JOHN BUTLER

The Mosaic law was only for the Nation of Israel though the principles of that Law are carried through in the Greek Scriptures. 

And one point i noticed from the same scripture you are debating, Matthew 5, in verse 45, Jesus calls them 'sons' not children. 

"so that you may prove yourselves sons of your Father who is in the heavens," 

Hence i continue to say, these scriptures are written for the Anointed class only.

Why? Because only the Anointed are called 'Sons'. The earthly class are called 'Children' of God.

5 hours ago, BillyTheKid46 said:

Yes, it’s not easy to maintain a good moral structure with an uncomfortable post. It reminds me of Mark 13:14-23. What society is becoming, and the interaction of Christians within, as though they have no choice but to accept having to be part of this world.

It must have been an impossible task for Jesus to subject his followers to accomplish. Not being part of. The curious thing comes with activism. In one hand, it can have blind rage, hate, harsh, and belligerent and in the other hand, the same values change just because its built with plastic.

I wonder if Mark cannot be applied. Mark 7:6. What makes sense is written in Galatians 6:3. Now I do find this humorous when interacting with confused souls. The effort, it must take and excuses to continue their untethered hatred while being supported by an unsavory character.

8 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

I forget where I read it, and it was probably talking about the card game Poker, but...

"It is immoral to let a sucker keep his money!".

It does have a certain cynical, yet pragmatic,  ring to it.

 

How worldly   totally un-Christian attitude  

1 hour ago, Space Merchant said:

@BillyTheKid46 Agreed. Other than that there is a whole lot more things out there, some things that cannot be said, so I am trying to keep it on a PG-13 level.

Now as for you guys, as with all of us, when such things start to spill over on to the people, in the schools and churches, it cannot be prevented and or contained 100% for the intent of a man who does man is not as easily recognized to the general people of the community, on the other side of the spectrum, there are even more darker things going about in the world, and in my case, I can tell you, among the things I heard and witnessed, the ruler of this world is obvious, and to all of us, we have to be careful, for how this world caters to people, ill desires, some among them will find targets, victims, take advantage of the rules and regulations in institutions in order to do so,furthermore, it turns anyone who is on the side of the one who is targeted into an avenger of blood, so to speak, which was the case with several folks who took the law in their own hands.

Yes it is horrid and getting worse. Is Armageddon coming ?  How long will it be ? Do we need to be in a specific organisation ? 

Some scripture talk about being in our inner rooms, other scriptures mention two men working in the field and two women working at the grinding mill ( I think ) , one taken and one left behind.  Another scripture says something about not going back into your house to get an outer garment, I think.  Problem is, i cant keep it all in my head properly.  

1 hour ago, Space Merchant said:

And now I am suddenly thinking of eagles.

That being said, this thread went from robots and dolls, to houses, to this.

Yes, sorry SM. I know Anna and I are totally off topic. Especially my latest post. But but but, well no, I admit I'm in the wrong here.  

1 hour ago, Anna said:

I’m sorry John, even to be a house sitter, and using all the facilities or whatever, the decent thing for the owner of the house is to pay some kind of compensation for your services. I donÂ’t know the details of what kind of an agreement you have but it sounds odd.  I think having you taking care of the property ensures that there are no squatters. So you are doing the owner a BIG favour. As for wild parties, I mean, even if you had one every week, what damage would that do to an already dilapidated house?  

I assume your profile pic is of your son and his wife, or your daughter and her husband? So are they working on the property too, as the young lady is driving the digger.

You are right, money is not a means to happiness and giving is better than receiving, but I think when Jesus said those words he didnÂ’t have in mind free labour for someone with more money than you.

The only thing that does make sense is that you are retired and so earning extra money would be a problem, and so you are treating this as a hobby, and I understand that. What I don’t understand is the owner.  Hopefully he will be decent enough to reward you with some kind of compensation at a later date....

Anna you made me laugh. My profile photo is my wife and i, though from a few years back. The lady on the digger is my wife. She is twenty years younger than me, and is my third wife. Wife one and two committed adultery. Yes, I'm probably a hard person to live with. 

