The Study Watchtower, "Article 45", Week of January 2 to 8, 2023, Jehovah helps us to fulfill our ministry, Answers.

The Study Watchtower, "Article 45", January 2-8, 2023, Jehovah helps us to fulfill our ministry, Answers.

“They will surely know that there was a prophet among them” (EZEQ. 2:5).

1. What do we Christians know, and of what are we convinced?

All true Christians know that when we go out to preach some people oppose the message we carry and it is very likely that in the future this opposition will intensify more and more, however we are convinced that whatever happens Jehovah is going to help. And we are also sure of that because Jehovah always helps all his servants to fulfill the work assignments that he has given them, no matter how difficult it may seem.

If the scriptures have taught us that there will be opposition to our preaching of facts, second Timothy 3:12 says that who would live in devotion to Jehovah, because they are going to persecute us, there will be people who are going to persecute us, but we are all convinced that Jehovah is the one who will help us.

2. (a) How did Jehovah describe the Jews to whom Ezekiel would have to preach? (Ezekiel 2:3-6). 

In the account of Ezekiel 2:3-6 it can be clearly seen how Jehovah describes the Jews, since it was these Jews to whom Ezekiel was going to preach. Therefore Jehovah described them mentioning that these Jews were rebellious, defiant and stubborn in heart and made a comparison that they were as bad as thorns and as dangerous as scorpions. And that is why Jehovah, knowing these characteristics that the Jews had, many times told Ezekiel not to be afraid.

So Jehovah describes these people to whom Ezekiel was going to preach that they would be or were defiant and stubborn rebellious people, even the Bible reading said they would be like thorny people and scorpions too. 

2. b) What will we see in this article?

In this article we are going to see three reasons why Ezekiel was able to fulfill the mission that Jehovah had entrusted to him:

1. It was Jehovah who sent him

2. The holy spirit gave him strength

3. He fed on the word of God 

and we will see how these three factors helped you, and how they help us?

Yes, we will see how, despite that territory, Ezekiel was able to fulfill his mission, firstly because Jehovah sent him, secondly because the holy spirit helped him and thirdly because he was fed with the words of Jehovah, then we are going to see how with these three factors today can help us. 

JEHOVAH SENT EZEKIEL

3. What words should have encouraged Ezekiel, and how did Jehovah confirm his support?

Well, he felt he had all the support because Jehovah told him I am sending you, even Ezekiel knew that Jehovah had helped other prophets to carry out very difficult tasks and because Jehovah not only told him once if he did not say three times I am sending you, then Ezekiel had the confidence to trust in Jehovah and be able to lean on him.

Yes, in addition, since his father was a priest, he surely taught him that Jehovah always confirmed to his prophets that he would give them his full support, for example in Jeremiah 1:8 Jehovah said, I am with you to save you, Jehovah affirms, so he now had this security because his father spoke to him in support of the other prophets.

So perhaps this prophet also remembered the words of Isaiah where it says here, so I heard the voice of Jehovah saying who I will send and who will go for us and I said here I am, send me, surely those words those reminders helped him more to have confidence in Jehovah.

As the paragraph mentions, the prophet had no doubt that Jehovah was the one who had sent him and in fact they confirm it in the book that was written where he affirms and reaffirms that I received the words of Jehovah.

4. What comforting words should have encouraged Ezekiel?

Jehovah to comfort Ezekiel mentions some words that we find in Ezekiel 3:7 that the house of Israel would refuse to listen and the reason would be because they did not want to listen to Jehovah, in other words he wanted to tell them that if they rejected Ezekiel it was as if they were rejecting Jehovah himself. 

If Jehovah told him that the house of Israel would refuse to listen to you because they do not want to listen to me, those words must have reassured Ezekiel because the rejection of the people did not mean that he was a bad prophet, Jehovah also confirmed that when his messages of condemnation were fulfilled Those Jews would know that there was a prophet among them, so surely these words confirmed Ezekiel and gave him the encouragement he needed to fulfill his ministry.

