Like Noah's day

[New World Explorer]

Even war must have limits

By Dominik Stillhart

 

It feels as though the world is becoming more violent and turbulent, with not enough political will to stop the carnage.

The number of people dying in wars around the world has skyrocketed in the past few years, while more people have been forcibly displaced than at any other time in the post-World War II era, and nearly one-fifth of the world's population live in areas threatened by violence or insecurity.

Ultimately, the biggest, most important contribution that powerful states can make towards alleviating suffering is through political measures to deescalate and solve these crises. It's time the international community lived up to its responsibilities for peace and security.

 

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/08/opinions/stillhart-even-war-has-limits/index.html?eref=rss_world

[Greg Dent]

Personally I think its already worse than sodom and gomorrah. Or Noahs day. Doesn't matter what orientation you are its accepted unless your hetosexual sexual because thats boring. 

 

Violence is at an all time high. You cant watch the news without seeing someone was shot or even hit and run by a car. Even kids in grade school are getting sexually assaulted now. My cousins kids had that happen they are all under 8 and they were assaulted by another 8 year old. 

 

So yes it is as bad as Noah's day even worse.

[Qapla]

Here's a thought

 

Like you said, if you look at the news there is a vast amount of violence and all sorts of other "bad news" events happening that people talk about   But, when talking about our time being like the day's of Noah, it says that they took no note and just went about their business 

 

Just think what that could mean .... that violence and sexual perversion would become so common place that even the news would not report on it   and people would not talk about it   "taking no note"

 

It has not quite gotten to that point but, just imagine

Edited January 10, 2016 by Qapla

[New World Explorer]

Here's a thought

 

Like you said, if you look at the news there is a vast amount of violence and all sorts of other "bad news" events happening that people talk about   But, when talking about our time being like the day's of Noah, it says that they took no note and just went about their business 

 

Just think what that could mean .... that violence and sexual perversion would become so common place that even the news would not report on it   and people would not talk about it   "taking no note"

 

It has not quite gotten to that point but, just imagine

Taking no note does not mean that they do not know it or talk about it

Taking no note referes to " spiritual darkness" and not taking notice of Jehovah's Kingdom or diragarding the facts that we are living in the last days .. Most people to whom we speak in the ministry think about the end as a "joke"

[Ahuvah]

Let's explore Brother Johns perspective for a moment. If taking no note did mean that people in general took no note and didn't talk about what is going on.

Let's look at these school killings ... and I'm talking about on the worldwide stage ... when the first one happened in American it was HUGE, we talked about it for days, and we were apalled. Now they are happening not only more frequently but almost on a regular occurrence, are we still apalled? Of course WE are, the victims and their families are, the communities where it happens are .. but the rest of the world is becoming desensitized by them - they are no longer taking any note.

Murders on an individual case, I remember when I was young ... a murder in NZ was front page news for days on end - everyone joined in trying to find the murderer or put forth information to help the police. Now? Even in my town we find bodies in the river, might make the local news, might not, might have a few second air time on television - might not.

Earthquakes ... in Christchurch New Zealand there are STILL after all this time, people living in their backyards because they aren't allowed in their homes. The sale of Braziers went sky high because people had to use them to cook on. And that is not even considering a poorer nation of Haiti - how much air time did Haiti get when the quake happened there? What is the condition of the victims now? We don't know because the world is taking no note.

So even IF brother John is correct ... they ARE taking no note in both definitions of that phrase.

(Fracking is another area they are taking no note in, and other globe destroying practices).

[New World Explorer]

Well Noah's work involved building the huge ARK and preaching to his contemporaries

And yet the Bible says that they did not take notice of it ...  in this case means disregard, disbelief, ignorance.

 

Huge ark - They saw it and mocked him

Preaching - they heard him - did not take it seriously

 

They did nit take notice ...

[Tortuga]

I don't want to sidetrack but when we talk about Noah's day it seems that we always mention that everyone watched him building the ark. I assume Noah would have built the ark in the woods, near the trees, not down town in front of everyone. It seem that he could have been miles away from everyone and very few people actually saw the ark or saw the animals going into the ark.

 

So if only a few people saw the ark how did they know a flood was coming? Because Noah was a preacher. He didn't assume that every one knew he was building an ark, he went out and told them what was going to happen. Like Greg says, they saw what was going on around them, Noah told them what it meant, they ignored him.

[Shawnster]

*** w13 4/1 p. 14 He “Walked With the True God” ***

As the years passed and the ark took shape, Noah must have been so glad to have the support of his family! There was another aspect to the work that might have been even more challenging than ark building. The Bible tells us that Noah was “a preacher of righteousness.” (2 Peter 2:5) So he courageously took the lead in trying to warn the people of that wicked, godless society about the destruction that was heading their way. How did they respond? Jesus Christ later recalled that time, saying that those people “took no note.” He said that they were so caught up in the affairs of daily life—eating, drinking, and marrying—that they paid no heed to Noah. (Matthew 24:37-39) No doubt many ridiculed him and his family; some may have threatened him and violently opposed him.

 

*** w12 6/15 pp. 20-21 par. 3 Why Put Jehovah’s Service First? ***

3 Jesus drew a parallel between Noah’s time and ours. “Just as the days of Noah were, so the presence of the Son of man will be,” he said. They were “eating and drinking, men marrying and women being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark; and they took no note until the flood came and swept them all away.” (Matt. 24:37-39) Most of mankind today go about their lives heedless of the urgency of our times. They take no note of the warnings that God’s servants proclaim. Many even deride the idea of God’s intervening in human affairs—as people did in Noah’s day. (2 Pet. 3:3-7) Yet, in that hostile environment, how did Noah use his time?

