Peace and Security, Great Tribulation, Armageddon

[Jimi-L]

Many Muslim countries are even today very conservative. They hardly take the attack on all religions lightly. Let's see how people react when their established institutions are tried to be undermined during that exciting event. no doubt it will be quite a spectacle!

[Dustparticle]

4 hours ago, Jimi-L said:

Many Muslim countries are even today very conservative. They hardly take the attack on all religions lightly. Let's see how people react when their established institutions are tried to be undermined during that exciting event. no doubt it will be quite a spectacle!

When the Harlot goes, blood will be coming out. Many will fight back when their churches close down. 

[JennyM]

1 hour ago, Dustparticle said:

When the Harlot goes, blood will be coming out. Many will fight back when their churches close down. 

Thats what I thought too. I heard that one of the major church in my country own a lot of guns.  GT will just show who they reallly are. 

[halfspanishlee]

Also people will claim not to be part of the religion when it goes. 

[Tortuga]

On 3/13/2023 at 12:00 PM, zoebarry said:

The banks WILL INDEED collapse one by one. This will allow them to implement the centralized digital currency worldwide.

 

Hows that going?

[computerwiz]

2 minutes ago, Tortuga said:

Hows that going?

 

I work at a small community bank...........no indication of issues.

 

Those collapses were crypto-friendly targets.  There's about 40 more are supposedly "in danger", but I don't see much more continuation of collapses....

 

 

[Doug]

On 3/13/2023 at 12:00 PM, zoebarry said:

The banks WILL INDEED collapse one by one. This will allow them to implement the centralized digital currency worldwide.

 

 

Collapse isn't a prerequisite.  But CBDC is on the way!   A high official with the EU was interviewed and Tucker Carlson shared it.  She said the EU will be moving to Central Bank Digital Currency and there will be a limit on cash transactions of 1,000 euros.   She said anyone caught doing a deal for more than 1,000 euros will be in trouble.

 

It's not a question of a bank failing.  It's strictly about controlling the people. They want to know what you're buying and where you got the money.  Very much like the social credit score in China.  What you are permitted to do is tied directly to your compliance with the government.

Edited April 12, 2023 by Doug

[Dages]

25 minutes ago, Doug said:

She said the EU will be moving to Central Bank Digital Currency and there will be a limit on cash transactions of 1,000 euros.   She said anyone caught doing a deal for more than 1,000 euros will be in trouble.

Well, wait and see, no need to worry, even less about rumors.

[Doug]

14 minutes ago, Dages said:

Well, wait and see, no need to worry, even less about rumors.

 

I checked it out.   For what it's worth  -  It was the Chairperson of the European Central Bank,  Christine Lagarde.

 

Quote " Personally convinced that we have to move ahead" with the digital euro.

 

Her comments about control (of spending) indicate that discussions about Europe's CBDC being programmable and controllable are happening at very high levels.

[computerwiz]

20 hours ago, Doug said:

Here's something I just read:

 

Peace is breaking out in the Middle East.

 

While we were being distracted by the ongoing Russia/Ukraine war - tremendous developments in the Middle East have all but ended decades of US meddling in the region.

Take, for example, the recent mending of relations between Saudi Arabia and formerly bitter adversaries Iran and Syria. A China-brokered deal between the Saudis and Iran has them re-establishing full diplomatic relations.

Additionally, Riyadh is expected to invite Syria back into the Arab League and Syrian President Assad may attend the next Arab League summit.     As reported at RonPaulInstitute.org

 

I have heard of the conflicts between Sunni and Shia, but I don't know what their issues are.

According to the report, it seems the governments are looking past the religious differences.

 

Heard about that.  Not sure how significant that actually is in the whole scheme of things.  But I sure hope it leads to the P&S cry!

 

In any case, I'm bowing out of this topic.  I'm starting to feel news overload and realizing that there is sooooo much happening right now, it's actually adding to my stress.  So, as much as I've enjoyed this topic, I'mma wait to hear clarity from the FDS.  Ultimately, that's what matters....  

[trottigy]

11 hours ago, Doug said:

 

I checked it out.   For what it's worth  -  It was the Chairperson of the European Central Bank,  Christine Lagarde.

 

Quote " Personally convinced that we have to move ahead" with the digital euro.

 

Her comments about control (of spending) indicate that discussions about Europe's CBDC being programmable and controllable are happening at very high levels.

 

Just trying to think this through - if I give my neighbor $2000 cash, how will anyone other than he and I know to report me? This is the very reason why cash money isn't going anywhere- MANY do not want others to know what they are spending their money on (this inludes especially political people). With electronic money it is too easy to follow - just ask Trump and Stormy. Hey, its why I buy my Costco hot dogs with cash-so, the wife doesn’t know.

