"Then Is Finished The Mystery Of God"

Chapter 8

To the Angel in Ephesus

Revelation 2:1-7

EPHESUS was the metropolis of the ancient province of Asia, and was about sixty miles from the Isle of Patmos where John was. In fitness with this fact the glorified Jesus Christ directed the apostle John to write to the human overseer of the congregation there first. "To the angel of the congregation in Ephesus write: These are the things that he says who holds the seven stars in his right hand, he who walks in the midst of the seven golden lamp-stands, 'I know your deeds, and your labor and endurance, and that you cannot bear bad men, and that you put those to the test who say they are apostles, but they are not, and you found them liars. You are also showing endurance, and you have borne up for my name's sake and have not grown weary. Nevertheless, I hold this against you, that you have left the love you had at first.

"'Therefore remember from what you have fallen, and repent and do the former deeds. If you do not, I am coming to you, and I will remove your lamp-stand from its place, unless you repent. Still, you do have this, that you hate the deeds of the sect of Nicolaus, which I also hate. Let the one who has an oar hear what the spirit says to the congregations: To him that conquers I will grant to eat of the tree I Greek, xylon] of life, which is in the paradise of God.' " — Revelation 2:1-7.

Years previous to the giving of the Revelation, the apostle Paul had spoken of the presence of false apos-

tles in the congregation at Corinth, Greece. Later he warned the overseers from the city of Ephesus that false apostles would arise among the Christians in their city, the city that had the famous temple of Artemis (Diana), the moon goddess. (2 Corinthians 11:12-15; Acts 20:17-31) Before the apostle John died this had already occurred. But in loyalty to Christ's true apostles, the Ephesian congregation put to the test these false claimants to apostleship and Scripturally found them to be liars. Likewise today!

When "the Lord's day" broke upon the world in the year 1914, it found many religious leaders in Christendom claiming to be apostles of Christ or "apostolic successors." In fact, the Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church at the Vatican in Italy had been hailed as "Heir of the Apostles; Peter in Power," and as "Apostolic Lord and Father of Fathers." But the fully dedicated, baptized Bible students, who held to the "twelve apostles of the Lamb" (Revelation 21:14), studied the written Word of Jehovah God and found these modern claimants to apostleship to be false and would have nothing to do with them. This was one of the reasons why they came out of Christendom, which is the dominant part of Babylon the Great, the world empire of false religion. (Revelation 18:4; 17: 1-5) They did not tolerate such religious liars among themselves.

One thing that the glorified Jesus Christ mentioned as having against the congregation in Ephesus toward the end of the first century was that it had left its first love: "You have left the love you had at first." (Revelation 2:4) It did not have that fervor of Christian love for Jehovah God that it had at its beginning, as referred to in the apostle Paul's letter to the Ephesians and as described in Acts 19:1 to 20:1, 17-38.

This reminds us of the case of the nation of Israel, which, in its youth as a nation had fervent love for its God, like that of a youthful bride for her newly married husband: "This is what Jehovah has said: 'I well remember, on your part, the loving-kindness

of your youth, the love during your being engaged to marry, your walking after me in the wilderness, in a land not sown with seed. Israel was something holy to Jehovah, the first yield to Him.'" (Jeremiah 2: 1, 2) So, too, at its beginning the congregation of Ephesus had a consuming love for Jehovah God in response to his own love for them. The apostle John himself describes this responsive love springing from appreciation, when he writes:

"The love is in this respect, not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent forth his Son as a propitiatory sacrifice for our sins. As for us, we love, because he first loved us." — 1 John 4:10, 19.

In a striking likeness, at the beginning of "the Lord's day" in 1914, even the dedicated, baptized Bible students who had come out of religious Christendom had left the love that characterized the Christian congregation in the first century. In what way? More attention, more expressed love, was being heaped upon the Son of God than upon Jehovah God himself. This, of course, was measurably due to the use in Bible study of translations of the Holy Scriptures in which the translators of Christendom and Jewry rarely used God's name Jehovah or did not use it at all.

For example, the King James or Authorized Version Bible renders the name Jehovah only four times, and the Jewish Isaac Leeser translation of The Twenty-four Books of the Holy Scriptures does not use the divine name at all, using "the LORD" and "God" instead. But after World War I the dedicated, baptized Bible students awoke to the unsuitableness of this, and in correction of this, in the issue dated January 1, 1926, of their official magazine The Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence, the leading article bore the challenging title "Who Will Honor Jehovah?"

