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“I Myself Will Search for My Sheep”

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STUDY ARTICLE 25

“I Myself Will Search for My Sheep”

“I myself will search for my sheep, and I will care for them.”​—EZEK. 34:11.
SONG 105 “God Is Love”
PREVIEW*
1. How is Jehovah like a nursing mother?
“CAN a woman forget her nursing child?” That was a question Jehovah asked in the days of the prophet Isaiah. “Even if these women forget, I would never forget you,” God told his people. (Isa. 49:15) He does not often compare himself to a mother. However, he did so on that occasion. Jehovah used the bond between a mother and her child to reveal how deeply he is attached to his servants. Most mothers can relate to what a sister named Jasmin says, “When you nurse your child, you form a very special bond that lasts a lifetime.”
2. How does Jehovah feel when one of his children drifts away from him?
2 Jehovah takes note when even one of his children stops associating with the Christian congregation and engaging in the preaching work. Think, then, of how pained he must be to see thousands of his servants become inactive* each year.
3. What does Jehovah want?
3 Many of these dear brothers and sisters who have become inactive do come back to the congregation, where they are most welcome! Jehovah wants them to come back, and so do we. (1 Pet. 2:25) How can we help? Before we answer that question, it would be good to know why some stop attending meetings and sharing in the ministry.

WHY DO SOME STOP SERVING JEHOVAH?

4. How can secular work affect some?
4 Some have become absorbed in secular work. “I let myself get overly involved in my secular work,” admits Hung,* a brother who lives in Southeast Asia. “I foolishly told myself that if I were better off materially, I would be better able to serve Jehovah. So I worked more hours. I began to miss more and more meetings until I finally stopped associating with the congregation. It seems that the world is designed to draw people away from God little by little.”
5. How did a series of problems affect one sister?
5 Some brothers and sisters are overwhelmed by problems. Anne from Britain is a mother of five children. “One of my children was born with severe disabilities,” Anne explains. “In time, one of my daughters was disfellowshipped and a son developed a mental illness. I got so depressed that I stopped attending meetings and preaching. Eventually, I became inactive.” Our hearts go out to Anne and her family as well as others who face such challenges!
6. How could not applying Colossians 3:13 cause someone to drift away from Jehovah’s people?
6 Read Colossians 3:13. Some of Jehovah’s servants have felt hurt by a fellow believer. The apostle Paul recognized that at times we might have a valid “cause for complaint against” a brother or a sister. We may even have been treated unjustly. If we are not careful, we could become resentful. Bitterness may eventually cause a person to drift away from Jehovah’s people. Consider the experience of Pablo, a brother in South America. He was falsely accused of wrongdoing and, as a result, lost a privilege of service in the congregation. How did he react? “I got angry,” says Pablo, “and I gradually drifted away from the congregation.”
7. What effect can a guilty conscience have on a person?
7 Or a guilty conscience may torment a person who has broken God’s law in the past, making him feel unworthy of God’s love. Even if he was repentant and was shown mercy, he might feel that he is no longer good enough to be one of God’s people. A brother named Francisco felt that way. “I was reproved for committing sexual immorality,” he says. “Although at first I continued to attend meetings, I became depressed and felt unworthy to be among Jehovah’s people. My conscience bothered me, and I was convinced that Jehovah had not forgiven me. In time, I stopped associating with the congregation.” How do you feel about brothers and sisters who face situations like those just discussed? Do you have empathy for them? More important, how does Jehovah feel about them?

JEHOVAH LOVES HIS SHEEP

An Israelite shepherd cared deeply about a lost sheep (See paragraphs 8-9)*
8. Does Jehovah forget those who once served him? Explain.
8 Jehovah does not forget those who once served him but who have temporarily stopped associating with his people; nor does he forget the work they did in his service. (Heb. 6:10) The prophet Isaiah recorded a beautiful illustration to show how Jehovah cares for his people. “Like a shepherd he will care for his flock,” Isaiah wrote. “With his arm he will gather together the lambs, and in his bosom he will carry them.” (Isa. 40:11) How does the Great Shepherd feel when one of his sheep strays from the flock? Jesus revealed Jehovah’s feelings when he asked his disciples: “What do you think? If a man has 100 sheep and one of them strays, will he not leave the 99 on the mountains and set out on a search for the one that is straying? And if he finds it, I certainly tell you, he rejoices more over it than over the 99 that have not strayed.”​—Matt. 18:12, 13.

9. How did good shepherds in Bible times treat their sheep? (See cover picture.)
9 Why is it appropriate to liken Jehovah to a shepherd? Because a good shepherd in Bible times cared deeply about his sheep. David, for example, fought a lion and a bear to protect his flock. (1 Sam. 17:34, 35) A good shepherd would certainly notice if even one sheep went missing. (John 10:3, 14) That kind of shepherd would leave his 99 sheep in the safety of a pen or in the care of fellow shepherds and go searching for the missing one. Jesus used that illustration to teach us an important truth: “It is not a desirable thing to my Father who is in heaven for even one of these little ones to perish.”​—Matt. 18:14.

A shepherd in ancient Israel cares for a sheep that was lost (See paragraph 9)

JEHOVAH SEARCHES FOR HIS SHEEP

10. According to Ezekiel 34:11-16, what did Jehovah promise to do for his lost sheep?
10 Jehovah loves each one of us, including the “little ones” who have strayed from his flock. Through the prophet Ezekiel, God promised that he would search for his lost sheep and help them to regain their spiritual health. And he outlined specific steps that he would take to rescue them, steps that a typical Israelite shepherd would take if a sheep went missing. (Read Ezekiel 34:11-16.) First, the shepherd would search for the sheep, which could require much time and effort. Then, once he located the stray, the shepherd would bring it back to the flock. Further, if the sheep was injured or starving, the shepherd would lovingly support the weak animal, binding its wounds, carrying it, and feeding it. Elders, the shepherds of “the flock of God,” need to take these same steps to help any who have strayed from the congregation. (1 Pet. 5:2, 3) The elders search for them, help them to return to the flock, and show them love by providing the necessary spiritual support.*
11. What did a good shepherd understand?
11 A good shepherd understood that sheep may get lost. And if a sheep did wander away from the flock, the shepherd did not treat it harshly. Consider the example that God set when helping some of his servants who, for a while, strayed from Jehovah.
12. How did Jehovah deal with Jonah?
12 The prophet Jonah ran away from his assignment. Even so, Jehovah did not quickly give up on Jonah. Like a good shepherd, Jehovah rescued him and helped him gain the strength he needed to fulfill his assignment. (Jonah 2:7; 3:1, 2) Later, God used a bottle-gourd plant to help Jonah understand the value of each human life. (Jonah 4:10, 11) The lesson? Elders must not quickly give up on those who become inactive. Instead, the elders try to understand what caused a sheep to stray from the flock. And when that sheep comes back to Jehovah, the elders continue to show loving interest in him.
13. What can we learn from Jehovah’s reaction to the writer of Psalm 73?
13 The writer of Psalm 73 became discouraged when he observed how the wicked seemed to flourish. He questioned whether doing God’s will was worthwhile. (Ps. 73:12, 13, 16) How did Jehovah react? He did not condemn the man. In fact, God had his words recorded in the Bible. Eventually, the psalmist came to realize that a good relationship with Jehovah is worth more than anything else, making life worthwhile. (Ps. 73:23, 24, 26, 28) The lesson? Elders should not be quick to judge those who begin to question the benefits of serving Jehovah. Rather than condemn them, elders must try to understand why they speak and act the way they do. Only then can the elders draw attention to the specific Scriptural encouragement that is needed.
14. Why did Elijah need help, and how did Jehovah supply it?
14 The prophet Elijah fled from Queen Jezebel. (1 Ki. 19:1-3) He thought that nobody else was serving as a prophet for Jehovah, and he felt that his work had served no purpose. Elijah became so depressed that he wanted to die. (1 Ki. 19:4, 10) Rather than condemn Elijah, Jehovah assured him that he was not alone, that he could trust in God’s power, and that there was still much work for him to do. Jehovah kindly listened to Elijah’s concerns and gave him new assignments. (1 Ki. 19:11-16, 18) The lesson? All of us, especially the elders, should treat Jehovah’s sheep kindly. Whether a person expresses bitterness or feels unworthy of Jehovah’s mercy, elders will listen to him as he pours out his heart. Then they will try to assure the lost sheep that Jehovah values him.

HOW SHOULD WE FEEL ABOUT GOD’S LOST SHEEP?

15. According to John 6:39, how did Jesus view his Father’s sheep?
15 How does Jehovah want us to feel about his lost sheep? Jesus provides the pattern for us. He knew that all of Jehovah’s sheep are precious in God’s eyes, so Jesus did all he could to help “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” return to Jehovah. (Matt. 15:24;Luke 19:9, 10) As the fine shepherd, Jesus also did his utmost to avoid losing any of Jehovah’s sheep.​—Read John 6:39.
16-17. How should elders feel about helping those who have gone astray? (See the box “How a Lost Sheep May Feel.”)
16 The apostle Paul urged the elders of the congregation in Ephesus to imitate Jesus’ example. “You must assist those who are weak and must keep in mind the words of the Lord Jesus, when he himself said: ‘There is more happiness in giving than there is in receiving.’” (Acts 20:17, 35) Clearly, elders today have a special responsibility in this regard. “When I think of how much Jehovah cares for his lost sheep, I feel motivated to do all I can to help them,” explains Salvador, an elder in Spain. “As a spiritual shepherd, I am convinced that Jehovah wants me to care for them.”
17 All those mentioned in this article who had drifted away were helped to come back to Jehovah. At this very moment, many more who have strayed want to do the same. The next article will discuss in more detail what we can do to help them return to Jehovah.

SONG 139 See Yourself When All Is New
Why do some who have served Jehovah faithfully for years drift away from the congregation? How does God feel about them? This article considers answers to those questions. It also discusses what we can learn from the way Jehovah helped some in Bible times who temporarily drifted away from him.
EXPRESSION EXPLAINED: An inactive publisher is someone who has not reported any activity in the preaching and disciple-making work for six months or more. Even so, inactive ones are still our brothers and sisters, and we love them.
Some names have been changed.
The next article will discuss specific ways that elders can follow these steps.
PICTURE DESCRIPTION: Concerned about a lost sheep, an Israelite shepherd would search for it and help it back to the flock. Spiritual shepherds today do the same.
PICTURE DESCRIPTION: As an inactive sister waits for her bus to depart, she observes two Witnesses who happily share in public witnessing.

“Unify My Heart to Fear Your Name”

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STUDY ARTICLE 24

“Unify My Heart to Fear Your Name”

“Unify my heart to fear your name. I praise you, O Jehovah my God, with all my heart.”​—PS. 86:11, 12.
SONG 7 Jehovah, Our Strength
PREVIEW*

1. What is the fear of God, and why is it important for those who love Jehovah to demonstrate it?

We are not talking about paralyzing fear. The kind of fear we are talking about is a deep and sincere respect for God. Those who feel it do not want to displease their heavenly Father because they value their friendship with him.

