00:01 There are people who believe
00:03 there is no need for a religious organization.
00:06 They feel they have their own personal relationship with God
00:10 and that is good enough.
00:12 They see no need to be associated with a specific organization.
00:17 However, what does God’s own inspired Word suggest?
00:21 That he would use an organization, or channel,
00:25 through which spiritual food would be dispensed
00:27 from his Word, the Bible.
00:31 For example,
1 Peter 2:17 says
00:34 to “have love for the whole association of brothers.”
00:38 One dictionary definition for “association”
00:42 is “an organization of persons having a common interest.”
00:47 We have a very interesting, insightful look
00:50 at the organization in the first century.
00:53 If we glance down through chapter 15 of the book of Acts,
00:58 we can gain some insight.
01:01 Verse 1 indicates there was an issue that caused a disagreement
01:05 between some of the members of the congregation.
01:08 Then verse 2 says:
01:10 “But after quite a bit of dissension and disputing
01:14 “by Paul and Barnabas with them,
01:16 “it was arranged for Paul, Barnabas, and some of the others
01:19 “to go up to the apostles and elders in Jerusalem
01:23 regarding this issue.”
01:26 It sounds like an organization to me.
01:29 And after considerable discussion
01:31 and with the help of God’s holy spirit,
01:35 what transpired?
01:37 Verses 22 and 23 say:
01:41 “Then the apostles and the elders, together with the whole congregation,
01:45 “decided to send chosen men from among them to Antioch,
01:48 “along with Paul and Barnabas;
01:50 “they sent Judas who was called Barsabbas and Silas,
01:54 “who were leading men among the brothers.
01:56 They wrote this and sent it through them.”
02:00 Then in verses 23-29
02:03 is the letter of direction that was delivered to Antioch
02:06 and other congregations as well.
02:08 In fact, in verse 41, it says Paul and Silas
02:12 “went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the congregations.”
02:16 Chapter 16, verse 5 says:
02:19 “Then, indeed, the congregations continued to be made firm in the faith
02:23 and to increase in number day by day.”
02:27 So it was not a matter of isolated Christians sitting at home
02:32 claiming to have a personal relationship with God.
02:35 No, the work was organized,
02:38 and congregations kept being added “day by day.”
02:43 That is very similar to what we see in Jehovah’s organization today.
02:47 In fact, the organization of Jehovah’s Witnesses is patterned
02:51 after the first-century Christian congregation
02:54 as set forth in the Scriptures.
02:57 I would like to remind all of Jehovah’s Witnesses
03:00 —whether already baptized or working toward baptism—
03:04 of this book, Organized to Do Jehovah’s Will.
03:09 It provides an overall view
03:11 of how the Christian congregation is organized
03:14 for getting God’s work done.
03:16 The book also offers counsel and direction
03:19 to help us maintain unity with our brothers worldwide.
03:24 New ones need to become familiar
03:26 with the operation of Jehovah’s organization
03:28 and learn how they can have a share
03:30 in the modern-day preaching work.
03:32 In fact, when a Bible student progresses
03:36 and desires to join us in the ministry
03:38 as an unbaptized publisher,
03:40 the elders direct him to make a study of this book,
03:44 including the “Questions for Those Desiring to Get Baptized”
03:48 in the appendix.
03:50 Even for those of us who have been baptized many years,
03:54 it may be good to schedule the reading
03:56 of one chapter of the book each week
03:59 during our personal study or family worship.
04:03 It contains general information
04:05 concerning the duties of elders and ministerial servants,
04:08 judicial procedures,
04:10 and various other features of congregation organization.
04:15 I would like to take a few minutes and review some of the information
04:19 in chapter 1 of the publication.
04:23 Though there are thousands of national
04:25 and international organizations around the world,
04:28 they are organized
04:30 according to human viewpoints and philosophies.
04:33 But our organization is different;
04:36 it is theocratic.
04:38 That means it is ruled by Jehovah as Head over all.
04:43 Isaiah 33:22 says that he is our Judge,
04:48 Lawgiver, and King.
04:51 Many large organizations appoint
04:54 a chief executive officer, or CEO.
04:57 He is the executive with the chief decision-making authority
05:01 in a business or corporation.
05:04 In a similar way, Jehovah has appointed his Son, Jesus,
05:08 to be the one with chief decision-making authority
05:12 over the congregation of God.
05:15 Ephesians 1:22
05:19 is speaking of Jehovah’s actions in connection with Jesus.
05:22 It says:
05:24 “He also subjected all things under his feet
05:28 “and made him head over all things
05:31 with regard to the congregation.”
05:35 We see the structure of the organization taking shape.
05:38 Jehovah is the Universal Sovereign, the King,
05:42 directing the millions of angels
05:44 making up his heavenly organization.
05:47 But when it comes to directing
05:49 the visible earthly part of God’s organization,
05:53 he has delegated that responsibility to Jesus,
05:56 the head of the congregation of God.
05:58 Chapter 2 of the Organized book
06:01 explains this Scriptural position of Jesus.
06:05 And how does Jesus direct the organization here on earth?
06:09 Matthew 24:45 says that Jesus has appointed
06:13 a “faithful and discreet slave”
06:16 to serve spiritual “food at the proper time.”
06:20 Today,
06:21 seven anointed men make up the faithful slave,
06:24 and collectively, they are known as the Governing Body.
06:27 And Jesus uses the holy spirit to direct these men
06:31 in harmony with the Scriptures.
06:34 The Scriptural basis for this layer of organization
06:37 is set forth in chapter 3 of the book.
06:40 Chapter 4 is entitled
06:42 “How the Congregation Is Organized and Governed.”
