C.H. Spurgeon on Roman Catholicism
"Cursed be the man before the Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho." Joshua 6:26
"Since he was cursed who rebuilt Jericho, much more the man who labours to restore Popery among us. In our fathers' days the gigantic walls of Popery fell by the power of their faith, the perseverance of their efforts, and the blast of their gospel trumpets; and now there are some who would rebuild that accursed system upon its old foundations. O Lord, be please to thwart their unrighteous endeavours, and pull down every stone which they build. It should be a serious business with us to be thoroughly purged of every error which may have a tendency to foster the spirit of Popery, and when we have made a clean sweep at home we should seek in every way to oppose its all too rapid spread abroad in the church and in the world. This last can be done in secret by fervent prayer, and in public by decided testimony. We must warn with judicious boldness those who are inclined towards the errors of Rome; we must instruct the young in gospel truth, and tell them of the black doings of Popery in the olden times. We must aid in spreading the light more thoroughly through the land, for priests, like owls, hate daylight. Are we doing all we can for Jesus and the gospel? If not, our negligence plays into the hands of priestcraft. What are we doing to spread the Bible, which is the Pope's bane and poison? Are we casting abroad good, sound gospel writings? Luther once said, 'The devil hates goose quills,' and doubtless, he has good reason, for ready writers, by the Holy Spirit's blessing, have done his kingdom much damage. If the thousands who will read this short word this night will do all they can to hinder the rebuilding of his accursed Jericho, the Lord's glory shall speed among the sons of men. Reader, what can you do? What will you do?"
From "Evening By Evening" by Charles Spurgeon
Uhrichsville, Barbour and Company, 1991. (Emphasis mine)
See also The bloody Roman Catholic Cult and A Cult is a cult
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
The Resurrection Was Not on Easter Sunday!
By John H. Ogwyn
Every year, billions rejoice at the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Yet most do not realize that the Bible tells a very different story than they usually hear from the pulpit. What is the truth about Jesus’ resurrection?
Millions of professing Christians gather for Easter sunrise services every year. Even many who rarely go to church at any other time will attend worship services at the church of their choice on Easter Sunday. But did you know that the Good Friday-Easter tradition actually denies the only sign that Jesus offered the religious leaders of His day to prove His Messiahship? Incredible as that statement may seem, it is true—and you can prove it!
Did you know that the Bible nowhere makes the claim that Jesus Christ rose from the dead on Sunday morning? In fact, it teaches something else entirely! How, then, did Easter observance become almost universal among professing Christians? When did Christ’s resurrection really occur?
What do Easter eggs, chocolate bunnies, and little girls in frilly dresses have to do with Jesus of Nazareth? What is the connection between an Easter egg hunt and Christ’s resurrection?
Read on for the answer to these and other vital questions!
The Sign of Jesus’ Messiahship
For those who sincerely wanted to understand the truth, there were many proofs that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah promised in the Old Testament. When the disciples of John the Baptist came to Jesus following John’s arrest and imprisonment by Herod, notice what He told them: "And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to Him, ‘Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?’ Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me’" (Matthew 11:2–6).
John’s gospel records that Jesus performed a number of remarkable signs, beginning with the marriage feast at Cana where He turned water into wine (John 2:11). Notice why He performed these miracles: "And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name" (John 20:30–31). Jesus’ disciples witnessed these signs, which confirmed their faith that He was, indeed, the promised Messiah.
From the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry, the religious leaders were aware of His message and the signs that confirmed His authority. John wrote: "There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, ‘Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him’" (John 3:1–2). This was during the first Passover season of Jesus’ ministry, in 28ad. Over the next three years, these leaders had many opportunities to grow familiar with Jesus’ message, and to hear about and witness many miraculous signs. None of this satisfied them.
In fact, they came to Him several times to demand a sign that would establish once and for all that He was the Messiah. On each of these occasions, Jesus told them that only one such sign would be given to them. John records that the first such exchange occurred during the Passover season of 28ad, when Jesus cleansed the temple by chasing out the moneychangers. Upon being accosted by the religious leaders, who demanded that He show another sign in addition to the miraculous healings He had performed in the temple, "Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up’.… But He was speaking of the temple of His body" (John 2:19–21). Matthew records a similar exchange: "Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, ‘Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.’ But He answered and said to them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth’" (Matthew 12:38–40).
There you have it! The only sign Jesus offered to the skeptical religious leaders of His day was that He would spend exactly three days and three nights in the tomb. Did that sign come to pass? Absolutely! Notice the testimony of an angel, spoken to the women who came early Sunday morning to embalm the body. "He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay" (Matthew 28:6). Jesus had promised that He would be exactly three days and three nights in the tomb and He rose just exactly as He said He would.
How is it possible to equate three days and three nights with the time between "Good Friday" and "Easter Sunday"? Count it yourself; it simply will not work! Some assert that "three days and three nights" is a Greek idiom and can mean any portion of three days and three nights. But this theory fails when we allow the Bible to define its own terms.
Note that Jesus was referring to Hebrew usage, not Greek. He specifically connected His stay in the tomb with that of Jonah in the fish’s belly. "Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights" (Jonah 1:17). This same expression was used when Queen Esther told her cousin Mordecai: "Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me, neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day" (Esther 4:16). Each of these accounts was clearly describing a period of 72 hours—three days and three nights. This is exactly what Jesus meant, and the Pharisees knew it. Notice how they quoted his statement to Pilate, the Roman governor: "Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise’" (Matthew 27:63). They knew that Jesus was not talking about a mere day-and-a-half, but rather indicating three full days.
When Was the Crucifixion?
"But," many will respond, "doesn’t the Bible say that Jesus was crucified and buried on Friday and that the tomb was empty on Sunday morning?" It is true that the tomb was already empty on Sunday morning, but the Bible nowhere speaks of a Friday crucifixion. It does say that He was crucified on the "preparation day" (Mark 15:42–45), but we must recognize which preparation day this was. Remember, the Bible speaks of annual Sabbaths—"Holy Days"—in addition to the weekly Sabbath (cf., Leviticus 23:4, 7, 24, 27–32). Jesus was crucified on the preparation day before an annual Sabbath, during the daylight portion of the Passover—Abib 14 on the Hebrew calendar. The following day—Abib 15—is an annual Holy Day, the first Day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Passover fell on a Wednesday in 31ad, the year of Jesus’ crucifixion. Thursday was an annual Sabbath, the first Holy Day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Jesus was buried just before sunset on Wednesday afternoon, and was in the tomb Wednesday night, Thursday, Thursday night, Friday, Friday night, and Saturday—three days and three nights, just as He promised. He was resurrected just before sunset on Saturday afternoon, exactly 72 hours after His burial. On Sunday morning, when the women came at dawn to embalm His body, He was already gone. They did not see the resurrection; they saw an empty tomb, and were told by an angel that He had risen just as He said He would.
Jesus Christ came as "the Lamb of God" to pay the penalty for sin (John 1:29). "For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us," Paul declared (1 Corinthians 5:7). A careful study of the gospel accounts shows that Jesus and His disciples ate the Passover meal after sunset at the beginning of Abib 14 (Mark 14:16–18, Luke 22:13–15, cf. Exodus 12:1–8). Later that evening, after supper, they went to the Mount of Olives (Mark 14:26), where soldiers, led by Judas Iscariot, found and arrested Him (vv. 43–46). Soon after dawn, the Sanhedrin met to formally charge Jesus and have Him delivered to Pontius Pilate (15:1). By 9 a.m. that morning—the "third hour" from daylight in Jewish usage (v. 25)—Christ, along with two criminals, had been led to a hill on the outskirts of Jerusalem and crucified in the characteristic Roman manner. From noon until Jesus’ death at about 3 p.m., there was complete darkness over the entire area (vv. 33–37).
Shortly afterward, Joseph of Arimathea sought an audience with Pilate and requested that Jesus’ dead body be released to him for burial (v. 43). After summoning the centurion in charge of the executions to ascertain that Jesus was really dead, Pilate gave Joseph permission to take and bury the body (vv. 44–45). Luke, in his gospel, emphasized that the burial was hurried and took place just before sunset (Luke 23:53–54, cf. John 19:41-42). This emphasis that Jesus was hurriedly buried shortly before the Sabbath began has confused many people into thinking that the crucifixion took place on a Friday. Many readers overlook John’s explanation that this "Sabbath was a high day" (John 19:31). It was not a weekly Sabbath; it was an annual "high day" Sabbath. Remember, Abib 15—the day after the Passover—was the first Holy Day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the first of seven annual Holy Days commanded to ancient Israel (Leviticus 23:5–7).
The various gospel accounts make it plain that there were actually two Sabbaths that week—an annual Holy Day on Thursday, and the regular weekly Sabbath on Saturday. Notice Mark’s statement: "Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him" (Mark 16:1). Shops in Jerusalem would have been closed on both the weekly and annual Sabbaths. Jesus was buried right before the annual Holy Day Sabbath began, and the women were present for His burial (15:47). Their first opportunity to buy and prepare spices would have been on Friday, when the shops reopened after the Holy Day that began the Festival of Unleavened Bread. Note that Luke explains it was after the women prepared the spices and fragrant oils—a job that would have taken hours—that "they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment" (Luke 23:56).
How could they have waited until after the Sabbath to buy and prepare spices (as Mark clearly states), yet rest on the weekly Sabbath after they had prepared the spices (as Luke clearly states)—unless there were actually two Sabbaths in that week? Understanding this point is the key to understanding the duration of Jesus’ time in the tomb.
Why, then, did the women come to the tomb on Sunday morning? Was it to celebrate the first Easter sunrise service? Of course not! They were coming at the first available opportunity to embalm a dead body (Luke 24:1). When they arrived, Jesus was already gone—and the tomb was open so that all could see it was empty.
Why was this a special sign, to the religious leaders, confirming Jesus’ Messiahship? The religious leaders of Jesus’ day had their own hand-picked witnesses to the events of Jesus’ death and burial. Remember, Matthew explained that on the day after the crucifixion—early in the morning of the "high day" Sabbath—the Jewish leadership sent a delegation seeking Pilate’s permission to post an armed guard to secure the tomb. Pilate authorized them to do so, and instructed: "You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how" (Matthew 27:65). These guards were witnesses to the events that followed, and were the ones who informed the religious leaders of what actually happened (28:11). From the mouths of the very guards that they themselves had posted, these leaders learned that Jesus had fulfilled the sign of the prophet Jonah—just as He said He would!
Where Did Easter Come From?
Easter is never mentioned in the inspired text of the New Testament. While the King James translation does contain the word "Easter" in Acts 12:4, virtually every other translation says "Passover," which is the proper rendering of the Greek word pascha. You can easily verify this yourself by consulting almost any Bible commentary or Greek interlinear. The early first-century Church never observed Easter Sunday. Christians continued to observe the Passover, just as the original Apostles had done in Jesus’ presence. But although the New Testament Church kept the Passover, just as God has commanded, Christians made special use of the symbols that Christ had instituted at His final Passover. These symbols, a small piece of broken unleavened bread and a sip of wine, pictured Christ’s sacrifice—His body broken for our healing, and His blood shed for the remission of our sins.
Where, then, did Easter observance come from? There is no record of it in the Christian community until almost a full century after Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. Notice this striking statement by a scholar associated with the Pontifical Gregorian University Press in Rome: "There is a wide consensus of opinion among scholars that Rome is indeed the birthplace of Easter-Sunday. Some, in fact, rightly label it as ‘Roman-Easter’" (From Sabbath to Sunday, Bacchiocchi, p. 201).
In his Ecclesiastical History, the early Catholic historian Eusebius provides insight on the introduction of Easter. A contemporary of the Roman emperor Constantine, Eusebius described the late second-century controversy between Victor, Bishop of Rome, and Polycrates, disputing over whether to celebrate Passover or Easter. Eusebius wrote: "The bishops, however, of Asia, persevering in observing the custom handed down to them from their fathers, were headed by Polycrates… ‘We,’ said he, ‘observe the genuine day; neither adding thereto nor taking therefrom. For in Asia great lights have fallen asleep, which shall rise again in the day of our Lord’s appearing… Phillip, one of the twelve apostles… John, who rested upon the bosom of our Lord… Polycarp of Smyrna… All these observed the fourteenth day of the Passover according to the gospel, deviating in no respect, but following the rule of faith" (chapter xxiv). Eusebius then proceeded to quote from a letter of Irenaeus, a second century bishop of Lyons, which traced the observance of Easter as a substitute for Passover back to the days of Sixtus, bishop of Rome (c. 116–126ad).
In other words, Easter Sunday was not observed by the professing Christian community until almost 20 years after the death of the Apostle John, the last surviving eyewitness to the crucifixion and the resurrected Jesus. If God truly wanted His people to observe this holiday, why did it take so long to be established? If it really commemorated the events of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, surely it would have been observed from the beginning! Yet it was only introduced as a "Christian" holiday after all who had first-hand knowledge of the facts were dead. That alone should make us stand up and take notice.
Easter Sunday actually has its origins in the cult of ancient pagan sun worship. The very name "Easter" is derived from Ishtar or Astarte, names referring to the ancient Babylonian goddess who was worshiped as the mother of the sun god. Notice this admission: "The motif of the Sun was used not only by Christian artists to portray Christ [from the third century onward] but also by Christian teachers to proclaim Him to the pagan masses who were well acquainted with the rich Sun-symbology. Numerous Fathers abstracted and reinterpreted the pagan symbols and beliefs about the Sun and used them apologetically to teach the Christian message" (Bacchiocchi, p. 253).
Much of the symbolism associated with Easter, including rabbits and eggs, hearkens back to ancient practices that originated in Babylon and came down to us today by way of Rome. Roman emperor Constantine, a lifelong devotee of Sol Invictus, the sun god, forged an alliance with the Bishop of Rome in the early fourth century. It was from this alliance of church and state that most of the trappings that are associated with modern Christianity came to be forced upon the Christian-professing world.
