We Bible Students from this Friends of Jehovah’s Witnesses website would like to wish you and all of our friends around the world a happy and blessed new year.
How was 2014 for you? Are you spiritually growing, thriving, enjoying your Bible Study and liberty in Christ? We pray that you are.
As intended, if this website has been a sanctuary of comfort, encouragement and honest investigation, we rejoice that it has been a blessing for you. We understand that not everyone will agree with all we have to say, however that is okay with us. What is important is that you can express your views here, see what others have to say and makeup your own mind based on reason and scripture. No one can identify you. No one can report you. You are not alone. You have friends.
It is not our purpose to attempt to change the JW world into the early Watchtower Bible Students, as we are. However, it is our desire to share a more compassionate and accurate view of Jehovah’s love and mercy, hoping this will provide healing, hope and encouragement for those trapped by the fear of dying in Armageddon (if not totally faithful to the earthly JW Organization). For those, we hope it was not another year of anxiety, fear and depression under the control of a strict human organization?
We are excited to report that we experienced amazing blessings and growth in 2014. Many have personally testified to us that they had received hope and encouragement as they learned more of Jehovah’s true love and mercy. As they have journeyed over the Internet into the Bible Student world, anxiety has diminished and the feelings of peace and joy have grown.
Four and a half years ago, in May of 2010, we believe that the Holy Spirit encouraged us to launch the Friends of Jehovah’s Witnesses website. Within a month of the launch, Jehovah brought Sister Jacqueline to discover the Bible Students. After learning of her zeal for Jehovah and years of effort to comfort and encourage injured JWs, I quickly invited her to join this effort. Finally we had someone on board who actually new what they were doing! LOL. The rest is history.
Since that date, 147,624 unique friends have visited this website 215,463 times. These are not huge numbers, however our growth accelerated last year. In December of 2014, we had 4,219 unique visitors on our website 6,635 times. We think this growth is driven by unique content, word of mouth over social media and blogs, and by a new “Library for JW – Watchtowers” app for Android and the Iphone/Ipad. This new app is receiving nearly 200 downloads a day and accelerating, while driving more traffic to our website. When you add dozens of other Bible Student websites and apps, the number of people we have been reaching in recent years are in the millions. The discovery of Bible Students by JWs is a surprise that most JWs don’t know what to do with, but it is evidence that the organization, who historically had claimed we were all dead, was slightly exaggerating! LOL.
Even though only a very small percentage of JWs know Bible Students exist, the trend is upward. It is only a matter of time, maybe even years, before most JWs are aware we exist. No doubt at some point the Governing Body will change their strategy from ignoring Bible Students to identifying us as dangerously deceptive Apostates. Even so, a growing awareness by JWs of a more friendly and encouraging source for spiritual support may have a destabilizing impact on the strict and ridged control structure this strict organization.
Sadly, many who have freed themselves of the organization out of anger, bitterness and sorrow have thrown out the baby with the bathwater, either going back to the denominational Churches or becoming atheists. Why do such large numbers of Ex-JWs become atheists? It is because the organization is in place of Jehovah and Jesus. When they recognize the tyranny and corruption of the organization, they equate that with Jehovah and Jesus. This is why it is so important to place your faith directly in God’s Word, the scriptures. When men fail us and disappoint us, Jehovah and Jesus will remain strong in our hearts and the center of our faith.
Many who have been both hurt by and are angry at the JW Organization hope to tear it down. We think that anger will not succeed in tearing it down, however revealing Jehovah’s true LOVE is the greatest means of breaking up this rigid organization into a looser and free worldwide association, not subject to central control, similar to the so called “True Jehovah’s Witnesses” in Russia and the former Soviet Eastern European nations. These Jehovah’s Witnesses have not been under the control or influence of the Governing Body since World War II.
In December, we posted the article “Is JF Rutherford the Grinch Who Stole Christmas?” This article generated great traffic and discussion. Anna had already been on our site and David came on a well, like a tag team from Bethel and they vigorously defended the JW Organization’s position on Christmas, disfellowship, etc. Out of character, we got very aggressive in engaging them in tough debate. With David and Anna, polite discussion would only allow them to step all over us. We allowed this discussion to continue for a few weeks for a reason. JWs hear this thinking all the time at the Kingdom Hall, yet the rhetoric is never refuted. We wanted to prove that with reason and scripture that Goliath can be taken down and these arguments can be refuted. We also wanted to pull back the curtain and clearly demonstrate that SHUNNING and BREAKING UP FAMILIES is against scripture.
At one point, Daz lamented, “I have something to say that saddens me but I feel I need to say it. I have noticed recently that there has been unrest on this site, this was not apparent when I first joined or at least it never seemed to be going on. This site was such a support for me & I know it has been for many others too but of late there seems to be a lot of bickering, accusations, judgments being made upon who someone might or might not be! What must this look like to all the guests that visit this site, not just them but also to established members on here too!” A misunderstanding with QNA at this time led into further debate with David and Anna.
