the pulpit a few weeks ago by Rev. Charles G. Patterson, Pastor of St. Stephen’s Church. Afterward Attorney General Johnson sent to Rev. Patterson for a copy of the publication. The censor’s order is believed to be the direct result.”e

This set off a chain of clergy-inspired actions that were aimed to force the governments of the United States and Canada to destroy the Watch Tower Society and its co-workers.

(To be continued)

Preaching for the Purpose of a Witness

THAT Christ Jesus commanded his followers to preach the “good news of the kingdom” is apparent both from his example and his instructions to them. Many, however, have taken Jesus’ instructions to mean that they are to try to convert the world; and in view of the fact that they profess to do this at God’s command they actually hold that God is trying to convert the world. (As if God had to try to do a certain thing!)—Matt. 24:14, NW.

Believing that man has an immortal soul that at death goes either to heaven or to hell (or purgatory), such professed Christians have been faced with a dilemma. Either all those who have never heard of the only “name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must get saved” are doomed to suffer eternal torment and therefore Christians are faced with the hopeless task of trying to convert the world—hopeless in that the pagan peoples are increasing population far more rapidly than they are being converted; or God is going to save them all on the basis of their never having had an opportunity, in which event it must be asked, Why not keep all mankind ignorant and then save all?—Acts 4:12, NW.

But God’s Word presents no such dilemmas. It shows that God is perfect in wisdom, justice, love and power and that all he purposes he carries out; that he decreed that the wages sin pays is death, not eternal torment, and that because of his love and for his name’s sake he has made provision whereby the obedient ones of mankind can regain what their first parent Adam lost for them, namely, everlasting life in a righteous world. God’s Word further shows that that righteous world is just at the doors, which means that the end of this wicked old world is also at hand. God is therefore having a great preaching work done for the purpose of a witness, warning all the wicked of their doom and offering to all lovers of righteousness a way of escape to God’s new world.

In carrying on this work of preaching for the purpose of a witness God’s servants endeavor to make the message they have to offer as convincing as they can. Their motive in carrying on this preaching work is love, love for God and love for their fellow man. In doing this work they use the same methods employed by Jesus and his disciples together with such modern means of communication as are available to them in the way of printing presses, the radio and television. As a result of such preaching millions have heard for the first time of Jehovah and his purposes and hundreds of thousands have dedicated themselves to Jehovah and now share in the preaching work.—Rev. 7:9, 10.

Today there is no more joyful work in which one could engage than that of preaching for the purpose of a witness. It is not the hopeless task of trying to convert the world, neither is it a useless one as if all would be saved because of ignorance.