Does it matter that the name "Easter," and many of the motifs associated with that holiday, can be traced back to ancient paganism? Many sincere professing Christians would protest that they attend Easter sunrise services to honor Jesus Christ and His resurrection from the dead, not to worship the sun god. Is it acceptable to take pagan customs and symbols and reinterpret them from a Christian perspective? No! God warned the ancient Israelites, as they prepared to enter the land of the Canaanites, to "take heed… that you do not inquire after their gods, saying ‘How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.’ You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way" (Deuteronomy 12:30–31). Rather, God told His people: "Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it" (v. 32).
Easter Sunday does not celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. It actually obscures the very point that Jesus said was the defining sign of His Messiahship—the three days and three nights in the tomb. Easter, like most of the symbols associated with it, has its origin not in Scriptural commands, but in the practices of ancient sun worshipers. It is high time that those who profess to be the people of God come out of spiritual Babylon and worship the Creator as He commands—in spirit and in truth!
The Resurrection Was Not on Easter Sunday!
Every year, billions rejoice at the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Yet most do not realize that the Bible tells a very different story than they usually hear from the pulpit. What is the truth about Jesus’ resurrection?
Millions of professing Christians gather for Easter sunrise services every year. Even many who rarely go to church at any other time will attend worship services at the church of their choice on Easter Sunday. But did you know that the Good Friday-Easter tradition actually denies the only sign that Jesus offered the religious leaders of His day to prove His Messiahship? Incredible as that statement may seem, it is true—and you can prove it!
Did you know that the Bible nowhere makes the claim that Jesus Christ rose from the dead on Sunday morning? In fact, it teaches something else entirely! How, then, did Easter observance become almost universal among professing Christians? When did Christ’s resurrection really occur?
What do Easter eggs, chocolate bunnies, and little girls in frilly dresses have to do with Jesus of Nazareth? What is the connection between an Easter egg hunt and Christ’s resurrection?
Read on for the answer to these and other vital questions!
The Sign of Jesus’ Messiahship
For those who sincerely wanted to understand the truth, there were many proofs that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah promised in the Old Testament. When the disciples of John the Baptist came to Jesus following John’s arrest and imprisonment by Herod, notice what He told them: "And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to Him, ‘Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?’ Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me’" (Matthew 11:2–6).
John’s gospel records that Jesus performed a number of remarkable signs, beginning with the marriage feast at Cana where He turned water into wine (John 2:11). Notice why He performed these miracles: "And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name" (John 20:30–31). Jesus’ disciples witnessed these signs, which confirmed their faith that He was, indeed, the promised Messiah.
From the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry, the religious leaders were aware of His message and the signs that confirmed His authority. John wrote: "There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, ‘Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him’" (John 3:1–2). This was during the first Passover season of Jesus’ ministry, in 28ad. Over the next three years, these leaders had many opportunities to grow familiar with Jesus’ message, and to hear about and witness many miraculous signs. None of this satisfied them.
In fact, they came to Him several times to demand a sign that would establish once and for all that He was the Messiah. On each of these occasions, Jesus told them that only one such sign would be given to them. John records that the first such exchange occurred during the Passover season of 28ad, when Jesus cleansed the temple by chasing out the moneychangers. Upon being accosted by the religious leaders, who demanded that He show another sign in addition to the miraculous healings He had performed in the temple, "Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up’.… But He was speaking of the temple of His body" (John 2:19–21). Matthew records a similar exchange: "Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, ‘Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.’ But He answered and said to them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth’" (Matthew 12:38–40).
There you have it! The only sign Jesus offered to the skeptical religious leaders of His day was that He would spend exactly three days and three nights in the tomb. Did that sign come to pass? Absolutely! Notice the testimony of an angel, spoken to the women who came early Sunday morning to embalm the body. "He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay" (Matthew 28:6). Jesus had promised that He would be exactly three days and three nights in the tomb and He rose just exactly as He said He would.
How is it possible to equate three days and three nights with the time between "Good Friday" and "Easter Sunday"? Count it yourself; it simply will not work! Some assert that "three days and three nights" is a Greek idiom and can mean any portion of three days and three nights. But this theory fails when we allow the Bible to define its own terms.
Note that Jesus was referring to Hebrew usage, not Greek. He specifically connected His stay in the tomb with that of Jonah in the fish’s belly. "Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights" (Jonah 1:17). This same expression was used when Queen Esther told her cousin Mordecai: "Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me, neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day" (Esther 4:16). Each of these accounts was clearly describing a period of 72 hours—three days and three nights. This is exactly what Jesus meant, and the Pharisees knew it. Notice how they quoted his statement to Pilate, the Roman governor: "Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise’" (Matthew 27:63). They knew that Jesus was not talking about a mere day-and-a-half, but rather indicating three full days.
When Was the Crucifixion?
"But," many will respond, "doesn’t the Bible say that Jesus was crucified and buried on Friday and that the tomb was empty on Sunday morning?" It is true that the tomb was already empty on Sunday morning, but the Bible nowhere speaks of a Friday crucifixion. It does say that He was crucified on the "preparation day" (Mark 15:42–45), but we must recognize which preparation day this was. Remember, the Bible speaks of annual Sabbaths—"Holy Days"—in addition to the weekly Sabbath (cf., Leviticus 23:4, 7, 24, 27–32). Jesus was crucified on the preparation day before an annual Sabbath, during the daylight portion of the Passover—Abib 14 on the Hebrew calendar. The following day—Abib 15—is an annual Holy Day, the first Day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Passover fell on a Wednesday in 31ad, the year of Jesus’ crucifixion. Thursday was an annual Sabbath, the first Holy Day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Jesus was buried just before sunset on Wednesday afternoon, and was in the tomb Wednesday night, Thursday, Thursday night, Friday, Friday night, and Saturday—three days and three nights, just as He promised. He was resurrected just before sunset on Saturday afternoon, exactly 72 hours after His burial. On Sunday morning, when the women came at dawn to embalm His body, He was already gone. They did not see the resurrection; they saw an empty tomb, and were told by an angel that He had risen just as He said He would.
Jesus Christ came as "the Lamb of God" to pay the penalty for sin (John 1:29). "For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us," Paul declared (1 Corinthians 5:7). A careful study of the gospel accounts shows that Jesus and His disciples ate the Passover meal after sunset at the beginning of Abib 14 (Mark 14:16–18, Luke 22:13–15, cf. Exodus 12:1–8). Later that evening, after supper, they went to the Mount of Olives (Mark 14:26), where soldiers, led by Judas Iscariot, found and arrested Him (vv. 43–46). Soon after dawn, the Sanhedrin met to formally charge Jesus and have Him delivered to Pontius Pilate (15:1). By 9 a.m. that morning—the "third hour" from daylight in Jewish usage (v. 25)—Christ, along with two criminals, had been led to a hill on the outskirts of Jerusalem and crucified in the characteristic Roman manner. From noon until Jesus’ death at about 3 p.m., there was complete darkness over the entire area (vv. 33–37).
Shortly afterward, Joseph of Arimathea sought an audience with Pilate and requested that Jesus’ dead body be released to him for burial (v. 43). After summoning the centurion in charge of the executions to ascertain that Jesus was really dead, Pilate gave Joseph permission to take and bury the body (vv. 44–45). Luke, in his gospel, emphasized that the burial was hurried and took place just before sunset (Luke 23:53–54, cf. John 19:41-42). This emphasis that Jesus was hurriedly buried shortly before the Sabbath began has confused many people into thinking that the crucifixion took place on a Friday. Many readers overlook John’s explanation that this "Sabbath was a high day" (John 19:31). It was not a weekly Sabbath; it was an annual "high day" Sabbath. Remember, Abib 15—the day after the Passover—was the first Holy Day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the first of seven annual Holy Days commanded to ancient Israel (Leviticus 23:5–7).
The various gospel accounts make it plain that there were actually two Sabbaths that week—an annual Holy Day on Thursday, and the regular weekly Sabbath on Saturday. Notice Mark’s statement: "Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him" (Mark 16:1). Shops in Jerusalem would have been closed on both the weekly and annual Sabbaths. Jesus was buried right before the annual Holy Day Sabbath began, and the women were present for His burial (15:47). Their first opportunity to buy and prepare spices would have been on Friday, when the shops reopened after the Holy Day that began the Festival of Unleavened Bread. Note that Luke explains it was after the women prepared the spices and fragrant oils—a job that would have taken hours—that "they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment" (Luke 23:56).
How could they have waited until after the Sabbath to buy and prepare spices (as Mark clearly states), yet rest on the weekly Sabbath after they had prepared the spices (as Luke clearly states)—unless there were actually two Sabbaths in that week? Understanding this point is the key to understanding the duration of Jesus’ time in the tomb.
Why, then, did the women come to the tomb on Sunday morning? Was it to celebrate the first Easter sunrise service? Of course not! They were coming at the first available opportunity to embalm a dead body (Luke 24:1). When they arrived, Jesus was already gone—and the tomb was open so that all could see it was empty.
Why was this a special sign, to the religious leaders, confirming Jesus’ Messiahship? The religious leaders of Jesus’ day had their own hand-picked witnesses to the events of Jesus’ death and burial. Remember, Matthew explained that on the day after the crucifixion—early in the morning of the "high day" Sabbath—the Jewish leadership sent a delegation seeking Pilate’s permission to post an armed guard to secure the tomb. Pilate authorized them to do so, and instructed: "You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how" (Matthew 27:65). These guards were witnesses to the events that followed, and were the ones who informed the religious leaders of what actually happened (28:11). From the mouths of the very guards that they themselves had posted, these leaders learned that Jesus had fulfilled the sign of the prophet Jonah—just as He said He would!
Where Did Easter Come From?
Easter is never mentioned in the inspired text of the New Testament. While the King James translation does contain the word "Easter" in Acts 12:4, virtually every other translation says "Passover," which is the proper rendering of the Greek word pascha. You can easily verify this yourself by consulting almost any Bible commentary or Greek interlinear. The early first-century Church never observed Easter Sunday. Christians continued to observe the Passover, just as the original Apostles had done in Jesus’ presence. But although the New Testament Church kept the Passover, just as God has commanded, Christians made special use of the symbols that Christ had instituted at His final Passover. These symbols, a small piece of broken unleavened bread and a sip of wine, pictured Christ’s sacrifice—His body broken for our healing, and His blood shed for the remission of our sins.
Where, then, did Easter observance come from? There is no record of it in the Christian community until almost a full century after Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. Notice this striking statement by a scholar associated with the Pontifical Gregorian University Press in Rome: "There is a wide consensus of opinion among scholars that Rome is indeed the birthplace of Easter-Sunday. Some, in fact, rightly label it as ‘Roman-Easter’" (From Sabbath to Sunday, Bacchiocchi, p. 201).
In his Ecclesiastical History, the early Catholic historian Eusebius provides insight on the introduction of Easter. A contemporary of the Roman emperor Constantine, Eusebius described the late second-century controversy between Victor, Bishop of Rome, and Polycrates, disputing over whether to celebrate Passover or Easter. Eusebius wrote: "The bishops, however, of Asia, persevering in observing the custom handed down to them from their fathers, were headed by Polycrates… ‘We,’ said he, ‘observe the genuine day; neither adding thereto nor taking therefrom. For in Asia great lights have fallen asleep, which shall rise again in the day of our Lord’s appearing… Phillip, one of the twelve apostles… John, who rested upon the bosom of our Lord… Polycarp of Smyrna… All these observed the fourteenth day of the Passover according to the gospel, deviating in no respect, but following the rule of faith" (chapter xxiv). Eusebius then proceeded to quote from a letter of Irenaeus, a second century bishop of Lyons, which traced the observance of Easter as a substitute for Passover back to the days of Sixtus, bishop of Rome (c. 116–126ad).
In other words, Easter Sunday was not observed by the professing Christian community until almost 20 years after the death of the Apostle John, the last surviving eyewitness to the crucifixion and the resurrected Jesus. If God truly wanted His people to observe this holiday, why did it take so long to be established? If it really commemorated the events of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, surely it would have been observed from the beginning! Yet it was only introduced as a "Christian" holiday after all who had first-hand knowledge of the facts were dead. That alone should make us stand up and take notice.
Easter Sunday actually has its origins in the cult of ancient pagan sun worship. The very name "Easter" is derived from Ishtar or Astarte, names referring to the ancient Babylonian goddess who was worshiped as the mother of the sun god. Notice this admission: "The motif of the Sun was used not only by Christian artists to portray Christ [from the third century onward] but also by Christian teachers to proclaim Him to the pagan masses who were well acquainted with the rich Sun-symbology. Numerous Fathers abstracted and reinterpreted the pagan symbols and beliefs about the Sun and used them apologetically to teach the Christian message" (Bacchiocchi, p. 253).
Much of the symbolism associated with Easter, including rabbits and eggs, hearkens back to ancient practices that originated in Babylon and came down to us today by way of Rome. Roman emperor Constantine, a lifelong devotee of Sol Invictus, the sun god, forged an alliance with the Bishop of Rome in the early fourth century. It was from this alliance of church and state that most of the trappings that are associated with modern Christianity came to be forced upon the Christian-professing world.
Does it matter that the name "Easter," and many of the motifs associated with that holiday, can be traced back to ancient paganism? Many sincere professing Christians would protest that they attend Easter sunrise services to honor Jesus Christ and His resurrection from the dead, not to worship the sun god. Is it acceptable to take pagan customs and symbols and reinterpret them from a Christian perspective? No! God warned the ancient Israelites, as they prepared to enter the land of the Canaanites, to "take heed… that you do not inquire after their gods, saying ‘How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.’ You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way" (Deuteronomy 12:30–31). Rather, God told His people: "Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it" (v. 32).
Easter Sunday does not celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. It actually obscures the very point that Jesus said was the defining sign of His Messiahship—the three days and three nights in the tomb. Easter, like most of the symbols associated with it, has its origin not in Scriptural commands, but in the practices of ancient sun worshipers. It is high time that those who profess to be the people of God come out of spiritual Babylon and worship the Creator as He commands—in spirit and in truth!
The Resurrection Was Not on Easter Sunday!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Passover for Christians
The Passover Memorial
When did God decree that Jesus could declare "it is finished" and die on the stake? Why at the very same time that THE JEWS were sacrificing their Passover lambs at the Temple! The Jews had always killed the Passover lambs during the final hours of the 14th. It was towards the end of the 14th, not at the beginning of the 14th, that the Passover lambs were killed.
