• Part 4—“Your Will Be Done on Earth”
    The Watchtower—1958 | December 15

    • urged America to keep ahead or abreast of Soviet Russia.a

      5. What does coexistence of opposed nations really mean and how hard would “cold war” at last make it for this world?

      5 A peaceful coexistence has been recommended for nations that follow radically different political ideas and systems. Coexistence does not mean brotherly love between nations. It means a risky putting up with each other while the rivalry and race for worldly advantages and domination goes on in ways less noisy than launching deadly missiles armed with atomic and nuclear warheads. Merely the temperature of the war is different—cold. At the World Conference of Religions in New Delhi, India, during November of 1957, Jawaharlal Nehru as India’s Prime Minister mentioned to the delegates that the world had taken a “mighty turn” toward the adventure of interplanetary travel. He said no one was sure how the new forces would at last be put to use. One thing had become clear to him, though, and that was that if the “cold war” kept on it would be a hard thing for this world to survive.b Other voices besides his have been raised in warning.

      6. For man’s preservation on earth, whose supranational will must be done here, and how will that affect the purpose in man’s creation?

      6 If mankind and animalkind are yet to be preserved on an earth fit to live in, a will higher than that of the selfishly divided, suspicious nations needs to be carried out on earth. It must be the will of more than just anyone in the spirit realm who is higher and more powerful than earthly nations. Why so? Because the Holy Bible warns us that the nations are in the grip of the worst enemy of man and of man’s Creator, namely, Satan the Devil. He is, in fact, the invisible “ruler of this world,” “the god of this system of things.” (John 12:31; 14:30; 2 Cor. 4:4) What, then? For the survival of man and animal on earth as an everlasting home the supranational will that has to be done on earth is that of God the Creator, who says: “I am Jehovah. That is my name; and to anyone else I shall not give my own glory, neither my praise to graven images.” (Isa. 42:8) His will must be done on earth if man and beast are to enjoy life on earth forever. In this way his purpose in creating man and animals on earth will have to be proved just, righteous, good and loving. His purpose will thus have to be vindicated, justified, to his immortal glory. Those praying the model prayer that Jesus taught pray for God’s purpose to be vindicated by his will being done on earth as well as in heaven.

      THE EARTH EVERLASTING

      7. How can we make sure that it is the Creator’s will for the earth to exist forever?

      7 How, though, can we make sure that it is the Creator’s will for the earth to stay in existence to eternity and for it to remain an inhabited planet always? We cannot make sure of this by going to the contradictory religions of Christendom. We can positively make sure of it by going to the Creator’s own written Word, the Holy Bible. By his spirit or active force he is the Creator of the Bible, even though he did use faithful men of God in the producing of it. “For you know this first, that no prophecy of Scripture springs from any private release. For prophecy was at no time brought by man’s will, but men spoke from God as they were borne along by holy spirit.” (2 Pet. 1:20, 21) Religious priests keep the Bible from the people and interpret or misinterpret it according to their creeds or man-made statements of belief. However, God produced the Bible for all the people to read or to have read to them, to know for themselves what God himself says in his Book.

      8. (a) In harmony with what writings did Jesus compose his model prayer? (b) When God’s kingdom comes, why should the earth not be destroyed?

      8 Jesus Christ had the thirty-nine books of the Hebrew Scriptures, from the book of Genesis to the book of Malachi, which had been written under inspiration of God’s spirit before Jesus lived on earth. From those books Jesus knew what God’s will for this earth was and what his purpose was in creating it and putting man on it. In harmony with this knowledge from those Hebrew Scriptures Jesus composed the model prayer for his followers. He told them to pray to the Father in heaven: “Your kingdom come! Your will be done on earth as well as in heaven!” Let us ask ourselves, then: Is Jesus here teaching men to pray for the earth to be destroyed by fire or any other means and to be emptied of human and animal creatures? Since the heavenly Father’s kingdom is to come to this earth in answer to Jesus’ own prayer, why should this earth be destroyed at that time or at any time afterward? God’s kingdom comes to stay here for all future time. He does not need to destroy the earth on account of the people on it. No, not when God’s will is then being done by people on earth under God’s kingdom the same as it is being done up in heaven. Why destroy the earth any more than destroy the heavens, where holy spirit creatures are doing God’s will the same as human creatures will be doing it here under his kingdom?

      (To be continued)

  • Questions From Readers
    The Watchtower—1958 | December 15

    • Questions From Readers

      ● I have been told that it is improper to speak of a human being. Yet being is defined in this way in the dictionary. What is the proper viewpoint on this matter?—J. P., United States.

      According to modern dictionaries every human creature is a human being because he has being or exists. Dr. Joseph B. Rotherham in the foreword of The Emphasised Bible discusses the meaning of God’s name, Jehovah. Because this name means, according to Dr. Rotherham, that Jehovah God manifests himself as always alive in one capacity or the other, Rotherham, too, argues that Jehovah is the only being and that all other intelligent existing things are merely creatures. For some years now the Watch Tower publications have ascribed the quality of being only to Jehovah God, in view of the basic significance of his name. So it has reserved the word “being” as a sort of title of Jehovah out of respect for the significance of his name and has referred to humans as mere creatures. So the Watch Tower publications have refrained from applying the term “being” to humans in order to enhance the inherent quality of self-perpetuating existence that persists in Jehovah God. However, as you say, according to the definition of modern dictionaries human creatures are human beings. If anyone wants to use the modern dictionary meaning he is free to do so, but in the light of what is above said we trust you will understand why our publications have restricted the expression to Jehovah God.