1885 Watch Tower - A2Z.org

--Diaglott.) They say, We are Christ'svice-gerents, his representatives; ourChurch is the body of Christ, and hisrightful and promised representative torule and conquer the world.As the Lord forewarned, we can seethat many have assumed his name,claimed to be his body, and as such theright to rule, and that his kingdom hadcome. We see this taught not only byPapacy, but by all her daughters--especially those united with the governmentsof Europe, and who claim that inthem God's kingdom has come. In harmonywith this claim is the additionmade to the original Lord's Prayer, bywhich it was made to read, "For thineIS THE kingdom, and the power and theglory forever." These words do notoccur in either the Sinaitic or Vaticanmanuscripts.Passing on, Jesus tells that a longperiod must elapse, with its wars, andcommotions, persecutions, betrayals,false teachers, etc., and that "the love ofthe many will cool" (become lukewarm,Rev. 3:16), and that patient enduranceto the close of the race is needful for allrunning for the prize held out in thisGospel age. Before this age shall havefully ended the glad tidings of the kingdomwill be published in the wholeworld for a testimony to all the nations,and then will the end come.These remarks of the Master are inplace and needful, but we must rememberthat they are only a preface to hisanswer to the question asked, whichhe now proceeds to answer, saying:"When ye therefore shall SEE theabomination of desolation spoken of byDaniel the prophet stand in the holyplace" (v. 15). Here was to be a sign,which when seen, would be an indicationof time for a certain action, because, aswe shall see, it will be a part of the evidence,or sign of the presence of the Son