Click here to continue reading
When did God decree that Jesus could declare "it is finished" and die on the stake? Why at the very same time that THE JEWS were sacrificing their Passover lambs at the Temple! The Jews had always killed the Passover lambs during the final hours of the 14th. It was towards the end of the 14th, not at the beginning of the 14th, that the Passover lambs were killed.
Click here to continue reading
Rapture?
Don't Fall for the Rapture!
We meet the returning Christ in the air and RETURN TO EARTH - to the Mount of Olives - and reign with but under Him, composing the Kingdom of God: just like the Bible clearly says once we remove traditional blinders.
We meet the returning Christ in the air and RETURN TO EARTH - to the Mount of Olives - and reign with but under Him, composing the Kingdom of God: just like the Bible clearly says once we remove traditional blinders.
The Rapture or Place of Safety?
We know those who are accounted worthy to escape WWIII, those with a prayerful attitude and watchful spirit, growing and overcoming and sensitive to the lead of the Holy Spirit (Luke 21:34-36), will be more than provided for in "Her Place," as our gracious Lord of Hosts has promised (Revelation 12:14).
We know those who are accounted worthy to escape WWIII, those with a prayerful attitude and watchful spirit, growing and overcoming and sensitive to the lead of the Holy Spirit (Luke 21:34-36), will be more than provided for in "Her Place," as our gracious Lord of Hosts has promised (Revelation 12:14).
The REAL JESUS Can't Return Until...
Prophecy clearly reveals that the REAL JESUS CHRIST will not return to Earth from Heaven (in full view of all mankind -- not from some secret EU or Vatican chamber or desert cave) until after Jerusalem has suffered under a Gentile EU occupation for three and one half years
Prophecy clearly reveals that the REAL JESUS CHRIST will not return to Earth from Heaven (in full view of all mankind -- not from some secret EU or Vatican chamber or desert cave) until after Jerusalem has suffered under a Gentile EU occupation for three and one half years
Saturday, March 27, 2010
GODDESS EASTER?
Does your Church honor the goddess Easter?
"Why do you perpetuate pagan fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs and don't have anything for Passover? No little lambs, nothing. John the Baptist called Jesus the 'Lamb of God' - not the Easter bunny!" - so I wrote a popular family restaurant about their country store (see The Big Lie of Easter). I could have just as easily written another popular down on the farm restaurant questioning why they're disrespectfully offering Easter ham when the Bible strongly expresses its distaste for such an abomination that Jesus and the apostles never ate and the Scriptures forbid (see Is All Animal Flesh Good Food?).
If you walk into any store or restaurant at this time of year, you quickly see how the pagan Easter rabbit has supplanted the Passover lamb. A myth has replaced the truth! It's totally absurd and illogical as both the Bible and history condemn Easter as a spring goddess and yet these professing Christian churches aren't ashamed to blazon the name of the GODDESS EASTER on their church billboards! Would they also advertise Venus or Ishtar? Are they all asleep in the pews? Don't their ministers have a clue? God says the names of these pagan gods and goddesses will be history and yet they're kept alive by apostate Christian ministers! "For I will take from her mouth the names of the Baals [false gods], And they shall be remembered by their name no more" (Hosea 2:17). Who are they serving? Certainly not our Great Creator God, the God of the Bible, the God of Jacob.
How can any professing Christian not take offense at this baptized paganism, these whitewashed heathen customs that mislead the masses? Shame on those (especially the worthless ministers) who continue to let folks get carried away with idolatrous traditions rather than set them free with the plain truth!
"How can you say, ‘I am not polluted, I have not gone after the Baals'?" (Jeremiah 2:23). You advertise the GODDESS EASTER with your Easter Egg Hunt, your Easter Egg Roll, your Easter ham, your Easter Sunday. Others pimp Easter and her fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs with Easter Egg trees and Easter decorations. We're a nation of spiritual drunks and whores in denial, whoring around with pagan gods and goddesses, going through the mindless motions of pagan traditions and flirting with heathen customs and we see nothing wrong with it since we're deaf, dumb and blind (Isaiah 42:19).
Such Easter "offerings" based upon colorful fables certainly aren't acceptable or cute to God ( 2 Timothy 4:3-5). “Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed nor did they know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall [the slain] at the time I punish them..." (Jeremiah 6:15). Traditional Christianity, like an adulterous woman, "…eats and wipes her mouth, and says, ‘I have done no wickedness..
Sin that's been dressed up, camouflaged, made to appear harmless, is still sin in God's eyes and He hates the mass religious deception that has been going on for too long and will hold the nation accountable for living a lie and promoting whitewashed paganism. The rotten ministers who have failed to stand in the gap, to expose such error and call upon the people to turn from such vain traditions, are especially guilty (Ezekiel 22:30-31).
Hosea 4:6
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest [minister] for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God [that you may keep your own traditions], I also will forget your children.
It's past time we remember our Hebrew roots and biblical responsibilities and return to the Faith once delivered - the Faith that focuses on the Lamb of God and keeps Passover - and stop mixing pagan error with biblical truth (spiritual adultery). We must serve the God of Israel wholeheartedly as Elijah encouraged (when he mocked Baal and Easter) or go into national captivity like Israel did who failed to take God's Word seriously! What will it be: return to the Faith once delivered or return to slavery?
The Plain Truth About Easter
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
http://www.davidben
If you walk into any store or restaurant at this time of year, you quickly see how the pagan Easter rabbit has supplanted the Passover lamb. A myth has replaced the truth! It's totally absurd and illogical as both the Bible and history condemn Easter as a spring goddess and yet these professing Christian churches aren't ashamed to blazon the name of the GODDESS EASTER on their church billboards! Would they also advertise Venus or Ishtar? Are they all asleep in the pews? Don't their ministers have a clue? God says the names of these pagan gods and goddesses will be history and yet they're kept alive by apostate Christian ministers! "For I will take from her mouth the names of the Baals [false gods], And they shall be remembered by their name no more" (Hosea 2:17). Who are they serving? Certainly not our Great Creator God, the God of the Bible, the God of Jacob.
How can any professing Christian not take offense at this baptized paganism, these whitewashed heathen customs that mislead the masses? Shame on those (especially the worthless ministers) who continue to let folks get carried away with idolatrous traditions rather than set them free with the plain truth!
"How can you say, ‘I am not polluted, I have not gone after the Baals'?" (Jeremiah 2:23). You advertise the GODDESS EASTER with your Easter Egg Hunt, your Easter Egg Roll, your Easter ham, your Easter Sunday. Others pimp Easter and her fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs with Easter Egg trees and Easter decorations. We're a nation of spiritual drunks and whores in denial, whoring around with pagan gods and goddesses, going through the mindless motions of pagan traditions and flirting with heathen customs and we see nothing wrong with it since we're deaf, dumb and blind (Isaiah 42:19).
Such Easter "offerings" based upon colorful fables certainly aren't acceptable or cute to God ( 2 Timothy 4:3-5). “Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed nor did they know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall [the slain] at the time I punish them..." (Jeremiah 6:15). Traditional Christianity, like an adulterous woman, "…eats and wipes her mouth, and says, ‘I have done no wickedness..
Sin that's been dressed up, camouflaged, made to appear harmless, is still sin in God's eyes and He hates the mass religious deception that has been going on for too long and will hold the nation accountable for living a lie and promoting whitewashed paganism. The rotten ministers who have failed to stand in the gap, to expose such error and call upon the people to turn from such vain traditions, are especially guilty (Ezekiel 22:30-31).
Hosea 4:6
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest [minister] for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God [that you may keep your own traditions], I also will forget your children.
It's past time we remember our Hebrew roots and biblical responsibilities and return to the Faith once delivered - the Faith that focuses on the Lamb of God and keeps Passover - and stop mixing pagan error with biblical truth (spiritual adultery). We must serve the God of Israel wholeheartedly as Elijah encouraged (when he mocked Baal and Easter) or go into national captivity like Israel did who failed to take God's Word seriously! What will it be: return to the Faith once delivered or return to slavery?
The Plain Truth About Easter
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
http://www.davidben
The Lamb of God
Commentary: Why the world needs the Lamb of God
As I write, millions of Hindus in India are celebrating Kumbh Mela, the largest single religious gathering in the world. The Purna (Complete) Kumbh Mela is celebrated every twelve years in one of four cities, depending on the relative positions of the sun, moon and the planet Jupiter in Indian astrology. Between January 14 and April 28, 2010, at least 50 million pilgrims will have visited the ancient and (to them) holy city of Haridwar on the Ganges River. Read more
Friday, March 26, 2010
The Great Heresies of Traditional Christianity
The Great Heresies
#9. To: gcruse (#0)
Heresies
The early Church of God faithfully kept the SEVENTH DAY SABBATH (sunset Friday to sunset Saturday) for several hundred years. Later, under political pressure and religious opposition, they backed down. They allowed the observance of “the venerable day of the Sun” back-to-back with God’s Sabbath. What a tragic mistake! We’re still suffering the consequences of such shameful compromise.
By sanctioning Sunday services, the Church gave SUNday the necessary clout to claim “equality.” That peaceful coexistence was short-lived, however. Soon the Gentile “converts” managed to make it illegal for Christians to keep the “Jewish Sabbath!” In 365, during the Council of Laodicea, they forcibly substituted Sunday for the seventh day Sabbath! Constantine or Christ? Yeshua said He was Lord of the Sabbath - the seventh day Sabbath is the Lord's Day.
Yet Constantine pimped SUNday and his Christian reprobates- apostate Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant followers - continue to keep it as an idolatrous tradition over the commandment of God. This plain truth angers many of the self-righteous!
Earlier, to promote “unity”—NOT the truth—the Council of Nicea (in 325 AD) ruled the Christian PASSOVER (commemorating Jesus’ death) had to go! Whoever disagreed faced the death penalty! Their religious fabrication supposedly emphasized Jesus’ resurrection—in direct violation of Christ’s command!
Eventually the apostates stopped their charade of keeping the Jewish Passover of the Lord, moved their new Roman holiday to a different date that the faithful - like Polycarp and Polycrates who kept the biblical Passover - opposed, knowing it was devised by deceived and deceiving Gentile men) and eventually even called their celebration Easter instead of Passover or Pascha.
But the apostates forgot to give it a Christian-sounding name. Easter’s the Babylonian spring goddess—Baal’s playboy bunny! They had given up the kosher Lamb of God for a rabbit trick! And to this day, many Gentilized Christians, misled by Romanizers, even go so far to add insult to injury by pigging out on Easter ham and having Easter egg hunts!
In time, anything even remotely “Jewish” about the Church of God came under attack. The Gentile minority-turned-majority demanded changes to reflect their “universal” appeal. They wanted to appear more inclusive—at the expense of the Church’s Jewish (read biblical) heritage. They were intent on destroying the doctrines they once held dear. - Apostate Christians
The great heresies of TRADITIONAL Christianity are the accursed replacement theology of SUNday for Sabbath, Easter for Passover, a Gentilized Jesus and gospel instead of the powerful Gospel of the Kingdom of God preached by the Jewish Yahshua, among many other traditional religious lies that have supplanted the plain truth of the Bible.
To learn more click on this link: The History of Early Christianity
#9. To: gcruse (#0)
Heresies
The early Church of God faithfully kept the SEVENTH DAY SABBATH (sunset Friday to sunset Saturday) for several hundred years. Later, under political pressure and religious opposition, they backed down. They allowed the observance of “the venerable day of the Sun” back-to-back with God’s Sabbath. What a tragic mistake! We’re still suffering the consequences of such shameful compromise.
By sanctioning Sunday services, the Church gave SUNday the necessary clout to claim “equality.” That peaceful coexistence was short-lived, however. Soon the Gentile “converts” managed to make it illegal for Christians to keep the “Jewish Sabbath!” In 365, during the Council of Laodicea, they forcibly substituted Sunday for the seventh day Sabbath! Constantine or Christ? Yeshua said He was Lord of the Sabbath - the seventh day Sabbath is the Lord's Day.
Yet Constantine pimped SUNday and his Christian reprobates- apostate Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant followers - continue to keep it as an idolatrous tradition over the commandment of God. This plain truth angers many of the self-righteous!
Earlier, to promote “unity”—NOT the truth—the Council of Nicea (in 325 AD) ruled the Christian PASSOVER (commemorating Jesus’ death) had to go! Whoever disagreed faced the death penalty! Their religious fabrication supposedly emphasized Jesus’ resurrection—in direct violation of Christ’s command!
Eventually the apostates stopped their charade of keeping the Jewish Passover of the Lord, moved their new Roman holiday to a different date that the faithful - like Polycarp and Polycrates who kept the biblical Passover - opposed, knowing it was devised by deceived and deceiving Gentile men) and eventually even called their celebration Easter instead of Passover or Pascha.
But the apostates forgot to give it a Christian-sounding name. Easter’s the Babylonian spring goddess—Baal’s playboy bunny! They had given up the kosher Lamb of God for a rabbit trick! And to this day, many Gentilized Christians, misled by Romanizers, even go so far to add insult to injury by pigging out on Easter ham and having Easter egg hunts!
In time, anything even remotely “Jewish” about the Church of God came under attack. The Gentile minority-turned-majority demanded changes to reflect their “universal” appeal. They wanted to appear more inclusive—at the expense of the Church’s Jewish (read biblical) heritage. They were intent on destroying the doctrines they once held dear. - Apostate Christians
The great heresies of TRADITIONAL Christianity are the accursed replacement theology of SUNday for Sabbath, Easter for Passover, a Gentilized Jesus and gospel instead of the powerful Gospel of the Kingdom of God preached by the Jewish Yahshua, among many other traditional religious lies that have supplanted the plain truth of the Bible.