Doing the owner a favour, yes. We are on call for if inspectors of official bodies wish to visit the house too. Part of the agreement was that we could take anything that was in the house, except of course the owners belongings which came down from London. We have had a few bits and pieces but nothing of value, just items of interest. 

When we first visited the house the new owner had had security fencing put up all round. Hence locks and keys. But the actual house was not fully secure. The house is actually two houses with what is now a central courtyard, but was originally all built over, with 3 levels and a glass roof. There is a cellar which joins the two houses running under the central courtyard. So our first priority was to secure the house, which also meant blocking off one cellar entrance. The other cellar door had to be left open for the bats to fly in and out.  Oh there is so much more I could tell you but it would be like writing a book. 

Your last paragraph sums it up well about my pension etc. If he paid me, even in cash, I would have to declare it, and it would cause complications... One thing he did say, and i know this will not mean much to you, but he said he is writing a book about it all and my wife and i will be included. To this end, my wife (more so than i ), is taking hundreds of photos as a 'diary' of events. 

You mentioned my son. He has helped us on a few occasions. I will include a photo of him as he is now, age 24 and still living at home with us. He has never had any interest in the JW Org so has never been to meetings since being 'grown up'. An unusual young man for sure, he usually wears his hair in the Punk style of a Mohican.

The first photo is my wife and I this summer on a picnic, with one of her cars. It's Morris Minor 1000 that she inherited when her dad died. 

Plus a couple of photos of what we had to face when we started cleaning up the house, mess due to vandalism..

Enough for now, I'll probs get told off by someone on here.  

10 minutes ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

I agree..... and in order to further your altruistic viewpoint, and upbeat perspective on life,  and to help in any way to assist you in remaining humble, I would like to invite you and your wife to come to my home and do free yard work for a year.

I do not live in a dilapidated mansion, but there is also plenty of carpentry work and painting to do.

When you return home in 2020, you can bask in the glow of a job well done.

I know it's a lot to expect, but I will do my best to work you hard every day.

If you are in the USA I will gladly decline your offer. As for painting and carpentry, no thank you.  We have just been doing basic manual work which in honesty doesn't involve much skill, apart from learning to drive the digger and dumper, which was 'fun'.

What i really want to find is someone fairly local that has a old farm with outbuildings full of vintage vehicles. Someone that has no knowledge of the value of things, so that i can research items for them on the internet and help them to sell stuff and earn themselves a few pound.... We did all this for ourselves over the past twenty years, going to farm sales and auctions, buying all the things they thought were rubbish, only to resell them for good money.  It was fun and made profit, so now I would like to help someone else to do the same. 

We actually found quite a few nice items at the house, some under the broken floors, which we fell through at times  

Coalport Countryware, which sold at auction for £210, half of which was under the floor when we found it. (Yes i worked for nothing and earnt the owner some money too). 

The ground floors are all around 18 to 24 inches above soil, built up on brick supports. 

I was disappointed not to find any 'real treasure' though. There has to be something in a house that is 180 years old.  

14 minutes ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

John Butler:

Very interesting take on life.

I would be interested in knowing how it all works out over time.

I believe you are being taken advantage of  ... but that is not mine to call.

Giving freely to Millionaires is a double edged sword.

My philosophy is like the Motto on U.S. Money.

"In God We Trust"

..all others pay cash.

I'm not sure that he is a Millionaire in the true sense, but he is definitely a big business man. He had to sell off some of his London apartments to finance this 'project', hence a lot of the furniture that went to auction was from those apartments.  Modern horrible stuff  that i wouldn't give room in our house. 

As for being taken advantage of, yes probably. But like i say it's all in line with the scripture I quoted. It helps to keep me humble in a way. 

Does everyone in the USA just do everything for money ? Yuk, what a horrible lifestyle.  

@BillyTheKid46 The reality, activism plays little to no role in the decision with governments and is evident.