2. What two things related to Psalm 86:11 will we study in this article?

First, we will review various reasons for having deep respect for God\’s name. And then we\’ll talk about how to show that respect in our daily lives.

WHY SHOULD WE HAVE DEEP RESPECT FOR THE NAME OF JEHOVAH?

3. What experience perhaps helped Moses to always respect God\’s name?

Moses when he was curled up in the crevice of a rock on Mount Horeb and beheld in a vision the glory of Jehovah, which had passed before him. Insight into Scripture explains that this was \”perhaps the most awesome experience any man ever had before the coming of Jesus Christ.\” Moses heard the following words, surely from the mouth of an angel: \”Jehovah, Jehovah, a merciful and compassionate God, patient and full of loyal love and truth, showing loyal love to thousands, forgiving mistakes, offenses and sins.\”

4. On what qualities of Jehovah should we meditate in order to respect him even more?

We must remember his qualities, including power, wisdom, justice, and love. Reflecting on these and other qualities will make us respect him even more.

5, 6. a) What does the name of God mean? b) According to Exodus 3:13, 14 and Isaiah 64: 8, in what ways does Jehovah make things happen?

a) \”he makes it become\”. This meaning reminds us that nothing can prevent Jehovah from doing his will and that he can make things happen.

b). One way is by becoming whatever it takes to fulfill your purpose. In our publications, we are often encouraged to think about this most impressive aspect of God\’s personality. In addition, Jehovah can make his imperfect human servants whatever is necessary to serve him and fulfill his purpose

7. What will help us to have greater admiration and respect for our heavenly Father?

Meditate on what he has done and what he has helped us to do. For example, we marvel at meditating on all that he has created. And as we reflect on what he has made us become to fulfill his will, we have deep respect for him.

\”I WILL PROCLAMATE THE NAME OF JEHOVAH\”

8. According to Deuteronomy 32: 2, 3, what does Jehovah want us to do with his name?

By meditating on part of the lyrics, we see clearly that Jehovah does not want us to hide his name or treat it as too sacred to pronounce. You want the whole world to know you.

ILLUSTRATION

Moses teaching the Israelites the words of a song of praise to Jehovah.

The teachings of Moses had a refreshing effect because they focused on Jehovah\’s name and person.

9. How do we help to sanctify Jehovah\’s name?

When people hear these things, they may realize for the first time how much Jehovah loves us. Whenever we teach the truth about our loving Father, we help to sanctify his name and disprove some of the slander that has been taught about him. Nothing has such a refreshing effect on people as the biblical message we bring them.

10. When we teach the Bible, why should we not limit ourselves to teaching God\’s rules and laws?

Because we want to help students to know and use Jehovah\’s name. But we also want you to know well what kind of God He is. So we must not limit ourselves to teaching God\’s righteous standards and laws.

11. In addition to teaching students divine rules and laws, how can we help them love God?

So we could ask him, “Why do you think God asks us to do or not do this? What does that teach you about him? By helping him to think of Jehovah and to truly love his glorious name, we are more likely to touch his heart. That way you will not only love his laws, but you will also love him. Your faith will grow stronger and you will be able to withstand very difficult trials.

 \”WE WILL WALK IN THE NAME OF JEHOVAH\”

12. a) What led David to have a divided heart at one point? b) What was the result?

to). he stared at her. Her heart became divided. On the one hand, he wanted this woman. And, on the other, she wanted to please Jehovah. Although he had long loved and feared Jehovah, he was carried away by his selfish desire.

b). As a result, he did some very bad things. He stained Jehovah\’s name and did terrible harm to innocent people, including his own family

ILLUSTRATION

King David watches Bat-Sheba from the roof of his house as he bathes.

At one point, David allowed his heart to become divided.

13. How do we know that David had a united heart again?

He never forgot the trouble and suffering he caused by allowing his heart to split. His words from Psalm 86:11 can also be translated like this: \”Give me a heart that is not divided.\” Did Jehovah answer him? Yes, for God\’s Word later says that David \”served Jehovah his God with a complete heart.\”

14. What should we ask ourselves, and why?

David\’s example is very encouraging, but it also serves as a warning. We must ask ourselves, \”Am I fighting Satan\’s attempts to divide my heart?\”

15. How can the fear of God protect us if we see provocative images?

This can be compared to the wedge someone uses to split a piece of wood. Perhaps you start by driving the thin edge of the wedge into the wood. And, as he sinks it, the wood is splitting. Provocative images can be like the thin edge of a wedge. At first they may seem small and harmless, but they can quickly divide our hearts and lead us to commit sins that break our integrity. For this reason, let us not allow anything inappropriate to enter our hearts. Let us make sure it is always united and fears the name of Jehovah.

16. What questions should we ask ourselves when faced with temptation?

It is best to ask ourselves questions like the following: “Is Satan using this temptation to divide my heart? If I indulge in bad desires, will I stain Jehovah\’s name? Will this bring me closer to my God, or will it move me away from him?

ILLUSTRATION

Series of images: 1. Eva contemplates the forbidden fruit in her hand before the serpent\’s gaze. 2. A man avoiding looking at what appears on the screen of the phone in his hand.

Satan will do everything he can to divide our hearts. Don\’t get away with it!

17. Explain with an example why having a divided heart does us no good.

Let\’s imagine that the members of a sports team get on badly with each other. Some want all the glory for themselves, others do not want to follow the rules and others do not respect the coach. Such a team is unlikely to win a match. A team that was united would do much better. Our hearts will be like this second team if our thoughts, desires and emotions are “united” in serving Jehovah. Let\’s remember that Satan would love to divide our hearts. She wants us to have an internal struggle between what we know Jehovah wants us to do and our bad desires.

18. In harmony with Micah 4: 5, what are you determined to do?

Let us strive to put this prayer into practice. May the decisions we make each day, from the smallest to the largest, show that we have deep respect for the holy name of God. If we do so, we will be worthy of the name we bear as Jehovah\’s Witnesses.

 WHAT DO YOU THINK?

 What are some reasons for having deep respect for Jehovah\’s name?

Meditate on what he has done and what he has helped us to do, meditate on all that he has created and on what he has made us become to fulfill his will.

Also think about Jehovah\’s name and the kind of person He is, his qualities, including power, wisdom, justice and love.

How can we help students to love God\’s name?

Helping them to understand that Jehovah has given us laws and regulations why he loves us. We could ask, “Why do you think God asks us to do or not do this? What does that teach you about him? If we help them to think about Jehovah, they will not only love his laws, but they will also love him and in this way their faith will become stronger and they will be able to withstand more difficult trials

What does it mean to have a united heart?

It means to serve with a “complete heart”, it means to serve with a heart whose motives have only one direction, it is to serve with a heart that is not irresolute, nor double. And that our thoughts, desires and emotions are focused in one direction, serving Jehovah.

“Let Your Name Be Sanctified”

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STUDY ARTICLE 23

“Let Your Name Be Sanctified”

“O Jehovah, your name endures forever.”​—PS. 135:13.
SONG 10 Praise Jehovah Our God!
PREVIEW*

1-2. What subjects fascinate Jehovah’s Witnesses?
The issues can be various, but among the most important are the sovereignty of God and the sanctification of his Name, because these two issues deserve our respect and attention.
Talking about these issues should be paramount for every Christian because of the importance for us to cleanse Jehovah\’s name of all the shame that Satan has cast against him and to demonstrate by our conduct that Jehovah\’s way of ruling is the best.
3. What does the name Jehovah include?
3  Jehovah\’s name encompasses everything that has to do with our God, including also the way in which he rules and exercises his authority as sovereign in the universe.

ANSWERS BASED ON THE BOX
The box talks about how the question of the sanctification of Jehovah\’s name can be separated into two questions; Is Jehovah really the best Sovereign or Ruler we can have? And will there be intelligent beings who are upright, that is, who loyally defend the holy name of God and serve him out of love? Answering these questions will strengthen our conviction to help restore and defend the sanctification of Jehovah\’s name.
We all have a vitally important issue before us: the sanctification of Jehovah\’s name (Ezek. 36:23; Matt. 6: 9). Is he who bears the name Jehovah really holy, good, just, and loving in all he does? This issue is multi-faceted. Since Satan led a rebellion against God\’s authority, this question must be answered: Is Jehovah really the best Sovereign or Ruler we can have? And since Adam, Eve, many of their descendants and even some angels joined the rebellion, this other question must be answered: Will there be intelligent beings who are of integrity, that is, who faithfully defend the holy name of God and serve him out of love? This last facet took on special relevance in the time of Job (Job 2: 3, 4; 27: 5).—See the box “Facets of a Great Issue.

4. How does Psalm 135:13 describe God’s name, and what questions will we answer in this article?
4   According to the text, reading the name of God lasts forever, that is, it is unique and special.  Human beings are of interest and importance to our name and the reputation it has in others. If this is so between simple human beings, it is certainly more true in relation to the Creator of the universe. Just as Jehovah at the time decided to make his name known to human beings, now he wants us to know it deeply and to know how we can contribute to its sanctification.


4. b) What questions will we answer in this article?

In this article we will analyze, what makes it so important? What was the first attack that was launched against this name? What does God do to sanctify it? And how can we help defend it?

THE IMPORTANCE OF A NAME

5. What might we wonder about when considering the sanctifying of God’s name?
5   Because the word sanctify means to make something holy, clean or pure, we can ask ourselves the question: Is Jehovah\’s name not holy, clean and pure? and Why is it necessary to sanctify it?
Something that will help us understand why the name of Jehovah if it is holy needs to be sanctified is the following example. Let\’s think of an edible product, this is a good product, a quality product. However, the competition begins to get false news arguing that this product is harmful to health. Although the product is not harmful to health, what you need to do is go out and defend the quality of this product in front of all the people who heard and believed the lies. In the same way the name of God although it is holy, needs to be sanctified and defended in front of all the people who have heard or believed the lies that Satan the devil has spread. This will be explained in more detail later in the article.