To learn more click on this link: The History of Early Christianity
Making Haste
"And this is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste, it is a Passover offering to HaShem." (Exodus 12:11)
Nisan 11, 5770/March 26, 2010
"Haste makes waste." That's what they tell us. And we tend to accept this as axiomatic. But is it necessarily true? Torah tells us otherwise. Torah tells us that haste is an essential ingredient of the redemptive process. Our forefathers seized the opportunity which G-d created for them and left Egypt in great haste. This need for haste was eternalized by the Torah commandment for all generations for each family of Israel to prepare a lamb for a korban Pesach - Passover offering - make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, slaughter the lamb within the Holy Temple courtyard, roast the lamb in Jerusalem, and eat the lamb in its entirety before midnight. This process of haste could, in many cases, extend over two weeks time, beginning with the pilgrimage preparations, and concluding, in an ever greater sense of haste, with the eating of the lamb. Since the destruction of the Holy Temple, from which point in time the korban Pesach has not been offered, this sense of urgency has been embodied by the intense Passover preparations made in each individual home, often exhausting, often conducted right to the last minute, and concluding with the Passover Seder, again, which must be concluded by midnight.
Why did G-d insist that the children of Israel eat the Passover offering in haste? After all, G-d planned and carried out every detail of the exodus from Egypt, beginning with His first call to Moshe, continuing throughout the ten plagues, and concluding with the korban Pesach and the midnight escape. Nothing was left to chance. Why the last-minute rush?
Click here to continue
Nisan 11, 5770/March 26, 2010
"Haste makes waste." That's what they tell us. And we tend to accept this as axiomatic. But is it necessarily true? Torah tells us otherwise. Torah tells us that haste is an essential ingredient of the redemptive process. Our forefathers seized the opportunity which G-d created for them and left Egypt in great haste. This need for haste was eternalized by the Torah commandment for all generations for each family of Israel to prepare a lamb for a korban Pesach - Passover offering - make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, slaughter the lamb within the Holy Temple courtyard, roast the lamb in Jerusalem, and eat the lamb in its entirety before midnight. This process of haste could, in many cases, extend over two weeks time, beginning with the pilgrimage preparations, and concluding, in an ever greater sense of haste, with the eating of the lamb. Since the destruction of the Holy Temple, from which point in time the korban Pesach has not been offered, this sense of urgency has been embodied by the intense Passover preparations made in each individual home, often exhausting, often conducted right to the last minute, and concluding with the Passover Seder, again, which must be concluded by midnight.
Why did G-d insist that the children of Israel eat the Passover offering in haste? After all, G-d planned and carried out every detail of the exodus from Egypt, beginning with His first call to Moshe, continuing throughout the ten plagues, and concluding with the korban Pesach and the midnight escape. Nothing was left to chance. Why the last-minute rush?
Click here to continue
Pagan Easter Egg Roll
Ban the White House's Pagan Easter Egg Roll!
Obama Excludes Private and Catholic School Children From Easter Egg Roll Ticket Giveaway
By Penny Starr
(CNSNews.com) – The Obama administration announced on Tuesday it has reserved 3,000 free tickets to the annual White House Easter Egg Roll for students in D.C.-area public and charter schools, but not for children who attend private or parochial schools.
Click here to continue
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The pagan fertility rites of an Easter Egg Roll have no place upon the lawn of the White House in this professing Christian nation. Easter - a pagan goddess - and her fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs are a disgrace. Besides, who is paying for the "live music, sports courts, storytelling, egg rolling – and cooking stations" - American taxpayers? I'm a Christian and I certainly don't want a single red cent going toward these heathen customs God hates as an an abomination. We should teach our children to avoid such whitewashed pagan practices like the plague - not mislead and deceive them that such unclean things are harmless, especially in light of the Bible and history that prove otherwise.
The Big Lie of Easter
"Why do you perpetuate pagan fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs and don't have anything for Passover? No little lambs, nothing. John the Baptist called Jesus the 'Lamb of God' - not the Easter bunny!" - so I wrote a popular family restaurant about their country store and was informed they received my email and would respond.
The Plain Truth About Easter
Has it ever occurred to those stuffing their faces with Easter ham that Jesus would puke at the thought? Neither Jesus or Peter, James or John ever ate forbidden foods. They wouldn't feel too comfortable at plenty of people's dinner tables.
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
Many believe that God's endorsement of Passover ended with Christ's death—and that He has since replaced it with the observance of Easter as a celebration of Christ's resurrection. But is that so?
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
By Penny Starr
(CNSNews.com) – The Obama administration announced on Tuesday it has reserved 3,000 free tickets to the annual White House Easter Egg Roll for students in D.C.-area public and charter schools, but not for children who attend private or parochial schools.
Click here to continue
************
The pagan fertility rites of an Easter Egg Roll have no place upon the lawn of the White House in this professing Christian nation. Easter - a pagan goddess - and her fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs are a disgrace. Besides, who is paying for the "live music, sports courts, storytelling, egg rolling – and cooking stations" - American taxpayers? I'm a Christian and I certainly don't want a single red cent going toward these heathen customs God hates as an an abomination. We should teach our children to avoid such whitewashed pagan practices like the plague - not mislead and deceive them that such unclean things are harmless, especially in light of the Bible and history that prove otherwise.
The Big Lie of Easter
"Why do you perpetuate pagan fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs and don't have anything for Passover? No little lambs, nothing. John the Baptist called Jesus the 'Lamb of God' - not the Easter bunny!" - so I wrote a popular family restaurant about their country store and was informed they received my email and would respond.
The Plain Truth About Easter
Has it ever occurred to those stuffing their faces with Easter ham that Jesus would puke at the thought? Neither Jesus or Peter, James or John ever ate forbidden foods. They wouldn't feel too comfortable at plenty of people's dinner tables.
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
Many believe that God's endorsement of Passover ended with Christ's death—and that He has since replaced it with the observance of Easter as a celebration of Christ's resurrection. But is that so?
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
Thursday, March 25, 2010
He Set Ephraim Before Manasseh
As memories of the British Empire fade into the distant past, many think the United States is Ephraim and Britain Manasseh. There are sound historical reasons for this not being the case.
He Set Ephraim Before Manasseh
He Set Ephraim Before Manasseh
GN Commentary: Easter or Passover: What Does the Bible Teach?
Maybe it's time to take a closer look at Easter—and instead learn about the biblical Passover, with its wonderful meaning. It can easily be found in the pages of your Bible.
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The Big Lie of Easter
"Why do you perpetuate pagan fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs and don't have anything for Passover? No little lambs, nothing. John the Baptist called Jesus the 'Lamb of God' - not the Easter bunny!" - so I wrote a popular family restaurant about their country store and was informed they received my email and would respond.
The Plain Truth About Easter
Has it ever occurred to those stuffing their faces with Easter ham that Jesus would puke at the thought? Neither Jesus or Peter, James or John ever ate forbidden foods. They wouldn't feel too comfortable at plenty of people's dinner tables.
************
The Big Lie of Easter
"Why do you perpetuate pagan fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs and don't have anything for Passover? No little lambs, nothing. John the Baptist called Jesus the 'Lamb of God' - not the Easter bunny!" - so I wrote a popular family restaurant about their country store and was informed they received my email and would respond.
The Plain Truth About Easter
Has it ever occurred to those stuffing their faces with Easter ham that Jesus would puke at the thought? Neither Jesus or Peter, James or John ever ate forbidden foods. They wouldn't feel too comfortable at plenty of people's dinner tables.
Court told 'citizen' Obama actually may be alien
'Under British Nationality Act … he was a British subject'
March 25, 2010
By Bob Unruh
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
Forget the dispute over the "natural born citizen" requirement of the U.S. Constitution for presidents, Barack Obama may not even be a "citizen," according to a new filing in a long-running legal challenge to his eligibility to occupy the Oval Office.
"Under the British Nationality Act of 1948 his father was a British subject/citizen and not a United States citizen and Obama himself was a British subject/citizen at the time Obama was born," says a new filing in the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in the case Kerchner v. Obama.
"We further contend that Obama has failed to even conclusively prove that he is at least a 'citizen of the United States' under the Fourteenth Amendment as he claims by conclusively proving that he was born in Hawaii."
Click here to continue
March 25, 2010
By Bob Unruh
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
Forget the dispute over the "natural born citizen" requirement of the U.S. Constitution for presidents, Barack Obama may not even be a "citizen," according to a new filing in a long-running legal challenge to his eligibility to occupy the Oval Office.
"Under the British Nationality Act of 1948 his father was a British subject/citizen and not a United States citizen and Obama himself was a British subject/citizen at the time Obama was born," says a new filing in the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in the case Kerchner v. Obama.
"We further contend that Obama has failed to even conclusively prove that he is at least a 'citizen of the United States' under the Fourteenth Amendment as he claims by conclusively proving that he was born in Hawaii."
Click here to continue
Monday, March 22, 2010
Pagan fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs...
The Big Lie of Easter
by David Ben-Ariel
"Why do you perpetuate pagan fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs and don't have anything for Passover? No little lambs, nothing. John the Baptist called Jesus the 'Lamb of God' - not the Easter bunny!" - so I wrote a popular family restaurant about their country store and was informed they received my email and would respond.
How many folks actually stop and THINK? How many question why the focus is on an Easter bunny and not on the Passover Lamb? Why have professing Christians enabled this deliberate diversion and deception? Where has the outrage been among those who profess to love the Lord when they see society swept away with hare-brained traditions? Why the tacit approval by deathly silence and default?
Those who dishonestly continue to partake of Easter's modified pagan practices, its whitewashed heathen customs, are guilty of spiritual adultery! Such perverse Christians are whoring around with foreign gods and goddesses and undoubtedly will incur the wrath of God upon our nation of drunks and whores and illegitimate children (who have been sacrificed to demons rather than consecrated to God).
“Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed nor did they know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall [the slain] at the time I punish them, they shall be cast down, says the LORD” (Jeremiah 6:15).
Traditional Christianity, like an adulterous woman, "…eats and wipes her mouth, and says, ‘I have done no wickedness...'" (Prov. 30:20).
God let ancient Israel and Judah suffer NATIONAL DEFEAT, DESTRUCTION AND DEPORTATION due to their "harmless" religious celebrations! Has God changed His mind? Isn't Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever?
God condemns our countries for IDOLATRY — not just for immorality! Easter is both immoral and idolatrous, as are those worthless ministers who have let Easter take root and defile our land with its pagan pollutions. It is idolatry when religious folks continue to put pagan Easter above Passover (that the early Church of God faithfully observed), when they continue to pimp traditional religious lies of a "Sunday resurrection" - even though the plain truth of the Bible teaches: "After the women rested on the regular weekly Sabbath, they went to Jesus' tomb early on the first day of the week (Sunday), "while it was still dark" (John 20:1), and found that He had already been resurrected (Matthew 28:1-6; Mark 16:2-6; Luke 24:1-3)"- Easter: Masking a Biblical Truth .
Easter's not harmless; engaging in pagan practices like dying eggs and mindlessly decorating trees with eggs and eating Easter ham (an abomination!) is showing extreme disrespect to our Great Creator God, the God of the Bible, the God of Israel who thunders:
Jeremiah 10
2 Do not learn the way of the Gentiles...
Why not keep it simple and love and obey God and do as He says rather than blind tradition dictates? If not, stop calling yourself a Christian nation and be honest enough to admit you're a pagan nation and prepare to suffer the consequences!
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
by David Ben-Ariel
"Why do you perpetuate pagan fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs and don't have anything for Passover? No little lambs, nothing. John the Baptist called Jesus the 'Lamb of God' - not the Easter bunny!" - so I wrote a popular family restaurant about their country store and was informed they received my email and would respond.
How many folks actually stop and THINK? How many question why the focus is on an Easter bunny and not on the Passover Lamb? Why have professing Christians enabled this deliberate diversion and deception? Where has the outrage been among those who profess to love the Lord when they see society swept away with hare-brained traditions? Why the tacit approval by deathly silence and default?
You will find people celebrating Passover throughout the Bible, including Jesus. But you won't find people celebrating Easter. The word Easter comes from an ancient fertility goddess. It's spelled in different ways but usually pronounced "Easter" or something like it. For instance, the Babylonians called her Ishtar. The Phoenicians worshipped their goddess Astarte. The Germans had Ostara. The Hebrews called her Ashtoreth. This is all the same goddess, and God condemned the Israelites for having anything to do with this pagan goddess of fertility and the dawn. - Shocked by the BibleHow can a Christian nation have anything to do with a pagan goddess? With the fertility symbols of rabbits and eggs long associated with Easter and exposed by history and condemned by the Bible? Any observance of Easter is as impudent as a whore who feels no shame for her sins.
Those who dishonestly continue to partake of Easter's modified pagan practices, its whitewashed heathen customs, are guilty of spiritual adultery! Such perverse Christians are whoring around with foreign gods and goddesses and undoubtedly will incur the wrath of God upon our nation of drunks and whores and illegitimate children (who have been sacrificed to demons rather than consecrated to God).
“Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed nor did they know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall [the slain] at the time I punish them, they shall be cast down, says the LORD” (Jeremiah 6:15).
Traditional Christianity, like an adulterous woman, "…eats and wipes her mouth, and says, ‘I have done no wickedness...'" (Prov. 30:20).
God let ancient Israel and Judah suffer NATIONAL DEFEAT, DESTRUCTION AND DEPORTATION due to their "harmless" religious celebrations! Has God changed His mind? Isn't Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever?
God condemns our countries for IDOLATRY — not just for immorality! Easter is both immoral and idolatrous, as are those worthless ministers who have let Easter take root and defile our land with its pagan pollutions. It is idolatry when religious folks continue to put pagan Easter above Passover (that the early Church of God faithfully observed), when they continue to pimp traditional religious lies of a "Sunday resurrection" - even though the plain truth of the Bible teaches: "After the women rested on the regular weekly Sabbath, they went to Jesus' tomb early on the first day of the week (Sunday), "while it was still dark" (John 20:1), and found that He had already been resurrected (Matthew 28:1-6; Mark 16:2-6; Luke 24:1-3)"- Easter: Masking a Biblical Truth .
Easter's not harmless; engaging in pagan practices like dying eggs and mindlessly decorating trees with eggs and eating Easter ham (an abomination!) is showing extreme disrespect to our Great Creator God, the God of the Bible, the God of Israel who thunders:
Jeremiah 10
2 Do not learn the way of the Gentiles...
Why not keep it simple and love and obey God and do as He says rather than blind tradition dictates? If not, stop calling yourself a Christian nation and be honest enough to admit you're a pagan nation and prepare to suffer the consequences!
