This is a consideration of study article #29 — Support Our Overseer Jesus
Jesus said the good news will be preached first in all the world and then the end will come. Christ also foretold that he would appoint a slave to provide food at the right time. Let us consider a few aspects of this important topic. Paragraph four states:
4. Jesus stated that the preaching and disciple-making work would be accomplished in “all the nations” and that he would be with his followers “all the days until the conclusion of the system of things.” (Matt. 28:20) Those statements clearly indicate that the preaching work would continue under Jesus’ supervision right down to our day.
The mind is a powerful force. It can reason on difficult matters and sort out knotty problems and understand complex things and if energized by God’s powerful holy spirit the mind can even understand prophetic puzzles and sacred secrets otherwise concealed.
Unfortunately, the mind can also be easily diverted and deluded, especially if one is inclined toward mental laziness and lack of curiosity. There is an emotional component too. People generally feel uncomfortable reexamining things they are convinced are true. And then there is the prevailing influence of the one whom Jesus called the wicked one.
Take for example what Jesus said—quoted above. As Jehovah’s Witnesses know, the conclusion of the system of things, also known as the time of the end and the last days, is a period of time immediately preceding the absolute termination of Satan’s world at the symbolic battleground known as Armageddon.
If Jesus will be with his disciples until the conclusion of the system does that mean the beginning of the interval of the time of the end, or the end of the conclusion? It is not a silly question. Why didn’t Jesus simply say ‘I will be with you all the days until the end of the world’?
If Jesus is to come again in order to judge the inhabitants of earth we should not suppose Christians will be carrying on then as before. We generally regard the conclusion of the system to be in reference to the world under Satan’s wicked influence. And, to be sure, it is that—and a lot more.
The end of the system is also the end of Christianity. No, not the end of the Christian faith; rather, it will be the end of the preaching, teaching, and disciple-making mission that began when Jesus said: “Go, make disciples.” The conclusion is the end of the calling. The end of the anointing. The end of the age of evangelism. That is why Jesus said the good news has to be preached first.
This is the monumental error of the Watchtower—the undying belief that the conclusion began in 1914.
Jesus said the harvest is a conclusion of the system. The Watchtower has concocted the most absurd explanation of Jesus’ illustration imaginable. Supposedly the harvest began over a century ago when the angels removed the unsuitable weed-like parishioners of the nominal churches from among the Bible Students. Why that was necessary is not clear, since Russell’s Bible Students were already a separate sect easily distinguished from the mainstream. It is anyone’s guess how those millions of poor souls were bundled up and thrown into the fire. To complicate matters, that crop of weeds naturally died off anyway. Evidently, the Devil has kept sowing weed seeds afresh year after year all during the never-ending harvest. (See chapter: The Harvest)
There is an ancient Hebrew prophetic book that details the sudden end of the ministry. It is the book of Joel. In three places in the prophecy, mention is made of the fear-inspiring day of Jehovah. In spite of that, the seers who claim to be faithful and discreet have recently issued new light on Joel, declaring that the prophecy has no modern fulfillment.
When certain men in authority speak in Jehovah’s name and deliberately skew and twist what God has said such men reveal themselves to be false prophets. It is foolish to pretend that one can prevent God’s word from coming true. A terrible end awaits them.
“Hear this, you elders, and pay attention, all you inhabitants of the land. Has anything like this happened in your days or in the days of your forefathers? Tell about it to your sons, and let your sons tell about it to their sons, and their sons to the next generation. What was left by the devouring locust, the swarming locust has eaten; and what was left by the swarming locust, the unwinged locust has eaten; and what the unwinged locust has left, the voracious locust has eaten. Wake up, you drunkards, and weep! Wail, all you wine drinkers, because the sweet wine has been taken from your mouths.” — Joel 1:2-5
“The field has been devastated, the ground mourns; for the grain has been devastated, the new wine has dried up, the oil has failed. Farmers are dismayed, vinedressers wail, because of the wheat and the barley; for the harvest of the field has perished. The vine has dried up, the fig tree has withered. The pomegranate, the palm, and the apple, all the trees of the field have dried up; for joy has turned to shame among the people.” — Joel 1:10-12
5. Jesus was not worried that there would be a shortage of workers during the conclusion of the system of things. He knew that the prophetic words of the psalmist would be fulfilled: “Your people will offer themselves willingly on the day of your military force.” (Ps. 110:3) If you are sharing in the preaching work, you are supporting Jesus and the faithful slave and are helping to fulfill that prophecy. The work is going ahead, but there are challenges.