6. What makes a name valuable?
6  A name is more than just a bunch of letters or a mixture of sounds. Include what others think about the person with that name, that is, their reputation.
A good name, or a good reputation, is so valuable that in some countries it is legally protected against slander. This reminds us of an old saying: “A name is to be chosen rather than abundant riches; favor is better than silver and gold ”.
There is no doubt that Jehovah God put in man the desire to name things. In the creation story, one of the first things Adam is reported to have done was to name the animals.
In the times of the Israelites, names were not just labels, names had meaning. For example, Isaac\’s name meant “Laughter,” which was reminiscent of the laughter that occurred between his elderly parents when they originally heard that they were to have a child. Esau\’s name meant \”Hairy,\” and it described a physical characteristic.
Even today we follow the custom of giving names to people and it would be difficult to imagine how we could live without names.
We can conclude that names are important to God, and he put in man the desire to identify people and things by names. But above any other name, the one that should matter most to us is that of our Great God Jehovah

7. How have people attacked God’s name?
7   Since the beginning of creation in the Garden of Eden, humans and spirit beings have attempted to taint Jehovah\’s name by attacking his reputation. People attack God\’s name by telling lies about him, thus attacking his reputation and therefore also staining his Name

HOW THE NAME WAS FIRST SLANDERED

8. What did Adam and Eve know, and what questions arise?
8    By looking around and seeing the beautiful garden in which they lived and the perfect match that Jehovah had given them, Adam and Eve could come to know for themselves the beautiful qualities of Jehovah, that is, they could come to know everything that was encompassed the name of Jehovah.
Adam and Eve knew the name of Jehovah and also other truths that are very important about him, such as that he was the creator and that he gave them life, as well as a beautiful paradise in which to live and a perfect match.
Without a doubt Adam and Eve were able to know the personality of Jehovah God first hand. From what they saw in their own remarkably adaptable bodies, for each new animal, each different plant, flower, and tree, and each field and forest that man saw, they had every reason to admire Jehovah\’s wisdom and come to know everything. what his name implied. (Gen. 1:26-28; 2:18)

8. b) What questions arise?
Two questions arise: first, would they continue to meditate on all that Jehovah had done for them, second, would they continue to strengthen the love and gratitude they felt for him?

9. According to Genesis 2:16, 17 and 3:1-5, what did Jehovah tell the first couple, and how did Satan twist the truth?
According to the texts read, Jehovah told Adam and Eve that they could eat from all the trees in the garden except for the tree of knowledge of good and bad, because the day they ate it they were going to die, however satan distorted the truth by ask him a question that questioned Jehovah\’s generosity.
When Satan approached Eve through the serpent\’s words, he was challenging Jehovah, implying that Jehovah was withholding something from the woman without any rights. With this he made Eve believe that she would be free and independent of God. Thus this evil celestial creature rose above God in the eyes of Eve and became her god. With his actions he placed man and woman under his leadership and control.
With this command that God gave Adam, he was not taking away their freedom to do whatever they wanted, that is, he was not taking away their free will. Having the right to decide what one wants to do is not the same as having the right to decide what is right and what is wrong. Adam and Eve were free to decide whether or not to obey God. However, only Jehovah has the right to decide what is right and what is wrong. This is what \”the tree of the knowledge of good and bad\” that was in the garden of Eden symbolized.
Satan threw a poisoned question full of lies to Eve: \”Did God really tell you that you can\’t eat from all the trees in the garden?\” With this he implied that God was not generous. And so he managed to sow doubts in Eve because she wondered if God was denying her something good. (Gen. 2:9) 

10. How did Satan directly slander God’s name, and with what effect?
10  Satan directly launched a slander against the name of God, because with what he said he implied that Jehovah was a liar as a result satan became the devil and Eve disobeyed God by eating the fruit that he had forbidden, and then also giving it to Adam.
From before this event in the garden of Eden, Satan\’s heart was completely estranged from its Creator, since his words constituted a clear contradiction of what God had said and a slander against Him. He did not accuse God of having been unconsciously wrong, but to deliberately misrepresent things at your convenience. With the words: \”By no means will they die\”, he managed to make Eve forget the clear rules of God which she knew very well and instead believe in the lies of the devil. (1 Tim. 2:14) 
Satan\’s lies led Eve to disobey God and eat the fruit that He had forbidden her. Then she gave Adam the fruit, so Satan made the first human beings disobedient to their creator.
satan got Eve to focus her attention on the tree and the fruit, and not on her relationship with her heavenly Father, who had given her everything she had. Sadly, Eve ate the fruit, thus demonstrating that Jehovah was not the most important being in her life.—Gen. 3:6.

11. What could our first parents have done, but what did they fail to do?
11   Adam and Eve could have shown love, loyalty and obedience in defending Jehovah\’s name, no doubt Jehovah would have rejoiced.
They must have defended Jehovah\’s name. They could have said something like the following: “How dare you speak ill of him? Leave me alone!\”. With these words, Adam and Eve would have shown loyal love for their creator, and Jehovah would have been delighted to hear them defend her against Satan.
He must have reacted with complete disgust and righteous indignation at questioning God\’s law. Eve should never have looked at the tree as something desirable, instead she should have seen the opportunity she had in front of her to show that even though we are human beings we can rejoice our Creator, because because of the love we have for him we can resist his trials and temptations.
Taking an example, how would we feel if a loved one we trust, a stranger accused of having lied to us? It would certainly annoy us so much that we would respond in an authoritative way. Eva\’s reaction should have been similar but it wasn\’t. After all, who was the serpent to question the justice of God and the word of her husband? She was nobody, Jehovah had given them everything, instead this snake was a simple stranger and her word had no value. As a lesson we are left with that we must always pay attention to who or what we are listening to and whether this is positive or negative for our relationship with Jehovah.
As if that were not enough, Eva, apart from paying attention to a complete stranger who spoke negative things about her Creator, also ignored the principle of headship. Eve should have consulted with Adam before making any decisions. (Prov. 27:11).

12. How did Satan sow doubts in the mind of Eve, and what did Adam and Eve fail to do?
12   By attacking Jehovah\’s reputation, satan wanted to make Eve doubt that Jehovah was a good Father. A good father always wants the best for his children so when satan told Eve that her Father was lying to her at his convenience, Eve began to trust more in the words of a serpent and allowed sin to be born in her heart and in your mind.
Adam and Eve did not defend Jehovah\’s name, rather Eve made herself the first human idolater by lusting after the forbidden fruit, and this wrong desire led her to disobey God\’s command. Adam also became guilty of idolatry by allowing a selfish desire to rival his love for Jehovah and subsequently disobeying the Creator.
We must all be very alert to the tactics that satan uses to make us doubt, among these are discouragement, the occult, adultery, fornication, selfishness and many more. Unlike Eva, we must remain alert and vigilant of the possible places where we can be more vulnerable, be it work, school or non-believing family members.
As a conclusion to this subtopic we can highlight an important lesson. Any pretense of independence from Jehovah God is sheer folly; But those who have true wisdom put their faith in Jehovah and his Word, and do not trust their own knowledge. We must continue to strive to defend from others, and from our own inclination to sin, the great name of our God Jehovah.

JEHOVAH SANCTIFIES HIS NAME

13. How does Ezekiel 36:23 highlight the core message of the Bible?
13  It highlights the main message by mentioning that Jehovah\’s intention is to sanctify his name because of being desecrated, in fact, the main message of the Bible can be summarized this way, through the Kingdom in the hands of his son Jehovah sanctifies his name and restore peace and justice to the land. (Gen. 3:15)
The central theme of the Bible revolves around the Kingdom of God and how this government will cleanse the name of the Almighty. In fact, the book of Ezekiel underlines this idea by mentioning 4 times the expression: \”The nations will have to know that I am Jehovah.\” Mankind will be left with no alternative: they will simply “have to know” that he is Jehovah. In other words, the actions that God is going to take will force all nations to recognize that he is who he claims to be: Jehovah, the Sovereign Lord whose name represents all that is holy, pure, and clean.​—Read Ezekiel 36:23.
14. How has Jehovah’s response to the rebellion in Eden sanctified his name?
14  Jehovah could have ended the rebellion of the garden at that moment, because as we know he is an almighty God, however he did not do it and that is how he has sanctified his name by handling the situation with wisdom, patience and justice and above all by giving clear evidence of his immense love.
Jehovah knew and knows that he has to respond to Satan\’s rebellion, but he has not been carried away by emotions. You have reacted in a calculated and very appropriate way. He has been \”slow to anger\” and has handled Satan\’s rebellion fairly. Why? Because he does not want anyone to be destroyed, but \”everyone to achieve repentance.\” A sign of the great love that Jehovah has for humanity as he continues to give time to all those who have fallen victim to the lies of Satan (Ps. 78:40).
Jehovah\’s example teaches us that we should not make decisions in a hurry, but rather measure words and think carefully before doing or saying something. When we have to decide on an important matter, let us take the time to think and ask Jehovah for wisdom to do or say the right thing. If we act while upset, emotions are likely to control us. That is why many of us regret having said or done something without thinking. (1 John 4:8) 


Satan lied to Eve about Jehovah, and over the centuries the Devil has continued to slander God (See paragraphs 9-10, 15)*
15. How is Satan slandering God’s name today, and with what effect?
15   Satan continues to slander the name of Jehovah by trying to make people doubt the power of justice, wisdom and love of God and as a result we have, that there are people who do not believe in Jehovah and if they do believe that his standards are unfair and restrictive, even the idea is promoted that Jehovah is a cruel God who burns people in hell.
Satan, the master of deception, \”has blinded the minds of unbelievers.\” For thousands of years he has succeeded in shaping the minds of most people to adopt the attitudes and opinions that he promotes. To the point where \”the whole world is under his power\” because those who believe his calumnies reject Jehovah\’s just authority.
Even satan not only tries to confuse people who do not yet know Jehovah, he also tries to confuse us who already have knowledge of him. Satan tries to sow in us ideas such as that God is so demanding that nothing that his servants do can satisfy him or that God does not care if we are good people. Let\’s completely reject those ideas and stay away from those who promote them.
We could practically say that the devil has been very successful in slandering the name of Jehovah since, as 1 John 5:19 says, \”The whole world is under the power of the evil one.\” And it is that in reality there are only two sides, to be with Jehovah or to be against him and only about 9 million people have sided with Jehovah and are striving to worship Jehovah and defend his name from the slanders of your enemy.

ILLUSTRATION
A snake curled up in a tree. Series of images. Eve offers Adam the forbidden fruit. A religious leader gives a sermon with a cross in one hand and a Bible in the other. Behind him are silhouettes of people burning in the middle of a fire. A teacher points to a diagram on human evolution with a skull in his hand. Satan lied to Eve about Jehovah, and throughout history he has continued to slander God.

YOUR ROLE IN THE GREAT ISSUE

16. What can you do that Adam and Eve failed to do?
16  Unlike Adam and Eve, we can defend the holiness of Jehovah, his justice and his love, in addition we also show that we want him to be our ruler and we make known to other people that his government is the only really just one and that it will bring peace and happiness to all his creation.
Today our God, Jehovah, is blasphemed in various ways. It is claimed that he does not exist, that he is part of a Trinity, that he haunts people forever in hell, that his attempts to convert the world are weak, that he does not care about mankind, etc. We demonstrate our loyalty to Jehovah when we come to his defense and prove that he does exist; that he is a wise, just, omnipotent and loving God; who has set a time for all matters, and who will eventually put an end to all evil and transform the earth into a paradise. (Ecclesiastes 3: 1) A practical way in which we can make this defense of Jehovah\’s name is through our example, if our conduct is good we will be demonstrating the positive effects that knowing Jehovah\’s name has.—Ps. 37:9, 37; 146:5, 6, 10.