In the course of the years these Christian Bible students gave more and more attention to bearing witness to God's name, and as a climax on Sunday, July 26, 1931, at their international convention in

Columbus, Ohio, a resolution was adopted by which the name "Jehovah's witnesses" was embraced as the designation by which they chose to be identified and distinguished from Christendom. Thereafter this name was embraced by the congregations of these dedicated Christians throughout the earth. In its issue of March 1, 1939, the title of their official magazine was altered to The Watchtower Announcing Jehovah's Kingdom. They wanted to be like Jesus Christ, whom the apostle John calls "the Faithful Witness," that is, Witness of Jehovah God his heavenly Father. (Revelation 1:5) This was indeed a sincere effort to get back to that first love, the love that the Christian congregation of the first century "had at first." This love moves them today, and they have proved that they remembered from what those professing to be Christians have fallen. Their repentance at this oversight of Jehovah God, the Universal Sovereign, was genuine.

So they returned to their obligation to "do the former deeds," namely, to bear witness to the name and Messianic kingdom of the Most High God. (Isaiah 43:10-12; Acts 1:8) They came to appreciate that the vindicating of Jehovah's universal sovereignty by means of his Messianic kingdom is the prime purpose of Jehovah and is the primary teaching of the Holy Bible. The salvation of human creatures through the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ was merely secondary, although it was a prominent and inseparable part of the general purpose of Jehovah God. Galvanized into action by appreciation of this, they set themselves to the worldwide work of preaching Jehovah's Messianic kingdom by which his universal sovereignty and name are to be vindicated and by means of which also mankind is to be saved. — Matthew 24:14; Mark 13:10.

In Christ's instructions to the "angel of the congregation in Ephesus" these spiritual Israelites were warned that, if they did not do this carrying out of the "former deeds" in this "the Lord's day," then the one "who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands" would remove their "lampstand from its

place." In their case the heavenly lampstand Caretaker has not had to do this, for since the close of World War I they have been striving to shine as "the light of the world." Down till now the rays of this symbolic lampstand have reached into as many as 200 lands and island groups. Christendom has claimed to be "the light of the world" in that she had made nominal converts to her type of Christianity of more than 977,383,000 all around the globe. But do her millions of members of many races and nationalities display the "first love," such as the true Christians of the apostolic first century had? (Revelation 2: 4, AV) It is her millions of members who have fought the two world wars, who have supported the Fascist, Nazi and Communist dictators, who have taken part in the political revolutions and other disturbances of the nations.

Is Christendom fulfilling Jesus' prophecy of Matthew 24:14 in this "the Lord's day" by preaching "this good news of the kingdom" in all the inhabited earth for a witness to the nations? No, but in her choice of the kingdoms of this world and her setting up of the League of Nations and its successor, the United Nations, Christendom has left this earth-wide preaching to the Christian witnesses of Jehovah to do. Even if, as Christendom claims, she had a symbolic lampstand or was one in God's Christian arrangement, the glorified Jesus Christ has removed her "lampstand from its place." From the facts of history since 1914 C.E. it is manifest that Christendom is not the light-bearing congregation (symbolic lamp-stand) of God; she has no light-bearing organization. Her light has gone out, and she herself is enshrouded in the darkness that covers the earth and in the thick gloom that covers the national groups. She is too far gone for repentance. She cannot arise and shine. — Isaiah 60:1, 2.

SECTARIANISM HATED

Christendom has been fragmented into a thousand or more religious sects, the number of which she is trying to reduce by church mergers or by the ecumenism promulgated by the second Vatican Council in 1962-1965. To Christendom the commendatory words of Christ to the congregation of Ephesus cannot be applied: "Still, you do have this, that you hate the deeds of the sect of Nicolaus, which I also hate." (Revelation 2:6) Back in the first century, as the apostle Paul made clear, the true Christian congregation had to fight against the tendency to form religious sects, such as the Nicolaitans. (1 Corinthians 1:12-15; 3:1-5) He warned the very overseers of the congregation of Ephesus that after his going away men would arise among the disciples there and would "speak twisted things to draw away the disciples after themselves." (Acts 20:29, 30) Not strange, then, that at the beginning of this "the Lord's day" there was a tendency to establish a religious sect among those today known as the Christian witnesses of Jehovah.

