The title of this essay might make some Christians uncomfortable, while others will seek to shun me as an anti-Christ, but the truth of the matter still remains quite evident—Christ was never in Christmas! Every researcher who writes on this subject, no matter how apologetic to the practice of Christmas within the broader reaches of Christianity, confesses one salient fact—Christmas is derived from the pagan deity— Dies Invicti Solis—The Sun god, or “god of the unconquerable sun”. It was the early “Church Father,” Tertullian, whose writings serve as a crutch for the upholding of Sunday sacredness, who in the third century lamented at the growing tide of Christmas and New Year celebrations, in these hard-to-be-forgotten words, “Oh, how much more faithful are the heathen to their religion, who take special care to adopt no solemnity from the Christians.”[1] The corollary of this statement is clear, and might well be presented with this extension, “oh, how much more faithful are the heathen to their religion, who take special care to adopt no solemnity from the Christians, and yet Oh, How much more unfaithful are Christians to their religion, who take special care in dismissing all the solemnities recorded in the Scriptures—the Holy Torah!” With the exception of some Saturday Sabbath-keeping Christian groups today, the greater Christian world has totally forsaken all the commemoratives outlined in Leviticus 23, and have instead baptized raw paganism into the Christian faith, and present it to the One who must always be worshipped “in spirit and in truth,” as a holy oblation. What greater effrontery to truth can be found!
My aim in writing this essay is to challenge the Christian world in general, and Seventh-day Adventists, in particular, to take a fresh look at this known pagan custom and determine if the God of truth can be rightly worshipped, appeased, or otherwise honored with a dressed-up lie. We must admit, the modern colors, lights, and presents, with the attendant pageantry do serve as a powerful distraction from the despotic evil it is, which has often times caused well-meaning Christians to defy good judgment for all that is right and holy, in exchange for this dressed up child of the Evil One. But those who “follow the lamb wherever He goes,” (Rev. 14: 4), shall be careful in being obedient to all the “commandments of God, and” maintaining “the faith of Jesus Christ,” (Rev. 14: 12), Y’shuah the Messiah, while they steadily come out of Babylon, both intellectually, culturally and spiritually.
Even the Roman Catholics who take credit for the introduction of Christ-mass into the Christian Church, did not originally receive it with good flavor. In their online Encyclopedia, they recount that, “Christmas was not among the earliest festivals of the Church. Irenaeus and Tertullian omit it from their lists of feasts; Origen, glancing perhaps at the discreditable imperial Natalitia, asserts (in Lev. Hom. viii in Migne, P.G., XII, 495) that in the Scriptures sinners alone, not saints, celebrate their birthday…”[2] So the evidence is clear that this festival lacks Biblical authenticity, and must therefore be discarded from the Christian calendar.
Some may argue that “Christmas is a nice time of the year,” when people are very giving and open to hearing about Jesus, but this is only the skin of truth. When we unmask Christmas, we find that it is what every research on this topic has produced—dressed-up paganism. In other words, it is akin to a “wolf dressed up in sheep’s clothing,” and “the whole world is wondering after the beast (Rev. 13: 3), who has been invested with Satan’s “power, and his seat, and great authority.” (Rev. 13: 2). A former student of mine once said, “If I baked cow’s manure and poured chocolate glazing over it, will that turn it to chocolate cake?” The class of teenagers, seeing the logic of her reasoning, and the stupidity of Christians lying that Christmas is about Jesus, and that it is for the children, all responded in unison with a repulsive “No!” And they were correct.
Christmas must adopt the trimmings of Christianity to give it any validity and legitimacy in Christian circles, and so the hoopla from many “Christian Leaders,” is that society needs to “put Christ back into Christmas!” But the sad truth is stultifying, He was never in it! Ask the Apostles and they will tell you, this was practiced only among the Pagans, and Christians ought not to walk and worship as they do; ask Irenaeus and Tertullian, and they will tell you that, “the heathens are more faithful to their religion in not adopting any vestige of Christianity in their celebrations, yet Christians are unfaithful to their God, because they worship Him on a pagan altar; ask Constantine, and he will tell you that the early church knew nothing of Christ-mass commemoratives, that it was and is altogether a pagan practice; ask “Saint Augustine,” and he will tell you, Christmas is pagan, and has no resemblance to the Holy Child of Bethlehem’s manger; ask the Pope and he will tell you it is an institution of his church, akin to Sunday sacredness, neither of which finds their authority in the Bible or the external teachings of the Apostles but in the Church’s traditions; ask the Puritans and they will tell you that Christmas worship is dressed-up devil worship and must be shun by all-together true Christians; ask Ellen G. White and she will tell you that Christmas celebration is “the worship of heathen deities;” ask Seventh-day Adventists, such as those leading It is Written and The Voice of Prophecy, and they will tell you, “It is about helping lost sinners connect with the Babe in the manger who died for their sins”![3]
Who among the above catalogue of respondents, spoke a time-baked lie about Christmas? The answer is as shocking as it is disturbing, that only the Seventh-day Adventists, a people reputed for their ubiquitous reverence for, and fidelity to “the commandments of God,” who are now espousing doctrines and commemoratives not “commanded” by YHWH, but by the dragon! Can you imagine a ministry entitled, “It is Written,” espousing doctrines that are not written! Does this frighten or concern you? It should. Like their Roman Catholic counterparts, the Adventists are still apparently pointing attention to “the Babe in the manger,” rather than the man of Calvary. It is time, my friends, to be in the world but not partaking of its spirit. Won’t you follow the Lamb of YHWH singly today?
