witchtower: september 1, 2010 - the greek gods and jehovah

8/20/2019 Witchtower: September 1, 2010 - The Greek Gods and Jehovah

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The Witchtower 09/2010 1

THE

S E P T E M BE R 1 , 2 0 1 0

Exposing Jehovah’s Witnesses


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The Witchtower Downloadable in 194 countries

3 The Resurrection – A Strong Hope

4 Become More Effective in the Field Ministry

6 Bearing Children in a Dangerous World

12 Scriptural Questions Answered (2)

16 The Greek Gods and Jehovah

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“ Everything Jehovah has made for his purpose, yes, even the wicked one .” – Proverbs 16:4

The resurrection is a central element of

Christian doctrine. The apostle Paul knew: “Ifthe dead are not to be raised up … we [Chris-

tians] are of all men most to be pitied.” (1 Corin-

thians 15:16, 19) Who will be resurrected, when,

and why?

Paul pointed out “that there is going to be a

resurrection of both the righteous and the un-

righteous.” (Acts 24:15) Among “the righteous”

there will be “faithful men and women of old …

[and] those righteous other sheep who died

faithful to Jehovah in modern times. Likely, all

such integrity keepers will be resurrected early

in Jesus‟ Millennial Reign.” – Revelation – Its

Grand Climax at Hand! , page 297.

That means that for some time after Arma-

geddon, only the Jehovah‟s Witnesses who sur-

vived or died before Armageddon along with the

faithful ones of old will live on earth. For the

resurrected ones “death will be no more,” and

throughout the earth there will neither “mourn-

ing nor outcry nor pain be anymore.” – Revela-

tion 21:4.

These paradiselike conditions will not persist

though. Wise Solomon wrote “that everything

that the true God makes, it will prove to be to

time indefinite.” (Ecclesiastes 3:14) And “every-

thing Jehovah has made for his purpose, yes,

even the wicked one.” (Proverbs 16:4) Hence the

earth cannot remain without wicked ones forev-

er, but “even the wicked one” must “prove to be

to time indefinite.” Accordingly the book Revela-

tion – Its Grand Climax at Hand! continues toexplain: “Who, though, are „the unrighteous‟

mentioned at Acts 24:15? These would include

the great masses of mankind who have died

throughout history.” (page 297) These people –

among them murderers, predators, extortionists

and other criminals – have paid for their sins

with Adamic death and will eventually be resur-

rected. – Romans 6:23.

Then, at the latest, peace will be gone in th

new world, since the resurrected ones will “persist with the same personality and ways tha

they had before their death.” (The Watchtower

August 15, 1989, page 6) It is possible that res

urrected murderers will immediately start t

murder other resurrected ones, so that Jehovah

will have to resurrect them again at anothe

location – that may explain why the resurrec

tion will take thousand years.

In his wisdom Jehovah foresaw this deve

opment; regarding „mourning and outcry an

pain‟ he foretold: “The former things havpassed away … Look! I am making all [these

things new.” (Revelation 21:4, 5) In actual fact

the resurrected villains will help to fulfill Jeho

vah‟s purpose by bringing „mourning, outcry an

pain‟ back to earth.

When the thousand years are over, Jehovah

will perform a last resurrection to round off hi

purpose. The book Light explains “that God ma

preserve Satan‟s body during the thousan

years … and then at the end of that period o

time awaken Satan out of death and resuscitathis body … What could be the purpose of bring

ing Satan out of death? … That he would brin

to life the Devil who had been dead for a thou

sand years; and that for a purpose … Now, be

ing awakened, he would know that he is a liar.

– volume II, pages 207, 208.

Of course, with his death even the devil wi

have paid for his sins. Still, he will be punishe

after his resurrection: “His penalty will be, whe

he comes forth from the tomb in the Times o

Restitution, that he will have to read the Seven Volumes of SCRIPTURE STUDIES.” – The Finishe

Mystery, 1918 edition, page 338.

Then at the latest, the “restoration of a

things” will be complete. (Acts 3:21) The right

eous and the unrighteous, the devil, mourning

outcry, pain and every other creation will prais

God by their existence. Are we not looking for

ward to that time?


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In the resurrection will Solomon remember the names of all 700 of his wives and 300 concubines?

During his lifetime Solomon was “wiser than any other man … and he could speak three thousand pro v

erbs, and his songs came to be a thousand and five.” (1 Kings 4:31, 32) When Solomon could remembe

3000 proverbs and 1005 songs, it surely wouldn‟t be difficult for him to remember 1000 names. Furthermore

maybe some women in his time didn‟t even have a name, like “the wife of Lot” or “the wife of Noah and the

three wives of his sons.” (Luke 17:32; Genesis 7:13) Maybe Solomon called some of his wives simply “wife o

Solomon.”

Solomon “loved many foreign wives … Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian and Hittite women.

(1 Kings 11:1) Based on his life experience, he gave other men the wise counsel: “Rejoice with the wife o

your youth … Why should you … embrace the bosom of a foreign woman?” – Proverbs 5:18, 20.

