Catholic mirror citations.

 [From the Catholic Mirror of Sept. 2, 1893.]

Our attention has been called to the above subject in the past week by the receipt of a brochure of twenty-one pages published by the International Religious Liberty Association entitled, "Appeal and Remonstrance." embodying resolutions adopted by the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventists (Feb. 24, 1893). The resolutions criticize and censure, with much acerbity, the action of the United States Congress, and of the Supreme Court, for invading the rights of the people by closing the World's Fair on Sunday.

The Adventists are the only body of Christians with the Bible as their teacher, who can find no warrant in its pages for the change of day from the seventh to the first. Hence their appellation, "Seventh-day Adventists". Their cardinal principle consists in setting apart Saturday for the exclusive worship of God, in conformity with the positive command of God Himself, repeatedly reiterated in the sacred books of the Old and New Testaments, literally obeyed by the children of Israel for thousands of years to this day and endorsed by the teaching and practice of the Son of God whilst on earth.

Per contra, the Protestants of the world, the Adventists excepted, with the same Bible as their cherished and sole infallible teacher, by their practice, since their appearance in the sixteenth century, with the time honored practice of the Jewish people before their eyes have rejected the day named for His worship by God and assumed in apparent contradiction of His command, a day for His worship never once referred to for that purpose, in the pages of that Sacred Volume.

What Protestant pulpit does not ring almost every Sunday with loud and impassioned invectives against Sabbath violation? Who can forget the fanatical clamor of the Protestant ministers throughout the length and breadth of the land against opening the gates of the World's Fair on Sunday? The thousands of petitions, signed by millions, to save the Lord's Day from desecration? Surely, such general and widespread excitement and noisy remonstrance could not have existed without the strongest grounds for such animated protests.

And when quarters were assigned at the World's Fair to the various sects of Protestantism for the exhibition of articles, who can forget the emphatic expression of virtuous and conscientious indignation exhibited by our Presbyterian brethren, as soon as they learned of the decision of the Supreme Court not to interfere in the Sunday opening? The newspapers informed us that they flatly refused to utilize the space accorded them, or open their boxes, demanding the right to withdraw the articles, in rigid adherence to their principles, and thus decline all contact with the sacrilegious and Sabbath-breaking Exhibition.

Doubtless, our Calvinistic brethren deserved and shared the sympathy of all the other sects, who, however, lost the opportunity of posing as martyrs in vindication of the Sabbath observance.

They thus became "a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men," although their Protestant brethren, who failed to share the monopoly, were uncharitably and enviously disposed to attribute their steadfast adherence to religious principle, to Pharisaical pride and dogged obstinacy.

Our purpose in throwing off this article, is to shed such light on this all important question (for were the Sabbath question to be removed from the Protestant pulpit, the sects would feel lost, and the preachers be deprived of their "Cheshire cheese".) that our readers may be able to comprehend the question in all its bearings, and thus reach a clear conviction.

The Christian world is, morally speaking, united on the question and practice of worshipping God on the first day of the week.

The Israelites, scattered all over the earth, keep the last day of the week sacred to the worship of the Deity. In this particular, the Seventh-day Adventists (a sect of Christians numerically few) have also selected the same day.

Israelites and Adventists both appeal to the Bible for the divine command, persistently obliging the strict observance of Saturday.

The Israelite respects the authority of the Old Testament only, but the Adventist, who is a Christian, accepts the New Testament on the same ground as the Old: viz..an inspired record also. He finds that the Bible, his teacher, is consistent in both parts, that the Redeemer, during His mortal life, never kept any other day than Saturday. The gospels plainly evince to him this fact; whilst, in the pages of the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles, and the Apocalypse, not the vestige of an act canceling the Saturday arrangement can be found.

The Adventists, therefore, in common with the Israelites, derive their belief from the Old Testament, which position is confirmed by the New Testament, endorsing fully by the life and practice of the Redeemer and His apostles the teaching of the Sacred Word for nearly a century of the Christian era.

Numerically considered, the Seventh-day Adventists form an insignificant portion of the Protestant population of the earth, but, as the question is not one of numbers, but of truth, fact, and right, a strict sense of justice forbids the condemnation of this little sect without a calm and unbiased investigation: this is none of our funeral.

The Protestant world has been, from its infancy, in the sixteenth century, in thorough accord with the Catholic Church, in keeping "holy," not Saturday, but Sunday. The discussion of the grounds that led to this unanimity of sentiment and practice for over 300 years must help toward placing Protestantism on a solid basis in this particular, should the arguments in favor of its position overcome those furnished by the Israelites and Adventists, the Bible, the sole recognized teacher of both litigants, being the umpire and witness. If, however, on the other hand, the latter furnish arguments, incontrovertible by the great mass of Protestants, both classes of litigants, appealing to their common teacher, the Bible, the great body of Protestants so far from clamoring, as they do with vigorous pertinacity for the strict keeping of Sunday, have no other recourse left than the admission that they have been teaching and practicing what is Scripturally false for over three centuries, by adopting the teaching and practice of the what they have always pretended to believe an apostate church, contrary to every warrant and teaching of sacred Scripture. To add to the intensity of this Scriptural and unpardonable blunder, it involves one of the most positive and emphatic commands of God to His servant, man: "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy."

No Protestant living today has ever yet obeyed that command preferring to follow the apostate church referred to than his teacher, the Bible which from Genesis to Revelation, teaches no other doctrine, should the Israelites and Seventh-day Adventists be correct. Both sides appeal to the Bible as their "infallible" teacher. Let the Bible decide whether Saturday or Sunday be the day enjoined by God. One of the two bodies must be wrong, and , whereas a false position on this all-important question involves terrible penalties, threatened by God Himself, against the transgressor of this "perpetual covenant," we shall enter on the discussion of the merits of the arguments wielded by both sides. Neither is the discussion of this paramount subject above the capacity of ordinary minds, nor does it involve extraordinary study. It resolves itself into a few plain questions easy of solution:

1st. Which day of the week does the Bible enjoin to be kept holy?

2nd. Has the New Testament modified by precept or practice the original command?

3rd. Have Protestants, since the sixteenth century, obeyed the command of God

by keeping "holy" the day enjoined by their infallible guide and teacher, the Bible? and if not, why not?

To the above three questions, we pledge ourselves to furnish as many intelligent answers, which cannot fail to vindicate the truth and uphold the deformity of error.


https://www.romeschallenge.com/

The Custody Battle

God made Adam in Genesis. From Adam, all nations came to be. They spread out all over the world and settled and started tribes. When God said in the garden the promise that the Savior would crush the head of the serpent - that was a promise of Christ and that message was for all humanity that believed. Yet, as people spread out across the world, many rejected God and decided to engage in paganism and idol worship. Does that mean that God abandoned the promise that whomever should believe should be saved? Not at all.  

Adam was neither Jew or Gentile, and neither was Abraham 

Genesis 11:31 Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went out together from Ur of the Chaldeans in order to enter the land of Canaan; and they went as far as Haran, and settled there

From Abraham is the promise of the line of Messiah that would come through Abraham's great grandson Judah. Abraham also had other sons after the death of his first wife. 

 Genesis 25: 1 Now Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah. 2 She bore to him Zimran and Jokshan and Medan and Midian and Ishbak and Shuah. 3 Jokshan became the father of Sheba and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim and Letushim and Leummim.

One of these descendants of Abraham was Midian, who fathered the Midianites and the men of the east. Job is a descendant of Abraham and Job is a gentile. This isn't about Job, this is about gentiles and the picture that arises in these parallels. Abrahams grandson had sons that became the tribes of Israel. 

