What Will You Do?

From the Law that God gave to Israel, we learn about the sort of slavery that Jehovah requires of us. A Hebrew slave was to be granted his freedom in the seventh year of his servitude. However, for a slave who really loved his master and who wished to remain in his service, Jehovah made a remarkable provision. The master was to bring his slave up against the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear through with an awl. It is of significance that this procedure involved the ear. In the Hebrew language, the basic idea of obedience is expressed by a word that relates to hearing and listening. The willing slave desired to continue giving obedient service to his master. This helps us appreciate what is involved in our dedication to Jehovah—willing obedience motivated by love of God.

Commentary

Satan the Devil is called the ‘accuser of our brothers, who accuses them day and night.’

The fact notwithstanding that the Devil is liar — as Jesus pointed out — we should not assume that the Devil’s accusations are fabricated lies. Quite likely his accusations have some validity.

One accusation that is echoed via Satan’s human minions is that Jehovah’s Witnesses are slaves of the Watchtower and not really slaves of Jehovah. After all, who can honestly deny that the Watchtower dominates all aspects of the faith of Jehovah’s Witnesses? Not only that, for the past 30 years persons becoming baptized as Jehovah’s Witnesses are required to take an oath recognizing that they are followers of “God’s spirit-directed organization.”

Since it is undeniable that the faith of Jehovah’s Witnesses is inseparable from the all-pervasive “spirit-directed organization,” how might God respond to the accusation that Jehovah’s Witnesses are not really his slaves?

In the case of the man Job Satan accused God of placing a protective barrier around Job. The Devil must surely accuse God of using the Watchtower in a similar manner. Since it is Jehovah’s intention to vindicate himself as God and the One who engenders unbreakable faith and loyalty in his subjects, how might God respond to the implicit accusation?

Just as in the instance of the man Job, before the end God intends to remove his protection, in this instance his protection being the organization, in order to allow Jehovah’s Witnesses to stand alone and thereby demonstrate their faith and loyalty in God, apart from the all-imposing organization.