Watchtower Study, Can You Tell Truth from Lies?, Week of September 16-22, 2024, Comments and Answers.

Watchtower Study, Can You Tell Truth From Lies?, September 16-22, 2024, Comments and Answers

“Stand firm, wearing the belt of truth” (EPHE. 6:14).

1. How do you feel about the truth?

We always love to be told the truth and the truths of the Bible are what we appreciate most because our faith depends on it and we also appreciate the advice that the elders give us because it is based on the truths of the Bible.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

The truth helps me stay positive in a chaotic and heartless world but also enjoy the company of people who still hold those values ​​true.

The truth that comes from God helps us avoid sin and deception, it helps us walk on the path of righteousness and obey Jehovah's standards, that is why I feel that I love it and respect it because that is Jehovah's truth.

And also as we are seeing, we willingly submit to the people who are directing us and giving us instructions, well as we see here right now to do the will of God, that is what Hebrews 13:17 says, that we should be submissive to those who lead because they are taking care of us and will be accountable before Jehovah.

And we are also convinced that Jehovah established the Christian congregation as a pillar of support for the truth.

And I personally consider that the truth is like a treasure that we have found thanks to Jehovah and that has changed our lives completely and that our life now revolves around that truth.

2. According to James 5:19, what danger do we, Jehovah's servants, face?

Because if we deviate from the truth, we know that Satan is behind us, prowling like a roaring lion, and he would love for us to stop trusting both the Bible and Jehovah's organization.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

According to James 5:19, Jehovah's servants are in danger of straying from the truth, even though they have accepted the truth and know the importance of following the guidance of God's organization. Satan wants us to lose confidence in the Bible and in the instructions we receive from Jehovah's organization.

And we know from Ephesians 4:11 that Satan has a lot of power; in fact, he rules this world and uses men to sow lies, traps, and create doubts in us that ultimately separate us from Jehovah, so we want to be very careful and know how to distinguish truth from lies. 

3. Why do we need to hold on to the truth? (Ephesians 6:13, 14)

Satan knows that he has very little time left in this system and that is why he will soon launch very cunning lies so that entire nations will oppose Jehovah.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

We must stand firm in the truth because Satan will try to deceive the world with lies, causing many people to oppose Jehovah. He will also try to confuse God's servants. Therefore, it is crucial that we know how to identify what is true and what is false, and that we remain obedient to the truth. This will be vital to be able to overcome the great tribulation that is coming.

In the study guide on the text of Ephesians we can read how, referring to the armor, the complete word indicates that a half-hearted effort is not enough to resist Satan's attacks. That is why it is very important to make a continuous effort to stay alert in order to know how to distinguish truth from lies and to be able to stand firm until Jehovah finishes off Satan.

And one of the reasons why we must hold on is that Satan is very angry, in Revelation 12:9 it tells us that he was thrown down and all his angels were thrown down with him, with which we know that he has a strong army and he is going to try to deceive us in one way or another and the only thing that can save us is to hold on to the truth and to Jehovah. 

4. What will we analyze in this article?

In this article, we will discuss two essential qualities for recognizing the truth from the Bible and accepting the guidance of Jehovah's organization. We will also look at three actions we must take to stand firm in the truth.

QUALITIES WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO RECOGNIZE THE TRUTH

5. What is the relationship between fearing Jehovah and recognizing the truth?

There is a great connection, because fearing Jehovah means loving him deeply and avoiding anything that displeases him. This fear motivates us to distinguish between right and wrong, as well as between truth and lies, in order to obtain his approval.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Well, there is a close relationship between fearing Jehovah and recognizing the truth. Fearing Jehovah implies a deep love and respect for him, which leads us to never do anything that displeases him. This fear will drive us to seek and value wisdom, knowledge and discernment. This discernment comes from Jehovah and is what will allow us to distinguish between what is right and what is wrong and to recognize the truth and reject lies.

And also what we have to keep in mind is that we must never allow fear or the fear of man to make us turn away from Jehovah but rather the love that we feel toward Jehovah makes us stronger because what human beings would want is for us to displease Jehovah.

We see the relationship very well in the proverb chapter 2 verses 3 to 6 where it speaks first of seeking knowledge, understanding, discernment and then it says that when we have found it, then we will understand the fear of the Lord, so there we see the close relationship that exists between both things.

