What factors were behind the rapid growth of Christianity in its first few centuries?

[TrueTomHarley]

3 hours ago, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

The obvious reason they said that was, if i remained in the Org they still had control over what i could say to others, because the thread of D/fed would be there. They wanted me quiet but controlled.

It is not at all ‘obvious.’ It’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.

3 hours ago, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

But normally congregants are told to do more hours, put in more effort, make more time for the ministry. and those that do not are given warnings and shunned. 

okay, make that the 2nd stupidest. No one is shunned for lack of participation in the ministry.

[Pudgy]

.

[Arauna]

10 hours ago, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

They wanted me quiet but controlled. 

I suspect that they wanted you to have a longer time to think about your stance without having to take drastic measures.  Often people act irrational and fast and end up having regrets later.

This is why I said (above) that one must not always attribute bad motives to people. Yes, elders are just people and can act in self-interest.  They do not want to make harsh decisions immediately concerning JW members who seem to be inconsistent or dissenting. But they know they have to act quickly when people are unnecessarily public.

It is in the attitude: love hopes all things, believe all things.....endures all things........ it means to see the best in people and give the benefit of the doubt..... to give them time to reconsider.....

I have seen all too often that people who are hyper-critical end up hurting themselves in a bad way - even those critical JWs who operate under the radar in a congregation.  People can walk around with a permanent bad attitude..... they become like repelling magnets. 

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

11 hours ago, TrueTomHarley said:

It is not at all ‘obvious.’ It’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.

okay, make that the 2nd stupidest. No one is shunned for lack of participation in the ministry.

How wrong you are blind man. You see your GB, Elders and Org in a way that you wish to see them, but not in true light. 

I will now add @Arauna to this comment. But of course you are a lady not a man. 

[Arauna]

4 hours ago, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

You see your GB, Elders and Org in a way that you wish to see them,

You have your dark glasses on. Your black attitude give you away.

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

6 hours ago, Arauna said:

You have your dark glasses on. Your black attitude give you away.

Um racist. I'll leave it at that. 

[Pudgy]

Racism can be not only blatant and overt, but can be very subtle and nuanced.

Everybody knows that Peter Parker was bitten by a radioactive spider, which gave him spidey superpowers, and he became Spider-Man, but everyone disparages and forgets about his younger brother, Melvin Parker,  who was  bitten by a radioactive Dung Beetle ……

 

[Arauna]

11 hours ago, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

racist

This is not a slight to you but I use it to raise a new thought:

Has anyone noticed how the media disparages anyone who does good research and brings the truth to others?  Wikipedia just writes the most liable things about people wherein the celebrity himself has no right to change anything..... even personal histories are changed.  Far lefties are suddenly called far-righters or conspiracy theorists.  The HIT-media is part of the world-wide retaliation-machine which has been put in place by the powers that rule the media at present; and any professor which displays  a little common sense, is a statistical guru, or prized virologist/geneticist, is no longer worthy of being an academic. Their stellar careers get marked by very nasty black spots - especially if they lost their tenure at a university due to gender politics or by speaking out.  Their successful career is maligned and the worth of the Nobel prizes etc. suddenly cancelled.

Although this so-called truth-faction, coming from a wide political spectrum, are not all religious -  they do try to dismantle the deceit and gaslighting going on throughout the world.  Some of them are older (they do not have families in the home and can speak out), and know that they may be targeted and have also accepted this inevitability..... due to the totalitarian way of thinking which is tightening its stranglehold on the world.

The orchestration of the false prophet and the wild beast seems to be world-wide and very efficient.   Revelation 16:  And I saw three unclean inspired expressions* that looked like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the wild beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. ¹⁴  They are, in fact, expressions inspired by demons and they perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the entire inhabited earth, to gather them together to the war of the great day of God the Almighty."

This propaganda was prophesied. Propaganda definition: propaganda is the dissemination of information—facts, arguments, rumors, half-truths, or lies—to influence public opinion. I may add that people may soon end up hurting themselves or even their loved ones when they are zealously following instructions via the propaganda.  (Germany's government propaganda during ww2 is a good example of creating good zealots).

While the reliable signs given by Jehovah are now going into fulfillment in the world (such as pestilences, untimely deaths, hunger soon to appear in great scope, King of the North, and the UN trying to get world-controlling documents drawn up and ratified); these signs are giving us an indication where we are in the stream of time (if we watch for them).