The first of the tribes is the line of which the Messiah came- Judah. 
The last of of the tribes which came from Joseph but Jacob adopted was - Ephraim 

Joseph when he was betrayed by his brothers ( like Christ was betrayed by His brothers in Judah) and went out as though dead ( like Christ literally died) was lifted up as God (like Christ who is God) and his brothers (Jews) did not recognize Joseph ( as Jews don't recognize Christ). Joseph had sons that looked different than the rest of Josephs brothers, Manasseh and Ephraim.  Jacob/ Israel ( representing the Father) is restored to them and when he sees the sons of Joseph ( Christ) he adopts them as his own. Of Israel/ Jacob the firstborn is Judah, and then last born would be Ephriam.

Why does that matter? What is its significance?  Lets look at something profound as it pertains after God led all of Israel out of Egypt and commanded them to take the promised land. Of ALL the spies sent, only two returned with full confidence in the LORD. Two spies, two men, Joshua- and Caleb. 

Joshua was Judah, which represents the Firstborn of the sons of Jacob/Israel. Caleb who was Ephraim- a gentile. Caleb was the son of Jephunneh, a Kenizzite.  Caleb, a Gentile, was grafted into Israel of the tribe of Ephraim by his faith.

The two spies that gave favorable report are Judah and Ephraim. Judah was first and Ephraim was the last. In Ezekiel 37:15-28  as cited below, we can see the subject is about the Savior taking the two sticks, Judah= Jews  and Ephraim = Gentiles and making them one in His hand and He being over them and ruling on the throne of David forever. Just as God brought a mixed multitude out of Egypt to dwell in Israel. These gentiles are part of Israel, part of the tribes, and not by natural birth but faith in God. 

The dynamic of   Jacob the father= Israel, His firstborn Judah= Jews, Joseph= the picture of Christ who was dead and then ascended to rule, Ephraim = the youngest who is looking like the nations but is the son of the one who was betrayed by his brothers - becomes adopted by the father Jacob/Israel , Ephraim is grafted in. 

Now I don't want anyone to be unaware of this, but through Christ alone, we are part of Israel through faith. 

Romans 10:12-13 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; 13 for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved

Romans 11:13-18 But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 14 if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them. 15 For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16 If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too.17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, 18 do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you

Romans 2:28-29 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. 29 But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.

Galatians 3:28-29 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.

Ephesians 2:16-19 and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity. 17 And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near; 18 for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household

Acts 4:12 And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

Acts 15:8-9 And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; 9 and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith

Gentiles are part of Israel the same way Job was a gentile but was offering sacrifices, and called one of the holiest people ever. Gentiles are part of Israel the same way that the mixed multitude came out of Egypt and agreed at the base of Mount Sinai. Gentiles are part of Israel the same way Ephraim was a son of Jacob. 

Matthew 15:24 But He answered and said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

The first shall be last and the last shall be first. Now, read Matthew 20:1-16.

Matthew 20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 When he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the market place; 4 and to those he said, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ And so they went. 5 Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did the same thing. 6 And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing around; and he *said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day long?’ 7 They *said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He *said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard *said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to the first.’ 9 When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius. 10 When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’ 13 But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. 15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’ 16 So the last shall be first, and the first last.”

I want you to think about this statement about Gentiles and the first shall be last and the last shall be first. Judah is the one born first, but Ephraim is the one of preeminence at the time of regathering: 

Jeremiah 31:8 Behold, I am bringing them from the north country, And I will gather them from the remote parts of the earth, Among them the blind and the lame, The woman with child and she who is in labor with child, together; A great company, they will return here. 9“With weeping they will come, And by supplication I will lead them; I will make them walk by streams of waters, On a straight path in which they will not stumble; For I am a father to Israel, And Ephraim is My firstborn.

The Jews and Gentiles in Christ are Israel. What does this mean because most of the tribes have been lost. They have been cut off. Aren't the tribes lost forever since they were cut of by genealogy? 

Ezekiel 37 The hand of the Lord was upon me, and He brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; and it was full of bones. 2 He caused me to pass among them round about, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley; and lo, they were very dry. 3 He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, You know.” 4 Again He said to me, “Prophesy over these bones and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.’ 5 Thus says the Lord God to these bones, ‘Behold, I will cause breath to enter you that you may come to life. 6 I will put sinews on you, make flesh grow back on you, cover you with skin and put breath in you that you may come alive; and you will know that I am the Lord.’”

7 So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold, a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to its bone. 8 And I looked, and behold, sinews were on them, and flesh grew and skin covered them; but there was no breath in them. 9 Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they come to life.”’” 10 So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.

11 Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope has perished. We are completely cut off.’ 12 Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel. 13 Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people. 14 I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and done it,” declares the Lord.’”

15 The word of the Lord came again to me saying, 16 “And you, son of man, take for yourself one stick and write on it, ‘For Judah and for the sons of Israel, his companions’; then take another stick and write on it, ‘For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim and all the house of Israel, his companions.’ 17 Then join them for yourself one to another into one stick, that they may become one in your hand. 18 When the sons of your people speak to you saying, ‘Will you not declare to us what you mean by these?’ 19 say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will put them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand.”’ 20 The sticks on which you write will be in your hand before their eyes. 21 Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I will take the sons of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; 22 and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king will be king for all of them; and they will no longer be two nations and no longer be divided into two kingdoms. 23 They will no longer defile themselves with their idols, or with their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. And they will be My people, and I will be their God.

24 “My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd; and they will walk in My ordinances and keep My statutes and observe them. 25 They will live on the land that I gave to Jacob My servant, in which your fathers lived; and they will live on it, they, and their sons and their sons’ sons, forever; and David My servant will be their prince forever. 26 I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever. 27 My dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people. 28 And the nations will know that I am the Lord who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever.”’”

Christ has only come for the lost sheep of the house of Israel. That is comprised of Jews and Gentiles. Gentiles are the stick of Joseph who looks like the nations. The Jews are the believing Jews who are the stick of Judah.  Christ unites us in His hand and He rules on the throne of David forever- and leads us INTO THE LAND WHERE HE DWELLS. When Adam sinned , mankind spread all over the earth in separation and forgot who they were and their purpose is to glorify God. In forgetting they became nations that forgot God and were destroyed in their unbelief. Yet, in God's grace, He has allowed those in the nations to hear the truth of restoration by Faith in Christ, and return from the grave where our identity was lost and scattered among the nations and Christ has made us ONE people again in His hands. Not based on heredity but based on Christ- the second Adam without sin. 

Remember who you are, Remember who your Father is. Do not let people defraud you or deny your identity as a son of God.  Gentiles aren't grafted into Judah, They're grafted into Israel 

 Matthew 9:16 But no one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results. 17 Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”

This suggests distinction of tribe, while unity of Israel. Our identity isn't in being Jewish, our identity is in Christ, and Christ makes us Israel, not us being Judah. 

Gentiles are Israel

Romans 10:12-13 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; 13 for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved

Romans 11:13-18 But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 14 if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them. 15 For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16 If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too.17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, 18 do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you

Romans 2:28-29 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. 29 But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.

Galatians 3:28-29 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.