Um really ? 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/mar/26/mps-demand-action-over-jehovahs-witness-abuse-allegations

https://nltimes.nl/2018/05/02/nearly-300-reports-sexual-abuse-among-dutch-jehovahs-witnesses

https://www.secularism.org.uk/news/2018/08/protest-highlights-abuse-and-cover-ups-among-jehovahs-witnesses

Although i didn't really agree with the London protest, it still got the info' out there to the public and to the JW's that had been hidden from it all. 

More organisations putting on more pressure will get the message out there more, that is obvious.

And more pressure on governments and authorities will get things done.

Remind me of a scripture about a man knocking on his neighbours door at midnight, asking for bread to feed to a visitor. 

I think it was Jesus said, it wasn't that the other man wanted to get out of bed but the continuous knocking on his door moved him to action.

Yet another scripture about a woman that kept going to a judge and asking for justice. in the end the judge heard her case.

Keep knocking, and believe me the protesters will keep knocking and gaining support Earthwide. 

I think you are a sad person Kid, and I do have concerns about which side you are on regarding Child Abuse. Do you support the Victims or the abusers ?  Very worrying indeed.  

9 hours ago, Anna said:

On a hand shake? What does that mean, lol. That you all agreed on slave labour? My goodness, I must have been out of the country too long and got used to everyone paying for everything and expecting to be paid for everything. No one one, I mean NO one (except the brothers and sisters) does anything for free in America! Time is money. Always.

We agreed that I would do as much or as little as I wanted to, whenever I wanted to, with the Digger/dumper episode being the exception. 

The handshake was a kind of trust between us. I mean, we could have bought in squatters / homeless folk or had wild parties there. The owner was in London, mile away. He had no idea what we were doing. He trusted us to be 'caretakers / key holders' of his £850,000 property.  

My feeling is that i allowed my Christian attitude to flow over into this situation. Matthew 5 v 39 to 42 

 However, I say to you: Do not resist the one who is wicked, but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other also to him.⁴⁰  And if a person wants to take you to court and get possession of your inner garment, let him also have your outer garment; ⁴¹  and if someone in authority compels you into service for a mile, go with him two miles. ⁴²  Give to the one asking you, and do not turn away from one who wants to borrow from you.

The joy of doing something for someone else whilst having the free run of this semi derelict mansion was fantastic. Money is not the means to happiness is it ? Giving is better than receiving. We gave our time and we still are but in a more limited way as winter approaches. 

I have found here in the UK that there are many people, other than JW's, that give a lot of time and effort to others for free. They too have the joy of giving... And Space Merchant seems to give a lot of his time to others for free, and he is not a JW. 

I've no idea about Stateside, how they behave and why. And I have a poor opinion of Americans overall, but i don't really know why.  

Now here is one more reason that i didn't mind giving of my time and it does involve money. I receive government pension as I'm an old un'. I also receive pension top up, extra money. Now if i do any paid work, the government department, if they find out, will not only stop that extra money, but also I'll be in trouble. Any paid work would mean, I'm no longer retired, as I'd be working. But it would not be regular income, so in the long run I would be worse off.  It would be too much hassle to do a bit of part time work and declare it, then stop work, and declare it, then start again..... So much easier to give my time freely and enjoy it. 

And as I've said, therapy. To work hard in a quiet space, to rest when we wanted and sunbathe,  to walk the land and see how nature had taken over, to be at peace and not to worry about anything or any one. Therapy. To come home tired at the end of the day, knowing we had worked well and given of ourselves freely to another. To rest and sleep well. 

20 minutes ago, Space Merchant said:

There is always better solutions but people do not seek them or strive to make it the focus regarding child abuse. Protesting will not do as much, as someone once told me, protesting matters not, as long as blood soaks the streets and pavements of neighbors, such is meaningless, for he says this because of the series of events from 2016 into 2017 that led to a spark in violence and hatred. He says this because on occasion he believes he is a target, granted with how white supremacy and the uptick in influence and power is now in the states whereas all persons, young and old are in the cross-hairs.

Another thing is we should be teaching our children and even older ones on the matter, help them to spot signs and the like, be it of abuse, bullying, violence. We cannot prevent all problems, but at least something one in some cases benefits, especially if going about things the right way.

You and i always seem to have different opinions, which to me is quite healthy and well balanced. . 