Many Adventists have taken an uncritical view, and wholesale acceptance of Ellen White’s earthy commentaries on the pagan tree of Christmas, without any regard for the Bible and sacred history’s recordings on this question. Here is one of her over-worked statements, promoting the tree: “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?”[4]
The idea that believers should hang “offerings, great and small,” on this devil-instituted symbol, is tantamount to offering “strange fire before the LORD.” “And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not.” Lev. 10:1. “And Nadab and Abihu died, when they offered strange fire before the LORD.” Num. 26:61. In other words, we cannot expect the LORD’s blessings on gifts reserved for his honor, when they are served to Him on the altar of Baal-Berith! Friend, there is no agreement with the altar of Yahweh, and the altar of Baal, they are patently incongruous. When Elijah stood on Mt. Carmel against Baal’s prophets in defense of true worship, he purposefully refused to use the same altar dedicated to Baal worship for the offering of sacrifices dedicated to Yahweh. We are told, “And he [Elijah] repaired the altar of YHWH that was broken down… And with the stones he built an altar in the name of YHWH.” 1 Kings 18:30, 32.
What a legacy of an example he left for us to follow! We cannot offer offerings to the GOD of heaven on Baal’s altar, and expect to win His favor! Friend, let us not compromise with Baal worship when we are so close to the borders of the eternal world. Elijah might well have reasoned, “It is the end of day, we are all tired since we’ve been here from early in the morning; let’s just use this already established altar of Baal and get on with this aspect of the showdown.” But no, he took the time to repair and build an altar in the name of Yahweh, on which he later offered his sacrifice. Unless otherwise shown, I am convinced of this one thing, had Elijah offered his sacrifice on the altar dedicated to Baal, the story would have had a very different ending! Friend, heaven demands that we make a conscious “difference between the holy and [the] profane” (Ezek. 22:26; Lev. 10:10); this is what Elijah did, and great was his reward! The challenge is now ours in this evil and adulterous age to stand for the truth and righteousness though the heavens fall!
As Adventists, we have long proclaimed the call to “Come out of her [Babylon] my people” (Rev. 18: 4), but this call is not merely a plea to leave the physical domain of Babylon only, merely to enter into the Third Angel’s message and continue as we were in Babylon. No, no, no! This call requires a departure from Babylon, both spiritually, physically, morally, and ideologically. One might say: “well, from the time I accepted the Sabbath truth, I came out of Babylon.” This is not necessarily true if you have not left Babylon’s domain ideologically and spiritually. The apostle Paul explained it as follows, “And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? …Come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” 2 Cor. 6:16-18.
The earlier directive from Ellen White that a Christmas tree should be placed in “every church,” is woefully contrary to everything written in the Scriptures, and must be understood as her having knowledge only “in part,” (1 Cor. 13: 9), and thus gave counsel based on her ignorance, though the best available light to her at that time. But this ignorance would not last forever, for she, after having been enlightened on the truth of Christmas, has rescinded all previous statements with the following rebuke: “The youth in this country [Australia] require more earnest spiritual labor than in any other country we have yet visited. Temptations are strong and numerous; the many holidays and the habits of idleness are most unfavorable for the young. …But from their youth up they 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. The youth are educated to love those things which are demoralizing, things which the word of God condemns. The influence is evil and only evil continually.” [5]
The above statement has never been reproduced by our denomination in any literature expressing Ellen White’s position on Christmas, and I find it to be disingenuous to set her writings in such a light as to not show the balance therein, especially as she grew in knowledge, light and understanding, to realize that Christmas commemoration is “nothing less” than the adoration and “worship of heathen deities.” Further, since in order for one to either pin a gift to the bowers of the tree, or place a present under its spreading branches, requires the genuflection of “bowing” or at the least nodding before the tree, Satan is more than pleased when Christians “bow” to him, all the while thinking they are offering praise to Jesus! I say, Christian beware! Satan does not care how you are deceived, but only exults in the one fact that you are deceived. The challenge is ours to unmask his sophistries and turn to the Lover of our souls in true repentance, and worship Him “in spirit and in truth,” based on His commandments, and not on our own feelings and maxims.
Truly, the fruit in Eve’s hand seemed quite innocent to her, and even “delightful,” but by partaking of it, she was flirting with the devil, in defiance of Heaven’s expressed command, and has resulted in our 6,000 year travail in the valley of sin. There was no apparent danger in the fruit itself, she reasoned, for after all, it appeared “good for food!” But the sad reality is that this apparently “good for food” fruit, was handed to her from the clever hands of Satan! And only he was glorified on that fateful day! The same is true with Christmas celebration, it appears innocent, yet at its core, it was handed over to us from Satan, and therein lies the danger. Do not let your senses benumb divine reason. Don’t argue that it is “good for food” to satisfy your carnal desires, but dispense with it wholly, because it is subliminally, “the worship of heathen deities.”