Ephesians 2:16-19 and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity. 17 And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near; 18 for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household

Acts 4:12 And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

Matthew 15:24 But He answered and said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Acts 15:8-9 And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; 9 and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith

Jews and Gentiles are BOTH Israel in Christ with no distinction. This means that the New Covenant that Gentiles are a part of is for them 

Hebrews 8:10-12 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel. After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds, And I will write them on their hearts. And I will be their God, And they shall be My people. 11 “And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen, And everyone his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ For all will know Me, From the least to the greatest of them. 12 “For I will be merciful to their iniquities, And I will remember their sins no more.”

Hebrews 10:15-17   And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying, 16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws upon their heart, And on their mind I will write them,”  He then says, 17 “And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”

If there is no difference between Jews and Gentiles, then the New Covenant cannot be with only Jews or Only Gentiles.  The idea that Jews are saved by being Jewish is contrary to Christ. There is no Gentile covenant, only the Covenant with Israel -of which a mixed multitude always was comprised.  

Don't Kill the Messenger

 There is a quote that I first heard from Paul Washer that said:

"Your real friend is the one that tells you the most truth" 

This quote and one other have been stuck in my mind the past few days. Why? Because love, the real kind, is telling the truth. The real kind of love, is saying to someone who is playing on the subway tracks that death is the outcome and you don't want that for them. Not loving them, is to ignore the detriment to them and the disastrous outcome that is impending. What do believers do? They tell people about Christ, because they love him, and they love those who He loves. Christ, the Savior, the Messiah... the one that redeems us from sin. He's the one that tells us to pick up our cross daily and follow Him. Your REAL friend, tells you the most truth, and the truth of Christ is the most absolute. I guess that leads me to the second quote that has been in my mind, probably also from Paul Washer:

God is not who you think He is, God is who HE says He is. 

Many people profess faith in Christ, and say that Jesus is their Lord and Savior. Many people say that, but, can we see if its true? Many people "Go to church every sunday" and they "pray all the time" and they "believe in God". Does that make them Christian? 

Matthew 24:23-26 Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him. 24 For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. 25 Behold, I have told you in advance. 26 So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them.

How do we differentiate between real Christ and fake christs. How do we differentiate between authentic prophets and false prophets? 

James 2:19  You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.

Even the Demons believe. What separates Demon belief from authentic belief? I often hear people tell me things like "I'd die for my faith in God" and I don't know what they mean because many of these same people wont stop doing something that scripture states is a clear provocation to God. I'm not even talking about struggling against clear sin where we stumble in it knowing its wrong and we're in the process of repentance and sanctification- I'm talking about the outright refusal to acknowledge the scriptures that say that its a sin- or the commonly distorted scriptures people use to justify them. 

John 16:1-3“These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling. 2 They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God. 3 These things they will do because they have not known the Father or Me.

God is not who you think He is. God is who HE says He is. Church people thinking that they are honoring GOD are the ones kicking others out of Church-WHY?  Because they DO NOT KNOW HIM. These people are holding to a god of their own minds and their own wills and their own passions. Do we know God, the God of the Bible- and equally as important is does He know us? You might read this an ask, "what do you mean He's God of course He knows me." I hope so, because there is something that He mentions in Matthew 7 

Matthew 7:15-23 “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, you will know them by their fruits. 

21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’

What's that? Christ is saying that believers who were casting out demons in His name and called Him Lord wont make it even though many miracles are done in Christ's name? Why? Because He says He never knew them- because the PRACTICE lawlessness.  If your god is not calling you to REPENTANCE in response to His Grace- your god is not the God of the Bible. False prophets that LOOK LIKE SHEEP have bad fruit. What is this fruit that Christ is talking about that we are suppose to bear? 

Matthew 3:8 Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance

Thats an ugly word for a lot of people, Repentance. Why is it so problematic? Because there are teachers and pastors that get up and teach that repentance is something that is to of no effect. That there is no need for repentance. Christ said this to the Pharisees

Mark 7:6-9 And He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far away from Me. 7 ‘But in vain do they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’8 Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.” 9 He was also saying to them, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition.

Hypocrites are professing a belief in God and disregarding God's commandments. They're speaking all kinds of spiritual things, and reading scriptures, and going to church, and Christ said its vain worship because they're NOT obeying HIS commands, and instead instituting their OWN traditions- just like so many pastors do today. 

 James 2:18-20 But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” 19 You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. 20 But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? 

OBEDIENCE. Repentance is OBEDIANCE. The flesh wants to relabel obedience as legalism. Paul tells us this very thing in Romans 8 

 Romans 8:5-7 For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, 7 because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, 8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

What was that one more time? The flesh refuses to submit to what? The law of God? Those are in the flesh are contrary to the Spirit and cannot please God?  That sounds an awful lot like

Proverbs 28:9 He who turns away his ear from listening to the law, Even his prayer is an abomination.

The flesh is hostile to the Law of God and turning away from the law makes your prayer an abomination? Don't they know we're part of a new Covenant and that NEW Covenant has none of that Law stuff because we live by the Sprit? 

Hebrews 10:5 And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying, 16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them After those days, says the Lord:I will put My laws upon their heart, And on their mind I will write them,”

 That  Law, that Law is going to be in ... Heaven?

Isaiah 66 22 “For just as the new heavens and the new earth Which I make will endure before Me,” declares the Lord, “So your offspring and your name will endure. 23 “And it shall be from new moon to new moon  And from sabbath to sabbath, All mankind will come to bow down before Me,” says the Lord. 24 “Then they will go forth and look On the corpses of the men Who have transgressed against Me. For their worm will not die And their fire will not be quenched; And they will be an abhorrence to all mankind.

Might wanna brush up on that chapter a little bit, especially like, these verses 

For behold, the Lord will come in fire And His chariots like the whirlwind, To render His anger with fury, And His rebuke with flames of fire. 16 For the Lord will execute judgment by fire And by His sword on all flesh, And those slain by the Lord will be many. 17 “Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go to the gardens, Following one in the center, Who eat swine’s flesh, detestable things and mice, Will come to an end altogether,” declares the Lord.

...That is still to come by the way. We know that because 2 Peter 3 tells us that, and so does Revelation 21.  There is also the part where Christ tells the angels to gather OUT of the kingdom all who are doing Lawlessness.

 Matthew 13:40 So just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, 42 and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

IF only Christ- the real one in the Bible and not the made up one- had told us to Obey God's Law and to teach others to do the same. Wait..

Matthew 5:17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. 18 For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

So all the idea that God's law is divided up into 3 parts, civil ceremonial, and moral and then Christ took those smallest parts and annulled them... That's not accurate. Thats error. Thats doing JUST like the Pharisees when they were setting aside the Commands of God for the sake of  their OWN TRADITIONS?  That means that its not those who are OBEDIANT to the Law of God who are like the Pharisees, its those who teach others to obey MEN instead of the Commands of God are like the Pharisees. Again, I'm not talking about stumbling and shortcomings. I'm talking about the refusal to admit that what GOD says is sin, is SIN.

1 John 3:4 4 Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness. 

 I'm talking about those that teach that it doesn't matter what God said in the past, our unchanging God who was provoked by all the ways that HE expressly tells us are a provocation to Him... surely He changed and there is peace peace right?

Jeremiah 6:14 “They have healed the brokenness of My people superficially,  Saying, ‘Peace, peace,’But there is no peace. 15 “Were they ashamed because of the abomination they have done? They were not even ashamed at all; They did not even know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; At the time that I punish them, They shall be cast down,” says the Lord. 16 Thus says the Lord, “Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, Where the good way is, and walk in it; And you will find rest for your souls. But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’17 “And I set watchmen over you, saying, ‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’ But they said, ‘We will not listen.’18 “Therefore hear, O nations, And know, O congregation, what is among them. 19 “Hear, O earth: behold, I am bringing disaster on this people, The fruit of their plans, Because they have not listened to My words, And as for My law, they have rejected it also.

