Category Archives: Holy / Set Apart

Drunkenness, Holy / Set Apart, Idols / False Gods, Self Control, Traditions / Holidays, Worldliness

What is Mardi Gras and Should Christians Celebrate It?

What is Mardi Gras and why do so many Christians celebrate it? I grew up in a Catholic church and never could quite figure out how people could say that Mardi Gras was a “Christian holiday”. People broadly seemed to have accepted the concept that Christ wants us to embrace wild parties, drunkenness, public nudity, gluttony and other sinful behavior as a precursor to a period of repentance which follows.

Some may say that they only celebrate the parades, or they don’t participate or support the more offensive parts of Mardi Gras. However, it is all linked together as different levels of engagement in a clearly pagan festival. Does God like it if we only participate a little in some fun activities focused around a false god? What if we don’t do the “child sacrifice” but only dance before the idol or have a party on the day others sacrifice to the false god?

If it is not obvious enough that celebrating Mardi Gras is not a way to edify, honor, or lift up Christ then try a more academic exercise. Where in scripture did Jesus demonstrate or teach that we should sin greatly before a period of repentance? It’s not there. In fact, the opposite.

The call to repentance is real, but not the call to sin before it.

This does not even begin to touch on the focus that Mardi Gras puts on pagan gods associated with parades and other events.

Matthew 4:17

      17From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Romans 6

      1What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? 3Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 4Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7for he who has died is freed from sin.

      8Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. 10For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

      12Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, 13and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

      15What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! 16Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? 17But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, 18and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.

      20For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death. 22But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. 23For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We are called to righteousness and not to sin. How then can those in the church widely accept and embrace sin as a “Christian holiday”? The answer is that we have not followed the Lord’s instructions. He commands us not to learn the ways of the pagans and not to celebrate as they do. But all too often our common cultural holidays have been greatly influenced by pagan celebrations. The church has chosen to accept and blend pagan practices alongside or in place of how the Lord wants us to worship Him.

What Is Mardi Gras?

When Christianity arrived in Rome, religious leaders decided to incorporate these popular local traditions into the new faith, an easier task than abolishing them altogether. As a result, the excess and debauchery of the Mardi Gras season became a prelude to Lent, the 40 days of fasting and penance between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday.

Along with Christianity, Mardi Gras spread from Rome to other European countries, including France, Germany, Spain and England.

http://www.history.com/topics/holidays/mardi-gras

Deuteronomy 12:1-5

   1“These are the statutes and the judgments which you shall carefully observe in the land which the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess as long as you live on the earth. 2“You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess serve their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree. 3“You shall tear down their altars and smash their sacred pillars and burn their Asherim with fire, and you shall cut down the engraved images of their gods and obliterate their name from that place. 4“You shall not act like this toward the LORD your God. 5“But you shall seek the LORD at the place which the LORD your God will choose from all your tribes, to establish His name there for His dwelling, and there you shall come.

In order to choose to follow the Lord His way, which is the only true way to follow Him, then we must turn away from and reject pagan celebrations which have been blended with or replaced God’s instructions for how we are to worship Him and how we are to live. Let us not make excuses, accepting the lifestyle of the pagans as our own, no matter how long the family traditions have been established. When we start making exceptions, we often end up with things like Mardi Gras… many who claim to be Christian accept it and would defend it… but none can justify it based on scripture or God’s word. It has become part of the culture based on a historical choices and family traditions. Let us seek the Lord and the Lord’s way alone to live submitted to Him. Let us not blend with the ways of the pagans but rather turn back to our Lord wholeheartedly and without hesitation.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Holy / Set Apart, Obeying God, Purposeful / Intentional, Traditions / Holidays

Christmas on Trial – the Closing Argument

I am sharing an article from LifeHopeandTruth.com. If you really want to test what is pleasing to God in how you approach this popular holiday, then I encourage you to invest some time to read this article and consider the facts. Try to set aside the natural emotions that are associated with this subject, at least while you read and seek to understand.

Before we start, I invite you to pray with me:

Father, help me to consider the facts laid and perspective laid out in the article today with a heart that wants to please You above all others. Help me to be courageous to challenge emotional family and cultural traditions against the truth of Your word. Help me to truly reflect on and consider what change I should make for myself and my family in regard to popular holidays.  Amen.

