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“Be dressed and ready and have your lamps burning, and you should be like men waiting for their master to return from the marriage, so when he comes and knocks, they may at once open to him.” – Luke 12:35-36
They have built a flimsy wall
It seems appropriate for the Watchtower to start off the new year by calling attention to Bible prophecy. It is true, there is no question about it, “the accuracy of these prophecies leaves us in awe of Jehovah and his inspired Word.”
At the beginning of this new year, with wars and reports of wars intensifying, the stealth invasion of the US and Europe far along, and London’s financial empire on the verge of collapse, let us review God’s astounding foresight published in the oldest book in the world.
The 13th chapter of Ezekiel ought to leave us in awe. Jehovah orders his watchman to say to “those who fabricate their own prophecies, ‘Hear the word of Jehovah. This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says: “Woe to the stupid prophets, who follow their own spirit, when they have seen nothing!”
Jehovah continues: “They have seen false visions and foretold a lie, those who are saying, ‘The word of Jehovah is,’ when Jehovah himself has not sent them, and they have waited for their word to come true. Is it not a false vision that you have seen and a lie that you have foretold when you say, ‘The word of Jehovah is,’ when I have not said anything?”’ — Ezekiel 13:6,7
Does not the Governing Body and the Watchtower organization speak in the name of Jehovah? Do they not strongly assert what they teach is the word of Jehovah? It is undeniable. No Christian sect other than the Watchtower of Jehovah’s Witnesses makes pronouncements that in effect say: “The word of Jehovah is…”
It will surely offend Jehovah’s Witnesses, but it is the truth. The core doctrine of the Watchtower, that being that the Kingdom came to power in 1914 is a false vision. The invisible parousia doctrine is a myth. Truly, the self-declared faithful slave and prophet class and promoters of this invisible presence have literally seen nothing! The supportive “evidence” for an ongoing invisible presence does not exist. It is a fanciful fairytale.
The apostle Peter appears to have anticipated this very thing when he wrote, saying: “No, it was not by following artfully contrived false stories that we made known to you the power and presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, but rather, we were eyewitnesses of his magnificence.”
Other translations word it differently. The Living English Bible says: “We were not echoing trumped-up myths.” The American Standard says: “We did not follow cunningly devised fables.”
The three apostles who were with Jesus on the mountain when he was transfigured were eyewitnesses to a vision that portrays the powerful parousia of Jesus Christ. It is a cunningly devised fable, a trumped-up myth, that the parousia is invisible and that it has been ongoing since 1914. For all of these many decades, the stupid prophets have waited in vain to have their word come true.
There are many aspects of the faux reality the Watchtower has fabricated besides a false parousia. Take the fact that when the Watchtower has repeatedly prophesied that Babylon the Great would be destroyed at the beginning of the great tribulation while never offering any supporting scriptures. Not even one. Yes, Babylon the Great will be destroyed. God will see to that. But will this event occur at the beginning of the tribulation? The Governing Body certainly seems confident of it since they repeat it ad nauseam. At the 2023 Annual Meeting, they doubled down and even produced a little graphic timeline of their expectations.
Ironically, because the Watchtower claims to be the prophet to whom Jehovah reveals his confidential matters, and they have published their prophetic prognostications far and wide and do not at all seem inclined to revise or issue new light, the stage is set for their false visions to dramatically collide with reality.
Jehovah went on to relate an illustration: “All of this is because they have led my people astray by saying, “There is peace!” when there is no peace. When a flimsy partition wall is built, they are plastering it with whitewash. Tell those plastering with whitewash that it will fall. A torrential downpour will come, hailstones will fall, and powerful windstorms will break it down. And when the wall falls you will be asked, ‘Where is your coating of plaster?’ I will tear down the wall that you plastered with whitewash and bring it down to the earth, and its foundation will be exposed. When the city falls, you will perish within her; and you will have to know that I am Jehovah.” (10-14)
The 1914 doctrine is the flimsy wall that must be continually splashed over with whitewash in the form of new light adjustments; for example, defining and redefining what a generation is. The flimsiness of their doctrinal wall becomes evident when we consider the fact that the entire structure is based upon what Jesus said concerning the nations trampling upon Jerusalem for an appointed time. According to the specious reasoning put forward, supposedly the trampling of Jerusalem began five centuries before Christ foretold the holy city would be trampled upon.
However, it is inconceivable that the apostles who asked Jesus to tell them when the temple was going to be destroyed in the future would have understood him to have meant that Jerusalem was already being trampled at that time. Despite this simple truth, the Watchtower has affixed the beginning of the trampling of Jerusalem to 607 B.C.E. How stupid is that?
By the way, what is the city that is destined to fall and be trampled by the nations during the time of the end? The 11th chapter of Revelation, which was written after Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans, speaks of the holy city being trampled on by the nations and even reveals the length of the appointed times. Even the Watchtower recognizes that the “holy city” represents Christ’s congregation. Even so, the stupid prophets have assigned the 42-month period of its trampling to the First World War. Such is the whitewashing of the flimsy partition wall.
What form will the wall-toppling, torrential downpours, hail, and powerful windstorms take? It will come as global war, pandemics, famine, great earthquakes, fearful sights in the heavens, and terrifying phenomena culminating in a great tribulation. In short, everything the stupid prophets have said occurred long ago and cannot be repeated in the future is what will come to be. The very tempest of Jehovah will knock down the Watchtower’s whitewashed wall and its foundation will be exposed as a satanic scheme to deceive God’s people.
By the way, the 19th chapter of Revelation indicates that Jehovah’s judgment of the great harlot will take place immediately before the marriage of the Lamb, long after the tribulation is cut short by God’s intervention.
Who is like the wild beast, and who can do battle with it?
Some may feel that I am overly critical and harsh, even disrespectful of God’s appointed representatives, calling the leadership of the Watchtower stupid prophets, liars, and apostates. Except, It almost seems like the Governing Body is trying to validate my vitriol. I mean, is there a more blatant, in-your-face, mind-screwing manipulation than what is stated in the first sentence? I suppose the real question is why do millions of Jehovah’s Witnesses tolerate being conned this way?
The book of Revelation does not reveal that God’s heavenly Kingdom has been established and that Satan has been expelled. How could it? Yes, the book of Revelation foretells that when God’s heavenly Kingdom comes to power war will erupt between Christ and Satan and the Devil will be cast out. The Watchtower claims that this epic event occurred in 1914, not the book of Revelation. There is, however, a way for Christians to evaluate the Watchtower’s proclamation to determine whether or not it is true. Is it not the obligation of every Christian to make sure of all things and to test the seemingly inspired expressions for authenticity? Let us not shirk our duty.
It is a fairly simple process to test the Watchtower’s teaching. God made it so. One does not need a Ph.D. in theology, knowledge of Hebrew or Greek, or any special education. All it requires is honest reasoning. Let us then put the Watchtower’s 1914 dogma to the test, shall we?
Revelation reveals that when Satan and all of his demon angels are hurled down to the earth, the Devil will know he has only a short period of time before he is taken out entirely and locked away for a thousand years. The 12th chapter of Revelation goes on to reveal that the dragon will persecute the remaining ones for a time, times, and half a time. Verse six reveals this cryptic period to be 1,260 days. Chapter 11 affirms the 1,260 days are also 42 months, verifying that the time, times and half a time is a literal three and a half years. That is Satan’s short period of time. How does the Devil know that? Because he can read.
