Sunday, February 7
Through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin.
Both Adam and Eve sinned, but Adam was held responsible for their wrongdoing. The first human pair were led to think that they did not need Jehovah as their Ruler. That raised this vital question of sovereignty: Who has the right to rule? To provide an answer for all eternity, God allowed rule independent of him to continue for a time. He knew that experience would prove that rule independent of him would fail. Over the centuries, such rulership has plunged human society into one calamity after another. In the past century alone, about 100,000,000 people died in wars—and that includes millions of innocent men, women, and children. So there already is mounting evidence that “it does not belong to man who is walking even to direct his step.” Realizing that fact, we acknowledge Jehovah as our Ruler.
COMMENTARY
The evidence is mounting indeed, that under the influence of Satan the Devil humans have failed spectacularly on virtually every level. And while the past century saw 100 million lives destroyed in senseless warfare, unfortunately the worst is yet to come.
The greatest calamity in human history is just around the next corner. Just as before both previous world wars, the nations are again lining up in two opposed blocs with binding mutual defense agreements. On the one side is Russia, China and Iran. On the other side is the Anglo-American duo and NATO, along with all of London’s Middle East satrapies, like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, EAU, Bahrain, Kuwait and Israel.
The Watchtower has assured Jehovah’s Witnesses that there cannot be another world war. The reason the Watchtower makes that claim is because another world war would undoubtedly involve nuclear weapons. And according to Bethel that would lead to the complete ruination of the earth and the extermination of mankind, which God will not allow.
There is little reason to doubt that a shooting war between the two blocs would quickly escalate to a nuclear conflict. And it is also true that an all-out nuclear exchange would simply obliterate the world and virtually every living thing. But what are we to make of Jesus’ words regarding the great tribulation being so severe that unless God cut it short no flesh would be saved?
So, according to no less an authority than Jesus Christ the world is going to be faced with extinction, requiring divine intervention to prevent it.
Obviously the Governing Body have not thought this through. There is going to be another world war. Jehovah’s Witnesses had better get used to that reality. And that war will mark the beginning of the time of the end —the time of the end being the three and one-half year period designated in prophecy.
