Wednesday, May 12
Be in subjection to the older men. . . . Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the haughty ones. —1 Pet. 5:5.
Avoid being presumptuous. If we heed the direction we receive from trusted, responsible brothers, we will avoid problems. For example, in a land where the work is under ban, the responsible brothers had directed that the publishers not leave printed literature in the ministry. Yet, a pioneer brother in that location felt that he knew better and distributed literature. What was the result? Shortly after he and some others finished a period of informal witnessing, they were questioned by the police. Apparently, officials had followed them and were able to retrieve the literature they had distributed. What do we learn from this experience? We need to follow direction even if we feel that we know better. Jehovah always blesses us when we cooperate with the brothers whom he has appointed to take the lead among us. —Heb. 13:7, 17. w19.07 12 ¶17
What is so wrong with being questioned by the police? Why have Jehovah’s Witnesses become so timid and fearful?
I happened to know a sister who lived in Quebec back in the 1950s when Catholic Premier Duplessis promised to drive Jehovah’s Witnesses from the province. The persecution was intense. The fearless pioneer sister said she would take her toothbrush with her when she went out in service in the morning because she always expected to be arrested and spend the night in jail. Times sure have changed! By the way, the sister was Grace Sanderson, the Canadian mother of Mark Sanderson of the Governing Body.
Being in subjection is God’s way. It is appropriate for children to be in subjection to parents and teachers. Wives are counseled to be in subjection to their husbands. Citizens are expected to be in subjection to the governmental authorities. And congregants ought to be in subjection to those taking the lead.
But subjection to fellow humans is relative. For example, true Christians have always defied authorities when it comes to putting God first. Wives are not expected to submit to abusive husbands either. You get the point. And when trusted, responsible brothers who were once taking the lead no longer take the lead Christians are not obligated to be in subjection to them. Ought the sheep dutifully follow the directions of the shepherd to the slaughterhouse?
From the very beginning, the Watchtower always exhorted Christians to be zealous about preaching and teaching others. Since WW2 Gilead has produced many missionaries who have traveled to the four corners of the earth. But not anymore.
Meeting together weekly was always considered a vital activity—the solemn obligation of every dedicated Christian. Over the past half-century, Jehovah’s Witnesses have built thousands of Kingdom halls all over the world. Huge assembly halls have been constructed too.
But for the past 15 months, every Kingdom hall and assembly hall has been shuttered. And the public ministry for which Jehovah’s Witnesses are known no longer exists. Those older men who use to take the lead no longer engage in the public ministry. They say it is too dangerous—even foolhardy to venture out. And they have ordered all Christians to suspend their public preaching. Witnesses are not allowed to even visit an interested person in their home or stand on a street corner offering literature to passersby. Meeting together in person is strictly forbidden.
There is no doubt that the pandemic has been hyped for political purposes and exploited for the purpose of social engineering. The media have done their part to amplify the terror. The campaign has been widely successful.
Back when the pandemic first began we were told a lockdown was necessary for a couple of weeks to slow the spread. That seemed reasonable. Except the two weeks has become more than a year.
There was a story of a guy in California who paddled out into the vast Pacific to catch a wave on his surfboard. There was no one on the beach and no other surfers. Just a guy out floating on God’s big blue sea. Being out in the sun breathing the sea air is probably the healthiest thing a person can do. Then, out of nowhere a coast guard boat showed up and arrested the surfer. Evidently, he wasn’t wearing a mask. This is the sort of blunt force tyranny that is behind the lockdown. It is not about slowing the spread of some unstoppable microbe.
The other day I went for a walk in a public park. There was no one around except two young parents and a toddler playing on the swings. They all were wearing masks—including the child. How crazy is that? It is disturbing how easily people are manipulated by fear—in this case, an unwarranted fear. Being out in the fresh air and sunshine poses no health risk at all. Zero. Ultraviolet light from the sun is the most powerful sanitizer there is.
Zero Hedge posted an article the other day citing the New York Times, one of the CIA’s main propaganda spigots, I might add, which actually came clean and admitted that there is no proof that even one case of Covid has been transmitted outside in the open air.
Think about that. Let it soak in. The Watchtower has ordered JW’s to stay off the street apparently based upon information coming from the “experts” at the UN’s World Health Organization and the CDC, which, as it turns out has no basis in science or fact.
The Watchtower’s claim that they are saving lives by staying indoors is about as wrong as you can get.
Does Jehovah expect you to follow the direction of the Watchtower when they are in open defiance of Christ?