At the end of that 42-month period the two witnesses to Christ’s presence will be killed. By whom? Revelation reveals: “When they have finished their witnessing, the wild beast that ascends out of the abyss will wage war with them and conquer them and kill them.” (11:7)
Now, what is this wild beast that ascends out of the abyss? Revelation explains: “I saw that one of its heads seemed to have been fatally wounded, but its mortal wound had been healed, and all the earth followed the wild beast with admiration. And they worshipped the dragon because it gave the authority to the wild beast, and they worshipped the wild beast with the words: “Who is like the wild beast, and who can do battle with it?” It was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and it was given authority to act for 42 months. And it opened its mouth in blasphemies against God to blaspheme his name and his dwelling place, even those residing in heaven. It was permitted to wage war with the holy ones and conquer them, and it was given authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation. And all those who dwell on the earth will worship it. From the founding of the world, not one of their names has been written in the scroll of life of the Lamb who was slaughtered.” (13:3-8)
Since the 42 months begin after the seemingly fatally wounded head of the beast revives and is bequeathed by the Devil with all earthly authority, our task is merely to determine if the wild beast has emerged from the abyss. In case you are new to all of this, the Watchtower claims that the head of the beast was slaughtered during the First World War. At least someone was clever enough to realize they had to sync up the 1,260 day period with Satan’s ouster. Supposedly, the Anglo-American duo fulfilled prophecy by emerging victoriously from the catastrophe known as WW1, as if from an abyss. It is not necessary to consider the number of casualties or the dollar cost of the war, considerable though they were. The determining factor is what is stated in the book published by the Revealer of Secrets. Yes, we must allow God’s word to interpret itself, such as when working on a picture puzzle where only one piece fits into the vacant space. By allowing prophecy to interpret itself we will not be deceived by those who fabricate their own prophecy and proclaim: “This is what Jehovah has said…”
Now take note of what is stated above in verse four where the people of the earth proclaim: “Who is like the wild beast, and who can do battle with it?” It is a variation of what the Jews said before Pilate: “We have no king but Ceasar.” Now, let us compare this to what happens when the sixth seal of the scroll of the Apocalypse is opened. Beginning with verses 12 thru 14: “And I saw when he opened the sixth seal, and a great earthquake occurred; and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the entire moon became as blood, and the stars of heaven fell to the earth as when a fig tree shaken by a high wind drops its unripe figs. And the heaven departed as a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and every island was removed from its place.”
Jesus used similar apocalyptic language when speaking about the tribulation coming upon the inhabited earth. For instance, in the 21st chapter of Luke Christ foretold that “there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth anguish of nations not knowing the way out because of the roaring of the sea and its agitation. People will become faint out of fear and expectation of the things coming upon the inhabited earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.”
What do these things portend? The opening of the sixth seal portrays in symbols nothing short of the swift and sudden collapse of the global system, what is often referred to as civilization. Could anything be more terrifying than the crash of the political and economic system upon which civilization depends? With this horrifying image in mind now consider what Revelation reveals as to how people will respond to the existential crises: “Then the kings of the earth, the high officials, the military commanders, the rich, the strong, every slave, and every free person hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. And they keep saying to the mountains and to the rocks: “Fall over us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, because the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” (6:15-17)
Jehovah, in his fairness, will give people a choice. And when Christ becomes King and the debased Satan empowers the wild beast with all authority the choice could not be more stark. Everyone will have to decide whether to bow before the Devil or the Son of man. In recognition of the fact that the great day of Jehovah’s wrath has finally come the people of the world will demand a political savior, clamoring: “fall over us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne.” Notice the contrast between what is stated in the immediate aftermath of the collapse “who is able to stand?” with what is voiced by the worshippers of the resurrected beast: “Who is like the wild beast, and who can do battle with it?” (13:4b) Satan will provide a political savior and those who embrace it will not have their names written in the book of life.
Since it has already been established that the 1,260 days commences after the beast arises from the ashes of civilization’s collapse like the mythical Phoenix, there is only one question to answer. Has the sixth seal been opened? Worded differently: Has civilization collapsed? Since the answer is a very simple “no,” neither has Satan been cast down.
He has closed your eyes, the prophets
It is somewhat insightful that the WT recognizes that the “Israel” that comes under attack by Gog of Magog represents Christians and is not the modern nation-state in the Middle East. In contrast, Evangelical Zionists claim Gog is Russia and they expect the looming war in the Middle East to somehow fulfill the prophecy of Gog attacking a defenseless, nuclear-armed Israel. Crazy. I expect Israel to be ground zero for WW3 and get wiped out along with most of the Middle East ending up looking like scorched earth. That would certainly be the end of the “Christian” Zionist movement.
But back to the Watchtower. The first obvious contradiction is the fact that the prophecy of the attack of Gog is earmarked for the final part of the days; which, according to the WT began in 1914. That means the final part of the days have gone on for well over a century and God has still not brought Gog against his land. Crazy.
Here’s the biggest contradiction though. God only brings about the attack of Gog after “Israel” is destroyed and then restored. Can the Watchtower point to anything in the Christian era that would compare to the destruction Jehovah brought upon Jerusalem? The WT used to teach that God’s people went into captivity to Babylon the Great back in 1918. That at least made sense, kinda. At least it followed the scriptural timeline allowing for destruction followed by restoration and then salvation. But at a recent Annual Meeting they tossed that out.
Keep in mind, that the same book of Ezekiel speaks against the stupid prophets who fabricate their own prophecies and who see false visions and lead God’s people astray. Of them, God states: “My hand is against the prophets whose visions are false and who foretell a lie. They will not be among the people with whom I confide; nor will they be written in the registry of the house of Israel; nor will they return to the land of Israel; and you will have to know that I am the Sovereign Lord Jehovah. All of this is because they have led my people astray by saying, “There is peace!” when there is no peace. When a flimsy partition wall is built, they are plastering it with whitewash.” – Ez 13:9-10
How do the stupid prophets proclaim there is peace? By fabricating a false vision that God’s people already reside in spiritual paradise, that the messenger of the covenant came in 1914 and set everything straight, that no weapon formed against them will have any success, and many other misapplied prophecies.
Having watched the Annual Meeting on JW Broadcast (I will comment more extensively later) the GB have doubled down and emphatically emphasized that only they can understand the truth, which they claim God only releases in drips and drabs at the proper time. When God wishes for the lowly publishers to know something he will channel it through them and no one else. And even though it may take years or even decades for the “faithful and discreet slave” to ploddingly ruminate over and discuss matters of importance, that is the only process that the holy spirit uses.
Jeffrey Winder proudly cited the 3rd chapter of Amos and claimed that the GB are the prophets to whom Jehovah exclusively reveals his confidential matters. The unspoken, yet clearly implied message, is that Jehovah will not reveal his confidential matters to some guy on the Internet who calls himself a watchman. But the problem is, that Jehovah’s prophets of old were a tiny minority of men who prophesied against Jehovah’s earthly organization — Israel.
How will it end? Using the Annual Meeting, the GB have reinforced their authority as prophets. And the institutional prophets have unanimously proclaimed that the great tribulation will begin when the nations turn upon and destroy false religion. There is no ambiguity. No wiggle room. Thus, the die is cast. The stage is set. The future will tell the tale. We shall see who the true prophet is, according to their own criteria and rules of engagement.
