A link to good reasons not to keep Christmas

I just came across this link today. Ten reasons I don't keep Christmas. It is well-written, easy to scan for highlights, and short enough to read the details for those who want deeper explanations. There are some who don't want to hear about the pagan roots of Christmas, but the majority of the reason in this short list do not refer to the pagan history of the holiday.

I remember my young children dreading Christmas as time went on. They didn't say why, but one of them, about ten years old at the time, once wished out loud that we could stop doing Christmas. At that time I was deep into the celebration of Christmas, mainly for family get-together reasons, and I wasn't interested in pursuing their desires. I wish I had!

The music and decorations of Christmas is what makes it seem magical, I suppose, or at least draws the mind back to a time when Christmas seemed magical to a young child. I think I was about twelve when Christmas started to feel empty. I didn't analyze why I felt that way at the time, but looking back, it was probably because it was so much me-me-me. When all the expectations of Christmas were fulfilled to perfection, the gifts given and received were exactly what was desired, something was missing. It just never seemed right, all the expense and it's-the-thought-that-counts gifts purchased and made, just so that no one would feel left out, even if they needed nothing at all and would likely let the gift gather dust somewhere until they had the courage to sell them at a garage sale or donate to a good cause.

In the link above, the author tells about his fear of sharing with his family why he had decided to stop keeping Christmas. He thought they would resist, but when they were shown from the Scripture and history why Christmas was not only not biblical, that it had nothing to do with Jesus, they came on board without a problem: "...children, until they are taught differently, have an inspiring respect for the plain truth!"
  
Though I never pretended Santa was a real person to my children, they must have sensed, or learned from someone, that even the rest of Christmas was not true. Again, I regret not following through on their thoughts about Christmas.

Ellen White on Christmas

Many Seventh-day Adventists, failing to find Biblical support for the celebration of Christmas, will turn to Ellen White, who is considered authoritative on many topics. In trying to prove a point, many will do exactly what she asked her readers not to do: gather a wealth of quotes on one side of a topic, with an aim to prove their point without question. Instead, I have quotes listed below that might be used as "proof texts" by either side of the Christmas controversy. Read the following, and come to your own conclusion.

Ellen White's advice about Christmas comes in two main categories:

1. At Christmas time, instead of giving gifts to those who don't need them, we should place  gifts to the Lord (for church debt, missions, and the poor) on a tree in the church.
2. Christmas was a time of selfishness, indulgence, and waste.

The Two Babylons, by Presbyterian theologian Andrew Hislop, subtitled The Papal Worship Proved to Be the Worship of Nimrod and His Wife was in the process of being written during Ellen White's lifetime. It started out as a pamphlet in 1853 and went through many editions, at one point becoming a book 500 pages long, the last edition published in 1919. I can't help but wonder, if some of the information in this book had been common knowledge at an earlier time, would Ellen White have supported a Christmas tree in the church?

When information was not given to Ellen in vision, she used the wisdom she had gained through life experiences and current common sense as a basis for her statements. The only statement she made that indicated divine inspiration regarding Christmas was this:  "From the light that the Lord has given me, these days have no more influence for good than would the worship of heathen deities." (Fundamentals of Christian Education 320.3) That her advice about the Christmas tree was from her own thoughts is evident in some of the quotes below. I have removed some of the portions that are repetitious, but you can find the entire context in the quoted pages):

On the history of Christmas

"The twenty-fifth of December is supposed to be the day of the birth of Jesus Christ, and its observance has become customary and popular. But yet there is no certainty that we are keeping the veritable day of our Saviour's birth. The Bible does not give us the precise time. Had the Lord deemed this knowledge essential to our salvation, He would have spoken through His prophets and apostles, that we might know all about the matter. But the silence of the Scriptures upon this point evidences to us that it is hidden from us for the wisest purposes. ...  that the day should not receive the honor that should be given to Christ as the Redeemer of the world,—one to be received, to be trusted, to be relied on as he who could save to the uttermost all who come unto him. The soul’s adoration should be given to Jesus as the Son of the infinite God. There is no divine sanctity resting upon the twenty-fifth day of December; and it is not pleasing to God that anything that concerns the salvation of man through the infinite sacrifice made for them, should be so sadly perverted from its professed design.“ ~ Review and Herald, December 9, 1884

"The Reformation did not, as many suppose, end with Luther. It is to be continued to the close of this world’s history. ... It was their work to break the fetters of Rome and to give the Bible to the world; yet there were important truths which they failed to discover, and grave errors which they did not renounce. Most of them continued to observe the Sunday with other papal festivals." ~ Story of Redemption, 353.2

A Christmas tree in the church

"I see no objection to placing even in our churches a Christmas or New Year tree bearing fruit in gifts and offerings for the cause of God. We may thus take advantage of the occasion to turn the customary gifts of the season into the right channel. And such a holiday celebration is a useful lesson to our children, teaching them to bestow their gifts in a manner to honor their Redeemer. But when we devote our means and labor to feasting ourselves, we fail to render to God that honor which is his due." ~ Signs of the Times, January 4, 1883, par. 7

“God would be well pleased if on Christmas, each church would have a Christmas tree on which shall be hung offerings, great and small, for these houses of worship. Letters of inquiry have come to us asking, Shall we have a Christmas tree? will it not be like the world? We answer, You can make it like the world if you have a disposition to do so, or you can make it as unlike the world as possible. There is no particular sin in selecting a fragrant evergreen, and placing it in our churches...
"The tree may be as tall and its branches as wide as shall best suit the occasion; but let its boughs be laden with the golden and silver fruit of your beneficence, and present this to Him as your Christmas gift. Let your donations be sanctified by prayer, and let the fruit upon this consecrated tree be applied toward removing the debts from our houses of worship at Battle Creek, Mich., and Oakland, Cal.” ~ Review and Herald, December 11, 1879 par. 15

"If all, both old and young, will forego giving presents to one another, and forego the selfish outlay of means in these coming holidays, there would be in heaven a most precious record of self-denial for Christ's sake. .... Let the several churches present to God Christmas trees in every church; and then let them hang thereon the fruits of beneficence and gratitude,--offerings coming from willing hearts and hands, fruits that God will accept as an expression of our faith and our great love to him for the gift of his Son, Jesus Christ. Let the evergreen be laden with fruit, rich, and pure, and holy, acceptable to God. Shall we not have such a Christmas as Heaven can approve? Thousands of dollars are needlessly spent every year in gifts to each other. That is means lost to God, lost to his cause.“ ~ Review and Herald, December 9, 1884 par. 9.10

The selfishness of Christmas and how to change it

"[The youth] have been educated to the popular idea that the appointed holidays must be treated with respect and be observed. From the light that the Lord has given me, these days have no more influence for good than would the worship of heathen deities; for this is really nothing less. These days are Satan's special harvest seasons. The money drawn from men and women is expended for that which is not bread.“ ~ Fundamentals of Christian Education 320.3

"Every dollar and every dime that we can spare is needed now, to aid in carrying the message of truth to other lands. At the holiday season much is spent by our own people upon gifts and various gratifications which are not only useless but often hurtful. Appetite is indulged, pride and self-love are fostered, and Christ is forgotten. If the money usually devoted to these objects were all brought into the mission treasury, our foreign missions would be lifted above embarrassment. Shall we not this year consecrate to God not merely a part but all our holiday gifts for the relief of his cause, which is in so great need? How can we more appropriately celebrate the coming Christmas, how better express our gratitude to God for the gift of his dear Son, than by offerings to send to all the world the tidings of his soon coming?" ~ Review and Herald, Dec. 6, 1887

