LET'S PUT IN ORDER WHAT WE KNOW AND THANK GOD

 

Let everything that breathes, praise Jah. Praise Jah! - Psalm 150:6

There was a time, not too long ago, when we believed that "Babylon the Great" was a vaguely named "world empire of false religion."

Even just the definition was ambiguous and several things didn't add up… to begin with because if this subject encompassed all kinds of misplaced worship… well, in Revelation, didn't you see people worshiping the wild beast, the beast with two horns? lamb as well as the final scarlet beast? - Revelation 13:4, 8; 5:8 pm

Even applying this to “nationalism”…well isn't nationalism a form of worship?

Being clearly distinct subjects from the prostitute, should we have viewed Babylon the Great as “the world empire of false religion to the exclusion of nationalism and the worship of man”?

In reality, this aspect wasn't the only thing that didn't add up, on the contrary… anyway, for years we never noticed it.

One fine day we learned that, while certainly having a religious significance as was logical to expect, this prostitute was none other than the apostate nation of Israel – compare Isaiah 1:21; Ezekiel 16:15

From then on our general view of things started to widen and other things would soon become clear.

Once we believed that the "great tribulation"* had an indefinite, unknowable duration... and in the past we asked ourselves, even with some anxiety, "who knows how long it will last...".

One fine day we learned that this period, certainly terrible, will not last more than three and a half years.

Now that we know these things they appear so obvious… but at the time?

Let's not forget who we were and what we believed in because now it's easy to forget the wonderful and exponential growth we've had.

We once believed that the "time of the end" began in 1914 and were convinced that this date was indicated in the scriptures.

We may have defended this date, at least once in “field service,” against those who contested it, shall we not?

It's even possible that we cut off the conversation ourselves because that person was "argumentative" or apostate... because they questioned "God's chosen channel."

One fine day , without any critical spirit, we simply learned that this date simply did not exist in the Bible and that all explanations to prove it were simply logical and scriptural stretches - compare Daniel 4:20-22

To continue supporting this doctrine after almost 110 years, after dozens of previous revisions, someone has continued to commit themselves by regularly changing the meaning - as well as the time frame - of the term "generation", going so far as to argue that the "generation" indicated by Jesus were actually two or maybe one and a half.

Wasn't it a great privilege to have freed ourselves from these chains, which have become even tighter in recent years?

Now it's easy to repeat to yourself "what nonsense it was"... but so what?

The Word of God is a treasure of immense value. This treasure increases if we share it

We once believed that Israel had had its day, i.e. that it was once God's people but was then "forsaken" - compare Jeremiah 31:35-37

Not only that… but we have believed that in modern times He had singled out a group of Americans because they were “true students of the scriptures”… people He evidently did not find in the rest of the world.

We will certainly have happened to defend this doctrine in front of anyone who questioned it perhaps by adding the words… “Luckily he chose them! So she scattered all over the earth!”

The fact that God could choose even poor people from the least of the insignificant countries, didn't seem to make us think much – compare 1 Corinthians 2:3-5; 2 Corinthians 11:30; 12:9, 10

God had abandoned Jerusalem and had chosen “Pittisburgh”: stop.

One fine day we learned that "to time indefinite" simply meant "to time indefinite" and therefore God could never forsake his people permanently.

On the contrary... disobedience had been foreseen and with it the conditions for the return had been put on paper: repentance - Deuteronomy 30:1-5

We also learned that the northern kingdom of Israel itself, scattered among the nations and disappeared from secular history for 2700 years, would be gathered in the end-time - Genesis 48:19; Revelation 7:9

Now it's easy to take it for granted but let's remember that at the time this belief also led us to the belief that all others would be destroyed. And by the way…

We once believed that the war of Armageddon would mean the destruction of everyone on earth except those of our religion (and at the very least someone who "study" within our religion).

Not only that... but we didn't even ask ourselves how they would manage to meet... since some Witnesses live in isolated areas, a few hundred in the midst of millions and millions of people.

In the illustrations, the “brothers” were always seen hugging, cuddling and crying with joy for having survived the total destruction… and often in these images people of different ethnicities were seen.

Now it is easy to ask this question but at the time?

Well, at the time we were satisfied with a "God knows ... he will know how" ... without even imagining that the answer had been present in the Bible for thousands of years.

One fine day we learned that, precisely because the Splendid Country has never been abandoned, God would lead us right back there.

Now it is so logical and almost trivial to understand that God would lead His people to a specific point on earth!

Try to imagine finding yourself alone, in a remote country, while everything around you has been destroyed…

You survived because “you are a member of God's people”… good. And now?

How will you live?

With who?

How will you survive?