False prophets say what? Peace when there isn't peace? Huh... 

  2 Timothy 4:1-4 I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: 2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, 4 and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.

They will turn aside from God and seek out pastors and preachers that only tell them what they want to hear? 

Jeremiah 14:14  Then the Lord said to me, “The prophets are prophesying falsehood in My name. I have neither sent them nor commanded them nor spoken to them; they are prophesying to you a false vision, divination, futility and the deception of their own minds. 15 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who are prophesying in My name, although it was not I who sent them—yet they keep saying, ‘There will be no sword or famine in this land’—by sword and famine those prophets shall meet their end! 16 The people also to whom they are prophesying will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; and there will be no one to bury them—neither them, nor their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters—for I will pour out their own wickedness on them.

Surely that's all Old testament right, there is nothing like that in the New Testa-

2 Peter 2:2-3 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. 2 Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; 3 and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

Oh ok. So same stuff. Jeremiah talks about those that teach people to disregard God's law, and Christ says that people that say that they know Him will have a problem on judgement day when He ( not me) says "Depart from me you who practice Lawlessness, I never knew you".  We're to live like Christ right, so... what is the opposite of Christ? What is- Anti-Christ?

2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. 5 Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things? 6 And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he will be revealed. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. 8 Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; 9 that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, 10 and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. 11 For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, 12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.

The anti-christ is the man of Lawlessness? ...not obeying the law of God? Lawlessness- not obeying the commands of God... that is the activity of ... satan? 

Revelation 12:17 So the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.

We're to be obedient AND hold to the testimony of Christ who is the one who saves us alone by His work and our OBEDIANCE is the fruit of REPENTANCE and demonstrates that we love Him back?  
Thats love for God? 

1 John 5:3  For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.

So all the times that people cry that its some great legalism to not go out to the store and buy pig flesh and shove it in their face- they're either mistaken, have been misinformed as to what the scriptures say, or are lying.  Loving God is walking in the way that He asked us to. Love is walking like Christ, who obeyed the Law of God ( Because to say that God's law and Christs law are different is to deny the Deity of Christ), which is contrary to the flesh. That sounds contrary to what we hear from a lot of people and a lot of pulpits. Sometimes it feels like people hate me when I tell them the truth. 

Matthew 24:9-12  “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10 At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. 11 Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. 12 Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.

Your real friend tells you the most truth. 

Psalm 119:151-152 You are near, O Lord, And all Your commandments are truth. 152Of old I have known from Your testimonies, That You have founded them forever.

Psalm 119:160-163 The sum of Your word is truth, And every one of Your righteous ordinances is everlasting.  161 Princes persecute me without cause, But my heart stands in awe of Your words. 162 I rejoice at Your word, As one who finds great spoil. 163 I hate and despise falsehood, But I love Your law.

Princes persecute me without cause... 

John 7: 24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.” 25 So some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, “Is this not the man whom they are seeking to kill? 

The more like Christ you are, the more people want to kill you. The more church people, will want to kill you.  We are to judge with righteous judgement, how else are we supposed to make sure that there aren't wolves spoon feeding us a false doctrine because we're too entertained and in love with the world to read our Bibles and see if our god is the the God of the Bible? 

 1 Corinthians 5:11-13 But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one. 12 For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? 13 But those who are outside, God judges. Remove the wicked man from among yourselves.

If you've read this far and I hope you have, I hope you know that I tell the truth because I love you, but I love God more than I love you, and you matter to him so- don't be Biblically stupid

Proverbs 12:1Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge,But he who hates reproof is stupid.

 

...and don't kill the messenger. 










P.s. The idea that we should accept everyone's beliefs isn't Biblical. Paul wrote letters telling people to not listen to Alexander. 

2 Timothy 4:14- 15 Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. 15 Be on guard against him yourself, for he vigorously opposed our teaching.

Also, Yes I have read Galatians. In Context. You want to know why that was written? Here. Read it. 

scrap thoughts

 Gen 1 God 

gen 2 man 

gen 3- the bride and the fall....

God commands Adam, 

Adam is head over Eve

The serpent inverses this order

The serpent gives Eve the doctrine 

Eve eats 

Eve gives to Adam and he eats...

The authority dynamic shifts backwards away from what God established. 

In light of this... we see a direct parallel to the temptation of Christ in the wilderness. 

Satan tries to give Christ doctrine, 

Christ refuses the doctrine of the serpent 

Christ places GODS dominion back in right order.
-

I wonder about the Singular Plurality of God as Elohim and how we conceptualize people as Singular beings, but they consist of Mind, Body and Soul.

"Let us make man in Our own image "

- 

Jeremiah 8

20“Harvest is past, summer is ended, And we are not saved.”

This may be rudimentary... but the reason that there are winter gaps in the Holy times is because all of the feasts parallel the seasons 

Meaning  that from the beginning we have time of growth and labor, but in the end, there will be death and destruction- and only what we have done will remain. 

The seasons themselves are a testament of the gospel- that death is coming for us all, but faithfulness and obedience in Christ will allow us to stand in the end. 

We are laborers in the field, in the harvest, at the end of the harvest- the separation of the wheat and the chaff and the tares...

Christ is the seed that the Spirit produces into fruit of the harvest.

- 

Flesh of my flesh and bone of my bone  isn't just adam stating that Eve came out of his side but is a statement of Marital naturalization into the family. 

This concept parallels gentiles to Israel 

Adoption. 

Hebrews 4 = Ezekiel 20

 Ezekiel 20: 8-24Then I resolved to pour out My wrath on them, to accomplish My anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt. 9 But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations among whom they lived, in whose sight I made Myself known to them by bringing them out of the land of Egypt. 10 So I took them out of the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness. 11 I gave them My statutes and informed them of My ordinances, by which, if a man observes them, he will live. 12 Also I gave them My sabbaths to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them. 13 But the house of Israel rebelled against Me in the wilderness. They did not walk in My statutes and they rejected My ordinances, by which, if a man observes them, he will live; and My sabbaths they greatly profaned. Then I resolved to pour out My wrath on them in the wilderness, to annihilate them. 14 But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, before whose sight I had brought them out. 15 Also I swore to them in the wilderness that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands, 16 because they rejected My ordinances, and as for My statutes, they did not walk in them; they even profaned My sabbaths, for their heart continually went after their idols. 17 Yet My eye spared them rather than destroying them, and I did not cause their annihilation in the wilderness.18 “I said to their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers or keep their ordinances or defile yourselves with their idols. 19 I am the Lord your God; walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and observe them. 20 Sanctify My sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God.’ 21 But the children rebelled against Me; they did not walk in My statutes, nor were they careful to observe My ordinances, by which, if a man observes them, he will live; they profaned My sabbaths. So I resolved to pour out My wrath on them, to accomplish My anger against them in the wilderness. 22 But I withdrew My hand and acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations in whose sight I had brought them out. 23 Also I swore to them in the wilderness that I would scatter them among the nations and disperse them among the lands, 24 because they had not observed My ordinances, but had rejected My statutes and had profaned My sabbaths, and their eyes were on the idols of their fathers. 

Lets look at the comparisons.

