Lane From Olketa Christian Long First-Century
“Lukaot: maet samwan hem kasholem iufala for spoelem iufala thru long olketa idea and giaman trik wea followim kastom bilong man, wea fitim olketa samting bilong world and wea no followim Christ.”—Colossians 2:8.
HEM nao toktok wea aposol Paul talem for warnim olketa Christian long first-century abaotem danger bilong wei for followim olketa idea bilong man. Olketa savve chus for followim kaonsel wea olketa fit for trustim wea Jesus and aposol givim, olketa teaching hia helpem finis olketa long bigfala wei, or sapos nomoa olketa bae foldaon long olketa idea bilong olketa man wea change olowe, wea bringim pain and sorre long planti million pipol finis.—1 Corinthians 1:19-21; 3:18-20.
Live “Followim Christ”
Olketa wea faet insaed olketa crusade wea kamap samting olsem wan thousand year go finis no minim hao wei for live “followim Christ” hem minim moa samting winim wei for talemaot olketa loyal long Jesus Christ. (Matthew 7:21-23) Hem minim wei for live followim evribit olketa teaching bilong Jesus wea stap insaed Word bilong God, Bible. (Matthew 7:15-20; John 17:17) Jesus Christ sei: “Sapos iufala keepim word bilong mi, iufala nao trufala disaepol bilong mi.” (John 8:31) Hem sei tu: “Evriwan bae savve iufala nao olketa disaepol bilong mi, sapos iufala garem love midolwan long iufala seleva.”—John 13:35.
Tru nao, olketa wea faet insaed olketa crusade foldaon long “olketa giaman trik wea followim kastom bilong man.” Iumi no sapraes hao olketa pipol bilivim giaman samting, from olketa leader bilong religion, nomata olketa bishop bilong olketa, “kamap olketa bigman insaed army.” Datfala Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature, bilong McClintock and Strong hem sei: “Feeling for laekem war hem kamap big tumas midolwan long olketa bigman bilong church gogo enitaem olketa lukim hao olketa fit for kasem eni samting [from datwan], olketa redy for go faet.”
Wanem nao lead go long datfala nogud wei? Bihaen olketa Christian aposol long first-century dae, wei wea olketa apostate leader bilong church lusim teaching bilong Christ hem kamap big tumas, barava olsem samting wea Word bilong God hem talem finis. (Acts 20:29, 30) Church hia wea kamap nogud finis, hem gogo join tumas witim politik. Long mek-foa century, olketa sei taem Roman Emperor Constantine hem redy for dae, hem kamap wanfala Christian. Datfala Cyclopedia hem sei hao long datfala taem “wei wea olketa exchangem olketa idol wea olketa putim long olketa stik for karem long war for kamap flag bilong Cross hem putim responsibility long evri Christian for kamap wanfala soldia.”
Really, olketa Christian no garem datfala responsibility. Bat “swit toktok” bilong olketa idea bilong olketa man leadim olketa for go againstim evri samting wea Christ stand for hem. (Colossians 2:4) For longtaem finis pipol bin iusim samfala giaman toktok for sei olketa war and raoa midolwan long olketa man hem gud nomoa. Bat really, sapos man wea garem fasin for kea or man wea followim God hem join insaed “olketa wicked waka bilong war, olsem olketa duim long bifor and long distaem hem bae kanduit long eni wei for mekem diswan join witim . . . olketa principle bilong Christian Wei.” Hem nao samting wea datfala Cyclopedia hem talem.
Olketa religion wea no part long Christendom tu faet insaed olketa war wea kamap insaed planti handred year wea go pas. Olsem olketa church bilong Christendom, olketa tu busarem pipol wea stap insaed sem religion olsem olketa and tu pipol wea from difren kantri, difren grup bilong politik, and difren religion. Olketa iusim raf fasin or sei bae olketa iusim datwan for forcem olketa narawan for acceptim biliv bilong olketa. From olketa trae for kasem samting olketa laekem, samfala long olketa tekpart insaed olketa bigfala wei for kill-kill wea kamap insaed history. Olketa barava semsem nomoa olsem olketa religion bilong Christendom.
Separate From World
Wanem nao mekem olketa Christian long first-century savve stap separate from olketa war and politik long taem bilong olketa? Tufala main principle nao helpem olketa. First wan, hem komand wea Jesus talem long aposol Peter taem Peter iusim wanfala sword for defendim hem: “Putim bak sword bilong iu long ples bilong hem, from olketa wea iusim sword bae dae from sword.” (Matthew 26:52) Mek-tu, hem toktok bilong Jesus long Pilate taem hem askem Jesus abaotem wei wea hem king: “Kingdom bilong mi hem no part bilong disfala world. Sapos kingdom bilong mi hem part bilong disfala world, olketa wea stap witim mi savve faet for no letem olketa Jew kasholem mi. Bat, kingdom bilong mi no kamaot from diswan.”—John 18:36.
Hao nao olketa Christian long first-century followim olketa principle hia? Olketa barava separate evribit from world, olketa no teksaed long politik and long army. (John 15:17-19; 17:14-16; James 4:4) Olketa nating willing for faet againstim narafala man. Hem showaot klia insaed history hao olketa Christian long first-century no joinim olketa Jew long wei for saportim kantri bilong olketa or army bilong Rome. Long semtaem tu, olketa no trae for talem olketa leader bilong politik samting wea olketa shud duim, from datwan hem responsibility bilong datfala gavman.—Galatians 6:5.