Jesus showed that the resurrected ones will not marry anyway, but will simply live together with whom

they want. (Mark 12:25; see The Witchtower , January 2009, page 13) Hence it won‟t be too important if Solo

mon can remember every single name or not. Still, during his earthly reign he served as a prototype of “the

Greater Solomon, Jesus Christ.” – The Watchtower , July 1, 1999, page 31.

Jesus has not only 1000 wives but a “bride composed of 144,000 men and women.” (The Watchtowe

February 1, 1975, page 88) Just as Solomon‟s wives, these come “out of all nations.” ( Isaiah’s Prophecy – Ligh

for All Mankind , volume II, page 409) As Solomon had “seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundreconcubines,” we can conclude that only 100,800 anointed ones will be appointed as princes. (1 Kings 11:3

The remaining 43,200 anointed ones form the concubine class; their ass ignment will be to make Jesus‟ lif

pleasant.

ECOME MORE EFFECTIVE

IN THE FIELD MINISTRY

“Let … [the people] not sleep on as the rest do!” (1 Thessalonians 5:6)

In our time, the house-to-house ministry is

often not too successful. When the publishers

drive to their assignments early in the morn-ing, many people are still asleep and do not

open the door; others are busy in their garden

of farmyard and do not even notice that they

miss a lifesaving visit. For this reason, the

Governing Body will implement a new ar-

rangement that was already announced in the

July 15, 2008 Watchtower.

There we read: “What developments are ye

in store for the preaching work? The siege o

Jericho, recorded in the book of Joshua, provides an illustration … Jehovah told Joshua …

[to] „march round the city seven times and th

priests should blow the horns … And it mus

occur that when they sound with the horn …

the wall of the city must fall down flat‟ … It i

possible that there will be a similar expansion

of our preaching activity.” – pages 6, 7.


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Honking

Most of us drive with their cars into the ter-

ritory, so we have our horns with us. Referring

to Joshua‟s strategy, we should drive round the

territory seven times, honking with our car

horns, before we start our witnessing. If we

have multiple cars, all should take part.

Particularly early in the morning, this is a

very effective method to catch attention. We

could even start our ministry one or two hours

earlier without encountering too many sleeping

homeowners.

If the territory is large, we could repeat the

honking tour in every street. This way we can

find people who may have fallen asleep again

after our original honking and now “sleep on as

the rest do.” (1 Thessalonians 5:6) Of course wedo not expect the walls to fall down, as hap-

pened in Joshua‟s day. But in a transferred

sense that will be the case – more people will

open their doors, so that their walls cannot

protect them from the good news anymore.

Before we start our ministry, we should wake up the

homeowners by driving honking round the territory

If we honk the homeowners out of their sleep, they will likely

refuse the kingdom message – then Jehovah will have reason

to kill them and there will be more space in paradise for us

Destruction

At the siege of Jericho, not the inhabitant

salvation had priority but their annihilation

Only “Rahab the prostitute” stayed alive

likely because the Israelite warriors still want

ed to call on her services. (Joshua 6:24, 25

Likewise, Jehovah does not plan to save al

humans of today; otherwise there wouldn‟t b

enough space for his worshippers in paradise

Rather he wants to “make an exterminationindeed a terrible one, of all the inhabitants o

the earth.” – Zephaniah 1:18.

To give Jehovah reason to annihilate th

people in our territory, we must bring them th

good news. Startling the people out of thei

sleep early in the morning and then instantl

bringing them the kingdom message is a per

fect approach to achieve this goal – the peopl

get the opportunity to choose Jehovah, but it i

extremely unlikely that someone will do so inthat situation. This way, Jehovah‟s purpos

can be fulfilled, and paradise “earth [will] hav

space enough to accommodate all” remainin

people. – Awake! , January 22, 1971, page 31.


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“T hey did not leave children behind, but died.” – Luke 20:31.

Even back in Biblical times, women bore

children. (Genesis 4:1, 17, 18, 20; 5:3, 6, 9, 12,

15, 19, 21, 25, 28, 32) But only because some-

thing is widespread, it must not necessarily be

right. What does the Bible say about the ques-

tion whether women should bear children? And

if someone has children, how should he bring

them up?

Evidence suggests bearing children is ac-

ceptable to God. After all, he himself instructed

Adam and Eve: “Be fruitful and become many.”

(Genesis 1:28) This is a divine commandment.Some Christians even believe that everyone

who is capable is obliged to follow this instruc-

tion, even if he is not married.

Who Are Qualified as Mothers?

Granted, “f ornication can … result in an

unwanted pregnancy.” (The Watchtower, Octo-

ber 1, 1971, page 594) But considering the

command from Genesis 1:28, it would indeed

be a sin not to want pregnancy. According to a

Xinhua report from 1997, “most youths usecontraceptives.” Such “fornicators … will [not]

inherit God‟s kingdom.” – 1 Corinthians 6:9, 10.

The apostle Paul who warned about this

form of fornication knew that increase is im-

portant for the congregation‟s existence. That‟s

why he wrote: “Therefore I desire the younger

widows … to bear children.” (1 Timothy 5:14)

To the present day, the lion‟s share of the

worldwide increase is produced in this way.

Do you offer your

child as “a sacrifice

of praise” to Jehovah?