Yes, and in Hebrews 5:14 it speaks about solid food, so we should not settle for basic teachings but rather go deeper to strengthen our faith and really know what the truth is.

How sad it would be if we could sadden Jehovah's heart for fear of what he thinks of other people. What Jehovah thinks of us must always be much more important than what anyone else might think, and that is why we must be strong. It will not be easy many times, but even so, the most important thing must always be to please Jehovah. 

6. What effect did the fear of man have on the 10 spies?

Fear of man caused the 10 spies to stop trusting in Jehovah and to believe things contrary to the truth. Although they recognized that the Canaanites were stronger from a human point of view, they forgot that Jehovah was with them.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

What happened to these 10 is that they forgot everything that Jehovah had done for them, they even forgot the miracles that Jehovah performed to get them out of Egypt, so as the paragraph says, from a human point of view, of course, the Canaanites were very strong and on their own they would not have been able to defeat them, but with the help of Jehovah they could, and that was the mistake they made.

And instead of focusing on what Jehovah wanted and the recent miracles He had performed, they let fear of their enemies discourage them. In contrast, Joshua and Caleb, with faith in Jehovah, trusted that He would fulfill His promise and give them victory.

When the paragraph says that they should have remembered what Jehovah had done for them shortly before, because that was the time when they left Egypt. The Egyptians were also the power at that time, they were much more powerful than the slaves that the Israelites had there, and yet they were able to leave and they were able to emerge victorious from that situation. If they had kept that in mind, they would surely have trusted in Jehovah.

And the effect is that this lack of confidence that they had made the whole nation want to even stone Joshua and Caleb and in the end the result is that they had to spend 40 years wandering in the desert because of that fear and that dread, so in those 40 years they learned to fear Jehovah. 

7. What can help us strengthen the fear of Jehovah? (See also the image.)

Something that can help us keep in mind the fear of Jehovah is to always keep in mind what pleases Jehovah and if we do so, he will help us.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

To strengthen our fear of Jehovah, we should always consider what pleases him before making decisions and reflect on how we would act in similar biblical situations. This helps us prioritize our faithfulness to Jehovah over fear of man.

And in the image we also see that the 10 spies were only looking at themselves, if they had looked a little further they would have seen the pillar of cloud and surely remembered the power of Jehovah and we want to do the best, if we want to think first how Jehovah wants things and decisions to be and that helps us to do it well.

Yes, then we see how what these people who did not fear Jehovah decided at that time, well we see that the consequences were very bad because because of that, Jehovah told them that they could not enter the promised land, it is a shame after all the miracles that they had seen and everything.

ILLUSTRATION

Roof, both in that image and in all the other images there is someone who is looking directly at us, it is the one who is pointing at them and it is as if he were asking us, are you not going to throw stones at them? In other words, who would we be with, with those who threw stones at Joshua and Caleb? We went out with them defending Jehovah and saying, "Let's go after them."

Joshua and Caleb speak to the Israelites, who are furious and want to stone them. In the background you can see the pillar of cloud. Who would you have believed? (See paragraph 7.)

8. What quality should we strive to cultivate, and why?

Well, it is humility and one of the main reasons is what Matthew 11:25 mentioned, which says that Jehovah hides things from the intellectuals and wise and reveals them to little children, so if we want to know what the truth is, we have to be humble.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

We must strive to cultivate humility. Jehovah reveals the truth to the humble, and by being humble, we accept the help and guidance of others, just as we did when we learned the truth. Humility protects us from pride, which can cause our opinions to be considered equal to Bible principles and the instructions of Jehovah's organization.

We also have to remember that humility is not only accepting initial help but that we have to maintain an obedient and receptive attitude and that we can follow the instructions that are given to us. This will protect us from trusting our own opinions above Jehovah's principles.

Yes, as we see, understanding the truth about God is a privilege that He grants us, but as we are seeing, He does not do it in an arbitrary or capricious manner, so Jehovah grants favor precisely to the humble, not to the haughty, as we have seen.

