At Unity With the Creator of the Universal Organization
“Look! How good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity!”—PSALM 133:1.
1, 2. (a) What disturbing factor appeared some 6,000 years ago? (b) What does the Bible call this renegade, and how did he try to make himself like the Most High?
THE Creator of the universal organization desires to keep it pure, righteous, and unified. But shortly after the beginning of mankind’s existence some 6,000 years ago, a disturbing factor appeared on the universal scene. This occurred when a superhuman resister broke away from the Creator’s organization and set out to form his own independent organization.
2 Because this renegade opposed his Creator, the Bible calls him Satan, meaning “Resister.” He is the archresister of Jehovah, the rightful Sovereign of the universe. (Job 1:6, 7) Ambitious to make himself like the Most High in having his own organization, the Resister would not stop short of trying to act as a rival organizer and god. Satan thus made himself attractive-looking. Satan’s attitude was reflected in the dynasty and brilliant worldly position taken by “the king of Babylon,” to whom the terms “shining one” and “Lucifer” were aptly given. (Isaiah 14:4, 12-14; King James Version; An American Translation) To this day, but only by Jehovah’s permission, Satan is “the god of this system of things.”—2 Corinthians 4:4.
3. (a) At what part of Jehovah’s organization did this resister first strike? (b) What developments resulted in the Devil’s becoming the ruler of the demons?
3 Likely in order to undermine Jehovah’s organization, Satan first struck at its lowest part, Adam, the appointed head of the human family. (Genesis 3:1-24; Psalm 8:3-5; Romans 5:12) Later, many angels disobediently forsook their “original position,” or proper dwelling place in heaven, and materialized in flesh so as to marry and cohabit with good-looking, though imperfect, women. (Jude 6) Their hybrid offspring, abnormal in size and strength, were called Nephilim. This term, believed to mean “fellers,” was apropos since they apparently caused mere humans to fall by violence. At the time of the Flood, the disobedient angels dematerialized and returned to the spirit realm. (Genesis 6:1–7:23) By disuniting themselves from Jehovah’s organization, they made themselves demons, and Satan the Devil became their ruler.—Deuteronomy 32:17; Psalm 106:37; Matthew 12:24; Luke 11:15-19.
4. What did the human Flood survivors do, but what did Satan set out to do, and with what objective?
4 In that way, Satan set up the invisible, superhuman spirit part of his organization. The Flood survivors, Noah and his family, remained at unity with Jehovah’s invisible heavenly organization. (Genesis 6:9; 8:18-21) But Satan set out to break up the unity of faithful Noah’s descendants. What was the Devil’s objective? Why, to bring forth a visible part to his wicked organization!
5. How did The Watch Tower of May 1, 1921, suggest that Satan has an organization?
5 It took some time for the International Bible Students to discern that Satan has an organization. But The Watch Tower of May 1, 1921, said: “Not content with what he had already done, Satan seduced these of the heavenly host and caused them to debauch mankind and to fill the earth with violence. He organized a system invisible to human eyes, as well as a system on earth that is visible to human eyes, and has sought to counterfeit every part of the revealed plan of God.”
6. What did The Watch Tower of December 1, 1922, say about Satan’s purpose?
6 “Satan’s Purpose” was a subheading under which The Watch Tower of December 1, 1922, plainly said: “We are now in the evil day. The fight is on between Satan’s organization and God’s organization. It is a desperate fight. Satan is attempting to destroy the morale of the Lord’s organization and, if possible, to destroy the members of the house of sons. To this end he resorts to every possible scheme.”
7, 8. (a) How was it helpful to discern the two antagonistic organizations? (b) In The Watch Tower of March 1, 1925, what was shown to be against the figurative “man child”?
7 Discerning the two antagonistic organizations helped to clarify many Bible teachings and prophecies. For example, Revelation chapter 12 was not correctly understood until the article “Birth of the Nation” appeared in The Watch Tower of March 1, 1925. Its theme text (Revelation 12:5, KJ) reads: “And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.”
8 On pages 67 and 68 this article stated:
“What has been the outstanding feature of the divine plan during the ages? . . . The establishment of the kingdom for which Jesus taught us to pray. That means the birth of the new nation, which shall rule and bless all the families of the earth. . . . What has been the opposing power that has kept the people in ignorance of this glorious new nation and the blessings it will bring to them? . . . Satan the devil, and his organization. . . . The real fight is God against the devil, the kingdom of righteousness putting out of possession the kingdom of wickedness and darkness, and establishing the kingdom of truth instead. . . . Following 1918 the devil’s organization, financial, political and ecclesiastical, particularly the latter, openly repudiated the Lord and his kingdom; and then and there the wrath of God against the nations began to be expressed. From that time forward the battle has gone on in the earth. Prior to that the battle was fought in heaven.”