While doing research on the historicity of the Bible Sabbath, Adventist Evangelist, author, and Professor, Walter E. Straw, penned the following lines: “There are few other questions that should be considered while we are studying the introduction of Sunday observance. How did Easter and Christmas get into the church? … We look in vain for these at the time of the apostles. It is a well-attested fact that the Christian church today has many practices, ceremonies, and beliefs that were foreign to the church at the time of Christ and the apostles. Therefore they did not come from the apostles. From where did they come? Professor Sayce answers, ‘We are the religious heirs of the builders and founders of the Egyptian temples. Many of the theories of Egyptian religion, modified and transformed no doubt, have penetrated into the theology of Christian Europe, and form, as it were, part of the woof in the web of modern religious thought. Christian theology was largely organized and nurtured in the schools of Alexandria.'”[6]
Straw continues: “There was no Christmas celebration in the early church. ‘The Roman winter solstice, …as celebrated on December 25 in connection with the worship of the sun-god Mithra, appears to have been instituted in this special form by Aurelian about 273 A.D., and to this festival the day owes its apposite name of the ‘Birthday of the Unconquered Sun.’ With full symbolic appropriateness, though not with historical justification, the day was adopted in the Western Church, where it appears to have been generally introduced by the fourth century, and whence in time it passed to the Eastern Church as the solemn anniversary of the birth of Christ, Christmas Day. As a matter of history no valid or even consistent early Christian tradition vouches for it.’ Chrysostom says that Christmas was introduced into the East about 378 A.D.” [7]
One who was never a Bible-Sabbath keeper documents that: “Chrysostom (Monitum in Hom, de Natal. Christi), writing in Antioch about A.D. 380, says: ‘It is not yet ten years since this day was made known to us’ (Gieseler, Vol. II, p. 352). ‘What follows,’ adds Gieseler, ‘furnishes a remarkable illustration of the ease with which customs of recent date could assume the character of apostolic institutions.’ Thus proceeds Chrysostom: ‘Among those inhabiting the west, it was known before from ancient and primitive times, and to the dwellers from Thrace to Gadeira [Cadiz] it was previously familiar and well-known,’ that is, the birth-day of our Lord, which was unknown at Antioch in the east, on the very borders of the Holy Land, where He was born, was perfectly well known in all the European region of the west, from Thrace even to Spain!”[8]
So it is clear that this festival of “Christmas,” or the Nativity of Christ, was “well known” from ancient and primitive times because it was a heathen festival from the days of antiquity, yea from the days of Nimrod, the great rebel against Yahweh. Isn’t it curious that this “well known” birthday of Y’shuah was not known at all in the land “where he was born,” yet Europe (the Papacy), so far away, was able to convince the rest of the world, including the people of Palestine, that the 25th of December is Christ’s birthday! If anyone should have had the truth of Messiah’s birth correct, it would be the people in the land where he was born. But no, they had to learn this knowledge some four hundred years after the fact, from a people who were apostates and persecutors of Him who was born in Bethlehem, to save us from our sins! Is this sound reasoning? I think not; how about you, friend?
The book, The Da Vinci Code was written with the intention of overthrowing faith in Y’shuah as the Messiah, as it turned him into a common sinner, yet even here the author, Dan Brown, was confronted with the reality of History, and has correctly documented evidence which can be corroborated by every other authority on the subject, that Christmas is the worship of Saturnalia, raw paganism dressed up in church clothes and masquerading itself in almost every Christian church as of divine worth! Look at this eye-opener: “In Constantine’s day, Rome’s official religion was sun worship–the cult of Sol Invictus, or the Invincible Sun–and Constantine was its high priest…By fusing pagan symbols, dates, and rituals into the growing Christian tradition, he created a type of hybrid religion…The pre-Christian God Mithras – called the Son of God and the Light of the World – was born on December 25…By the way, December 25 is also the birthday of Osiris, Adonis, and Dionysus.”[9]
While I do not recognize Mr. Brown’s book as an authoritative guide and honest survey of Messianic Christianity, in this one area he his correct—Christmas is the worship of Lord Mithras—another name for Satan! Do you see why a scoffer like Dan Brown is still lost in his sins? It is on account of the Christian church, which has taken special interest in wresting this child of the Devil from Mithraism, and pawning it off as a holy oblation to YHWH, that has created this skeptic. He knows the real truth behind Christmas, that the God of Christians is Satan, and even in his skeptic mind, he knows that this is wrong, and has become a voice to the world to expose Christianity as modern Mithraism! This is the point he was making in that popular book, and it is a sad commentary that Christianity has damaged its reputation by holding on to ancient paganism and teaching it as a sacred oblation. It has, as it were, hid the key of knowledge and made people like Mr. Brown ten-times more a child of the Devil than before.