"The holidays are approaching. ...The habits of custom are so strong that to withhold gifts from our friends on these occasions would seem to us almost a neglect of them. But let us remember that our kind heavenly Benefactor has claims upon us far superior to those of any earthly friends. Shall we not, during the coming holidays, present our offerings to God? Even the children may participate in this work. Clothing and other useful articles may be given to the worthy poor, and thus a work may be done for the Master. Let us remember that Christmas is celebrated in commemoration of the birth of the world's Redeemer. This day is generally spent in feasting and gluttony. Large sums of money are spent in needless self-indulgence. The appetite and sensual pleasures are indulged at the expense of physical, mental, and moral power. Yet this has become a habit. Pride, fashion, and gratification of the palate have swallowed up immense sums of money that have really benefited no one, but have encouraged a prodigality of means which is displeasing to God. These days are spent in glorifying self rather than God. Health has been sacrificed, money worse than thrown away, many have lost their lives by overeating or through demoralizing dissipation, and souls have been lost by this means. ~ Messages to Young People 311.312

While urging upon all the duty of first bringing their offerings to God, I would not wholly condemn the practice of making Christmas and New Years gifts to our friends. It is right to bestow upon one another tokens of love and remembrance if we do not in this forget God, our best friend. We should make our gifts such as will prove a real benefit to the receiver. I would recommend books as will be an aid in understanding the word of God or that will increase our love for its precepts... For those who can procure it, D'Aubigne's History of the Reformation will be both interesting and profitable...We can see how God poured light into the minds of those who searched His word, how much the men ordained and sent forth by Him were willing to suffer for the truth's sake, and how hard it is for the great mass of mankind to renounce their errors and to receive and obey the teachings of the Scriptures." ~ Review and Herald, December 26, 1882 par. 18

How to change the family Christmas traditions:

"There are many things which can be devised with taste and cost far less than the unnecessary presents that are so frequently bestowed upon our children and relatives, and thus courtesy can be shown and happiness brought into the home. You can teach your children...tell them that you have thought more of your own pleasure and of their gratification and of keeping in harmony with the customs and traditions of the world, in making presents to those who did not need them, than you have in advancing the cause of God. Like the wise men of old, you may offer to God your best gifts and show by your offerings to Him that you appreciate His Gift to a sinful world. Set your children's thoughts running in a new, unselfish channel by inciting them to present offerings to God for the gift of His only-begotten Son.“ ~ Adventist Home 481.4

 Conclusion: Balancing the Bible admonitions regarding worshiping God in the way the heathens worship their gods, what we know of the history of Christmas, and Ellen White's comments, what are your thoughts on celebrating Christmas?

 

  

The woman who couldn't remember her husband's birthday

I heard a story about a woman who couldn't remember her husband's birthday. She'd been married before, and her previous husband had liked it very much when she celebrated his birthday in a big way, with balloons, candles, a big cake, special food that he loved, and friends and family. She always bought him a memorable gift. He would remind her months ahead of time that his birthday was coming and what he expected to get for a present, so she never forgot his birthday, ever, and years of marriage cemented his birthday in her head.

That marriage ended badly, and her new husband was different. He thought that since she loved him, she would remember his birthday -- and she did, she thought -- but she was remembering her first husband's birthday, which didn't come until later in the year. He was devastated that she hadn't thought of him, and so was she by his sadness. She vowed she wouldn't forget his birthday again.

A few months later she was looking at the calendar, and next week's date jumped out at her. His birthday! She wasn't going to forget this time. She ordered a cake, all the special foods she was sure he would like because her first husband had like them, bought candles, balloons, and an extra special gift, and invited friends who were ready to surprise him when he walked in the door.

"Surprise!" They all shouted. And was he ever surprised!

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Happy birthday!" they all shouted.

"But it's not my birthday," he said.

"But it is," protested his wife "See the calendar? I marked it right here."

"But that's not my birthday," he said. But the food was there, the friends were there, and the gifts were there, so the party went on. He watched his wife and friends have his birthday party on his not-birthday.

After that experience, he thought maybe she would remember. He mentioned several times that his day was coming. She nodded and smiled, but it seemed she wasn't paying much attention. When his real birthday rolled around, there was no party, even though he had marked it on the calendar. She still had her first husband's birth date firmly fixed in her mind, and it was hard to make room for the new date.

Again there was a big party on his not-birthday, and she jokingly said, "This is such a good time of year for your birthday, don't you think? We'll just celebrate it every year at this time." He was sad again, both on his real birthday and on his not-birthday. How could she really love him if she kept celebrating her first husband's birthday instead of his? 

A new year came, his real birthday passed unnoticed, and when his not-birthday party was celebrated, he wasn't there.

Bible verses about Christmas

For many years I observed Christmas, happy for the celebration time with my family, even though I knew the historical background of the day, that Jesus birthday was unknown, that the early church did not celebrate his birthday, that a command had not been given to celebrate it.

Certainly the world cold not have been saved if Jesus, our Yeshuah/Salvation, had not been born into it, but the early church celebrated his life, death, resurrection, and saving power in our lives. They honored the Sabbath and the Holy Days, never mentioning celebrating the day of Christ's birth.

Christmas, not having been incorporated into church worship during the writing of the Bible, is not  addressed directly, but there are verses that show what God thinks about human tradition, and about how we should worship him (see previous post on False Worship). 

To begin with, let's see what Jesus had to say about tradition vs. God's commands:

From the first few verses of Matthew 15 is the story of some coming to Jesus and asking, "Why do your disciples break with our traditions?" Jesus answered, "Why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?" The questioners and Jesus' answer included specific examples, but his question,
"Why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?" has a broader application. Jesus went on to say,

⁸ “These people honor me with their lips,
    but their hearts are far from me.
⁹ They worship me in vain;
    their teachings are merely human rules.”

I remember learning verse 9 from the King James Version as a young child, "But in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrine the commandments of men." It is verse that all seventh-day Sabbath keepers use to bolster our understanding that God's seventh-day Sabbath is still His Holy Day.

What is the command of God as it relates to Christmas trees? I remember when trees were not put into our sanctuary, and if they were, they were not decorated. Now all has changed, and a decorated Christmas tree is the focal point of most church platforms during this season. Should a tree be part of the Christmas celebration in a Christian church?*

Deuteronomy 16:21:

You shall not make a post idol of any trees near unto the altar of the LORD your God, which you shall make you. ~ King James 2000 Bible 

"You shall not plant for yourself an Asherah of any kind of tree beside the altar of the LORD your God, which you shall make for yourself. ~ NASB

I hear someone saying, "The Christmas tree isn't an idol! It's not an Asherah pole! It doesn't mean that to me!" There is plenty about the Christmas tree online, which I encourage you to study for yourself. You will find various histories, but above all, consider the word of God above the words of men.

There is more about a tree in Jeremiah 10:

² This is what the Lord says: 

“Do not learn the ways of the nations
    or be terrified by signs in the heavens,
    though the nations are terrified by them.
³ For the practices of the peoples are worthless;
    they cut a tree out of the forest,
    and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel.
⁴ They adorn it with silver and gold;
    they fasten it with hammer and nails
    so it will not totter.

This verse is about people who create idols out of wood, not specifically about a Christmas tree. Consider how much the Christmas tree is honored, how much time and money is spent on it, how reticent we are to dispense with it even when we know its history. It has become almost an idol; even if it doesn't take the place of God, do I love something so much that I don't want to hear what God says about it? If so, it's an idol. "But it doesn't mean that to me!" we say.

Other verses regarding heathen nations include Lev. 18:3 and Lev. 20:23, warning Israel against following the customs of Egypt in their past, and the customs of those who would be driven out before them in their future. The warnings to Israel are cautions to us today. The Lord said, "Learn not the ways of the heathen," and yet that is exactly what we have done, bringing them into our churches and homes.

Deuteronomy 7 maybe cause us to have second thoughts about bringing something into our home that has been adopted from heathen practices:

²⁵ The images of their gods you are to burn in the fire. Do not covet the silver and gold on them, and do not take it for yourselves, or you will be ensnared by it, for it is detestable to the Lord your God. 
²⁶ Do not bring a detestable thing into your house or you, like it, will be set apart for destruction. Regard it as vile and utterly detest it, for it is set apart for destruction.