Around the Date of December 25, I stopped permitting comments from David and Anna. If permitted, they would continue to barrage us with their pat answers and wear us down. Honestly, we were getting feedback of discouragement from some supporters of our site. We accomplished our purpose of refuting the rhetoric and showing shunning and breaking up families to be unscriptural and then we moved back more positive discussions. I have changed the site where all comments now are moderated. [We only moderated for about a month then went back to no moderation] We will continue to allow comments from those who disagree with us or want to debate us, however, we will limit this so that it does not dominate and discourage. In the past, what has made us so different is that we are not an ATTACK JWs website. We would prefer to focus on encouraging each other and focusing on the wonderful aspects of the Bible and God’s plan.
God’s Plan is beautifully summarized in Eph 1:9,10 – “He made known to us the secret of His will. And this is in harmony with God’s merciful purpose for the government of the world when the times are ripe for it—the PURPOSE which He has cherished in His own mind of RESTORING THE WHOLE CREATION to find its one Head in Christ; yes, things in Heaven and things on earth, to find their one Head in Him.” – Weymouth
The scriptures which illustrate God’s plan to rescue the unbelieving world of mankind in his kingdom are found in the Bible, page after page, from Genesis to Revelation. As we are told in Acts 3:21, ” … the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.” NKJV
1 Tim 2:3-6 “3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself a ransom for ALL, to be testified in due time,” NKJV
May Jehovah bless you all and may 2015 be a year of spiritual growth and happiness in the Lord.
Chris, what about , Judus, sodom , those who died in the flood.?
Gasa,
Hello again. 🙂 Jesus was an ransom for ALL. The. NWT has translated this as “all sorts of”. This is not correct. Why does that fact that they died in the flood exclude them from a millennial trial for life? They did what was in their sinful nature to do! They weren’t under any law. Remember that the only UNFORGIVABLE sin was sin against they Holy Spirit which wasn’t even poured out until Pentecost. I think these scriptures will help. The WT says that Sodom won’t be resurrected. This is in accurate. Here’s a a scriptural response.
Matthew 10:15
“Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.”
Can’t be bearable for those who won’t be resurrected!
Ezekiel 16:53
“”‘However, I will restore the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters and of Samaria and her daughters, and your fortunes along with them.”
Chris thank you for you response to the the great company/crowd /multitude who as you feel are before the throne. I feel they go through the great tribulation as people in the same manner as Noah and his family survived into the new post flood world as explained by Peter. Paster Russell and the Bible Students of today hold your view that these are in heaven before the throne. And the ressurected of the past will be resserected on earth to make up the meek. You mention all , so did they but I mentioned what about Judus and others who sinned against the spirit I included Adam, they agreed these will not be ressurected but Adam will. As Father Adam he was nieve as was Eve so God expected him to fall so his love could be shown ever more in the case of the ransom.
Interestingly this has made me search more of Russell’s writings he mentions two groups the elect and the great company starting from the beginning of the Christian era.
I respect your view we are all doing our best to serve Jehovah we can be sure he will save all of us, those fools who are dogmatic are spiritual babes but they still deserve our love.
God Bless you all
Gasa,
Thanks! Yes we believe Adam and Eve will return. Jesus was a ransom for Adam. He bought back Adam and all his descendants. Jesus took Adams place. He was a corrosponding price. There is debate whether Judas will be brought back or not as he lived before the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. So he wasn’t spirit begotten. We don’t know. But we don’t believe anyone before Jesus day could go into second death or not have a resurrection . We believe only the anointed who have this absolute confirmation by the Holy Spirit and then WILLFULLY turn against God will not be resurrected. The world is blind. God is not placing the world of mankind on trial for life until the millennium. Rutherford moved the parable of the sheep and goats from the millennium to now. This is why JWs taught for so many years there was a separation of sheep and goats taking place. We believe God is only dealing with the bride class now. The world of mankind IS NOT ON TRIAL for life right now. So which is more fair; to get a whole 1,000 years to have peace and no Satan and see the world change and have absolute proof of God and no more sickness and death and Satan is locked away and perfection coming about OR 5 minutes at my door and I reject the message because I’m still part of the world of mankind in a blinded state? That’s not really an even trade. We believe ALL of mankind will be brought back from the grave and have a chance. Even if they rejected now. Because they are blind. Yes even Hitler will be brought back. But make no mistake. He will have to face all of those people and he will have to learn to love. That’s why the world will have 1,000 years. There’s even a debate on whether anyone can go into second death now as it is only mentioned at the end of the millennium.
In the millennium everyone will be returned back to the state Adam was and then be tested so imperfection cannot be a reason they sin. It will have to be willful.
If you’re interested we can send you a copy of the first volume called “The Divine Olan of the Ages.” Changed my life.