“(2) Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree: (3) And ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place. (4) Ye shall not do so unto the LORD your God… (8) Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes.” Deut. 12: 2-4, 8.
As for the celebration of Christmas with the tree and all the trimmings, there is explicit Biblical condemnation of this “heathen” practice:
“Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good. Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O YHWH; thou art great, and thy name is great in might. Who would not fear thee, O King of nations? For to thee doth it appertain: forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like unto thee. But they are altogether brutish and foolish: the stock is a doctrine of vanities. Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman, and of the hands of the founder: blue and purple is their clothing: they are all the work of cunning men. But YHWH is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation. Thus shall ye say unto them, the gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens.” Jer. 10: 2-11.
Since the Creator has clearly warned us to “Learn not the way of the heathen,” then those professing Christians who continually “teach” these “vain” heathen customs to the people of Yahweh as tinsel truth, even they “shall not be able to abide His indignation.” Friends, there is great safety in keeping all the Festivals of Yahweh’s appointment and approval (Lev 23). He will not condemn you for heartfelt obedience to all His Statutes Judgments and commandments–the Torah, but He will condemn you for whoring after heathen worship, and teaching it as of Divine origin, and sanction when it’s not. Your job and mine is to expose the wine of Babylon as poison, and warn the world of its deceptive brew, and not to lead them in following the worship of the dragon. As Christians, we oft times wonder, how did ancient Israel, with all the demonstrations of Divine power available to them, continually turned to idolatry? And in this inquiry, we believe that idolatry is a thing of the past, and even surmise that if we were alive back then, we would never have participated in their paganism! Simply roll the clock forward to our day, and ask heaven the question: how different is our modern practice of Christmas and other Pagan infusions into Christianity than the practice of Baal worship in Israel?
“While to a multitude of Christmas-observers, Christ means scarcely more than any ordinary man of fame, to an even greater Christmas-observing multitude of ‘not-at-all-Christians,’ He is but a storied figure by which to conjure holiday revelry; although they meaninglessly lisp His name in conventional acknowledgment of the supposed origin of the religious occasion of the season! Thus to many, like a light in the darkness, stands out the fact that Christmas is not, in reality, observed to the honor of the Saviour, but to the glorification of a heathen custom and to the gratification of the carnal heart. Consequently, ‘altogether-Christians’ cannot therefore consistently participate in celebrating the Christmas myth. Indeed, to do so is openly to set at naught the Word of God, [Jer. 10:2-5 quoted].
“And the traditional gift-exchanging which is part and parcel of the spirit of Christmas observance, is a jealousy-breeding custom, all too often only cankering the receiver’s heart and emptying the buyer’s pocketbook. Thus while it goads one multitude to display of pride, even luring them into revelry, debauchery, and immorality, it drives another, the multitude of poor, either to envy or discouragement, or to both, also not infrequently to despair, and sometimes to insanity — even to committing murder and suicide. The whole Christmas institution consequently being but a species of heathen worship that is demoralizing the nations, the Lord’s servants will invariably shun the exchanging of Christmas gifts, shun the evil attendant upon the occasion’s pretentious spirit and spurious humanitarianism. Christians cannot, indeed, take part in its unholy traffic of gift-trading and reveling, and at the same time be ‘altogether-Christians.’” [10].
The evidence is clear that Christ was never in Christ-mass, and so it an “abomination” (Ezek 8 & 9), to now include Him in it. Many are the plottings of the enemy to cause us to lose our souls, but if we walk in the light as Y’shuah is the light, he will guide us in the path of true worship as we obediently follow Him in truth and in holiness. It incumbent on each awakened follower of the Lamb to immediately repent from repetition, commemoration and otherwise adoration of this prepackaged evil, and fear YHWH and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come, and he demands us to “worship Him” (Rev. 14: 6, 7),who made all things.
Fresh Manna For Your Soul
If you have given up this pagan festival of Christmas and feel trapped that you’ll have to attend church, even with practices which you are convicted that the Scriptures deplore, then punish yourself no longer. I will host a special morning program on my conference call to accommodate you, so do plan and joining us for this Holy Sabbath day of rest, on Sabbath, December 20th from 10:00 am thru 12:30 pm, EST. To join the conference call: 1-805-399-1000, Pin #: 121929#
Note: We meet in this conference room every Sabbath day at 4:30 pm, EST, for Bible Study; please join us.
Take a stand for the truth, not because it is popular, but it is the righteous thing to doΩ
By Garrick Augustus, December 18, 2014; e-mail: Gaugustus336@gmail.com
[1] De Idolatria, c. 14, Vol. 1, p. 682; also found in The Two Babylons, p. 93, footnote, published by TEACH Services, Inc.; The Two Babylons
[2] http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03724b.htm
[3] The Voice of Prophecy, November 2014 Letter “Peace on EARTH,” p. 4.
[4] Review and Herald, Dec. 9, 1884. (Also be found in The Adventist Home, p. 477; emphasis supplied)
[5] Ellen G. White, 1894, Fundamentals of Christian Education, p.320.3.
[6] Origin of Sunday Observance, Walter E. Straw, Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1939, p. 89.
