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xero

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Posts posted by xero

  1. 1 hour ago, TrueTomHarley said:

    Uh oh. Don’t challenge her to that! She’ll throw at you every verse in the Bible, though to be sure, none of them apply.

    That's why I put people on ignore and filter them through anyone I've not blocked. If the non-blockers respond w/something that gets my attention I might peek, otherwise all I hear is noise.

     

  2. https://faithalone.org/journal-articles/romans-816-and-assurance/

    Apparently others have struggled with the subjectivity of the anointed idea as well. (Ro. 8:16)

    Since there is no objective evidence that any individual is anointed today, I simply examine organizations as to the proximity these come to sticking to the bible. This organization fares better than most in my view and quite amazing insofar as it is global in extent. That said, the dragnet illustration w/regard to organizations still hold in my view. The organization too is part of the dragnet. Parallel accounts w/wheat and weeds, sheep and goats the same and even the question "Who really is the FDS?" Each organization claims as a body to be such. Jesus will be the judge. Until then the focus of a Christian is to identify which ORGANIZATION they deem to be faithful and discreet. If you have no organization, then you're not part of that body because you're either implicitly or explicitly are behaving as a "superfine apostle". How then can you forgive your brothers when you separate yourself from them because they didn't do everything the way you thought they should have? 

    Anyway I ignore anyone's claims at anointing. Show me your behavior and shut up about how you have some psychological idea about whether or not you might be wearing an invisible crown. Show me your scriptures and your arguments and I'll make up my own mind. 

    Oh, also use the same hypercritical analysis w/regard to the 1st century organization and you'd reject them too.

  3. No comfort for the parents. I do see the victim mentality and entitlement mentality promoted more and more since the 1970's as creating a climate where unworthy people feel put-upon and entitled and give vent in violent ways.

    https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2010/11/self-esteem-creates-criminals-who-can-t-add/339495/
    https://homepages.se.edu/cvonbergen/files/2013/01/Dark-Side-of-Self-esteem.pdf

  4. 22 minutes ago, TrueTomHarley said:

    Sigh—I thought this was put into the closed group—that’s why I upvoted it—where it should have been in the first place (IMO) but it was not.

     It is so wearing for opposers, who misunderstand fundamental ways of how God deals with humans, to malign the Witness organization based upon false premises. 

    The trick is, not to sanitize the present, but to desanitize the past. Plenty of responsible ones in Bible history have said or done wrong or clumsy things, yet continued to be used prominently in Jehovah’s service. No reason to think it would be any different today.

    What I'm curious about is what it was about the people in the first century that was so incredibly convincing to people. It's not as if there weren't other individuals claiming this or that thing, moreover it was totally persecuted by the religious leaders and the Romans had no use for any of their nonsense either. It's also not as if people were thoroughly ensconced in rhetoric and logic and had at their mental disposal a myriad of apologetic arguments. 

    I'm thinking that the gifts of the spirit must have been running rampant, at least enough so to convince a huge number of people in a short time, otherwise the whole thing might have easily been snuffed. We have to realize what an incredible departure the whole Christianity thing was and how powerful the testimony of the converts must have been.

  5. 1 hour ago, Anna said:

    Just to clarify a few things. I am not averse to cooperating with instructions. That is not what I am talking about at all. And I am very appreciative of the constant reminders in WT studies, talks etc. which help us to remain in pure worship. Very grateful for it, and I think the GB are doing an excellent job. And our family does have a backpack ready (ha!)
    What really irritates me though is this constant need to harp on about the reason to obey now .....the reason being that if we get used to obeying now,  it will mean our salvation in the future when we have to obey this one last instruction (whatever "impractical" thing that will be) to get saved. That is wrong. It's like a veiled threat. 

    Not particularly well-veiled. The problem as I see it is that it emboldens those who are already tyrants and bullies. When these become elders, they encourage more of the same cult-like behavior. I'm suspicious of anyone who is inclined to think of himself or any other human more than it is necessary to think. It's the same with the obsessive interest in the historical lint of the organization. If you want to do this with the actual bible, bible history, biblical archaeology and apologetics, then great! But this poking around the septic tank of the organization is unhealthy and unwholesome.

  6. Have you ever wondered how many of our number are jealous socialist commies at heart?

    Good thing we're politically neutral while the some of the ones who aren't emotionally neutral  (low-hour poor meeting attending publishers) imagine a socialist-commie kingdom govt while all the rest of us decent humble folk (folks who know how to take counsel and don't whine all the time) realize if we want figs and houses, we'll have to plant them ourselves and build them ourselves and not just get some kingdom govt. EBT cards and free-loader housing.

     

    :)

     

     

  7. 14 minutes ago, Arauna said:

    This verse does not literaly imply we are saving anyone. It is the action of preaching which saves because it involves the other person to listen and obey. They themselves have to bring of themself to jehovah AFTER we have done our duty out of love. 