The false prophet is also busy with his signs. The false prophet is leading us all mesmerized along with their lab-manufactured problems, massive fear-inducing propaganda, together with an unending list of solutions which have already been deliberated on by those who will soon become the 10 new kings together with the UN; constantly creating new diversions so that the populous cannot get time to think straight; and the atheist prophets of scientism can get their transhuman agenda into play.

What I find fascinating, is the propaganda...... they are managing it extremely well through the appointed  counter media or managed opposition - (algorithms watching every new trend or truth being discovered) - and writing new hit-news  pieces with half-truths which debunk the lies with more half-lies. They use written and visual aids to great effect.  Soon they will be able to cancel-kill all dissenting voices by cancelling all documents which expose the truth. The world will truly be in darkness then- Satan's darkness where no light of any truth will shine through. 

The implication of this is that people could be rounded up for prison or any other nefarious reason and media will be managed by the "state". No news of this will leak out or will be downplayed as "conspiracy"-theory.

What the above definition does not say is that governments usually do the propaganda.  In USA an amendment was passed in 2012 which allows propaganda by the federal government..... and since the end of last year, the government and the UN has appointed various media organizations to remove anything they deem mis-information.  At present they are managing it, but here is the scary part: citizens which go against the LGBTQ agenda now taught in schools to very young children, their names are put on a 'terrorist' list.   

In fact, Governments have done propaganda just about forever because they have had the money and the cooperating educated class to do it. Jesus's death was instigated by a small group of ruling class people (Sanhedrin) who managed, by collusion or conspiracy, to arrest Jesus and sway public opinion ... they could even have planted a few agitators in the crowd as modern propagandists do. 

The "dragon's" propaganda has been excellent in its dividing of humans.  The BLM movement, post-modern philosophy and the rewriting of history has filled many unsuspecting people with hate for others with a different color or worldview;  the publicity about the fakeness of the bible and its historicity is everywhere; the book of Enoch and the anunnaki now has a large following which is basically a form of demon worship.  The belief in aliens is skyrocketing .....due to the belief that the anunnaki were aliens;  as is, the new religion of scientism and the idea that one can live forever in a computer algorithm. 

[Pudgy]

Yes, I have watched this take place as well.To survive mentally I find you need a very “thick skin”, and the ability to think of heavy wounds and massive scars as only new learning experiences.

This is called the “One To A Box Principle”.

With VERY few exceptions all humans live alone, and are buried …. One to a box.

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

5 hours ago, Arauna said:

This propaganda was prophesied. Propaganda definition: propaganda is the dissemination of information—facts, arguments, rumors, half-truths, or lies—to influence public opinion. I may add that people may soon end up hurting themselves or even their loved ones when they are zealously following instructions via the propaganda.

From Russell onward it was 50% propaganga. Rutherford created more propaganda and the Leaders of the Watchtower / JW Org have continued it. And yes it damaged many live in the  process. All the lies about Armageddon in the the 1960's and early 70's which caused people to lose their homes and jobs, to do a 'preaching work' which was lies. Then more propaganda about Armageddon happening before the year 2000.  @Anna has mentioned the propaganda although not calling it as such. ......  Yes we know the world belongs to the Devil, but it seems the same with the Org and it's leaders right now. 

[Arauna]

54 minutes ago, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

rom Russell onward it was 50% propaganga.

From what you said above, I see you did not understand at all what I was saying.  You have a one-track mind and that is OCD-hate.  I was talking about government propaganda.  Can you explain your understanding of the bible verses I quoted?  I am certain you have NO clue of its meaning. 

Well the "propaganda" that you hate is here.  Soon the flour and oil will be so expensive you will not be able to afford it.  Then you will think of the words of "propaganda" from the GB that you hate to much.  I do feel sorry for you because I do not wish what is coming even on the worst of the enemies of Jehovah.  But his has been predicted and now it is here!

"I heard what sounded like a voice in the midst of the four living creatures say: “A quart* of wheat for a de·narʹi·us*k and three quarts of barley for a de·narʹi·us; and do not harm the olive oil and the wine.”

Russia and Ukraine have not planted sunflowers for oil in April this year.  Not only are they major exporters of wheat but also of oil..... 

 

[Witness]

2 hours ago, Arauna said:

Can you explain your understanding of the bible verses I quoted?  I am certain you have NO clue of its meaning. 