17. How did Jesus make his Father’s name known?
17  Jesus could limit himself to making his father\’s name known only by using it, however he also did it by teaching how Jehovah really is, he helped people to know that Jehovah is reasonable, loving and compassionate patient, in addition he perfectly limited the qualities of his father in his daily life.
In John 17:26 when Jesus Christ expresses “I have made your name known to them” he did not refer only to the pronunciation of the divine name. A famous biblical commentator said the following: “The word name [in John 17] includes the attributes, or character of God. Jesus had made known his character, his law, his will, his plan of mercy. Or in other words, God had revealed to them. \” Thanks to this that Jesus Christ did here on earth, he was able to confidently say \”He who has seen me has seen the Father also\” (John 14: 9).—John 14:9.

18. How can we overturn lies and slander about Jehovah?
18   We do it by imitating Jesus as Jesus did, we must share what we know about Jehovah, thus releasing erroneous ideas that are had about him, and showing how loving and kind he is, it is also necessary to imitate Jehovah, we are imperfect But above all, we can strive to maintain integrity.
One way we can defend the sovereignty and name of our God Jehovah is through preaching. Through this we can eliminate false beliefs that satan has spread from Jehovah and spread the truths of our God Jehovah. When we strive to be good preachers of his message, we rejoice his heart and thwart the Devil\’s plans. (Eph. 5:1, 2)
Just as creation says a lot about Jehovah\’s name without uttering a word, our conduct can also help us defend Jehovah\’s sovereignty and name. If our daily conduct glorifies the God we worship, then we will help to overthrow the lies that satan has spread on Him and we will be like a lamp that from on high directs people to the safe haven offered by Jehovah.
The note refers to a clarification of beliefs. In the years 1965 and 1995 the Awake and Watchtower magazines had made it clear that it was wrong to ask in prayer for the vindication of Jehovah\’s name. However, a deeper study made the faithful and prudent slave see that this belief must change.—Job 27:5.





            We want to help our Bible students come to understand Jehovah’s kind, loving personality
            (See paragraphs 18-19)*

19. How does Isaiah 63:7 help us to see what the main purpose of our teaching should be?
19 According to this text the main objective is to sanctify the name of Jehovah, by talking about the attractive qualities of him and all the personality behind his name, this will lead people to love and be loyal to our father Jehovah.
As Isaiah 63: 7 says, we want to help good-hearted people to love and be loyal to our Father, and we will only achieve this by teaching them the attractive qualities and personality of our God Jehovah.
Many times when a politician is in the campaign, he not only talks about what he is going to do or the way he will govern or the laws that he will apply, but also talks about the person he is, his qualities and his actions past, because this shows a more complete picture of him, although many things they say are pure lies. However, we must do something similar in our Bible courses, we must talk to people not only about God\’s laws but also about his attractive qualities, in this way it will be more likely that people will come to love Jehovah and want to be loyal to him.

ILLUSTRATION
In the image we can see how a brother is spending time during his Bible study to teach the student the personality of Jehovah. We can see in the brother\’s face the joy that gives him the power to tell his student of such beautiful qualities. This is important as it will help the student to get a more vivid picture of Jehovah and see him as a real Being to love. (Read Isaiah 63:7.)
20. What will we consider in the following article?
20  In the next Article we will answer, How can we ensure that our conduct and our teaching honor God\’s name and help people to draw closer to him.

  • How do we know that the sanctification of Jehovah’s name is vitally important?
  • Because Jehovah\’s name encompasses many things, including his reputation and his way of ruling. And from the beginning of humanity to the present day the name of Jehovah or his reputation has been attacked, that is why talking about issues related to the sanctification of his name is as important to us as his servants.
    Because the name of Jehovah encompasses everything that has to do with our God including his way of ruling, therefore, if we say that the most important thing is to clear the name of God, we are also saying that we must show that the way of ruling of Jehovah is the best.
    We all know that Jehovah\’s name is unique and special, but Satan has stained God\’s personal name and reputation, he has launched lies and slanders against Jehovah and many people have believed them and rejected Jehovah\’s just authority, that is why it is important to sanctification of his name.

  • Why does something as holy as God’s name need to be sanctified?
  • Because of the lies that satan and his followers have spread about Jehovah\’s name. Due to these lies, many people have come to have a distorted idea about Jehovah, therefore it is necessary to sanctify Jehovah\’s name, so that as many people come to know the beautiful qualities of our God.

    Because satan began his attack on Jehovah\’s name, trying to get Eve to doubt that he was a good father, then he accused Jehovah of being a liar, which caused her and Adam to rebel against their father, and throughout human history He has continued to taint Jehovah\’s name by promoting his lies and ideas, but Jehovah our Holy God will not indefinitely tolerate this reproach and at Armageddon he will completely cleanse his Name before all creation.

  • What role can you play in sanctifying Jehovah’s name?
Jehovah has allowed us humans to help sanctify his name, that is why each of us has the opportunity to defend the truth, defend that Jehovah is holy, just, good and loving, and thus demonstrate that only He can rule us, because being the Creator only he can bring us true peace, happiness and justice.

Each of us has the opportunity to defend the Holy name of Jehovah, we do it by teaching people about the beautiful quality that Jehovah possesses and clarifying the misconceptions they have about him, also our actions and our integrity help to Sanctify your name.

SONG 2 Jehovah Is Your Name
What important issue is facing all intelligent creation? What makes that issue so vital, and what role do we play in settling it? Understanding the answers to those and related questions will help us to strengthen our relationship with Jehovah.
On occasion our publications have taught that Jehovah’s name does not need to be vindicated because no one has called into question his right to bear that name. However, a clarified understanding was presented at the 2017 annual meeting. The chairman stated: “Simply put, it’s not wrong to say that we pray for the vindication of Jehovah’s name because his reputation certainly needs to be exonerated.”​—See the January 2018 program on jw.org®. Look under LIBRARY > JW BROADCASTING®.
PICTURE DESCRIPTION: The Devil slandered God, telling Eve that God is a liar. Over the centuries, Satan has promoted false ideas, such as the teaching that God is cruel and that He did not create humans.
PICTURE DESCRIPTION: As he conducts a Bible study, a brother emphasizes God’s personality.

Show Your Appreciation for Unseen Treasures

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STUDY ARTICLE 22

Show Your Appreciation for Unseen Treasures

“Keep [your] eyes . . . on the things unseen. For the things seen are temporary, but the things unseen are everlasting.”​—2 COR. 4:18.
SONG 45 The Meditation of My Heart
PREVIEW*

1. What did Jesus say about heavenly treasures?

Jesus said that heavenly treasures are superior to material treasures found on earth, for this reason he encouraged everyone to accumulate heavenly treasures, as he explained that nothing and no one can destroy or steal these valuable treasures.

Matthew 6: 19-21 prompts us to consider what treasures are most valuable to us. The accumulation of treasures in heaven will make us have a good name before God and obtain his approval, this is a good investment because Jesus explained that no one can destroy or steal these treasures.

To get rich in a material sense you need to put a lot of effort and make certain sacrifices. The same is true of spiritual riches. This is what Jesus was referring to when he said: \”Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven\” (Matthew 6:20). And it is that spiritual riches do not accumulate by themselves. The simple fact of belonging to a religion does not automatically make a person spiritually rich, in the same way that no one becomes a millionaire just by having a bank account. To develop as a spiritual person, cultivate a close relationship with God, and abound in spiritual qualities, it takes time, determination, commitment, and sacrifice (Proverbs 2: 1-6).

2. a) What does Paul encourage us to do in 2 Corinthians 4:17, 18?

He encourages us to keep an eye on the things that are not seen, this because, as Paul said, the things that are seen are temporary while those that are not seen are eternal.

Paul encourages us not to allow trouble, hardship, persecution, or any other kind of tribulation to cloud our sight of the blessings that await us. We must look beyond the circumstances of the moment and keep our eyes fixed on the Christian\’s happy outcome. This will help us renew our resolve daily to move forward in the fight.

2. b) What will we analyze in this article?

In this article we will analyze four invisible treasures that we already enjoy today, friendship with God, prayer, the help of the holy spirit and the support of Jehovah Jesus and the angels who give us in the ministry, we will also see how to show gratitude for these unseen treasures.

FRIENDSHIP WITH JEHOVAH

3. What is the most valuable invisible treasure, and what makes it possible?

The most valuable invisible treasure is friendship with Jehovah and what makes this possible was the sacrifice of Jesus, because it is thanks to this sacrifice even Jehovah was able to offer his friendship to humans who lived before the death of Jesus.

\”Intimacy with Jehovah belongs to those who fear him.\” What a privilege it is for us mere mortals to enjoy such an intimate friendship with Him. Let us never let our day-to-day occupations lead us to neglect communication with our heavenly Father. As Jehovah is our friend, he expects us to show him our trust and open our hearts by sharing our fears, desires and concerns.

The great Hindu treasure, which is for many experts the most valuable treasure found to date, was found in 2011 buried in the Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple, in southern India. The value of the treasure is certainly incalculable, but by some estimates it could comfortably exceed $ 22 billion. How much is friendship with Jehovah worth to us? Without a doubt, we could not put a price on it, what we can do is show day by day how much we value it.

4. Name some friends of God who lived before Jesus died.

Among the friends of God who lived before the death of Jesus are Abraham, Job and Daniel, these three characters stand out for their faith and extraordinary loyalty, in the cited texts we see how Jehovah also spoke about them, even so much is the friendship that He had with them, which he surely remembers even though they are already dead he has them in his memory, we can imagine the longing that Jehovah feels for the day to come when he resurrects his dear friends.

Abraham is an excellent example of a person with extraordinary faith. Jehovah continued to call him even 1000 years after his death his friend since to Jehovah he is alive in his memory.

Job is another good example. Although he was an imperfect man and surely with some defects, Jehovah gave him his confidence by mentioning that he was a man of integrity and upright before a meeting of angels, that is, perfect celestial beings.

Prophet Daniel served Jehovah faithfully for 80 years under unfavorable circumstances due to living in a foreign country surrounded by people who worshiped other gods. Even on one occasion when Daniel was very) old, the angels assured him 3 times that he was someone very valuable to God.

5. What steps must be taken to have “a close friendship” with Jehovah?

In Proverbs chapter 3 verse 32, we find one of these steps, it is to be an upright person, that is, we must maintain a behavior according to the will of Jehovah God, another step is to have faith in the sacrifice of Jesus, this wonderful gift that Jehovah gave us allow us to dedicate ourselves and be baptized.

Proverbs 3:32 urges us to realize that if we appreciate our relationship with Jehovah we will avoid actions that may hurt our brothers or Jehovah himself, that is why once we take the necessary steps, that is, we dedicate ourselves and are baptized we will be Christians with good behavior, patients understanding and compassionate as Jehovah\’s holy spirit will motivate us to act in a loving and benevolent way.