9. In 1925, what was the “woman” of Revelation chapter 12 explained to be?
9 It was then mistakenly thought that both Isaiah 66:7 and Revelation 12:5 foretold the birth of the same “man child.” (KJ) So the above-quoted Watch Tower also said:
“The ‘woman’ seems clearly to symbolize that part of Zion, God’s organization, which gives birth to the new government or nation which shall rule the nations and peoples of the earth with a rod of iron and with righteousness. . . . (Galatians 4:26) In other words Zion or Jerusalem, God’s organization, is the mother which gives birth to the new nation, or governing factors. The anointed ones on earth are a part of ‘the woman’, and surely represent her. The woman ‘clothed with the sun’ means Zion in heaven and the approved ones on earth of God’s organization at the time the Lord comes to his temple. . . . Now in his temple encompassing the temple class or investing them with his robe of righteousness, his organization producing the new nation, otherwise designated Zion, shines as the sun.”
10. What has happened to the spirit part of Satan’s organization, and what war is it now waging?
10 The “dragon,” now understood to be Satan the Devil himself, failed to devour the “man child,” the Messianic Kingdom born in heaven at the end of the Gentile Times in 1914. (Luke 21:24, KJ) During the war that followed in heaven, the spirit part of Satan’s organization was cast down to the vicinity of the earth, never again to enter heaven and exercise a disunifying influence there. That demoted organization now goes after the visible part of Jehovah’s universal organization, relentlessly waging war “with the remaining ones of her seed, who observe the commandments of God and have the work of bearing witness to Jesus.”—Revelation 12:17.
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11. (a) To whom can Paul’s words about “Jerusalem above” be applied today? (b) What did David say about earthly Jerusalem, where Jehovah’s house of worship was situated?
11 God’s figurative “woman” is likened to the chosen city Jerusalem, poetically called Zion. Hence, Paul’s words about the free “Jerusalem above” can now be applied to “the remaining ones of her seed” against whom the “dragon,” Satan the Devil, continues to “wage war.” (Galatians 4:26) Earthly Jerusalem was strongly built and closely knit together in the days of David, who said: “I rejoiced when they were saying to me: ‘To the house of Jehovah let us go.’ Our feet proved to be standing within your gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem is one that is built like a city that has been joined together in oneness, to which the tribes have gone up, the tribes of Jah, as a reminder to Israel to give thanks to the name of Jehovah.”—Psalm 122:1-4.
12. (a) To what unity do the words of Psalm 122:1-4 apply today? (b) Jerusalem and the sacred tabernacle there had what bearing on the unity of Israel’s tribes?
12 What a lovely picture of the unity of Jehovah’s universal organization! Especially was unity evident at national festivals, when the 12 tribes of Israel joined in united worship of Jehovah at the sacred tabernacle in Jerusalem. And during the reign of their shepherd-king David, the tribes remained united not just due to fleshly ties but primarily because of the organized worship of their God. Yes, Jerusalem was the divinely approved center of united, organized worship under the one priesthood taken from the tribe of Levi and the family of Israel’s first high priest, Aaron, the older brother of the prophet Moses. Moreover, all 12 tribes were in the one Law covenant that divided them off from all the demon-worshiping nations.
13. What did David say about the unity enjoyed by the ancient Israelites?
13 What unifying factors all these things were! They kept God’s people united as one national organization for their safety and blessing. David put it this way: “Look! How good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity! It is like the good oil upon the head, that is running down upon the beard, Aaron’s beard, that is running down to the collar of his garments. It is like the dew of Hermon that is descending upon the mountains of Zion. For there Jehovah commanded the blessing to be, even life to time indefinite.”—Psalm 133:1-3.
14. (a) By whom is Israel’s national unity being duplicated today? (b) Where are the spiritual Israelites depicted as standing, and what “song” do they sing in unison?
14 The national unity that inspired such heartfelt expressions is being duplicated today. By whom? By “the Israel of God,” the spiritual Israelites whose one motherhood Paul called to mind in saying: “But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.” (Galatians 6:16; 4:26) She does not put her spirit-begotten children under bondage to the Law covenant. Although “the Israel of God” is pictured as consisting of 12 tribes, all 144,000 members thereof are sealed with the same “seal of the living God,” and all are depicted as standing on the one heavenly “Mount Zion.” (Revelation 7:1-8; 14:1-4) What a choral group they make up as they unitedly sing “the song of Moses the slave of God and the song of the Lamb,” Jesus Christ! (Revelation 15:3, 4; John 1:29, 36) That “song” delights God and bespeaks victory!
15. (a) The 144,000 are organized for what besides for singing? (b) How does the very word “organization” denote unity?