If Jehovah was already telling him from before that not everyone was going to accept because he told him they would know that there was a prophet, that word let Hezekiah understand that it was not important how many responded to the message but that he was there.

Hearing these comforting words from Jehovah encouraged Ezekiel to fulfill his assignment despite the rejection of the people. In our days we also find people who reject us, but analyzing these beautiful examples encourage us to continue with our ministry, because if they reject us it is as if they were rejecting Jehovah.

And furthermore, in Ezekiel 2:5 and Ezekiel 33:33, Jehovah confirmed to him that when his messages were fulfilled, those Jews would know that "there was a prophet among them." Undoubtedly, these words must have reassured Ezequiel, because the rejection of the people did not mean that he was a bad prophet, but that the important thing was that he will fulfill that mission whatever the result.

JEHOVAH SENDS US

5. Why does Isaiah 44:8 encourage us?

The reason why this text encourages us is because these words were also written for us, since like Ezekiel it is Jehovah who sends us and gives us his support. Jehovah told Ezekiel: "Do not be afraid", he tells us: "Do not be terrified", and as Isaiah 43:10 mentions, we are his witnesses, which means a great honor for each one of us.

We can be afraid to go out but Jehovah encourages us, he tells us not to be terrified, to not get paralyzed with fear and how nice to see that Jehovah has those feelings because he could say just go and that's it, but he lovingly gives us his support and doesn't say be there. Don't worry, everything will be fine, I'm here supporting you.

Yes, because it also confirms that we have the support of Jehovah who is stable and firm as a rock, that is why we should never bear witness that Jehovah is the true God.

6. (a) How does Jehovah confirm his support for us?

We find the answer in Isaiah 43:2 because there Jehovah confirms his support telling us that we are his witnesses and that when we cross the waters Jehovah will be with us and when we cross rivers they will not cover us and when we go through fire we will not burn. And this is very true, since in preaching we find obstacles that are like these rivers and we face tests that are like fire, but as mentioned in the paragraph with the help of Jehovah we will continue preaching.

When we see this help that Jehovah gives us here in Isaiah 41:13 where Jehovah tells us to go preach, I am holding your hand, nothing will happen to you, do not be afraid, I am going to help you, then this way already we can feel very confident.

Yes, many times these obstacles can be in a literal way, because the work is sick, but it is very nice, as in a very literal way, Jehovah now confirmed his support for us, even with this joyous announcement of being able to reach the precursorship, it is something that many brothers and sisters worldwide do well. help continue to serve Jehovah and will also encourage many to continue this preaching work.

6. b) What comforts and encourages us?

In 1 Corinthians 3:8 shows that Jehovah rewards his servants according to their work, then we can see that Jehovah rewards his servants and he does it because he is happy when we faithfully declare his message despite any opposition or adverse situation that may arise. present in our territory. Knowing that Jehovah rewards our effort comforts us and encourages us to continue making an effort to courageously preach the Good News of the Kingdom.

If the paragraph says that it encourages us to know that Jehovah is happy if we continue to declare the message faithfully, Jehovah says that he will reward us for what we do, then he does everything possible so that we have the best circumstances to achieve our goals, So seeing how he treats us with so much affection and gives us the opportunity to continue preaching in the best way, because that also gives us great encouragement knowing that he also rewards us.

Yes, and it is that, like Ezequiel, we too from our territory, well, we may have obstacles and we may feel some fear, but remember that Jehovah, what really matters to him, is happy with the effort we make despite this. He gives us comfort and continues to encourage us to continue preaching despite these obstacles.

And it is that as in Ezekiel, today most people reject the message and this may make us feel sad and discourage us because perhaps we think that we are not good servants of God, but it is not like that, Jehovah is already saying since the time of Ezekiel that people would be difficult, they would be rebellious and did not want to listen to our messages, but Jehovah also tells us that he is happy with the effort we make.