It is true that dedication and baptism are very important steps towards having a close friendship with Jehovah. But this is not the only thing we must do, it is also important to keep our faith strong and our conduct upright.

Also perhaps we could ask ourselves; Is my conduct and faith the same or stronger than when I dedicated myself and baptized Jehovah? Let us examine ourselves and continue to reject the crooked ways of this wicked and violent world, rather maintain a right course and strengthen our relationship with Jehovah.

ILLUSTRATION

A sister stops with her bicycle on a hill by a lake to enjoy creation, it is a way in which we can show gratitude for treasures that are not seen.

6. How can we show gratitude for friendship with God?

We do it by imitating the faith of Abraham and Job, no matter how long we have been serving Jehovah in this world ruled by satan, we can also show gratitude by imitating Daniel who put friendship with Jehovah above his own life, because we must Keep in mind that with Jehovah\’s help we can endure any trial and thus maintain our friendship with him.

In this subtopic then we have seen the great value of being able to have a friendship with Jehovah. But of course this is not something automatic, it is something that must be cultivated. The examples of faithful servants of old are excellent starting points for us, too, to have and maintain a friendship with Jehovah. So if we are already dedicated and baptized servants, let us strive to maintain our friendship with Jehovah and strengthen it even more and, if we are not, let us still work to develop it.

A valuable treasure that remains buried in the ground serves no useful purpose. It differs little from a rock hidden by a layer of earth. But when someone owns and uses that treasure, that is where the value of a treasure truly increases. The invisible treasure of friendship with Jehovah is there, it is up to each one of us to take it and use it in a productive way, if we do not use it, no matter how valuable it is, it will not bring us any benefit and the only ones harmed will be us. Let us strive to tap into this valuable treasure of friendship with Jehovah.

THE GIFT OF PRAYER

7. a) According to Proverbs 15: 8, how does Jehovah view our prayers?

According to this text, Jehovah views our prayers with pleasure, because he loves us and cares for us, without a doubt there is no greater friendship than the one we can have with Jehovah.

True friends don\’t just talk to each other when they need something. They are interested in each other, and their friendship deepens when they express their feelings. In the same way, prayer does not serve only to ask for the necessary things. It gives us an opportunity to strengthen our relationship with Jehovah by expressing our sincere devotion to him.

The privilege of prayer should never be taken lightly. It should not be reserved as a last resort, to be used only when all else has failed. Instead, prayer should be part of our daily life. Private prayer, family prayer, and congregation prayer will strengthen us in these difficult times. Speaking to God through prayer brings his peace, promotes the flow of his holy spirit, and helps us trust his blessings for an eternal future of life in his righteous new order.

7. b) How do you answer them?

He answers our prayers at the right time and in the best way, this means that there will be times when we will not receive the answer immediately or maybe the answer he gives us is not what we expected.

On some occasions we will not receive the answer we want for our prayer, because instead of freeing ourselves from a test, Jehovah gives us only the necessary strength to endure it, we should not feel bad for that, rather we must remember that Jehovah will never allow them to difficulties are greater than our ability to overcome them, He will always give us a way out to endure them.

The same sister is sitting in a cafeteria saying a prayer. At the next table is a woman with her son.

8. How can we show gratitude for the gift of prayer?

We can do this by following the words recorded in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 17, praying constantly, since it is obvious that if someone gives us a gift we must use it, it is also necessary in all prayers to mention how grateful we are to Jehovah and praise him.

When praying we must not forget to give thanks and praise him. When can we do it? Perhaps when something we have read in his word, seeing his fascinating creation, or for the privilege of preaching the good news reaches our hearts. Jehovah has done fascinating things for us without our prompting, so we must continually show our appreciation. It is like when someone does something for us that helped us a lot and we thank him not once but several times, in the same way we should do that with Jehovah who has given us all the good we have.

ILLUSTRATION

The same sister is sitting in a cafeteria saying a prayer. At the next table is a woman with her son.

9. a) How does a brother named Chris see prayer?

For this brother, prayer is a way in which he can achieve tranquility, so much so that we can see how he enjoys this wonderful gift.

Brother Chris sees prayer as a wonderful gift. He loves to get up early to be able to pray quietly to Jehovah while he can see the first rays of the sun, it is born in him, to thank Jehovah for all his gifts and especially for the honor he has given him to be able to pray to him. Even at the end of his day he says a prayer for a peaceful sleep with a clear conscience.

9. b) How do you see the sentence?

I see it as a way in which I can unburden myself, in case of having any problems or difficulties, it makes me feel so special to be able to communicate with the creator of the universe and to know that he is willing to listen to me, without a doubt I enjoy telling him my joys and also my sorrows.

Personally, I try to make an effort to never see prayer as routine. I don\’t want to express words learned by heart. I want my prayer to have a true meaning. Sometimes I find myself with the dilemma that there are so many things that I have to say to God, but I know that he hears them no matter how long my prayers are, in them I can express to him how admired I am for his creation, the joys and sorrows of every day, the interest I feel for some people in the territory or even for some of my brothers who are going through problems. I also endeavor to ask that you continue to give guidance to the brothers of the governing body so that they can serve the interests of the kingdom here on earth. I always want to strive for my prayers to be spontaneous and from the heart.

THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

10. Why should we value God\’s holy spirit so highly?

Because it comes from God and how we know Jehovah wants the best for us and with the help of his spirit we can endure any trial that comes our way, we see how important God\’s holy spirit is so important that even Jesus encouraged us to ask for it insistently.

Jehovah is the best father there is if we plead with him from our hearts for his holy spirit he will never deny us. Let us ask for his Holy Spirit to be able to resist in this world dominated by Satan, let us do everything we can to continue receiving this wonderful help from God.

ILLUSTRATION

The sister preaches with her phone to the woman and the child.

11. How can the holy spirit help us?

It can help us in the responsibilities we receive in our service from God, if we ask for holy spirit we can fulfill these obligations as best as possible, because this spirit can enhance our talents and abilities.

It helps us to fulfill our responsibilities in a good way in our service to God. The holy spirit enhances or enhances our talents and abilities to achieve good results in our worship of Jehovah.

A biblical example of how the holy spirit enhances our abilities is that of Bezalel and Oliab. These were two Israelites who had been slaves for their entire lives, yet Jehovah commissioned them to build the Tabernacle. How could they build such a magnificent work? Jehovah filled them with holy spirit and enhanced their abilities. The tabernacle of the tent of meeting served its purpose for 485 years, Jehovah\’s spirit had worked through them.

16. Who should take the credit when we do well in ministry?

Like Paul, whenever we do well in the ministry, we should give credit to Jehovah.

To reap good results in preaching, we need Jehovah\’s help. Keeping this in mind helps us to be humble and have a correct attitude in ministry. Although it is true that we preach and teach with determination, the credit for growth belongs to Jehovah, none of us can understand the process of spiritual growth of the people of the territory, much less control it.

17. How can we show that we appreciate the honor of partnering with God, Christ, and the angels?

Looking for opportunities to be able to talk about the good news with as many people as possible, this is why apart from participating in public preaching and from house to house, we can also do it informally, either in the place of study or work, as well as In the means of transport that we use, for this we must realize if the person is willing to speak and thus tactfully present the message of the Kingdom.

We show our gratitude to Jehovah, Jesus, and the angels by taking every opportunity to preach to people. For example by preaching from house to house, by letter, by telephone, in public preaching and even informal preaching. Whenever we find a person willing to speak we give him the message of the Kingdom.

18, 19. a) How do we water the seeds of truth?

We water the seeds of truth, by doing our best to cultivate people\’s interest in the Kingdom message and in the event that due to some inconvenience we cannot start a Bible course, we can ask someone else to help us get in touch with this person.

Jehovah has given us many tools to cultivate people\’s interest, we have the teaching kit, the Bible, the magazines, the brochures, the jw site. It is important that we use these tools as each of us has a responsibility to keep busy with the preaching every month.

ILLUSTRATION

A sister giving Bible classes to a woman she gave informal witness to in a coffee shop and we also see angels smiling as they watch them study the Bible.

18, 19. (b) How did Jehovah help a Bible student named Raphalalani?

It helped him when the student allowed Jehovah to shape his way of thinking, it helped him to cleanse his life and thus allow him to participate in the ministry as a Jehovah\’s Witness, Jehovah also helped him through the brothers who helped him find a job that was in accordance with biblical teachings.

Raphalalani was a South African healer taking Bible classes and he loved what he learned when he read in Deuteronomy 18: 10-12 what the Bible teaches about communicating with ancestors he left witchcraft and allowed God to shape his way of thinking. Witchcraft was his source of employment so he is grateful to the Jehovah\’s Witnesses because they helped him find a new job and he is more than grateful to Jehovah for helping him clean his life, now he preaches and is a baptized witness.

20. What are we determined to do?

We are determined to value more the unseen treasures, our friendship with Jehovah, prayer, holy spirit and the support we receive from heaven in the ministry, also we will never stop thanking Jehovah for being a wonderful friend.

We are determined to value these treasures more and more, that is; being friends of Jehovah, prayer and the help of the holy spirit, as well as heavenly support in our ministry and we will never stop thanking Jehovah for being such a wonderful friend.

HOW CAN WE SHOW GRATITUDE FOR THESE TREASURES THAT ARE NOT SEEN?

The honor of praying.

We can do this by following the words recorded in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 17, praying constantly, since it is obvious that if someone gives us a gift we must use it, it is also necessary in all prayers to mention how grateful we are to Jehovah and praise him .

We show gratitude for the gift of prayer When we make constant use of it, no one forces us to pray we do it because it is a way of being close to God. So we pray many times throughout the day to give thanks and praise him.

The help of the holy spirit.

We can do it by reflecting on what the holy spirit is achieving today, one of the things they are achieving is that with the support of this spirit, more than 8 and a half million people from all corners of the planet have decided to serve. To Jehovah, another of the things the holy spirit accomplished is to help us cultivate wonderful qualities.

Jehovah\’s holy spirit helps us fulfill our responsibility to serve Jehovah, empowering our talents and abilities. Jehovah helps us through his spirit.

The support we receive from heaven in ministry.

We can do it by looking for opportunities to be able to talk about the good news with as many people as possible, that is why apart from participating in public preaching and from house to house we can also do it informally and thus in the place of study or work, As well as in the means of transportation that we use for this, we must realize if the person is willing to speak and thus tactfully present the message of the Kingdom.

Every day we are looking for new opportunities to speak the good news to as many people as possible, we do it in different ways from house to house and in public. Whenever we find someone willing to listen to us, we talk about the Kingdom of God no matter where we are.

Do You Appreciate God-Given Gifts?

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STUDY ARTICLE 21
Do You Appreciate God-Given Gifts?
“How many things you have done, O Jehovah my God, your wonderful works and your thoughts toward us.”—PS. 40:5.