But on this matter I think the protests Earthwide have had and are still having much influence on governments and authorities and are also helping people to have a voice so that they can release a lot of the pain they are feeling inside.

JW Org would not be being investigated were it not for protests about the Child Abuse within. I there is proof that it is working. 

49 minutes ago, Anna said:

I know. I've never known a country so bent on lawsuits! In any case, you're not a trespasser if you have roaming rights. I don't hink lawsuits were the only reason though.

This should be an interesting read:

https://www.amazon.com/This-Land-Our-Lost-Right/dp/073521784X/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0/130-3437771-3998608?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=GH6923Z4YCETS09WHXRR

 

Um, with my sick sense of humour I find the link kinda funny. Remembering who the land originally belonged to, the Native Americans / Indians and how it was stolen from them by 'the White man'.

19 minutes ago, Anna said:

Did you say you were doing all this for free??

Yes all for free, no wages, no agreement, just on a hand shake.  The owner does give me money for my vehicle fuel and he pays for such things as new locks etc. So expenses covered but no wages. 

It was for two reasons. 1. My wife's interest in old buildings and photography. 2. Me needing something to fill the void after leaving the JW Org. So it was therapy for me in a way. 

Having the keys to this place is just so different for us. Yes we work hard some days and get filthy dirty, but the owner is not often there as he lives in London and we and the house are in deepest Devon.  The only time I got a bit upset about it all was when we had the Mini digger and dumper truck. The owner had hired them for a week (which ended up being 8 days ) and I worked solid for 8 days (my wife had some days off). The machines were noisy and smelly and i was glad when they went back. But it was new skills / experience for us. 

We will continue to visit around once every two weeks in the winter. Hopefully we will get some good autumnal photos and some snow covered landscapes. The house has large grounds.  We watch the seasons change in the fields here at home, but at the big house it will be something different. 

My advice to anyone leaving the JW Org is quickly find something positive and productive to do. 

that protest too much under the same circumstance for children?    Can a person really protest too much about Child Abuse ?

Sorry Kid, but child Abuse is something worth protesting about. Unless a person is on the other side of course. 

Can it be the rebuke of a gentile to defend another none Jew that protest too much under the same circumstance for children? A voice from a distance that portrays itself as a member with a no reflection.

@BillyTheKid46  I note that you changed your original comment from 'none Jew' to 'gentile'.  Are you anti-Semitic ?

And as for the link, bad information i think.  

Never mind Billy keep taking your tablets, you'll be ok. 

@Witness And who exactly gives you all this knowledge and understanding ? 

You are saying that the 'One thousand years of Christ's reign' is only symbolic. How so ? 

You say, 'The end of the symbolic "thousand-year reign of Christ" which began in the first century'

But the Thousand year reign of Jesus Christ is with 'His Bride' the Anointed. And they are not yet completed in heaven. They certainly were nowhere near complete in the first century. So Jesus could not have ruled for a thousand years without His bride / Anointed. 

It would appear that Gog 'of' Magog is not the same group of people as Gog 'and' Magog.

And can they clone people already ? I think they have cloned sheep. 

11 minutes ago, TrueTomHarley said:

It is time to update 'end of the world' scenarios. Perhaps the world will go out, not with a bang, but with a fizzle, and people forget to procreate.

Science may yet save the day, however, if those robots can just be programmed to pop out littler ones. 

It would be nice if people did 'forget to procreate'. Then maybe the population of the earth would level out a bit. 

And there would be less people to die at Armageddon.  

28 minutes ago, Space Merchant said:

The sad reality is that the whole robots and doll used as sexual pleasure is going to cause problems, and those who mass produce such things know the demographic they are targeting, pretty much exploiting that community, for example, you have the Otaku community, of which I made mention of before. These people, majority being males are targets because those who make the robots and dolls cater to their liking when it comes to characters seen in Japanese culture, be it from video games or Manga (the equivalent to comic books), on the other side of the spectrum, outside of this community, you have those who seek a similar thing however beyond that of the culture of the Otaku community itself, therefore the including of body suits, pillows and a list of other things also being produce if one cannot get his or her hands on a robot or doll. The most appalling thing that comes from whole robot/doll points to something that you show yourself to be adamantly against strongly.