 

*** w11 10/15 pp. 3-4 “Keep on the Watch”—Why So Important? ***

“They Took No Note”

Jesus reminded his followers about Noah’s contemporaries. Noah’s preaching, the construction of the colossal ark, and the violence of the day could not have gone unnoticed. Nevertheless, most “took no note.” (Matt. 24:37-39) A similar attitude toward warnings prevails today. For example, speed-limit signs send out an unmistakable message, yet many disregard them. Authorities often feel compelled to install speed bumps across city streets to force drivers to slow down. Likewise, a Christian may be conscious of the sign of the last days but still become involved in activities not consistent with its implication. Arielle, a West African teenager, experienced this.

 

Arielle enjoyed watching women’s handball on television. When her school organized a team, the prospect of playing dulled her alertness to potential dangers to her spirituality. She signed up to be a goalkeeper. What followed? She explains: “Some of my teammates had boyfriends who used drugs and smoked. They made fun of me for being different, but I thought I could handle that. Unexpectedly, the game itself began to corrode my spirituality. Handball filled my mind and heart. During Christian meetings, my thoughts often wandered from the Kingdom Hall to the handball court. My Christian personality also suffered. Love of playing shifted to a passion for winning. I practiced hard to satisfy my new competitive spirit. Stress built up. I even sacrificed friendships for handball.

 

“The climax came when our opponents were awarded a penalty shot in one game. I was poised to defend the goal. Before I realized it, I had prayed to Jehovah to help me block the shot! This incident made me realize how much my spirituality had suffered. How did I regain it?

“I had seen our DVD Young People Ask—What Will I Do With My Life? I decided to watch it again and this time to take it seriously. After all, I was in the same predicament as André, the young man in the drama. I especially took note of what an elder had suggested that André do—read and reflect on Philippians 3:8. That did it. I quit the team.

 

“What a difference that made! My competitive spirit and the accompanying stress disappeared. I felt happier and closer to my Christian friends. Spiritual activities took on greater meaning. I concentrated at the meetings and enjoyed them again. My ministry also improved. Now I regularly serve as an auxiliary pioneer.”

If a distraction is tugging at you to disregard the sign Jesus gave us, take serious steps, as Arielle did. You might try some of the following. Consult the Watch Tower Publications Index, which has been called a map to hidden treasures. References to sound counsel and first-person reports on how others have faced temptations await you. Benefit fully from Christian meetings by preparing well and taking notes. Some have found that sitting near the front of the auditorium is helpful. When there is audience participation, try to give a comment early. In addition, keep spiritually awake by matching up current news items with aspects of the sign and other characteristics of “the last days.”—2 Tim. 3:1-5; 2 Pet. 3:3, 4; Rev. 6:1-8.

[New World Explorer]

Interesting point from the Watchtower:

 

It is of interest to note that Jesus Christ compared the responses of our day to those of the days of Noah and of Sodom and Gomorrah. (Matthew 24:37-39; Luke 17:26-30) Immorality and violence were prevalent both in the days of Noah and in the days of Lot. Indeed, the righteous man Lot was tormented and distressed when observing the lawlessness and the indulgence in loose conduct by the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah.—2 Peter 2:6-8.
Yet, when Jesus refers to Noah’s day and to Lot’s day, he focuses our attention, not on the immorality and violence of those times, but, rather, on matters of daily concern—eating, drinking, marrying, being given in marriage, buying, selling, building, and planting. He indicated that many would not respond to the message of the good news of God’s Kingdom but would be preoccupied with the everyday affairs of life and thus show no interest in what Jehovah purposes to do. The message is one of life-or-death importance. Failure to listen would be costly. To take no note or show no interest is a serious sin.—Compare Matthew 6:31, 32. W88 2/1

 

Taking no note here is compared to SIN - Wow, this is the first time a see this point in our publications ..thanks to this thread I have uncovered little gem.
 

Also same Watchtower answers question : Just how serious? (not taking note) gives good reasoning answering the question

To see the answer "keep digging in the Watchtower"
 

[Buddy]

That is a gem

[harmania]

Personally I think its already worse than sodom and gomorrah. Or Noahs day.

I agree with you. The scale all bad is happening is astronomical. I dont know how many, but  much more people then what lived in sodoma@gomorra times, are dying every year because of hate crimes including wars, and bad life circumstances. End must be very near.

[ChocoBro]

Here's some ancient greek wrestling

 

Here's "pugilism" from the 19th century

 

20th century boxing

 

Today, you have the UFC, MMA and the type of more or less "anything goes" minimum protection, full contact no-holds barred cage-fighting that used to belong to illegal betting that is now becoming a socially accepted phenomenon.

 

Given, MMA is not the most violent form of entertainment that the human race came up with (just think of gladiators in Rome or gladiatorial sacrifice of the Aztecs). But you can see a development in our age where violence is becoming sociable.

 

Beyond violent sports I would argue ficticious forms of entertainment have definitely reached a low point in the history of mankind. People will go to watch the most current episode of Game of Thrones at a bar and cheer to the brutal fight scenes which is actually eerily reminiscent of the gladiatorial fights of ancient Rome. 

 

I wouldn't say we are worse than in Noah's day though, since I really don't know what those days were like. Also, I don't know how bad things are still to get. After all, I wouldn't have thought it would be this scale if you had asked me 20 years ago. The UFC had just kicked off (no pun intended) and was considered a very, very, bad thing. Shows like Game of Thrones would simply not have been aired on public television. Violent video-games like "DOOM" were more or less impossible to get, often censored, forbidden and definitely "harmless" when compared to today's standards.