SONG 5 God’s Wondrous Works
PREVIEW*

1-2. According to Psalm 40:5, what gifts has Jehovah given us, and why will we consider them?
According to this text he has given us so many gifts that we would even have a hard time telling them, but we can mention three wonderful gifts, the land that is the place that has given us to live, the brain with which we have the ability to think and communicate and also the Bible.
The Psalm says that there are many works of the Lord and he has done them for our favor, which shows us that jehovah is very generous to us, this paragraph mentions three gifts he has given us, the earth a place to live, the brain with the ability to think and communicate, and the Bible that gives us the answers to the most important questions of life.
For as we ponder these three more gifts we will value them and more we would like to please our loving Father Jehovah, so that we can be more prepared to be able to help people who have been deceived with the false doctrine of evolution.
How we want to please our Creator who loves us, we want to fulfill the commission he has given us to help others know him, and in this study we will specifically discuss these 3 gifts which will help us be prepared to help people who believe in the doctrine of evolution.
Based on the crushing trials of creation, these evidences show that these gifts are a sign of the great love of our creator Jehovah, which encourages us to proclaim the four winds that the Lord created all things and therefore deserves our respect and admiration.

OUR UNIQUE PLANET

3. Why is the earth unique?
3 There are two reasons why planet earth is special, the first is that if we set out to observe how the Lord has created the earth, we will be able to perceive what is mentioned in Romans chapter 1 verse 20, its qualities its power and its divinity, this is certainly a great privilege, the second reason is because it is the only planet that has the necessary conditions for human beings to live.
In Romans 1:20 we see a fundamental truth, the invisible qualities of the Lord are clearly seen in creation, for example love, the Lord created the earth with the perfect conditions for us to live there, it is the only planet with these characteristics that makes this gift special, in the course of the magazine we will analyze how his wisdom is manifested in the design and sustainability of this beautiful planet.

4. Why can we say that the earth is better than any man-made boat?
4  For example if we compare the earth with a ship, we can observe a little more in detail the wisdom of God, because while a ship is not able to produce its own oxygen, food and water, planet earth can provide us with these resources that are essential for life, in addition Jehovah designed the land with recycling systems that renew its resources as are the oxygen cycle and the water cycle.
The world\’s longest cruiser on a 245-day journey with a maximum of just over 8000 passengers and crew members, of course does not supply their own resources, we can imagine the magnitude of Jehovah who created a planet that has been self-sustaining for thousands of years, to build this ship requires well-prepared engineers to design a ship that can only recycle and acquire its resources, there is no doubt of the immense wisdom of our God Jehovah who designed a planet perfectly for human life that produces and recycles all the supplies necessary for our survival.

5. What is the oxygen cycle, and what does it confirm?
5 Oxygen: This cycle is the circulation of oxygen inside and on the surface of the earth, which in short becomes the absorption of oxygen and release of carbon dioxide or vice versa.
It is estimated that every year we occupy one hundred billion tons of oxygen, despite this the oxygen does not end since Jehovah created the cycle of oxygen with which carbon dioxide is transformed into oxygen, we notice the great wisdom of the Jehovah because thanks to this cycle we never worry about how much oxygen the Lord gave us hands full to breathe as much oxygen as we want.

6. What is the water cycle, and what does it prove? (See also the box “Jehovah’s Gift of the Water Cycle.”)
6 Water: It consists of the evaporation of water from the oceans and the Earth\’s surface, this evaporation ends in the formation of clouds. These clouds contain water that will later fall in the form of rain or snow.
It all starts with the perfect distance, the earth is close enough to the sun to heat the earth and evaporate the surface of the water, it transforms into clouds and about 10 days later, by rain, the water returns to seas, rivers, lakes or any accumulation of water…
This highly effective and sustainable cycle certainly shows that Jehovah is wise and powerful, since this cycle is something truly amazing.
This also demonstrates its great power since for the water cycle to exist Jehovah had to manipulate visible and invisible objects such as the sun, the planet Earth and other planets, as well as objects that we do not see such as oxygen or gravity. There is no doubt that meditating on the water cycle helps us increase our trust in Jehovah.
The water cycle is a gift from Jehovah
FRUITS, VEGETABLES AND FLOWERS
Thanks to the rain, the plants grow and give us food. And most of them produce flowers, which we like so much.
BEAUTY
Rivers, lakes and waterfalls beautify the planet and make life more enjoyable.
OTHER BENEFITS
For example, evaporation of sea water produces salt.
IN DAY TO DAY
We drink water and use it to prepare other drinks, such as lemonade, coffee or tea. And we also use water for cooking, cleaning and showering.

Jehovah’s Gift of the Water Cycle
•
FRUITS, VEGETABLES, AND FLOWERS
Rain makes plants grow, giving us food to eat. Most plants also produce flowers for our enjoyment
•
BEAUTY AND ENJOYMENT
Rivers, lakes, and waterfalls beautify the earth and bring us enjoyment
•
OTHER BENEFITS
The water cycle has other benefits. For instance, the evaporation of seawater produces salt
•
DAILY USE
We drink water and use it to make other drinks, such as lemonade, coffee, and tea. We also use water for cooking, cleaning, and bathing

7. What are some ways that we can show appreciation for the gift described at Psalm 115:16?
7 We do this by meditating on what Jehovah has created, obviously it is also necessary to tell Jehovah how grateful we are for the good he gives us, also another way to show appreciation is to keep the piece of land in which we live as clean as possible
Jehovah went out of his way to give us a home, as we have analyzed it is not just any home because our planet not only meets our needs, he also made an effort to make us enjoy it, we have a great variety of food seen etc. The best thing is that we don\’t even worry about this since it is self-sustaining, the least we could do is take care of it and keep our piece of Earth clean.

OUR UNIQUE BRAIN

8. Why can we say that our brain is a marvel of engineering?
8 Because despite its small size, an adult brain has approximately 100 billion neurons, and each nerve cell spreads thousands of connective fibers to establish contact with other nerve cells in the brain.
To get an idea of how many neurons we have in our brain we can take the world population as a reference, it is calculated that approximately we are 7,760,000,000 (seven thousand seven hundred and sixty million) humans on the planet, if an adult brain can house 100 billion neurons, Our brain houses more than 12 times the world population of people on earth. And all that only in an organ that only weighs 1.5 kg. Such a work could not have been entrusted to any beginner, much less to chance, it is undoubtedly the work of the greatest engineer in the universe.

9. What proves to you that our ability to speak is a gift from God?
9 Our ability to speak: What convinces that this gift comes from God are the recorded words Exodus chapter 4 verse 11, because only he has the ability for someone to speak or stop doing it, since the fact that in order to pronounce a single word, the brain has To coordinate the movements of the muscles of the tongue, the throat, the lips, the jaw and the chest, is that without good coordination, our words would not be easy to understand.
Seeing all the work of our body when speaking we can not think that everything happens by chance, it is as if an orchestra could be coordinated just by reading the notes, of course not, they require a conductor, in the same way someone was aware that our brain could move chest, jaw, tongue etc. in a coordinated way and Exodus 4:11 shows us that it was Jehovah.

10. How can we show that we appreciate the God-given gift of speech?
10 We do it by applying what is mentioned in Psalm chapter 9 verse 1, because it tells us to praise Jehovah and proclaim his wonderful works, we show appreciation if we take advantage of this wonderful gift of God to teach other people what his word the bible indicates. , since it is necessary to use it to indicate and explain to others why we are convinced that he is the creator of heaven and earth.
1 Peter 3:15 gives us a spirited invitation, to defend our faith, today many try to hide the glory of Jehovah through theories such as evolution and many others that discard the idea of a creator, that\’s why in harmony with this verse of the Bible let\’s defend our faith by preaching.

11. What is one reason why our brain is amazing?
11 Our capacity to remember:  Another reason is for our memory, and it is even believed that it can store even more of the information that would fit in 20 million books.
We can imagine the times we use memory, such as when we wash our hands, prepare food, etc. And all that information is stored in our brain. Without a doubt, the capacity we have to remember and store information is surprising, the work of the greatest engineer in the entire universe.

12. How does our ability to learn moral lessons separate us from the animals?
12 Thanks to this ability we can learn and express values such as love, compassion, mercy and justice, we can also correct our way of thinking and acting, in fact we have a conscience that we can train to distinguish the good from the bad .
Just as some Corinthian Christians many of us dislike Jehovah before knowing his norms, as we learn more from the Bible we acquire the ability to discern whether our decision is good or not, this is how we train our conscience thanks to the moral lessons that we extract from the Bible.

13. In line with Psalm 77:11, 12, how should we use our gift of memory?
13 We can use it by remembering the times that Jehovah has helped and comforted us, if we do this our confidence that he will help us in the future will be present, another way to use this gift is to always remember the goodness of other people, let\’s imitate the example of Although Jehovah has a perfect memory, he decides to forget our mistakes and forgive us.
It is also good to remember what others have done for our good, of course our imperfection makes us remember negative things more, but if we want to use our memory in the right way, that is why we will imitate our beloved God Jehovah who forgets our sins when we repent.

We show appreciation for the gift of our brain by using it to honor Jehovah (See paragraph 14)*

14. How can we show appreciation for the marvelous gift of our brain?
14 We do this by honoring Jehovah, recognizing that the standards and advice that he gives us will certainly benefit us, because if, as mentioned in Isaiah chapter 48 verse 18, we will enjoy true peace.
We can follow your advice. In Isaiah 48: 17,18 he shows us that they are for our own benefit, but they also serve to honor him, when we meditate on all that he has given us with our brain, all that we can achieve, there is no doubt that it is thanks to his loving kindness, so let\’s not be selfish and try to use our brains for our own benefit, let\’s think about showing Jehovah our gratitude by using it to be loyal and obedient to Him.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: There is no doubt that the human brain is extraordinary. But we must be careful with the great power it exercises over us. For example, consider the therapeutic effect of placebo. From the 18th century to date, some doctors have resorted to prescribing pills without curative action when they do not have any suitable medicine. Their intention is not always to deceive the patient, but to try to encourage in him a natural healing process driven by the mind. In some cases it is known that some people get cured of their diseases thanks to the convincing power that the placebo generates in their brain. If the brain is capable of this we must be careful not to fill our brain with things that can weaken us spiritually because if our brain is spiritually weak our entire body will also be weak.
ILLUSTRATION
In the picture we can see a sister learning the Hindi language, with the help of some cards and a book, and then the sister preaches to an Indian woman in the market using the Good News brochure, in this way our sister shows her appreciation for the wonderful gift that is our brain, for it is using it to honor Jehovah.