“The day of your military force” has not begun. That “day” is also referred to as the Lord’s day and Jehovah’s day. The 110th Psalm coincides with the opening of the seven seals of the scroll of God’s judgments. The opening of the first seal depicts a rider on a white horse who is given a bow and crown and he rides forth to subdue all of God’s enemies. Psalms 110:5-6 verifies that Christ is the rider of the white horse, saying: “Jehovah will be at your right hand; He will crush kings on the day of his anger. He will execute judgment against the nations; he will fill the land with dead bodies. He will crush the leader of a vast land.”
According to Revelation Jehovah’s judgment against the nations will result in a quarter of mankind being killed. That would certainly qualify as filling “the land with dead bodies.”
Presently the United States of America is considered the greatest nation that has ever existed. The prophecy of Ezekiel depicts “Egypt” as a giant cedar tree that towers over all the lesser trees in God’s garden of tree-like nations. The reason the forest of trees is called the garden of Eden is because since God expelled the first two humans from paradise he has allowed nations to develop and dominate mankind until such time as the King of kings brings his military force against the nations.
God himself gives the order to chop down the towering cedar. What relevance could the fall of ancient Egypt have for us in the 21st century? Egypt—the first head of Satan’s seven-headed wild beast—also represents the last ruling empire. That is why felling the cedar, “Egypt,” initiates the day of Jehovah and an appointed time for all nations to be judged. Read it for yourself: “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says: “Wail, ‘Alas, the day is coming!’ For the day is near, yes, a day of Jehovah is near. It will be a day of clouds, an appointed time of nations. A sword will come against Egypt, and panic will overtake Ethiopia when the slain fall in Egypt; its wealth is taken and its foundations are torn down.” — Ezekiel 30:2-4
It is surely no coincidence that America has been deliberately bankrupted by the foreign-owned Federal Reserve. The wealthiest nation has become the greatest debtor in the world. The constitutional foundations of the once-proud Land of the free have been under constant attack from its supposed guardians. Even the cherished first amendment protecting free speech and freedom of religion is now considered to be obsolete.
Most disconcerting, now the wild-eyed, lunatic politicians are declaring their intention to punish Russia, even calling for open warfare against the world’s preeminent nuclear power. Some say, with good reason, that World War Three has already begun. In any case, as a prophet once said: ‘Look! The ax is already lying at the root!’
How then might the scripture be fulfilled that Christ’s company of young men will offer themselves willingly in the day of Christ’s military campaign? Again, referring to the fall of “Egypt” Ezekiel 29:21 states: “In that day I will cause a horn to sprout for the house of Israel, and I will give you an opportunity to speak among them; and they will have to know that I am Jehovah.”
Jesus hinted at this when he said the chosen ones will stand before governors and kings to give them a witness. To be sure, they will not be offering a free home Bible study but fulfilling the pattern of Christ giving Pontius Pilate a witness.
6. One challenge that Kingdom preachers face is opposition. Apostates, religious leaders, and politicians have given many the wrong impression about our work. If our relatives, acquaintances, and workmates are misled by this propaganda, they may pressure us to stop serving Jehovah and to stop preaching.
The greatest challenge facing Kingdom preachers today comes from the Governing Body. For over two years and counting the GB have forbidden JW’s from venturing out on the street or knocking on a door. Even as the lockdowns have been lifted and people are back at work and school, Jehovah’s Witnesses are still sheltering in place avoiding all face-to-face contact with people in their territory. All the while the Governing Body keeps gaslighting JW’s—assuring them they are following Jesus and obeying his command to “go” by staying home writing letters and making unsolicited phone calls.
For sure, apostates present a spiritual danger, seeing that they preside over Christians and like the superfine apostles of Corinth have disguised themselves as ministers of righteousness. True to prophecy, the Watchtower has burned down the vineyard.
End of part six…