Poor Jeffrey Winder, evidently the new boy was tasked by the GB to say the audacious part out loud. Did you hear it? The GB will never be embarrassed or apologize for getting it wrong. After all, it is Jehovah’s doing. He is the one who trickles down new light to them, so even if they get it wrong it is Jehovah’s fault, not theirs. And how true that is. Jehovah takes full responsibility for allowing them to get it so very, very wrong. “Be stunned and amazed; blind yourselves and be blinded. They are drunk, but not with wine; they are staggering, but not from alcohol. For Jehovah has poured a spirit of deep sleep on you; He has closed your eyes, the prophets, and he has covered your heads, the visionaries.” – Isaiah 29:9-10
Brother will deliver brother over to death
The Watchtower has shed light upon this great overriding war between the children of Satan and the children of Jehovah. However, the Watchtower cannot reveal the things to come in the immediate future for reasons that will be made apparent.
Nothing demonstrates the starkness of that enmity more dramatically than what took place between the first two humans born from Adam and Eve in the wilderness outside the Garden of Eden — two brothers named Cain and Abel. One brother, Abel, had faith and offered a sacrifice of blood. Cain became outraged because God indicated his favor for Abel’s sacrifice and rejected his. Even though God kindly intervened and warned Cain that evil was lurking, craving his soul and that he had better get a grip, Cain refused to listen and violently murdered his brother.
Several thousand years later, after the offspring of the woman was killed and resurrected, fulfilling the prophecy concerning the heel wound, one of Jesus’ closest friends wrote about the murder of Abel, saying: “For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; not like Cain, who originated with the wicked one and slaughtered his brother. And for what reason did he slaughter him? Because his own works were wicked, but those of his brother were righteous.” – 1 John 3:11-12
Cain and Abel were, of course, fleshly brothers. But Jesus indicated that during the conclusion, otherwise known as the hour of the authority of darkness, the enmity between the children of the wicked one and the sons of Jehovah will intensify even to the point of murder. Jesus foretold that “brother will deliver brother over to death, and a father a child, and children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. And you will be hated by all people on account of my name.” – Mark 13:12-13
When Jesus again comes into the world, he will convey his seal of approval upon some Christians and reject others, just as Jehovah had done with Able and Cain. Christ illustrated this in various ways, such as the faithful slave and the evil slave. Perhaps the best known is the parable of the wheat and the weeds. The weeds are the seed of the wicked one. The wheat represents the true anointed sons of God. Both Satan’s seed and Jehovah’s offspring are allowed to grow together in Christ’s congregation up until the angels are dispatched to remove the Devil’s children. In confirmation of this truth, in Revelation Jesus revealed that there is a synagogue of Satan, a group who falsely claim to be Jews (anointed) within his own congregation up until the Lord’s day begins and the Lord will make the seed of the serpent come and bow before the chosen ones.
Those left behind will know that they have been put out of Christ’s Kingdom and like Cain, who originated with the Devil, they will gnash their teeth in hatred and persecute and hand over to death as many of the chosen ones as they are permitted. Thus, the enmity that began outside Eden will culminate in blood during the parousia.
By the way, the chosen will be hated by all people on account of the name of Jesus because the chosen will give witness that they have seen Christ. And here is a little tidbit for you. Peter, James, and John were the only three apostles allowed to see the Transfiguration. Peter explained that the vision was a foregleam of the parousia. Eventually, Peter, James, and John were all martyred. James, was, in fact, one of the first Christians who were killed. The only eyewitnesses to the parousia enactment were all killed by the Devil. A portent for sure.
During the conclusion, the offspring of Satan will be allowed to express their hatred of Christ’s brothers to the full. It is too bad for them that Jesus will consider the treatment meted out to his brothers as being done to him personally. Thus, the stage will then be reached when Christ will crush the Devil’s spawn out of existence, incinerating the Devil’s entire wicked world, and locking the serpent away for 1,000 years before crushing his head.
These are the rocks hidden below water
Errors are mistakes, either in actions or beliefs. Everyone makes mistakes and does things they regret or believe things that turn out to be false. Jehovah is always willing to overlook our errors and fallacies. Deliberate rebellion and intentional deceit are an entirely different matter though. The Scriptures reveal that Christians are menaced by individuals who disguise themselves as Christians, but they are pretenders. Their purpose is to mislead and stumble others.
Jude warned that such men would lurk within the congregations up until the end. Urging the brothers to put up a hard fight for the faith, Jude went on to explain why that is necessary: “My reason is that certain men have slipped in among you who were long ago appointed to this judgment by the Scriptures; they are ungodly men who turn the undeserved kindness of our God into an excuse for brazen conduct and who prove false to our only owner and Lord, Jesus Christ.”
Jehovah’s Witnesses are entirely unaware of this demonic influence. That is because the Watchtower teaches that JWs reside in spiritual paradise. The apostates and wicked influencers are all on the outside, or so they say. Except that is not what the inspired Scriptures reveal. Notice again, that Jude said, “Certain men have slipped in among you.”
Jude went on to liken their presence “among you” as rocks hidden below water, unseen from above. Furthermore, these lurkers are teachers, elders, and prominent men. “These are the rocks hidden below water at your love feasts while they feast with you, shepherds who feed themselves without fear; waterless clouds carried here and there by the wind; fruitless trees in late autumn, having died twice and having been uprooted; wild waves of the sea that cast up the foam of their own shame; stars with no set course, for which the blackest darkness stands reserved forever.”
“Your love feasts” could be the conventions, assemblies, and annual meetings, for which Jehovah’s Witnesses are known. And it is at these love feasts that the shepherds feed themselves, receiving the honor for being such faithful servants and providing wonderful theocratic food; except, they do no such thing. Likening them to waterless clouds and fruitless trees, such men have no spirituality at all. They are animalistic wolves who disguise themselves as sheep. This is why they have no insight. In saying they have “died twice” Jude indicates that they have already received the judgment of the second death. Eternal oblivion awaits them when Christ returns.
You will be brought before governors and kings
I have read this daily text a few times. It doesn’t make any sense. The Watchtower’s comment does not connect with the selected verse. Maybe they are using AI to churn this stuff out now. Or, perhaps the prophets of Bethel know what I have put out there explaining how, in the post-tribulation world, the chosen ones will be made to stand before governors and kings to give them a witness concerning the presence of Christ among them.
There is good reason to believe that they do know what I have published since I recently presented to individual members of the Governing Body copies of the brochure: The Second Coming of Christ – What Will It Mean for You?
Perhaps this non sequitur is their response. There is, after all, an operation of Satan at work. The Devil’s intent is to create a false parousia. In this, he has been wildly successful. I have worked as hard as I can to overturn the Watchtower’s phony parousia, with very limited success. The Governing Body has worked hard too to plaster over the many cracks that appear on their whitewashed doctrinal wall of falsehood. No doubt that is why the daily text implies that Christians have somehow already fulfilled Jesus’ prophecy.
Jesus stood before Pilate and Herod. Peter and John were made to stand before the Jewish high court. Paul stood before several rulers and apparently, even the emperor of the Roman Empire, Ceasar. All four men were ultimately executed. In pre-Christian times Daniel stood before two kings of Babylon as well as the king of Persia. Daniel was also executed, or as good as killed when he was thrown into the lion’s den.
Daniel was in the grand palace of the king of Babylon on that fateful night of October 5th, 539 BCE. The prophet was summoned by King Belshazzar to read the enigmatic writing on the wall that miraculously appeared. Daniel interpreted the message and moments later Belshazzar was killed and mighty Babylon was conquered by Cyrus, as Jehovah had foretold 200 years before.
