I can't know what went through Satan's mind when he heard those words, but I can imagine the gut wrenching feeling I'd experience if God pronounced such a sentence on me. One thing we can know from history is that Satan didn't take this denunciation lying down. History shows us that the rest of that verse came true: "...and you will bruise him in the heel."
As the woman's seed has been progressively revealed, Satan has consistently made war on it, and with considerable success. He succeeded in corrupting the Israelites through whom the seed was prophesied to emerge, finally achieving the breakup of the covenant between them and Jehovah. However, a New Covenant came into being even as the former one was dissolved and the seed was finally identified with the long-anticipated revelation of God's sacred secret. (Ro 11:25,26; 16:25,26)
True to his new name, Satan[A] now attacked the principle component of this seed. Three times he tempted Jesus, but when that failed, he didn't give up but went off until another convenient time presented itself. (Lu 4:1-13) In the end, he failed utterly and only ended up in cementing the New Covenant which was made possible by the faithful death of Jesus. Still, despite this, his greatest failure, Satan would not give up. He now turned his attention to those who were called to be part of the woman's offspring. (Re 12:17) As with the physical Israelites before them, these spiritual Israelites succumbed to Satan's insidious machinations. Only a few down through the centuries stood firm against him. (Eph 6:11 NWT)
When Jesus instituted what we now call the Lord's Evening Meal he said to his apostles: “This cup means the new covenant by virtue of my blood, which is to be poured out in your behalf.” (Lu 22:20) It could be argued that Satan's most despicable tactic was to corrupt the very ceremony which symbolizes each Christian's membership within the New Covenant. By perverting the symbol, he got Christians to unwittingly mock that which it represented.
Corrupting the Blessed Ceremony
The Catholic Church became the first organized Christian religion.[B] Up until the changes introduced by Vatican II, the laity did not partake of the wine, but only the bread. Since then, partaking of the wine by the laity is optional. Many still don't. The Lord's Evening Meal was subverted. But it didn't stop there. The church also teaches that the wine is transmuted into blood in the mouth of the partaker. Drinking actual blood is prohibited in Scripture, so such a belief violates God’s law.
During the reformation, the Protestant religion appeared. This gave the opportunity to break away from the Catholic practices that had perverted the Lord's Evening Meal for centuries. Unfortunately, the corrupting influence of Satan persisted. Martin Luther believed in sacramental union, meaning that “the Body and Blood of Christ are "truly and substantially present in, with and under the forms" of consecrated bread and wine (the elements), so that communicants eat and drink both the elements and the true Body and Blood of Christ himself in the Sacrament of the Eucharist whether they are believers or unbelievers.”
During the 18th and 19th centuries there was a great religious awakening because of the greater religious and political freedom made possible in the world, in part due to the discovery of the New World and in part due to the power granted to the masses by the industrial revolution. As different Christian sects appeared, each had the opportunity to restore the sacred ceremony of the Lord’s Evening Meal to its proper state, so that Christians could once again commemorate it as Christ intended. How sad that time and again the opportunity was missed.
The ceremony itself is so simple and so clearly explained in scripture that it is hard to understand how it could be so readily corrupted.
The way the Methodists perform it is to have laymembers go up to the altar and receive the bread from the clergy and then dip it into the cup of wine. Dunking a donut into one's coffee may be suitable for a quick breakfast, but what possible symbolism could dunking the bread (Christ's flesh) into the wine (his blood) possibly have?
There are many Baptist sects who believe that alcohol is prohibited by God, so for them the wine in the Lord’s Evening Meal is replaced with grape juice. In this they are like the Adventists who believe that the wine must be the unfermented or unspoiled fruit of the vine, ergo, grape juice. How silly this is. Put two corked bottles side by side, one filled with "unspoiled grape juice" and one with wine. Leave both for several days and see which one ferments and pops its cork. The purity of the wine is what allows it to be stored for years. Substituting grape juice for it, is substituting an impure symbol to represent the pure blood of Jesus.
How delighted Satan must be.
While using the wine and bread, the Church of England perverts the Last Supper by turning it into a ritual full of rites and chants as prescribed in its Book of Common Prayer. Thus the Lord's Evening Meal is used as an occasion for the indoctrination of Christians into false religious beliefs and the support of an ecclesiastical power structure.
Like the Catholic Church, the Presbyterian religion supports the practice of infant baptism. As baptized church members, children too young to understand the significance and responsibilities of membership in the New Covenant are allowed to partake of the symbols.
There are more examples, but these serve to show a pattern and illustrate how Satan has taken this holiest of ceremonies and perverted it to his own ends. But there is more.
While all of these churches have deviated to a greater or lesser degree from the true and simple ceremony our Lord instituted to seal his disciples as true members in the New Covenant, there is one which has surpassed all the rest. While some only allow members to partake of the bread, or wine-soaked bread, while others replace the wine with grape juice, there is one Christian faith that does not allow its laity to partake at all. Church members are denied the right to do more than handle the emblems as they pass them down the row.