 Hebrews 4:1-16 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. 2 For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed. 3 Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, “So I declared an oath in my anger,  ‘They shall never enter my rest.’”And yet his works have been finished since the creation of the world. 4 For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: “On the seventh day YHWH rested from all his works.” 5 And again in the passage above he says, “They shall never enter my rest.” 6 Therefore since it still remains for some to enter that rest, and since those who formerly had the good news proclaimed to them did not go in because of their disobedience, 7 YHWH again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted:“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” 8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. 11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. 12 For the word of YHWH is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Yahshua the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach YHWH’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

The parallel of Ezekiel in Hebrews 4 showcases that Hebrews 4 is AFFIRMING the Sabbath and ordinances of God ARE to be kept in actuality. They are practical and physical commands to rest and walk in His ways.  

Family Fusion

 "This understanding of marriage is then confirmed by Leviticus 18:15, “You shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law (כַּלָּֽתְךָ֖); she is your son’s wife, you shall not uncover her nakedness.” Because a man’s wife has the status of an adopted sister, that man’s father has to treat the woman as if she were his own “flesh of flesh” daughter. In other words, through marriage, husbands and wives share the same parents and can thus truly be considered adopted siblings.This sheds light on a strange detail that pervades the Song of Songs, namely, the fact that Solomon keeps referring to his wife as his sister. Over and over again Solomon pours out his love for the woman he calls “my sister, my bride” (Song 4:9-10, 12, 5:1), even though we don’t have a record of Solomon ever marrying one of his biological sisters. In light of Scripture’s teaching on adoption, it’s most likely that Solomon’s wife could be called his “sister” because of her marriage-adoption into Solomon’s family. This is further supported by the fact that the word translated as “bride” throughout the Song is “כַּלָּ֔ה,” which is the very word used in Leviticus 18:15 to reference daughter-in-laws. This strongly suggests that the Levitical understanding of marriage-adoption is at play here, demonstrating that, through marriage, the woman of the Song became the daughter of David, and the sister-bride of Solomon.

All of this is crucial to understanding the only passage relevant to polygamy in Leviticus 18, “And you shall not take a woman as a rival wife to her sister, uncovering her nakedness while her sister is still alive” (Lev. 18:18). Although the popular interpretation of this verse is that it only condemns polygamy with the biological sister of one’s wife, we now know that it’s doing much more than this. Because marriage entails the status of an adopted sibling, if a man has two wives then these wives would always be sisters by virtue of being married to the same man, and thereby sharing his father. Leviticus 18:18 is thus a condemnation of polygamy as such, which is why it refers to multiple sister-brides as “rivals” (צָרַר). An almost identical word is used in 1 Samuel 1:6 to describe how Peninnah and Hannah were “rivals” (צָרָה) due to their mutual marriage to Elkanah, however it’s never implied that they were biological sisters. Instead, the reason two sister-brides are rivals isn’t due to their biological lineage, but rather their marriage-adoption to the same man." - Codex Justinianeus,  ancientinsights.wordpress.com

Where else can we see this dynamic of separate families becoming as one family?  We see it in the geneology of Christ. There is a recorded geneology of Christ through Joseph and though Joseph gave no genetic makeup to the creation of Christ, He is still regarded as if he hadand the account is listed in Matthew vs the genealogy through Mary in Luke. This fusion of seperate families becoming as one family is a fascinating dynamic and bolsters the claim made regarding the prohibition against polygamy.  Furthermore we also see the commands if a widowed woman has no children before her husband dies then the brother is to give her a son that there may be an heir and the name of the brother not be cut off before God. 

We can see in elements of the 

Genesis 38:8 8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Go in to your brother’s wife, and perform your duty as a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother.” 

There appears to be a transitive property that occurs where the child is as the fallen brothers offspring, even though the fallen brother is not the one that passed his seed to the wife. This would further back the case in leviticus 18 where the married addition becomes as the natural- and by extension of the principle be a point against polygamy as a man is not to take another woman as rival to his wife since she would become her sister. 

We see this same dynamic in passages like Ephesians 2 where it is stated that we were FORMERLY gentiles but have now become adoptive sons. 

Bible Proofs

 Col 2 counter

“Be careful that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit based on human tradition, based on the elements of the world, rather than Christ. "

‭‭

What is human tradition? Lawlessness.

What is Divine obedience? Keeping the Law of God through grace and faith because you are saved.

Knowledge proof

The knowledge of God is not like the knowledge obtained by laboratory science. Empirical data is based on the reliability of what is called “logical induction,” that is, phenomenological impressions of repeatability, continuity, and perpetuity which assume that metaphysical cause and effect event/relationships hold in “space-time.” However, the intellectual act of logical induction assumes several more basic things, for instance, the instinctive faith that the future will resemble the past; the unreflective assurance that sensory experience is reliable and that measurement is possible; the mystical expectation that mathematical concepts refer to (or correspond with) “external” reality; the metaphysical supposition that causal connections exist and are valid; the quasi-religious conviction that experiences (i.e., data) can be universalized and generalized into "laws," and so on. Moreover, scientific methodology further assumes certain "intellectual virtues" and non-empirical values, for instance, the assumption that truth is important; that insistence that data should be verifiable and not deliberately falsified (or politicized); the moral axiom that it is better to know than not to know, etc. Indeed science even expresses "artistic sentiment" by poetically arguing that some scientific theories (i.e., "narratives") or models ("metaphors") are more “coherent” or “elegant” than others, that symmetry and order are important to doing research, and so on. I say all this to demonstrate that science is a faith system that depends on logical, metaphysical, philosophical, spiritual, and axiological assumptions that are not derived from nor grounded in the practice of science itself... The foundations of science are based on concepts and ideas “pilfered” from the Torah and the truth of God. Far from discovering the means of doing science through the paradigm of the "scientific method" itself, understand then that the first principles of logic, the exercise of faith, and an objective sense of transcendental value are all presupposed in order to inductively identify and infer whatever is defined as "real." The knowledge of God, on the other hand, is based on moral intuition (conscience, a sense of justice, etc.), logical reflection (e.g., why there is something rather than nothing at all), mystical awareness and a sense of the numinous, direct revelation (i.e., spiritual encounter), the veridical experiences and testimonies of others, the perpetuity of the confession of believers, and so on. For those who have encountered the Divine Presence in Yeshua, the risen and ascended Savior, God further gives witness by means of “argumentum spiritus sancti,” the testimony of the Holy Spirit, the inner revelation that is imparted to comfort and assure the heart of faith.

 A B Logic

Can you reconcile this for me

A:Christ followed and obeyed and taught the Law of God ( If He didn't He's not the sinless perfect Lamb without blemish) 

B: We are to follow, obey and teach living and being like Christ. 

How do we do B without doing A?

A: We are to obey the Holy Spirit

B: The Holy Spirit writes the Law of God on our hearts and minds that we may obey it 

How do we do A without doing B

A: We are to crucify the flesh and obey the Spirit 

B: The flesh is hostile to God's law, and the Law of God is Spiritual. 

How do we do A without B?

 

Spirit proof 1

1 John 3:4 Sin is lawlessness
1 John 2:16 Sin is in the flesh
Romans 8:5 The Spirit is contrary to the flesh
Hebrews 8:10-12 The Holy Spirit writes the Law on our hearts and mind
Romans 8:7 the flesh is against the Law of God
Romans 7:14 The Law is Spiritual

Sin= Violation of the Law = Flesh = against the Spirit 

 

New heaven proof 

Matthew 5:17-18 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.18“For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.

Luke 16:17 “But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one stroke of a letter of the Law to fail.