Charles Taze Russell, the president of the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society from 1884 to 1916, did not try to set up a religious sect among the members of the Society and members of the related organization, International Bible Students Association. Rather, he expected the heavenly glorification of the true Christian congregation around the end of the "times of the Gentiles" in 1914. (Luke 21:24, AV) Nevertheless, after his death on October 31, 1916, in the midst of World War I, there was a tendency to form a religious sect around his teachings and organizational structure, although it was not intended to do so. In July of 1917 the book "The Finished Mystery," the seventh volume of the Studies in the Scriptures, was published in English and it was called the "posthumous work of Pastor Russell," on page 2, the Publishers page. This book treated C. T. Russell as having been "the faithful and wise servant" foretold in Matthew 24:45-47, AV. In its commentary on the book

of Revelation it presented C. T. Russell as being the "seventh messenger," that is, "the angel of the church of the Laodiceans," the seventh and last congregation mentioned in the list. (Revelation 3:14, AV) In its commentary on the prophecy of Ezekiel, the book presented C. T. Russell as having been the foretold 'man clothed in linen with the writer's inkhorn by his side.' (Ezekiel 9:4-11; 10:1-7, AV) Naturally, those accepting such interpretations felt a sense of loyalty to a marvelously used servant of Jehovah God. They felt it obligatory upon them to adhere to him as an earthly instrument of the Most High God in what was called "the Laodicean period."

However, this tendency toward the formation of a sect among his faithful followers was displeasing to the one "who holds the seven stars in his right hand." Under his guidance this tendency toward the founding of a religious sect like the sects of Christendom out of which they had come was fought against by those who hate unchristian sectarianism. Those who chose to follow a dead man left the ranks. Those who believed that the light of Bible truth did not stop advancing with the death of the first president of the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society held to God's visible organization and continued searching the Holy Scriptures in the advancing light.

In 1927, in the issue of February 15, the Watch Tower magazine published the leading article "Servant — Good and Evil," based on the theme text of Matthew 24:45, 46, AV. Faithfully and courageously this explained that the "faithful and wise servant" there mentioned was, not any individual man, but a class, a servant body, the whole congregation of Christ's faithful spiritual followers at the time. It was as in the case of the nation of ancient Israel, which was called Jehovah's servant, and to whom it was said: "You are my witnesses,' is the utterance of Jehovah, 'even my servant whom I have chosen.'" (Isaiah 43:10) One "servant," but many "witnesses." Likewise, in the case of Matthew 24:45-47, one "servant" (or slave), and many component members, all together forming one servant or slave body charged with the care of the Lord's goods or belongings. This weakened any basis for forming a sect around Russell.

Working farther in that direction, in September of 1930 the book Light, in two volumes, was published, giving a commentary on the whole book of the Revelation. This book gave an understanding of the "seven stars" and the 'seven angels' of the congregations different from that presented in The Finished Mystery. So it did not identify Charles T. Russell as the "seventh messenger," or, "the angel of the church of the Laodiceans." (See Light, Book One, page 13;

and pages 44-52 under "Laodicea.") Furthermore, years before this, the book The Finished Mystery was allowed to go out of circulation.

Finally, on July 30, 1931, the book Vindication, Volume One, was published. This volume set forth that the 'man clothed with linen and with the writer's inkhorn by his side' was not an individual man in the fulfillment of the prophecy of Ezekiel, chapter nine. On pages 99, 100, under the subheading "Man with Inkhorn," this volume said: " 'The man with the writer's inkhorn by his side,' therefore, clearly represented the anointed 'servant' class of the Lord on earth, which class is a part of God's organization."

Thus, finally, on three essential points of argument, the basis was totally taken away for building any religious sect around Charles T. Russell. These Christian spiritual Israelites had insultingly been dubbed "Russellites" by the disdainful clergy of Christendom; but these faithful Christians, like those in the first-century congregation in Ephesus, hated sectarianism and refused to accept this contemptible nickname. Hence, on July 26, 1931, at the same international convention in Columbus, Ohio, at which the book Vindication, Volume One, was released, they embraced, by resolution, the Scriptural designation "Jehovah's witnesses."

For this anti-sectarian action the glorified Lord Jesus Christ could commend these Christian witnesses of Jehovah of today just as he commended the congregation at Ephesus for their stand against the "deeds of the sect of Nicolaus."

TREE OF LIFE IN GOD'S PARADISE

In closing the message to the congregation in ancient Ephesus the glorified Jesus Christ said: "Let the one who has an ear hear what the spirit says to the congregations: To him that conquers I will grant to eat of the tree [Greek, xylon] of life, which is in the paradise of God." — Revelation 2:7.

