Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Guard against the satanic lie that Jehovah doesn't care about you! w04 2/15 pp. 19-20 pars. 17-20

*** w04 2/15 pp. 19-20 pars. 17-20 Guard Against Deception ***
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17 There is another lie that Satan has effectively used—the lie that Jehovah neither loves us nor values us. Satan has had thousands of years to study imperfect humans. He well knows that discouragement can weaken us. (Proverbs 24:10) Hence, he promotes the lie that we are worthless in God’s eyes. If we are “thrown down” and become convinced that Jehovah does not care about us, we may be tempted to give up. (2 Corinthians 4:9) That is just what the great Deceiver wants! How, then, can we guard against being deceived by this satanic lie?
18 Personally take to heart what the Bible says about God’s love for us. God’s Word uses some touching word pictures to assure us that Jehovah notices us and loves us as individuals. He puts your tears in his “skin bottle,” meaning that he sees and remembers the tears you shed in your struggle to remain faithful. (Psalm 56:8) He knows when you are “broken at heart” and is near to you at such times. (Psalm 34:18) He knows every detail about you, including the number of “the very hairs of your head.” (Matthew 10:29-31) Above all, God “gave his only-begotten Son” in your behalf. (John 3:16; Galatians 2:20) At times, you may find it difficult to believe that such scriptures apply to you personally. We must, however, take Jehovah at his word. He wants us to believe that he loves us not only as a group but as individuals.
19 Recognize and reject the lie. If you know that someone is lying, you can protect yourself against being deceived. So, too, just knowing that Satan wants you to believe the lie that Jehovah does not love you can in itself be a powerful help. In response to a Watchtower article that warned about Satan’s tactics, one Christian said: “I never realized that Satan tries to use my feelings to discourage me. Knowing this gives me the motivation to fight these feelings.”
20 Consider the experience of a traveling overseer in a South American country. When making shepherding calls on fellow believers who are downhearted, he often asks them, ‘Do you believe in the Trinity?’ The discouraged one usually answers, ‘Of course not,’ realizing that this is one of Satan’s lies. The traveling elder then asks, ‘Do you believe in hellfire?’ Again comes the answer, ‘Of course not!’ The traveling elder then tells them that there is another satanic lie that is usually not recognized as such. He directs their attention to page 249, paragraph 21, of the book Draw Close to Jehovah, which exposes the lie that Jehovah does not love us as individuals. The traveling overseer reports positive results from thus helping discouraged ones to recognize and reject this satanic lie.
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17. Why does Satan promote the lie that Jehovah neither loves us nor values us?
18. How does the Bible assure us of Jehovah’s love?
19, 20. (a) Why is it important to recognize and reject the satanic lie that Jehovah does not love you? (b) How has one traveling overseer helped downhearted ones?

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