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Easter’s five fatal flaws
Easter’s five fatal flaws
Do you unknowingly worship a false Jesus? Do you plan to participate in Easter sunrise worship services this year, which are rooted in what your Bible calls "abominable" paganism? If you really love Jesus, then you should not.
Let us briefly review five fatal flaws of Easter:
For those who desire to learn how to truly please and honor their Lord and Heavenly Father by observing the Biblical Holy Days, please study the detailed booklet, The Holy Days—God’s Master Plan.
Let us briefly review five fatal flaws of Easter:
1) Jesus was not resurrected Sunday morning. A careful study of Scripture reveals that Jesus was in the tomb exactly three days and three nights as He promised He would be. To deny this is to reject Christ’s one and only claim to be the Messiah (Matthew 12:39-40)! Jesus died on a Wednesday afternoon, just before the "annual Sabbath" known as the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. He was buried and then resurrected 72 hours later, just before the end of the weekly Sabbath (near the end of the day, Saturday).For much more about the origins of Easter and what God says about true, righteous worship, please read the excellent articles: “The Sign of Jonah” by Mr. Rod McNair, “Holidays or Holy Days” by Dr. Douglas Winnail, or watch the excellent Tomorrow’s World telecasts, “The Resurrection was NOT on Easter” by Mr. John Ogwyn, or “Easter is Pagan” by Dr. Roderick Meredith.
2) Sunrise worship services are indeed found in your Bible, and they are condemned as pagan “abominations” to God. Sunrise worship was an integral part of the Babylonish Mystery Religion and was core in worshipping Semiramis and her infant son, Tammuz. Semiramis claimed that Tammuz was Nimrod reborn as the Messiah. Later, Semiramis was represented as the goddess Astarte (or Ishtar), the “queen of heaven.”
Read Ezekiel 8:14-16 where the glory of the Lord shows the ancient Israelites committing an “abomination” by “weeping for Tammuz” during sunrise worship services (v. 16)! Worship of Semiramis (“the mother of god”) and Tammuz (a counterfeit Messiah) continues today in the form of Easter Sunrise services.
3) Your Bible sternly condemns anyone who adopts pagan practices, regardless whether or not someone claims that they keep these customs “to honor Jesus.” Jeremiah 10:2 commands us to “Learn not the way of the heathen” and 2 Thessalonians 2:15 demands that we do not follow the “traditions of men.”
4) Claiming we somehow “honor” Jesus by pagan practice simply defies common sense and sound reason. Analogies are rarely entirely adequate, but consider this question. If you knew that your human father enjoyed steak and potatoes as a special dinner … and that he hated ham sandwiches … but you refused to make steak and potatoes for him and instead kept making him ham sandwiches … could a rational person really argue that you are honoring or loving your human father by continually trying to serve him ham sandwiches?
God has shown how He wants to be worshipped through His weekly Sabbath and annual biblical Holy Days. Yet while perhaps well-intended, many supposed Christians and supposed Christian ministers and priests reject God’s Holy Days and claim to show their love to their Lord and their Heavenly Father by continually trying to serve Him with what He calls revolting, pagan and abominable! Jesus asks these people, “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46).
5) Finally, 1 Corinthians 6:9 and Revelation 22:15 condemn those who practice these pagan and idolatrous customs as not being allowed in the Kingdom of God!
For those who desire to learn how to truly please and honor their Lord and Heavenly Father by observing the Biblical Holy Days, please study the detailed booklet, The Holy Days—God’s Master Plan.
Traditional Christian iniquity and idolatry
"No hunting on Sunday"
#41. To: Don (#39)
Armstrong was a false prophet.
Knee-jerk response from one stuck in the muck of Babylon, like typical spiritual drunks and whores who remain in denial, counterfeit Christians who refuse to repent of their SUNday-keeping Cult of Constantine, who prefer idolatrous traditions over the plain truth of the Bible that Herbert W. Armstrong faithfully taught.
Both the Bible and history condemn "Christian" idolatry and "Christian" iniquity.
1 Samuel 15
23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you...
Revelation 21
8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death" (the real Hell that will destroy the unrepentant - not torment them like a sadist).
Traditional Christian dishonesty is appalling and the deceit of counterfeit Christianity is repulsive, and proves such unclean Christians, Christian reprobates, are as much or more of religious liars, children of the Devil, murderous members of the Synagogue of Satan, as those who set Yahshua up and Stephen and Paul with false accusations - religious people lying through their teeth to keep their traditions because they hate the plain truth! Nothing new under the sun.
Herbert Armstrong was not a false prophet!
Apostate Christians make it abundantly clear they don't want their darkness disturbed by the facts, as both the Bible and history testify as two witnesses and condemn your traditional Christianity as baptized paganism, whitewashed heathen custons and doctrines of demons, but for the sake of others, others who are honest seekers of truth like the noble Bereans, who really hunger and thirst to know what the Bible really teaches on this or that subject and who don't get hung up on who God chooses to use to deliver the message of truth, I take the time to respond knowing some will be set free from the traditional bondage your unclean kind enjoy and will suffer the consequences for, having been more than warned to FORSAKE BABYLON.
Mark 7
"Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: " 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 7They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' 8You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."
9And he said to them: "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!... 13Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that."
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
#41. To: Don (#39)
Armstrong was a false prophet.
Knee-jerk response from one stuck in the muck of Babylon, like typical spiritual drunks and whores who remain in denial, counterfeit Christians who refuse to repent of their SUNday-keeping Cult of Constantine, who prefer idolatrous traditions over the plain truth of the Bible that Herbert W. Armstrong faithfully taught.
Both the Bible and history condemn "Christian" idolatry and "Christian" iniquity.
1 Samuel 15
23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you...
Revelation 21
8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death" (the real Hell that will destroy the unrepentant - not torment them like a sadist).
Traditional Christian dishonesty is appalling and the deceit of counterfeit Christianity is repulsive, and proves such unclean Christians, Christian reprobates, are as much or more of religious liars, children of the Devil, murderous members of the Synagogue of Satan, as those who set Yahshua up and Stephen and Paul with false accusations - religious people lying through their teeth to keep their traditions because they hate the plain truth! Nothing new under the sun.
Herbert Armstrong was not a false prophet!
Apostate Christians make it abundantly clear they don't want their darkness disturbed by the facts, as both the Bible and history testify as two witnesses and condemn your traditional Christianity as baptized paganism, whitewashed heathen custons and doctrines of demons, but for the sake of others, others who are honest seekers of truth like the noble Bereans, who really hunger and thirst to know what the Bible really teaches on this or that subject and who don't get hung up on who God chooses to use to deliver the message of truth, I take the time to respond knowing some will be set free from the traditional bondage your unclean kind enjoy and will suffer the consequences for, having been more than warned to FORSAKE BABYLON.
Mark 7
"Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: " 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 7They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' 8You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."
9And he said to them: "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!... 13Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that."
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Herbert Armstrong taught the seventh day Sabbath
"No hunting on Sunday"
#17. To: Don (#7)
Herbert Armstrong
I realize Herbert W. Armstrong deserves plenty of credit for teaching the plain truth of the Bible, like the apostle Paul, but Herbert W. Armstrong is not the author of these Scriptures you shamefully ignore that you may keep your idolatrous traditions:
“Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh is the Sabbath of rest” (Exodus 31:15).
“The seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work on it” (Leviticus 23:3).
“The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work” (Deuteronomy 5:14).
“Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God … For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it” (Exodus 20:9- 11).
Isaiah reveals pagan SUNday keeping will be history, and everybody will keep the biblical seventh day Sabbath as God has ordained:
“‘And it shall come to pass that from one New Moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before Me,’ says the Lord” (Isaiah 66:23).
Mr. Armstrong will be highly respected in the Kingdom of God for teaching the Sabbath command, and those hateful "Christian" idolaters (putting SUNday above Sabbath) who opposed him will be ashamed.
Matthew 5:18-20
18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. 19 Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.
Herbert W. Armstrong didn't write those wonderful Scriptures that further expose and condemn counterfeit Christianity's traditional darkness (since they clearly follow Constantine and not Christ), but Mr. Armstrong did write an excellent booklet on this subject for those who are honest seekers of truth like the noble Bereans:
Table of Contents
#17. To: Don (#7)
Herbert Armstrong
I realize Herbert W. Armstrong deserves plenty of credit for teaching the plain truth of the Bible, like the apostle Paul, but Herbert W. Armstrong is not the author of these Scriptures you shamefully ignore that you may keep your idolatrous traditions:
“Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh is the Sabbath of rest” (Exodus 31:15).
“The seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work on it” (Leviticus 23:3).
“The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work” (Deuteronomy 5:14).
“Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God … For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it” (Exodus 20:9- 11).
Isaiah reveals pagan SUNday keeping will be history, and everybody will keep the biblical seventh day Sabbath as God has ordained:
“‘And it shall come to pass that from one New Moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before Me,’ says the Lord” (Isaiah 66:23).
Mr. Armstrong will be highly respected in the Kingdom of God for teaching the Sabbath command, and those hateful "Christian" idolaters (putting SUNday above Sabbath) who opposed him will be ashamed.
Matthew 5:18-20
18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. 19 Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.
Herbert W. Armstrong didn't write those wonderful Scriptures that further expose and condemn counterfeit Christianity's traditional darkness (since they clearly follow Constantine and not Christ), but Mr. Armstrong did write an excellent booklet on this subject for those who are honest seekers of truth like the noble Bereans:
By Herbert W. Armstrong
Does it make any difference WHICH day we observe—or whether we keep it? Does the Bible establish SUNDAY as the LORD’S DAY? Was the Sabbath given for the Jewish people only—while Christians are commanded to keep SUNDAY as the LORD’S DAY?
Table of Contents
| Chapter 1 | But Does It Make Any Difference? |
| Chapter 2 | Who Made and Established the Sabbath? |
| Chapter 3 | God—Not Moses—Gave the Law |
| Chapter 4 | A Special Eternal Covenant |
| Chapter 5 | Which Day for Gentile Christians? |
| Chapter 6 | Why Israel and Judah Made Slaves |
| Chapter 7 | Is Sunday Mentioned in the New Testament? |
| Chapter 8 | The Amazing Truth About Christian Fellowship |
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
The apostle Paul taught Gentiles to keep Passover - not Easter!
#155. To: bluewater boats (#25)
Gentile Christians have a different covenant with God
The apostle Paul instructed the Corinthian Gentile Christians to keep the Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread.
"Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. "Therefore let us keep the feast [of unleavened bread], not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth" (1 Corinthians 5:6-8).
Can you show me where Paul instructed the Jewish, Israelite or Gentile brethren to observe some "resurrection SUNday" or "Easter sunrise service" or color eggs and give "Easter bunnies" to their children and to make sure to eat plenty of unclean "Easter ham"?
How Satan makes such a fool of professing Christians every pagan holiday, who are engaged in spiritual adultery and stuck in the muck of Babylon! THINK about it, so help you God.
The early Church of God, converted Jews, Israelites and Gentiles, faithfully observed, in spirit and in truth, the Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread, as pioneers of the wonderful World Tomorrow, the Kingdom of God, where Christ will keep the PASSOVER - not pagan Easter!
Luke 22:14-16:
"When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. Then He said to them, ‘With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.'"
Neither the biblical festivals or law of God have been done away, as religious liars spew, but the whitewashed pagan holidays pretending to be Christian, that misrepresent Christ and Christianity, will soon be trashed.
Jeremiah 16
19 O LORD, my strength and my fortress,
My refuge in the day of affliction,
The Gentiles shall come to You
From the ends of the earth and say,
“ Surely our fathers have inherited lies,
Worthlessness and unprofitable things.”
The Biblical Festivals That Teach Us About Jesus Christ
Gentile Christians have a different covenant with God
The apostle Paul instructed the Corinthian Gentile Christians to keep the Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread.
"Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. "Therefore let us keep the feast [of unleavened bread], not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth" (1 Corinthians 5:6-8).
Can you show me where Paul instructed the Jewish, Israelite or Gentile brethren to observe some "resurrection SUNday" or "Easter sunrise service" or color eggs and give "Easter bunnies" to their children and to make sure to eat plenty of unclean "Easter ham"?
How Satan makes such a fool of professing Christians every pagan holiday, who are engaged in spiritual adultery and stuck in the muck of Babylon! THINK about it, so help you God.
The early Church of God, converted Jews, Israelites and Gentiles, faithfully observed, in spirit and in truth, the Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread, as pioneers of the wonderful World Tomorrow, the Kingdom of God, where Christ will keep the PASSOVER - not pagan Easter!
Luke 22:14-16:
"When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. Then He said to them, ‘With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.'"
Neither the biblical festivals or law of God have been done away, as religious liars spew, but the whitewashed pagan holidays pretending to be Christian, that misrepresent Christ and Christianity, will soon be trashed.
Jeremiah 16
19 O LORD, my strength and my fortress,
My refuge in the day of affliction,
The Gentiles shall come to You
From the ends of the earth and say,
“ Surely our fathers have inherited lies,
Worthlessness and unprofitable things.”
The Biblical Festivals That Teach Us About Jesus Christ
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Christmas and Easter are modified pagan holidays
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
#145. To: domer (#28)
Easter is exactly like Christmas.
Yes, both Easter and Christmas are modified pagan holidays, filled with whitewashed heathen customs, baptized paganism, ABOMINATIONS that God hates and legitimate Christians avoid like the plague!
True Christians don't deny both the Bible and history condemn Easter and Christmas, even though spiritual drunks and whores, "Christians" in denial, dig themselves in deeper, stuck in the muck of Babylon, when they refuse to repent and forsake such religious sins.
Deuteronomy 12
30 take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them [pagans], after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods? [heathen customs] I also will do likewise.’ [modifying pagan hollow days to worship the true God]
31 You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods
Jeremiah 10
2 Thus says the LORD:
Do not learn the way of the Gentiles
1 Corinthians 10:19-21
19 What am I saying then? That an idol is anything, or what is offered to idols is anything? 20 Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord's table and of the table of demons. [No mixing and matching of pagan error with biblical truth]
2 Corinthians 6:14-18
14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? [No diluting, adulterating and polluting of God's truth with pagan blends] Or what part has a believer with an
unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:
"I will dwell in them
And walk among them.