"But it doesn't mean that to me!" On the other hand, what does it mean to God?

* Seventh-day Adventists will point to a specific quote Ellen White said about Christmas trees. I will study her quotes in a separate post.

False worship with good intentions

In this holiday season, I've been thinking about the pros and cons of celebrating Christmas. Three different Bible stories came to mind:

Cain

During a group Bible study about Cain and Abel, one commented that this was the first example of the wrong persecuting the right for religious reasons. I'd never thought of it in those terms before. Here was Cain, the horticulturist, offering the best he had, the results of the labor of his own hands. His brother Abel, the shepherd, could offer the fruit of his own labor, so why couldn't he? On top of that, giving fruits and veggies was more of a sacrifice in those days, because meat had not yet become a part of the diet, so what good was a lamb other than for wool? It was no big sacrifice to give a lamb. Cain was thinking, "I'm making a bigger sacrifice, from my own heart. This will please God." 

Cain wanted to change God's Word to accommodate his own life. I thought, In what ways do I choose to worship and honor God in my own way instead of the way He has asked me to?

King Saul

"To obey is better than sacrifice" was the message of God to King Saul, when he wanted to "buy" his standing with God, perhaps in the same way that many use the confessional these days: to knowingly go against God's Word with the belief that the priest's absolvement will make everything right. Judging by Saul's actions, he thought giving sacrifices actually brought forgiveness of sins, not understanding the why behind the sacrifices, that they were an object lesson that should lead the sinner to abhor sin, to understand that God was the Forgiver. Saul went against God's instruction, thinking his many sacrifices would set the balances in his direction, giving so much that it wouldn't matter that he had disobeyed.

How many of us, even without active thought, think that our good lives or our care for others will make up for blatantly going against God's Word?

Uzzah

One morning I was studying the story of Uzzah being struck dead for merely touching the ark in an attempt to save it from falling, and I felt how solemn a story it is -- how it shows that God can't accept worship or service that is done contrary to His revealed will, even if the people have good intentions in doing it. It is expressed well in this paragraph:

"David and his people had assembled to perform a sacred work, and they had engaged in it with glad and willing hearts; but the Lord could not accept the service, because it was not performed in accordance with His directions. The Philistines, who had not a knowledge of God’s law, had placed the ark upon a cart when they returned it to Israel, and the Lord accepted the effort which they made. But the Israelites had in their hands a plain statement of the will of God in all these matters, and their neglect of these instructions was dishonoring to God. Upon Uzzah rested the greater guilt of presumption. Transgression of God’s law had lessened his sense of its sacredness, and with unconfessed sins upon him he had, in face of the divine prohibition, presumed to touch the symbol of God’s presence. God can accept no partial obedience, no lax way of treating His commandments. By the judgment upon Uzzah He designed to impress upon all Israel the importance of giving strict heed to His requirements. Thus the death of that one man, by leading the people to repentance, might prevent the necessity of inflicting judgments upon thousands." PP 705.3

As clearly as that is said, it is hard to take, isn't it? For so long Christians leaned so heavily on teaching the law and the danger of hellfire, that now, seeing our error, we are bending over backwards to show the love of God, His forgiveness, His mission of salvation. This story just doesn't seem to fit our new understanding. Yet it is in the Bible, and there is a message for us: God wishes to be worshiped in the way that He has said. I don't believe God is making a "Do this or else" statement without reason behind it.

What is the reason God gave us instructions on how to worship him? One is that if we don't, little by little, imperceptibly over the years, we can stray so far from His plan for us to enjoy happy and fulfilling lives, that we can end up worshiping His creation instead of Him, worshiping Him in ways that those who don't believe in Him worship their own gods, or even, as ancient Israel, end up sacrificing our children to gods of our own choosing.

It is revealing to study the history of Christmas in light of Israel's constant falling away from God. Each time they made a little change, they might have been saying to themselves, "The nations around us have an innovative way to worship their gods that we can incorporate into worship of the True God," and thus they started down the slippery slope.

We all know that Jesus wasn't born on December 25, that it was a pagan celebration that wasn't officially incorporated into the church for several hundred years, about the same time that Sunday worship became official in the church. Both Sunday and Christmas came into the church for the same reason: to help nonChristians feel at home in their new religion. Christian reasons were given for observing the day and to explain the symbols of the day. Does it matter that ancient pagans had a different understanding behind the symbols of Christmas that we take for granted?

The excuse most will make for observing Christmas, with all its decorations and celebrations, even when they know its history, is, "But it doesn't mean that to me!" If your intent is to worship God, and you have no thought of ever worshiping anyone but God, it doesn't matter, right?

Before deciding on the answer, consider the stories of Cain, King Saul, and Uzzah, who thought they could choose their own way to follow God's will.

A divisive book

My previous few posts have dealt with a letter sent by the author of Feast-keeping and the Faithful and details his findings regarding feast keeping. He closes with this paragraph:

Just as ALL counterfeits are invariably “close” to the genuine, and often rather difficult to see at first glance, this entire feast-keeping movement is a dangerous counterfeit “theology.” The Devil, knowing that his time is short, and fully aware that God raised up the Advent Movement in order to globally proclaim the Three Angels’ Messages, and to prepare a people for the imminent return of Jesus, is seeking to destroy, as well as to distract us from what God has and is calling us to proclaim. Hence, I would encourage all to keep focused upon Jesus, recognizing that He has fulfilled all these ancient feasts, and that He is currently completing His final work in the heavenly sanctuary, before He returns.
May our gracious God continue to bless us, and fill us with the Holy Spirit to accomplish His will.

I am sad that this author fails to understand the purpose of these Holy Days in which God's followers contemplate the blessings He provides for us, His leadings in our past, and the future He has planned for us. Having been a part of the feast-keeping movement for only a few years, I can attest that through these appointed times I have come ever closer to my Savior, and understand the Sabbath and the Sanctuary message more fully. The Three Angels' Messages, in addition to the message of the Fourth Angel, are part of the main focus of what we study and share.

I had thought like he at one point, that the feasts were fulfilled -- and done with. Through my studies I have learned there is more fulfillment to come, and that "fulfilled" does not mean "abolished." However, unlike the author, even in my skepticism (before studying for myself), I never thought that the feast-keeping movement was dangerous -- a waste of time, maybe (I thought), but not dangerous. Setting aside seven more sabbaths a year is a blessing, not something to fear.

It seems this book is being used to raise hysteria among the faithful, further dividing churches that are already struggling over other issues, causing its members who are too busy with the cares of this life to study the Bible for themselves, to instead look in books that use numerous quotations of scholars that bolster the author's viewpoint, books filled with statements which, on closer look, are unsubstantiated. These all cause the eager seeker who believes they can't understand the Word as well as a learned professor to lean on the words of man and not on the words of God.

The only time I have seen feast keeping become dangerous is when a church, filled with fear because of books like Feast-Keeping and the Faithful, learns they have a member or a family who is sincerely determined to follow their Savior, and they make the choice of disfellowshipping those members. That's when it become dangerous -- both to the church and to those they have cut off from their body.

Sometimes, I will admit, a new feast keeper becomes so excited about what they have learned (and I know that it is exciting to learn, for example, that the mysteries behind texts such as Colossians 2, aren't so mysterious after all; to learn that it means exactly what it says and is easy to understand once preconceived ideas and traditions are set aside...) -- that they don't use good judgment in how they share their good news. They may not understand the path it may take for others to open their minds and hearts; they want everyone to understand, and understand NOW! They can cause dissension among the ranks by saying something like, "We've been doing it wrong; we must change."

If these kinds of challenges can bring a church to its knees, to study and pray together to seek and find the way, this is good -- but it is rare. After all, the pastors have read this book, and they know that "this is dangerous," and so they do their best to nip it in the bud. The opportunity for togetherness in earnest prayer and Bible study is lost.

