Treasures from God’s Word and Digging for Spiritual Gems – “Jesus fulfilled prophecy” (Mark 15-16)
Bible Study (jl lesson 2)
Why are we called Jehovah’s Witnesses?
That is a very good question? Especially when Acts 11:26 says in part “and it was first in Antioch that the disciples were by divine providence called Christians.” (NWT) So why are we not just called Christians? The article explains “Until 1931, we were known as Bible Students.” So it was a decision made in 1931 by Joseph Rutherford. If the Organization was chosen as Jehovah’s organization on earth in 1919 and its believers were part of spiritual Israel as is claimed, then why did Jehovah not see fit to ensure his people carried his name. Why wait 22 years?
The main points of explanation in the article are as follows:
- “It identifies our God”
- Jehovah was the God of Israel too, but they did not have the name Jehovah’s Witnesses.
- Isaiah 43:10-12 as with so many scriptures is taken out of context. The Israelites were eye-witnesses of Jehovah’s actions on their behalf. They did not witness to others about Jehovah’s actions.
- “It describes our Mission”
- So we are witnesses of Jehovah as our mission? How does that agree with Jesus words at Acts 1:8? Here Jesus said “but YOU will receive power when the Holy Spirit arrives upon YOU, and YOU will be witnesses of me both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the most distant part of the earth.”
- “We are imitating Jesus”
- The disciples went preaching the good news of Jesus'resurrection according to Acts 4:33 “Also, with great power the apostles continued giving forth the witness concerning the resurrection of the Lord Jesus; and undeserved kindness in large measure was upon them all.”
- Acts 10:42 is similar saying “Also, he ordered us to preach to the people and to give a thorough witness that this is the One decreed by God to be judge of the living and the dead.”
- It is true “Jesus himself said that he ‘made God’s name known’ and kept ‘bearing witness to the truth’ about God. (John 17:26; 18:37)” But it is quite a leap to then say “Christ’s genuine followers must, therefore, bear Jehovah’s name and make it known.”
- Jesus the Son of God, did not call himself one of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
- ‘Actions speak louder than words’ so goes the saying. Jesus actions gave witness to the love God has for mankind, far more than any label or identifying phrase.
So are any or all of these reasons strong enough to name ourselves as Jehovah’s Witnesses instead of Christians? True, it identifies the Organization as different to other Christian religions, but that is not a scriptural requirement. After all Jesus said “By this all will know that YOU are my disciples, if YOU have love among yourselves.” Surely love should be the identifying mark not a label. (John 13:35)
Follow Christ’s Steps Closely – Video – Jehovah’s name is most important.
This video is a most moving account, but I failed to see the connection between everything the sister suffered and her statement at the end namely “Jehovah’s name is the most important part in our life. Nothing is so important like Jehovah’s name.” It was entirely disconnected from the rest of the account given. She was convinced that Jehovah helped her and her husband through that terrible experience under Nazi rule in the concentration camps, but quite how Jehovah’s name had anything to do with that is not clear at all.
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Comment by Robert-6512 on 2018-06-04 12:43:12
You noted in your article,
"why are we not just called Christians? The article explains “Until 1931, we were known as Bible Students.” So it was a decision made in 1931 by Joseph Rutherford."
Precisely.
And just why did Rutherford make this decision? It was to put an end to competition from splinter groups still called "Bible Students" who opposed Rutherford's heavy-handed, dictatorial and mean-spirited control over the organization. By changing the name, he immediately had a means of identifying those loyal to HIM vs. those who were not. Of course, Rutherford branded any not loyal to HIM as disloyal to the "organization". An easy smear, and an easy grab for yet more power - too easy to pass up.
Let's do some math. So, the JW name was adopted in 1931. World War II arrives, and Christians associated with WT are taken to German concentration camps, eventually to be freed in 1945. And do tell, what were those Christians CALLED who were released from those camps? BIBLE STUDENTS, not JWs.
So, 14 years AFTER the JW name was "unanimously" adopted, here is a group affiliated with WT still calling themselves Bible Students. Why? Maybe the sentiment about the new JW name wasn't quite as "unanimous" as WT portrayed it to be?
There are some other pieces to this puzzle. During the early part of the war, when those German Christians were first being persecuted, Rutherford tried to "sweet talk" the German Reich into giving them better treatment. He did this by an ingratiating, offensive, anti-Semitic letter that claimed WT and Nazi Germany held 'values in common'. Do a google search for "Watchtower letter to Hitler". If you never read it, it's shocking to think WT could stoop so low. One link to a translation of it from its original German can be found at http://www.docbob.org/wordpress/watchtower-societys-letter-to-adolph-hitler/.
Well, that letter didn't work, so what did Rutherford do next? He embarked on a campaign of extremely harsh condemnation of Hitler. That didn't work either, and those brothers ended up in the camps. But did Rutherford really CARE whether it worked? Maybe not.