Here all seven of the "congregations that are in the district of Asia" are alerted. Every spiritual Israelite "who has an ear" in all those congregations is called upon, not to stop up his ear, but to prick up his ear and "hear what the spirit says" to all seven congregations, for what the spirit says applies to them all. "The spirit" — what spirit? We remember that in his salutation to the seven congregations the apostle John prayed that they might have undeserved kindness and peace "from the seven spirits" that are before the throne of Jehovah God. (Revelation 1:4) Later, in John's marvelous vision of God on his heavenly throne, the "seven spirits of God" are pictured by "seven lamps of fire burning before the throne." (Revelation 4:5) Interestingly, in each of the messages to the seven Asian congregations the invitation is given to each one having an ear to "hear what the spirit says to the congregations," or seven times in all. This does not mean that one individual spirit of these "seven spirits" addresses one congregation, and the other six address each one a congregation, each one its own congregation, in succession.

Evidently, "the spirit" speaks through the glorified Lord Jesus Christ in all seven cases, and it is the spirit of God, the active force of God, that is with the Lord Jesus Christ. This means that Jesus here is not speaking of his own initiative or on his own authority. What he speaks in all seven cases to the Asian congregations is by the authority of God. Hence each one with an ear who hears can be sure that what Jesus here says has the approval and backing of God and is certain of fulfillment.

Since what the spirit says it says "to the congregations," then what it says to the congregation in Ephesus applies also to all the other congregations, not to just the Ephesian congregation. Likewise, what it says in the message to any of the other Asian congregations applies to all the seven congregations. Thus the glorious promises that God's spirit in Jesus makes

in all seven messages apply to all the congregations and are shared by them all. — Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22.

All members of the congregations are encouraged to conquer, with the promise of a reward bestowed by Jehovah God through his Son Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ himself is an example of conquering or overcoming. In his speech to his eleven faithful apostles before he was betrayed by Judas Iscariot, Jesus said: "In the world you are having tribulation, but take courage! I have conquered the world." (John 16:33) By his faith in Jehovah God and by his faithfulness to Him Jesus Christ conquered the world, despite the tribulation he had to endure. Years later, even after receiving the Revelation, the apostle John wrote: "Everything that has been born from God conquers the world. And this is the conquest that has conquered the world, our faith." (1 John 5:4) To the spirit-begotten Christians who thus conquer the promises are given.

The first promise given points to "the paradise of God." (Revelation 2:7) This is, of course, not the "garden of Eden," "the paradise of pleasure," out of which Adam and Eve were driven after disobeying God their Creator. (Genesis 2:8; 3:24, NW; Dy) In a comparison with that original earthly paradise, the district of the Jordan River in Abraham's day was said to be like "the paradise of the Lord." (Genesis 13:10, Dy) Because of the beauty of his location the king of ancient Tyre in the days of the prophet Ezekiel was said to be "in the pleasures of the paradise of God." (Ezechiel 28:13, Dy) That original "paradise of pleasure" passed out of existence. So Revelation 2:7 does not refer to it. Neither does it refer to paradise restored to earth during the thousand-year reign of Christ. Jesus Christ, when hanging on the stake at Calvary, referred to that earthly paradise when he said to the sympathetic evildoer hanging on a stake alongside him: "Truly I tell you today, You will be with me in Paradise." — Luke 23:39-43.

That evildoer had not conquered the world so as to entitle himself to eat from the tree of life in the paradise of God. That evildoer was not a baptized member of the "congregation of God," for it was first founded on the day of Pentecost of the year 33 C.E., or fifty-one days after the evildoer died alongside Jesus. (Acts 2:1-42) Also, since the holy spirit was first poured out upon Christ's disciples on that day of Pentecost, this evildoer was not begotten of the spirit of God, which is one of the requirements of anyone who would see and enter into the heavenly kingdom of God. (John 3:3, 5; 7:39) The Paradise into which this evildoer will come by means of a resurrection from the dead must be the coming earthly Paradise under God's kingdom. This differs from the paradise of God mentioned in Revelation 2:7, which is a heavenly, spiritual paradise promised to the conquering church or congregation.

The "tree of life, which is in the paradise of God," is not necessarily a symbol of Jehovah God, the Source of life and of immortality. It symbolizes, rather, the divine provision for sustained life; and the conquerors' partaking of that "tree of life" would signify their partaking of that divine provision for the particular life here indicated. The Greek word that John used here was xylon and literally means "wood," and so it could mean "trees," as in an orchard. Continually eating of that "tree of life" would mean continually living in that place where the tree is located, namely, "in the paradise of God." How grand to think that this means to live and dwell under paradisaic conditions in the very presence of Jehovah God himself and in association with him! This would require that in their resurrection they be raised from the dead as heavenly spirit creatures. (1 Corinthians 15:43-50) What a grand reward for conquering! Today it is indeed worth while for a spiritual Israelite who has an ear capable of taking in spiritual things to hear this promise that God's spirit in his Son Jesus Christ says to the congregation of spirit-begotten ones.