The fourth "finding"

The fourth finding reported by the author of Feast-Keeping and the Faithful almost made me laugh, well, actually, I did laugh, but it was a sad kind of laugh.

4) Corroborated by various respected biblical scholars within the Adventist Church, my research has been publicly promoted by the now-retired Director of the Biblical Research Institute of the General Conference, Dr. Ángel Manuel Rodríguez. He notes: “Dr. Ron du Preez has produced an excellent exegetical and theological study related to the question of the relevance of the Israelite festivals for Christians. Every argument used to support its observance has been carefully evaluated and a biblical answer provided. This is not simply a study aiming at the facts, but throughout it there is a genuine pastoral concern interested in the unity of the church and its message. May this volume contribute to intensify that unity.”

Item four is less a "finding" than a quote from a well-known person in order to support the findings  already addressed and to bolster the scholarly reputation of the author. The previous three findings have not been biblically sound, as we have shown. It is true that the author does exhibit a kindly pastoral concern, but he casts feast-keepers in the same boat as those who follow nonbiblical rabbit-trails such as the lunar sabbath, 12-hour day, 2520 prophecy, etc. It is unfortunate that those groups do exist -- and even more unfortunate that their strange beliefs lead many astray who are seeking true understanding.

Ángel Manuel Rodríguez wants this volume to "contribute to intensify" the unity of the church and its message. Without a solid biblical basis, unity cannot be achieved.

Feast-keeping identified as "anti-christ"

This is the third consecutive post in which I am looking at the findings of the author of Feast-Keeping and the Faithful.

His third finding states his shocking conclusion to the previous two statements:

3) In short, to observe these feasts is actually “a denial of Jesus’ messiahship” (as one biblical scholar rightly noted); thus, it is a new form of being “anti-christ,” i.e., in place of (or against) Jesus Christ.

He laid the groundwork in his previous statements (see previous two posts) saying that the feasts are fulfilled by Jesus and are therefore not to be observed; that the ceremonial law, which we all know is not a biblical term, includes the holy days and that they ended, along with the rites and ceremonies, at the cross. He then extrapolates the astonishing conclusion that those who observe the days our Lord commanded us to observe are acting against Christ, and, in fact, are an anti-christ!

Christ Himself said that He came to fulfill the law, not to abolish it, yet to this day many claim that He has done just that, abolish the law by fulfilling it. Christ's definition of "fulfill" is the definition we must use.

Those who observe the feasts in this Christian era understand more of Christ's sacrifice, and more of the past, present, and future fulfillments of the prophetic aspects of God's calendar than anyone else on earth! I never thought such a thing could be said, but only by deeper studying have I understood so much of the message that God has given us, the blessing He has given us, through his annual Holy Days.

I do not understand how a person, who on the surface is kind and gracious, could make a such broad and untrue statement based on these weak foundations.

An expanded meaning of "ceremonial law"

The next item on the list of findings about feast keeping by the author of Feast-Keeping and the Faithful is his quoting of the book, Seventh-day Adventists Believe:

2) The standard SDA book, Seventh-day Adventists Believe, repeatedly confirms that, "At the death of Christ the jurisdiction of ceremonial law came to an end. His atoning sacrifice provided forgiveness for all sins. This act ‘wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross’ (Col. 2:14; cf. Deut. 31:26). . . . No more worries about the ceremonial laws, with their complex requirements regarding food and drink offerings, celebrations of various festivals (Passover, Pentecost, etc.), new moons, or ceremonial Sabbaths (Col. 2:16; cf. Heb. 9:10), which were only a ‘shadow of things to come’ (Col. 2:17). . . . [These were things] which pointed forward to the coming of the Messiah, and the observance of which terminated with His death on the cross” (pp. 274, 285). In a nutshell, Adventists do not keep the feasts.

I've referred to all of these comments in previous posts. The book, Seventh-day Adventists Believe, does not supersede the Bible, and Adventists would believe that it does not supersede the inspiration of Ellen White. The book gives an expanded meaning to the term "ceremonial law," a term that is not scriptural. As such, the term is left for us to define.  

Ellen White defines ceremonial law as the Jewish rites and ceremonies (see previous post); "ceremonial law" does not refer to the sabbath days on God's annual calendar. The Holy Days can be observed as sabbaths without the addition of sacrifice, since Jesus' death caused "the sacrifice and oblation to cease." Daniel 9:27. The rites and ceremonies are never again referred to as being kept in the early Christian church; however, the observance of the Holy Days are referred to several times in the New Testament. Besides Scripture, historical documents exist that show the church kept those days in the early centuries following Christ. If they were done away with, they would not be keeping them in the various parts of the world to which they were scattered.

Am I being presumptuous, to feel myself an extension of Tyndale's plowboy, able to hold the Scriptures in my hands and read for myself? Do I have to have a degree and read from the works of a multitude of scholars in order to know what it says? I don't believe God gave that requirement for an understanding of His word. I am not an anti-theologian snob who ignores what the scholars have to say, but I must say that I believe their focus on academia and scholarly approaches to Bible study limits their understanding (not to mention their heart), and perhaps all they depend on is their advanced knowledge and their ability to prove their point -- when it may not be God's point.

Colossians 2 is clearly misunderstood by many people, when a straight reading of the passage makes it plain. My plain reading is spelled out in previous posts. Your plain reading may differ, but it's worth a close look, without the trappings of tradition, to determine for yourself what it really says.

"An Insult to Jehovah"

As I said previously, I came to understand the Bible support of observing God's Holy Days when I set about to disprove them! You can't make this radical change in belief without constantly being exposed to the naysayers, the ones who thought just like I thought not too long ago. What I had relied on was hearsay and tradition. Well, it turns out that hearsay and tradition are not very reliable.

One person who is frequently invited to speak against feast-keeping in Adventist circles is the author of Feast Keeping and the Faithful. This man is a well-spoken and outwardly kind man, but in reading his book, I find a lack of intellectual honesty. It seems that he said to himself, "What quotes can I find that will disprove feast keeping?" rather than, "What does the inspired Word of God have to say on this topic?" Though going out to prove just that point took me in the opposite direction, in order to have growth, a person's mind must be open to accepting that their preconceived ideas may need adjusting. That is very hard for most of us.

Here are a couple of examples of his lack of intellectual honesty:

1.  He pairs feast-keepers with the so-called lunar sabbath at almost every opportunity. Of course the lunar sabbath is neither biblical nor logical, but when so pairing the two together makes it sound like all feast keepers subscribe to the lunar sabbath. He knows this is not true, because he has spent time with feast keepers who adamantly oppose the lunar sabbath.

2. He wrote:

Over time, I was able to do some careful biblical research into every significant argument put forward by those who promote or observe these festivals. In brief, my findings are as follows:

1) These feast days have ALL been fulfilled in and by Jesus Christ. And to continue to keep these festivals is actually an “insult to Jehovah” (RH, June 14, 1898), according to the inspired Spirit of Prophecy.

I have heard this "insult to Jehovah" claim repeatedly. The following is a portion of the Ellen G. White article he quoted above:

In this ordinance [foot washing], Christ discharged his disciples from the cares and burdens of the ancient Jewish obligations in rites and ceremonies. These no longer possessed any virtue; for type was meeting antitype in himself, the authority and foundation of all Jewish ordinances that pointed to him as the great and only efficacious offering for the sins of the world. He gave this simple ordinance that it might be a special season when he himself would always be present, to lead all participating in it to feel the pulse of their own conscience, to awaken them to an understanding of the lessons symbolized, to revive their memory, to convict of sin, and to receive their penitential repentance. He would teach them that brother is not to exalt himself above brother, that the dangers of disunion and strife shall be seen and appreciated; for the health and holy activity of the soul are involved.