Christmas on Trial

Imagine a courtroom where Christmas is on trial, charged with false impersonation of legitimate, godly worship. Both sides have presented their cases. Now it’s the prosecutor’s turn to make his closing argument. It could well go something like this.

By Clyde Kilough

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, you’ve heard the defense supporting the religious practice of celebrating Christmas. I trust you noted it was not a biblical defense, because none exists.

Let’s step away from human reasoning and emotion, and revisit the facts presented to you by history, scholars and God’s Word itself.

You’ll recall that all the expert witnesses—secular historians and theologians alike—attested that modern Christmas practices can be easily traced back to non-Christian origins. Their sources were so numerous that no one bothered to present counterarguments.

Please remember these facts:

    • Christmas is a man-made holiday. The Bible has zero reference to celebrating Jesus’ birth, which was probably in the autumn, not winter. Not until nearly three centuries later, in fact, did a “birthday party for Jesus” make its way into religious observance. Not until A.D. 336 did a Roman calendar officially note celebrating Jesus’ birth on Dec. 25.
    • So how was Dec. 25 selected for this celebration? Pope Julius I decreed it. Why? Because syncretism, the blending of religions, had become a common tool employed by the Roman church for assimilating “heathens” into its fold. Midwinter pagan festivals were immensely popular throughout Europe, so mixing these into the church’s rituals was an easy method to induce nonbelievers to embrace their version of Christianity.
    • What were these festivals? They included:
    • The birthday of the sun god Mithra.
    • Saturnalia, a time of debauchery honoring the Roman god of agriculture, Saturn.
    • Northern European celebrations of the winter solstice glorifying the sun’s return.
    • The Scandinavian Norse religion’s yule celebrations Dec. 21 through January, with its abundant superstitious customs.
    • The German version revering their god Odin. Interestingly, Odin is supposed to have made nighttime flights during which he would watch people and decide who to bless and curse. Hmm. Isn’t that reminiscent of a modern tale of a mythical guy who flies at night, somehow having godlike powers to know “who’s naughty and nice”?

People aren’t easily converted from entrenched popular customs, but church leaders had their methods. Let the people keep their customs, they figured, but simply syncretize them with ours and call them Christian. Instead of celebrating Dies Natalis Solis Invicti—the birthday of the unconquered sun—we’ll say we’re now honoring Jesus, the Son of God.

I remind you of the historian who quoted Augustine of Hippo, a great church influence, as saying in a Christmas sermon, “Let us celebrate this day as a feast not for the sake of this sun, which is beheld by believers as much as ourselves, but for the sake of Him who created the sun.”

If Jesus appeared today, would He okay our worshipping on a holiday borrowed from pagan religions that idolized the sun, moon and rocks?

I’ve barely recapped the historical evidence, but clearly, no one can legitimately argue for any biblical support upholding any aspect of Christmas as a Christian holiday. In fact, virtually all of our Christmas traditions—trees, mistletoe, gift-giving, wreaths, caroling, Santa Claus—sprang from these pagan festivals.

It is the thought that counts!

So, ladies and gentlemen, let’s examine the defense’s arguments in support of observing Christmas today, beginning with the contention that “at the end of the day—so what? It’s the thought that counts!”

Actually, I agree 100 percent! It is the thought that matters—and it’s God’s thought that matters most! God left ample evidence of His thought on this in His Word, the Bible.

I remind you of the religious scholars who admitted that God has always adamantly opposed syncretism, often bemoaning how His people mixed their idolatrous neighbors’ customs with their worship of Him.

When God delivered Israel from Egypt, what did He command? “Do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.’ You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way.”

What part of “you shall not” is so confusing for us humans?

For emphasis, He added, “Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.” That’s in Deuteronomy 12:30-32.

So, centuries later, after watching the people continually blend pagan practices into their worship, taking from and adding to everything He’d said, God told them through the prophet Amos, “I hate, I despise your feast days” (Amos 5:21).

Did God use lightly the words hate and despise? If not, why should we assume He feels differently today?

