Posted on 12/09/2006 7:11:54 AM PST by DouglasKC
I fully believe that one of the greatest problems with Christianity today is almost an arrogance that they are right. There are multiple scriptures admonishing "show the house to the house". If we as Christians truly walked in the spirit of Christ, these little preachy articles would never get written and the world would see the love of God--not question it.
I agree with the author and stopped celebrating Christmas about 12 years ago and at the same time dropped out of Christianity. I have been a believer and Christian nearly all of my life and find these two items offensive to the Lord. The Bible is the source of God’s speaking as far as the written word. There is no mention of either of these items in it. Why debate the issue? These are not worth debating! The Lord said, “I will build My church”, and He will do it through the principle of incarnation, God in man, making man both divine and human just as He is. He doesn’t need nor care for Christmas, it doesn’t fit into His plan, in fact it is a serious mixture (Santa and his reindeer...oh please, give me a break!)...not to mention the Easter bunny for crying out loud!
Rather than taking an opportunity to engage in some real discussion, many posters have chosen to use this board as a way to almost bully others around.
I expect this kind of trash talk from punks over at Game Forums who've developed a taste for puffing out their chests in order to display macho bravado. But among those who claim they are disciples of Jesus?
I left the Church of Rome years ago. When I did, I saw her idols, her excuses for why she dabbled into synchronicity and so on. I was hoping the Protestant church was the place to go for a safe harbour.
(It is to be noted that the Bible says: "Babylon and her daughters". The very excuses given by Rome for why she mingled elements of pagan worship into her version of "Christianity" are echoed in the voices of those who triumph a Roman day of celebration that's now deeply embedded in Protestant circles. And though the tones of each letter are up to the imagination of the readers, the "sneering" is fairly obvious.
Yes. This particular flame fest has ceased years ago. Many of you who participated should be ashamed. You should see discussion as a time and place of reflection rather than that of crushing opposers. Especially when you're part of the "Majority".)
When I left Rome, one of the main challenges faced was: "Is it in the Bible?" I'd ask: "Should I pray to Mary?" The response was always the same: "Is it in the Bible?" Justifying what I did by God's Word wasn't my usual habit as a citizen of Rome. I did what Rome did cuz Rome said it was OK.
But I found views of the small fellowship of Bible believing evangelical Protestants refreshing. I knew what my mission was: Read the Bible. Familiarize myself with it. Grow to know its laws, its precepts, its depths and most importantly: the heart of the One who authored it. I would listen in on arguments between brothers as they reviewed issues. Those bringing a different viewpoint would be listened to. Those who had a better grasp and mastery of the Scriptures AND a hearing heart to the voice of God usually won.
Of course the wise notion of "Pick your battles" came in to play. When I spoke to a sister about Christmas and how it was from the old Roman system I was once part of... the answer given to me, by a Protestant, by this woman who claimed the God of the Bible was her God... "You're not going to take MY Christmas away from me!"
positive stimulation the key
And that's when it hit me! Many who fight to keep their so-called sacred day of Christmas do so for a reason: years of positive stimulation. Get this ...
They've been going to church for years on Dec. 25. The Pastor's made sure his sermon's all wrapped around advent and the birth of baby Jesus. The decor is warm and friendly. The smells are positive, warm, sweet, tasty! Family gatherings, good food, the pastor/minister blessing every bit of this.
Then party poopers like us come along and say: "Have you considered that all this warm, pro-family stuff... might not be of God?"
This is what divides the men from the boys spiritually, Douglas. Men stop, ponder, seek God, and are willing to set aside years of positive stimulation in order to return to the scrolls to see if these things be so. Our asking Protestants to leave Christmas behind as a pagan celebration would be like speaking to folk's who agree the city is bad, but heaven's sake!! Don't ask them to leave the Amusement Park behind! What are you??? An extremist???
pharaoh did it first
If Christians would actually read the Old Testament, they might find it eye-opening. Pharaoh made quite a number of proposals to Moses/the Hebrews before they left. Keep in mind here that Pharaoh represents Satan. Each time Egypt is beaten up good by God, Pharaoh makes yet another proposal: "Sacrifice in the land"--Exodus 8:25. "You shall not go very far away!"--Exodus 8:28. "Only the men!!"--Exodus 10:11. "Fine, the kids can go too, but your animals stay HERE!!"--Exodus 10:24.
Finally Moses made it really clear to Pharaoh: "Our cattle also shall go with us. There shall not be a hoof left behind. For we must take from them to serve the LORD our God."
Isn't that the point, Douglas? Many hooves still remain in Egypt.
Indeed and a great point...actually many of them. Hopefully there does come a point in everyone's life when they look closely at tradition and culture and compare them to God's word.
Jos 24:15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
Thank you for your post...
Love your post!
Merry Christmas!
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