2 Peter 3:10-11 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.11¶Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness

Revelation 21:1-2 1¶Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. 2And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.

Isaiah 66:16-17;22-24 16For the LORD will execute judgment by fire And by His sword on all flesh, And those slain by the LORD will be many. 17“Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go to the gardens, Following one in the center, Who eat swine’s flesh, detestable things and mice, Will come to an end altogether,” declares the LORD. 22For just as the new heavens and the new earth Which I make will endure before Me,” declares the LORD, “So your offspring and your name will endure. 23“And it shall be from new moon to new moon And from sabbath to sabbath, All mankind will come to bow down before Me,” says the LORD. 24“Then they will go forth and look On the corpses of the men Who have transgressed against Me. For their worm will not die And their fire will not be quenched; And they will be an abhorrence to all mankind.”

 

 Spirit proof 2

1 Thessalonians 5:19 says to not quench the Spirit.  

Hebrews 10:15 say "And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying,

16“THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THEM AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS UPON THEIR HEART, AND ON THEIR MIND I WILL WRITE THEM,” He then says,

17“AND THEIR SINS AND THEIR LAWLESS DEEDS I WILL REMEMBER NO MORE.”

The New Covenant is the Spirit writing God's Law on our minds that we may obey them. 

What does the Spirit do? It convicts us of Sin. 

What is sin? 1 john 3:4 says 4¶Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness

So sin is breaking God's Law. 

The work of the Spirit is conviction against sin which is breaking God's Law.  The Spirit writes the Law on our hearts and minds so we obey it. 

We know the Law of God is Spiritual Romans 7:14

14¶For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin.

We know the law is contrary to the flesh Romans 8

6For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,

7because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,

8and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

We also know that the Spirit is contrary to the flesh Galatians 5

16¶But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.

17For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.

So, if you're walking in the Spirit,  you're obeying God's Law. If you're walking according to the flesh you're hostile to God's Law and the Spirit who writes it

Walking contrary to God's commandments is to quench the Spirit.

Breakdown Of faith 

Before we were saved we continually violated God's Law.
We were saved by Grace through faith, and Titus 2:11-14 say that Grace redeems us from every lawless deed.
Once we are saved, we are to repent from sin,and sin is lawlessness 1 john 3:4.
We are to live according to Christ example, who was perfectly obedient to the Law of God as if He sinned He can't be the Savior.
As we are repentant, we are walking in the Holy Spirit- who convicts us of Sin which is violation of God's Law.
We are part of the New Covenant, which is the Law of God written on our hearts so that we may obey God,as Hebrews 10 states, quoting Jeremiah 33.
We are not not walk like the/an Anti-Christ, who is called the man of Lawlessness, and people who follow them are under a delusion according to 2 thes 2.
We are called to perseverance and overcome against Satan, and the perseverance is holding to the commands of God AND the testimony of Christ, Rev. 12:17, 14:12
Peter warns us to not interpret Paul's writings as saying not to obey God's Law in 2 Peter 3:14-17

Matthew Passages

Matthew 5:17-19 

“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. 18 For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.


Matthew 7:21-23

21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’


Mat 13:41 -42
41 “The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness
42 and they will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Whose being gathered?
Out of where?
To where?

The stumbling blocks and those that do lawlessness, are gathered OUT of the Kingdom of God , and thrown into the fire.

Gentiles

If the Torah was not for Gentiles, then why does God say over (Leviticus 18:26 ) and over (Leviticus 22:18-21) and over (Leviticus 24:16) and over ( Leviticus 24:22) and over (Numbers 9:14) and over (Numbers 15:15-16) and over (Numbers 15:29-30) and over (Deuteronomy 16:13-15 ) and over (Deuteronomy 26:10-11) and over (Deuteronomy 31:9-13) and over (Ecclesiastes 12:13) again that it is?

Gentiles 2

John 3:16 Is directly pitted against Matthew 15:24 UNLESS you recognize that:

A) Gentiles have always been allowed to become Israel 

Exodus 12:38,Exodus 19:8,Deuteronomy 31:9-13 

B) Gentiles have an Inheretance among the tribes,as part of Israel  Ezekiel 47:21-23 

C) Through Christ we become a member of the Tribes of Israel Ephesians 2:19,Romans 4:16,Romans 11:13-17,Galatians 3:29, Isaiah 56:2-8

Catholic 

“Blessed is the womb that carried You, and the breasts at which You nursed!”
“On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and follow it.”

___
extras
If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.

Leviticus 20:13 ESV


Pro 28:9 One who turns his ear away from listening to the Law,
Even his prayer is an abomination

Roman's 8:6For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,  7because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,
8and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Christmas Extensive

In this post I cite a bunch of documented historical excerpts that show the link of modern Christmas customs, to the practices of which the Bible forbids. 

 "The letter to the church at Pergamum specifically charged them with having seduced people into eating meat offered to idols and into acts of fornication. The decree of the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15:28, 29) had laid down also two specific conditions upon which Gentiles were to be admitted into Christian fellowship: they were to abstain from things offered to idols and from fornication. These were the very regulations which the Nicolaitans violated.

They were a people who used Christian liberty as an occasion for the flesh, against such Paul warned (Gal 5:13). The enticement to such a course of action was the pagan society in which Christians lived where eating meat offered to idols was common. Sex relations outside marriage were completely acceptable in such a society. The Nicolaitans attempted to establish a compromise with the pagan society of the Graeco-Roman world that surrounded them. The people most susceptible to such teaching were, no doubt, the upper classes who stood to lose the most by a separation from the culture to which they had belonged before conversion.

It may be that the doctrine of the Nicolaitans was dualistic. They prob. reasoned that the human body was evil anyway and only the spirit was good. A Christian, therefore, could do whatever he desired with his body because it had no importance. The spirit, on the other hand, was the recipient of grace which meant that grace and forgiveness were his no matter what he did. They were those ready to compromise with the world. They were judged by the author of Revelation to be most dangerous because the result of their teaching would have conformed Christianity to the world rather than have Christianity change the world. Eusebius indicated that this sect did not last very long, and in all probability the only knowledge of their teaching that is possible will be found in the slight references to them in Revelation" Encyclopedia of the Bible, Biblegateway

Starting with the Nicolaitans as mentioned in the Bible by Christ, as hating their deeds. The Nicolaitans were disregarding what God's word said in matters of eating, were engaging in hedonism and sexual immorality . Nicolaitans being named after Nicholas- engaging in feasts after his own name 

"Many of those who say that they confess Jesus, and are called Christians, eat meats offered to idols, and declare that they are by no means injured in consequence. Confessing themselves to be Christians, and admitting the crucified Jesus to be both Lord and Christ, yet not teaching His doctrines, but those of the spirits of error. ...[They are those who] teach to blaspheme the Maker of all things, and Christ, who was foretold by Him as coming, and the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, with whom we have nothing in common, since we know them to be atheists, impious, unrighteous, and sinful, and confessors of Jesus in name only, instead of worshipers of Him. Yet they style themselves Christians, just as certain among the Gentiles inscribe the name of God upon the works of their own hands, and partake in nefarious and impious rites. Some are called Marcians, and some Valentinians, and some Basilidians, and some Saturnilians, and others by other names; each called after the originator of the individual opinion...the name of the father of the particular doctrine"- Justin Martyr Dialogue with Trypho (Chapters 31-47)

Justin Martyr shows that the same practices of the Nicholatians were done by the Saturnilians, and that each group was calling themselves Christians in name but their actions were that which were contrary to scripture. They stated that they are Christians, but they are atheists, impious, unrighteous, and sinful.