We may be certain that the Watchtower’s whitewashed wall will fall. It will not be able to withstand the flooding tempest of Jehovah. Yes, many will be stumbled and hate one another. Those will be terrifying times. But through the gloom and darkness a. grand light will appear. It will be the Lord Jesus himself who will secretly appear to the chosen ones, not as a human but as a glorious spirit. That is what the Transformation pictured.
Just as Jesus’ disciples became witnesses to his resurrection and presence among them before he ascended, those who see the manifestation of Jesus will then become his witnesses. Christ will see to it that his witnesses are made to stand before governors and kings. Or, we could call them presidents and secretary generals, whatever.
Picture this in your mind: The United Nations Security Council convenes an emergency session to investigate the reports circulating that certain men and women of a banned cult of Jehovites are spreading false information that Jesus walks among them disguised as an ordinary person. They have special powers to back up their claims. The two witnesses are brought before the Supreme Council of the New World Order. They give their testimony, dictated by the holy spirit. Their faces take on the appearance of an angel’s face. (See Acts 6:15) They issue their own version of Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin, perhaps in tongues in all the languages of the Council. The Council cannot refute their testimony. The reason is as Jesus stated: “I will give you words and wisdom that all your opposers together will not be able to resist or dispute.” No matter, like Christ they will be condemned to death.
It is the 1,260th day since Jesus originally appeared to them. Two and a half months later the heavens are opened and Christ and all of his holy ones descend. The world ends. “Happy is the one who keeps in expectation and who arrives at the 1,335 days!”
Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant
In his second letter Peter acknowledged that some things are hard to understand: “Furthermore, consider the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote you according to the wisdom given him, speaking about these things as he does in all his letters. However, some things in them are hard to understand, and these things the ignorant and unstable are twisting, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.” – 2 Peter 3:15,16
Paul, himself, also stated as much, writing to his fellow anointed brethren about the role Jesus plays as a high priest according to the manner of Melchizedek, the apostle said: “We have much to say about him, and it is difficult to explain, because you have become dull in your hearing.” – Hebrews 5:11
One of the things about which Paul wrote that is hard to understand and difficult to explain, especially to persons who are not well-grounded in the Scriptures, is the role Jesus plays as a mediator. Some ignorant and unstable people claim that the Watchtower is preaching a false gospel because it teaches JWs that Jesus is not their mediator. They say that because the Watchtower has always taught that Jesus is the mediator of the new covenant, which only includes anointed persons. This is true. But the uninformed base their claim upon 1 Timothy 2:5,6, which says: “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, a man, Christ Jesus, who gave himself a corresponding ransom for all—this is what is to be witnessed to in its own due time.” The erroneous assumption is that since Paul said Jesus is a mediator between God and men Jesus must be the mediator between God and all men.
It is hard to understand and difficult to explain, but I am going to give it a go. In his same letter to the Hebrews Paul referred to Jesus as the mediator of a covenant. Here are the instances: “But now Jesus has obtained a more excellent ministry because he is also the mediator of a correspondingly better covenant, which has been legally established on better promises.” (8:6)
“That is why he is a mediator of a new covenant, in order that because a death has occurred for their release by ransom from the transgressions under the former covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the everlasting inheritance. For where there is a covenant, the death of the human covenanter needs to be established, because a covenant is valid at death, since it is not in force as long as the human covenanter is living.” (9:15-17)
“But you have approached a Mount Zion and a city of the living God, heavenly Jerusalem, and myriads of angels in general assembly, and the congregation of the firstborn who have been enrolled in the heavens, and God the Judge of all, and the spiritual lives of righteous ones who have been made perfect, and Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and the sprinkled blood, which speaks in a better way than Abel’s blood.” (12:22-24)
Since Christ’s mediation and priestly service involves the new covenant, Paul’s words to Timothy regarding Jesus being the mediator between God and men must be understood to mean the men (and women) who are anointed. What is the purpose of Christ’s work as a mediator? As Paul explained in the verse above, it has to do with the “spiritual lives of righteous ones who have been made perfect.”
How can an imperfect human be made perfect in God’s sight? It is not just the ransom. Keep in mind the ransom justifies God to bring the dead back to life on earth and multitudes of those who will return were vile and as wicked as can be. Furthermore, the mediation is not simply Jesus relaying messages In the form of prayers. For centuries before Jesus came to earth and gave his life as a ransom godly people prayed to Jehovah directly without an intercessor.
So, Christ’s being our mediator is not necessary for our prayers to be heard by God. Christ being a sympathetic high priest and the mediator between God and (anointed) men is the facility God has created to declare sinful persons to be sinless. The reason this is necessary is because when those in union with Jesus are resurrected they will be immortal spirits and brought into Jehovah’s holy presence. That is what Paul was saying above regarding anointed Christians approaching heavenly Jerusalem and the city of the living God and myriads of angels.
As Jehovah’s Witnesses know, the Scriptures reveal that a great crowd will survive the end of this world. They are said to have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. That means they have faith in Jesus and have acted on that faith and so will be shown mercy when the wicked are destroyed. However, they will not be made perfect, nor will they need to be. Jehovah has set aside 1,000 years for Christ and his 144,000 kings and priests to rehabilitate mankind so that at the end of the 1,000 years mankind will be sinless. But there is not a 100-decade-long period of rehabilitation for those who are called to serve in the heavenly city of the living God. Their perfection has to be brought about by credit based on their faith. That is what Jesus Christ accomplishes through his mediation of the new covenant.
Since you trust in fraud and deceit…
Most of Jehovah’s Witnesses I have known have been completely trustworthy. I would even go so far to say that members of the Watchtower leadership are trustworthy too, at least in their personal lives. The problem arises because collectively, as an organization, they have put their trust in deceit and falsehood. This is what Jehovah said in the 30th chapter of Isaiah, the context of which has to do with the return of Christ: “Since you reject this word and you trust in fraud and deceit and you rely on these, so this error will be for you like a broken wall, like a bulging high wall ready to fall. It will crash suddenly, in an instant. It will be broken like a large potter’s jar, so completely smashed that no fragment among its pieces will be left to rake the fire from the fireplace or to scoop water from a puddle.”
Not to belabor the point, but the Watchtower’s 1914 eschatology is the error that Jehovah likens to a “bulging high wall ready to fall.” How will it “crash suddenly, in an instant”? When the horsemen of the Apocalypse are unleashed. In short, all of the things the Watchtower has said have already occurred in fulfillment of prophecy and cannot be duplicated in the future, will occur. The crash will be so thorough that it will be unrepairable. All that will be left are shards and broken fragments of the Watchtower’s credibility strewn about in the wreckage of what once was Jehovah’s earthly mouthpiece.
In the 29th chapter of Isaiah Jehovah illustrates the Watchtower’s demise by likening it to someone who speaks from beyond the grave. The Bible in Living English phrases it thusly: “And you will go low, speak from the ground, and your say will come from down in the clay, and your voice will be like a spirit’s at a seance, out of the ground, and your say will chirp out of the clay.”
Jehovah could have easily disabused the leadership of the Watchtower from their 1914 folly. After all, God opened their eyes to many things, even the deep things of Scripture and rewarded them in many ways. Even so, has the scripture not been fulfilled? – “Who is blind except my servant, so deaf as the messenger I send? Who is so blind as the one rewarded, so blind as the servant of Jehovah? You see many things, but you do not keep watch. You open your ears, but you do not listen.” –Isaiah 42:19-20
Jehovah allows for an operation of Satan. That is why the invisible parousia delusion is so strongly entrenched. Why does God allow Satan to deceive his people? So as to impose a test. It is easy to follow men. Everyone does to some extent. God wishes to determine who has faith in his word. So, he has allowed for this fraud to become the centerpiece of the Watchtower’s doctrine.
