as a young person, you will never fulfill any career that this system offers.
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69
Is Annihilation of the Unrepentant Wicked Justice?
by Ding inwe all understand the justice argument against hell: the idea that god might decide that a wicked person's sins merit everlasting conscious punishment offends our sense of justice.. do even hitler's sins merit never-ending conscious punishment for all eternity?.
we know that the wtbts takes an annihilationist view of the "everlasting" punishment described by the bible.. they teach that there is no separate "soul" or "spirit" that survives physical death and that the ultimate fate of the unrepentant wicked is annihilation by jehovah.. let's assume for the sake of argument that they are right.. is this justice?.
over the years, the wtbts has flip-flopped on whether or not these wicked people will be resurrected for purposes of judgment or whether they simply will remain dead with no hope of any sort of resurrection.. let's look at various possibilities.
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63
1947 Awake Says Excommunication is Unbiblical and Pagan!
by Ding injanuary 8, 1947 awake!:.
excommunication is "altogether foreign to biblical teachings.".
it's an unbiblical roman catholic teaching by which "you are looked upon with the blackest contempt... being cursed and damned with the devil and his angels.".
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52
How Much of the WT Teaching Did You Believe?
by Ding insome people on this forum have said that they never really believed any aspect of wt teaching, that they couldn't wait to get free of it all.. others seems to have been really gung ho, believing it all until something happened that got you questioning "the truth.".
i would say my own high water mark was about 50%, which put me squarely on the fence, trying to decide if i should be in or out.. how about you?.
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45
New Light on the 144,000?
by Ding insomeone on facebook is claiming to have reliable information that the gb is about to announce new light on the 144,000 -- that it's symbolic, not literal.. one person suggested that they will retain the two-class teaching and just change the meaning of 144,000. his idea was that the change would avoid three problems with the current teaching:.
1. embarrassment over more and more partakers at the memorial when the number should be getting less and less.. 2. embarrassment over 12 symbolic 12,000s somehow equaling a literal 144,000.. 3. solving the problem of running out of "anointed" ones who are old enough to be on the gb.. thoughts?.
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42
Why Are More JWs Claiming to be Anointed?
by Ding inmost jws i know claim they are happy being in the great crowd.
they'd rather live on a paradise earth and pet lions than go to heaven.. heaven is a place they can't relate to, a place where they don't expect their friends and loved ones to be.. so why are more and more jws claiming to be of the anointed?.
aren't they looked down upon as if they are crazy, proud, ignorant, or engaging in apostate thinking?.
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37
You're Never Good Enough
by Ding ini've talked with a number of jws who have commented that they feel like failures -- that they're never good enough.. if that resonates with someone reading this post, please realize that you are by no means the only one who feels like that.. in fact, the whole wt system depends on keeping jws feeling that way.
the gb wants you to feel that way.. think about it.
you are always reading or hearing about someone who puts in an extraordinary number of hours in field service or someone who goes out more than you do despite having twice as many challenges and responsibilities.
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32
The phrase "one of Jehovah's Witnesses"
by Ding injws don't say, "i am a jehovah's witness.".
instead, they say, "i am one of jehovah's witnesses.".
what does the second way of saying it convey that the first does not?.
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31
Watchtower's Jesus = Michael doctrine
by Ding ini've never really understood the watchtower's teaching on jesus being michael.
here is what i understand they teach:.
1. jehovah's first creation was the archangel michael.. 2. jesus was nothing more than a perfect man, not michael the archangel in human form.. 3. rather, when jesus was conceived in mary, michael went out of existence and his impersonal life force was put into jesus (analogous to sharing the same pacemaker).. 4. when jesus died, his impersonal life force went back into a recreated archangel michael.. .