"Gradually a number of prevailing practices of the nations into which Christianity came were assimilated and ...were combined with the religious ceremonies surrounding Christmas. The assimilation of such practices generally represented efforts by Christians to transform or absorb otherwise pagan practices."
"The Feast of Saturnalia in early Rome, for example, was celebrated for 7 days from the 17th to the 24th of December and was marked by a spirit of merriment, gift giving to children and other forms of entertainment. Gradually, early Christians replaced the pagan feast with the celebration of Christmas; but many of the traditions of this observance were assimilated and remain to this day a part of the observance of Christmas. Other nations, the Scandinavians, Germans, French, English and others, have left their mark . . . as well (pp. 804, 805)."The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible

The Nichalitians and Saturnilian celebrations, being indistinguishable in practice were a pagan feast, and became the tradition at the time of "Christmas" and these customs are the reason for the date "Christmas" was set. 

"Various symbolic elements of the pagan celebration, such as the lighting of candles, evergreen decorations, and the giving of gifts, were adapted to Christian signification. Later as Christianity spread into northern Europe, the Celtic, Teutonic, and Slavic winter festivals contributed holly, mistletoe, the Christmas tree, bonfires, and similar items."The Christian Encyclopedia

The Evergreen tree, gifts, and the lighting of candles that are the customs of Christmas, haven't Biblical root or command, but are incorporated pagan customs that the people still practice. They are documented pagan customs that relate to winter festivals rather than God's Holy appointed times and His set apart days. 

"The giving of presents was a Roman custom; while the yule tree and yule log are remnants of old Teutonic nature worship. Gradually the festival sank into mere revelry . . . . The custom was forbidden by an act of parliament in 1555; And the reformation brought in a refinement in the celebration of Christmas by emphasizing it Christian elements." Unger's Bible Dictionary

The tree has elements of solstice and nature worship. It was celebrated with revelry. 

"Lord of Misrule, official of the late medieval and early Tudor period in England, who was specially appointed to manage the Christmas festivities held at court, in the houses of great noblemen, in the law schools of the Inns of Court, and in many of the colleges at the universities of Cambridge and Oxford. During his reign, which lasted anywhere from 12 days to 3 months, the Lord of Misrule was responsible for arranging and directing all Christmas entertainment, including elaborate masques and processions, plays, and feasts. The lord himself usually presided over these affairs with a mock court and received comic homage from the reveler" Encyclopedia Britannica 

These drunken revelries pagan feasts under the banner of "christian" appointment are the heart of Nicholation/Saturnilian doctrine. The deeds are documented

"lasts a week; that over, I am a private person, just a man in the street. Secondly, during my week the serious is barred; no business allowed. Drinking and being drunk, noise and games and dice, appointing of kings and feasting of slaves, singing naked, clapping of tremulous hands, an occasional ducking of corked faces in icy water,--such are the functions over which I preside. But the great things, wealth and gold and such, Zeus distributes as he will."Works of  Lucian  Vol. IV: Saturnalia 

 

Lawlessness, Drunkenness, Sexual immorality and gambling are the customs that are the origins of Christmas, Not the fruits of the Spirit nor adherence to God's word. 

"Consequently the Circumcision fell on the first of January. In the ages of paganism, however, the solemnization of the feast was almost impossible, on account of the orgies connected with the Saturnalian festivities, which were celebrated at the same time. Even in our own day the secular features of the opening of the New Year interfere with the religious observance of the Circumcision, and tend to make a mere holiday of that which should have the sacred character of a Holy Day. St. Augustine points out the difference between the pagan and the Christian manner of celebrating the day: pagan feasting and excesses were to be expiated by Christian fasting and prayer "-The Catholic Encyclopedia (P.L., XXXVIII, 1024 sqq.; Serm. cxcvii, cxcviii

This shows that the people were having issue with the mixing of orgies and paganism into their feasts in which they were trying to invent. 

"Encyclopedia Britannica

Saturnalia

Saturnalia, the most popular of Roman festivals. Dedicated to the Roman god Saturn, the festival’s influence continues to be felt throughout the Western world.

The Temple of Saturn, with the Temple of Vespasian (also called Temple of Vespasian and Titus; right foreground), among the ruins of the Roman Forum, Rome.

Originally celebrated on December 17, Saturnalia was extended first to three and eventually to seven days. The date has been connected with the winter sowing season, which in modern Italy varies from October to January. Remarkably like the Greek Kronia, it was the liveliest festival of the year. All work and business were suspended. Slaves were given temporary freedom to say and do what they liked, and certain moral restrictions were eased. The streets were infected with a Mardi Gras madness; a mock king was chosen (Saturnalicius princeps); the seasonal greeting io Saturnalia was heard everywhere. The closing days of the Saturnalia were known as Sigillaria, because of the custom of making, toward the end of the festival, presents of candles, wax models of fruit, and waxen statuettes which were fashioned by the sigillarii or manufacturers of small figures in wax and other media. The cult statue of Saturn himself, traditionally bound at the feet with woolen bands, was untied, presumably to come out and join the fun."

"The influence of the Saturnalia upon the celebrations of Christmas and the New Year has been direct. The fact that Christmas was celebrated on the birthday of the unconquered sun (dies solis invicti nati) gave the season a solar background, connected with the kalends of January (January 1, the Roman New Year) when houses were decorated with greenery and lights, and presents were given to children and the poor. Concerning the gift candles, the Romans had a story that an old prophecy bade the earliest inhabitants of Latium send heads to Hades and phota to Saturn. The ancient Latins interpreted this to mean human sacrifices, but, according to legend, Hercules advised using lights (phos means “light” or “man” according to accent) and not human heads." Encyclopedia Britannica 

Saturnalia, which is of the same customs of the Nicolaitans, the same practices that were incorporated to Christmas, is a pagan celebration to the god Saturn. It lists the same customs of misrule an immorality. It lists the same customs of gift giving.  it lists the same house decorating and lights that were incorporated to christmas. The symbolism of human sacrifices of the pagan world are mixed with Christ. 

 Some of the most depraved customs of the Saturnalia carnival were intentionally revived by the Catholic Church in 1466 when Pope Paul II, for the amusement of his Roman citizens, forced Jews to race naked through the streets of the city.  An eyewitness account reports, “Before they were to run, the Jews were richly fed, so as to make the race more difficult for them and at the same time more amusing for spectators.  They ran… amid Rome’s taunting shrieks and peals of laughter, while the Holy Father stood upon a richly ornamented balcony and laughed heartily.”- David I. Kertzer, The Popes Against the Jews: The Vatican’s Role in the Rise of Modern Anti-Semitism, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2001, page 74

"For the English Protestants who left in the early 1600s for Plymouth seeking religious freedom, such Bacchanalian festivities to mark the birth of Christ were utterly scandalous. And so true to the city’s “banned in Boston” reputation, the Puritans renounced English traditions and declared Dec. 25 a workday, even going so far as to criminalize Christmas from 1659 to 1681.