I will be their God,
And they shall be My people."
17 Therefore
"Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. [Don't stay stuck in the rut of tradition, but let the plain truth set you free!] Do not touch what is unclean, And [then] I will receive you.
18 [on these conditions] I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty."
C.H. Spurgeon on Christmas and Roman Catholicism
First, because we do not believe in the mass at all, but abhor it, whether it be sung in Latin or in English. Secondly, because we find no Scriptural warrant whatever for observing any day as the birthday of the Savior; and consequently, its observance is a superstition
Why I No Longer Celebrate Christmas
Will God Curse Our Countries for Christmas?
Plea to Diehard Catholics & Protestants to Repent
Mark 7
"Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
" 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 7They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' 8You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."
9And he said to them: "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!... 13Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that."
#145. To: domer (#28)
Easter is exactly like Christmas.
Yes, both Easter and Christmas are modified pagan holidays, filled with whitewashed heathen customs, baptized paganism, ABOMINATIONS that God hates and legitimate Christians avoid like the plague!
True Christians don't deny both the Bible and history condemn Easter and Christmas, even though spiritual drunks and whores, "Christians" in denial, dig themselves in deeper, stuck in the muck of Babylon, when they refuse to repent and forsake such religious sins.
Deuteronomy 12
30 take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them [pagans], after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods? [heathen customs] I also will do likewise.’ [modifying pagan hollow days to worship the true God]
31 You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods
Jeremiah 10
2 Thus says the LORD:
Do not learn the way of the Gentiles
1 Corinthians 10:19-21
19 What am I saying then? That an idol is anything, or what is offered to idols is anything? 20 Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord's table and of the table of demons. [No mixing and matching of pagan error with biblical truth]
2 Corinthians 6:14-18
14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? [No diluting, adulterating and polluting of God's truth with pagan blends] Or what part has a believer with an
unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:
"I will dwell in them
And walk among them.
I will be their God,
And they shall be My people."
17 Therefore
"Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. [Don't stay stuck in the rut of tradition, but let the plain truth set you free!] Do not touch what is unclean, And [then] I will receive you.
18 [on these conditions] I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty."
C.H. Spurgeon on Christmas and Roman Catholicism
First, because we do not believe in the mass at all, but abhor it, whether it be sung in Latin or in English. Secondly, because we find no Scriptural warrant whatever for observing any day as the birthday of the Savior; and consequently, its observance is a superstition
Why I No Longer Celebrate Christmas
Will God Curse Our Countries for Christmas?
Plea to Diehard Catholics & Protestants to Repent
Mark 7
"Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
" 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 7They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' 8You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."
9And he said to them: "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!... 13Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that."
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Jesus never claimed to be divine!
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
#130. To: Goldi-Lox (#115)
When Jesus professed to BE G-d
Yahshua never claimed to be God while in the human flesh. He was the Son of MAN - he was thoroughly HUMAN - having divested himself of his former glory as a God-Being, one of the two members of the God Kingdom-Family.
Yahshua revealed our incredible human potential is to become born again as divine, as he was restored to his state of divinity after the first part of his mission from God was accomplished here on earth. He will soon return as the King of the Jews, the King of Israel, to fulfill the rest of his Work and finish it.
Traditional Christians today, like most religious Jews yesterday, didn't want to hear it, unable to see the glory God offers mankind due to traditional veils that blind them.
In the beginning was the Word...
God became man so man could become God!
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
#130. To: Goldi-Lox (#115)
When Jesus professed to BE G-d
Yahshua never claimed to be God while in the human flesh. He was the Son of MAN - he was thoroughly HUMAN - having divested himself of his former glory as a God-Being, one of the two members of the God Kingdom-Family.
Yahshua revealed our incredible human potential is to become born again as divine, as he was restored to his state of divinity after the first part of his mission from God was accomplished here on earth. He will soon return as the King of the Jews, the King of Israel, to fulfill the rest of his Work and finish it.
Traditional Christians today, like most religious Jews yesterday, didn't want to hear it, unable to see the glory God offers mankind due to traditional veils that blind them.
In the beginning was the Word...
God became man so man could become God!
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
Both the Bible and history condemn Christianity!
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
#129. To: Sweetjustusnow (#72)
[mindless cut and paste]
It's so sad to see you've failed to FORSAKE BABYLON and continue to prove your critical thinking ability has been severely damaged by your unclean cult of traditional Christianity.
True Christians follow Yahshua and His example - traditional Christian cultists, apostate Christians, follow Rome and Constantine from Sunday to Easter to many other unclean doctrines of demons headed for the Lake of Fire (the real Hell that will destroy the unrepentant - not torment them like a sadist).
Won't you let the truth set you free rather than hate it and condemn yourself? Do you think God is fooled by baptized paganism, idolatrous traditions, your traditional religious bull? Both the Bible and history condemn traditional Christianity's hypocrisy and deceitfulness.
Is the Plain Truth Too Strong?
"Cry aloud, spare not; Lift up your voice like a trumpet; Tell My people their transgression [the Church and Synagogue], And the house of Jacob [the family of Israelite nations - all Twelve Tribes of Israel] their sins. 2 Yet they seek Me daily, And delight to know My ways, As a nation that did righteousness, And did not forsake the ordinance of their God. They ask of Me the ordinances of justice; They take delight in approaching God" (Isaiah 58).
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
#129. To: Sweetjustusnow (#72)
[mindless cut and paste]
It's so sad to see you've failed to FORSAKE BABYLON and continue to prove your critical thinking ability has been severely damaged by your unclean cult of traditional Christianity.
True Christians follow Yahshua and His example - traditional Christian cultists, apostate Christians, follow Rome and Constantine from Sunday to Easter to many other unclean doctrines of demons headed for the Lake of Fire (the real Hell that will destroy the unrepentant - not torment them like a sadist).
Won't you let the truth set you free rather than hate it and condemn yourself? Do you think God is fooled by baptized paganism, idolatrous traditions, your traditional religious bull? Both the Bible and history condemn traditional Christianity's hypocrisy and deceitfulness.
Is the Plain Truth Too Strong?
"Cry aloud, spare not; Lift up your voice like a trumpet; Tell My people their transgression [the Church and Synagogue], And the house of Jacob [the family of Israelite nations - all Twelve Tribes of Israel] their sins. 2 Yet they seek Me daily, And delight to know My ways, As a nation that did righteousness, And did not forsake the ordinance of their God. They ask of Me the ordinances of justice; They take delight in approaching God" (Isaiah 58).
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
Friday, March 12, 2010
Census
Census 2010
The 2010 Census:
Reject this Big Bully intrusion and return your census envelope with your question for them:
WHERE'S THE BIRTH CERTIFICATE?
************
President usurper Obama/Soetoro/Obama, regardless of his proud and stubborn refusal to be transparent (as promised - no change there), paying expensive lawyers hush money (at American taxpayers' expense) to keep his revealing documents in the dark, is not a natural born citizen of two American parents and is therefore not eligible to be POTUS according to the Constitution.
It's past time the fraud and foreigner is brought to justice! Emperor Obama has got to go! And let him take his illegal alien aunt with him who has stolen from the American people.
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
Reject this Big Bully intrusion and return your census envelope with your question for them:
WHERE'S THE BIRTH CERTIFICATE?
************
President usurper Obama/Soetoro/Obama, regardless of his proud and stubborn refusal to be transparent (as promised - no change there), paying expensive lawyers hush money (at American taxpayers' expense) to keep his revealing documents in the dark, is not a natural born citizen of two American parents and is therefore not eligible to be POTUS according to the Constitution.
It's past time the fraud and foreigner is brought to justice! Emperor Obama has got to go! And let him take his illegal alien aunt with him who has stolen from the American people.
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
Thursday, March 11, 2010
February 2010 Article Performance Report
From EzineArticles.com
Top 3 Performing Articles (Lifetime):
Not All Twelve Tribes of Israel are Jewish?
Lifetime Views: 32,134
Herbert W. Armstrong Was Ahead of His Time!
Lifetime Views: 19,115
The Plain Truth About The "Lost Ten Tribes" And Why You Need To Know
Lifetime Views: 17,919
Top 3 Performing Articles (February 2010):
Not All Twelve Tribes of Israel are Jewish?
February 2010 Views: 669
Third Temple Coming Soon to Jerusalem!
February 2010 Views: 309
The Plain Truth About The "Lost Ten Tribes" And Why You Need To Know
February 2010 Views: 248
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
Top 3 Performing Articles (Lifetime):
Not All Twelve Tribes of Israel are Jewish?
Lifetime Views: 32,134
Herbert W. Armstrong Was Ahead of His Time!
Lifetime Views: 19,115
The Plain Truth About The "Lost Ten Tribes" And Why You Need To Know
Lifetime Views: 17,919
Top 3 Performing Articles (February 2010):
Not All Twelve Tribes of Israel are Jewish?
February 2010 Views: 669
Third Temple Coming Soon to Jerusalem!
February 2010 Views: 309
The Plain Truth About The "Lost Ten Tribes" And Why You Need To Know
February 2010 Views: 248
http://www.davidbenariel.org/
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
Forbidden Fruit
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
#48. To: Chaka (#33)
the idea that an omnipotent deity would create a wonderfully-flavored animal like the Pig and then forbade eating it is heretical and preposterous
Perhaps to those who steal the forbidden fruit of self-righteously determining for themselves what is good and what is evil, rather than submit to the Word of God - divine revelation - that clearly instructs us what our Great Creator God decrees is fit and what is not fit for human consumption. It is heretical and the height of chutzpah to pretend to know more than our Creator! Such covetous cravings and idolatrous thoughts expose an unclean heart and impure mind.
Like the serpent who lied to Eve about the "wonderfully-flavored" fruit, you don't have a leg to stand on.
Isaiah 5:20
20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Isaiah 55:7-9
7 Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the LORD,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
8 "For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD.
9 "For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.
Is All Animal Flesh Good Food?
Were all animals made clean? What about the unclean animals shown to Peter in a vision? Here is a straightforward Bible answer, giving the New Testament teaching. This subject is important to your health and well-being!
Unclean Christianity vs. Peter's Vision
Unclean traditional Christianity teaches the religious lie that Jesus "did away with" the dietary laws, sinning against both God and man (1 John 2:4; Matt 5:17-20).
Jesus Upheld the Biblical Dietary Laws
Unclean traditional Christianity has misled many with their lack of understanding of the Bible as a whole. They often take Scriptures out of context and totally twist their meanings, like they do when it comes to abusing Matthew 15 and slaughtering it to teach we can now eat anything.
#48. To: Chaka (#33)
the idea that an omnipotent deity would create a wonderfully-flavored animal like the Pig and then forbade eating it is heretical and preposterous
Perhaps to those who steal the forbidden fruit of self-righteously determining for themselves what is good and what is evil, rather than submit to the Word of God - divine revelation - that clearly instructs us what our Great Creator God decrees is fit and what is not fit for human consumption. It is heretical and the height of chutzpah to pretend to know more than our Creator! Such covetous cravings and idolatrous thoughts expose an unclean heart and impure mind.
Like the serpent who lied to Eve about the "wonderfully-flavored" fruit, you don't have a leg to stand on.
Isaiah 5:20
20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Isaiah 55:7-9
7 Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the LORD,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
8 "For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD.
9 "For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.
Is All Animal Flesh Good Food?
Were all animals made clean? What about the unclean animals shown to Peter in a vision? Here is a straightforward Bible answer, giving the New Testament teaching. This subject is important to your health and well-being!
Unclean Christianity vs. Peter's Vision
Unclean traditional Christianity teaches the religious lie that Jesus "did away with" the dietary laws, sinning against both God and man (1 John 2:4; Matt 5:17-20).
Jesus Upheld the Biblical Dietary Laws
Unclean traditional Christianity has misled many with their lack of understanding of the Bible as a whole. They often take Scriptures out of context and totally twist their meanings, like they do when it comes to abusing Matthew 15 and slaughtering it to teach we can now eat anything.
Monday, March 08, 2010
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
Easter or Passover: Which Is Christian?
Many believe that God's endorsement of Passover ended with Christ's death—and that He has since replaced it with the observance of Easter as a celebration of Christ's resurrection. But is that so?
by Jerold Aust
On April 4 of this year, a billion or more people who identify themselves as Christian will celebrate Easter. The week before, a far smaller number will observe Passover. How do these two scenarios compare? On the one hand, we have a fun-filled Easter egg hunt, Easter bunnies galore and an Easter Sunday sunrise service. On the other, a solemn Passover service that typically includes participants washing one another's feet and partaking of unleavened bread and wine.
Easter seems more fun, more joyous; Passover seems old-fashioned and more serious. These are some differences that are obvious on the surface. Many other differences aren't so obvious.
I never questioned the Easter season with its Easter eggs and Easter bunnies. This was supposed to be the most holy holiday of the year, but to me it was more about fun—just as merchants hoped it would be.
It wasn't until my early 20s that I learned about the so-called "Jewish" Passover. The ministers I'd known earlier had given me no hint that Passover was something for Christians.
I now found this curious, since my Bible clearly showed that Jesus, a Jew, observed the Passover with His closest followers and instructed them, and us, to continue to keep it until His return (Matthew 26:26-29). I was also surprised to read that the apostle Paul explicitly told Church members in the Greek port city of Corinth—most of whom were not and never had been Jewish—to observe the Passover as a reminder and memorial of Jesus Christ's death (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).
And try as I might, I couldn't find anything in the Bible mentioning the apostles or early Church celebrating Easter. No eggs or rabbits anywhere. I even found that the one place where the word Easter is found in the Bible—Acts 12:4 in the King James Version—the original word there is actually Pascha, the Greek word for Passover!
I was at a loss to explain this. How was it that millions upon millions of people celebrated a holiday that clearly isn't found in the Bible, while dutifully ignoring a holy observance that is in the Scriptures?