This ordinance does not speak so largely to man's intellectual capacity as to his heart. His moral and spiritual nature needs it. If his disciples had not needed this, it would not have been left for them as Christ's last established ordinance in connection with, and including, the last supper. It was Christ's desire to leave to his disciples an ordinance that would do for them the very thing they needed,—that would serve to disentangle them from the rites and ceremonies which they had hitherto engaged in as essential, and which the reception of the gospel made no longer of any force. To continue these rites would be an insult to Jehovah. Eating of the body, and drinking of the blood, of Christ, not merely at the sacramental service, but daily partaking of the bread of life to satisfy the soul's hunger, would be in receiving his word and doing his will. RH June 14, 1898

The author of Feast Keeping and the Faithful does not seem to notice -- but how could he not notice? He is a scholar! -- that the quote above, and others like it, all refer to the rites and ceremonies, observed by none of the feast keepers that he finds fault with, as he knows through association with them.

These two examples reveal to me how he uses faulty reasoning and inaccurate statements in order to to paint with a black brush those who observe God's Holy Days.

The rites and ceremonies that pointed forward to Jesus and His sacrifice for us all had to do with the Temple sacrificial system, and that came to an end when He became our Passover. But his followers continued to gather together on His Holy Days, forsaking the rites and ceremonies of the past, but following His injunction to have "an holy convocation" at His Appointed Times. When He told His disciples that he would not partake of the fruit of the vine until "that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom," He may have been referring to a kingdom-celebrated Passover.

When I think of the deeper meanings of Passover, how it wasn't just a celebration of past deliverance, not only a former pointing forward to of Jesus' final blow to Satan on the cross, but a current looking forward to our final deliverance from this earthly Egypt and our escape from the evil of this earth, I am so thankful that I have come to understand the plan of salvation and how it is laid out so clearly through the annual cycle of God's Holy Days! What a blessing this has been to my life!

A task I've set myself

I've asked others for any source of written Bible studies on our Saviour's festivals -- a series of pamphlets with synoptic info, questions with Bible texts to look up, and answer blanks to fill in. Every answer I've received so far has been to refer me to various books, even when I specifically said I am NOT looking for books, but for Bible studies.

In other words, apparently Bible studies do not exist. I am thinking of creating my own. Big job, but one that is bound to help me grow. The easiest way to go about it would be to base the studies on videos that already exist, since there are so many of them. I will need to get the video-producer's permission.

Invisibility

I've discovered this blog is invisible. I've done numerous searches using the URL, the blog title, some of the post titles, and it never comes up. This has never happened with my previous blogs. Perhaps I'm the only one that can see it, and that disappoints me.

How to know what the Bible says

About ten months ago I published this article, and since it goes with my previous post about people who believe that Bible can be made to say what you want it to say, I thought it would be timely to post it again:

The following is adapted and condensed from an article, "Rules of Biblical Interpretation," by Melody Drake.

The reason why there are so many different churches and beliefs among Christians today is because many do not follow sound rules for Biblical interpretation. The Bible itself tells us how to study the Bible, either directly, or indirectly through observation. If all Christians followed these rules, we would not have so many different Christian churches and beliefs.

1. With a good concordance, search out everything the Bible says on the subject before coming to a conclusion. “For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little.” (Isaiah 28:10) One can pull out a Bible text to prove just about anything, but when one first looks at all the Bible texts on a certain subject, then a pattern of truth will emerge.

2. All conclusions should be based upon the weight of evidence and must make logical sense. God created us with minds to think and He appeals to our intellect. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord.” (Isaiah 1:18)

3. Each passage of Scripture should be carefully considered in its context. What does the Bible say before and after the passage? First we must consider the immediate passage, then the chapter, book, other books by the same author, and finally other writers of the Bible.

4. A literal interpretation of the Bible should be given unless the context clearly shows that the verses under consideration are symbolic. When the interpretation is symbolic, the Bible will tell us the meaning of the symbol either in that passage or elsewhere. The Bible must always interpret itself.

5. One text of the Bible must not undo another text. The Bible never conflicts with itself.  Sometimes Bible texts, at first glance, can appear to contradict with other texts, but upon a deeper study, the contradiction will disappear. For instance, one can find Bible texts that appear to support works in order to obtain salvation. Elsewhere, the Bible states that faith obtains salvation. On the surface these texts appear to be contradicting each other, but upon deeper study one finds that works and faith are the flip sides of the same coin. Without one the other does not exist. Sometimes the Bible will give us a harmonizing text and sometimes it will not, leaving us to do the harmonizing. Here is a harmonizing text. “Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.” (James 2:18)

6. All words should be accurately defined and understood. A good dictionary and concordance will aid in this. Since, over time, language changes, sometimes we have to search a word through a prophet’s writings to see how they define that word so we can correctly understand what they are saying.

7. We cannot conclude more or less than the evidence allows. “Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.” (Deuteronomy 4:2) “If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book. And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” (Revelation 22:18-19) These are serious words not to be taken lightly.

8. Consider the words of the text in the original languages. We do not need to be scholars studying Greek and Hebrew in order to do this. Using Strong’s Concordance one can easily find the original meaning of a word. As in English, some words in Greek and Hebrew have multiple meanings. Sometimes a contradiction may appear because the wrong definition of the word was used. However, by carefully considering all texts on a subject, one can determine the correct definition. For easy access to Strong's, use Blue Letter Bible with the Strong's numbers (click on Strong's box at the top of your KJV Bible text).

9. Each prophecy in the Bible has a beginning and ending point in time, and the elements within this prophecy occur in chronological order. This rule is not for conditional prophecy in the Bible but only for prophecy which has definite time frames. Daniel chapter 2 gives us a model. In this chapter the head of the image, which represents Babylon, comes before the chest, which represents Medo-Persia, which comes before the belly, which represents Greece, etc.

10. When God sets up a pattern, He never breaks this pattern. At times the Bible clearly sets out the beginning of a pattern. By following this pattern one can then determine the rest of the pattern and discover wonderful truths. For example, here is a pattern: three, six, nine. Once we see this pattern the next number is easy to determine. Our Heavenly Father is a God of logic and order.

11. Pray that the Holy Spirit will guide your mind before beginning to study because without the Holy Spirit one cannot obtain truth. “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)

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Other writings need to come under the same scrutiny. Do they align with the Bible? New truth doesn't erase old truth. New understandings build on old understandings, and this is good, as long as the old understandings are correct. When the original understandings are not scriptural, or off just a little bit, the newer understandings go farther astray.

Naysayers

I have, for a long time, wanted to use my real name on this blog, but because of opposition and stigma, I have not. The right time will come.

An acquaintance of mine has written a book entitled Feast-Keeping and the Faithful, and this book has caused more opposition, stigma, and heartache to those of us who truly believe we have found a long-forgotten gem in God's Holy Word. Back to that book another day.

When I first shared with a bunch of friends, about seven years ago, that I had attended a Yom Teruah at a local synagogue, I had no idea that anyone would think something was wrong with it. At that point, I was just interested in what Orthodox Jews did on that day. However, my Trumpets attendance had an immediate affect in that I was quietly uninvited from teaching an adult Bible class, i.e., teaching the class was not mentioned again. I did not protest, because not having the responsibility was something of a relief to me, but it, and having a shocking number of friends in other locations removed from church membership, gave me caution about saying much about what I have learned through my studies.

A very good Adventist friend of mine told me that observing the feasts is wrong, it makes people leave the church, and it keeps us from focusing on the sanctuary, which is the truth for the end times. I can't help but wanting to say, "Excuse me? What is observing the feasts all about if not gaining a deeper understanding of the sanctuary and its depiction of the plan of salvation through the annual holy days?" But I never did get to say it, because this friend is a talker and not a listener.

Yes, some have left the church, usually not so much because they chose to, but because they were asked to leave. And yes, some have been so excited about what they have learned that they are not judicious in how they share it. They trust that all will want to know and embrace what they have embraced. Some have been accusatory towards those who are not ready to accept it, saying things such as, "You cannot be saved if you don't believe this," so I know not all the fault is with the churches who have booted sincere people out of their congregation. And yes, there are those who did choose to leave, some because they cannot tolerate the hoopla around Christmas, a holiday not based on the birth of Christ at all; He was just pasted in later, on top of a pagan background. Have I mentioned Christmas in this blog? If not, I will attend to it at some point. Even though my church is increasingly secular in its Christmas celebrations, so far I find it relatively easy to avoid participating.

