THE BLOOD OF JESUS CLEANSES YOU FROM ALL SIN AND GUILT (1 JOHN 1:7). JESUS IS THE DELIVERER!!
It was originally to commemorate Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Later on it was combined with pagan activities; today the palm and willow are blessed and carried in the procession. It is ascribed to a pagan holiday where olive and willow are blessed. Powers attributed to the palm are exorcising evil spirits, healing diseases, warding off devils, protecting homes from lightning and fire, and protecting fields against hail and storms. The olive has had healing powers attributed to it since antiquity.
EASTER SUNDAY
I always thought it was strange that Easter came on a different day each year. If Christ arose on March 10, that would be the anniversary every year. But I found that Easter's date is established by astrology according to the vernal equinox. The spring festival of pagan worship of the sun and the renewed season was also set on the same date. The Druids had a sacred symbol - an egg. The word Easter comes from the name of a pagan goddess - goddess of rising light of day and spring. Easter is the modern form of Eastre, Ostera, Astarte or Ishtar. Another name for Astarte is Diana of Euphrates. Easter in the King James Bible means pascha or Passover. Astarte was hatched from a big egg which fell from heaven. Druids (satan worshipers) in Europe used eggs as symbols of goddess of spring. The rabbit is associated with the moon in ancient Egypt. It is a fertility symbol of sexual significance. Hot cross buns are raisin cakes with a "T" on them baked for the queen of heaven, Tammuz, (Jer. 7:18). God talks about sun worship in Ezekiel Chapter 8. The SUNrise service was a part of ancient sun worship. Baal was the sun god and still is today. Shinto pilgrims pray to the sun as they climb the mountain sides. Mithrists meet together at dawn and honor the sun god. At the time of the Old Testament, the Jews got into practices of picking up sticks and feathers to build fires, making raisin cakes, and crying for Tammuz (Josh. 23:7 and Eze. 8:14). Don't mix with these heathen practices; don't even mention the names of their gods!"
MORE ON EASTER
Easter is celebrated by most Christians. Yes, JESUS did in fact rise from the dead, but not on this pagan celebration. The early Christian church never celebrated Easter, but celebrated "Passover". The term "Easter" comes from the festival of Oestre (or Estre), the Anglo-Saxon Goddess of Spring, Fertility and New Life. An egg laying rabbit? Pagans have worshiped rabbits as sex and fertility gods, and have looked upon them as symbols of lust, sexual vigor and reproduction. Eggs also have been symbols of fertility, sex and new life, also with celebrations in the Springtime. The egg was a sacred symbol among the Babylonians. The ancient Druids (noted more for Halloween) bore an egg as the sacred emblem of their idolatrous order. The pagan tradition said Estre, the goddess of spring turned a bird into a rabbit. In gratitude, the rabbit came each Spring, during the Festival of Estre and laid beautiful eggs for the goddess (remember it use to be a bird). Are you coloring your eggs in different colors for Easter? The origin of the Easter celebration is what makes it so bad. It doesn't matter if you think you are just doing it for your kids. What you are doing is lying to your kids about a supernatural Easter bunny who lays eggs. Churches hide Easter eggs for the kids, and many hold Easter SUNrise services. This pagan celebration was to worship the SUN, not THE SON. It too crept into the Christian celebration known as Easter. The sun rises in the EAST -- EASTER -- not a coincidence! Tammuz (a pagan god) was slain, legend has it, and because of the weeping of his mother Ishtar (Easter), Tammuz was mystically revived in Springtime, and was celebrated every year. As it is written in the Catholic Encyclopedia, the Catholic church is the one who brought about all these changes to be celebrated in a "Christian" fashion. You need to ask the Lord to forgive you for this ungodly practice, break some curses placed on you, and get or do some DELIVERANCE.
Easter update
"Easter candy sales continue to soar" with expected sales to top $837 MILLION this year (1997) - 13.5 BILLION jellybeans. "If the jellybeans were lined up end-to-end, they would circle the earth nearly three times. 55 MILLION chocolate bunnies will be produced this Easter." Did you ever notice that jellybeans are shaped like EGGS? "US farmers sell about 50 million dozen more eggs than average during the two weeks before Easter." More people thought of candy than of the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, JESUS Christ.
2003 easter candy update - TWO BILLION DOLLARS spent on candy this year!
SCRIPTURE ABOUT IDOL WORSHIP Read the whole chapter of Ezekiel 8. Ezekiel in a vision of God at Jerusalem is shown the image of jealousy, the chambers of imagery, the mourners for Tammuz, the worshipers towards the sun and God's wrath for their idolatry. "Therefore will I also deal in fury: mine eyes shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them" (vs. 18).
II Cor. 5:17 (A new creature in Christ.)
II Cor. 6:16-17 (What agreement can there be between the temple of God and idols? Leave idolatry and heathen worship; touch not any unclean thing!)
Eph. 4:25 (Reject all falsity.)
I Thess. 1:9 (Ye turned from idols to God.)
I John 5:21 (Keep yourself from idols.)