If you celebrate Easter with sincerity (and many millions do), you likely regard Easter as a religious holiday that superseded the archaic Old Testament Passover. After all, that's what most churches teach—that Easter has replaced the Passover. But is there more to the story than that?
Even the Catholic Encyclopedia acknowledges that Jesus and His apostles never celebrated Easter, observing instead the seventh-day Sabbath and the annual festivals of God, including the Passover, all listed in Leviticus 23 and mentioned in many other places in Scripture (New Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 5, 1967, p. 867, "Early Christian Feasts").
You might have heard that Easter came from pagan origins but may have simply dismissed this as irrelevant. After all, God surely wouldn't mind if you celebrated this holiday to honor Him, would He? Yet He does mind. The Bible clearly states that God wants to be worshipped according to the way He instructs in the Scriptures (see Deuteronomy 12:29-32).
Has Easter, in fact, replaced Passover as a Christian obligation, sacred because so many people keep it and because it was sanctioned by the universal church? Additionally, does Passover keep the Jews (and those Christians who insist on observing it) in darkness, unable to receive the grace and life of Jesus Christ?
If those assumptions are true, then—end of story. But if they are not, then we'd better ask some serious questions. In fact, we'd better seriously question those assumptions either way.
Most Christians think that as long as a person celebrates Easter as honoring Christ's resurrection, God won't mind and we shouldn't care. But God does mind and we should care that He does.
Many sources are available that describe the origins, history and purpose of the Easter celebration. If you read them without checking what the Bible says about which religious festivals are acceptable to God, you could easily conclude that the writers and researchers know what they are writing about. Their analyses may seem well-grounded, even beyond questioning.
But question you must. If you follow human dogma that doesn't match Jesus' teachings, you're on religious quicksand without the lifeline of God's saving truth.
You can check in nearly any Bible help or encyclopedia to verify several fundamental facts:
John 20:1-2 tells us: "Now the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, 'They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him'" (emphasis added throughout).
Notice that when Mary Magdalene went to Jesus' tomb while it was still dark—before the sun had risen—she saw that the stone had already been rolled away from the tomb's entrance, revealing it to be empty. She immediately ran to Peter and John, excitedly complaining that someone had surreptitiously removed Jesus' body from the tomb.
Both Peter and John ran to Jesus' tomb; John arrived first (verses 3-4). He looked into the tomb but didn't enter until after Peter did. Both saw Jesus' burial linens and head covering lying there. Neither one of them had understood that Jesus would rise from the dead (verses 5-9).
Mary returned and shed tears that Jesus' body was no longer there. Reluctantly she took one last look into the tomb, and to her surprise, saw two angels in white sitting at the head and foot of where Jesus' body had been. The angels asked her why she was crying. She told them that someone had taken Jesus' body away. She then turned and saw a man whom she assumed to be the gardener. She asked him to tell her where Jesus' body was (verses 11-15).
In His unique way, Jesus addressed her by name. Immediately she recognized His voice and only then did she know who it was.
Remember, it was not daylight yet. There was no group of people waiting for the sun to rise in order to honor Jesus' resurrection from the dead. John's account—and remember, he and Peter were the first two apostles to come to the tomb—plainly shows that Jesus was not resurrected at sunrise on Sunday morning.
Matthew states: "Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb" where Jesus was laid. At that time there was a great earthquake, and an angel descended and rolled back the stone from the door (Matthew 28:1-2).
The guards, stationed there to prevent the stealing of Jesus' body, shook with fear and looked like dead men. The angel addressed the women: "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold I have told you" (verses 4-7).
Matthew confirms at least two things about Jesus' resurrection: First, it was beginning to dawn when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to His tomb, yet still dark outside. Second, the angel told them that Christ had already risen, which meant that He rose sometime before this period, certainly not at sunrise on Sunday morning.
This makes good sense since Jesus told the religious leaders of His day that He would spend three days and three nights in the tomb. He called this the sign of the prophet Jonah, since Jonah had spent three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish that swallowed him (Matthew 12:39-40).
This statement from Jesus alone disproves another myth about Easter, that Jesus was crucified on Good Friday and resurrected on Easter Sunday. Try as you might, there is no way to fit three days and three nights between a hurried late Friday burial and a Sunday morning resurrection.
At most, this scenario only allows for a tiny part of two days (a few minutes each on Friday at sunset and Sunday at sunrise) and another full day (Saturday), plus Friday night and Saturday night—leaving us more than a day and a night short of what Jesus Himself foretold!
Jesus could not have been resurrected on Sunday morning at daybreak since the only sign He gave to His disciples that He truly was the Messiah was the sign of Jonah. Again, as Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights, so Jesus spent that same amount of time in the tomb or grave. You can see the detailed proof for yourself in our free booklets Jesus Christ: The Real Story and Holidays or Holy Days: Does It Matter Which Days We Observe?
But that's not the worst part. Easter's origins—and you can verify this yourself with a little research—actually long predate Christianity. Its strange symbols (what do eggs and rabbits have to do with Christ's death and resurrection?), its timing (in the spring of the year), its most notable custom (worshipping at sunrise) and even its name all go back to the worship of pagan fertility gods and goddesses.
God's Word is very clear as to how He views adapting pagan customs and practices to worshipping Him. He explicitly commands His people not to copy religious practices used to worship other gods (Deuteronomy 12:29-32). He calls such practices abominations and emphatically states, "You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way"!
When we weigh Easter in the balance, it is clearly found wanting. It isn't found in Scripture, the way it is celebrated conflicts with basic biblical facts, and it is directly traceable to ancient pre-Christian pagan practices.
In contrast, what can we learn about Passover?
Much of modern Christianity tells people they have nothing more to do than give their hearts to Jesus and accept His blood for their sins. They reason that since human beings are imperfect sinners and Jesus' blood covers their sins, there's nothing more to do but simply accept these facts. Many professing Christians also assume that if a Christian believes he or she is required to strive to obey God in any way, then he or she is denying Jesus as Savior.
But does the Bible support this outlook?
The apostle Paul addresses this subject in Romans 6:1-2: "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?" He goes on to say: "For he who has died has been freed from sin...Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts" (verses 7, 12).
Paul also explained that Jesus is our Passover who shed His sinless blood to cover the sins of humankind (1 Corinthians 5:7). He wrote that Jesus Himself explained the meaning of the Passover symbols of unleavened bread and wine—that they represent His body bruised and broken for us and His blood shed to pay the penalty for our sins.
"For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.'
"In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.' For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes" (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).
Paul's clear teaching is that Jesus' death is symbolized by the Passover, and we who accept His shed blood should no longer live in sin, giving in to the lusts of our selfish nature. We are most certainly saved by grace through faith, but we are also required to honor God by our works, based on God's Ten Commandments (Ephesians 2:8-10; Matthew 19:17). Faith must be accompanied by works, for faith without works is dead (James 2:14, 17, 24, 26).
The Passover has great meaning for Christians, being as current and relevant today as it was when Jesus instituted its symbols and told His followers, "If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them" (John 13:17).
Jesus observed the Passover, not Easter, with His apostles, instructing them to continue to observe it and teach it to the Church and declaring that when He returns, He will observe it again with His true followers (Matthew 26:26-29).
Easter, even the very name, finds its origins in the worship of an ancient fertility goddess, Ishtar (or Ashtoreth as she was called in Israel during Bible times—1 Kings 11:5, 33; 2 Kings 23:13). She was worshipped in many ancient nations, which helps explain the origins of the Easter egg, a fertility symbol associated with this goddess (Alexander Hislop, The Two Babylons, 1959, pp. 103, 109).
There was another church that emerged after the early New Testament Church, one that began as an alternative to the original Jewish-Christian church of Jerusalem. Over time it appeased, negotiated, reconciled and pacified the pagans into accepting a nominal form of Christianity; and by replacing the Bible's religious observances with popular idolatrous celebrations, it merged paganism and Christianity into a new religion (p. 105). You can learn more of the story in our free booklet The Church Jesus Built.
Regardless of how many well-meaning people celebrate Easter, they cannot legitimize a religious holiday that doesn't represent or belong to Christ. If a billion people do something wrong, it's still wrong.
Easter, the very name of which comes from an ancient goddess of fertility, denies the Savior it claims to honor. Jesus would never have sanctioned or observed it since doing so would have broken some of the very commands He inspired to be recorded in Scripture. And had Jesus sinned in this way, we would not have a Savior.
The command to observe Passover is one of the inexorable laws of God, given to human beings to commemorate the death of Jesus Christ, in spirit and truth (Matthew 26:17-29; John 4:23-24).
Passover entails God "passing over" human beings in meting out the justice of death for people's sins (Romans 3:23; 6:23; 1 Peter 1:18-19). God passed over Israel when He sent the death angel to kill all the firstborn of the land of Egypt (Exodus 12:27), which is a type of what He does for Christians today. Passing over Israel spared the lives of their firstborn; passing over Christians spares the "church of the firstborn" (Hebrews 12:23), ultimately freeing them from death.
Jesus then is our Passover (1 Corinthians 5:7). Christians keep Christ's Passover festival because it reminds them that if it weren't for the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we would surely die—forever. Jesus shed His blood for humanity, and those who accept His shed blood, while following God's holy and righteous law (Romans 7:12), are promised an abundant life now and everlasting life later.
With God, timing and meaning are important. God is always on time, and He does nothing without life-giving meaning. Easter does neither.
Easter is a widely known man-made tradition. It stands against the true Jesus Christ and His teachings. Such departure from what He taught came early in Church history. The apostle Paul wrote to certain Christians, lamenting, "For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!" (2 Corinthians 11:4). Many still do!
Remember that sin is the breaking of God's laws. The observance of Easter is contrary to God's laws (Deuteronomy 12:29-32); Passover observance is part of God's law (Leviticus 23:1-5).
Elijah demanded of the Israelites, "How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him" (1 Kings 18:21). Though God is patient, He commands all men everywhere to repent of their sins (Acts 17:30).
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). Neither He nor God the Father replaced the Passover with Easter. When you honestly compare and contrast Easter with Passover, there should be no question as to which one God desires you to observe.
Either we obey God or we don't. He sanctioned the true Christian Passover and not the pre-Christian and man-made tradition called Easter. Are you willing to follow what He says? GN
For millions of people Easter Sunday is the most important religious holiday of the year. But if Jesus walked the dusty roads of Galilee today, would He observe Easter?
Good Friday—Easter Sunday: It Didn't Happen That Way!
Do you remember when you learned that Santa Claus wasn't real? Guess what? Good Friday and a Sunday resurrection aren't either. Discover the real story from the pages of the Bible itself!
Does Easter Really Commemorate Jesus Christ's Resurrection?
What do rabbits and eggs have to do with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? Where did the name Easter originate? This holiday isn't even mentioned in the Bible—so where did it really come from?
Why Should Christians Keep the Passover?
Do you really know why Jesus had to suffer and die? What should the Passover mean for Christians today?
What Was the Purpose of Christ's Death?
Millions of Christians believe that Jesus Christ died for them. But do they really know why? Why was Jesus Christ's death really necessary?
Jesus Christ: Do We Have the Real Story?
Do we have the complete story of Jesus Christ's life and death? For centuries alternative ideas have circulated as to whether Jesus was who the Gospels say He was. The Da Vinci Code, a hugely popular best-selling book, dramatizes one of these stories. What is the truth? Can we know for sure?
Should You Keep the Festivals Jesus Observed?
Jesus observed the Passover, the Feast of Tabernacles and the other festivals that God gave to Israel. Should you follow His example? Are those sacred festivals still applicable for Christians?
The Biblical Festivals That Teach Us About Jesus Christ
Few people are aware of the seven festivals God reveals in the Bible. Even fewer are aware that they center around and teach us a great deal about Jesus Christ and His role in God's plan for all mankind.
The Biblical Festivals That Reveal Christ's Role in God's Plan
Jesus Christ celebrated seven festivals every year that most Christians today can't even name, yet they have His imprint all over them. He is the reason for each of these seasons, and they have great meaning for anyone who would like to follow Him better. What are these festivals, and what do they reveal about our Savior and King?
************
The Passover Memorial
The Plain Truth About Easter
Has it ever occurred to those stuffing their faces with Easter ham that Jesus would puke at the thought? Neither Jesus or Peter, James or John ever ate forbidden foods. They wouldn't feel too comfortable at plenty of people's dinner tables.
Many believe that God's endorsement of Passover ended with Christ's death—and that He has since replaced it with the observance of Easter as a celebration of Christ's resurrection. But is that so?
by Jerold Aust
On April 4 of this year, a billion or more people who identify themselves as Christian will celebrate Easter. The week before, a far smaller number will observe Passover. How do these two scenarios compare? On the one hand, we have a fun-filled Easter egg hunt, Easter bunnies galore and an Easter Sunday sunrise service. On the other, a solemn Passover service that typically includes participants washing one another's feet and partaking of unleavened bread and wine.
Easter seems more fun, more joyous; Passover seems old-fashioned and more serious. These are some differences that are obvious on the surface. Many other differences aren't so obvious.
My own Easter story
My earliest recollections of Easter included searching for colored eggs that I helped paint and my mother hid. Since I loved hard-boiled eggs, finding and eating those colorfully decorated eggs was fun and quite a treat!I never questioned the Easter season with its Easter eggs and Easter bunnies. This was supposed to be the most holy holiday of the year, but to me it was more about fun—just as merchants hoped it would be.
It wasn't until my early 20s that I learned about the so-called "Jewish" Passover. The ministers I'd known earlier had given me no hint that Passover was something for Christians.
I now found this curious, since my Bible clearly showed that Jesus, a Jew, observed the Passover with His closest followers and instructed them, and us, to continue to keep it until His return (Matthew 26:26-29). I was also surprised to read that the apostle Paul explicitly told Church members in the Greek port city of Corinth—most of whom were not and never had been Jewish—to observe the Passover as a reminder and memorial of Jesus Christ's death (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).
And try as I might, I couldn't find anything in the Bible mentioning the apostles or early Church celebrating Easter. No eggs or rabbits anywhere. I even found that the one place where the word Easter is found in the Bible—Acts 12:4 in the King James Version—the original word there is actually Pascha, the Greek word for Passover!