THE BIBLE—A UNIQUE GIFT

15. How does the gift of the Bible reflect Jehovah’s love for mankind?
15 It reflects this love by finding wise advice and answers to important questions such as Where do we come from? What is the meaning of life? and What will happen in the future ?, because all these we find in her word the bible.
The more than 7,760 million people who live in the world are important to Jehovah, that is why he has blessed the work of translating his word the Bible, currently it is available in more than 3000 languages, either in whole or in parts, although this covers approximately 90% of the human population continues to redouble their efforts so that this wonderful gift of Jehovah can be reached more people.
The Bible is translated into African languages
By 1800, the Bible — complete or in part — was available in some seventy languages, but very few of them were African. At that time, the Bantu languages did not have a writing system. But everything changed when people like William Boyce, a Methodist missionary from England, went to Africa and lived with people who spoke unwritten languages. Boyce contributed to the creation of a writing system for Xhosa, and with the collaboration of others he translated the Gospel of Luke into that language. This Gospel, which was published in 1833, contains the name of God in the same places where it now appears in the New World Translation. Furthermore, Boyce deciphered the complex grammatical norms not only of the Xhosa language, but also of all the Bantu languages. This opened the way for the Bible to be translated into many African languages. Today, the Bible can be read, in whole or in part, in over a thousand African languages. It is clear that Jehovah wants people of all nations to receive this gift (Acts 10:35).
ILLUSTRATION
Sisters and a brother with the newly published Xhosa Translation of the New World in their hands.
In 2019, the New World Translation was presented in xhosa, one of the more than one hundred and eighty languages in which this translation is available, in whole or in part.

Making the Bible Available in African Languages
By the year 1800, printed copies of the Bible in whole or in part were available in some 70 languages, but very few of those languages were spoken in Africa. At the time, the African Bantu languages did not have a written form. Things changed when individuals, such as William Boyce from England, went to Africa and lived with people who spoke unwritten languages. Boyce helped to develop a written form of Xhosa, and he, along with others, translated the Gospel of Luke into that language. Published in 1833, this Gospel contained God’s name in all the same places that it now appears in the New World Translation. Boyce also discovered the key to the complex grammatical rules that govern not only the Xhosa language but also the complete Bantu-language family. This opened the way for translators to produce the Bible in many other African languages. Today, the Bible or portions of it are available in over 1,000 African languages. Clearly, Jehovah wants people from every nation to have this gift!—Acts 10:35.

In 2019 the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures was released in Xhosa—one of the over 180 languages in which this translation is now available in whole or in part

16. Based on Matthew 28:19, 20, how can we prove that we appreciate the Bible?
16 According to the quoted text we can show appreciation by taking the message of the Bible to as many people as possible and according to the paragraph, another way to show appreciation is to use it and we do it by reading it every day, meditating on what it teaches and strive to put into practice what we learn.
Let\’s imagine that we see a person in need and we give them food that will help them to have better health, we would really feel very bad if they accept it but don\’t eat it, let\’s not make Jehovah feel bad, on the contrary we show gratitude for his wonderful gift that is The Bible, one of the best ways is taking advantage of this spiritual food with daily reading, if we do it we will be like the trees described in Psalms 1: 3, healthy trees that are planted near the waters and bear their fruit at the appropriate time.

17. What kind of gifts have we considered in this article, and what will be discussed in the next article?
17 In this article we have talked about three gifts from God, our home the earth, our amazing brain and his inspired word the bible and in the next article we will discuss some other gifts from Jehovah that have something unique, they are invisible.

HOW CAN WE SHOW THAT WE APPRECIATE…..

The Earth?
We do this by meditating on what Jehovah has obviously created.It is also necessary to tell Jehovah how grateful we are for how good he gives us.Another way to show appreciation is to keep the piece of land in which we live as clean as possible.
It can be in 2 ways:
Defending Jehovah from theories such as evolution and many that discard the idea of a creator and use the same creation to highlight its invisible qualities.
Taking care of our space in which we live as well as keeping it clean, Jehovah created everything beautiful, let us help keep it looking like this

Our Brain?
We do this to honor Jehovah, recognizing that the standards and advice that he gives us will certainly benefit us, because as mentioned in Isaiah 48:18, we will enjoy true peace.
We can show our gratitude by using it the right way, studying moral lessons that will be in our memory when facing some test, also using the skills of speech to declare the glory of Jehovah to all others.

The Bible?
We do it by taking the message of the Bible to as many people as possible, also by using it, and we do it by reading it every day, meditating on what it teaches us and striving to put into practice what we learn.
This gift from Jehovah, unlike the other two, offers us eternal rewards. If we study it deeply, we put into practice what we learn and foster a love for Jehovah based on this study and knowledge, we can enjoy a great friendship with Jehovah and eternal life.

SONG 12 Great God, Jehovah

This article will build our appreciation for Jehovah and for three of the gifts that he has given us. It will also help us to reason with those who doubt that God exists.
PICTURE DESCRIPTION: A sister is learning a foreign language in order to teach immigrants the truths of God’s Word.

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Do You Appreciate God-Given Gifts? – Study Article

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STUDY ARTICLE 21

Do You Appreciate God-Given Gifts?

“How many things you have done, O Jehovah my God, your wonderful works and your thoughts toward us.”​—PS. 40:5.
SONG 5 God’s Wondrous Works
PREVIEW*
1-2. According to Psalm 40:5, what gifts has Jehovah given us, and why will we consider them?
JEHOVAH is a generous God. Think of some of the gifts he has given us: our beautiful and unique home, the earth; our marvelously designed brain; and his precious Word, the Bible. By means of these three gifts, Jehovah has given us a place to live, he has granted us the ability to think and communicate, and he has answered the most important questions we could ask.​—Read Psalm 40:5.
2 In this article, we will briefly consider those three gifts. The more we meditate on them, the more we will appreciate them and the stronger our desire will be to please our loving Creator, Jehovah. (Rev. 4:11) We will also be better equipped to help those who have been misled by the false doctrine of evolution.

OUR UNIQUE PLANET

3. Why is the earth unique?
3 God’s wisdom is clearly seen in the way he constructed our home, the earth. (Rom. 1:20; Heb. 3:4) Ours is not the only planet to orbit the sun, but the earth is unique because it has all the right conditions to sustain human life.
4. Why can we say that the earth is better than any man-made boat?
4 In some respects, the earth is like a boat floating in the vast ocean of space. But there are key differences between a man-made boat, full of people, and our earth. For example, how long would the occupants of a literal boat survive if they had to produce their own oxygen, food, and water and if they could not throw any waste products overboard? The people in that boat would soon die. In contrast, the earth supports billions of living creatures. It produces all the oxygen, food, and water we need, and we do not run out of those vital supplies. Its waste products are not ejected into space; yet, the earth remains beautiful and habitable. How is that possible? Jehovah designed the earth with the ability to recycle resources. We will briefly look at two of these brilliantly designed cycles, the oxygen cycle and the water cycle.
5. What is the oxygen cycle, and what does it confirm?
5 Oxygen is a life-sustaining gas that is used by some living things, including us. It has been estimated that living creatures breathe in a hundred billion tons of oxygen in a year. These same creatures breathe out a waste product called carbon dioxide. Yet, these living creatures never consume all the oxygen, and the atmosphere never becomes choked with the “waste” gas, carbon dioxide. Why not? Because Jehovah also created organisms​—from large trees to tiny algae—​that take in carbon dioxide and give off oxygen. In a very literal way, the oxygen cycle confirms the words recorded at Acts 17:24, 25: “God . . . gives to all people life and breath.”
6. What is the water cycle, and what does it prove? (See also the box “Jehovah’s Gift of the Water Cycle.”)
6 Water in liquid form exists on earth because our planet is located at the perfect distance from the sun. If it were just a little closer, all the water would boil off, leaving a hot, lifeless rock. If the earth were just a little farther from the sun, all the water would freeze, turning the earth into a giant ball of ice. Because Jehovah placed the earth at this ideal location, the earth’s water cycle can sustain life. The sun heats water in the oceans and on the earth’s surface and evaporates the water to form clouds. Each year, the sun evaporates nearly 120,000 cubic miles (500,000 cu km) of water. This water stays in the atmosphere for about ten days before falling as rain or snow. The water eventually makes its way back to the oceans or other bodies of water, and the cycle is repeated. This efficient, sustainable cycle proves that Jehovah is both wise and powerful.​—Job 36:27, 28; Eccl. 1:7.
7. What are some ways that we can show appreciation for the gift described at Psalm 115:16?
7 How can we develop appreciation for our amazing planet and all that it supplies? (Read Psalm 115:16.) One way is by meditating on the things Jehovah has made. That will motivate us to thank Jehovah each day for the good things he gives us. And we show that we appreciate the earth by keeping the part of it where we live as clean as possible.

OUR UNIQUE BRAIN

8. Why can we say that our brain is a marvel of engineering?
8 The human brain is a marvel of engineering. When you were in your mother’s womb, your brain was built according to a preset plan, and thousands of new brain cells were constructed every minute! Researchers estimate that an adult’s brain contains close to 100 billion special cells called neurons. These cells have been efficiently assembled into a package that weighs about 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg). Consider just a few of the brain’s amazing abilities.
9. What proves to you that our ability to speak is a gift from God?
9 Our ability to speak is a miracle. Think for a moment about the mechanics of speaking. With each word you say, your brain has to coordinate the movement of some 100 muscles in your tongue, throat, lips, jaw, and chest. All those muscles have to move according to precise timing if the words are to be understood. Regarding the ability to speak languages, a study published in 2019 showed that newborn babies can pick out individual words. This finding reinforces what many researchers believe​—that we are born with the ability to recognize and learn languages. Certainly, our ability to speak is a gift from God.​—Ex. 4:11.
10. How can we show that we appreciate the God-given gift of speech?
10 One way we can show that we appreciate our gift of speech is by explaining our belief in God to those who wonder why we do not accept the teaching of evolution. (Ps. 9:1; 1 Pet. 3:15) Those who promote that doctrine would have us believe that the earth and all life on it came about by accident. Using the Bible and some of the points we discussed in this article, we can defend our heavenly Father and explain to those who are willing to listen why we are convinced that Jehovah is the Creator of heaven and earth.​—Ps. 102:25; Isa. 40:25, 26.
11. What is one reason why our brain is amazing?
11 Our capacity to remember is amazing. In the past, one author estimated that the human brain has the ability to remember information that would fill the equivalent of 20 million books. Now, however, it is thought that our memory capacity is much larger. What unique ability do humans have?
12. How does our ability to learn moral lessons separate us from the animals?
12 Among all the creatures on earth, only humans have the ability to learn moral lessons by remembering and analyzing past events. As a result, we can adopt better values and change our way of thinking and living. (1 Cor. 6:9-11; Col. 3:9, 10) In fact, we can train our conscience to recognize the difference between right and wrong. (Heb. 5:14) We can learn to show love, compassion, and mercy. And we can develop a healthy sense of justice.
13. In line with Psalm 77:11, 12, how should we use our gift of memory?
13 One way we prove that we appreciate the gift of memory is by choosing to remember all the times that Jehovah has helped and comforted us in the past. This will build our confidence that he will also help us in the future. (Read Psalm 77:11, 12; 78:4, 7) Another way is by remembering the good things that other people do for us and being grateful for what they do. Researchers have found that people who are grateful are more likely to be happy. We also do well to imitate Jehovah regarding the things he chooses to forget. For example, Jehovah has a perfect memory, but if we are repentant, he chooses to forgive and forget the mistakes we make. (Ps. 25:7;130:3, 4) And he wants us to do the same for others when they are sorry for mistakes they make that hurt us.​—Matt. 6:14; Luke 17:3, 4.