Family Life That Tires the HeartGod instructed Abraham: “Take, please

your son … and make a trip to the land of Mo

riah and there offer him up as a burnt offerin

on one of the mountains.” (Genesis 22:2) O

course, Christians today do not offer their chil

dren “as a burnt offering” but rather as “a sac

rifice of praise.” (Hebrews 13:15) Instead o

going into the ministry themselves, they repor

the Bible Study with their children and sen

these into the house-to-house ministry. – Ou

Kingdom Ministry, September 2008, page 3.

Certainly Jehovah‟s Witnesses do not offe

their children “on [any]one of the mountains

but on “the mountain of the house of Jehovah

(2 Chronicles 33:15) They withhold from them

“education beyond what is required by law

(The Watchtower, December 1, 1996, page 19

That their children walk “upon the mountain

… bringing good news” is important to them, no

that they get reasonable vocational training

– Isaiah 52:7.

The sociologist “spacedrummer” wrote in comment to the TV program Panorama: “Wha

do you think how many people get children onl

for the child benefit?” Even though thi

shouldn‟t be the major reason for Christia

women to bear children, God‟s word clearly say

that “money is for a protection.” (Ecclesiaste

7:12) Indeed, generous donations can help

Christian to gain the elder‟s approval, for exam

ple when he is heading for a judicial committee.

Father, Mother and Child –

Are They Part of a Trinity?Wise King Solomon mentioned another rea

son why it is good to have children: “Two ar

better than one … If two lie down together

they also will certainly get warm; but how can

just one keep warm? … And a threefold cor

cannot quickly be torn in two. Better is a need

but wise child than an old but stupid” husband

– Ecclesiastes 4:9, 11-13.


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In fact, “a threefold cord” – a family with a

child – “cannot quickly be torn in two.” The

Awake! issue of December 8, 1997 describes the

experience of many Jehovah‟s Witnesses: “Un-

happily married parents usually stayed togeth-

er for the sake of the children.” (page 3) And

even if a couple gets separated, they usually

continue to have some contact with each otherbecause of the children.

According to The Times, “women always feel

colder than men.” (November 8, 2008) But in

most cases, a child stays with its mother after

a divorce, and so the two “will certainly get

warm.” Likely that was the reason why a per-

son in Jesus‟ parable said: “My young children

are with me in bed.” – Luke 11:7.

Pregnancy – Proper and Improper

There are, however, few passages in God‟s

word that discourage from getting pregnant.

Jesus said, for example: “Woe to the pregnant

women and those suckling a baby!” (Matthew

24:19) But did he really want to say that preg-

nancy is something bad? He also said: “Woe to

you who are rich ... Woe to you who are well fed

... Woe to you who laugh!” (Luke 6:24, 25, NIV )

And it is not bad to be rich, well fed or laugh-

ing, is it?

The Prophet Jeremiah commented similar

on the issue of childbearing when he men-

tioned the following persons in the same

breath: “The blind and the lame, the pregnant

woman and the one giving birth, all together.”

(Jeremiah 31:8) And the psalmist mentioned

someone “that is pregnant with what is hurt-

ful.” (Psalm 7:14) And in fact children are hurt-

ful; the expert “Haribo” wrote in the publica-

tion Simsforum: “Children break everything.”

Children are related

to pagan ceremonies

Many couples stay together for the sake of the children

Some Christians argue that Children ar

linked to pagan ceremonies. Moses wrote re

garding the Canaanites: “Their sons and thei

daughters they regularly burn in the fire t

their gods.” (Deuteronomy 12:31) Hence child

bearing is closely connected to demon worship.

The psalmist brought up another detai

that is sometimes mentioned to show tha

Christian women should not have children

“Like arrows in the hand of a mighty man, s

are the sons of youth.” (Psalm 127:7) Arrow

are arms, and “true Christians … do not arm

themselves.” ( Awake! , September 22, 1995

page 14) Admittedly, children are no litera

arms made of metal but “weapons” of flesh an

blood. However, “true Christians are no part o

the world; therefore, they do not resort to car

nal weapons.” – Our Kingdom Ministry, De

cember 1994, page 6.

Do You Share God’s

View of Mate Selection?

If a Christian woman decides to have

child, she needs a mate. It is true, 1941 J. F

Rutherford directed a speech especially to chil

dren and youths from 5 to 18 years of age. H

told them to wait until Abraham, Isaac an

Jacob would be resurrected, since these faithfu

men could help them find an appropriate mate


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As we know today, though, these men will

only rise after Armageddon. But then “neither

… outcry nor pain [will] be anymore” – so there

will be no births anymore. (Revelation 21:4)

Does that mean that a Christian woman

should look for a partner by herself?

No. The reference work Your Youth – Get-

ting the Best out of It advises young people: “Ifyou live where dating and courtship are ac-

cepted as normal, the absence of these customs

in certain lands may seem hard to understand.

But people living in those lands may be equally

puzzled by the customs where you live. They

may view dating and courtship as unwise, or

even somewhat offensive. A girl from India

explained to a well-known Western marriage

counselor: „How would we be able to judge the

character of a boy we met and got friendly

with? We are young and inexperienced… It‟s

so important that the man I marry should be

the right one. I could so easily make a mistake

if I had to find him for myself. ‟”

Since Abraham and the other faithful of old

are not available, we could ask our parents, our

grandparents, an elder or the mayor to choose

an appropriate partner for us. If you live in a

country where it is forbidden to have someone

else select a mate for you, you‟ll have to do it by

yourself, if you want or not. But in that case you

should heed the advice from the book Young

People Bask in Their Success: “We should al-ways be aware of the fact that it comes down to

appearance. In ancient Israel, it was only re-

quired to bring the mandatory sacrifices; the

attitude did not matter. Likewise, characteris-

tics only play a minor role in a relationship.