What will you do when everything around you is just scorched earth, for thousands of miles in all directions, with no one by your side?

Would the end of the satanic system be a beautiful thing or would it look like a scene from a horror movie?

How wonderful to learn that God's people, wherever they are and however isolated, will be gathered in a single point of the earth and that "point", lo and behold, will always be the same! - compare 2 Kings 21:7

We once believed that Gog of Magog were our surviving or resurrected brothers in the New World… who after a thousand years of peace, prosperity, and happiness… would turn evil, arm themselves, and attack us…

We believed that there were about 8,000 "anointed ones" left on earth, all of them very old (number which in theory should have decreased as time passed but which, strangely, was increasing in recent years ... ).

We believed that the 144,000 were "spread" over two thousand years of history.

We believed that the “faithful and discreet slave” would one day enlighten us with “strange instructions” that we should promptly obey.

We believed that Wilhelm I and Hitler were the northern kings of the past.

We believed that the League of Nations was the pre-abyss wild beast.

We believed that the “other sheep” were Christians “with an earthly hope” – John 10:16

We believed that “to establish the good news firmly” meant fighting in the courts to assert one's rights – Philippians 1:7

We thought the little horn was the Anglo-American empire.

We believed that the wicked slave was not to be taken literally (there was only the faithful and discreet one and we had it) - Matthew 25:24-30

We believed that several trumpets of the Apocalypse concerned assemblies of Jehovah's Witnesses, resolutions or publications.

We believed Rutherford and his associates were “the two sackcloth witnesses” – Revelation 11:3, 4

We believed that the woman in Revelation chapter 12 was “God's heavenly organization” – Revelation 12:1, 2

We believed that the scripture that says “the spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” marked the distinction between the “anointed” and the other sheep – Romans 8:16

We believed that the resurrected would be judged by what they did afterward in the New World and not by what they did while alive - Revelation 20:12, 13

We believed many, many things... and we anxiously awaited the next publication or assembly because "who knows what new understandings, what spiritual pearls it would have given us"...

Meanwhile we did not know what Jesus meant when, speaking to his disciples he clearly said " From now on I will not drink again of the produce of the vine until the kingdom of God comes" ( Luke 22:18 ) and we did not know what the " news from the east and north” that would disturb the last ruling king – Daniel 11:44

We did not know the duration of the time of the end on the contrary… this could not be known! - Daniel 12:11, 12

Jerusalem “coming down from heaven” was symbolic – Revelation 21:2, 10

Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of God was symbolic - Luke 13:28

Ezekiel's temple, detailed to the point of exasperation, was symbolic – Ezekiel chapters 47 and 48

Sodom and Gomorrah that “they would rise up in judgment” against the first century generation in Israel who had not heard Jesus' testimony was symbolic - Matthew 10:15

The highway from Assyria and Egypt that would lead many people to submit to Christ's millennial reign was symbolic - Isaiah 19:23-25

The earth “kept for fire” which would cause the elements to become intensely hot until they melt was symbolic – 2 Peter 3:10-13

Many other things were symbolic and we believed them… but one fine day we learned the truth about these and other subjects and we were set free.

Liberated and privileged.

Paradoxically, now we know that we still have many things to learn while before we believed we had learned practically everything ... and that any new understandings would only review small things, marginal things.

We therefore recognize that we have many things to learn and we admit the possibility of having to retract, even completely, something we firmly believe in at the moment... but the fact remains that our knowledge is not remotely comparable to what we had until a few years ago .

By now everything or almost everything seems obvious… but was it like that at the time?

Was this trip down memory lane about basking in what we know?

No, not at all, for whatever we have learned we have received – 1 Corinthians 4:6, 7; James 1:16, 17

It's not our merit and we'd still be where we were if God hadn't privileged us.

Now we would probably be calling the umpteenth person an apostate who would raise doubts about this or that other intention and our greatest aspiration would be to be nominated or entrusted with something…

This “journey down memory lane” should first of all keep us grounded and give honor to God but also help us not to judge those who have remained where they are and have not made any progress.

Fear of ostracism, fear of "mortal sin" or other things have prevented and still prevent many from looking a little further.

They need our help even if they don't know it and even if they will hate us instead of thanking us.

Isn't it reasonable to conclude that God expects us to share?

We will thank God in a practical way if we make an effort to share this immense treasure; treasure that increases every day more.

Let us not lose what has been given to us.

Let's sort out what we know and don't forget to thank God.

 

Footnote* As specified in one of the very first articles of this blog, the author was a Jehovah's Witness so he speaks from personal experience.

In any case, many of the truths learned are absolutely unknown to most religions. Since then, people from different religious backgrounds have joined