It is more than interesting that the Watchtower has translated 1 Thessalonians 5:3 the way that it has and alerted JWs to expect political rulers to be the ones who say “peace and security” as a prelude to sudden destruction. Presently, the nations are precariously perched on the edge of a global catastrophe. The Anglo-American empire is being usurped by an emerging new order. War and global financial collapse are a certainty. Rumors are swirling that the beast is cooking up new and more deadly pathogens to unleash. Even as this apocalyptic storm is brewing the watchmen of Bethel have nothing to say. They are forecasting the great tribulation to break out soon when the United Nations will destroy false religion. Their expectations are a natural outgrowth of the fraud they have trusted in and perpetrated. After all, nation cannot arise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. It just can’t!
I expect the nations to try and avert the looming global disaster with diplomacy. That is what the UN is supposed to do. So, whenever they are saying “peace and security” will be quite public. And when the sudden destruction ensues the Watchtower’s bulging high wall will instantly crash. Then JWs will have to decide whether to trust what the Bible says or listen to the Watchtower’s seance for life-saving instructions.
Should you not tremble before me?
I realize that the point of the daily text is brevity, but why use a two-word snippet of a verse? Why not just print a few more words for context? What would it hurt if the theme scripture said: “The eye of Jehovah watches over those fearing him”? Adding context certainly enriches the verse, does it not?
Let’s be honest. Of the large family of worshippers the Watchtower boasts of, how many really fear Jehovah? Who among the Bethel family really fears Jehovah? Do their lawyers fear Jehovah? When the Watchtower’s policies protect pedophiles from prosecution and punish their victims can the promoters of those policies possibly fear God? When we consider the fundamental obligation of men who are in positions of power is to judge on behalf of the vulnerable, the proverbial fatherless boys and widows, it is not a wild accusation of an opposer to call into question their assumed fear of God. When men in power confiscate property dedicated to Jehovah and evict thousands of congregants from their places of worship, many being widows who have forced upon them additional hardships in traveling, how can those theocratic robbers and plunderers possibly claim to fear God? When men who boast of being faithful and discreet use their authority to advocate a vaccine that has proven to be ineffective and unsafe, even claiming it is a gift from God, do not these men demonstrate that they have no fear of God?
It is as stated in Isaiah. They imagine that they have concluded a covenant with death. Whenever the flood of God’s judgment is unleashed it will not affect them. Ah, but it will.
In Jeremiah’s day the prophet was ordered to proclaim to house of Israel these words: “Hear this, you foolish and senseless people: They have eyes but cannot see; they have ears but cannot hear. ‘Do you not fear me?’ declares Jehovah, ‘Should you not tremble before me? It is I who placed the sand as the boundary for the sea, a permanent regulation that it cannot pass over. Although its waves toss, they cannot prevail; although they roar, they still cannot pass beyond it. But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart; they have turned aside and gone their own way. And they do not say in their heart: “Let us now fear Jehovah our God, the One who gives the rain in its season, both the autumn rain and the spring rain, the One who guards for us the appointed weeks of the harvest.” Your own errors have prevented these things from coming; your own sins have deprived you of what is good. For among my people there are wicked men. They keep peering, as when birdcatchers crouch down. They set a deadly trap. It is men whom they catch. Like a cage full of birds, so their houses are full of deception. That is why they have become powerful and rich. They have grown fat and smooth; they overflow with evil. They do not plead the legal case of the fatherless, that they may gain success; and they deny justice to the poor.”
“Should I not call them to account for these things?” declares Jehovah. “Should I not avenge myself on such a nation? Something appalling and horrible has occurred in the land: The prophets prophesy lies, and the priests dominate by their own authority. And my own people love it that way. But what will you do when the end comes?” – Jeremiah 5:21-31
It is a good question. What will you do when the end comes? No, not the end of the world. The time of the end of the Watchtower. What will you do when the world is plunged into war, famine and pandemics on a scale never before experienced? Will you continue to look to those who have ensnared you in a cage of deception for life-saving instructions? Or will you fear God and leave? Did not Jesus already provide life-saving instructions when he said: “However, when you see Jerusalem surrounded by encamped armies, then know that the desolating of her has drawn near. Then let those in Judea begin fleeing to the mountains, let those in the midst of her leave, and let those in the countryside not enter into her, because these are days for meting out justice in order that all the things written may be fulfilled.” – Luke 21:20-22
Your princes are stubborn and partners with thieves
Has your congregation recently been evicted from the Kingdom Hall? You have likely experienced a range of emotions, from anger and sadness and prolonged discouragement. No doubt many have shed tears that their well-built Kingdom Halls have been sold like common real estate and repurposed for things such as marijuana dispensaries, yoga studios, quick marts selling beer and lotto, as well as churches. And worse, some Kingdom Halls just sit empty, even after years, as the Kingdom realtors await a buyer. If you are one who has been dispossessed from your local house of worship it is probably little comfort to know that you are not alone. The Watchtower Inc. has evicted tens of thousands of Jehovah’s Witnesses from about 1,000 Kingdom Halls. And it is still ongoing.
Watchtower Inc. has never explained why they have booted so many true Christians out of facilities that had been devoted to pure worship and all that. True, they said in some WT magazine that it was to make better use of facilities. But that’s nonsensical. Aren’t Jehovah’s Witnesses supposed to be building for the future? And hasn’t the Governing Body just recently issued new light speculating that maybe many unbelievers will come into the truth even after God destroys Babylon the Great? And didn’t someone advance the idea that the prophetic “interior rooms” where JWs will ride out the tribulation are local Kingdom Halls? How is getting rid of a well-built facility and turning it into an ashram or chiropractor’s office, or a mini-mart, making better use of a Kingdom Hall?
Just face it: The princes of Bethel do not have to explain their actions to you. True, you are a dearly loved sheep. But the way it works on the farm is when the time comes some sheep get sheared and some are slaughtered. Just be happy that you are not the latter. So, if your congregation is served with an eviction notice and the shepherds tell you to pack up and get out you must subject yourselves to your masters. Besides, you knew when you built and paid for your Kingdom Hall that Watchtower Inc. would own it. Just because you assumed they would never sell it for profit, that’s on you. You don’t know how the world works. The real estate market has been red hot in recent years and Wall Street consultants know a lot about how to maximize profits and utilize space and Watchtower Inc. paid a lot of money for their sage advice. After all, these guys have MBAs from Harvard.
So, if you wish to be loyal to the faithful and discreet slave, just get over it. Jehovah’s fast-paced organizational chariot is on the move and you had better keep up or you will get crushed under the massive, churning wheelworks of Watchtower Inc.
But what if you have Bible studies who have just started attending meetings and are not able to drive an extra 20 miles to the place where you have been assigned? That’s not Bethel’s problem. You have to figure out how to be a better servant. Do more.
While the nameless, faceless board of directors and their Governing Body frontmen do not answer to any JW, anointed or otherwise, they will have to render an account before Christ. Amazingly, many hundreds of years ago Jehovah foresaw the crimes Watchtower Inc. has committed. Speaking through Isaiah Jehovah has laid out the charges: “Your princes are stubborn and partners with thieves. Every one of them loves a bribe and chases after gifts. They do not grant justice to the fatherless, and the legal case of the widow never reaches them.” (1:23)
No doubt the many thousands of elders and brothers and sisters, and yes, fatherless boys and widows, who have been dispossessed by Watchtower Inc. cannot completely suppress their resentment. But take comfort in knowing that you were not the only victims of Bethel’s thievery. Because every Kingdom Hall has been dedicated to God the theocratic princes have in reality stolen what belongs to Jehovah. Adam and Eve stole something that belonged to God. Achan took something that belonged to Jehovah too. Judas was a thief and stole from Jesus. In each instance, the thieves paid for their theft with their lives. And now look where we are.
