Expert: Brenda Martin - 11/5/2009

Question
QUESTION: Why are these scriptures used for those who are disfellowshipped due to weakness, adultry,disassociation,drunkeness,when the scriptures are clearly referring to the anti-christ? These scriptures are used to blanket everyone who's disfellowshipped.

ANSWER: No-one is disfellowshipped for "weakness, adultery or drunkenness" people are only disfellowshipped when they say; they are not sorry for what they have done & intend to carry on with their wrong course.

As for disassociation, no-one needs to disfellowship them, as they have wrote a letter to the elders saying; "they no longer want to be called one of JW's" in affect they disfellowship themselves, their choice.

which chapter of John? as theres no verse 11 in 1 John c.1 were you meaning another verse?

all the best
Brenda



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION:  sorry, 2nd John 9-11.The application is to the anti-christ.

Answer
GETTING THE SENSE OF 2 JOHN 9-11

In his second letter, the apostle John gives this exhortation: “Everyone that pushes ahead and does not remain in the teaching of the Christ does not have God [that is, is not in union with him, has no fellowship with him; 1 John 1:6]. He that does remain in this teaching is the one that has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, never receive him into your homes or say a greeting to him. For he that says a greeting to him is a sharer in his wicked works.” (2 John 9-11)

Do the apostle’s words here necessarily apply to all persons who are put out of the congregation for wrongdoing? Or do they necessarily rule out any speaking of words of reproof or exhortation to a disfellowshiped person designed to move him toward repenting, turning around and being restored to the congregation? By considering the context of those words of the apostle we can have a clearer understanding of the sense of his exhortation.

Note that in verse seven the apostle John says that “many deceivers have gone forth into the world, persons not confessing Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.” Then John gives the warning to be on guard and not to receive such ones into one’s home, for these are active propagandists of false teachings, deceitful advocates of wrong conduct. They should be given no foothold from which to make further infiltration. One should not even greet them, so as to avoid being a sharer in their wicked works. In this regard, we may note that the common greeting among Jews in apostolic times was an expression meaning “May you have peace.”

The Christian certainly would not want to wish peace to the man who was a deceiver and an antichrist. There is, however, nothing to show that Jews with a balanced and Scriptural viewpoint would refuse to greet a “man of the nations” or a tax collector. Jesus’ counsel about greetings, in connection with his exhortation to imitate God in his undeserved kindness toward “wicked people and good,” would seem to rule against such a rigid stand.—Matt. 5:45-48.

Are, then, all who have been disfellowshiped like the persons described in John’s second letter? At the time that they had to be disfellowshiped they were apparently following a course like such ones or at least manifesting a similar sentiment. “Any baptized person who deliberately pursues a course of immoral conduct is actually rejecting the teachings of the Bible, just as much so as one who teaches others contrary to what the Scriptures say about the identity of God, the provision of the ransom, the resurrection, and so forth. (Compare Titus 3:10, 11; 2 Timothy 2:16-19.)” And, if after being disfellowshiped a person tried to justify his immorality before others and sought to sway others to his perverted thinking, he certainly would fit the description given by the apostle John in his second letter.

***However, not all who are disfellowshiped thereafter follow the course of such ‘deceivers and antichrists.’ They do not all engage in actively promoting wrongdoing, opposing the truth and endeavoring to deceive others into following the wrong course that led to their disfellowshiping. This is seen by the number who repentantly seek and receive reinstatement as approved members of the congregation.  

all the best
Brenda