9. What will help us remain humble?

We need to remember how small we are compared to how great Jehovah is and reflecting on this will help us stay humble and we must always remember that we depend on him for everything.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

To remain humble, let us remember our smallness in comparison to Jehovah and pray to maintain a humble attitude and receptiveness to learning. Jehovah will help us prioritize His thoughts over our own.

Another thing we can do when reading the Bible is to look for examples that show how Jehovah is pleased with humility and rejects pride. Also, if you receive a prominent responsibility, be careful not to lose humility.

Psalms 8:3 and 4 describes very well what we are talking about when we see Jehovah's creation when we look at the sky when we go perhaps to an impressive cliff and we see the sea and the strength it has, we can think about this with the little ones that we are, how can it be that Jehovah takes care of us and loves us so much, then as has been said, pray, meditate on these things, pray and ask Jehovah above all to think about how he thinks before how we think about ourselves, it will help us to be humble.

And we also have to remember how small we are compared to Jehovah and we can also pray to Jehovah day by day to have a humble attitude and recognize that we need the help of the organization and the brothers.

And to achieve this humility, it is very important that in our personal study we look for evidence that shows how Jehovah loves humility and hates pride and how we can also have this quality. 

WHAT SHOULD WE DO TO HOLD ON TO THE TRUTH?

10. Who has Jehovah used to guide and instruct his servants?

Jehovah has always used other human beings to guide his people who are part of his organization. For example, in ancient Israel, he used both Moses and Joshua to guide his people.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

In ancient Israel, it was Moses and then Joshua who conveyed Jehovah's instructions to his people. In the early Christian congregation, the 12 apostles and later other elders in Jerusalem provided guidance to Christians. Today, Jehovah also blesses us when we follow the guidance he gives us through his organization.

In the beginning, Jehovah used Moses to guide his people and then Joshua and then centuries later we see that he formed Christian cooperation and it was guided through the 12 disciples.

He says that also after the 12 Apostle disciples, other elders from Jerusalem were added and formed the governing group in which instructions were issued through them and when Christians followed them, he says that the congregations increased and benefited. Likewise today in our days the same thing happens and Jehovah does not leave us alone, he gives us his guidance which is necessary and which we all need and if we follow it logically we will do very well. 

11. What happened to those who rebelled against the person Jehovah had chosen to lead his people? (See also image.)

Those who rebelled against the person Jehovah had chosen to lead his people faced serious consequences. In the case of Moses, some important men questioned his authority and Jehovah’s direction, seeking more power and prestige. Jehovah responded severely, wiping out the leaders of the rebellion and the thousands of Israelites who supported them. This shows that Jehovah disapproves of those who do not respect the guidance of his organization.

That is, on that occasion the people began to question Moses and the authority that Jehovah had given him, thinking that they were all also holy for having been chosen by Jehovah, but questioning the authority of Moses was tantamount to disrespecting Jehovah and that is why the story says that Jehovah punished them when the earth opened and swallowed all those rebels.

ILLUSTRATION

And in the image we can also see Moses and his assistant who are there in front of many who raise their fists or in other words shouting against him what has been mentioned, but we see in the foreground someone who with his hands I understand that he is making a point and what do I do? Do I join the others or do I listen to Moses? I mean, I would have a dilemma there, so perhaps from our point of view, in our current perspectives, we would have no doubt, we already know what we will have to do, to support Moses in this case, who was the one chosen by Jehovah, but in his context, it was a problem. Now in the present we can also face similar situations when those who are in positions of authority in the congregation are questioned and we do not allow ourselves to be directed or if we do allow ourselves to be directed.

That is why we see that it is something very serious because it says that Jehovah disapproves of everyone who does not agree with what he does.

And as the paragraph indicates, all those who were against the antiquity concerning the authority of Moses did not want the VIP for the people, the paragraph says that what they were looking for was more power and more prestige, what they were looking for was attention for themselves, that is why we have to reject at any time, as has also been commented, any criticism that is made not only to members of the organization but also in the congregation because in the end we have to analyze what is behind it if there is really a desire for power, a desire to stand out and it is something that, as has already been said, Jehovah hates, what Jehovah likes are humble people and he is also a God of order.

Moses and Aaron speak from a rock to the Israelites, who are furious and shouting at them with their fists raised. Who would you have supported? (See paragraph 11.)