Rather, appearance, bodily charms and appro-

priate dress are really important.” – page 6, see

also box on page 10.

The faithful men

of old could give

good advice for

finding a mate

A myopic man

can hardly be

distracted by

“the desire of

the eyes”

Do You Have the Evangelizing Smell?

Though the Bible is no guidebook for mat

selection, it gives some precious hints wha

worshippers of God should watch out for when

looking for a mate. For example, it says of mos

faithful men of old that they had large flocks o

sheep, goats and cattle. Also in that time therwas no shower and no antiperspirant. We sure

ly can imagine that one could recognize such

faithful men from afar by their smell. Likewis

Christian women of our day should select

partner that can be smelled from a distance.

Something that has destroyed many rela

tionships is “the desire of the eyes.” (1 John

2:16) We can prevent this danger by choosing

mate with poor eyesight. A Christian woman

should ask for an attestation by the ophthal

mologist to make sure that her potential matis immune against “the desire of the eyes.”

Wise Solomon warned: “A report that i

good makes the bones fat.” (Proverbs 15:30

And a fat man is not suitable if you want t

have children. According to Dr. Kamau Kinyen

je, “being overweight can cause hormona

changes that lead to male infertility.” (Sunda

Nation, July 20, 2010) So be careful not t

choose a man with a good field service report.

Children – From What Source? According to Awake! magazine, “som

youths seemingly do not grasp the connection

between sex and pregnancy.” (October 8, 2004

page 5) Indeed, some women think that when

they want to have a child, they only have t

live together with a man, attend the congrega

tion meetings and have a share in the preach

ing work.


9/16


But a Christian woman who wants to be-

come pregnant should by all means heed the

counsel given in the March 2007 Awake! issue:

“Sex is no casual matter to Jehovah God; nei-

ther should it be to you.” (page 29) A couple in

Germany that was raised in a Christian fun-

damentalist organization wanted to have chil-

dren, but they did not get any for a long time.Finally in 2004, after eight years, they contacted

a doctor who suggested giving sex a try. Shortly

thereafter, the woman became pregnant.

Happy Though Pregnant – How Can It Be?

When a Christian woman is pregnant, she

must watch out for certain dangers and avoid

them. The prophet Isaiah provides a hint re-

garding what could cause harm to the child. He

reports of someone who “came into the house of

Jehovah.” (Isaiah 37:1) What were the conse-quences? “This day is a day of distress … and

there is no power to give birth.” (Isaiah 37:3)

Hence pregnant woman should give “the house

of Jehovah” – depicting the modern Kingdom

Halls of Jehovah‟s witnesses – a wide berth.

The mother‟s diet is also of great im-

portance for the well-being of the unborn child.

Jehovah says to women worshipping him: “Y ou

will certainly become pregnant … And now

watch yourself, please, and do not drink wine

or intoxicating liquor, and do not eat anythingunclean.” (Judges 13:3, 4) We must consider

though that the Mosaic Law has been nailed to

the torture stake together with Jesus. (Colos-

sians 2:14) The command “do not drink wine”

has been replaced by “the law of the Christ”

that makes winedrinking the obligation of

every Christian. – Galatians 6:2; 1 Timothy

6:23; John 15:1.

Maintain Your Confidence

Firm to the Birth

The instruction „not to eat anything un-

clean‟ is still valid, however, since Paul wrote:

“God called us, not with allowance for unclean-

ness.” (1 Timothy 4:7) The animals that Chris-

tians may eat under no circumstances include

“the pig … It is unclean for you. You [pregnant

ones] must not eat any of their flesh.” – Leviti-

cus 11:7, 8.

The women are not the only ones who mus

be on the guard against unclean animals. Thei

mates too must heed the following advice: “ An

the hare … she is unclean unto you.” (Leviticu

11:6, ASV ) Interestingly “the hare” is called

“she,” so the statement must refer to a symboli

„hare‟ or a so-called “bunny” – according to Th

Urban Dictionary “a likeable female who is cutand sort of dumb,” often pictured in men‟s mag

azines. If a man would be concerned with such

material, he would be at risk of leaving his mat

even before the birth of his child.

Birth – A Time of Fear or Hope?

In fact, a man has the right to leave his ma

te, but only after the birth of his child. Th

psalmist wrote: “Sons are an inheritance.

(Psalm 127:3) And “within six weeks afte

gaining knowledge of the inheritance, the heican relinquish the inheritance.” (Wikipedia

German edition) Within this time, the fathe

can decide to leave his son to the mother and

go his own way. If he chooses to relinquish hi

inheritance, it is said regarding the children

“They are not his children.” – Deuteronom

32:5.