ILLUSTRATION

In the image on the left we see Ezekiel facing the indifference and opposition of rebellious and stubborn Jews who did not listen or rejected the message, in the image on the right we see a couple of Jehovah's Witnesses today facing a similar situation , in these circumstances we must remember that we are not bad witnesses that Jehovah is happy with our faithful service and that he will reward each one of us according to our work as first Corinthians 3:8 says.

Series of images: 1. Ezequiel preaches in his assigned territory. Most people reject his message, but one man listens intently. 2. A marriage with his daughter in preaching. Most reject his message, but one woman listens intently.

Like Ezekiel, we may face indifference and opposition. But we know that Jehovah is with us. (See paragraphs 5 and 6).

THE HOLY SPIRIT GAVE STRENGTH TO EZEKIEL

7. How must Ezekiel feel every time he thought about the vision he received? (See cover drawing.)

It is possible that when Ezekiel thought about this impressive vision, he became more and more convinced that he could fulfill his ministry with the help of God's spirit. Since Ezekiel when he saw how much power the holy spirit of God had, the text mentions that he was so impressed that he fell face down. Then analyzing the great power that Jehovah has will help us to be convinced that with his help we can achieve any assignment that he commanded us to do.

He saw the power of the holy spirit in action when he saw in that vision how he acted in spiritual beings and in the enormous wheels of a celestial chariot and he recounts there in Ezekiel 1:28 how he felt, he says when I saw him I fell face down to Earth, like this that it is very possible that every time he remembered this vision he became more convinced that through the power of that same Holy Spirit he could fulfill his ministry with the help that Jehovah would be giving him. 

ILLUSTRATION

Ezekiel sees in a vision the heavenly chariot of Jehovah and even how his holy spirit acts in the powerful spiritual beings and in the enormous wheels of the chariot, this vision convinces him that Jehovah will help him fulfill his ministry, therefore if we meditate on this vision we also become convinced that Jehovah will help us fulfill our service, despite the obstacles we may encounter.

Ezekiel sees a vision of Jehovah's heavenly chariot, further convincing him that Jehovah will help him fulfill his ministry. (See paragraph 7).

8, 9. (a) What command did Jehovah give Ezekiel?

The order that Jehovah gave Ezekiel is what Ezekiel 2:1,2 shows, there it mentions that Jehovah ordered Hezekiah to stand up because Jehovah wanted to speak with him. And he also mentions that that order and the spirit of God gave him the necessary strength to get up.

And there in Ezekiel chapter 2 verse 1 and 2 shows how it says that Jehovah commanded Ezekiel the son of man to stand up so that he could talk to you, it mentions how the spirit entered him and says that he made him stand up, then that order and God's spirit gave him the strength he needed to get up.

It could be that at this point in the study, perhaps we can say it's hard for me, maybe I don't feel that impetus to be able to go out, the circumstances come from very complicated issues and every day is not possible, well maybe we are not going out with our own strength, here we are seeing that the spirit of Jehovah will give us that impulse so that we can do it, that is, we have to make space for him so that we can ask him and first be obedient to know that Jehovah has trusted us that he knows what he is sending us to but does not leave us alone and the The most powerful power in the universe is with us for them to fulfill the mission of preaching that was something important to Jehovah and that is if we see preaching with that importance as Jehovah sees it,If we see it that way, the spirit will flow and that spirit will infuse us to be able to go preach despite our fear.

8, 9. (b) What else did Jehovah do to strengthen Ezekiel?

Because the Jews were hard headed and stubborn in heart, Jehovah helped him throughout his ministry with his mighty hand that is to say with his Holy Spirit.