We show appreciation for the gift of our brain by using it to honor Jehovah (See paragraph 14)*
14. How can we show appreciation for the marvelous gift of our brain?
14 We can show appreciation for the marvelous gift of our brain by using it to honor the One who gave it to us. Some choose to use their brain for selfish purposes​—to set their own standards of right and wrong. But because Jehovah created us, it is only reasonable to expect that his standards are better than any standards we could set for ourselves. (Rom. 12:1, 2) When we live by his standards, our life is peaceful. (Isa. 48:17, 18) And we gain a clear purpose for living​—to bring honor to our Creator and Father and make him proud of us.​—Prov. 27:11.

THE BIBLE​—A UNIQUE GIFT

15. How does the gift of the Bible reflect Jehovah’s love for mankind?
15 The Bible is a loving gift from God. Our heavenly Father inspired men to write it because he cares greatly for his earthly children. By means of the Bible, Jehovah answers the most important questions we could ask, such as: Where did we come from? What is the purpose of life? And what does the future hold? Jehovah wants all his children to learn the answers to those questions, so throughout the centuries he has moved men to translate the Bible into many languages. Today, the whole Bible or portions of it are available in over 3,000 languages! The Bible is the most widely translated and distributed book in history. No matter where people live or what language they speak, most have the opportunity to learn the Bible’s message in their mother tongue.​—See the box “Making the Bible Available in African Languages.”
16. Based on Matthew 28:19, 20, how can we prove that we appreciate the Bible?
16 We can prove that we appreciate the Bible by reading it each day, meditating on what it teaches, and doing our best to apply what we learn. In addition, we show our gratitude to God by doing all we can to share its message with as many people as possible.​—Ps. 1:1-3; Matt. 24:14; read Matthew 28:19, 20.
17. What kind of gifts have we considered in this article, and what will be discussed in the next article?
17 So far we have considered such God-given gifts as our home, the earth; our amazingly designed brain; and God’s inspired Word, the Bible. But there are other gifts that Jehovah has given us that are invisible to our eyes. These unseen treasures will be discussed in the next article.
SONG 12 Great God, Jehovah
This article will build our appreciation for Jehovah and for three of the gifts that he has given us. It will also help us to reason with those who doubt that God exists.
PICTURE DESCRIPTION: A sister is learning a foreign language in order to teach immigrants the truths of God’s Word.

“The King of the North” in the Time of the End

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STUDY ARTICLE 19

“The King of the North” in the Time of the End

“In the time of the end the king of the south will engage with him [the king of the north] in a pushing.”​—DAN. 11:40.
SONG 150 Seek God for Your Deliverance
PREVIEW*
1. What does Bible prophecy reveal to us?
Not all Biblical professes have the purpose of predicting the future. However, there are professes of the Bible that help us know that important events will affect us very soon.
There is one in particular that reveals to us what some of the most powerful governments in the world will do. It is found in Daniel, chapter 11, and describes the struggle between two kings: the king of the north and the king of the south.
Much of that prophecy has already been fulfilled, so we can be sure that the rest will also come true.
2. As indicated at Genesis 3:15 and Revelation 11:7 and 12:17, what facts must we keep in mind when studying Daniel’s prophecy?
2 According to these texts we must bear in mind that it refers only to rulers and governments who have had a direct influence on the people of Jehovah, governments that have acted according to Satan’s\’ goal which is to eliminate those who serve Jehovah and Jesus.
Satan\’s primary goal and his entire system is to eliminate those who serve Jehovah and Jesus.
3. What will we discuss in this article and the one that follows?
3 In this and the following article we will discuss Daniel\’s prophecy which is recorded in Daniel chapter 11, in addition to this article we will review who were the king of the north and the king of the south between 1870 and 1991, and we will see why it is logical to change the way we understand a part of the prophecy and, for the next article, it will clarify what the prophecy tells us about the period that begins in the 1990 and culminates in Armageddon.
IDENTIFYING THE KING OF THE NORTH AND THE KING OF THE SOUTH
4. What three factors should we look for when identifying the king of the north and the king of the south?
4 Although the identities of the king of the north and the king of the south over time have been changing, during all this time they have kept three points in common. First, they have greatly influenced the people of Jehovah, second by the way they treat their people, they have shown that they hate the true God, and, third, both kings have become involved in a struggle against each other.
5. Can we identify the king of the north and the king of the south from the 2nd century C.E. to the late 19th century? Explain.
5 No, because if we remember the first two common points of these kings that were mentioned in the previous paragraph, we see that they have to do with the people of Jehovah, although among the second century there were Christians, these should not be considered as the people of Jehovah because they were false Christians, so we can say that during this time there was no organized group of servants of God who could be attacked , on the other hand we cannot be entirely sure as far as the end of the nineteenth century is concerned.
6. When could God’s people again be identified? Explain.
6 It was in 1870, and it was possible to know because it was on this date that Brother Russell and his companions formed a Bible study group. As predicted, this group was the messenger who would clear the way before the Messianic kingdom was established.
WHO IS THE KING OF THE SOUTH?
7. Who was the king of the south well into World War I?
7 Becoming the world\’s greatest empire, Britain was the king of the south until well into World War I.
8. Who has been the king of the south throughout the last days?
8 The king of the south over the last few days has been the alliance that exists between Britain and the United States that, as mentioned in Daniel 11:25, have formed an immensely large and powerful army.


THE KING OF THE NORTH REAPPEARS

9. When did the king of the north reappear, and how was Daniel 11:25 fulfilled?

•  This king reappeared in 1817, just after Russell and his companions formed his Bible study group and this king is Germany.

•  They have been fulfilled since Germany became a colonial power and began to gather a powerful execution, also defying Britain\’s supremacy.

10. How was Daniel 11:25b, 26 fulfilled?

10 It was fulfilled when officials as generals and military advisers of the emperor began as mentioned in Daniel\’s prophecy plotting evil plans against him, from withdrawing his support for the emperor, disclosing confidential information about the war and even forcing him to resign, followed by this also fulfilled these words when in World War I the German army was razed.

11. What did the king of the north and the king of the south do?

11 First lies began to be told about whether, wishing for peace, lies laid and despite that in 1914 war broke out, also in previous decades the king of the north that is to say Germany began to accumulate wealth, to the point that it became the second largest economy of the world and finally this king decides to fight against the king of the south, but as mentioned in the cited text he was humiliated, that is, he was defeated.

THE KINGS FIGHT GOD’S PEOPLE

12. In the first world war, what did the king of the north and the king of the south do?

12 The two kings redoubled their attacks on each other and also on the people of God. And in World War I, both the German and British governments persecuted God\’s servants who refused to fight, and the United States government also jailed those who led the preaching.

13. In the 1930’s and during the second world war, what did the king of the north do?

13 This king attacked the people of God without any compassion, they not only prohibited our work, but that Hitler and those who supported him killed hundreds of Jehovah\’s servants and also sent thousands to the concentration camps, and even Hitler swore that he would exterminate the God\’s people in Germany.

A NEW KING OF THE NORTH RISES

14. Who took on the role of the king of the north after the second world war? Explain.

14 After the Second World War, the Soviet Union assumed the role of the king of the north, and we know this since both it and its allies showed opposition to anyone who put the worship of Jehovah over the obedience to the state.*

15. What did the king of the north do after World War II ended?

15 What he did was oppose and attack God\’s people, from banning preaching to even sending thousands of Jehovah\’s servants into exile.

16. How did the Soviet Union fulfill Daniel 11:37-39?

16 Read Daniel 11:37-39. These words were fulfilled by wanting to completely end religions, so much so that he even ordered the teaching of atheism in schools, another way in which these words were fulfilled was when huge amounts of money were spent in order to reinforce their I exercise and produce thousands of nuclear weapons to increase their influence.

A RARE ACT OF COOPERATION

17. What is “the disgusting thing that causes desolation”?

17 This disgusting and devastating thing is the United Nations Organization.

18. Why is the United Nations described as a “disgusting thing”?

18 Firstly it is considered as the disgusting thing because it promises to bring world peace, something that obviously will not be able to because it is something that only the Kingdom of God can achieve, on the other hand it is considered as devastating because being the one who plays a very important role in the destruction of all false religions.

WHY DO WE NEED TO KNOW THIS HISTORY?

19-20. (a) Why do we need to know this history? (b) What question will we answer in the next article?

19 (a) Because this is how we see a part of Daniel\’s prophecy about the king of the north and the king of the south was fulfilled between 1870 and 1991. Therefore we can have faith that the rest of this prophecy will also come true.

(b) The question is who is the king of the North today?

HOW WOULD YOU ANSWER?

• What three factors help us identify “the king of the north” and “the king of the south”?

Although the identities of the king of the north and the king of the south have changed over time, during all this time they have kept three points in common. First, they have had a significant influence on Jehovah\’s people. Second, by the way they treat their people, they have shown that they hate the true God. And third, both kings have engaged in a fight against each other.

• Who fulfilled the roles of the king of the north and of the king of the south from the 1870’s to 1991?

Let\’s start with the king of the north who since 1871 was Germany, but already after the second world war who assumed this role was the Soviet Union, now the king of the south we can say that until well into the first world war it was Great Britain while throughout the last few days it has been this same with the alliance it has with the United States.

• Why do we need to know this history?

For thus we see how a part of Daniel\’s prophecy about the king of the north and the king of the south have been fulfilled. Therefore we can have faith that the rest of this prophecy will also come true.


SONG 128   Enduring to the End

We are seeing evidence that Daniel’s prophecy about “the king of the north” and “the king of the south” continues to be fulfilled. How can we be so sure? And why do we need to understand the details of this prophecy?

For the reason stated here, it no longer seems appropriate to list Roman Emperor Aurelian (270-275 C.E.) as a “king of the north” or Queen Zenobia (267-272 C.E.) as a “king of the south.” This updates what was published in chapters 13 and 14 of the book Pay Attention to Daniel’s Prophecy!

See the box “The Anglo-American World Power in Bible Prophecy.”

In 1890, Kaiser Wilhelm II forced Bismarck out of power.

They hastened the fall of the empire in a number of ways. For instance, they withdrew support for the Kaiser, leaked sensitive information about losses in the war, and forced the Kaiser to abdicate.

As indicated at Daniel 11:34, Christians living under the king of the north experienced some relief from persecution. This happened, for example, when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

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