But usually the fathers decide to stay with

their sons. That‟s why an angel said regarding

woman giving birth to a son: “Y ou will have jo

and great gladness, and many will rejoice ovehis birth.” (Lukas 1:14) However, even back i

Biblical times it could happen that someon

“proved to have, not sons, but daughters

(Joshua 17:3) In such a case, how much tim

does the father have to decide whether he want

to stay with his daughter and the mother?

The Bible doesn‟t say that directly, but i

provides an important hint: “When a woma

gives birth to a boy, she will be unclean for sev

en days ... Then she must stay at home for 3

days … When a woman gives birth to a girl, shwill be unclean … for two weeks. Then she mus

stay at home for 66 days.” (Leviticus 12:1-5

GWT ) The uncleanness after a son‟s birth laste

40 days – almost six weeks. Shortly after tha

period, the father had to make his decision. W

can conclude that the same applied to the birt

of a daughter; that means that in such a cas

the father has twelve weeks to decide.


10/16


Besides, in ancient Israel no unclean person

was allowed to “come into the congregation of

Jehovah.” (Deuteronomy 23:1, 2) Hence parents

are not allowed to enter a Kingdom Hall within

six resp. twelve weeks after a birth.

Parents – Are You Feeding

With the Right Materials?

The apostle Paul told his spiritual children:

“I fed you milk, not something to eat.” (1 Corin-

thians 3:2) Accordingly parents have the obli-

gation to feed their children milk. They have to

be careful though, for God said to a child of

god-fearing parents: “ You will drink milk from

other nations.” – Isaiah 60:16, GWT .

Due to international food labeling regula-

tions it is relatively easy to recognize and avoid

domestic milk when shopping. Only foreigndairy goods are suitable for children of Jeho-

vah‟s worshippers.

Children’s Screaming – When Will It End?

According to Awake! magazine, “babies cry

for more reasons than being hungry.” (April 8,

1976, page 5) One of this “reasons” was men-

tioned by the prophet Isaiah: “There is an out-

cry … for lack of wine.” (Isaiah 24:11, ESV ) As

already mentioned, every Christian – regard-

less of his age – is obliged to drink wine.(1 Timothy 5:23) That‟s why Jehovah instructs

parents: “Buy wine and milk!” (Isaiah 55:1)

The Shulammite‟s boyfriend remembered his

carefree childhood and related: “I have drunk

my wine along with my milk.” – Song of Solo-

mon 5:1.

A visit at the

Kingdom Hallcan have a

traumatizing

effect on chil-

dren

Never allow

religious

magazines

to delude your

children!

The book Sing Praises to Jehovah says re

garding children: “They are gifts from God; h

says: „Use the rod.‟” (song 164) When should

Christian “use the rod?” A report, not appear

ing in The Buffalo News, demonstrated tha

the presence of magazines with even mild reli

gious content in the home could lower th

thinking ability of children and endangethem. Such laxity would run counter to think

ing for oneself. Parents should instruct thei

children to stay clear of anyone who offers t

show them religious magazines and to repor

these incidents to them promptly.” (compar

The Watchtower, September 15, 1984, page 21

Thus parents should immediately use “the ro

of discipline” if their children secretly start t

read the Watchtower. – Proverbs 22:15.

An Uneducated Congregation Under the“Faithful and Discreet Slave’s” Leadership

After some years, Christian parents wi

wonder what kind of education would be suita

ble for their child. According to the February 1

2006 Watchtower, “a balanced education” ha

four objectives: “(1) to read well, (2) to writ

clearly, (3) to develop mentally and morally

and (4) to acquire the practical training neede

for day-to-day living.” – page 10.

If your child can fluently read a Watchtowe

paragraph and can clearly fill in the field ser

vice report slip, you don‟t have to worry abou

the first two items. Besides, the congregation

meetings are the best place to “develop menta

ly and morally.” In actual fact, many a chil

can say: “I have more understanding than th

elders.” (Psalm 119:100, NIV ) But what abou

“practical training needed for day-to-day liv

ing?”


11/16


According to the October 1, 1998 Watchtow-

er “the normal theocratic routine” of a Chris-

tian is “sharing in the ministry, attending the

meetings … [and] studying the Bible.” (page

30) Hence the only school that is suitable for

children of true Christians is the Theocratic

Ministry School. With good reason Our King-

dom Ministry said that Christians “are receiv-ing the best training available” in their meet-

ings. – August 1996, page 2.

Deliverance from a World of Education

If you live in a country where the law re-

quires attending a secular school, you must limit

your child‟s “secular education … [to] what is

required by law.” (The Watchtower, December 1,

1996, page 19) Though “not everyone who goes

to university loses his Christian faith or dies of a

drug overdose,” such education “can become avalueless thing.” – The Watchtower, July 15,

1982, page 14; April 15, 2008, page 4.