 

[Dages]

2 hours ago, trottigy said:

 

Just trying to think this through - if I give my neighbor $2000 cash, how will anyone other than he and I know to report me? This is the very reason why cash money isn't going anywhere- MANY do not want others to know what they are spending their money on (this inludes especially political people). With electronic money it is too easy to follow - just ask Trump and Stormy. Hey, its why I buy my Costco hot dogs with cash-so, the wife doesn’t know.

 

On the other hand, I've been cashless for years

 

[GeordieGirl]

16 hours ago, Doug said:

 

Collapse isn't a prerequisite.  But CBDC is on the way!   A high official with the EU was interviewed and Tucker Carlson shared it.  She said the EU will be moving to Central Bank Digital Currency and there will be a limit on cash transactions of 1,000 euros.   She said anyone caught doing a deal for more than 1,000 euros will be in trouble.

 

It's not a question of a bank failing.  It's strictly about controlling the people. They want to know what you're buying and where you got the money.  Very much like the social credit score in China.  What you are permitted to do is tied directly to your compliance with the government.

 

Rev 13:16,17

[Shawnster]

2 hours ago, GeordieGirl said:

 

Rev 13:16,17

(Revelation 13:16) It puts under compulsion all people—the small and the great, the rich and the poor, the free and the slaves—that these should be marked on their right hand or on their forehead,and that nobody can buy or sell except a person having the mark, the name+ of the wild beast or the number of its name.

 

https://www.jw.org/finder?wtlocale=E&pub=nwtsty&srctype=wol&bible=66013016&srcid=share

 

 

 

. *** w09 2/15 p. 4 par. 2 Highlights From the Book of Revelation—II ***

13:16, 17. Despite the hardships we may encounter in carrying out such everyday activities as ‘buying or selling,’ we should not allow ourselves to be pressured into letting the wild beast rule our lives. Accepting ‘the mark of the wild beast in our hand or upon our forehead’ would amount to permitting the wild beast to control our actions or affect our thinking.

https://www.jw.org/finder?wtlocale=E&docid=2009124&srctype=wol&srcid=share&par=15

 

The mark of the wild beast is not connected or related to a digital currency. The scripture is symbolically talking about people supporting worldly governments and allowing those governments to control their lives. 

 

 

[GeordieGirl]

1 hour ago, Shawnster said:

The mark of the wild beast is not connected or related to a digital currency. The scripture is symbolically talking about people supporting worldly governments and allowing those governments to control their lives. 

 

 

 

Yes, I know. I didn't refer to that scripture because of reference to digital currency.  The reason I referred to it was because the post I quoted said: 

 

"It's strictly about controlling the people. They want to know what you're buying and where you got the money.  Very much like the social credit score in China.  What you are permitted to do is tied directly to your compliance with the government."

 

Which is exactly what you said when correcting my reference to that scripture. 

 

The reason I left the first part of the quoted section in was because of the comment "...... there will be a limit on cash transactions of 1,000 euros.   She said anyone caught doing a deal for more than 1,000 euros will be in trouble." - which is also applicable to that scripture, as it also would be governmental control.

Edited April 13, 2023 by GeordieGirl

[Doug]

It would take far too long to list the reasons why a government would be in favor of digital currency.  But, just think about renting a car.  Cash is never accepted for such transactions.  You could even offer a big security deposit in cash, but that simply won't matter,

 

Why?  Because they can't find you if you paid untraceable cash.  Whereas the police could quickly find you if they have your credit card information. Furthermore, they can add to your invoice and put it on the card. 

 

Digital currency would be the same scenario as using a debit card.  Your transactions are recorded and you can be limited in what you spend. This isn't the mark of the wild beast.

 

As Christine Lagarde was quoted "This form of currency would be programable and controllable".  Just the way governments like it.

 

Do you have a drivers license?  It can be suspended or revoked.  Credit card?  It can be closed.   Business or contractors license?  It can be cancelled. 

[Jan Brad]

According to my chatgpt prompt:

 

Quote

Governments may have several reasons to be in favor of digital currency:

1. Reducing costs: Digital currencies can reduce the cost of printing, distributing, and securing physical currency. This can result in significant cost savings for governments.

2. Enhancing financial inclusion: Digital currencies can help in bringing more people into the formal financial system. This can help in reducing financial exclusion and improving financial stability.

3. Increasing transparency: Digital currencies can enable governments to track the flow of money more easily, which can help in detecting and preventing financial crimes such as money laundering and terrorism financing.