The idea that he didn't care about the welfare of those prisoners seems even more shocking then his initial offensive letter to Hitler, but a good case can be made. After the war, the "example of the faithful German brothers" was constantly mentioned in the publications. Why? It was a recruiting tool, a means to inspire and motivate others to follow that example. Yes, those brothers were turned into martyrs and then turned into a great P.R. tool, posthumously.
That was the public motive. Was there also a private motive?
How about eliminating the competition? At that point, many of the Bible Student groups were dwindling, but perhaps not this group in Germany. By infuriating and antagonizing Hitler, Rutherford ensured that those prisoners would get the worst possible treatment, perhaps including death sentences for many of them. By that means, Rutherford could then get rid of his enemies while being able to blame Hitler for it.
With that tactic, Rutherford got two birds with one stone. In doing so, Rutherford (and by implication, WT itself) had the blood of all those brothers killed in German camps on their hands.
In simple terms, those German brothers were set up to take a fall, costing many of them their lives, for the cynical and selfish reason that it placed yet more power in Rutherford's hands, no matter who it hurt in the process.
But, anything to "advance the cause of Jehovah's organization". Right?
And just which of Rutherford's underlying motives "honored Jehovah"?
Comment by Eleasar on 2018-06-04 17:44:09
The NWT use the word “by divine providence called Christians”. Most translations have “were called Christians. Using the majority of translations, the term Christian have 3 possible points of origin.
1. The locals in Antioch started calling the group by this name. Possibly a nickname.
2. The local brothers identified themselves through this word.
3. It was from God.
The NWT translation (it is a possible translation) discounts the first two and makes it clear who gave the name.
Now do we stick with the inspired word by Luke or something Rutherford conjured up 1900 years later? He clearly states that Holy Spirit was no longer functional. Therefore he was not guided by Holy Spirit. Did he get an inspired revelation? In the 1975 yearbook, A H Macmillan explains how Rutherford came up with the name.
All the above was in 1931. 19 years later when the NWT was translated why did they not claim “new light” and revert back to Christian. They did this for the position of Elder as it was abolished by Rutherford in 1932. This came back in 1972.
Finally, did no one spot the problem in translating it as “ divine providence”?
We have not even discussed Acts 1:6-8 etc. Funnily, with the name most of the other Bible Students groups saw it as sectarian and dividing the Body of Christ.Reply by Robert-6512 on 2018-06-04 18:51:09
Looking at the interlinear and Strong's for the Greek word for "call" in the verse, the case to render this as "called by divine providence" instead just "called" is not zero, but the justification for it is extremely thin.
There are a few cases where the word could mean "warned by God", but given the context in Acts, there is nothing to suggest this is anything other than those people were simply called Christians, without any further elaboration on the subject. To suggest otherwise as NWT has done is almost certainly a translation bias.Reply by tyhik on 2018-06-11 16:33:22
Both Strong's Concordance and Thayer's Lexicon list the "being divinely warned" and "to receive a name for one's public business, be called" as alternative meanings of this word. Acts 11:26 undoubtedly assumes the latter meaning, which, according to the above sources, has no hint of divine providence. So, indeed, it is a speculative translation in the NWT.
Does anyone have an idea, why they had to translate it in such a way? I don't. Except that they assume they themselves translate under the divine providence.
Comment by JackSprat on 2018-06-05 01:39:01
I am truly trying to find the mind of our Lord Jesus and have been studying the Historical history he was brought up in. No doubt Jesus spoke Hebrew and probably Greek but his primary tongue was Aramaic. Often when people are in extreme stress they will revert to their mother tongue and this is evident by what our Lord said in the writing of Mark in Mark 15
34 And in the athsha shaiyn {the ninth hour}, Eshu {Yeshua} cried out in a qala rama {a loud voice}, and said, Iyl! Iyl! lamana shabaqthani, which is, “Alahi! Alahi! lamana shabaqthani {My God! My God! Why have you left Me}
(copyright https://theholyaramaicscriptures.weebly.com/mar-15.html)
Further study in Aramaic will help us to understand that Allah (from the rendition of Alohem ((Elohim)) was a name of God that our lord would have related to Gen 1:1.
The area of Nazareth apparently spoke a different dialect than those in Jerusalem. hence some mistakenly thought Jesus was calling to Elijah but we know that he would have called out to the one he loved and worshiped for comfort.
Comment by Alithia on 2018-06-05 06:03:12
For anyone who has a spare hour a You Tube VDO called, The Watchtower:Roots Shoots and Those In Cahoots" is a detailed historical study of all of the splinter groups arising around the time of Russell and in particular Judge Rutherford. It is no wonder Rutherford felt the need to distinguish himself. There were literally dozens of splinter groups existing in concurrency, some from before and others during the "reign" of Rurtherford. Rutherford made out it was for the need to distinguish between bible students and Christendom. The real reason was that people were jumping ship all over the place as a result of the ever increasing mess created by his abrasive and authoritarian domination of people who broke off and continued to call themselves "Bible Students."