The worldwide congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses has managed to completely eradicate obedience to Jesus' command in its eight million members. Only a tiny minority—about 14,000 at last count—partake of the emblems. Officially, anyone can partake, but powerful indoctrination is used to dissuade them and that, coupled with the murmured opprobrium all know will accompany any display of obedience to the Lord, is more than sufficient to keep the many from taking a stand. Thus, they are like the Pharisees of old who "shut up the kingdom of the heavens before men; for [they] do not go in, neither do [they] permit those on their way in to go in." One must remember that the Pharisees were viewed by all as the most religious, the most godly, of men. (Mt 23:13-15 NWT)
These Christians have rejected the idol worship of the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. They have freed themselves from enslavement to such corrupting false doctrines as the Trinity, Hellfire, and the immortality of the human soul. They have kept themselves clean from the bloodguilt that comes from fighting the nations’ wars. They do not worship the governments of men. Yet all of that is for naught it would appear.
Let us be generous and overlook everything else but this one thing for the moment. In that light, the worldwide congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses might be likened to the congregation of Ephesus. It had good deeds and labor and endurance and perseverance and did not tolerate bad men nor false apostles. Yet all of that was not enough. There was one thing missing and unless corrected, it was to have cost them their place before the Lord. (Re 2:1-7)
This is not to suggest that this is the only thing that Jehovah’s Witnesses have to fix to gain the favor of the Christ, but it is perhaps the most important thing.
I grew up as Jehovah’s Witness and I know the many good things we have done and are doing. Yet, if the congregation of Ephesus would have had its lampstand removed for leaving off the one thing, their first love for Christ, how much worse for us who deny millions the hope of being God’s children and Christ’s brothers? How angry will Jesus be upon his return to see that we have countermanded his order and told millions not to partake; not to join his New Covenant; not to accept his loving offer? How delighted Satan must be now. What a coup for him! Well, his laughter will be short-lived, but woe to all Christian denominations that have corrupted the sacred ceremony of the Lord’s Evening Meal.
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[A] Satan means "resister".
[B] Organized religion is a pejorative term intended to describe a religion that is organized under the authority of a centralized ecclesiastical hierarchy. It does not refer to a group of sincere worshippers who engage in their sacred service to God in an organized way.
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Comment by CP on 2015-03-11 12:00:26
This will be the first year as a family that we will not attend the memorial at the Kingdom Hall. We will commemorate Jesus death at home on April 2. We are a little anxious, and I hope we will do it in the right way. For my sons this year's memorial will be a new experience. They will learn how to do it, what it means to them individually, and the importance of keep doing it for the rest of their life. They will grow up and will pass it to their children. We as parents have a great responsibility on teaching our children the true, because we are creating a new generation of true Christians with God's help. Thank you for strengthened us through your article.
CPReply by Meleti Vivlon on 2015-03-11 12:05:29
How encouraging it is for us all to hear your experience. May our Fathercontinue to bless and strengthen you all.
Meleti
Comment by miken on 2015-03-11 12:25:58
"Thus, they are like the Pharisees of old who “shut up the kingdom of the heavens before men; for [they] do not go in, neither do [they] permit those on their way in to go in.” One must remember that the Pharisees were viewed by all as the most religious, the most godly, of men. (Mt 23:13-15 NWT)"
JW's visit people as the Watchtower magazine header says "Announcing Jehovah's Kingdom" Matt 24:14. However Jesus said recorded at John 3:3-7 no one can either see or enter the kingdom of God unless they are "born again" and "born from water and spirit", and Jesus re-emphasised that anyone (verse 3) who becomes a Christian must (verse 7) be born again among other things. NWT.
Out of approximately 8 million active JW's at the last count only 14,121 claim to be spirit anointed and presumably "born again". They are the only JW's with any hope of entering the kingdom of God. However their partaking of the bread is and wine at the annual JW meeting remembering Jesus death is meaningless unless they have "come" to Jesus Christ through surrendering their lives to him. John 14:6,
Jesus Christ asks people to “come” to him. What does this involve?
Matthew 10:28; John 6:37. Coming (Greek Erchomai) means to commit oneself to
the instruction of Jesus and enter into fellowship with him (1 Cor 1:9; 1 John 1:1-3)
through surrendering our life to him, for him (John 13:37,38) and loving him (Eph
6:24).
If we get it wrong about Jesus it does not matter what else we get right because he is
the centre of truth. The Watchtower society makes itself a substitute for Jesus when it says,
“come to Jehovah’s organization for salvation”. Watchtower November 15, 1981, p 21, para 18.Reply by lightflashup on 2015-03-11 18:57:29
Miken, thank you for your comment, we pray that soon that will be humble enough to realize that what they are doing is very wrong or even criminal and stop, the keep acting as if the kingdom is theirs to give and unless they approves of it then no one can get in .