SCRIPTURE ABOUT SO-CALLED CHRISTIAN HOLIDAYS
Certain holidays got into the Christian church by way of the Catholic Church. To keep the country united, Roman emperors began to give Christian meaning to pagan rituals.
Ex. 22:18 (Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.)
Ex. 23:13 (Make no mention of the name of other gods.)
Lev. 19:31 (To be defiled by familiar spirits and wizards
Duet.18: 9-14 (The abominations of the nations are to be avoided.)
Jos. 23:7 (Neither make mention of the name of their gods.)
I Sam. 28:7-28 (The witch raised Samuel; Saul fainted.)
Micah 5:12-13 (Cut off witches, soothsayers, and images.)
Acts 13:6-11 (Elymas the sorcerer was struck blind.)
Acts 16:16-19 (Casteth out a spirit of divination.)
Romans 12:2 (And be not conformed to this world.)
Gal. 5:19-21 (He reckoneth up the works of the flesh.)
Eph. 6:12-13 (He sheweth what they intend that preach circumcision.)
II Tim. 1:7 (For God hath not given us a spirit of fear.)
James 4:4-10 (God resisteth the proud.)
The following information came from an email from a ministry in New Zealand:
Which rendering?
In order for man to subtly switch the final authority in the Holy Book to himself, one of the cleverest ways is to play with words. If just one word in the scriptures is a wrong rendering then is our foundation is flawed, and who gets the final say? The scholar above the written word of course!
Following, I have chosen three words out of many (for lack of space) that have been used to undermine the scriptures, justifying a human agency, replacing the sole agency of the Holy Ghost as the one who leads us into all truth:
Easter - the pagan connection:
Is. 2:6. "Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers."
Just as it was with the children of Israel who borrowed pagan ideas from the east, so it is with the children of God today, who have borrowed pagan ideas from the east, namely eastern mysticism and new age ideologies.
The sun rising in the east stole the hearts of the children of Israel as they adopted the worship of Tammuz the sun-god. Babylon was to the east of Israel and everything 'eastern' (spiritually speaking) has connotations of introducing mixtures to the pure faith. Much in Christendom today has not been replenished from above, but by importing christianized pagan content to avoid embarrassment and repercussions from the world. Especially if we have the responsibility of raising our own children or are still tied to our families of birth. Hence, Christmas - the Roman Catholic "Christ" of the mass, and Easter - the Roman Catholic perversion of passover.
However, Easter (as well as Christmas - Child's Day) goes back a lot further than the Roman Church:
Acts 12:4 ... "intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people."
This passage in the KJV, which critics love to use, is the only verse referring to Easter, and the Authorized Version is the only bible where you find the word Easter used just once. The argument the critics love to use is Easter should have been translated Passover in Acts 12:4, as it has been in other modern bibles. This remark has thrown heaps of doubt on the sincere overly clever, and the wishy washy, who choose not to check out what man has to say along side the word of God:
Again let's repeat the argument ..."Easter is translated wrong because the Greek is translated passover!"
My reply ... fiddle-de-dee!!
Fact: Over a year ago we had a teacher stay with us from Athens who taught languages. One evening I just had to ask our non-Christian friend what the word pascha (the original Greek) meant. Without hesitation she said straight out ... "Easter!!" Just recently when I was in hospital a Greek man shared the same room as myself as his bed was opposite mine. The day he was discharged I just had to ask him the same question what the Greek word pascha meant in English. Again, one word was his reply ... "Easter!"
Unrefutable really!! Don't believe me then check out these Greek Orthodox Church sites?
http://members.aol.com/johnd3/ONE/DateofPascha0593.html
http://203.20.104.37/~corners/Mar98/Pascha.htm
Fact: You don't have to be a well groomed Bible Scholar to know by simply checking out the Greek word pascha used in this passage (and used 28 other times in the New Testament) can mean either Passover or Easter where the Authorized has correctly translated the other verses as passover. King James critics love words (whether they be English or Greek) with dual meanings, to dazzle the unsuspecting. This way they can use the ignorance of the undiscerning masses (who choose not to check things out and follow things through) by only emphasizing one meaning of the word and not mentioning the other. This is called a half truth, or partial truth, and can be used to divide and conquer the naive. Here's just one example of undermining the Authorized Bible found in Gen. 2:24:
"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall become one flesh."
Mundanely, some King James critics point out how the Authorized Bible is once again wrong because the word cleave means "to split apart". So the King James is wrong they say, as it indirectly encourages divorce.
Now aint that cleaver! Another play on words. As a lost and rebellious college pupil I walked out of High School not long after turning 16, with no credentials for a career, and could not even quote the alphabet from a to z until two years after I joined the work force. But now, as a born again 'uneducated nincompoop' can I go to my dictionary and quote two meanings of the word cleave, just as I can rattle of the top of my head two or more meanings to the words knot, key, jam, yoke, tip, pound, page, and of course radical.
The other meaning for de word cleave in de English is "clinging to something". Good thing for hubbies and wives don't you think! Just like Acts 11:23:
... "with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord."
(Must I also add; when this Book use to be honoured marriages stayed intact, unlike today!)
Therefore argument one is dismantled as pascha means either Passover or Easter!
