To Hell and Back? - What Was the Meaning? - Charles Taze Russell - ?????

[Bible Speaks]

Charles Taze Russell (February 16, 1852 – October 31, 1916), or Pastor Russell, was a prominent early 20th century Christian restorationist minister from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, and founder of what is now known as the Bible Student movement, Jehovah's Witnesses are known. 

?????

Learn why he said that!

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1204083

[Ronald Day Senior]

The wording is a little confusing as it seems to confuse the Jehovah's Witnesses with the Bible Students movement. The Bible Students movement is totally different from the Jehovah's Witnesses. Rutherford created the Jehovah's Witnesses organization after Russell died, but evidence indicates that the vast majority of the Bible Students movement rejected Rutherford's "Jehovah's visible organization" dogma. The Bible Students movement exists today totally separate the Jehovah's Witnesses organization that Rutherford created.

 

[Bible Speaks]

Everlasting Life on Earth—A Hope Rediscovered

“O Daniel, make secret the words . . . until the time of the end. Many will rove about, and the true knowledge will become abundant.”—DAN. 12:4.

In the late 1800’s, a number of sincere individuals were searching for an understanding of “the pattern of healthful words.” (2 Tim. 1:13) One such person was Charles Taze Russell. In 1870 he and a few other truth-seekers formed a class for Bible study. In 1872 they examined the subject of restitution. Later, Russell wrote: “Up to that time we had failed to see clearly the great distinction between the reward of the church now on trial and the reward of the faithful of the world.” The reward of the latter will be “restoration to the perfection of human nature once enjoyed in Eden by their progenitor and head, Adam.” Russell acknowledged that he had been helped in his study of the Bible by others. Who were these?

(a) How did Henry Dunn understand Acts 3:21? (b) Who did Dunn say will live forever on earth?

Henry Dunn was one of them. He had written about the “restoration of all things of which God spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets of old time.” (Acts 3:21) Dunn knew that this restoration included the elevation of mankind to perfection on earth during the Thousand Year Reign of Christ. Dunn also examined a question that had puzzled many, Who will live forever on earth? He explained that millions will be resurrected, taught the truth, and have the opportunity to exercise faith in Christ.

What did George Storrs discern about the resurrection?

In 1870, George Storrs also came to the conclusion that the unrighteous will be resurrected to an opportunity of everlasting life. He also discerned from the Scriptures that a resurrected one who fails to respond to this opportunity “will end in death, even if the ‘sinner be a hundred years old.’” (Isa. 65:20) Storrs lived in Brooklyn, New York, and edited a magazine called the Bible Examiner.

What set the Bible Students apart from Christendom?

Russell discerned from the Bible that the time had come to make the good news widely known. So in 1879, he started publishing Zion’s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ’s Presence, now called The Watchtower Announcing Jehovah’s Kingdom. Previously, the truth about mankind’s hope was understood by very few people, but now groups of Bible Students in many countries were receiving and studying The Watchtower. The belief that only a few will go to heaven, whereas millions will be given perfect human life on earth, set the Bible Students apart from most of Christendom.

How did true knowledge become plentiful?

The foretold “time of the end” began in 1914. Did true knowledge about the hope of mankind become plentiful? (Dan. 12:4) By 1913, Russell’s sermons were printed in 2,000 newspapers with a combined readership of 15,000,000. By the end of 1914, over 9,000,000 people on three continents had seen the “Photo-Drama of Creation”—a program including motion pictures and slides that explained Christ’s Millennial Reign. From 1918 until 1925, the talk “Millions Now Living Will Never Die,” which explained the hope of everlasting life on earth, was presented by Jehovah’s servants in over 30 languages worldwide. By 1934, Jehovah’s Witnesses realized that those hoping to live forever on earth should be baptized. This understanding filled them with renewed zeal for preaching the good news of the Kingdom. Today, the prospect of living forever on earth fills the hearts of millions with gratitude toward Jehovah.

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2009603

[Queen Esther]

Very interesting comment and link,  @Ronald Day Senior   I not read it so detailed...  Will inform me about that all !  Thanks for sharing.  Greetings from Germany  

[Ronald Day Senior]

On 9/30/2017 at 11:32 AM, Bible Speaks said:

Russell discerned from the Bible that the time had come to make the good news widely known. So in 1879, he started publishing Zion’s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ’s Presence, now called The Watchtower Announcing Jehovah’s Kingdom.

As stated, the above is misleading. Russell's Watch Tower and its message of "good tidings of great joy for all the people" is totally different from the message now presented the "The Watchtower Announcing Jehovah's Kingdom." Rutherford led his followers into rejecting the message of the WT in Russell's day, and with his alleged "new light" regarding "the second death", Armageddon, Adam not covered by the ransom, he led his followers into the rejecting the very basis of the atonement that the original WT was created to proclaim and defend. In effect, the message of good news of great joy that will be for all the people Russell dedicated his life to preaching and defending was rejected and replaced with bad tidings of great woe for most of the people if they do not join the organization that Rutherford created.