When you see the disgusting thing that causes desolation
The Watchtower explains a Christian’s position towards secular authorities well. It is a relative subjection. We understand that governments, be they local, national, or international, cannot override God’s law. They cannot restrict a Christian from obeying God. Well, that is not accurate. They can make laws that prevent a Christian from doing God’s will but we are under no obligation to obey. It is true, that governments only have authority because God extends it to them. They are his ministers, serving the public good. What the Watchtower fails to explain, however, is that the superior authorities are a temporary arrangement. Their legitimacy will end when Christ’s Kingdom begins ruling. Contrary to the foundational cornerstone of the Watchtower, Christ has not begun ruling, nor has the conclusion of the system begun.
The truth of this matter is fairly easy to discern, provided one is capable and willing to use their powers of reason. The coming of the Kingdom has nothing to do with seven times. There is no need to decipher what a “time” is. Jesus provided a very simple and easy-to-understand sign. That is what his disciples asked him for: “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your presence and of the conclusion of the system of things?” The “sign” is not something that occurs over successive generations. Jesus likened it to the first buds of spring that signal that summer is near. The point? “Likewise also you, when you see all these things, know that he is near at the doors.”
One of the things Jesus foretold that make up the first sprouts of spring, besides war, food shortages, pandemics, and earthquakes, Jesus said: “When you catch sight of the disgusting thing that causes desolation, as spoken about by Daniel the prophet, standing in a holy place (let the reader use discernment), then let those in Judea begin fleeing to the mountains.”
In the first century, the disgusting thing came in the form of the Roman armies, which at the time Rome was also serving as the superior authority. The holy place was the temple in Jerusalem. The Roman legions came to put down a rebellion and even began undermining the temple wall and then suddenly withdrew. That was the signal for Christians to get out of town. True to Christ’s words, 42 months later, on the Passover of 70 CE, when the city was packed with Jews from all over, the Romans returned and swiftly ringed Jerusalem with a palisade. You know how that ended for the Jews trapped in the city.
But Jesus connected the desolation of Jerusalem with a great tribulation that would engulf the entire earth and necessitate divine intervention to prevent the utter extinction of mankind. The cutting short of the great tribulation will mark a turning point when the superior authority no longer functions as God’s ministers, but rather, will be openly hostile and opposed to the Kingdom of Christ and at war with the holy ones. That is because Christ will be ruling in the post-crash world and the superior authority will craft an image of the beast and demand everyone on earth worship the image. The revived beast will blaspheme Jehovah and even those who reside in heaven. The image of the beast will truly be a disgusting thing since it will be ruling by the authority of Satan in outright opposition to the newly-crowned King, Jesus Christ. The closing words of the book of Daniel reveal that the disgusting thing will exist all during the 43 months. “And from the time that the constant feature has been removed and the disgusting thing that causes desolation has been put in place, there will be 1,290 days.”
To their great reproach, the Watchtower has falsely claimed that the beast has already been slaughtered and revived and that the image of the beast is the United Nations. Understandably, it is not a topic of conversation, but Jehovah’s Witnesses have been deluded into imagining that the vast majority of the people of the world have already been condemned to everlasting death and received the symbolic 666 mark of the beast. Of course, it is impossible to explain how the supposed coercion works since no one has been restricted from buying or selling. As I say, it is not something JWs talk about. It is sort of like religionists’ belief in Hell. It is not something they prefer to discuss either.
Too bad for them, for they have followed the path of Cain
King Solomon who wrote most of the Proverbs and other books that are part of the Bible, became an apostate. He built Jehovah’s temple, but later he built temples for his many demon-worshipping wives. Jehovah even specifically warned him not to multiply wives for himself. Solomon, the reputed wisest man of his day, did not listen to God. As a result of Solomon’s apostasy Israel was torn apart, literally. Civil war ensued. Brothers killed brothers, all because the king of Jehovah’s earthly organization acted wickedly. For all of his wealth and wisdom, Solomon became stupid. He became the person he wrote about in Ecclesiastes 4:13: “Better is a poor but wise child than an old but stupid king, who no longer has enough sense to heed a warning.”
Although no individual compares to Solomon, the Watchtower is in a similar position. It has written a great deal in explanation of the Bible, exhibiting godly wisdom and insight. Like Solomon, the Watchtower has engaged in great building projects, both brick and mortar and spiritual. There was peace all during Solomon’s reign until Jehovah raised up resisters to him after he apostatized. Similarly, although the prophets of Bethel claim that peace was taken from the earth in 1914, in reality, we are enjoying an extended period of peace. We might think of Russia’s recent liquidation of the Watchtower as the modern counterpart of the resisters that Jehovah raised up against his apostate king. Like Solomon, the Governing Body boasts of being faithful and wise. And they certainly live like kings at the expense of their subjects, as did Solomon.
When it comes to the wicked being no more, Jehovah’s Witnesses know that judgment starts with the house of God. And no, contrary to the elaborate myth, the judgment did not begin in 1918 or whenever. It will begin when the Son of man arrives like a thief in the night to judge the appointed slaves of his household. As Jesus foretold, some will be judged as having been faithful, though ignorantly erring, and others will be condemned as willfully wicked. However, the condemned slaves will not be immediately executed. They will be put out of the house, thrown into the outer darkness, knowing that eternal death awaits them. As Jesus said, that is where the weeping and the gnashing of their teeth will be. No doubt the wicked slaves will persecute their former brothers. That is how this ends.
Jesus dismissed Judas during the Passover celebration. And what did he do? Under the power of the wicked one, Judas went immediately to Jesus’ enemies to lead them to where he knew Jesus would be with his faithful apostles. And it was night. Like Judas, the wicked slave knows those who claim to be anointed. The Watchtower literally has the names and addresses of everyone who partakes at the Memorial. (Maybe those who claim that everyone should partake might want to rethink their position.) We may be certain the Judas faction will lead the authorities to them in some fashion. It is even so written of them in Jude: “Too bad for them, for they have followed the path of Cain and have rushed into the erroneous course of Balaam for reward, and they have perished in the rebellious talk of Korah! These are the rocks hidden below water at your love feasts while they feast with you, shepherds who feed themselves without fear; waterless clouds carried here and there by the wind; fruitless trees in late autumn, having died twice and having been uprooted; wild waves of the sea that cast up the foam of their own shame; stars with no set course, for which the blackest darkness stands reserved forever.”
“The path of Cain” is fratricide. Jehovah spoke to Balaam on more than one occasion. Nevertheless, the prophet devised a scheme to try to get Jehovah to destroy his own people. Korah sought to have equal authority with Moses, even as the Judas-like man of lawlessness will try to usurp Christ. The blackest darkness stands reserved for those who oppose the Son of man during his parousia and treacherously betray the chosen ones, the brothers of Christ.
And the wisdom of their wise men will perish
There is wisdom in listening to the counsel of experienced older people. There is no denying that the Watchtower has provided training and the necessary tools as well as encouragement and direction to enable Jehovah’s Witnesses to fully accomplish their ministry. is that it, though? What happens when the good news is preached throughout the world to the extent deemed necessary by the Lord? Well, most JW’s will answer that with two words: “The end.” That is because Jesus foretold that the good news will be preached first and then the end will come. What is the end? Is it the end of the world? No. It is the time of the end. The end of the age, as some translations word it. The NWT translates Jesus’ words as “the conclusion of the system.” The conclusion is a period of time after the preaching, teaching, and disciple-making work have concluded.