He confirmed to him that due to the hardness of the people with whom he would speak, Jehovah would give him his support, as Ecclesiastes 3:8 and 9 mentions, it says that he would make his face as hard and his forehead as hard as their foreheads, this without a doubt would He even compared it to a diamond because it was not going to be easy to talk to hard-headed people, so to speak, therefore so that this would not discourage him, he confirmed that this was not going to affect him thanks to the power that Jehovah was going to give him.

And so it was determined that it was going to be as firm as a diamond, although the attitude of the Jews could be as hard as flint, which is a stone harder than steel, a diamond is capable of scratching it, then their determination was going to be even more firm than the attitude of the Jews.

THE HOLY SPIRIT GIVES US STRENGTH

10. What help do we need to fulfill our ministry, and why?

Let us remember that the holy spirit that Jehovah gave Ezekiel were the strength he needed to start preaching. In the same way we could not preach if it were not for the help of the Holy Spirit.

Well, we need the holy spirit, the help that Jehovah gives us through his spirit, and this is because we have an enemy who is Satan who is fighting with us so that we stop preaching.

And we also need it because by our own strength we could not preach if it were not for the help of the Holy Spirit, so when we participate in the ministry we show that Satan's threats do not scare us and they will not defeat us.

ILLUSTRATION

In the image we see a sister preaching on the phone, just like Ezequiel, she is demonstrating that she has the help of the holy spirit and the approval of Jehovah, that is why her face radiates with happiness, with her ministry she shows that Satan does not scare her and that she will not be able to stop the preaching, this sister, like us, is convinced that Jehovah gives his faithful servants the strength to endure until the end.

The sister in the previous image preaches over the phone to the woman who listened carefully. In the background is the heavenly chariot of Jehovah.

As in the case of Ezekiel, what helps us to fulfill our ministry today? (See paragraph 10).

11. How will the holy spirit help us, and what must we do to continue receiving it?

The holy spirit can help us overcome any obstacle that comes our way in our ministry. And to obtain it we must ask Jehovah in prayer and as he mentions in the paragraph our prayer must be insistent, since if we insist the words we find in Luke 11:9 will be fulfilled, that if we continue asking, we continue searching and we continue touching, the door will open and the result will be that the Holy Spirit will be with us and help us to fulfill our work of preaching.

The holy spirit can help us overcome any obstacle that comes our way in our ministry, that is why it is very important to continue asking in prayer and insistently for the spirit of God, in Luke 11:9 Jesus told his disciples keep asking keep looking keep knocking on the door, if we insistently ask Jehovah will listen to us and give us his spirit.

And according to facts 1:14 and 2 to 4 there is palpable evidence that at that moment the 12 disciples were praying persevering in prayer along with other women and the result was that all the 120 disciples who gathered received the Holy Spirit to preach precisely in languages ​​that would help them reach other people, so there is already a case in the Bible that can be seen so we can copy this example.

I believe that we have all seen that power of Jehovah's holy spirit on more than one occasion that this power is going to be beyond normal, we can surely think of some difficult situation in some obstacle in preaching or perhaps perhaps we have faced that opposition, so if we continue cultivating that love for Jehovah, we continue to preach that gives us strength, having confidence in Jehovah, we will get ahead. 

EZEKIEL FED ON THE WORDS OF GOD

12. According to Ezekiel 2:9-3:3, where did the scroll come from, and what message did it contain?

The scroll came from Jehovah's throne and contained the words of God, which was a message of condemnation that Ezekiel was to announce to the rebellious exiles and this message was written on both sides of the scroll.

I believe that we have all seen that power of Jehovah's holy spirit on more than one occasion that this power is going to be beyond normal, we can surely think of some difficult situation in some obstacle in preaching or perhaps perhaps we have faced that opposition, so if we continue cultivating that love for Jehovah, we continue to preach that gives us strength, having confidence in Jehovah, we will get ahead.

And it also mentions that it was written in front and behind the roll.

That shows that it was a long message, true because it was written in front and in the back.