4. Improving monetary policy: Digital currencies can allow governments to have greater control over the money supply, which can help in implementing monetary policy more effectively.

5. Enhancing cross-border transactions: Digital currencies can facilitate cross-border transactions by reducing transaction costs and eliminating the need for intermediaries.

6. Encouraging innovation: Digital currencies can spur innovation in the financial sector, which can help in creating new products and services and promoting economic growth.

Overall, the use of digital currencies by governments can provide a range of benefits, but it also comes with some challenges, such as the need to address issues related to security, privacy, and regulation

 

[trottigy]

9 hours ago, Doug said:

It would take far too long to list the reasons why a government would be in favor of digital currency.  But, just think about renting a car.  Cash is never accepted for such transactions.  You could even offer a big security deposit in cash, but that simply won't matter,

 

Why?  Because they can't find you if you paid untraceable cash.  Whereas the police could quickly find you if they have your credit card information. Furthermore, they can add to your invoice and put it on the card. 

 

Digital currency would be the same scenario as using a debit card.  Your transactions are recorded and you can be limited in what you spend. This isn't the mark of the wild beast.

 

As Christine Lagarde was quoted "This form of currency would be programable and controllable".  Just the way governments like it.

 

Do you have a drivers license?  It can be suspended or revoked.  Credit card?  It can be closed.   Business or contractors license?  It can be cancelled. 

 

Just think of all the illegal, immoral and unethical things that politicians and world leaders, who would be making these decisions, do NOT want tracked - so, they use cash money. This is one of the largest reasons the world will never go to just a digital ONLY society.

 

Another example can be seen in all the cash money the US sent to Iraq or Afghanistan - why plane loads of cash? Couldn't that have been done electronically? Not if you wanted to skim millions of dollars of "cash" that could never be fully traced! It seems military leaders also have good reasons to never want to go digital ONLY. No, this world is based on greed and deception - these things are much more difficult in a digital only society. Knowing this helps me to see that a full digital currency ONLY, in this system, is just not possible.

 

Lastly, think of all the countries that don't have easy access to banks, like most of China, India and large parts of Africa. Without easy to use paper money and instead requiring half the world's population who doesn't have easy access to banks, credit cards, bank statements, computers or the internet - they would be unable to conduct the simple transactions they do now. Yet another reason a digital money only world is truly impossible.

[Shawnster]

The whole idea of a unified global digital only form of currency relies on the idea or belief that all the nations would be unified and act in agreement with such an undertaking.  This would require global cooperation on an unprecedented scale.  Such a unification of world governments is simply impossible without Jehovah's involvement. 

 

This idea seems to be linked with the conspiracy theory of a one world order, a secret society or shadow government that works secretly to control the world's governments like puppets.  We know from the scriptures the only time the entire world's governments will unite is in the attack on false religion and the final attack on God's people by Gog of Magog. 

 

 

[Tortuga]

15 minutes ago, Shawnster said:

This idea seems to be linked with the conspiracy theory of a one world order, a secret society or shadow government that works secretly to control the world's governments like puppets.

I appreciate the WT Study today about reading the Bible with discernment. Trying to merge Bible prophecy and worldly conspiracy theories is not using discernment. Having a knee-jerk reaction to every world event and assuming it is the catalyst to fulfilling a Bible prophecy is not using discernment. We are getting a lot of reminders to be calm, be patient, be discerning and listen to Jehovah's channel of communication.

[Sofia]

6 hours ago, Tortuga said:

I appreciate the WT Study today about reading the Bible with discernment. Trying to merge Bible prophecy and worldly conspiracy theories is not using discernment. Having a knee-jerk reaction to every world event and assuming it is the catalyst to fulfilling a Bible prophecy is not using discernment. We are getting a lot of reminders to be calm, be patient, be discerning and listen to Jehovah's channel of communication.

This suits me right, thank you GB, I need this.  

Next week´s WT study is right for me. To keep my mouth ....  

Edited April 16, 2023 by Sofia

[Percy]

On 4/13/2023 at 12:13 AM, Dages said:

On the other hand, I've been cashless for years

 

You obviously don't go to garage sales. haha.

[Dustparticle]

43 minutes ago, Sofia said:

This suits me right, thank you GB, I need this.  

Next week´s WT study is right for me. To keep my mouth ....  

Believe me sis, there are brothers who takes the lead falls into this mess. Plus, some can be narrow minded of WT pictures of paradise. The pictures does not show it is raining in paradise, yet we have to tell them it will rain and snow in paradise too. SAD.

[Shawnster]

1 hour ago, Percy said:

You obviously don't go to garage sales. haha.