06:46 The organizational structure incorporates Branch Committees,
06:50 circuit overseers, elders, and ministerial servants.
06:55 The subject index in the back of the book
06:57 can be useful to quickly gain access to information
07:01 on various aspects of the organization.
07:05 Suppose you’re a young person,
07:07 maybe even a relatively young married couple.
07:11 The circuit overseer is visiting,
07:13 and he asks you what spiritual goals you have.
07:16 How would you answer?
07:18 Would your mind start racing,
07:20 trying to think of various avenues of service available?
07:25 How about now, before you are asked such a question,
07:29 you look in the subject index under “Goals”?
07:34 There are 11 references to paragraphs in the book on that subject.
07:39 After reading about all
07:41 of the possibilities and different categories,
07:43 you would be in a better position to plan your life
07:46 for a great future
07:48 in the earthly part of Jehovah’s organization.
07:53 At this time,
07:55 I would like to draw your attention to a very important factor
07:59 in a new ones making progress
08:01 and attaining spiritual stability.
08:04 On page 213 of the Organized book,
08:09 it discusses a person interested in being baptized.
08:13 After the elders go over the questions in part 3 of the book,
08:17 it says this:
08:19 “If he has not completed his study of the Bible Teach and ‘God’s Love’ books,
08:23 the elders should make arrangements for someone to help him do so.”
08:30 The two books complement each other so well.
08:34 When someone becomes a dedicated and baptized servant of Jehovah,
08:39 we want them to stay closely attached to the organization.
08:43 Yet every year,
08:45 there are a number who stop attending meetings
08:47 and become inactive.
08:49 At times, it has been found
08:51 that they did not finish studying the two books.
08:55 You see,
08:56 the Bible Teach book helps new ones
08:59 to have an accurate knowledge of the Bible,
09:01 and they often learn to love Jehovah.
09:05 The “Keep Yourselves in God’s Love” book
09:07 helps us to learn to apply the Bible
09:10 and live in harmony with Jehovah’s standards.
09:13 Notice what Jesus told his faithful apostles
09:17 at John 15:10:
09:23 “If you observe my commandments, you will remain in my love,
09:27 “just as I have observed the commandments of the Father
09:30 and remain in his love.”
09:33 Did you notice that Jesus remained in God’s love
09:36 by observing his Father’s commandments?
09:39 The same is true of us today.
09:42 To remain in God’s love,
09:44 we need to apply the truth in our everyday life.
09:48 And what is the result if we keep ourselves in God’s love?
09:52 It is so clearly stated
09:55 in Jude 21:
09:58 “In order to keep yourselves in God’s love,
10:02 “while you await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ
10:05 with everlasting life in view.”
10:09 Staying in God’s love results in everlasting life.
10:14 It is so important to make sure our Bible students
10:17 complete a study of both books,
10:21 and that applies to our children too.
10:23 Sometimes as parents,
10:25 we can assume that our children are developing
10:27 a trusting relationship with Jehovah
10:30 because they have been going to meetings since they were very small.
10:34 A relationship with Jehovah does not happen by means of osmosis.
10:39 A child does not simply absorb and assimilate truth
10:43 and a love for God
10:45 just by being in the presence of others
10:47 who have a close relationship with Jehovah.
10:51 We very much appreciate all of the videos we have,
10:55 including Become Jehovah’s Friend and JW Broadcasting.
10:59 But new ones and young ones
11:02 need to be able to go through the process of deep study
11:07 to get to the Bible’s truth
11:09 and get it etched into their minds
11:11 and lodged deep in their hearts.
11:14 Therefore,
11:16 if you parents realize that you have not studied
11:18 both books with your young ones,
11:21 it would be good to see that a schedule is established to do so.
11:26 The Governing Body gives all credit
11:29 for the success of this organization to Jehovah
11:32 and the appointed head of the congregation, Jesus Christ.
11:36 We are just imperfect men trying to follow
11:39 the lead of Christ and the holy spirit.
11:42 At 1 Corinthians 1:26,
11:47 Paul says:
11:49 “For you see his calling of you, brothers,
11:51 that there are not many wise in a fleshly way.”
11:54 Verse 27 says:
11:56 “But God chose the foolish things of the world
12:00 to put the wise men to shame.”
12:02 Then verse 30 says that Christ Jesus
12:05 “has become to us wisdom from God.”
12:10 That is where the direction and wisdom
12:12 of the organization come from,
12:14 not from mere man.
12:18 The words of Jehovah to the prophet Zechariah fit today
12:22 when we see the amazing advances in the organization.
12:25 Zechariah 4:6 says:
12:27 “‘Not by a military force, nor by power,
12:31 but by my spirit,’ says Jehovah of armies.”
12:36 While there are some well-educated and prominent men
12:39 who have accepted the truth and are now our fellow brothers,
12:43 the majority in the organization come from a more humble background.
12:47 For example,
12:49 among the first of Jehovah’s modern-day servants
12:52 to introduce the Kingdom message to people in Denmark
12:55 was a shoemaker.
12:57 In Switzerland and France, it was a gardener.
13:00 In many parts of Africa,
13:02 the message was carried by itinerant workers.
13:05 In Brazil, sailors had a share.
13:08 Quite a few of the Polish Witnesses in northern France
13:12 were coal miners.
13:14 Jehovah and Jesus use all of us
13:17 to get a remarkable work accomplished.
13:20 We are proud to be a part of this spirit-directed organization.
13:25 As one older circuit overseer was heard to say,
13:28 “This is the best imperfect organization on earth!”
13:33 There are no perfect organizations on earth.
13:36 However, this is the best of them all.
13:40 And we appreciate the contribution all of you make
13:44 to the success of the preaching work worldwide.