School is the place to learn the facts of life

A career as full-time

minister does not

require a study at

a university

Many parents think that they would hav

to explain the facts of life to their children. Bu

according to the book The Secret of Famil

Happiness, as Christian parents you shoul

“not review with your son or daughter the sec

tion „Sex and Morals‟ in the book Question

Young People Ask – Answers That Work.” (pag

68) The brochure School and Jehovah’s Wit

nesses rather points out that “many schools ar

… providing explicit education in sexual mat

ters.” (page 27) This may cause disconcertmen

to you as a loving father or mother, but re

member that you must “not be the one to de

cide just when you want your child to learn

about sex, pregnancy and abortion.” ( Awake

March 22, 1978, page 20)

Upbringing a child is a lengthy project

When it is finalized – that is, when the chil

leaves either the Christian congregation or th

parents‟ home or both – God will speak regard

ing the parents: “Let them rest from their la

bors.” (Revelation 14:13) Then they can „ente

into God‟s rest‟ and “get a firm hold on the rea

life.” – Hebrews 4:10; 1 Timothy 6:19.

FROM OUR READERS: Ac-

cording to the July issue, God

allows birds and other animals to

steal food from humans. But

according to the October 15,

1993 Watchtower , the new world

will be “a world without thieves.”

Will the principle “Let the stealer

steal no more” from Ephesians

4:28 apply to animals too?

The animals have not sinned;

hence they are not imperfect

and therefore they will not

become perfect in paradise.

Birds, however, will get another

food assignment, that is, the

corpses of apostates. (Revela-

tion 19:17, 21) But, as the pic-

tures prove, other animals will

continue to steal fruits or shoes.


12/16


SCRIPTURAL QUESTIONS ANSWERED (2)

Should we switch the light on at the Kingdom

Hall?

Jehovah‟s Witnesses have done so in the

past, but now it is time to examine this ques-

tion again in the light of the Bible. Where does

the light that is emitted by lamps originate?

The apostle Paul wrote: “Satan himself keeps

transforming himself into … light.” (2 Corin-

thians 11:14) Light bulbs, fluorescent tubes

and other lamps are “luminaries of Satan‟s

earthly system.” (Revelation – Its Grand Cli-

max at Hand! , page 110) As true Christians we

must keep away from such counterfeit lights.

How should the Kingdom Hall be illumi-

nated then? As Jesus foretold, “the righteousones will shine as brightly as the sun.” (Mat-

thew 13:43) Daniel too prophesied: “The ones

having insight will shine.” (Daniel 12:3) In the

Kingdom Hall we should be confident that “the

righteous ones” and “the ones having insight”

will shine bright enough, so that everyone can

see.

What if this is not the case? If the Kingdom

Hall remains dark, obviously there is no one

present whom Jehovah considers “righteous” or

“having insight.” For such a situation thereshould always be matches handy in the King-

dom Hall, so that the publishers can ignite the

elders‟ suits and so make them shine. This way

the elders can be “shining as illuminators” and

light up the Kingdom Hall. – Philippians 2:15.

Who are the “wolves” whom Paul warned

about?

Paul advised the Christians of his time: I

know that after my going away oppressive

wolves will enter in among you and will not

treat the flock with tenderness, and from

among you yourselves men will rise and speak

twisted things.” (Acts 20:29, 30) Whom did he

refer to?

These “wolves” try to disguise themselves,

of course. But wolves feed on sheep; hence we

can recognize the “wolves” by the fact that the

chase sheep. The apostle John gives us a vita

hint for their identification: “The hundred an

forty-four thousand … are the ones that kee

following the Lamb.” – Revelation 14:3, 4.

So the “oppressive wolves” who “spea

twisted things” are the anointed Jehovah‟

Witnesses, a remnant of which is still living on

earth, forming the “faithful and discreet slave

– Matthew 24:45.

Which road leads to paradise, the broad road

or the narrow road?

Jesus said: “Broad and spacious is the roa

leading off into destruction, and many are th

ones going in through it; whereas narrow is th

gate and cramped the road leading off int

life.” (Matthew 7:13, 14) On the face of it, i

seems to be easier to walk on the broad road.

But is it really so? Notice that “the broa

road … is filled with so many millions, wherea

the narrow ... [road] has so few thereon.” (Th

Watchtower, March 1, 1971, page 143) Actuall

there are only about seven million Jehovah‟Witnesses on the „narrow road‟ while roughl

seven billion people are walking on the „broa

road.‟

If the „broad road‟ is around 10 times a

broad as the „narrow road,‟ but roughly a thou

sand times as many people are walking on it, i

is inevitable that it is a hundred times a

cramped. That means that in actual fact it i

the „broad road‟ that is “cramped” and “leadin

off into life.”

The „broad road‟ is the „cramped road‟


13/16


Should Christians fast?

In Biblical times Fasting was “fitting in the

face of great danger, when in sore need of di-

vine guidance, while enduring tests and meet-

ing temptations, or when studying, meditating,

or concentrating on God‟s purposes.” (Insight

on the Scriptures, volume I, page 811) Without

doubt, true Christians today are “studying,meditating” and “concentrating on God‟s pur-

pose” too. Also they are in “great danger” of

falling for false teachers. Hence fasting is defi-

nitely indicated for Christians of today.

Which kinds of fasts are acceptable to God?

Fasting is “abstaining from some or all food.”

(Wikipedia) However, since we are no more

under the Law Covenant, we should not fast

literally but spiritually. As a start we could

„abstain from some food,‟ for example from “the

solid spiritual food presented in the Watchtow-

er Study.” – Our Kingdom Ministry, March

1994, page 1.