[7] Origin of Sunday Observance, Walter E. Straw, Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1939, p. 90.
[8] The Two Babylons, Alexander Hislop, pp. 92-93 footnote.
[9] Dan Brown, 2003, The Da Vinci Code. Doubleday, New York, p. 232
[10] V.T. Houteff, 1944, Universal Publishing Association, Christ’s Greetings, pp. 6-7.
The Adventist's Understanding of Prophecy 
Hey I can see that you spend lots of time on this study. However, what have you teach anyone about the love of God in this essay. When I look at Christ I do not see much about theological arguments, I see more about living the love of God. He even said that the Israelites, who were always in theological argument, had less faith than the pagan Centrion.
When you have time during these holiday, go where the poor are in your community and present them the love of God. Go to the prison and bring them the love of Jesus. Go visit the sick and bring them the love of God. Jesus will tell you what to do. Or you can go and teach them about your theological argument. The question is alway, “What would Jesus do? I think the spirit of the winter holiday should be year round.
I pray that one day you will understand the song “Amasing Grace”
God is all about Agapé Love and Lucifer is all about Justice on which side are you. Read Job again for the first time.
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Hi Marcel:
Your response tells me that you’d rather to be popular than being right with YHWH, for you immediately started to judge my understanding of “Grace.” Here is were I get my instructions from: “(22) And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. (23) For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.” 1 Samuel 15:22, 23.
In my article, I demonstrated the love of YHWH by appealing to all to obey His commandments, and following the Lamb. If this is not love (1 John 5: 3), then I’ve never seen it in the Bible. “(2) By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.(3) For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.” 1 John 5: 2, 3.
Regarding “Amazing Grace”, I have a sermon on this blog, here is the link: https://sdaprophecies.wordpress.com/2014/12/14/romans-11-yhwhs-amazing-grace/
Do listen to it, and write your comments to see if what I market is “Cheap Grace” or “YHWH’s Amazing Grace”.
Regarding the poor, I do not wait for the holidays to remember them, that is not love, but emotion; God has a method of satisfying the needs of the homeless, the widowed, the fatherless and less fortunate. Read Isa. 58.
Shalom in Messiah,
Garrick
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Marcel, are you familiar with the term “Emerging Church”? I ask this because this is a typical reply from someone who would join the “emerging church” with all their Love Love Love theology, so much love that we can even bring Muslims, Buddhists and any believer of other gods into our midst and accept them as they are, and why on earth we would want to convert them! After all we are all headed in the same direction just different roads. Unfortunately it is the road to hell.
Instead of loving someone to “death” why not teach them truth and show them what it really means to “Come out of Babylon”. Then when the final call to come out of her my people is made they will understand exactly what that means. What would Jesus do? Exactly what he did do, he would teach them “truth” while meeting their needs, he never did one without the other. He will NEVER have to answer to his father that he did not teach them the truth giving them an informed opportunity to choose the good!
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May the Love of God rest upon you and your family.
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I see the love in learning this forgotten truth. I see no love in promoting the old lie of Christmas.
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Baruk (Blessed) are those DOING HIS COMMANDS, so that the authority shall be theirs unto the tree of hai (life) and to enter through the gates into the city. Rev 22:14
May we learn the Torah’s Guidelines of our Creator and OBEY them diligently. The good works will follow automatically. Tim
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Hallelu-YAH
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The Grace of God is not even cheap, it is free.
God is Love. Jesus is the the truth and life. Jesus is the exact imprint of God, Jesus is Love.
There was 2 trees in the garden. One was the tree of Life and the other one was the tree of knowledge of good and evil. At the end of the bible there is only one tree, the tree of life or we could say the tree of love or we could also say the tree of truth.
The tree of knowledge of good and evil teaches, “Do good according to what we believe to be good or else evil will come upon you.” This is the world we live in and all of us have been train in this system. This is the tree Lucifer lives in. This is the tree of justice, it is control by fear and it will never produce agapé love.
The tree of live is base on Agapé Love this Agapé love comes from God and it always produce the true justice of God and it is base on Love. This is what Jesus lived when He was on earth.
It is time now to stop living under the tree of justice and start living under the tree of life.
Believe me the fruit of the tree of life is way better than the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
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Hi Marcel:
I see you are using value judgments to appraise the Bible, and this is the very same method exercised by Eve in Eden. My counsel to you is simply this: “(13) Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. (14) For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” Eccl. 12: 12, 14.
If you’re human, and you are, then your “duty” to to “fear” (respect and reverence) YHWH and “keep” (do) all that he commands. When you find Christmas as one of His commands you may happily obey it, but since this evil is singularly denounced by Him (Read Jer. 10, and Isa. 44), you owe it to your self to keep YHWH’s commandments and teach men so, and you shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
“(1) Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. (2) Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.” Isa. 55: 1, 2.
There is a lot of cheap fodder on sale today, all the while the God of Love and mercy holds out his invaluable “wine and milk,” yet sinners are not turned on by this, they’d much rather spend their money for that which does not and cannot satisfy the soul! On which side are you? I invite you to come to the waters of salvation and drink, that your soul may be nurtured, and you don’t find yourself magnifying your opinions above the commandments of God.