13. What did Jehovah tell Ezekiel to do with the scroll, and why was it sweet?

When we read this text we are impressed by how illustrative the word of God is, and we say this because Jehovah asked Ezekiel to eat the Roll and this meant that Ezekiel had to fully assimilate the message he had to announce, and being Sweet or pleasant, Jehovah wants to illustrate that it was a great honor for Ezekiel to represent Jehovah, since Ezekiel was very grateful that Jehovah had chosen him to be his prophet.

Jehovah asked Ezekiel to eat the scroll and to fill his stomach with it and because it was sweet, as the words of Psalm 19:8 remind us, it says there that Jehovah's orders are just, full of joy to the heart and already in the Verse 10 helps us understand that the honey that drips from the combs is much sweeter than honey, so for Ezekiel it was something nice something sweet to have the honor of representing Jehovah.

If the fact that he told him to eat it and it will fill his stomach meant that he had to assimilate very well the message that he was going to announce, because that message had to become part of him, to have it first inside of him, in order to influence other people he had to influence their feelings first.

14. What helped Ezequiel to be ready to fulfill his mission?

What helped Ezekiel to be ready to fulfill his mission is to listen carefully and accept in his heart all the words that Jehovah told him, since he remembered the words written on the scroll and meditated on it and that made his faith feed and it will make clear in his mind, the powerful message that he had to bring to the people. And he was ready to preach and fulfill his mission, because God's message was in his mouth and in his heart.

What helps Ezekiel is what is recorded here in Ezekiel 3:10 where Jehovah tells him listen and accept in your heart all the words that I say to you, so that Jehovah was telling him to try to remember the written words that were in the roll and meditate on them, this would help him strengthen and nourish his faith and with that he made clear the powerful message that he should bring to the people.

Psalm 19:14 | It did not have to be something mechanical or just recorded to say it, but it had to be in her heart, before she should have meditated on the information and be convinced that that condemnation came from Jehovah and was fair.

In fact, we do see these two expressions in Psalm 19:14, my mouth and my heart means that in my mouth is to read the word of God, but when we say in the heart it is to meditate and to meditate is to accept them in our hearts because from there It is where it exerts all our motives.

WE FEED ON THE WORDS OF GOD

15. What must we accept in our hearts so as not to abandon our ministry?

In our hearts we must accept, that just like Ezekiel, we too must continue feeding on the word of God, since we need to accept in our hearts everything that Jehovah tells us, and we do it by studying the Bible and meditating on stories like Ezekiel's , since Jehovah speaks to us through his word and responds to us by helping us to carry out our work of preaching.

Here we are told that we must continue to feed on the word of God and we see that Jehovah gives us a lot of food every day, we can be very satisfied, we must also be very humble to accept in our hearts everything that Jehovah tells us because it is mentioned that today Jehovah speaks to us through his word, so what a great privilege it is to have that communication with Jehovah. 

16. What are we to do with God's Word, and how do we do it?

The illustration that shows the paragraph is interesting, because it helps us understand what we must do with the word of God, since if we eat and digest food, the result will be that we will have a nourished body. And something similar happens with our faith, when we study the word of God and meditate on it our faith is nourished. And we will achieve this by first praying to prepare our hearts to receive God's thoughts, then we read a portion of the Bible and then use it to meditate and think carefully about what we have read.

Well, just as we feed on physical food, our faith is also nourished when we feed on the word and meditate on it, Jehovah wants us to fill our stomachs with his word that we also assimilate his message.

And to achieve this we have to do it in 3 ways: first we have to pray to prepare our hearts, then we can read the proportion of the Bible and finally we are going to meditate and think carefully about what we have already read.

It is said that the more we meditate, the better our heart will assimilate the message of the word of God. 