One prominent Boston minister, Increase Mather, a 1659 Harvard College graduate who served as its president from 1681-1701, led the opposition, railing in his writings against Christmas celebrants “consumed in Compotations, in Interludes, in playing at Cards, in Revellings, in excess of Wine, in mad Mirth.” Christina Pazzanese The Harvard Gazette 

The Puritan minister Increase Mather  spoke out against Christmas and its pagan roots in 1687 stating that those who celebrated it:

"In the pure Apostolical times there was no Christ-mass day observed in the Church of God. We ought to keep the primitive Pattern. That Book of Scripture which is called The Acts of Apostles saith nothing of their keeping Christ’s Nativity as an Holy-day...Why should Protestants own any thing which has the name of Mass in it? How unsuitable is it to join Christ and Mass together? ...It can never be proved that Christ’s nativity was on 25 of December...who first of all observed the Feast of Christ’s Nativity in the latter end of December, did it not as thinking that Christ was born in that Month, but because the Heathens’ Saturnalia was at that time kept in Rome, and they were willing to have those Pagan Holidays metamorphosed into Christian ones." -"A Testimony against Several Prophane and Superstitious Customs"  Increase Mather

Historically the recognition that "Christmas" is pagan was not a secret. It was once illegal due to the paganism. 

"The celebration of Christmas remained a final obstacle to a strict Sabbatarianism. At
first the Council agreed to celebrate it on the nearest Sunday, but it was actually the
Consistory who voted to celebrate it instead on the traditional date. It wasn’ t until
November 1550, that Genevans adopted a strict Sabbatarian system. They decided by a
unanimous vote of the General Assembly that henceforth they would recognize no holy days except Sundays and would celebrate Communion only on Sundays."Preaching, Praying and Policing the Reform in Sixteenth-Century Geneva"  Ph.D Thesis by Thomas A. Lambert

Christmas was historically against holy days and Sabbatarianism. 

"Finally, in 1550, Calvin managed to get the Genevan authorities to outlaw Christmas and to mandate that communion would be celebrated only on Sundays, and not on “superstitious” pagan dates like December 25. Indeed, on December 25, 1550, the city council sat for business as usual, the courts were in session and businesses were all open under penalty of fine. Calvin, as usual, gave his weekday sermon on a book of the Old Testament and noticed something that upset him: there were more people in church than on a typical weekday. A committed soldier in the war on Christmas, Calvin boomed from the pulpit:

I see more people than usual at sermon today. And why? It’ s Christmas day. And who told you? It seems so [to be a holy day] to poor beasts. There’ s the fitting label for all who came to sermon today in honor of the feast… But if you think that Jesus Christ was born today, you are beasts, indeed, rabid beasts." Ph.D Thesis by Thomas A. Lambert, historian 

John Calvin, renowned preacher who founded the Calvinist ideology was fervently against Christmas and recognized that it is a pagan invention for "poor beasts", and worked for its prohibition.  

Baptist Preacher Charles Spurgeon was also vocal on the fact that Christmas is neither Biblical nor the date which Christ was born. He states correctly and unequivocally that Christmas is not of divine authority. 

“Certainly we do not believe in the present ecclesiastical arrangement called Christmas: first, because we do not believe in the mass at all, but abhor it, whether it be said or sung in Latin or in English; and, secondly, because we find no Scriptural warrant whatever for observing any day as the birthday of the Savior; and, consequently, its observance is a superstition, because [it is] not of divine authority.”

“Many would not consider they had kept Christmas in a proper manner, if they did not verge on gluttony and drunkenness.”

“If there be any day in the year of which we may be pretty sure that it was not the day on which the Saviour was born, it is the twenty-fifth of December.”- Charles Spurgeon

 

People today are engaging in the customs of paganism according to the nations and hanging wreaths every year even though God tells us to not worship Him in the customs of the nations. 

Deut 12:29-32 “When the Lord your God cuts off before you the nations which you are going in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, 30 beware that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?’ 31 You shall not behave thus toward the Lord your God, for every abominable act which the Lord hates they have done for their gods; for they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.32 “Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.

God tells us that we are to regard Him as Holy, Set apart. We do not regard Him as Holy by claiming Christ and engaging in the customs that Romans celebrate to Saturn, or Norse celebrate Jul, or Nicholatiants celebrate themselves.  

Daniel 7:25 He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time 

The one that is contrary to the Most High seeks to later appointed times and God's law. People take the meanings behind God's holy appointed times in Leviticus 23 and they ascribe them to different times, and different customs, of which God has said not to do, learn, or worship Him with.  

Deuteronomy 16:21-22 “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. 22 You shall not set up for yourself a sacred pillar which the Lord your God hates.  

God tells us to not set up trees or sacred pillars next to His altar. We shouldn't be engaging in what His word states are pagan customs and saying "this is a feast to the Lord" 

Jeremiah 10:2-5 Thus says the Lord,“Do not learn the way of the nations,  And do not be terrified by the signs of the heavens  Although the nations are terrified by them; 3 For the customs of the peoples are delusion;  Because it is wood cut from the forest, The work of the hands of a craftsman with a cutting tool. 4 “They decorate it with silver and with gold;  They fasten it with nails and with hammers  So that it will not totter.

The customs of the nations are peoples delusions and they cut down trees and bring them inside and decorate and hammer them so they will not totter. While people will argue that this isn't mentioning Christmas outright, it IS mentioning the practices and customs of bringing a tree inside, decorating it and making sure it doesn't fall over as something WE are believers are not supposed to do or learn. 

"On 15 May, 719, Wynfrith (his name at birth) was sent to Germany by Pope Gregory II and given the name Boniface. His mission was to convert the unbelievers in that part of Europe to Christianity. He worked tirelessly in the country destroying idols and pagan temples across Germany and building churches in their place. In 732 he was made an Archbishop and founded or restored the diocese of Bavaria. It was on this trip, around the time of Winter Solstice, that he was said to have come across a group of pagans worshipping an old oak tree. Horrified by what he saw as blasphemy, the all-action Boniface grabbed the nearest axe and hacked down the tree. As he did this he called the pagans to see the power of his God over theirs. The feelings of the locals were understandably mixed, but Boniface’s actions seem mainly to have been taken in good spirit, with some of the tales saying he converted the pagans on the spot. This is where the story divides. Some say that Boniface planted a fir tree there, but the most common idea is that a fir tree grew spontaneously in the oak’s place. The fir was seen as an image of God and many believed its evergreen character symbolised the everlasting love of the Creator. According to the story, the next year all the pagans in the area had been converted to Christianity and hung decorations from the tree to celebrate what they now called Christmas rather than Winter Solstice. The story spread and soon Christmas trees became the norm in the newly converted Bavaria, and then spread out to become the tinsel strewn, electric lit, bauble hung festival we know today."- Roger Steer, Historian 

2 Kings 17:33 They feared the Lord and served their own gods according to the custom of the nations from among whom they had been carried away into exile.

2 Kings 23:7 He also broke down the houses of the male cult prostitutes which were in the house of the Lord, where the women were weaving hangings for the Asherah

 Just as early Christians recruited Roman pagans by associating Christmas with the Saturnalia, so too worshippers of the Asheira cult and its offshoots were recruited by the Church sanctioning “Christmas Trees”.  Pagans had long worshipped trees in the forest, or brought them into their homes and decorated them, and this observance was adopted and painted with a Christian veneer by the Church.-  Clement Miles, Christmas Customs and Traditions: Their History and Significance, New York: Dover Publications, 1976, pages 178, 263-271.

These continued the pagan customs with "christian" labels regarding the tree as the image of God. 
Christmas is a pagan invention that has no grounding in scripture beyond mentioned customs which are prohibited. 

Return to the Holy days of God. Remember, This custom is just like the example of the Golden Calf, when they made it and worshiped God/ YHVH with it, and then they rose up to eat and drink and play.

Exodus 32:5-6  Now when Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord.”6 So the next day they rose early and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.