Good associations? What about our brain? Does Jehovah discourage us from using our God given thinking ability? Does he not want us to render him service with our power of reason? (Rom. 12:1) Did he not promise to inscribe his laws on our hearts and minds? (Jer. 31:33; Heb. 10:16)
Would it please God if we were to ignore our conscience and instead listen to our peers? (Ex. 23:2)[1]
Why does Splane keep saying “we need to fight” when, in reality, he is encouraging his listeners to run to a place of safety and hide?
Read the Bible every day and meditate on it?
This sounds good. But in reality all the Bible reading and meditation done by witnesses is to no avail if they do not arrive at the same conclusions as that printed in the literature. And if they ever come to a different conclusion about a scripture than the faithful and discreet slave they are either convinced that their thinking must be wrong or that they should wait until Jehovah corrects the faithful slave. But what are they to do in the meantime? Serve God with a troubled conscience? Would that type of worship be acceptable to God? (Acts 4:19,20)
Actually, 2 Thessalonians doesn’t say anything about a rumor that shook the faith of some in the congregation. Rather Paul was forewarning them not to be quickly shaken or seduced by anyone that comes and claims the day of Jehovah is here.
However, brothers, concerning the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you 2 not to be quickly shaken from your reason nor to be alarmed either by an inspired statement or by a spoken message or by a letter appearing to be from us, to the effect that the day of Jehovah is here. (2 Thessalonians 2:1, 2)
Similar instructions were given by the apostle John:
Beloved ones, do not believe every inspired statement, but test the inspired statements to see whether they originate with God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you know that the inspired statement is from God: Every inspired statement that acknowledges Jesus Christ as having come in the flesh originates with God. 3 But every inspired statement that does not acknowledge Jesus does not originate with God. Furthermore, this is the antichrist’s inspired statement that you have heard was coming, and now it is already in the world. (1 John 4:1-3)
Here is what the Watchtower says about the situation in Thessalonica:
“Evidently some in the congregation were spreading twisted views about Jehovah’s day as being imminent. (The Watchtower January 15, 1983 pg. 13)
However, I was unable to find anywhere in the context that Paul says this was already happening in the congregation. Yet striking is the fact that for over 100 years it has been the Watchtower Society that has been saying that very thing.
But is that the point of comparison in Acts? That the Thessalonians were quick to believe a rumor while the Beroeans checked things out?
They now traveled through Am·phipʹo·lis and Ap·ol·loʹni·a and came to Thes·sa·lo·niʹca, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2 So according to Paul’s custom he went inside to them, and for three sabbaths he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving by references that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, saying: “This is the Christ, this Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you.” (Acts 17:1-3)
However, the Jews in Thessalonica did not react favorably to his message:
But the Jews, getting jealous, gathered together some wicked men who were loitering at the marketplace and formed a mob and proceeded to throw the city into an uproar. They assaulted the house of Jaʹson and were seeking to have Paul and Silas brought out to the mob. (Acts 17:5)
So Paul scripturally pointed out that the Jews were wrong. But instead of listening to him and reasoning on the scriptures they regarded him as an apostate, rejected him and formed a mob.
Immediately by night the brothers sent both Paul and Silas to Be·roeʹa. On arriving, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. 11 Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thes·sa·lo·niʹca, for they accepted the word with the greatest eagerness of mind, carefully examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. (Acts 17:10, 11)
Though the Beroean Jews were eager to hear Paul they didn’t automatically accept his message but what was commendable about them was that, unlike those in Thessalonica, they carefully checked the scriptures to see if what he was teaching was true. (Acts 17:11)
So it was not all Thessalonians that rejected Paul. Nor was it the congregation in Thessalonica that had mistaken ideas about Christ’s coming that the Beroeans are compared with. Luke says nothing about any rumor. Even though he was proving by the scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah the Thessalonian Jews regarded Paul as an apostate and would not listen to him nor check the scriptures. The Beroean Jews, on the other hand, listened to Paul but made sure that what he was saying agreed with the scriptures.
But here is what I find fascinating about this section of Splane’s talk. It is absolutely amazing how, on the one hand, Splane can encourage his audience to be like the Beroeans and compare what they hear from critics of the organization with what the Bible (as interpreted by their publications) says while at the same time Anthony Morris condemns critics of the organization for comparing dogmatic statements made by the governing body with what it actually says in the Bible.
But deceitfully, Geoffrey Jackson in his testimony at the Australian Royal Commission tried to give the impression that the average witness would, like the Bereoans, be able to pick out direction that did not harmonize with the scriptures.
And do what? Obey God as ruler rather than men? Really?
[1] See the Watchtower July 15, 2011 pgs10-12 pars. 3-8