Even better, though, would be “abstaining

from … all food,” that is, from all “the spiritual

food provided by „the faithful and discreet

slave.‟” (The Watchtower, September 15, 2005,

page 20) Soon the cobwebs will be blown away

and you will recognize that you have been mis-

led for years. Not for nothing, God stated

through his prophet Isaiah: “This is the kind of

fasting I want: Free those who are wrongly

imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who

work for you. Let the oppressed go free, and

remove the chains that bind people.” (Isaiah

58:6, NLT ) Indeed, through spiritual fasting,

people “who are wrongly imprisoned” by Jeho-

vah‟s Witnesses and „work for them‟ in the so-

called “preaching work” can be freed!

When will God carry out his purpose, and to

what extent can we hope for his support to-

day?

The Bible answers these questions quite

unequivocal. The prophet Amos said: “The Lord

Jehovah doth nothing.” (Amos 3:7, YLT ) Hence

it is futile to trust in his support. Does that

mean that we should simply wait until God‟

Kingdom comes? That is not advisable too, fo

Jesus explained: “The kingdom of God does no

come.” (Luke 17:20, NIV ) So, rather than ex

pecting help from God, we should take ou

future in our own hands.

Will there be homosexuality in paradise?

Admittedly, Paul wrote that “men who li

with men … will [not] inherit God‟s kingdom

(1 Corinthians 6:9, 10) But obviously the ban

on homosexuality is only a consequence of hu

man imperfection since God‟s original purpos

did not involve women at all. Whenever th

creation account mentions “the man” it doe

always refer to Adam. (Genesis 2:16) Not unti

later did Jehovah decide “to build … a woman.

(Genesis 2:18, 22) But even after that, he didnot call Adam and Eve the “two humans” bu

“the man [“human”, German translation] an

his wife.” – Genesis 2:25.

In Paradise, however, the original cond

tions that prevailed in the Garden of Eden wil

be restored. Accordingly the Watchtower ex

plains: “Continuing his description of the situa

tion that would exist during his future pres

ence, Jesus tells his disciples: „In that nigh

two men [“males”, German translation] will bin one bed.‟” (June 15, 1989, page 9) So homo

sexuality will be quite normal in paradise.

Under Jesus‟ rule “two men will be in one bed”


14/16


Don’t the unfulfilled prophecies of Jehovah’s

Witnesses prove that they are not guided by

God?

The opposite is true. God explained through

Moses: “In case a prophet … arises in your

midst and does give you a sign or a portent,

and the sign or the portent does come true of

which he spoke to you … you must not listen tothe words of that prophet … That prophet …

should be put to death … Y ou must clear out

what is evil from your midst.” – Deuteronomy

13:1-5.

If the „signs‟ given by Jehovah‟s Witnesses

would have come true – if Armageddon would

have come 1914 or 1975 or if Abraham, Isaac

and Jacob would have risen 1925 – then every

Christian would have had the sacred obligation

to stone those responsible. But as their prophe-cies were not fulfilled, they rank among the

great prophets of the Bible whose prophecies

were not fulfilled too – to this day the lion does

not eat straw, the thrones of David and Solo-

mon do not exist anymore, and “the day of

Jehovah” that had been “near” already 3000

years ago has still not come. – Isaiah 11:7; 2

Samuel 7:16; 1 Chronicles 17:14; Joel 1:15.

Indeed, the non-occurring of their prophe-

cies definitely proves that Jehovah‟s Witnessesare guided by God. That‟s why we are obliged

to have “confidence in „the faithful and discreet

slave‟ … as well as in those from among them

who form the Governing Body.” – The Watch-

tower, August 15, 1998, page 12.

Should Christians take photographs?

Some believe that photographing is not for

Christians. They mention the Ten Command-

ments that clearly say: “ You must not make …

[an] image … like anything that is in the heav-

ens above or that is on the earth underneath or

that is in the waters under the earth.” (Exodus

20:4) They also point out that cameras are

often used for perverse purposes, such as pho-

tographing naked humans or buildings of false

religion.

However, we are no more under the Mosai

Law, and “where the spirit of Jehovah is, ther

is freedom.” (2 Corinthians 3:17) Accordingl

every Christian must make his own decision

regarding photographing, carefully considerin

the Biblical principles presented here.

But even if a Christian decides that he can

reconcile photographing with his Bible-traineconscience, he should abstain from a facilit

that is often used by worldly photographers

the flash. Flashes have always been connecte

to false deities. The god Zeus is called “Th

Lightninger,” and the Greek poet Nonnu

praised him: “Do thou in battle lift thy light

ning-flash.” Even the false god Baal is “depict

ed with a raised arm, hurling flashes.” (Wik

ipedia, German edition) Flashes are also asso

ciated with Jupiter, Thor and other false gods

hence they have no place in a Christian‟s cam

era.

Most modern cameras though are equippe

with a flash from the start. A Christian ownin

such a device would constantly be tempted t

utilize this feature. But in surplus outlets an

other shops suitable for Christians, camera

without flash can be found sometimes. If w

decide to take photos, with such a device w

would be on the safe side.

The demon-god Baal used flashes


15/16


Are there other organizations that are pro-

tected by God?