I do believe he understands more than you do.  You are an extrem aely intelligent person with one-track mind focused solely on the politics of the world and its sins, and not on the sins of God’s people.  

JWs sloppily apply Revelation to themselves only as innocent victims, never as irresponsible in following the commands of Christ. (Rev 2:14-16; 3:18) In light of the sins committed by the rulership of the Watchtower, WHY would God turn a blind eye to the actions of His anointed people under covenant?  He never has before. Only if you are blind to God's justice, would you believe He has.  

8 hours ago, Arauna said:

The orchestration of the false prophet and the wild beast seems to be world-wide and very efficient.   Revelation 16:  And I saw three unclean inspired expressions* that looked like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the wild beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. ¹⁴  They are, in fact, expressions inspired by demons and they perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the entire inhabited earth, to gather them together to the war of the great day of God the Almighty."

The “kings of the inhabited earth”…”kings of the earth”…are CHRIST’S KINGS. 

Rev 1:5 - and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth.

They are the anointed kings who have been gathered over the years, by the False prophet, the Beast and the Dragon for the battle of Armageddon.  The "inhabited earth" is God's inhabited "land" in Spirit.  This is what Revelation is addressing - God's own people.  His spirit-inhabited "land" - "oikumen".  

Luke 8:5-8,15; Matt 13:38; Mark 4:20; 1 Cor 3:9; Eph 2:20-22; James 1:21

Why are these demonic expressions related to frogs?  Looking at God's word, we see that frogs  plagued Egypt.  So the "kings of the earth"/anointed are plagued by symbolic frogs - and how do frogs develop?  Slowly, through stages.  The end result of a demonic expression developing in stages, is a full-fledged LIE, pouring (Rev 12:15) from the mouth of Satan, his ministers, and those whom they exercise authority over.  (2 Cor 11:13-15; Rev 13:11,12,1,2).   

We've witnessed any truth once taught in the organization, turn into a full-fledged lie. Take for instance the meaning of the Temple of God and who comprise it.  Since the exposure of the man of lawlessness being the Watchtower organization, it was necessary for your leaders to fine-tune their more recent doctrine, that ALL JWS are the Temple of God.  No! They comprise the Beast from the Sea - an idol.  (Rev 13:1)

God's anointed kings have been flooded with Wt's lies.  They are captivated by Wt's "empty philosophy" - and slaves to an idol. (Col 2:8; Rev 13:10) They and all of you, must make the decision between truth in Jesus Christ and lies of false prophets.  Rev 3:18; Joel 3:14

Prov 12:17 - "Whoever speaks the truth declares what is right, but a false witness speaks deceit"

2 Chron 18:20-22 - "Then a spirit came forward, stood before the LORD, and said, 'I will entice him.' "The LORD asked him, 'How? '"So he said, 'I will go and become a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.' "Then he said, 'You will entice him and also prevail. Go and do that.' "Now, you see, the LORD has put a lying spirit into the mouth of these prophets of yours, and the LORD has pronounced disaster against you."

Why does God allow this?  Why did He allow Job to be tested?

Luke 22:31 - And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.

Satan is the accuser.  His target are the anointed MEMBERS OF CHRIST.  Just as Christ was tested, so also are the members of his Body.  

The harvest of the wheat and the weeds are of the "sons of the kingdom" - of the anointed.  (Matt 8:12; 13:38)  The "weeds" become the "sons of the wicked one".  One cannot serve God and be approved by Him when an anointed priest has convinced his hearers to follow falsehoods.  Can a JW distinguish a lie from truth?  Do they care to?  If they prefer the lie, God will give it to them.

Ezek 14:9,10 - "'But if the prophet is deceived and speaks a message, it was I, the LORD, who deceived that prophet. I will stretch out my hand against him and destroy him from among my people Israel.  "They will bear their punishment -- the punishment of the one who inquires will be the same as that of the prophet."

2 Thess 2:9-11 - "The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie"

Rev 18:4,5 “‘Come out of her, my people,’
    so that you will not share in her sins,
    so that you will not receive any of her plagues;
 for her sins are piled up to heaven,
    and God has remembered her crimes.

1 Tim 4:1 - The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.

Matt 24:24,25 -  For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect ("chosen").  See, I have told you ahead of time.