Some feast keepers, it is obvious, have attached to it strange doctrines, and because of that, their wanderings have painted the entire movement in shades of dark gray. Many, including the author of the book I mentioned, who travels around the world teaching his theories, seem to think that all who observe the Biblical feasts are following weird unbiblical doctrines not related to the feasts at all.

There are those who are strong advocates of using the term "Yeshuah" in any of its various spellings for "Jesus" and teach that if you use the name Jesus, you are not talking about the Son of God. Though I know "Jesus" was not how his name was pronounced, I don't agree with the Sacred Name movement, and I have already gone into that in other blog entries. Some have adopted what is called the Lunar Sabbath, in which the week begins at the new moon, and the weekly Sabbath is every seven days after the new moon. Of course, this leaves a few extra days at the end of most month which are not counted, and every month the "Sabbath" is on a different day of the week, an obvious contradiction to Bible teaching. Some believe a day starts in the morning instead of the biblical "even to even," and some teach that a day is only the sunlit hours. This has got to please a lot of people who see the Sabbath hours as restrictive instead of a blessing! These ideas get wackier and wackier and stray further and further from the Bible, and one can easily see how, in every case where there is truth, it gets attacked from all sides.

I believe that the biggest reason for these strange beliefs is that people will listen to someone, or read something that has been written, without checking the Bible for themselves. What's keeping people from coming together on beliefs is that so many will just read a book, such as Feast-Keeping and the Faithful, without studying to see what the Bible says. "This highly-educated person is smarter than I am, reads the Bible more, and has done more research, so I'll just go with what he says," appears to be the thinking of many -- on many topics, but especially on Bible truths.

Some believe that one can't know what the Bible says, and that you can make it say whatever you want it to say. Those who have that belief are exactly those people who will not study anything for themselves. They will listen to speakers, read books, and pick the one who has ideas that they like the most. It's a sorry state for those who want to follow the One who said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life."

Trumpets shall blow

This is a quickie about the Feast of Trumpets, Yom Teruah, a sabbath that started tonight at sunset. It is the first of the three fall convocations. Next is the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, then the eight days of the Feast of Tabernacles, Sukkot.

In Lev. 23:23-27, God was speaking to Moses when He told him to tell the people to observe this feast, saying it was a "memorial of blowing of trumpets." The spiritual event that they were to remember, the only one that accompanied trumpet blowing in their history, must have been when Moses went up on the mount to receive the Ten Commandments and other instructions from God that he was to share with the people.

The sounds of the trumpet were loud, as trumpets tend to be, and were accompanied with thunder, lightning, and an earthquake:

"When the ram's horn sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain... So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently. When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder." Exodus 19:13, 16-19

God invited His people to covenant with Him, and they promised to do everything that the Lord commanded. In a short time they broke this covenant. But still, God said, "Let them make me a tabernacle, that I may dwell among them."

When Jesus came, He was God With Us in the flesh, and a tabernacle was no longer necessary, because He promised to be with us and desired to live in us. He reaffirmed the covenant, a better one. Soon we will hear the trumpet sound and be living with Him eternally.

That's what Trumpets is about -- the heralding of Jesus' soon return to be with us.

The sin of Cain

I recently viewed Sunburned, a YouTube video that looks at why the Israelites made a golden calf to worship at the foot of Sinai. It was interesting, so I took notes (condensed in this post). The purpose of the video was to consider the Christian and nonChristian elements have come into Christmas and Easter holidays, considered by many to be the holiest times of the year.

We all know that there are components of Christmas and Easter that have pagan origin. I don't need to go over that again, because many who know and continue the traditions don't think it matters, because the purpose of these holidays is to honor God and His workings in our lives. I believed the same, but the following verses (and more), made me stop and think:

Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” ~ John 4:23,24

The LORD says, "Do not start following pagan religious practices. ~ Jeremiah 10:2

You must not worship the Lord your God in their way. ~ Deuteronomy 12:4

Now to the video. See endnote below regarding my conclusion as the chronology of the symbol. These are my condensed and edited notes about the golden calf and why the Israelites chose that symbol:

Two Hebrew words are commonly translated as God: el, and el-oah.

The word el was originally written with two pictographic letters, one an ox head and the other a shepherd staff. The ox represented strength, and the staff of the shepherd represented authority. The ancient Hebrews saw God as the strong one of authority. 

The ox head and the shepherd staff, means the strong authority, as explained by the Ancient Hebrew Research Center. When visiting that website, look at the symbols and commentary for the letters A-L.

The Israelites said they were going to make elohim, who shall go before us. Their pictographic letters make perfect sense as to why they chose to make a calf to represent the God who had led them out of Egypt. Moses had been on the mountain a long time, and their leader who communicated with God may not ever return. They were in a panic. They fell back on the Egyptian practice of making an image of God so that they could connect and speak to him. Their intent was not to make an Egyptian god, but an image of their own understanding of the true God.

And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us. ~ Exodus 32:2

The plural form of el'oah, elohim, is often translated as God, singular, in English. While English plurals only identify quantity, as in more than one, the Hebrew plural can identify quantity as well as quality. Something of great size or stature can be written in plural form, as in elohim.

Aaron made one calf, but the translation is plural:

And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. ~ Exodus 32:4

The English translation makes it appear they are presenting the golden calf as gods. But when we understand their symbolism, they are saying, "This is the one true God who brought you up out of the land of Egypt." They had already declared Yahweh to be their only God. In addition, only one God took them out of Egypt, and the Israelites knew this. The translators used the plural form, gods, as in false gods, but that would not make sense. Aaron only presented one golden calf; the plural gods does not fit.

It is important to set aside English writing conventions and understand the ancient Hebrew symbols. The translators were misled, in this case, by the word elohim, which is translated God over 2,000 times in the KJV, and lower-case god less than 300 times. They looked at the context and thought that the calf meant a pagan god, and with the plural elohim, translated it as gods.

They were intending to worship and connect with Yahweh, the true God, through the calf. We can see this in Exodus 32:5-6:

And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord.

And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

Aaron declared the feast was for Yahweh, and they offered gifts to Him.

This was the sin of Cain.

They chose to worship God in their own way instead of in God's way. They sincerely thought they were doing the right thing. They thought it was okay to make up their own holiday and worship God as they chose.

But in spite of their sincerity, dedicating the day to him and giving gifts to him, God did not see it that way. They were worshiping God through the pagan practice of using things to worship God and putting into effect a false holiday. They gave their own offerings to Yahweh, just like Cain did.

The main issue of the problem at hand is this: Because they decided to do things their way instead of God's way, they made themselves out to be their own gods. They fully and sincerely wanted to follow Yahweh but they followed themselves and their own heart instead.

This is exactly what we do with Christmas and Easter. We take the ways of man, the ways of false gods, and offer them all up to god and expect him to smile while we please ourselves in the process.

We can still be claiming to worship the one true God, but when we abandon His way and do it our own way, we are worshipping our selves, bowing down to ourselves and following our own instructions instead of His.

Jeremiah 10:2 and Deuteronomy 12:4, quoted at the beginning of this post, eliminates Christmas and Easter.

Christmas and Easter are not rooted in truth. They are the ways of the nations, ways he has told us not to learn.

We must learn from Israel and Cain. They were sincere. Our intent in celebrating Christmas and Easter may be very sincere as well, but the problem is, in spite of all the theologians saying it's okay, God himself said No, it is not okay, it is not how I want to be worshipped.

He sent His own son that we might live. Let's live for him, in his way, not our way. Let's love him back in the way that he has told us he wants to be loved.

End of video notes.