12. What reasons do we have to always trust in Jehovah’s organization?

We have reason to trust in Jehovah's organization because they take the lead, making adjustments in the understanding of Bible truth and in the organization of the work when necessary, always with the goal of pleasing Jehovah. They also strive to base their decisions on the Word of God, the model that all of Jehovah's servants must follow.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

What we have to think about is how we have lived since we have been in Jehovah's people, as they have taught us, they have helped us to follow Jehovah's moral standards, this has made our life very different from the people of this world and they do it because they want to please Jehovah, they do not seek their personal interest and they also write their decisions in the Bible, so those are sufficient reasons to follow the advice of the organization.

I like Proverbs 4:18 because it reminds us that the path we have to walk is becoming increasingly brighter and Jehovah does that, each time we understand things better and this is proof that those who lead the organization want precisely this, to be guided by Jehovah, to make understandings increasingly clearer so that the changes they have to make better fit what Jehovah wants and that is clear proof not because Jehovah makes the light bright and we see it through his organization.

The study guide says that although the Bible does not change, as we understand it better we update our beliefs and that is why the organization makes every effort to base its decisions on the word of God.

13. What is the “model of healthy words,” and what should we do with it?

Well, those words are the teachings that are in the Bible that are directly the basis of our beliefs.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

The “pattern of sound words” refers to the Christian teachings found in the Bible. These teachings are the foundation of our beliefs and practices. We must hold fast to this pattern and follow it closely, as doing so ensures that we will be on the right path and that things will go well for us.

The gospel of John says it again of course, it says that your word is the truth when it says John 17:17 because everything is written there so that we can learn from it and apply it.

Yes, the paragraph also mentions that Jehovah's organization has taught us to closely follow that model, which is the big difference with other religions that claim to be Christian, that even though the Bible says one thing, they then mold it and end up completely departing from it.

The model of healthy word is nothing other than the teaching that we receive or share strictly based on the Bible and this helps us to understand the things that we should do daily and we should hold on to it to put them into practice in our lives and share it with others.

14. How did some Christians stop clinging to “the pattern of sound words”?

Some Christians stopped holding on to the “pattern of sound words” when they began to believe and spread false rumors about the day of Jehovah, without verifying the authenticity of the teachings. Paul warned them and provided them with a distinctive sign in his letters to avoid deception.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Because some Christians of the first century did not bother to check the facts and remembered the last words that Paul taught them when they were still with them because of a letter in which they pretended to be the apostle if they believed and spread the rumor that the day of Jehovah had come causing this division and other problems in the congregation of Thessalonica.

Yes, it was the apostle Paul himself who had to deny that he had written that letter, explaining to them that they should not believe everything they heard, even in Second Thessalonians 3:17 he made them see what his way of describing the letters was as a sign so that no one would deceive them in the future.

15. How can we protect ourselves from lies disguised as truth? Give an example. (See also the images.)

Well, we can protect ourselves by making sure that what we hear or read is in harmony with the truths we already know.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

To protect ourselves from lies disguised as truth, we must be cautious and check the information against what we have already learned in the Bible. For example, in the former Soviet Union, a fake letter was distributed that appeared to come from the world headquarters, encouraging the formation of an independent organization. Faithful brothers realized that it did not match the Bible teachings they knew and did not fall into the trap.

What does first John 4:1 also say, where we read that they should not believe any inspired message but rather test the inspired messages to see if they come from God and that is that Jehovah and the organization want us to look for principles that show that it is the correct path and then when we know Jehovah's voice better, it will be easier for us to distinguish good from bad.

ILLUSTRATION

Yes, to comment on the image we see two images. The first one is several decades ago, several brothers who are gathered in a house and one shows the others a letter with the JW header and in the second one we see in modern times several brothers who are in a social meeting in a house and one shows the others a video on the internet that there was of Jehovah's Witnesses.

Also returning to the image at the end we know that Satan uses all possible means in the one on the left we see that it was a letter very similar to that of the organization and the one on the right could be a video made with artificial intelligence for example or taken out of context from one of our own videos but we see that the means are not official, for example in the one on the right it is an internet page then we always have to try to go to the source where that information comes from if we believe that they are showing us a video of the organization then we go to our JW application or to the jw .org website and even so we always have elders there is the branch to try to contrast information that seems implausible.