Shalom in Messiah,
Garrick
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Marcell,
Lucifer is about injustice. Christ is about justice.
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To that we can all agree, but to transform the aldar of Satan into the alter of Christ, is to attract the frown of God. Nadab and Abihu tried to offer strange fire to the Most High, and their life story is left as a stark reminder to us of not mixing the holy the unholy, the sacred with the profane, the righteous with the profligate.
Shalom in Messiah
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It’s ok. God’s Agapé love bring true Justice it bring forgiveness and compassion. Lucifer’ s Justice will never bring Agapé love. This world is base on Lucifer’s justice. Just look around and see what it brings.
Agape love brings the fruits of the Spirit. Lucifer Justice brings the works of the flesh.
There is two Justices represented here. Do not come to fast to a conclusion. Take the time to think.
We are so use to speculate without looking at the facts. We make judgement on theses speculation. We use verses to justify our views which are base on speculations. We will even take verses out of context to prove our point. What a bunch of idiots are we. Apart from the Agapé love of God we are nothing. May His love reign in our hearts for this is what we need.
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By the way taking Christ out of Christmas is exactly what Lucifer wants.
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Lucifer wants nothing more than to be worshipped as YHWH and to include Christ in Christ-mass is his highest honor. Should we also put Christ into Halloween?
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I respect your statement, but from my read of the Bible, I see that Lucifer wants to insert Christ in Baal’s-mass, and thereby receive the glory, to be worshipped as God (read Isa. 14: 12-14). Shalom.
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It does not bother which day it is we should alway have the love of God in our hearts.
It is not about what we do it is about what Jesus does in us.
Christ should be thought every where. Where was Christ at the cross? I believe He was the focus of the greatess Lucifarian mass that was ever manifested. He there on the cross presented the Agapé Love of God. If you understand your bible you should understand that where ever God is the Most Holy place.
I am now busy feeding some people so got to go.
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I was just reading on how you judged me so promptly. God commandment are all about Jesus Agapé love. Why are you saying things about me that I did not say. i am sorry that you had an somewhat awfull experience in your life specially about SDA but do not thing that you have it right and that everybody else have it wrong.
I can only see Jesus using the same words you are using and seeing 5000 people in front being amaze of all this truth and wanting more.
How many time can you kick a dog and he will want to come back for more?
If you truly are a shepherd need you be reminded that no sheep wants to be yelled or cursed at.
People today need to hear the kind words of Jesus. You can use all the Hebrew words that you want to pronounce the name of God and His only begotten Son Jesus Christ but if you do not have their Agapé love in your heart it is all in vain. Read again 1Corinthian 13 and use the word Jesus where you see the word love.
You remind me a little of Paul before he had his first meeting with Jesus. But there is hope Paul had a change of heart.
And for a last word,”I do not promote pagan holidays, I try to promote Christian relationship where ever it maybe.”
Have a good one.
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My friends, it is a travesty to argue over the Scriptures, but a necessity to teach its precepts. The Bible is YHWH’s book of Love, and this is what Moses saw when he glimpsed the backward parts of the Most High, he heard this declaration:
“6 And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation. 8 And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped. 9 And he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us; for it is a stiffnecked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thine inheritance.” Ex. 34: 6-9
Did you note that the word “Love” or “agape” was not explicitly used? This does not diminish from the fact that YHWH is love. Moses felt that love inclosing upon him, and he made haste and worshipped. The real point of controversy is whether or not Jesus Christ (Y’shuah) has ever converted an institution of Satan into a doctrine about Himself and true worship. Please provide one citation to this effect.
God is so very particular about true worship, (read Isiah 1), that he dismissed the very holy times (feast days and Sabbaths) he has instituted, as well as the sacrifices, all because the people were worshipping Him with a divided heart.
I would encourage all to realize that the whole bible cannot be preached in one sermon, and to nit-pick at a presentation against the Satanic doctrine of Baal-mass (Christ-mass), contending that the love of God, Agape, is not seen, is most sad. I would challenge all readers to read Matthew 23, and find the “agape” that Jesus taught there.
I will lift up one verse and leave you to read the rest in your spare time, and ask the Holy Spirit for special guidance as you read:
“23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.” Matt. 23: 23.
What did Y’shuah deem as the “weightier matters of the law?” Would you accuse Him for not including “agape”?
Shalom in Messiah, and for a heart centered on obeying all that he commands us to do.
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Marcel:
I am not clear on your charge of my “judging” you, but if I did, please forgive me, it is my intention to judge no one, but to inform everyone, and where offense comes, may the Holy Spirit bring conviction. But no, feel free to express your thoughts, even if they collide with mine. As long as they are respectful, and they are, then we can continue in this manner.
My greater aim in writing the article must be seen for what it is: “My aim in writing this essay is to challenge the Christian world in general, and Seventh-day Adventists, in particular, to take a fresh look at this known pagan custom and determine if the God of truth can be rightly worshipped, appeased, or otherwise honored with a dressed-up lie.” WARNING, paragraph 2.