Argument two: "This still does not prove Easter is the correct rendering in Acts 12:4, does it?"
Acts 12:1- 4. "Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. (2) And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. (3) And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.) (4) And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. (5) Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him."
Let's look at the whole picture: The Serpent used partial truth in the Garden to deceive Eve, did he not? Whereas God always deals with the whole truth and nothing but the truth ... "If it was not so I would have told you."
Verse three: Herod looks to arrest Peter because he wants to try him, prove him guilty, and put him to death, as he did with James (v. 1- 2), satisfying the Jews.
Now Herod being a man pleaser was a pawn set up by Rome to rule over the Jews. You see his job was to keep law and order in the land, all in Rome's favour. This meant pleasing both the Jews (v.3), by letting them keep their religion with its ceremonies and Passover observance, at the same time accommodating Rome's pagan practices; a biggie being Easter observance, the worship of the fertility goddess Ishtar.
So during the days (present tense) of unleavened bread (now this is the key, V. 3- 4) he arrested Peter. This was a time beyond half way through April (Abid) the fourteenth day. Therefore, Passover had already come and gone as it was now during the seven day period which followed Passover ... "then were the days of unleavened bread." Simple eh!
In verse four, after being arrested, he is then imprisoned waiting for Easter to come and go (future tense) so that he could then be tried. Peter therefore was kept in prison (v. 5) as Herod did not want to interfere with the Roman holiday and jeopardize his love affair with the pagan occupiers.
Therefore, the facts are plain to see:
The Passover is first (the fourteenth day) ...
followed by the days of unleavened bread (the fifteenth day and onwards) during a time when Peter is arrested ...
waiting for Easter to arrive and pass so that Peter could be put on trial (bearing in mind both are celebrated in the same month, Easter floating on various dates whereas Passover is always fixed to the 14th).
Therefore, the Passover cannot apply to verse four as it has already come and gone.
Lastly, the word Easter is the only word left to use in verse four, as it is the only other English word that can be translated from the Greek pascha.
Clear and straight to the point! Nothing to do with feeding an audience half truths, opinion, misquotes, clerical theology, church dogma, misinterpretations, misrepresentation, waffle, mumbo jumbo, or religious hotchpotch! After all the facts, some still argue, insisting Passover was and still is both the name and the evening meal commemorating the deliverance from Egypt, and the entire eight day period.
In the end I don't really care what this or that commentary says, nor the Most Reverend Credentialed. Again, let's prove scripture by using scripture to prove itself:
Num. 33:3. "And they departed from Rameses in the first month on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the morrow after the passover the children of Israel went out with an high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians."
In God's calendar the beginning of the forth month (now April) was the first month (Abid), the beginning of the year. Today, it is still recognized by the business world, however, outside of being branded an April Fool. Therefore, the days after the 15th of the first month are not referred to in God's word as the passover.
Lev. 23:5-6. "In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S passover (first occasion). And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast *of unleavened bread unto the LORD (second distinct occasion) ...
No argument really! Acts 12:3 ... "then were the days *of unleavened bread" is bang on!! Passover (the 14th day according to scripture) had come and gone!
Conclusion: The argument Easter is not found in the Book of Life is cut to pieces bearing no substance. Therefore, if you still want to argue please take it up with the Author of the Book.
May I add: If you remove Easter from the Bible you camouflage the Devil's plan of paganizing Christianity. This way the "christianized" Easter can fit the same slot, and be observed today as Jesus' death and resurrection dates (supposedly coinciding with passover and contrary to the three days and three nights in the belly of the earth sign), with all it's pagan trappings (Babylonian / Egyptian bunnies, hot cross buns, and decorated eggs) by both Heathen and Christians alike as one happy universal family, removing any definition between the two, therefore rendering the offence of the cross to no effect.
By marrying the two (paganism and Christianity) you destroy two vitally important truths:
One: You neutralize the gospel by taking away it's saving power. Ever heard of any one being saved by Easter, or Christmas for that matter? Or Lent? Or Lady Day? Or Palm Sunday? Whether we're singing "Rudolph the red nose Reindeer" or "Jingle Bells" or "Batman Smells", it will never convict or reprove anyone of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.
And two: You remove the vital spiritual link between Christianity and it's Jewish Messianic link (Jesus the rock of offence and block of stumbling), breaking the seed line back to Abraham. This allows Rome to sneak into Israel's place carrying out the Devil's agenda replacing Jesus with a convenient substitute. Because everything scriptural in Christianity is from the Jewish link ... Jesus the Messiah. Whereas everything Roman in Christianity is imported paganism .... derived from it's Babylonian link.
Satan has an agenda; a new age "initiated" people, who will be conditioned by their relative new age bible/s redefining Christianity in the New Millennium to fit in with the New World Order, seating himself on the throne through an impostor called anti-christ.
'Revelation' and 'taking heed' will never come about by celebrating any pagan feast masquerading as Christian. Only by making the word of God our source and base in all things pertaining to faith and life can we see this and avoid bondage to the world, and being snared by the religious hype of Beyond Year 2000.
Soon, and very soon our King is coming, and his name is called The Word of God.
The sword is about to fall. Why settle for a mixture?
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