I like the phrase that appears at the bottom of the image that says do not be fooled by the lies that are presented disguised as truths in both images they seem real it seems that they come from the central however really the background is that they come from the enemies of Jehovah that is why it is very important that we always do not let ourselves be fooled and do not let ourselves be influenced by this information that does not come through other pages other than the official one on the website. 

Series of images: 1. Several decades ago, several brothers are gathered in a home and one shows the others a letter with the heading “Watch Tower.” 2. In modern times, several brothers are at a social gathering in a home and one shows the others an Internet video that talks about Jehovah’s Witnesses. Do not be fooled by lies disguised as truth. (See paragraph 15.) a

16. According to Romans 16:17, 18, what should we do with those who stray from the truth?

Well, as we have read in Romans, we have to avoid them since they follow their own desires and create divisions within the congregation, and it says that with their honeyed words what they do is seduce the hearts of the naive and lead these people away from the truth.

According to Romans 16:17, 18, we are to avoid those who deviate from the truth, as they create divisions in the congregation. God wants us to remain united in worship and in the truth, so it is important to avoid those who might lead us away from this truth.

And avoiding it means avoiding it at all costs. We will not listen to anyone on television or on the Internet who wants to divert us or implant in our hearts something that diverts us from the truth.

And as we see, the text of Romans is telling us to firmly watch out for brothers who are different from us, who have a different character or are different, we are all different, each one of us is as we are, but it is referring precisely to that, to those who cause divisions and go against the teachings that we have learned from the word of God.

17. What will happen if we acknowledge the truth and hold on to it?

Because we will be safe and sound in a spiritual sense, we will not be deceived by the lies and false teachings of Satan and in this way we will have Jehovah's protection.

If we recognize the truth and hold fast to it, we will be spiritually safe and sound. We will not be deceived by lies, and we will have Jehovah's protection during the great tribulation. We will also enjoy the peace that God offers us.

And here in Philippians 4:8 and 9 we have a list of a lot of things that we can put our minds on and do because they are true, they are just, and they will make us much happier. 

HOW WOULD YOU RESPOND?

Why is it important for us to know how to recognize the truth?

As in Ephesians 6:13 we see that soon the devil will launch very cunning lies to make entire nations turn against Jehovah and we have also seen in Revelation 16:3 and we also know that Satan is trying harder and harder to deceive us servants and make us leave Jehovah.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

It is important that we recognize the truth because only by doing so can we remain spiritually healthy and protected. The truth protects us from Satan’s lies and deceptions and helps us remain faithful to Jehovah. Furthermore, by holding on to the truth, we can receive the guidance and peace that God promises.

Satan is now attempting his attack and would love for us to stop trusting the Bible or even the instructions given to us through the organization. 

How do the fear of Jehovah and humility help us to recognize the truth and not stray from it?

Fearing Jehovah motivates us to love him and obey his commandments, keeping us attentive to his instructions and to what pleases him. This respect and reverence impels us to seek and hold on to biblical truth to avoid deviating from our path.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Humility enables us to accept guidance and correction, preventing our pride from leading us to question or ignore the truth. By being humble, we are willing to learn and adjust our beliefs and behaviors according to what Jehovah teaches us.

Well, the fear of Jehovah will help us because as a father we want him to feel good with us and happy, we will do everything possible to not do anything that would displease him, so we will be very aware of those lies that come so that at no time do any of them fall and thus be able to offend the father we love so much.

Yes, we must also never allow the fear of man to be stronger or greater than the love we feel for Jehovah.

What should we do to hold on to the truth?

To hold fast to the truth, we must study the Bible regularly, be humble and obey the guidance of Jehovah's organization, evaluate new information based on Scripture, and pray for discernment.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

We must always trust in the guidance of Jehovah's organization, we must also hold on to healthy words, and finally we must also remain united with those who are loyal to Jehovah.

If we hold on tightly to the truth and the God of peace will always be with us.

So that is why it is so important that we only stick to our website and not rely on any other source so that those kinds of false teachings do not enter our hearts.

For example, continuing to hold on to the model of healthy words, as 2 Timothy 1:13 says, continue holding on to the model of healthy words that you heard from me with the faith and love that come from being in union with Christ Jesus.