In the same verse He also said, “I take no delight in your solemn assemblies” (Revised Standard Version). Today’s most important “solemn assemblies” are Christmas and Easter, but they are not the holy days God appointed. Even then, God told them, “Take away from Me the noise of your songs” (verse 23). They may be beautiful and catchy songs, but because of what they represent and where they come from, to God they are just noise!

Now, since God says in Malachi 3:6, “I am the Lord, I do not change,” and emphasizes in Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever,” we have to ask, “Has God now changed His mind about such things?” If Jesus appeared today, would He okay our worshipping on a holiday borrowed from pagan religions that idolized the sun, moon and rocks? Because someone mixed it into religion and called it “Christian,” does that mean God sanctioned it?

It is the thought that counts—but what does God think?

But if my heart’s right …

You also heard from a defense witness who reasoned, “I know Christmas’ origins are wrong, but I know in my heart why I go to church at Christmas—it’s to honor Jesus—and I believe it’s what’s in my heart that counts!”

Absolutely—the heart does count! That’s big on God’s list of qualities! But don’t forget what Jesus said about the heart in Mark 7:6-9: “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men.” Jesus doesn’t accept just any worship, even if in our heart we think it’s okay.

Notice, too, He said, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.”

Christmas offers a prime example of this. Isn’t God the One who said, “Do not lie”? But what is one of the biggest Christmas traditions people cling to? Lying to kids about Santa Claus! How does that honor Jesus, who commands us not to lie! And don’t forget Easter. How do people lie to their kids that rabbits lay eggs, then trot off to church saying it’s all about worshipping God?

Do we really think we can reject doing what God says, instead borrowing religious practices from pagan religions, and think He’ll be happy about it because we say “my heart’s right”?

Tradition does not trump obedience. If our heart’s right, won’t we be striving to worship God “in spirit and in truth,” as Jesus told the Samaritan woman (John 4:24)?

Saying “Lord, Lord” to no avail

You also heard this line of reasoning from the defense: “Yes, everyone knows the bad side of Christmas—the partying, commercialism, indebtedness, greed and so on—but most people have a very merry Christmas. What’s wrong with families enjoying being together with good food, gifts, pretty music and lights, or helping the needy? There’s far more good than bad, and a lot of it involves good Christian acts!”

Well, of course God loves good things and seeing people happy. But do good deeds justify bad actions? Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 7:21-23: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” Who was He addressing? Religious people proudly pointing out all their good deeds!

“Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”

There is more “Lord, Lord” talk at this time of year than any other, but does it impress God when we persist in lawlessness—doing things He tells us not to do?

We say we’re worshipping the baby Jesus, but we’re not doing what the grown-up Jesus told us to do! If people were really serious about doing God’s will, we’d see real “peace on earth” and “goodwill toward men.” We’d see good deeds all the time, not just during a few days when they get in the “Christmas spirit.”

People of truth?

You also heard the defense try to poke a hole in our case by arguing, “The Jesus I know isn’t so radical about something that brings so much fun and enjoyment to everyone, even the fantasy part for the kids.”

Ladies and gentlemen, this one’s simple. Answer this, please: Would you like it if someone told your kids lies about you and got them to believe it? I don’t think so.

So how do you think God feels when He’s being lied about?

This is so important because of where it comes from. Jesus explained one time—in John 8:44—that the devil “is a liar and the father of it.” The people He was addressing were the religious leaders of the day, and He angered them by saying they were of their father the devil. It doesn’t matter who you are—if you lie, or perpetuate a lie, it’s wrong.

If people claim to follow God, isn’t it logical that He expects them to not lie? Aren’t Christians to be people of truth—telling the truth and practicing the truth?

Sad to say, for thousands of years God has seen people lying about Him, even under the guise of claiming to speak for Him.

Long ago God spoke through Ezekiel words that are just as true today: “Her priests have violated My law and profaned My holy things; they have not distinguished between the holy and unholy, nor have they made known the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they have hidden their eyes from My Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them. … Her prophets plastered them with untempered mortar, seeing false visions, and divining lies for them, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord God,’ when the Lord had not spoken.” That’s Ezekiel 22:26 and 28.

Putting words in God’s mouth is just a bit presumptuous, wouldn’t you say?

What’s really on trial?

So, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, let me ask you again: Given the weight of evidence, both factual and circumstantial, if Jesus were here today, do you think He would attend Christmas Eve services, or exchange gifts around the Christmas tree? Would He have a “Put Christ back into Christmas” bumper sticker—or would He say He was never in it to begin with?

Would He still stand by His words in Matthew 4:4, that man shall live “by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”? I ask, can you do that and observe Christmas at the same time?

I rest my case; but as you make your decision, I urge you to remember that it’s not really Christmas that is on trial—we are.

© 2019 Church of God, a Worldwide Association, Inc. ·

Take a few minutes to be still before God and reflect prayerfully on what He wants. Separate that from what you want. Ask Him to give you discernment and courage to act where called for.

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Faith / Trusting God, Guide, His Ways Are Not Our Ways, Holy / Set Apart, Love, Obeying God, Traditions / Holidays

The Parable of the Widower Who Remarried

Just to be clear, this is not a biblical parable, but one based on biblical teaching and one that is true many times over.

There is a story about a young man who was happily married. He loved his wife very much. To show it, he learned her favorite flowers, and favorite candy, learned how to help around the house the way that she liked, and he even bought her the style of clothes she liked to wear. Of course, holiday celebrations were no exception. He honored her in the ways that she told him she appreciated and she knew that he loved her. They were married for many years and many of their ways became strong habits and traditions.

After a time, his wife grew ill and died. He truly missed her. He grieved for a time and eventually remarried.

His second wife did not like the same things or do things the same way as his first wife. He would tell his new wife how much he loved her but than continue in the old habits and traditions he created for his first wife, even buying the same style of clothing for her and giving her the flowers that his first wife enjoyed instead of the ones she liked. His second wife asked him gently many times to change how he tried to honor her and explained what she liked and did not like. Despite her many efforts to communicate clearly, the man refused to change from his habits and traditions to learn to show love and honor his second wife the way she appreciated and desired.  He simply would tell her that he was doing it for her to show his love and that it was all for her. She was deeply hurt and at times very offended. She grew to doubt whether he loved her at all or rather she was just a replacement because the one he still loved was no longer there.

How obvious it must seem to all of us that the man is making a big mistake and certainly not showing love by insisting he do things his way or the way of his first wife. How is the parable going to end? If it is to end well, the man must admit he was wrong and decide to visibly repent of, or turn away from, his ways and learn the ways of the one he wishes to love and honor.

In a way you get to finish the story… you see many of us treat God the same way as the man in the parable treats his second wife. We have learned and accepted certain ways of doing things. In some cases they are now traditions with happy memories that have been accepted for hundreds or thousands of years. We are strongly influenced by our family and cultural traditions and are emotionally connected to doing something a certain way. However, as we come to know the LORD and increase in our relationship with Him, are we willing to turn from our way of doing things and seek out and follow His ways? God has clearly communicated what He likes and does not like… what is good and bad in the holy scriptures. Often times we are not willing to lay down what is important to us to pick up what His word really says is important to Him.  Do not rely on what your church does, or what your parents did, or your friends do. Rely on what the scriptures say God wants.

Just as in the case with the widower who remarried, not being aware that we are doing what is bad makes it no less offensive. Why do we not take time to learn what God values…what He wants from us?

Claiming we can take something that is bad in God’s eyes and make it into something that is good is like saying we can give someone a weed, but call it a rose and everything will be great. It is like giving someone a daisy when their favorite flower is a rose… but we tell them it is a rose.

We must each decide if we are to cling to our traditions of man, like the Pharisees and Sadducees who came against Jesus, or if we are to stand up and do things God’s way as Jesus and His disciples did, even if we are mocked for it.

Would it surprise you to know that Christmas trees, evergreen wreaths, mistletoe, gift exchange, even celebrating on Dec 25 are all  based on pagan worship practices which the church originally banned but later accepted because people would not stop doing them? Of course much of Easter celebration also has origins in pagan worship as well. The church decided if we can’t get people to stop their detestable pagan worship, then we will join them but make up a new story to explain the items previously used in pagan worship. They took a weed and called it a rose.