So to be fair, I did not embark on a campaign to meet the unchurched in this essay, but the churched–those who profess to fear God and keep His commandments. With respect to the agape factor, I have on more than one occasion in the article enjoined on my readers to “follow the Lamb of YHWH,” which is the effulgence of true agape. With this backdrop to my essay, I noticed that you made the following accusative charges:
Marcel, Dec. 19th, 2014: [“what have you taught anyone about the love of God in this essay… I pray that one day you will understand the song “Amazing Grace”] Do you think these statements of yours are highly judgmental? They suggest that the love of God is not taught in the essay, and more importantly that I have no understanding of God’s “Amazing Grace.” But that aside, I am not the least offended, but the truth of the Scriptures is not about me, but Him–the way the TRUTH and the life. My duty then, is to introduce the truth to all human beings, and expose the “lie” and the Father thereof, for what it is. So, yes, offense will come, but as long as the offense is to the destruction of the kingdom of darkness, God (YHWH) is glorified.
May the peace of Messiah’s kingdom be yours.
Shalom
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Now it seems you are having a change of heart and this is good. The first statement on my last writing did you notice it was about the Commendment (Precept) of God pointing directly to the Agapé love of Jesus.
Matt23: 23 Why would I accuse Jesus of not including Agapé? The word mercy in the verse amplifies the word judgemnt. Jesus here is talking about the intentions of these Scribes and Pharasees. They were using the law as a tool to keep people at check and to uplift themselves. They were missing out on the most important part, the true justice of Agapé love, they were missing out on the mercy (miséricorde) and they were missing out on the faith (fidélité), this is what they should have practice.
You see the Scribe and Pharasees because of their lack of faith were missing out on the Agapé love which brings mercy to the heart. They were using the law to get people to do according to what they believe to be true or else they would force or threatened that evil would come on the people, they even had their own police. Read again the writings that I send, you will recognize this statement some where. Jesus even said to these people that Satan was their master.
I truly believe you have good intention Garrick, but do not do like the Scribe and Pharasees, do not miss out on the most important part of the law.
Now should we take Christ out of Monday the day of the moon, Tuesday the day of Mars, Wednesday the day of Mercury, Thursday the day of Jupiter, Friday the day of Venus, Saturday the day of Saturn and Sunday the day of the Sun? On what day should we have Christ in our heart? Is it different for Christmass day or Halloween?
I once went through a series of 36 lecture about how the devil control this world in all his deceptions and lies. All it brought was confusion, anger and sadness into my heart. I would rather have one small sermon on the Agapé love of God then a thousand sermon on the deception of Lucifer. The Agapé love of Jesus brings peace into my heart.
Personally I do not give a hoot about Tamsus (I even may have spell his name wrong) my focus is on the mercy of Jesus in whom I have put my faith. Even though I fall every day, which ever day it will be, with Jesus is where I want my focus to be and this is my prayer for the day.
Sorry to disagree but I believe the whole bible can be peaches in our every day actions. Love one and other as I have loved you. Salvation is in Christ, the bible teaches about Him. Let Him live in your heart and enjoy the result. Tell your friends what He is doing in your life, and listen to what they have to say about what Jesus is doing in their life.
Have a good one.
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Great, so the word “love” does not have to be inserted on every line of a sermon to make the point of God’s love. For example, I don’t know if this point was overlooked by some readers of this article, “The challenge is ours to unmask his sophistries and turn to the Lover of our souls in true repentance, and worship Him “in spirit and in truth,” based on His commandments, and not on our own feelings and maxims.”
Did you notice the operator here is “His Commandments?” For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments, and they are not grievous. (Read 1 John 5: 1-3).
My friends, it is great love on display when the Holy One of Israel points out the forbidden path, ere we ignorantly walk in it. Can you imagine a soldier knowing the very location of an IED or watches his fellow troops walking in the path of imminent danger, and just either cast a blind eye, or remaining silent? The labor of love would impel such a one to action. Similarly, the object of this essay is to steer the ignorant and unassuming of the danger l lurking under the glitz and glamor of the Nimrod’s-mass.
Shalom in Messiah’s Love
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Breaking News: Just in from the press: http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/23/opinion/parini-how-we-got-christmas/index.html?hpt=hp_t3
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Thanks for a spirited discussion.
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Isaiah 1: 21 KJV
How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.
It was a city full of judgment, (not “love”) but, now murderers-harlots.
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If I send a soldier to a danger zone I will not know where all the IED’s are that is why it is call the danger zone. My responsibility is to make sure he is well protected and we all know what armor he should have on.
When Jesus came on earth He was always walking in a danger zone. There was IED’s everywhere. We know the armor He had on. There is a multitude of God’s people in the danger zone and there are IED’s everywhere. We need to let the people know about these I agree but we must not do like the Scribe and Phrasees and not tell them about the armor.
This is where my conversation started with you Garrick. Now do you see my point.
Only the Agapé love of God can protect people in the danger zone. Every morning we get up there are IED’s all around.
