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“Keep Peace Between One Another”The Watchtower—1977 | August 15
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22. What is a powerful factor toward our ‘keeping peace between one another’?
22 Thus not even the youngest, the most backward or the most retarded in Bible truth and Christian experience gets overlooked. Such a one is warmly taken into the embrace of the congregation “on the basis of [Christ’s] name.” In a congregational environment of that kind the spirit of the Lord God Jehovah prevails. It is a powerful factor in aiding the congregation members to “keep peace between one another.” Brotherly unity results.
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“Have Salt in Yourselves”The Watchtower—1977 | August 15
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“Have Salt in Yourselves”
1. With what should our “utterance” be seasoned, and why?
SALTS of an organic, vegetable sort are very vital to our bodily health. There is a salt that is very essential to the health of an organized body of worshipers of God. In agreement with this is the counsel of one of the foremost guardians of the spiritual health of the first-century Christian congregation, namely, the apostle Paul. In writing to a congregation with which he had yet to get personally acquainted, he said: “Let your utterance be always with graciousness, seasoned with salt, so as to know how you ought to give an answer to each one.”—Col. 4:6.
2. So what question arises as to the apostles who tried to prevent a “certain man” from expelling demons by using Jesus name?
2 This makes us wonder how much of such “salt” seasoned the utterance of men on the occasion that the apostle John called to the attention of his Teacher, Jesus Christ. About this we read: “John said to him: ‘Teacher, we saw a certain man expelling demons by the use of your name and we tried to prevent him, because he was not accompanying us.’”—Mark 9:38.
3, 4. (a) Likely John was then expecting what, and why? (b) What selfish element appeared in John’s explanation, and what does it indicate about his view of matters?
3 This sounds as if John was expecting a word of commendation, an approving pat on the back, from the Teacher who was instructing them in the Christian way. John may have had in mind how Jesus cured that particularly stubborn case of demon possession up north near Caesarea Philippi. He may have felt that he was protecting Jesus’ right to authorize others to expel unclean spirits, demons, from their helpless victims. From John’s viewpoint, a person not thus authorized by
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