17. Why is it so important that we meditate on what we read in the Bible?

Meditating on the Bible from what we learn is very important, because doing so will give us the necessary strength to announce today a positive message of salvation or the Kingdom of God and in the near future we will carry a harsh message of condemnation that we may have to proclaim. What we can also do is meditate on the precious qualities of Jehovah, since if we do so our friendship with him will be stronger, and the result will be the same as that of Ezekiel, we will enjoy something very sweet, we will have inner peace and satisfaction.

Well, because we are going to have the strength and fortitude to announce the message of the kingdom right now, but in the future the message of condemnation.

And it is that although to look for God we must read the Bible, we will only find him if we dedicate time to meditate on it, meditating on his personality and his qualities will make us know Jehovah better and we will be stronger and stronger and that as a result will give inner peace and satisfaction. 

DECIDED TO MOVE ON

18. What will the people of the territory have to recognize, and why?

Today's servants are not inspired prophets like Ezekiel. However, we have the inspired message that Jehovah has left in his word in the Bible. That is why the people of our territory will have to recognize that the message we preached came from God, because they cannot say that nobody warned them and neither that Jehovah did not take them into account, but they will have to submit to the Divine Judgment .

And that when the time of execution comes people will not be able to say that they were not given the message because we were there time after time.

19. Where will we get the strength to fulfill our ministry?

The strength to carry out our ministry does not come from ourselves, but from three factors that strengthened Ezequiel: First is that if we continue preaching it is because we know that Jehovah is the one who has sent us, second is because the holy spirit gives us the strength necessary and Third because we feed on the word of God. If we apply these three factors, the result will be that with Jehovah's help, we will be determined to fulfill our ministry and endure until the end.

First we count on the fact that the message we carry is from Jehovah, he has sent us, and he also gives us his Holy Spirit to have the necessary strength to continue preaching and finally, because we feed daily on the word of God, we are resolved to endure until the end preaching in our ministry.

HOW DO THESE THREE FACTORS HELP US FULFILL OUR MINISTRY?

Jehovah is the one who sends us.

It helps us to know that Jehovah sends us because in this way we can overcome the fear of man, since, as in the case of Ezekiel, it is Jehovah who sends us and gives us all his support. 

Knowing that Jehovah sends us also shows us that Jehovah considers us his witnesses, and for us it is an immense honor that the creator of the universe considers us to bring the Good News of his Kingdom.

Well, it is an immense honor to be his witnesses and how Jehovah is the one who sends us to preach because he promises to give us his full support, so we should not be afraid of our opponents because he has promised to help us and will reward our efforts and above all he values ​​our fidelity.

The holy spirit gives us strength.

The holy spirit helps us to fulfill our ministry, and we say this because the fact that we can preach despite opposition shows that the holy spirit is giving us strength, which shows that we have Jehovah's approval, since when we participate in the ministry, we show that his threats do not scare us, and every time we preach it is a defeat for Satan.

How in the case of Ezekiel we could not preach if it were not for the help of Jehovah through his holy spirit, we say this because Satan fights against us to stop the preaching and every time we preach it is definitely a defeat for Satan, the fact That we can preach despite opposition shows that the holy spirit is giving us strength and that we have Jehovah's approval. 

We feed on the words of God.

If we feed on the word of God, it will help us to have strength in our ministry, because in this way we will not abandon it, since we must continue feeding on the words of God, since we need to accept in our hearts everything that Jehovah speaks to us through his written word, the Bible.

Another reason is that when we feed on the word of Jehovah, we will obtain the necessary strength to announce the message of the Kingdom of God today and in the near future the harsh message of condemnation that we will probably have to proclaim.

What do we have to constantly feed on the word of God and an analogy was used as food and just as we physically feed ourselves daily we do not leave a day without feeding ourselves, we also have to do it with the word of God so that in this way it influences our thoughts feelings and motives when we do it this way then we are also going to fulfill some important things: the satisfaction that we are pleasing Jehovah and that brings us closer to him and on the other hand that we fulfill the mandate to be able to fulfill our ministry and therefore we will have peace interior and also satisfaction.