May the Holy Spirit of the living God alway be amongst you and your friends and next time don’t be so fast to judge.
Thank you for listening, and have a good one.
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The faithfull city became a harlot because no one thought them about the love of God.
When you know the love of God it is easy to love Him we don’t even have to try. But first some one needs to tell us about it and we need to let the Holy Spirit in.
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The gospel of love is first and foremost the gospel of “repentance.” Without this fundamental ingredient, no sinner can be saved. To simply teach agape without the repentance component is to miss the mark.
Take notice of this passage: “19 If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: 20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” Isa. 1: 19, 20. The ones who “refuse and rebel” are given to “the sword,” because they failed to repent. This is the Elijah’s component of the message, Repent, for the Kingdom of YHWH is at hand!
Shalom
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Repentance is???
When you see and recognize the Agapé Love of God, He changes your heart of stone to a heart of flesh. You start to care like God cares you start rejecting your old way. You start making changes in your life. You will fall once in a while and maybe more than your share but never let go of Jesus and He will finish the good job He started in you.
David was the greatest example of this.
For all of this to happen you first need to understand the Agapé love of God.
A soldier was in a Great War, he was out there shooting his enemy and trying to save his life. Once in a while he would see a sign with and an arrow pointing to a direction and the sign said Peace. He said to himself this is ridiculous, look all around it is war every where. So he kept on shooting whom he thought was is enemy. He suffered lots.
One day he pass this sign again and decided to follow the direction of the arrow. There he met Jesus the Agapé love of the living God. He learned about the reign the power and the glory of this mercifully being. He accepted His teaching and the way he thought started change. He went back to his friends and realize that even his enemy needed to know about this God Jesus full of Agapé love. He put down his gun, picked up some water and a towel, walked around and started looking after the wounds of whoever he met. He would talk to them about this God of peace which bring this forgiveness and compassion into the heart of those that wants peace. Some of the one that chose Jesus teaching went out and brought other to Jesus.
I do not know how to explain repentance better but I am positive it is something that Jesus does in you that makes you change. It is not something that you can do on your own. All you need is faith and His mercyfull Love start doing His miracle in you.
I do not know how you understand repentance but for me I believe it comes from God. If we do not allow His Agapé Love live in us, I don’t care how many bucket of tears you cry, how much spin you do in the air and how much…. You will never have true repentance.
If we refuse the Agapé love of God we will refuse to rebel from our old ways and we will receive the sword. If we accept the Love of God in our heart we will want to rebel against our old ways and peace will come.
Elijah is right.
Hope your friends are still reading, I pray that someone in your crowd will understand.
Have a good one.
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Thanks for sharing:
I saw that repentance means a change in one’s life so that Jesus can finish, or complete His good work in us. I am in perfect agreement to that. True repentance is inspired by divine conviction, as in the case with David and Uriah’s wife, but the act of turning away from the sin is a choice we get to make, and surely the Holy Spirit will give us the strength and confidence to complete that transformation. But the work is ours to desire to change; without that “desire” the power of grace will be ineffective. Remember Pilate? He was confronted with and convicted by Truth, yet he “washed his hands” and did not repent. A mere intellectual ascent to truth is not good enough. There must be a heart transformation, which results in reformation of life and character.
By the way: great story about the soldier in the war! Which war was this, and who is the soldier?
I do recall in WW1 that in honor of “Baal-mass” (Christmas) that the German Troops and the Allied troops exchanged “Christmas presents,” in the midst of the war, and after the day had passed, started killing each other again. That was not the declaration of “peace”, but a mockery thereof.
Let’s keep the light of truth burning in our lives and in our neighborhood. By this shall all men know that we are Y’shuah’s disciples, if we have agape one for another.
Shalom in His name.
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Sorry miss read the verse about Elijah I must be tired. Disregard my last paragraph above.
It should have gone like this,”If you accept the Love of God in your heart ye shall eat the good of the land. If you refuse and rebel against the Love of God you are give the sword. Accept the Agapé love of God for the kingdom of God is at hand.
Now you may not like how I see the verse but it’s ok. Elijah is still right.
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The end
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This is my Commendment, “Love one another as I have Loved you.”
The whole Bible is base around this statement by Jesus Christ.
Forestry is one of my trades. I know people that are so focus on the details of the composition of a single tree that they don’t see the forest.
Monsanto is a company that studies the detail of seed, they play with the DNA of the seeds, they modifieds them to suit there purposes. They take away the natural seed from the farmer and have farmers plan their modified seed. This new seed is immune to certain insect and decease and chemical.
They have introduce a product that they can spray on these plan and all other plans will die except their desired seed. (Roundup)
These plants and this chemical are spread all around the world and are distorting the natural paths of life.
Bees are dying, dementia, autism and other deceases appearing more and more since this product have been put on the market.
Are we doing the same with the Bible?
A theology teacher ask this question. “When you study the Bible is it like cracking a nut and you will find a seed or is it like pealing and onion and at the end you have nothing?”
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Matt 13:24- This is the parable that may give some answer to you Christmass problem.
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