There can be no doubt that the Watchtower

organization is protected by God. The book

Draw Close to Jehovah explains: “The ruler of

this world would like nothing more than to

eliminate true worship … Some of the most

powerful governments on earth have bannedour preaching work and have tried to wipe us

out completely. Yet, Jehovah‟s people have

remained firm and have continued to preach

without letup! Why have mighty nations been

unable to put a stop to the activity of this rela-

tively small … group of Christians? Because

Jehovah has shielded us with his powerful

wings!” – page 73.

However, the same applies to the Sicilian

Mafia and its offshoots. There can be no doubtthat „the rulers of this world would like nothing

more than to eliminate‟ the Mafia. Not only

“some of the most powerful governments on

earth” but practically all governments have

“banned” the Mafia and „have tried to wipe it

out completely.‟ Yet the Mafia „has remained

firm‟ and has continued its criminal activities

without letup! Why have mighty nations been

unable to put a stop to the activity of this rela-

tively small group of criminals? Apparently for

the same reason – because Jehovah has shield-ed them with his powerful wings.

How can Christians avoid premarital sex?

Many Christians believe that “premarital

sex … is a serious sin against God.” ( Awake! ,

December 8, 1995, page 12) How can we guard

against this sin? Paul provided a simple yet

ingenious advice: “It is a good thing for a per-

son not to get married … A man … is wise if hedoes not get married.” – 1 Corinthians 7:26, 37,

NLB.

Someone who will never enter into mar-

riage cannot have “ premarital sex.” No wonder

Jesus disciples said: “It's not worth getting

married!” (Matthew 19:10, ISV ) And they were

right. Rather than getting into “servitude” by

marriage, Christians should heed the apostl

John‟s advice: “Let us not love with words …

but with actions.” (1 Corinthians 7:15; 1 John

3:18) True, “the man who gets married doe

well, but the man who does not get married

does better.” – 1 Corinthians 7:38, NLB.

Where is the center of false worship today?

Some think that the center of false worshi

would be in Rome, in Lourdes or in Mecca. Bu

the Watchtower says regarding Amos‟ time

“Bethel was a center of false worship.” (Febru

ary 15, 1980, page 31) A later issue pointe

out: “Apostates preferred to go up to Bethe

and Gilgal, centers of idol worship, there t

offer sacrifices to false gods.” – April 1, 1989

page 23.

Hence the “centers of idol worship” wher

the “apostates” gathered were “Bethel an

Gilgal.” Gilgal doesn‟t exist anymore, bu

Bethels can be found anywhere on the globe

The largest one is in Brooklyn, and smalle

Bethels exist in most countries. These place

are the modern “centers of idol worship” be

cause the people there “offer sacrifices” to th

“faithful and discreet slave” and other “fals

gods.” (Matthew 24:45) Accordingly Jehovah

advises us through Amos: “Don't search for m

at Bethel … Bethel will come to nothing – Amos 5:5, GWT .

“Bethel was a center of false worship”

(The Watchtower , February 15, 1980)


16/16


The Greek Gods are noted for their immoral conduct. “The gods and goddesses … were themselves d e

picted in Greek mythology as practicing every immoral and criminal act known to humans … Among th

detestable practices attributed to certain deities are … lying, thievery, drunkenness, and murder. Those wh

incurred the disfavor of a god or goddess are depicted as being punished in a most cruel manner.” – Insigh

on the Scriptures , volume I, pages 210, 978.

Where did the Greek Gods have these attributes from? The great philosopher Aristotle said that “men …

imagine, not only the forms of the Gods, but their ways of life to be like their own.” (Politics , Book One, Par

Two) “The immorality of the gods served to justify man‟s wrongdoing.” (Insight on the Scriptures , volume

page 979) So, the Greeks created the gods in their own image and attributed to them features that they

themselves had.

However, even Greeks are men, and “God proceeded to create the man in his image, in God‟s image h

created him.” (Genesis 1:27) Consequently the Greeks were created in God‟s image too. That means that th

character attributes of the Greek gods do not only resemble those of their human inventors but also those

of God.

Indeed, as the Bible shows, Jehovah too

practiced “every … criminal act known to hu-

mans.” He lied to Abraham, David, Solomon and

others, and he commissioned an angel to fool

King Ahab. (Genesis 13:14-16; Acts 7:2-6;

1 Chronicles 17:14; 1 Kings 22:20-22; compare

The Witchtower , October 2009, page 15) Heassigned his people to loot the Egyptians and

the Canaanites. (Exodus 3:22; Deuteronomy

6:10, 11) At least once he was drunk, and on

several occasions he forced his people to mur-

der innocent children. (Psalm 78:65; Joshua 6:21;

1 Samuel 15:3) Whoever „incurred his disfavor‟

was swallowed by the earth, slain by hailstones

or eaten up by dogs or worms. – Numbers

16:32; Joshua 10:11; 2 Kings 9:35-37; Acts 12:23.

Therefore we can ascertain beyond doubt:

The Greek gods were created in the Greeks‟

image, and the Greeks were created in God‟s

image. Accordingly Zeus, Hermes, Dionysus and

the other Greek gods actually reflect the fea-

tures of Jehovah, the creator of men and Greeks. Dionysus and the other Greek Gods reflected Jehovah‟s features

witchtower: september 1, 2010 - the greek gods and jehovah

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