    However, we should all be careful by our verbal  communications and actions to not be a cause of stumbling.  It is not what goes in but what comes out which defiles us.

    Anytime I hear the whiney sound "I was stumbled!" I want to dump a bucket of ice water over that person's head.

  8. 9 minutes ago, JW Insider said:

    Unless you are Timothy:

    (1 Timothy 4:16) . . .Persevere in these things, for by doing this you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.

    Or Paul?

    (1 Corinthians 9:22) 22 To the weak I became weak, in order to gain the weak. I have become all things to people of all sorts, so that I might by all possible means save some.

    Or those who declare the good news?

    (Romans 10:13-15) . . .. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will be saved.” 14 However, how will they call on him if they have not put faith in him? How, in turn, will they put faith in him about whom they have not heard? How, in turn, will they hear without someone to preach? 15 How, in turn, will they preach unless they have been sent out? Just as it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who declare good news of good things!”

    Of course, I will agree in advance with the explanation I would expect you could give.

    (Romans 14:4-10) 4 Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for Jehovah can make him stand.. . . 10 But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you also look down on your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.

     

    ...he would have better said "provided an OPPORTUNITY to be saved"...

    But you know that already.

  9. To me this is why I don't sweat it when someone says that I gave a "bad witness". I try not to, but it's going to happen and happen repeatedly. We all have patterns. I just keep trying and relax while doing so. Straining to me or OCD-like obsessive behavior like somehow I held the life of another person in my hands is spiritual narcissism in my view. The same kind of spiritual narcissism I see in apostates. If the GB screws up, so what? They'll figure out how they screwed up and do better next time. I doesn't change me or my responsibility to take charge and responsibility for my own actions or beliefs. You want to know who's engaging in idolatrous creature-worship? It's apostates. They imagine the organization is equal to Jehovah or Jesus and they aren't. We aren't Catholics with a holy see and a pope. Jehovah may be using the organization, but it's not infallible, nor do they have any urim and thummim. They have the bible, just like the rest of us. It isn't "disrespectful" to take note of that. The path to apostasy in my view is an over-reliance on human organizations as if these were Jehovah or Jesus. Organizations are necessary, but not sufficient. They can't point the way, but we individually have to make decisions. We CAN disagree and make our own conscientious decisions and we should. True that some of us in my view want to ride the coat-tails of others, but eventually they'll be bumped off by time and circumstance to stand on their own biblical legs.

  10. One thing to keep in mind both now, at Armageddon and even afterwards when the rebellion at the end of  the 1000 years occurs is that none of us will ever know all the antecedents leading to a decision made by any given individual or even for that matter that of ourselves. We will never "know" that any individual "rejected the truth" of their own free will... we will simply have to trust that such is the case. We're fooling ourselves if we imagine that there will always be tangible external evidence which we can point to and say "See! They rejected the truth!"

    It comes down to "Do you trust Jehovah or not?"

  11. 3 hours ago, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

    It seems that RUSSELL didn't think your way. He said an organisation WASN'T NECESSARY. 

    Being organised is necessary, but that does not mean being ruled over by men. 

    Each person shoud in fact work out their own salvation w/fear and trembling, but that does not mean submitting to men. 

    Whatever. You're just wasting your time and that of any anyone else who bothers w/you.

  12. 1 hour ago, Witness said:

    For JWs that "one conclusion" is that the existence of an earthly organization built by uninspired men, is taught as inspired by God. Yet, there are more than one "spirit" that can "inspire" men. (Rev 13:15)

    "But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will [a]fall ("apostatize") away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons  by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron"  1 Tim 4:1,2

    Who are the "some" and what do those "some" do?

    "But false prophets also appeared among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. 2 Many will follow their indecent behavior, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; 3 and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep."   2 Pet 2:1-3

    The way of the truth is through Jesus Christ - NEVER THROUGH ANY ORGANIZATION THAT MEN WOULD BUILD.  But that is the one conclusion that every JW has come to believe.  Your leaders have denied their Master who bought them through the anointing.  They have effectively diverted the way of the truth, through their teaching that an organization is necessary to reach salvation.  

     

    You're flat out wrong AND you have no common sense to boot. What is the dragnet, if not the disparate nominal Christian organizations? How CAN you NOT isolate yourself like the selfish do w/o an organization? How WOULD the Bible have been preserved w/o an organization to do so.

    Being part of an organization is critical and you have to make a choice. Pretend you aren't as corrupt and flawed as those you might sneer at, or work out your own salvation w/fear and trembling WITHIN an organization which YOU feel is supporting your efforts BETTER than the others.

  13. To me, people who spend their time thinking they have any control over anyone else's fate in this universe or that somehow when they look in the mirror, they inwardly smile to themselves at their own righteousness as they compare this false image with the other false image of their fellow humans who undoubtedly are less shiny because of having failed to "carry the one" spiritually speaking are fooling themselves. Go into your closet, pray to Jehovah and work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

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