Isaiah 9:6-7, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: And the government shall be upon his shoulder: And his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end,
Upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, To order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice
No position that stands on biblical truth should remain UNHEARD from. On the question of what is biblical truth? Each of us finds that on our knees before God
Unprofitable Servant wrote: I have always advocated for a daily
And when you get to Dec 25, what do you do? On Dec 25 you join an overwhelming celebration you don't oppose, you merge. That was the focus of the question - ONLY dec 25, you're either for, or against. Now I know!
I am clear where I stand on this pagan celebration. I oppose it. I don't muddle it around daily devotion. 1Cor14:8 For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, ..
The bible declares Gods glorious act in entering his own creation. But gives no date, & no apostolic tradition of an instituted day. It was meant to be celebrated that way.
When it comes to the Resurrection, we are given the month, week, day, hour by hour, and minute by minute account. We are even given the date. There, we go and institute our own. This ought to grieve you!
One is free to believe what one chooses, it's between them and God. But where Gods message is proclaimed, anybody that does not stand against error, joins that error
cv wrote: But it's not a substitute for wanting to know the truth - to know Him - THE TRUTH
Sorry you are missing my point cv. I dismissed USA post because it not substantiated (I took time to research and posted the most obvious reason it was just someone making something up. USA never sourced it). Hislop work has been debunked, you do the research.
Ask anyone who has posted here for a long time, I have always advocated for a daily celebration of our Lord's Incarnation and I don't see why I should suspend that on December 25th, so to say I am trying to push Christmas is inaccurate. Thank you for your thoughts though.
Unprofitable Servant wrote: celebration of the Incarnation should be a daily part of the life of the believer
Thats right, there's nothing wrong with spontaneous celebration of ALL that God is. ALL of it! But that's not what you're doing. You're using that to get to an intermediate step of a recognition for A celebration. Then, you know where that's going right - CHRISTMAS!
You say that Hislop's book making the christmas-pagan connections were debunked. You even dismissed USA's pagan connection to Christmas. Then you affirm that "there's a 'time' to celebrate." Clearly, you lead right to Christmas. But you get there avoiding the magic word. Just like SA, who broke from tradition of reporting news and posted about the incarnation, on Christmas Day, spontaneously, out of the blue. But "did not mention 'Christmas'?"
Christmas is Pagan through and through. And God Abhors it! Tradition is the power used to bind. It has the masses. It has momentum. It is very hard to change. Just like Sunday gathering derived from a Sunday resurrection - a tradition with no biblical support.
I'm all for a koombaya love fest. But it's not a substitute for wanting to know the truth - to know Him - THE TRUTH
There are, however, numerous commands in the Bible about how Christians are to treat other people, Mike. Unfortunately, judging from many of the comments on Sermon Audio—including, I am sad to say, some of my own—it would seem that none of these commands seem to carry much weight among us.
May I note that there is no *command* to honor, celebrate , or remember the events of the first chapter of Genesis but several Biblical passages and God Himself speak of His work in it and it is celebrated, praised, remembered and honored.
There is no *command* to honor, celebrate or remember the examples of Old Testament saints for their faith, but Hebrews 11 is still in the Bible.
There was no *command* to honor, celebrate, or remember the Providential hand of God (in a book that doesn’t even mention Him) but we still have the days of Purim
There is no *command* to honor, celebrate or remember the many great stories in the Bible, like Abraham and Isaac, or Daniel in the Lions den, or David and Goliath, the three Hebrew children in the midst of the fire, etc. but they are still celebrated, remembered and honored in Christianity today .
Not even sure why we need a command to celebrate, honor, and remember anything about our Lord’s life, teachings, miracles, death, burial, resurrection, ascension, Great High Priestly office, second Coming. Indeed everything about Him is a precious gem of truth to those who know and love the Savior. This would include his miraculous conception , birth, and all things surrounding it.
apparently it's a one way street concerning who can bear false witness and who can't.
Sabbath means 'rest'. Those whom Christ saves enter into His 'sabbath' rest- see Heb. 4. Watch out for the Reformed camps spin on this, they'll take you back to the law and the need to stay home and do nothing on the 'Sabbath', a need to 'keep it holy'. Mike's comment concerning the actual Sabbath the Israelites were commanded to honor was the sixth day is accurate. What the works based religion misses is this- the point of Christ being our sabbath, our rest from our attempts to do something to merit favor. We lay down our dead works, we cease from them. We enter into His rest. It is HIS REST. "...and his rest shall be glorious". Isa. 11:10 'For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. 5And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest. 6Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief'- For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath *ceased from his own works*, as God did from his.' Heb.4
Here's a much better sermon on the 'sabbath' rest -https://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=61410143493
US Thou shall not bear false witness. Misrepresentation, malice, sarcastic irony and purposeful insult are works of the flesh. If you mortify the works of the flesh you shall live.
Mike The word *even* in the Lord of the Sabbath has a copulative function but also a cumulative force. There has to be a Sabbath for him to be Lord of it. He cannot be the Lord of something that does not exist.
Malcom Watts has a conclusive sermon on the topic here for any who would have ears to hear as usual.