Why aren’t Jehovah’s Witnesses aware of this? Because the WT teaches that the conclusion began in 1914 and has been ongoing for 110 years! Contrary to what Jesus said, namely, that the good news must be preached first, the Watchtower claims that the good news is being preached during the last days. This is a problem. It is a problem because it stands as a massive stumbling block. As if to emphasize the issue, JW dot org has a snippet article posing the question: Is World War Inevitable? – What Does the Bible Say? And what does the Bible say? According to the Watchtower, “the Bible did not foretell any specific war that we are seeing today. However, it did foretell the rampant warfare that is marking our time and is taking “peace away from the earth.”
Did you notice the clever wording? “The Bible did not foretell any specific war we are seeing today” might be misunderstood by those unfamiliar. What the WT is implying is that the Bible does indeed foretell a specific war and it was World War One, which no one alive today personally experienced. Although the article does not say so straightforwardly, the message ought to be clear: World war is not inevitable because all the things the Bible foretold as to war, famine, and pestilence marking the beginning of the end have already occurred. The faithful and wise servant, Jehovah’s earthly spokesman, has assured Jehovah’s Witnesses that there will not be another world war.
And so the stage is set for the fulfillment of Isaiah 29:14b, which says: “And the wisdom of their wise men will perish, and the understanding of their discreet men will be hidden.” Indeed, what will the wise men of Warwick possibly have to say when the world erupts in a war that will make the previous two world wars pale into insignificance? The prophets who have propheised in falsehood will have to answer for their error. It is inevitable.
When I bring punishment on them they will stumble
“Imperfections” are not the problem. Not really. Imperfections are easy to overlook. The primary source of the stumbling blocks is within the leadership of the Watchtower. And it is not mere imperfections. It is wickedness, an evil, malignant presence. The Governing Body is fulfilling prophecy by treating the spiritual breakdown lightly, even as is stated: “For from the least to the greatest, each one is making dishonest gain; From the prophet to the priest, each one is practicing fraud. And they try to heal the breakdown of my people lightly, saying, ‘There is peace! There is peace!’ When there is no peace.” – Jeremiah 6:13,14
Has the Watchtower ever taken responsibility for stumbling multitudes of JWs and interested persons? Never. If you stumble that’s on you. If you get sickened by double-talk and hypocrisy there is something wrong with you. If the Watchtower’s policies resulted in a pedophile going undetected in your congregation and he raped you or your child, again, that’s your fault. Did the Watchtower evict you from your congregation and force you to drive three times as far just to go to meetings? Hey, that’s theocracy on the march, keep up or be left behind. Have you experienced unusual health problems after rolling up your sleeve to comply with the Governing Body’s vaccine mandate? Or has a loved one unexpectedly died suddenly? Do not expect the Watchtower to share any responsibility.
No, the exalted leaders have never, ever taken responsibility for stumbling anyone. Have they ever even felt embarrassed over the tripe they publish? Again, never: “Do they feel ashamed of the detestable things they have done? They feel no shame at all! They do not even know how to feel humiliated! So they will fall among the fallen. When I bring punishment on them they will stumble,” says Jehovah – Jer 6:15
Jehovah certainly knows how to set things right. Those who have stumbled multitudes will themselves be stumbled.
A note to Jehovah’s Witnesses
As we get closer and closer to the beginning of the end of this system we may be certain that Jehovah’s organization will become more authoritarian and irrational. For a few years now, the WT has been conditioning JWs to expect to receive life-saving instructions that do not make any sense.
Notice the one phrase, because it is a mind-twister: “Maintain your trust in Jehovah and his organization when your loyalty is tested.” We do well to consider the question, is it possible to trust Jehovah and distrust his organization? Probably the majority of JWs would not consider that a relevant question. It is as if the two come in a boxed set. But who has brought about that mindset? Jehovah or the Watchtower? Obviously, it is the latter, brought about by years of mental conditioning. JWs cannot conceive of Jehovah without the Watchtower, as if God could not even exist without it.
If you are a loyal JW I am here to tell you that your loyalty to Jehovah will absolutely be tested and it will be tested in a way that you cannot even conceive. But it must be that way. In the days to come you will have to decide whether to follow Jehovah or follow the Watchtower. One way will lead to life. The other way will result in everlasting death. And you will have to choose.
In his love Jehovah has made it easy for you, provided you love the truth. I will explain.
As it stands presently JWs do not need to choose. Most Jehovah’s Witnesses are not aware that they have been deceived by what Paul called an operation of Satan. Bluntly, Jesus did not begin ruling in 1914. There is no such thing as an invisible parousia. Satan was not cast down in 1914. The time of the end has not begun. That is the delusion that is the core of the Watchtower and which is the operation of Satan that God allows to go to those who know the truth in order to test their love of the truth when the time comes.
I have spent the past two decades exposing this operation of Satan with very little success. And that is fine. I am just a slave of Christ who tries to do what has been assigned to me, the same as everyone else who calls upon the name of Jehovah. The relatively few JWs who have come to realize the deceptive influence that emanates from the WT find it difficult to carry on since their relationship with Jehovah and Jesus is bound up with the Watchtower. I know, it’s complicated. That is why I do not encourage JWs to leave.
As Jehovah’s Witnesses know, Satan has challenged God and he is also the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them night and day. No doubt one of the accusations is very similar to Job’s case. The Devil contends that God has put a protective hedge around Christians in the form of an organization. Who can deny that the Watchtower controls the whole program? It is all laid out for you. You cannot even conceive of the Watchtower not being there. How could you even serve Jehovah without it? And, as already stated, they have convinced you that they will be there when it all comes down with their life-saving instructions.
But here’s the deal: Since everything the Watchtower has taught about 1914 is wrong, what will happen when Christ comes for real? It will not be pretty. Nation against nation, kingdom against kingdom, you know the rest. Jesus said many will be stumbled and hate one another and betray one another. But why? Because it will become undeniable that the Watchtower has misled everyone. Even individual members of the Governing Body are going to be shaken to their core. Jehovah wants to find out if you will be loyal to him or to the organization that deceived you. At that point, loyalty will be mutually exclusive.
In his love, God has provided a sign. The Watchtower has stated for the record that whenever “they” are saying “peace and security” then the sudden destruction will come in the form of the great tribulation and the UN will destroy false religion. They have been saying that for years and years. Every JW knows it well. So, what if “they” make a dramatic announcement that disaster has been averted and there is global “peace and security” and then sudden destruction comes in the form of nations going to war and the entire system crashes?
I assure you in that scenario, the Watchtower will crash too. Maybe not entirely, but certainly, their authority as God’s earthly mouthpiece will be gone. It will become apparent then that Jehovah’s organization has been compromised, even by a disgusting thing! It is against that backdrop that Jesus’ pre-issued life-saving instructions will become applicable: “Therefore, when you catch sight of the disgusting thing that causes desolation, as spoken about by Daniel the prophet, standing in a holy place (let the reader use discernment), then let those in Judea begin fleeing to the mountains. Let the man on the housetop not come down to take the goods out of his house, and let the man in the field not return to pick up his outer garment…for then there will be great tribulation such as has not occurred since the world’s beginning until now, no, nor will occur again. In fact, unless those days were cut short, no flesh would be saved; but on account of the chosen ones those days will be cut short.”