Long mek-tu century C.E., Justin Martyr hem raet abaotem wei wea olketa Christian “hammerim sword bilong olketa for kamap hou.” (Micah 4:3) Taem hem ansarem wei wea samfala tok againstim olketa Christian, Tertullian ask olsem: “Waswe, hem olraet for man waka witim sword, taem lord hem talemaot hao man wea iusim sword bae dae from sword?”
“Obeyim God Olsem Ruler and No Olketa Man”
Wei wea olketa nating willing for join insaed war mekem olketa first Christian kasem hard taem. Disfala wei hem againstim biliv bilong pipol long datfala taem. Celsus, wanfala enemy bilong Christian Wei, mekfani long samting wea olketa disaed for duim. Hem biliv evriwan shud join insaed war taem olketa wea garem paoa askem strong olketa for duim. Nomata olketa first Christian kasem bigfala wei for againstim olketa, olketa no willing for followim eni idea bilong man wea againstim teaching bilong Christ. Olketa sei olsem: “Mifala mas obeyim God olsem ruler and no olketa man.”—Acts 4:19; 5:29.
Olketa Jehovah’s Witness distaem followim example bilong olketa. Long Nazi Germany, olketa strong for no join insaed olketa nogud war bilong Hitler. Olketa willing for kasem nogud persecution, nomata dae, winim wei for spoelem Christian wei for no teksaed. Olketa reportim hao olketa Nazi putim “wan-haf long namba bilong olketa go long prison, and wan-quarter olketa killim dae” from olketa strong for followim olketa Bible principle. (Of Gods and Men) Dastawe, nomata planti million pipol dae long World War II, no eni Witness bilong Jehovah killim eniwan dae. Winim wei for killim narawan, olketa Witness willing for sakrifaesim laef bilong olketa seleva, planti long olketa duim datwan.
Wanfala Leson for Iumi Lanem
Wanem leson nao iumi lanem from history? Wanfala nao hem: Idea bilong olketa man evritaem lead go long wei for heit and wei for kill-kill midolwan olketa kantri and pipol. Ecclesiastes 8:9 barava talem stret: “Man hem bossim man and spoelem hem.” Long Jeremiah 10:23, Word bilong God talem why nao hem olsem: “ Wei bilong man hem no bilong hem. Hem no bilong man wea wakabaot for disaedem gogo bilong hem.” Tru nao, God no creatim man for independent for disaedem gogo bilong hemseleva long wei wea bae win. Hem no givim olketa disfala savve. Full history pruvim finis datwan.
Iumi olketa man wanwan kanduit changem olketa samting wea olketa leader bilong olketa kantri duim wea semsem olsem olketa sorre samting wea happen bifor, and tu iumi no garem raet for trae and pullim tingting bilong olketa for followim wanfala wei. Bat long semtaem iumi no laek for join insaed olketa raoa bilong olketa and kamap part long olketa. Jesus sei olsem abaotem olketa follower bilong hem: “Olketa no part bilong world, olsem mi tu no part bilong world.” (John 17:14) For stap klia long wei for kamap part long olketa raoa bilong world, iumi mas letem Word bilong God, Bible—no olketa idea bilong man wea evritaem change—for leadim laef bilong iumi.—Matthew 7:24-27; 2 Timothy 3:16, 17.
Wanfala Nambawan Future
Word bilong God wea iumi savve depend long hem no just helpem iumi minim olketa samting long bifor and distaem. Hem givim tu kaonsel wea iumi savve trustim for future bilong iumi. (Psalm 119:105; Isaiah 46:9-11) Hem showim tu wanfala klia piksa abaotem purpose bilong God for disfala earth. Hem bae no letem olketa man for distroem disfala earth from krangge wei wea olketa iusim rong paoa wea olketa kasem from science and technology. Hem bae mek sure disfala earth bae kamap olsem Paradaes wea hem nao purpose bilong hem long firstaem.—Luke 23:43.
Word bilong God hem sei olsem abaotem diswan: “Olketa wea raeteous bae stap long earth, and olketa wea no garem blame bae stap long hem. Bat olketa wicked pipol, olketa bae finis evribit from earth; and olketa wea giaman, olketa bae aot from earth.” (Proverbs 2:21, 22) Diswan klosap for happen, from olketa trabol wea iumi kasem distaem pruvim hao iumi stap long “olketa last day” bilong disfala wicked system. (2 Timothy 3:1-5, 13) Tru nao, namba bilong olketa last day hem set finis, and hem klosap for finis. Bible profesi teachim iumi: “World hem redy for finis and evri samting wea hem wantem tu, bat man wea duim will bilong God bae stap olowe.”—1 John 2:17; Daniel 2:44.
Klosap nao God bae “finisim olketa wea spoelem earth” and bae changem disfala raf world witim wanfala niu world wea “raeteous fasin bae stap.” (Revelation 11:18; 2 Peter 3:10-13) Then, for olketa wea stap laef, “hem bae aotem evri wata from eye bilong olketa, and dae bae nomoa, sorre and krae and pain bae nomoa tu.” (Revelation 21:1-4) Olketa war and raf fasin bae finis for olowe, taem iumi lukim profesi wea stap long Isaiah 2:4 hem fulfill evribit: “Olketa mas hammerim sword bilong olketa for kamap hou and spia bilong olketa for kamap naef for katem tree. Nation bae no iusim sword againstim narafala nation, and olketa bae no lanem war moa.” Iu tu savve enjoyim datfala nambawan future for olowe sapos iu lane from olketa leson bilong history.—John 17:3.
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Olketa Jehovah’s Witness lane from olketa first-century Christian
[Piksa long page 24, 25]
Jesus sei Kingdom bilong hem no part bilong disfala world
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Word bilong God promisim perfect laef for olowe insaed paradaes long earth