15 The 144,000 and their Choirmaster, “the Lamb,” are organized for more than making the heavens ring with their singing. Theirs is a royal organization that is to reign a thousand years for the vindication of Jehovah’s universal sovereignty and the blessing of all responsive mankind. (Revelation 20:4-6) The word “organization,” an antonym of “disorganization,” pertains to an arrangement of things with each part being put in its proper place and given its assignment of work so that they all operate together to bring about a common result. Thus, organization makes for unity, cooperation, good order, and harmony—not friction.
16. According to Ephesians 4:8, 11-16, what goal was set more than 19 centuries ago, and what has been achieved among Jehovah’s Witnesses?
16 The goal of Christian unity was set more than 19 centuries ago, when “gifts in men” were given in the form of apostles, prophets, evangelizers, shepherds, and teachers. When the Watch Tower magazine began to be published in 1879, God also gave spiritual “shepherds and teachers.” This provision has brought Jehovah’s Witnesses to their present “oneness in the faith and in the accurate knowledge of the Son of God.” (Ephesians 4:8, 11-16) How grateful we are that Jehovah has done this after all the centuries of worldwide religious confusion and disorganization!
17. How do we know that God had more than the unity of anointed Christians in mind, and in this regard what did Jesus foretell?
17 Clearly, God had more than the unity of anointed Christians in mind, for “he purposed in himself for an administration at the full limit of the appointed times, namely, to gather all things together again in the Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth.” (Ephesians 1:9, 10) In this regard, Jesus foretold: “I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; those also I must bring, and they will listen to my voice, and they will become one flock, one shepherd.”—John 10:16.
18. (a) Who are among “the things on the earth” that must be gathered together? (b) In 1935, how was special attention given to the “other sheep”?
18 These “other sheep” are among “the things on the earth” that must be gathered together. So, under the influence of God’s spirit, about 21 years after Jesus Christ started reigning in 1914, special attention began to be given to the “other sheep.” During a convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Washington, D.C., in 1935, the president of the Watch Tower Society explained that the “great multitude” were “other sheep” eventually to be gathered by the Fine Shepherd, Jesus Christ. (Revelation 7:9-17, KJ) Did Jesus gather any “other sheep” at that epoch-making convention? Yes, for 840 conventioners then recognized themselves as being gathered by the Fine Shepherd and got baptized in symbol of their dedication to Jehovah God.
19. (a) So far, how large has the “great multitude” become? (b) By uniting with Jehovah’s visible organization, the “great multitude” have come into unity with whom, and what determination is theirs?
19 That only began the gathering of the “great multitude” of “other sheep,” who already number over 2,800,000. By uniting with the visible part of Jehovah’s organization—that is, with the remnant of the “little flock” in “this fold” of the Fine Shepherd—they have come into unity with the Grand Creator of the universal organization. And they are determined to maintain that unity throughout their eternal life on the Paradise earth that the Supreme Shepherd, Jehovah, will provide for them.—Luke 12:32; 23:43.
20. As the anointed remnant and the “great multitude” contemplate what the Supreme Shepherd has done since 1914, what expressions are they moved to make?
20 As the anointed remnant and the increasing “great multitude” contemplate all that the Supreme Shepherd has done universally since the Gentile Times ended in 1914, heartfelt gratitude moves them to sing together the grand Hallelujah psalm: “Praise Jah, you people! Praise God in his holy place. Praise him in the expanse of his strength. Praise him for his works of mightiness. Praise him according to the abundance of his greatness. Praise him with the blowing of the horn. Praise him with the stringed instrument and the harp. Praise him with the tambourine and the circle dance. Praise him with strings and the pipe. Praise him with the cymbals of melodious sound. Praise him with the clashing cymbals. Every breathing thing—let it praise Jah. Praise Jah, you people!”—Psalm 150:1-6.
21. (a) When will “every breathing thing” praise Jehovah? (b) With whom and with what purpose will all members of the universal organization then work?
21 Soon the present “heavens” and “earth” will be dissolved amid “the war of the great day of God the Almighty,” and the long-awaited “new heavens and a new earth” will be immovably established. (2 Peter 3:7-13; Revelation 16:14, 16) Then, indeed, “every breathing thing” that survives on this cleansed earth will praise Jah, the Grand Creator of the universal organization of righteousness. All members of that organization in heaven and on the earth will exultantly praise Jehovah and will loyally and lovingly work with him for the eternal vindication of his universal sovereignty and the sanctification of his most worthy name. O what magnificent unity all of this bespeaks!
How Would You Answer?
◻ What developments led to Satan’s becoming the ruler of the demons?
◻ How was it helpful to discern between the two great organizations?
◻ Psalm 122:1-4 applies to what unity today?
◻ Why can it be said that Jehovah had more than the unity of Jesus’ anointed followers in mind?
◻ When will “every breathing thing” praise Jehovah God?
[Pictures on page 16, 17]
Jehovah’s people have always been at unity with one another and with the Creator of the universal organization