But that being said, sexual gratification to oneself,which also includes robots and or dolls is still, to the majority,  categorized in masturbation and pornography.

Another thing is that it is crazy how nowadays instead of seeking a real partner, people tend to seek robots, pillows, dolls, virtual partners (for example, someone marrying a video game character), inanimate objects such as a car or a toaster, etc. And speaking about Otakus, there are less and less people seeking mates in Japan, and or those who think little of getting into relationships while on the other side of the spectrum, you have some people trying to make Momoko-san their waifu and senpai.

A crazy world it is.

This is one of the things I refer to: https://kotaku.com/5409877/the-one-about-the-guy-who-married-a-video-game

The unnamed man is married to the character, Nene Anegasaki, which in this case, is his "[Mai]  Waifu". Even even got everything ready at a literal church, with people, for he was that serious.

It isn't hard to imagine the case with robots, if we have situations like this.

Crazy stuff S. M.  You seem to do a lot of research and are full of unusual information. but  this one I find funny.

Of course it's not funny in a true sense, it is very serious. 

As for people not finding a real human partner, in some ways it is understandable. There are many reasons why one may wish to live life alone. If a person has lived alone for many years they may not wish to share all of their material possessions, or share their money, or their house. They may wish to be able to just come and go as they please without consulting a partner. They may not want any type of confrontation. They may wish to follow a special way of life, a religion maybe, that needs their full dedication. 

Being married has its own complications, and not everyone wants that. Even God's written word advises to stay single if we can cope with it.   

1 hour ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

In all things where you are getting advice from someone else .... especially those who pay NO PRICE WHATSOEVER IF THEIR ADVICE SCREWS UP YOUR LIFE ... you have to consider their history of being right ... and being wrong. 

What is their overall credibility?

Is their thinking sound.. or delusional?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think he suffers with wind . And does JW Org and it's GB have any credibility ?  

Well I think it is losing it quickly. I'm sorry for mocking the Org and it's GB, but it's better than crying over it. 

They are getting what they deserve. They are trying to outride a storm but the storm is getting bigger, Earthwide in fact. 

I think it strange that people seem to view Self-gratification? as only being of a sexual nature. It isn't of course, it's just desire to obtain pleasure for oneself.  

As for all this talk about sex on here it makes me wonder if some people on here have serious problems with it.  The GB seem to talk about it a lot too. I suppose it's like Water. Whilst the water will run from the tap when you need it, all is well. But when you turn on the tap and there is no water, that's when people talk about it.  I wonder if this is the same with sex  .

 

16 hours ago, BillyTheKid46 said:

I would agree you have yet to understand what goes on in a judicial committee if your understanding is what an Elder will do to make up something. If there is an offense other than what was brought before them, they will also include as many offenses to decide. When someone is confronted with an accusation, the person showing hostility usually is guilty of something. If a victim confronts an Elder as those described to you in the other thread, the outcome can be just as critical as the accused.  This is where it seems illogical to think an Elder would make up something to find fault. I image this comes from processing what happened to Christ. One would think a former witness with inadequate knowledge would not have to resort to insults.

I will not further my time with such deep-seated hatred. It does society no good. The proof is with Trump and what he has incited people to violence. social media.

There is no reason to further this discussion. A decision has been made, who you will engage properly.

Quite funny when I've already told you I don't care what you think. It's former witnesses that do have the knowledge and that is what the JW Org is finding out now.  Hence Former witnesses are now being listened to by those that have the legal authority to do something about it.  Sorry you can't handle that Kid. 

