Chapter Twenty/A Multitudinous Great Crowd -The Great Crowd Makes Its Appearance - Continue

 During the 1920's and early 1930's, the John class has stressed the heavenly hope, both in the publications and in the preaching work. Apparently, the full number of the 144,000 had yet to be fulfilled. But increasing numbers of those who heeded the message and who showed zeal in the witness work came to profess an interest in living forever on the Paradise earth. They had no desire to go to heaven. That was not their calling. They were no part of the little flock but rather of the other sheep. (Luke 12:32; John 10:16) Their being identified in 1935 as the great crowd of other sheep was indication that the choosing of the 144,000 was then about complete. 

Do statistics support this conclusion? Yes, they do. In 1938, worldwide, 59,047 witnesses of Jehovah shared in the ministry. Of these 36,732 partook of the emblems at the annual celebration of the Memorial of Jesus's death, thus indicating that they had a heavenly calling. In the years since then, the number of these partakers has progressively decreased, principally because faithful witnesses of Jehovah finished their earthly course in death in 1987 only 8,808 partook of the Memorial emblems-just 0.1 percent of the 8,965, 221 attending that global observance. 

Next time: Chapter Twenty/A Multitudinous Great Crowd - The Great Crowd Makes Its Appearance - Continue

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