I was at a loss to explain this. How was it that millions upon millions of people celebrated a holiday that clearly isn't found in the Bible, while dutifully ignoring a holy observance that is in the Scriptures?
A valid replacement?
Have you ever compared the meanings and symbols of Passover and Easter? Have you ever asked what God thinks of the two?If you celebrate Easter with sincerity (and many millions do), you likely regard Easter as a religious holiday that superseded the archaic Old Testament Passover. After all, that's what most churches teach—that Easter has replaced the Passover. But is there more to the story than that?
Even the Catholic Encyclopedia acknowledges that Jesus and His apostles never celebrated Easter, observing instead the seventh-day Sabbath and the annual festivals of God, including the Passover, all listed in Leviticus 23 and mentioned in many other places in Scripture (New Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 5, 1967, p. 867, "Early Christian Feasts").
You might have heard that Easter came from pagan origins but may have simply dismissed this as irrelevant. After all, God surely wouldn't mind if you celebrated this holiday to honor Him, would He? Yet He does mind. The Bible clearly states that God wants to be worshipped according to the way He instructs in the Scriptures (see Deuteronomy 12:29-32).
Has Easter, in fact, replaced Passover as a Christian obligation, sacred because so many people keep it and because it was sanctioned by the universal church? Additionally, does Passover keep the Jews (and those Christians who insist on observing it) in darkness, unable to receive the grace and life of Jesus Christ?
If those assumptions are true, then—end of story. But if they are not, then we'd better ask some serious questions. In fact, we'd better seriously question those assumptions either way.
Shining the light on Easter
Can Easter and Passover be compared and weighed in the balance? If so, could and would it have any effect on your life, your future?Most Christians think that as long as a person celebrates Easter as honoring Christ's resurrection, God won't mind and we shouldn't care. But God does mind and we should care that He does.
Many sources are available that describe the origins, history and purpose of the Easter celebration. If you read them without checking what the Bible says about which religious festivals are acceptable to God, you could easily conclude that the writers and researchers know what they are writing about. Their analyses may seem well-grounded, even beyond questioning.
But question you must. If you follow human dogma that doesn't match Jesus' teachings, you're on religious quicksand without the lifeline of God's saving truth.
You can check in nearly any Bible help or encyclopedia to verify several fundamental facts:
• Easter cannot be found in Scripture.
• Easter was never instituted by God.
• Easter was never sanctioned by Jesus Christ.
• Easter was never taught by Christ's apostles.
• Easter was never observed by the early New Testament Church.
Easter sunrise vs. the book of John
You can also check your Bible and see for yourself that a fundamental part of the Easter celebration—that Jesus rose at sunrise on Sunday morning—is a fallacy disproved by the Bible. Easter cannot commemorate Jesus' resurrection on Easter Sunday morning because Jesus was already resurrected and gone from the tomb well before sunrise! Read it yourself!John 20:1-2 tells us: "Now the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, 'They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him'" (emphasis added throughout).
Notice that when Mary Magdalene went to Jesus' tomb while it was still dark—before the sun had risen—she saw that the stone had already been rolled away from the tomb's entrance, revealing it to be empty. She immediately ran to Peter and John, excitedly complaining that someone had surreptitiously removed Jesus' body from the tomb.
Both Peter and John ran to Jesus' tomb; John arrived first (verses 3-4). He looked into the tomb but didn't enter until after Peter did. Both saw Jesus' burial linens and head covering lying there. Neither one of them had understood that Jesus would rise from the dead (verses 5-9).
Mary returned and shed tears that Jesus' body was no longer there. Reluctantly she took one last look into the tomb, and to her surprise, saw two angels in white sitting at the head and foot of where Jesus' body had been. The angels asked her why she was crying. She told them that someone had taken Jesus' body away. She then turned and saw a man whom she assumed to be the gardener. She asked him to tell her where Jesus' body was (verses 11-15).
In His unique way, Jesus addressed her by name. Immediately she recognized His voice and only then did she know who it was.
Remember, it was not daylight yet. There was no group of people waiting for the sun to rise in order to honor Jesus' resurrection from the dead. John's account—and remember, he and Peter were the first two apostles to come to the tomb—plainly shows that Jesus was not resurrected at sunrise on Sunday morning.
Easter sunrise vs. the book of Matthew
Matthew's account of Jesus' resurrection confirms that He was already risen from the dead well before the time of sunrise, the moment celebrated by modern Christians in Easter sunrise services. Both John and Matthew give minor details not covered in the other's account.Matthew states: "Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb" where Jesus was laid. At that time there was a great earthquake, and an angel descended and rolled back the stone from the door (Matthew 28:1-2).
The guards, stationed there to prevent the stealing of Jesus' body, shook with fear and looked like dead men. The angel addressed the women: "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold I have told you" (verses 4-7).
Matthew confirms at least two things about Jesus' resurrection: First, it was beginning to dawn when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to His tomb, yet still dark outside. Second, the angel told them that Christ had already risen, which meant that He rose sometime before this period, certainly not at sunrise on Sunday morning.
This makes good sense since Jesus told the religious leaders of His day that He would spend three days and three nights in the tomb. He called this the sign of the prophet Jonah, since Jonah had spent three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish that swallowed him (Matthew 12:39-40).
This statement from Jesus alone disproves another myth about Easter, that Jesus was crucified on Good Friday and resurrected on Easter Sunday. Try as you might, there is no way to fit three days and three nights between a hurried late Friday burial and a Sunday morning resurrection.
At most, this scenario only allows for a tiny part of two days (a few minutes each on Friday at sunset and Sunday at sunrise) and another full day (Saturday), plus Friday night and Saturday night—leaving us more than a day and a night short of what Jesus Himself foretold!
Jesus could not have been resurrected on Sunday morning at daybreak since the only sign He gave to His disciples that He truly was the Messiah was the sign of Jonah. Again, as Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights, so Jesus spent that same amount of time in the tomb or grave. You can see the detailed proof for yourself in our free booklets Jesus Christ: The Real Story and Holidays or Holy Days: Does It Matter Which Days We Observe?
Is it only harmless tradition?
Easter is not simply a harmless man-made religious tradition that supposedly replaces the Passover because a church or some group of clerics said it does. The fact remains that any religious tradition that does not agree with what Scripture reveals about Jesus' death or resurrection cannot represent Him.But that's not the worst part. Easter's origins—and you can verify this yourself with a little research—actually long predate Christianity. Its strange symbols (what do eggs and rabbits have to do with Christ's death and resurrection?), its timing (in the spring of the year), its most notable custom (worshipping at sunrise) and even its name all go back to the worship of pagan fertility gods and goddesses.
God's Word is very clear as to how He views adapting pagan customs and practices to worshipping Him. He explicitly commands His people not to copy religious practices used to worship other gods (Deuteronomy 12:29-32). He calls such practices abominations and emphatically states, "You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way"!
When we weigh Easter in the balance, it is clearly found wanting. It isn't found in Scripture, the way it is celebrated conflicts with basic biblical facts, and it is directly traceable to ancient pre-Christian pagan practices.
In contrast, what can we learn about Passover?
Passover: A memorial of Jesus' death on our behalf
Every professing Christian believes that Jesus Christ died as the Savior of humankind, for our sins. But how many know why He died?Much of modern Christianity tells people they have nothing more to do than give their hearts to Jesus and accept His blood for their sins. They reason that since human beings are imperfect sinners and Jesus' blood covers their sins, there's nothing more to do but simply accept these facts. Many professing Christians also assume that if a Christian believes he or she is required to strive to obey God in any way, then he or she is denying Jesus as Savior.
But does the Bible support this outlook?
The apostle Paul addresses this subject in Romans 6:1-2: "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?" He goes on to say: "For he who has died has been freed from sin...Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts" (verses 7, 12).
Paul also explained that Jesus is our Passover who shed His sinless blood to cover the sins of humankind (1 Corinthians 5:7). He wrote that Jesus Himself explained the meaning of the Passover symbols of unleavened bread and wine—that they represent His body bruised and broken for us and His blood shed to pay the penalty for our sins.
"For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.'
"In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.' For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes" (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).
Paul's clear teaching is that Jesus' death is symbolized by the Passover, and we who accept His shed blood should no longer live in sin, giving in to the lusts of our selfish nature. We are most certainly saved by grace through faith, but we are also required to honor God by our works, based on God's Ten Commandments (Ephesians 2:8-10; Matthew 19:17). Faith must be accompanied by works, for faith without works is dead (James 2:14, 17, 24, 26).
The Passover has great meaning for Christians, being as current and relevant today as it was when Jesus instituted its symbols and told His followers, "If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them" (John 13:17).
Summing up the comparisons
Finally, let's review how Easter and Passover compare and differ.Jesus observed the Passover, not Easter, with His apostles, instructing them to continue to observe it and teach it to the Church and declaring that when He returns, He will observe it again with His true followers (Matthew 26:26-29).
Easter, even the very name, finds its origins in the worship of an ancient fertility goddess, Ishtar (or Ashtoreth as she was called in Israel during Bible times—1 Kings 11:5, 33; 2 Kings 23:13). She was worshipped in many ancient nations, which helps explain the origins of the Easter egg, a fertility symbol associated with this goddess (Alexander Hislop, The Two Babylons, 1959, pp. 103, 109).
There was another church that emerged after the early New Testament Church, one that began as an alternative to the original Jewish-Christian church of Jerusalem. Over time it appeased, negotiated, reconciled and pacified the pagans into accepting a nominal form of Christianity; and by replacing the Bible's religious observances with popular idolatrous celebrations, it merged paganism and Christianity into a new religion (p. 105). You can learn more of the story in our free booklet The Church Jesus Built.
Regardless of how many well-meaning people celebrate Easter, they cannot legitimize a religious holiday that doesn't represent or belong to Christ. If a billion people do something wrong, it's still wrong.
Easter, the very name of which comes from an ancient goddess of fertility, denies the Savior it claims to honor. Jesus would never have sanctioned or observed it since doing so would have broken some of the very commands He inspired to be recorded in Scripture. And had Jesus sinned in this way, we would not have a Savior.
The command to observe Passover is one of the inexorable laws of God, given to human beings to commemorate the death of Jesus Christ, in spirit and truth (Matthew 26:17-29; John 4:23-24).
Passover entails God "passing over" human beings in meting out the justice of death for people's sins (Romans 3:23; 6:23; 1 Peter 1:18-19). God passed over Israel when He sent the death angel to kill all the firstborn of the land of Egypt (Exodus 12:27), which is a type of what He does for Christians today. Passing over Israel spared the lives of their firstborn; passing over Christians spares the "church of the firstborn" (Hebrews 12:23), ultimately freeing them from death.
Jesus then is our Passover (1 Corinthians 5:7). Christians keep Christ's Passover festival because it reminds them that if it weren't for the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we would surely die—forever. Jesus shed His blood for humanity, and those who accept His shed blood, while following God's holy and righteous law (Romans 7:12), are promised an abundant life now and everlasting life later.
With God, timing and meaning are important. God is always on time, and He does nothing without life-giving meaning. Easter does neither.
Easter is a widely known man-made tradition. It stands against the true Jesus Christ and His teachings. Such departure from what He taught came early in Church history. The apostle Paul wrote to certain Christians, lamenting, "For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!" (2 Corinthians 11:4). Many still do!
Remember that sin is the breaking of God's laws. The observance of Easter is contrary to God's laws (Deuteronomy 12:29-32); Passover observance is part of God's law (Leviticus 23:1-5).
Elijah demanded of the Israelites, "How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him" (1 Kings 18:21). Though God is patient, He commands all men everywhere to repent of their sins (Acts 17:30).
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). Neither He nor God the Father replaced the Passover with Easter. When you honestly compare and contrast Easter with Passover, there should be no question as to which one God desires you to observe.
Either we obey God or we don't. He sanctioned the true Christian Passover and not the pre-Christian and man-made tradition called Easter. Are you willing to follow what He says? GN
Related Resources
Would Jesus Christ Celebrate Easter?For millions of people Easter Sunday is the most important religious holiday of the year. But if Jesus walked the dusty roads of Galilee today, would He observe Easter?
Good Friday—Easter Sunday: It Didn't Happen That Way!
Do you remember when you learned that Santa Claus wasn't real? Guess what? Good Friday and a Sunday resurrection aren't either. Discover the real story from the pages of the Bible itself!
Does Easter Really Commemorate Jesus Christ's Resurrection?
What do rabbits and eggs have to do with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? Where did the name Easter originate? This holiday isn't even mentioned in the Bible—so where did it really come from?
Why Should Christians Keep the Passover?
Do you really know why Jesus had to suffer and die? What should the Passover mean for Christians today?
What Was the Purpose of Christ's Death?
Millions of Christians believe that Jesus Christ died for them. But do they really know why? Why was Jesus Christ's death really necessary?
Jesus Christ: Do We Have the Real Story?
Do we have the complete story of Jesus Christ's life and death? For centuries alternative ideas have circulated as to whether Jesus was who the Gospels say He was. The Da Vinci Code, a hugely popular best-selling book, dramatizes one of these stories. What is the truth? Can we know for sure?
Should You Keep the Festivals Jesus Observed?
Jesus observed the Passover, the Feast of Tabernacles and the other festivals that God gave to Israel. Should you follow His example? Are those sacred festivals still applicable for Christians?
The Biblical Festivals That Teach Us About Jesus Christ
Few people are aware of the seven festivals God reveals in the Bible. Even fewer are aware that they center around and teach us a great deal about Jesus Christ and His role in God's plan for all mankind.
The Biblical Festivals That Reveal Christ's Role in God's Plan
Jesus Christ celebrated seven festivals every year that most Christians today can't even name, yet they have His imprint all over them. He is the reason for each of these seasons, and they have great meaning for anyone who would like to follow Him better. What are these festivals, and what do they reveal about our Savior and King?
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The Passover Memorial
The Plain Truth About Easter
Has it ever occurred to those stuffing their faces with Easter ham that Jesus would puke at the thought? Neither Jesus or Peter, James or John ever ate forbidden foods. They wouldn't feel too comfortable at plenty of people's dinner tables.
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