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Endnote

Regarding chronology of the symbol: Did the calf/staff symbol meaning "God" in the Ancient Hebrew pictographic writing come from their understanding of their own deity, or did their pictograph for God develop during their centuries in Egypt, taking on Egyptian bull worship's symbol to symbolize the God of Israel? I think that is the likely scenario. More research is needed.

Easter's roots are Passover

Since this is Easter weekend, several of my friends on Facebook have posted this link from Christianity today, an article that discusses the likelihood that Easter did not start as a pagan holiday. Perhaps my friends have not read the entire article, but the gist is that Easter originated with Passover, and there is proof that "Passover/Easter" was observed at least by the second century Christians. Interesting, when so many churches claim that observance of Passover by Christians came to an end at the cross!

I do believe that the celebration of Christ's resurrection started in the churches as a Christian celebration, though it was not called Easter in the early church. In time, Christians changed some of their practices because they didn't want to be identified with Jews who were under persecution. Notably, they avoided seventh-day Sabbath worship in favor of Sunday, choosing an annual Sunday via the solar calendar for the resurrection celebration instead of at Passover, and changing the other festivals ordained by God ("thinking to change times and laws" Dan. 7:25). The Quartodeciman controversy deals with the dating change for the Paschal (Passover) season and is an interesting study. The Easter celebration became saddled with other traditions related to fertility goddesses over the years.

Many of those who question some of the Easter practices and date have claimed that the name, Easter, came from a pagan goddess, and this the article does not deny. The celebration, however, started -- and morphed -- from Passover, certainly not from a pagan holiday.

The name Easter, the article states, comes from "April, Eosturmonath … Eosturmonath has a name which is now (italics supplied) translated "Paschal month" and which was once called after a goddess... named Eostre, in whose honour feasts were celebrated in that month." The Christianity Today article adds:

The Nordic/Germanic peoples (including the Anglo-Saxons) were comparative latecomers to Christianity. Pope Gregory I sent a missionary enterprise led by Augustine of Canterbury to the Anglo-Saxons in 596/7. The forcible conversion of the Saxons in Europe began under Charlemagne in 772. Hence, if "Easter" (i.e. the Christian Passover festival) was celebrated prior to those dates, any supposed pagan Anglo-Saxon festival of "Eostre" can have no significance. And there is, in fact, clear evidence that Christians celebrated an Easter/Passover festival by the second century, if not earlier. It follows that the Christian Easter/Passover celebration, which originated in the Mediterranean basin, was not influenced by any Germanic pagan festival.

Isn't it interesting that they focus entirely on only the possibility of Germanic influence -- and that it only focuses on the practices of that time? It does not address how Germanic practices may or may not have influenced Easter in later years.

It is also interesting that hardly any information on Eostre as a goddess can be found in history. Most of what is said comes from various writers quoting each other. More than one website says something to this effect:

In case you think we’re being flippant, recent research suggests that EOSTRE herself may have been invented during a mischievous moment by the Venerable St BEDE. This well-known monk mentioned her in connection with the pagan festival Eosturmonath in a book written in 750 A.D. — but extensive research has failed to find a trace of her prior to that. Could he possibly have been fibbing? from godchecker.com

Some suspect that Eostre, if she did exist, is the germanic name for the goddess Asherah, the "Queen of Heaven," mentioned in the Bible, and when the Israelites apostatized, they often had "Asherah poles" erected, a sign of their apostasy from worshiping the true God. Other counterparts for this goddess are Astarte, Asherah, Ashtoreth, Ishtar, Innanna, Ostara, Isis, Aphrodite, and Artemis.  All of these goddesses were connected with love and fertility, and some of their traditions have become a part of Easter celebrations, including rabbits, eggs, and hot cross buns.

Is Eostre one of this group of goddess names? Many have made that suggestion, but since there is no apparent history of her before the Venerable St. Bede, it cannot be known for certain. To use Eostre as proof that Easter was not a pagan holiday is poor scholarship, at best, and misses the whole point of whether or not Easter has pagan components.

My conclusion is that Easter started with the Passover celebration, so it's original roots are not pagan, but that over the centuries elements from pagan spring fertility rites crept into the Easter season.

It is my personal choice to observe Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread on God's calendar (14th day of the first month), remembering the blessing of our salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord, Yeshua Hamashiach, who came to save us from sin, which is represented by leavening. Sin is still with us now, but someday it will be gone forever, so that is the pointing forward of Unleavened Bread. I can't help but feel a thrill when I think of it!

Depends on what the meaning of "is" is

The tiny little word is can change the whole meaning of a sentence. We've heard it before. Remember Bill Clinton? But let's forget Bill and turn to the text:

"But the body is of Christ."

Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ. Colossians 2:16, 17

I have read two explanations of "the body is of Christ." The first explanation, in short, is that the shadowy things are not substance, the substance is Christ. I believe that Christ is the substance of everything in regards to our salvation, but is that what this text is saying?

Italicized words in the KJV and some other versions indicate that the word is supplied and not in the original text. Without is, verse 17 says, 

"Which are a shadow of things to come, but the body of Christ."

This sentence fragment requires context, includes verse 16, and leads to the second explanation. The entire sentence, without intervening phrases and clauses, says,

"Let no man judge you...but the body of Christ." 

Paul often exhorts the believers, the church, to work together as a body, that each member of the body has its own purpose, etc. It makes sense that when the believers were being judged by the Greek ascetics of the time, who were so rigorous in their matters of diet and practice, that Paul would say to them, "Don't let these people who are not part of the body judge you. Let the body of Christ, the church, be the ones you pay attention to."

I can accept both explanations, as they are not contradictory, but I believe the second explanation is more likely the meaning Paul had in mind, given his focus in his letters to the churches.

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As a matter of interest, the following verses show where Paul refers to the church as the body of Christ:

Romans 12:5

So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.

Ephesians 3:6

That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:

Ephesians 4:12

For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Chr

Ephesians 5:23

For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.

Colossians 1:24

Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church:

A shadow of things to come

"A shadow of things to come," is to many another proof that the holy days are in the past, have been fulfilled, and are no longer important to the believer, that, in fact, observing them is rejecting Christ.

Let's look at Colossians 2:17 more closely.

16. Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day.

17. Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

Have you considered the present tense of the word are? The verse doesn't say were, meaning in the past, over and done with, though some recent Bibles have been translated that way. Are instead of were, shows Paul's understanding that the holydays, new moons, and sabbaths, are not in the past. They are still looking forward to a future fulfillment.

Many of those who observe Sunday as their weekly holy day, instead of the seventh-day Sabbath, say that the Sabbath is only a memorial of creation. Even Sabbath-keepers make that point, that they are keeping the Sabbath as a memorial of God's creation. Even the Sabbath, in this point of view, is a shadow looking backwards!

These same Christians will likely say that observing a feast, Passover, for example, is turning our back on Christ, because Passover has been fulfilled through Christ's sacrifice. They will observe the Last Supper/Communion service, which is the Christian Passover memorial, but to do it on Passover or to call it Passover instead of Easter, that strikes them as outright unChristian!

My studies have shown me that the feasts are absolutely Christian. They are God's timeline of His plan of salvation. a picture of the Gospel of the kingdom. We can celebrate what He has done for us for eternity!

The Feast Days have future fulfillment. Passover and Unleavened Bread shows how God's people are freed from sin and death. Pentecost shows a future, more complete, understanding of God's law and the Latter Rain of the Spirit. Trumpets depicts the warning, gathering-in message, going to all the world. The Day of Atonement has no past fulfillment, only future, and Tabernacles point forward to when we will all gather together to live with our Saviour. Observing the feasts, which have never been abolished in Scripture, is a deeper, closer understanding of the truth and love that Jesus has for us.

Some will want to separate the Sabbath from the rest of the feasts. Let's look at the weekly Sabbath. Not only is it a memorial of creation, a sign between God and His people and listed with the other feast days in Leviticus 23, but it is also forward-looking, pointing to the rest we have in Jesus.