Have you not read?
Dear Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses. I have a question for you: Have you not read the prophecy of Isaiah? The answer is, of course, no; at least not with understanding. I have read your commentary on Isaiah, both volumes, and it is clear to me that the words of the prophet in the 29th chapter are directed to you. “Every vision becomes for you like the words of a sealed book. When they give it to someone who can read, saying: “Read this out loud, please,” he will say: “I cannot, for it is sealed up.” And when they give the book to someone who cannot read, saying: “Read this, please,” he will say: “I cannot read at all.”
Have you not read what Jehovah has said: “This people approach me with their mouth and they honor me with their lips, but their heart is far removed from me; and their fear of me is based on commands of men that they have been taught. Therefore, I am the One who will again do wonderful things with this people, with wonder upon wonder; and the wisdom of their wise men will perish, and the understanding of their discreet men will be hidden.” (29:13,14)
“This people approach me with their mouth.” Who might “this people” be? Is it not Jehovah’s Witnesses who publicly praise the name of Jehovah and who boast of being pure worshippers? And if God is determined to “do wonderful things with this people,” isn’t that a good thing? Or ought we assume that Jehovah is going to work “wonder upon wonder” with people who do not know God at all? And since the Governing Body continually boasts of being the faithful and discreet slave, is it not the wisdom of the discreet men that will perish when the day of Jehovah begins in a way you have not understood?
Have you not read: “only terror will make them understand what was heard”? (28:19b) If the understanding of the discreet slave is hidden and only terror will make them understand, isn’t that a good thing too? You do want to understand, do you not? I have tried to impart some understanding but to no avail.
JW dot org recently posed two questions: Is World War Inevitable?—What Does the Bible Say? Your answer is quite clever: “The Bible did not foretell any specific war that we are seeing today.” No mention is made of WWI being the specific war the Bible mentions, although it is implied. And yet not one person alive today has personally witnessed that First World War.
Indeed, have you not read what Jesus said: “When you see all these things, know that he is near at the doors”? Do you claim to have seen “all these things”? You have not seen anything. Have you not read: This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says: “Woe to the stupid prophets, who follow their own spirit, when they have seen nothing!” – Ezekiel 13:3
As Jehovah’s watchman, it is my duty to inform you that world war is inevitable. Have you not read? “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says: ‘I will cause powerful windstorms to burst forth in my wrath, and a torrential downpour in my anger, and hailstones in destructive fury. I will tear down the wall that you plastered with whitewash and bring it down to the earth, and its foundation will be exposed. When the city falls, you will perish within her; and you will have to know that I am Jehovah.'” – Ez 13:13,14
Rabboni!
The prime lesson Jehovah has yet to teach us is trust, humility, and honesty. Those qualities are not something that one can develop by merely reading words on a page. Unfortunately, human nature being what it is and the prevalence of malignant spirits, the most vital, life-saving instructions your Grand Instructor will yet impart will require a strong disciplinarian’s hand to administer. It is the only way.
And so, if Jehovah looks for the good in his students and instead sees baneful issues such as willful blindness, idolatrous greed, self-righteousness, unreasonableness, and even a haughty spirit, combined with a malicious intent to deceive on the part of the leaders, Jehovah knows how to fix it. It will not be pleasant. No, it will be very painful. But the end result will be worth it–provided one has the inner strength to endure it. Indeed, who will endure the day of his coming and who will be able to stand when he appears? I remember reading that somewhere…
If one were actually to read the context of the 30th chapter of Isaiah it is all laid out. Here, let’s read it together: “Though Jehovah will give you bread in the form of distress and water in the form of oppression, your Grand Instructor will no longer hide himself, and you will see your Grand Instructor with your own eyes. And your own ears will hear a word behind you saying, “This is the way. Walk in it,” in case you should go to the right or in case you should go to the left.”
In what way has Jehovah hidden himself? He has allowed his people to go their own way; he has even permitted wicked men to be the most prominent teachers. He has not intervened to correct the prevailing delusion that he began ruling as King back in 19…whenever. Jehovah has even allowed himself to be robbed. He has stayed hidden even while an organization is worshipped and held on high as the true light. He is patient.
In what way has God given his people “bread in the form of distress and water in the form of oppression”? He has not. Not yet. It is coming in the form of the great tribulation. And guess who will be dispensing the bread and water? Communist tyrants, from whom there will be no escape. Like a plague of swarming locusts, they will devour everything. Money? Forget it. It’s gone. It has to be this way. Did you really think God was just going to destroy false religion and then lead you into paradise?
And this foolishness about an invisible parousia. What utter nonsense. Of course, even those who have actually been anointed will continue to allow themselves to be deluded until you hear a word behind you and then you will see your Grand Instructor. Sort of reminds me of when Mary went to the tomb looking for the corpse of Jesus and she mistook him for the gardener and then she heard a word behind her, saying: “Mary!” And Mary turned and recognized that it was Jesus and she said: “Rabboni!”
On a day you do not expect
It is all good counsel. Strengthening our relationship with Jehovah is the most important thing. Amazingly, the comment above makes no mention of the Watchtower being part of the equation for salvation. There is, however, the ever-present error that is the foundation of the Watchtower, this naive notion that one day the world is going to abruptly end. That is not to imply that it is not going to end, just that it is not going to end in the way that the Watchtower has led Jehovah’s Witnesses to expect.
“Unexpected events can affect us” is an understatement. We must expect unexpected events. No, not the sort of “unexpected events” that befall us personally. I am talking about the main event, the unexpected coming of Christ. It is even so written: “The master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect and in an hour that he does not know, and he will punish him with the greatest severity and will assign him his place with the hypocrites.” – Matthew 24:50,51
How is it that the slaves who are appointed to feed the master’s domestics, who have been announcing Jehovah’s Kingdom and heralding the presence of Christ for generations, could be overtaken by the unexpected coming of the Lord? It is for this very reason that Jesus will come on a day you do not expect and in an hour you do not know. The falsity of the Watchtower’s end-times eschatology is a main part of Bible prophecy. It is the operation of Satan that Jehovah permits as a prelude to the actual coming of Christ and ultimately the visible parousia.
There is no earthly power that can disabuse the Governing Body of their 1914-kingdom-came-invisible-parousia folly. And it is this beloved fallacy, this phony seven times equation that augurs the day of Christ’s invisible return that ensures that the master “will come on a day that he does not expect and in an hour he does not know.”
Yes, “unexpected events” are a dead certainty. Consider the history of the Bible Students. Many were convinced that C.T. Russell’s chronology affixed 1914 as the year of the end. Then everything blew up. Nothing turned out as they had been led to expect. Even their beloved Pastor Russell unexpectedly passed away. Then the war ended and the Spanish Flu vanished as quickly as it arrived and everything went on as before. Except most of the Bible Students did not. Incredibly, 1914 poses an even bigger stumbling block for Jehovah’s Witnesses now than for the Bible Students back then.
Now we stand at the threshold of a third world war. Each week there is a new development, another escalation. There is increasing talk of civil war in America and Europe. The globalists are even warning that they have another virus 20 times more deadly than the last one that they are about to unleash. And even in the face of this developing storm the seers of Bethel have assured Jehovah’s Witnesses and as many as will listen, that world war is not inevitable. How do they know? Because WWI fulfilled Jesus’ prophecy and any subsequent wars are just a continuation. The slave has spoken! Thus, the stage is set for Christ to come on a day you do not expect and in an hour you do not know.