Reply by menrov on 2015-03-12 04:36:39
Well said !, thanks
Comment by emilyjeff on 2015-03-12 14:45:45
I have to agree that through the ages the Lord’s Evening Meal has been celebrated in various forms in various churches but although it has been, as a JW might say “tainted by the world,” the intent still is to observe the saving grace of Christ’s death. Satan may be pleased to have introduced errors into how the Lord’s Evening Meal is celebrated but it is a hollow victory. Christians, in whatever form their churches conduct this ceremony, recognize the significance of Christ’s death. When Jesus died he defeated Satan and began his Kingly reign at the right hand of God. He has in effect bound the strongman. Matthew 12:29 Perhaps how correctly we observe it isn’t as important as that we observe it. To limit the Lord’s Evening Meal to a favored few is to trivialize the lifesaving work and sacrificial death of our Lord Jesus Christ and to me that is the greater sin.
I’d like to quote something said by N.T. Wright in his book Surprised by Hope. Please do not be put off by the word Eucharist which just means grace or thanksgiving. See Merriam Webster Dictionary.
“What happens in the Eucharist is that through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, this future dimension is brought sharply into play. We break this bread to share in the body of Christ; we do it in remembrance of him; we become for a moment the disciples sitting around the table at the Last Supper. Yet if we stop there we’ve only said the half of it. To make any headway in understanding the Eucharist, we must see it as the arrival of God’s future in the present. We do not simply remember a long-since dead Jesus; we celebrate the presence of the living Lord. And he lives, through the resurrection, precisely as the one who has gone on ahead into the new creation, the transformed new world, as the one who is himself its prototype. The Jesus who gives himself to us as food and drink is himself the beginning of God’s new world. It is the future coming to meet us in the present.”
I followed the link to the Common Book of Prayer and I am not offended by what it says. You may refer to it as chants and rituals but as the following shows they do offer praise to our Heavenly Father and his son:
“Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen”
Just my thoughts on the subject which hopefully you will take in the spirit of Christian fellowship. I do not subscribe to any Christian denomination but look for truth wherever I may find it.
Comment by donotforgetus on 2015-03-12 21:31:00
Jesus knows the hearts of all so really there is no reason to stress over the fact that Christian religions have missed the mark on the Lord's supper. Whether our hope is heavenly or earthly if we have love for our fellow man we have sure reason for hope and can rejoice in our Father's love.
Let us not spend too much time with our backs under a burden which Jesus never placed upon us. Jehovah knows our hearts, this is enough, this is good. If our hearts move us to partake then let us partake, if our hearts do not move us to do so then let us trust in God until he should show the way.
We can be at peace knowing that God knows our hearts and that he loves us more than we love ourselves.
LauraReply by kev on 2015-03-13 06:20:25
In some ways i do agree with those sentiments laura . We should not get worked up about people who dont listen to jesus .Its sad but its not our problem its thiers . Kev
Reply by kev on 2015-03-13 10:18:34
but at the same time though i read the NT in context on a very regular basis . And the more i do so the more i percieve that the vast majority of the witnesses have in fact steered off the road of life which is a serious matter .They need to read the NT in context and put in some serious bible study time . Instead of trusting others to tell them what gods message is . Kev
Comment by Anjinsan on 2015-03-13 06:36:09
I enjoyed the fine analysis. Thanks Meleti.
Comment by markchristopher on 2015-03-14 13:42:32
I've really appreciated the fine articles from Alex Rover and Meleti about the memorial.I have not attended a meeting at a Kingdom Hall for a few years, only managing the odd convention. I feel that if I attend their memorial, I would be endorsing an occasion that teaches people, that the invitation to become adopted sons has been and gone.
The ritual of not eating and drinking indicates how far removed JWs are from the most simplest of teachings. Yet, like water baptism. "The meal" (eating and drinking)is symbolic of a reality.I hope and wonder if somehow, even those who's minds have been programmed to physically reject the bread and wine have a heart desirable to God and recieve the reward offered to Christians regardless.
Romans 8:38 "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."Reply by kev on 2015-03-15 08:12:35
about those whose minds have been programmed to reject the bread and wine have a heart desirable to god and recieve the reward anyway . I sincerely hope that is true mark . Romans 2 v 5 to 16 . Also revelation 20 v 4 to 6 contrasted with 11 to 16 . I think they touch on these points . Kev
Reply by bobcat3 on 2015-03-16 04:50:30
I hope and wonder if somehow, even those who’s minds have been programmed to physically reject the bread and wine have a heart desirable to God and recieve the reward offered to Christians regardless.
Jesus had something to say about that:
(Luke 12:47, 48 NWT) . . .Then that slave who understood the will of his master but did not get ready or do what he asked will be beaten with many strokes. 48 But the one who did not understand and yet did things deserving of strokes will be beaten with few. Indeed, everyone to whom much was given, much will be demanded of him, and the one who was put in charge of much will have more than usual demanded of him.
These words offer some hope, seeing that they apply to all Christians. On the other hand, for the GB, who hijack these words (as part of the FDS parable) for only themselves, there is "a certain fearful expectation of judgment" contained within them (Heb 10:27).
BobcatReply by Markchristopher on 2015-03-17 15:54:12
Thanks Bobcat for highlighting those scriptures.There is a greater judgement for those who deliberately mislead.
Comment by Markchristopher on 2015-03-15 17:00:33
Thanks Kev for those scriptures,they help alot.