12 hours ago, Anna said:

One thing that upset me when I moved to the USA was the realisation that one cannot just walk anywhere. In Europe, for the most part, everyone has "the right to roam" which means you can pretty much go anywhere, even on privately owned land. In America, most land is owned by someone, and that someone does not tolerate anyone walking through their property. I'm sure @James Thomas Rook Jr. wouldn't hesitate to put a bullet through your head. There are "parks" but those parks are rarely within walking distance. You might have perfect hiking acreage right behind your house, but if it doesn't belong to you,  you can't go there. In England, most privately owned fields and meadows can be accessed by pedestrians and hikers (including their free running dogs, in America you can only let your dog run in a dog park) through a style or "kissing gate". Trails are made naturally by people frequently walking there, not by someone preparing them specially for that purpose. Farmers who drive tractors through a field leave a path, and people walk on those too. As long as you do not infringe on someones garden (yard) around the house (which is usually fenced anyway) you are not trespassing. Of course there is the odd grumpy farmer who puts up "do not trespass" signs in a field, but there are not many....

So in view of that, hiking trails are not really a planned thing in England in the same sense as in America. Of course there are nature reserves, where there are sign posted trails, but generally, in the rural countryside, (where John Buttler's house is) there is no need for them. The same goes for Scotland. In fact I think now you can also put a tent up anywhere, and you can fish and canoe on all the rivers, even if it cuts through someones land.

In Switzerland, you can hike anywhere as well, and you don't have to stick to trails. The whole alpine region is completely and freely accessible to everyone. As for other European states, it's pretty much the same. Oh, and all the nature reserves are "free". They are paid for by the state.

So apparently America is the land of the free. Not in my mind   The book "trespassing across America" sounds interesting.....

 

This almost looks identical to the field behind my mum's house. One year it was growing rapeseed and it was amazing walking through a field of pure yellow...

 

 

 

Anna we do have 'Public Foot Paths' here in England and also 'Bridle paths' all of which have sign posts. In fact we noticed a few weeks ago, a lady with a clipboard, looking rather 'official', walking past 'our big house'. When we left and locked up the gates we noticed new 'arrow' stickers on gate posts.  Unfortunately there is a public right of way right by  the side of the house. Nice for genuine people but makes it easier for urban explorers to get a good look at the property before breaking in. We can't stop anyone being on the outside just looking of course, but some folks are more welcome than others. We do show some folks around and let them take a few photos too. 

Here is Devon we have those gates (in your photo) and also styles to climb over. And people are expected to keep to the edges on farmers fields. The good farmer would clear a footpath around the edge, some do, some don't.  But yes it is almost 'free to roam' which has it's good and bad points, depending if you are the land owner. 

As far as the House is concerned, the new owner wants to go far beyond restoration, and the locals are totally opposed to it all. The owner wants to turn it into a massive wedding venue, for rich folks. (He's a Londoner, big business man, property and such) He wants to extend what is now the cellar, outward under the side of the house to form some sort of paved garden or similar. And he wants to add other buildings in the large grounds for other uses. Will cost millions of pounds and take at least three years i would think...

But for my wife and i it was a great challenge, getting it cleaned out and tidied up a bit. So it now looks like a house not a scrap yard..... I also had to arrange for the car parts to go into one auction and lots of furniture to go into a different auction.  The car parts / Automobilia Auction i was also involved deeply in because I help that auctioneer lay it all out and put the Lot numbers on everything.  So being part of both the auctions this month has been a challenge too.   The furniture auction was today (Monday) so I haven't heard any results from it yet. But in November i may just spend more time on here, sitting, relaxing, eating mince pies and drinking tea. 

 

At least most of those cars finally got cleared off the lot. "Urban Explorers" must still be a problem, though. I read somewhere that they keep breaking locks and cutting fences just to take a selfie at a place like this. Right?

The cars were cleared by the previous owner who had used the house and grounds as a vehicle salvage / scrap yard. He had vehicle parts all over the house and grounds. My wife and I filled a large scrap metal bin with huge amount of scrap which when weighed in earnt the present owner a bit of cash. 

The present owner also hired a 'mini digger' and small dumper truck for my wife and i to clear some earth and rubbish with. It gave us 'new skills' and we didn't wreck the place. 

Urban explorers have been a big problem but in the last two months things have gone quiet so hopefully it will stay quiet for a long time now. 

But the sun shone brightly today whilst we were there and parts of it looked quite nice, in a derelict sort of way  . 

 

We are going over to the 'the house' this morning. The sun is shining here but the air is cold. Will add more later