There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Hebrews 4:9,10

This verse shows how the Sabbath rest is an object lesson of the rest we are in because of the work Christ has done for us. The Sabbath-rest remains as a celebration and object lesson throughout eternity.

From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me," says the LORD. Isaiah 66:23

Christ said he did not come to destroy the law but to fulfill it. If fulfilling means abolishing, it is the same as destroying, exactly what He said He did NOT do!

Blog name and purpose

Just because I have not been writing for a couple weeks doesn't mean I haven't been thinking. This is the first blog I have kept in which I have no recent readers, and I am learning that readers motivate me to write. I think the readers I had here got discouraged during my very long absence, with good reason.

I've been thinking on the name of this blog. At first, several years ago (when I had readers) it was Yeshua Is My Salvation, then I changed it to Morning by Morning, from a favorite text, "Morning by morning He wakens me and opens my understanding to His will." Isaiah 50:4. For a short while it was Christians and Feast Days, then it was Appointed Times, for a short while it was Salvation Timeline, then Appointments, and now it is These are My Feasts! Perhaps some day I'll find exactly the right title.

The reason for all the changes is that I've been looking for a name that depicts the purpose of the blog, not just part of it, but is not too bland. "Appointments," I think, is on the bland side and not descriptive enough.

I've been studying topics that are of interest to me and that have come up as issues among some of my friends. I've seen some of these topics cause a lot of friction between people, causing distance between friends and family members, and even loss of church membership. The topics I've approached so far are the true name (must use, or not?), the trinity (yes or no), and the appointed times (feast days). It's not just hearsay that these topics have caused friendships to end. I've experienced it myself. I told a friend who called me regularly, a couple times a week, that I was studying about the trinity, that I had doubts as to whether it was a biblical doctrine. That was all, just one sentence. That friend asked me no questions, didn't ask me to explain myself, and never called or spoke to me again. I was astounded! This is the main reason for my current anonymity, though I may change that soon, for we are to give the trumpet a certain sound, and hiding behind a blur doesn't help.

People often ask me, "Do you think you have to believe these things in order to be saved?"

My answer is, "You only have to believe on Jesus to be saved. That's what the Bible tells us." A major emphasis on commandments and what we should and should not do in order to be saved is a false focus, because what we do does not save us. It is legalism. When Jesus enters us through His spirit, He lives through us, and our lives become what He wants us to be. It's His job, not ours. We invite Him in; He lives in us.

I have thought that it would be great if I could include Love in the title somehow. Still thinking.

Jesus said,

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. - Matthew 22:37-39

So why do I bother about some of these other topics?

The Bible is here for us to learn more, to show God's hands-on approach to loving and saving humanity, to make our spiritual lives deeper and richer.

New learnings that have made my journey more meaningful include knowing that Jesus' given name was Yeshua, which means Salvation. It sent a delicious chill down my back when I learned that our Creator is the embodiment of Salvation! I still use the common name, Jesus, because in conversation everyone will know who I mean.

Another deepening of my Christian walk was learning the significance of the Feasts, also called Holy Days, God's Holidays, Appointed Times, or Moedim. These annual sabbaths are God's Salvation Timeline.  I don't mean that they are a schedule of date and time of Jesus' return, but they show how we have been saved, from His death on Passover, to His spirit being given to His followers at Pentecost (and will be again), to the last Trump when He returns and takes us home to tabernacle with Him. The Jews had this gift for centuries, but only in hindsight were they able to recognize the significance of the yearly rites and ceremonies of the tabernacle. I believe that the rites and ceremonies came to an end at the death of Jesus, but that significance of the timeline remains. I plan to study and share this topic in a future post.

He built the timeline when He planned the salvation of the world before it was created. At creation He put lights in the heavens to signal the object lessons (tabernacle services) that the people would participate in yearly -- of His work of Salvation.

And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years. Genesis 1:14

The object lessons of the appointed times were further enhanced by events He put into place to happen exactly at the times He scheduled. These historic events, -- Jesus' death at Passover, for example -- don't mean they are fully fulfilled or that a partial fulfillment means they no longer have significance to those of us who look forward to His reappearing.

As I learn of His love for me through participating in celebrating His Holy Days, I am so much the richer for having put that focus on Him!

Nine texts that use the term "sabbath days"

If all agree that the first eight texts refer to the weekly Sabbath, why should they interpret the ninth instance differently?

1. Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless? Matthew 12:5
2. And, behold, there was a man which had his hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him. Matthew 12:10
3. How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days. Matthew 12:12
4. And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace. Mark 3:4
5. And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days. Luke 4:31
6. And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath days? Luke 6:2
7. Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it? Luke 6:9
8. And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, Acts 17:2
9. Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Colossians 2:16

What are the Sabbath days?

The whole purpose of these Colossians 2 posts has been for myself, to understand what is being said, and to clear up the inconsistencies of the various explanations that have not made sense to me. I've come to see that the common interpretations stem from 1) The desire of Sunday keepers to nail the Sabbath commandment to the cross, and 2) The desire of seventh-day Sabbath keepers to nail the "Ceremonial Law," including the Holy Days, to the cross.

My studies have shown me that none of God's law was nailed to the cross. When our Saviour died for our sins, what was nailed to the cross was the handwriting of the ordinances that were against us, the declaration that we are guilty. Understanding this point is basic, and once understood really leaves no need for the believer to defend the rest of the text. However, because the rest of the text has been influenced by the belief that the Ten Commandments or the Ceremonial Law has been nailed to the cross, the interpretation of the remainder of the text is skewed toward bolstering that incorrect understanding, so we are left to deal with it. It is certainly an interesting study.

I'm addressing interpretations that have come about due to a certain mindset brought to these few verses. Each phrase has deep importance, and each phrase has been interpreted at least two ways, sometimes more. I've put each section in a different post as I work through them. I'm not addressing the topics exhaustively (compared to others who have written entire books on the topic), but I suppose that once I get as near to finishing as I can get, I should summarize. I'll work on that.

The explanation given to me as a questioning pre-teen was that the phrase, "the Sabbath" always refers to the weekly Sabbath, and "sabbath days" refers to annual sabbaths, feasts, or holy days.

One interesting point is that the word days in Colossians 2:16 has been italicized in the KJV, indicating that the word days has been supplied, or added to the original translation. This is also the case in verse 17, where the word is has been supplied, changing the meaning of the verse. I will look at is another day.

I grew up with the incorrect understanding that "sabbath days" referred to the holy days, not only because of the claimed chiastic structure, discussed on a previous post, Colossians and Chiasmus, and because of the phrase that follows, "which are a shadow of things to come," but because of the phrase, "sabbath days." I'll address shadow later, as well.

Because it is clear that Colossians 2:16 is not a chiasmus, that it parallels other scriptures that speak of the holy days, new moons, and Sabbaths, there is no question as to the meaning of "sabbath days" in this verse. It is referring to the weekly Sabbath.

None of God's law was nailed to the cross, and understanding that, the rest of the text makes sense. Phrase-by-phrase explanation may not be necessary in order to defend the Law of God, but I do like to know what is really being said.



For further study:

I have been told the following: "The phrase“sabbath days” is found nine times in the King James Bible, and it always refer to weekly Sabbaths." Since being told something is not proof, I will be checking on this for myself. If it is true, Colossians 2:16 should be interpreted the same way.
Later: I looked up the texts and have shared them on this page (it's short).

I have also been told, "The Greek word for “sabbath” appears 53 times in the New Testament. There is agreement that 52 of these refer to the weekly Sabbath, and many say only one (Col. 2:16) refers to yearly sabbaths." I will need to research for myself, because sometimes people make blanket statements that are no accurate.My first step has been to go to the Blue Letter Bible and search for all verses that contain the word sabbaton, the Greek word used in Colossians. The Blue Letter Bible link in the line above contains that search result. I will look at them more carefully