I thought about that.  But more and more people are using PayPal, Zel, Venmo, or other banking transaction apps. We even own a Square and can run credit cards. 

[Micka]

On 6/28/2022 at 7:40 AM, Doak said:

Hello to all of you, dear brothers!

 

I'm a young, baptized, newly married brother serving in a congregation in Portugal. Lately I've been feeling a little down, I'm not going to lie. I have known the truth since I was born, and I have always heard that there will be a Great Tribulation and an Armageddon. As I got a little older, I began to hear about the announcement of peace and security that we are all waiting for. The problem is that more than 20 years have passed. And I know that before I was born the brothers already heard about it. I've made so many changes in my life for the end of the system and it seems like it never comes again...

 

I sometimes hear speeches from the Governing Body (such as Brother Anthony Morris's final speech for the second part of the 2021 Annual Meeting, February 2022 Broadcasting) or read articles in the Watchtower that make me think it won't last longer. than 5 years. Other times, through the news I see, conversations with some brothers or even the organization's projects, I keep thinking that the end is not so close after all.

 

The Governing Body says the end is "imminent". When someone tells me something is imminent, or about to occur, I usually think it will be in a few days or weeks. In the case of the end, of course I don't think of days or weeks, but the word "imminent" makes me think of 2 or 3 years. Imminent is associated with urgency and it doesn't seem to me that more than 5 years is that imminent for a human being. For humans like us, imminent is something brief that we are about to witness. How long ago did we start hearing the expression "the Last of "the Last Days""?

 

What if the conflict with the King of the North lasts for a few years (as Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General, said)? To announce peace and security, the world needs to be at least at peace, and I don't think peace with Russia will be achieved that quickly. I see the war in Ukraine as the tip of the iceberg, which will continue around the world until it reaches the confrontation "King of the North vs King of the South". The announcement of peace and security may not come until a few years from now. And what about the Great Tribulation? It may take even longer to arrive. We still have the prophecy of the "generation that will not pass away", but we have the example of Brother Mark Sanderson who was born in 1965 and is currently 57 years old. For me, 57 is still a relatively young age. It takes 13 years to reach the age of 70 and normally no one dies of old age at 70. Do you understand what I mean? In my former congregation, for example, there was also a brother who took the emblems and who must have been around 40 years old. There are many anointed ones who are still somewhat far from old age.

 

I'm getting more and more fed up with this system and it never seems to end. Even the Covid-19 pandemic caused me hope, but it's been 2 and a half years of pandemic and nothing has happened. The war with the King of the North also started in February and we are already entering July. Another convention is coming and the question remains: how many more conventions will there be until the end of the system? Like, how many more conventions does the Governing Body have prepared for us to attend (when they are prepared 5 years in advance)? And regarding the Memorial, how many Memorials are we going to attend until the Great Tribulation comes?

 

We also have the project of the series "The Good News According to Jesus" that started recording on May 20th of this year. If this series can be used in the new world to teach the resurrected about the Bible, then Jehovah will want the series to be released before the system ends, right? Since the series will last about 1000 hours, how many years will it take to finish recording, editing, translating, etc? And what about the new study book "Enjoy Life Forever!"? We will have a worldwide preaching campaign in September to offer Bible studies with this publication, do you think Jehovah would allow the end to come before anyone interested has time to study it and make progress? And the return to face-to-face meetings? Wouldn't it make sense for Jehovah to give us some reasonable time to encourage each other after 2 years away from each other? And as for preaching, do you think the end will come without us getting back to full throttle (not to mention the judgment message)?

 

Please brothers, tell me your opinions regarding everything I said, regarding current events and how long you think the end is. I need help from a brother who is up to date and who is an active servant of Jehovah.

 

 

(This text was originally written in Portuguese from Portugal, I apologize for any errors in the 

•  

12. What is the difference between speculation and watchfulness?

¹² Note that Peter also said: “The end of all things has drawn close.” How close? There is no way for humans to pinpoint the exact day and hour. (Matt 24:36) But there is a difference between INDULGING in SPECULATION, which the BIBLE DOES NOT ENCOURAGE, and keeping in expectation of the end, which it does encourage. (Compare 2 Tim 4:3, 4; Titus 3:9.) 

 

It ALL ABOUT JEHOVAH, not us. He will come when HE'S ready. Look how many thousands of years HE'S been waiting to clear his Name.

Look how long Jesus waited until he become King. 

We Serve Jehovah, not with a date in mind, but forever. If we live to see the end, or die before, we're living for HIM with forever in our hearts.  We're nothing special. HE WILL NOT BE LATE.

If the end comes before finishing the Jesus movie, we will finish it in the New World.