1. I use e-sword and the KJV I acknowledge the headings are added however I have two witnesses that Jesus Christ is Lord of the sabbath in the word's of 2 e-sword commentators JFB - and MH For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day — JFB - "In what sense now is the Son of man Lord of the sabbath day? Not surely to abolish it - that surely were a strange lordship, especially just after saying that it was made or instituted for MAN - but to own it, to interpret it, to preside over it, and to ennoble it, by merging it in the “Lord’s Day” (Rev_1:10), breathing into it an air of liberty and love necessarily unknown before, and thus making it the nearest resemblance to the eternal sabbatism."
I understand Mat 12:8 For the Son of man is Lord 'even of' the sabbath day; to mean Jesus Christ is Lord of all. Not all days of the week only, but all things. All things created, sustained and in particular redeemed.
MHCC on Matt 12:1-8 in part "The resting on the sabbath was ordained for man's good, Deu_5:14. No law must be understood so as to contradict its own end. And as Christ is the Lord of the sabbath, it is fit the day and the work of it should be dedicated to him."
Neither we, nor our teachers agree as regards the Christian Sabbath/Lord's Day.
My apologies BMcCausland. You’re right. You have every right to spread negavity about our blessed Lord’s incarnation. That is all the SA post was about so, no, it’s not a straw nan
1. Scripture doesn’t say Jesus is Lord of the sabbath, but Lord also of the sabbath, meaning he is Lord of all days.
2. What we call the Lord’s Day, being the first day of the week, is not the Biblical sabbath, which is the 6th day. If we don’t like that which is unclear sound, then should we not avoid it by not redefining Scripture? As for Sunday gathering, there should be no issue as long as it is understood one day is the same as another. Col 2:16.
3. Jesus met with his disciples on the first day of the week because he resurrected on the first day. It is his resurrection that is significant, not when it happened. When he said 3 days and 3 nights in the heart of the earth, he didn’t refer to which days they were.
US Sir, no need to prove what you ask as it is a mere straw man you fabricate which had never been implied on my part .
Perhaps you need to remember that this is a free speech forum in some measure somehow yet. So your opinion is welcome the same as mine or any body elses'. Perhaps the issue is about suppressing truth or facts you might not like, say intolerance. My apologies for this direct talk.
Because I believe syncretism (the combination of different forms of belief or practice) gives an unclear sound, I spent the better part of my day avoiding it, for the sake of a clear sound to my loved ones and friends.
I partook of a simple and excellent meal alone then came here for human dialogue.
What stumbles me: Love is the fulfilling of the law, (Romans 13:10). Jesus Christ fulfilled it perfectly. He told us in the gospel account that he is LORD of the sabbath. That means he has the authority to make his resurrection of the utmost significance, see Romans 1:1-5
It is not insignificant that he appears to his disciples on the first day of the week after his resurrection. Unless there is no need for sanctification or being more and more conformed to the Lord Jesus Christ; I for one would rejoice if every LORD's Day the News (practice of the other 6 days) was suspended and the same reverence shown for traditional holy days was given to the one we know we are to "Remember" to keep it holy according to the Scripture. If on the Lord's Day this was a place for the poor scattered sheep to focus upon the Scripture and work toward greater unity of mind and belief in the truth it would be a great mercy. Syncretism in any form, greatly hinders.
Mike wrote: It seems doubtful the multitude of the heavenly host appearing before the shepherds, praising God, we’re commanded to do so.
There should be a difference between biblical happenings taken at random as antecedents for future practice and custom, and specific biblical commands.
Sad that ceremoniously each year the preaching in many neo evangelical pulpits conveniently gravitates towards the doctrine of the 'incarnation' for the last 3 Sundays of December, only to be omitted for the next 11 months, while passages as Luke 2 and a Matthew 1 and similar, hibernate from year to year in the preachers's desks.
Being teaching the urgent need of the contemporary church, one wonders where is the Holy Spirit's guidance in this.
Instead the unbiblical church calendar prompts, while the biblically stablished day of worship and rest of the resurrection day is disregarded and/or neglected.
Unprofitable Servant wrote: ladybug BMcCausland, the post isn't about the issue of crafty preachers. It is about the blessing of the Incarnation and verses from the Word of God that should be the joy and rejoicing of our heart. Your message will not be seen by the preachers you disdain. There is always going to be problems in Christianity and so called Christianity that ought to be lamented. There is also a time to rejoice in the truths of Scripture and it will do us all well to focus on the joys we have in Christ and not just the problems that surround us
Fine, no stopping any from celebrating the incarnation on the 4th July, the 6th August or the 5 th April at least.
See how many will rush into celebrating the incarnation at least 5 times a year without musicals, heretical Carol singing, gifts, presents, commercial gain, drink, dinners, parties, extraordinary eating, lights, trees, trimmings, fuss, Santa myth, garlands, tinsel, or ornamentations.
Soon many would understand Xmas for what it actually is, a farse fervently defended by zealous Xmas worshippers, but 'disdained' using your word, by in spirit and truth worshippers
Dr. Derek W. H. Thomas | 12/7/2013
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