If you truly love God, and submit your life to God… take the time to learn more about what He wants and not just stick to traditions of men that are offensive to Him. You can easily study online even using Christian encyclopedia’s like Zondervan or other encyclopedias. The origins are not secret, only that it has been accepted to celebrate God in ways that were developed by pagans for their gods. 119Ministries.com has put together an effective documentary in video form you can watch (The Christmas Question). They have previous teachings available for free you may consider as well (Sunburned – Part 1 and Sunburned – Part 2).

The LORD has also given us instructions on what holy days to celebrate to point to Him and our relationship with Him. They are called the Moedim and are outlined in Leviticus 23 and other places throughout the Bible. You can find scripture where Jesus participated in the Moedim. You will never find record of Jesus celebrating Christmas and Easter (or almost anything we celebrate commonly today) in the Biblical record. Passover and Easter are very different. See what they focus on. With God’s celebrations, the focus is always on Him and not gifts or food or simply ourselves. To learn more, scroll through and read from our Traditions/ Holidays category of teachings.

I recognize that this is an emotional subject for many and admitting that we should change is very hard. Even if we accept it and change our behavior, there will be much difficulty among family. This is to be expected when we stand for Christ above all others. Jesus said so himself in Matthew 10:23-39.

32 “Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father in heaven.

34 “Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword.

35 ‘I have come to set a man against his father,
    a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
36     Your enemies will be right in your own household!’[l]

37 “If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. 38 If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. 39 If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.

We each must decide whether or not we submit to God fully or hold tightly to the traditions of man. By the way… study of the new testament clearly shows that clutching to the traditions of man was the way of the Pharisees and Sadducees, not the way of Jesus.

God wants his people to be holy (set apart for God’s use) and righteous (living according to God’s commands rather than the world’s). He wants us to put Him first, above everything else.

Challenge yourself to objectively evaluate your traditions and seek first the kingdom of God. Do not dismiss this quickly but rather prayerfully seek God to show you the truth of His word and how to apply it in your life. Ask yourself about any tradition you claim to observe to honor God, if you were not influenced by family or cultural traditions would you naturally come up with this tradition by studying the Bible? If not, that can be a good indicator.

Pray that God would give you courage and boldness to pursue him with how you live. My family and I have been on this journey, we remain on this journey still today. It is difficult at times, but well worth pursuing to grow closer to Him and be more pleasing to Him. Trust in His ways over those of men.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Holy / Set Apart, Traditions / Holidays

Are Christmas Trees in the Bible?

I grew up celebrating Christmas. There are many festive and fun elements associated with its traditions. Of course, those of us who grow up in it also have emotional and sentimental memories tied up in holidays like Christmas as well. It was one of my favorite times of the year.

It was not until I was an adult for quite some time that the LORD brought me to start questioning these common traditions. I started asking questions about the origins of Christmas and its many colorful traditions.

One such tradition that many families are joyfully acting out around this time is that of getting a Christmas tree and bringing it into their home. I did it for decades. It can be fun.

Of course, “fun” is not the standard for what is right and what is wrong. Sin can often feel fun and seem to deliver happiness. Often it is an illusion. Even when it does bring happiness, it does not compare with a deeper and genuine relationship with our Father in Heaven.

The standard of what is good or bad is set by God. Our best written record is the Bible. I believe it is divinely inspired, but even for those who do not believe this, it is still certainly the most accurate record we have of God’s relationship with His people and His instructions for life.

One of the traditions I questioned is whether or not you may find Christmas trees in the Bible. Many will say, “no”, but actually there is a reference that seems to point them out in all but name. We should consider it. Some will argue this is focused only on idols, but it seems to apply to Christmas trees.

Jeremiah 10:1-4 (KJV)

1Hear ye the word which the LORD speaketh unto you, O house of Israel:

2Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.

3For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.

4They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.

That was fairly surprising to me, but as I studied more about the origins of Christmas I found just about all of them to be pagan. We can explore more in separate articles over the next couple weeks, but do take time to really consider this one as a start. Yahweh tells us not to learn the ways of the heathen, or non-believer. He does not want us doing what they do or did and just putting a new label or “meaning” on it to make if appear Christian. He wants us to be set apart and holy.

To learn more:

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, please help me to put You and Your instructions first. Give me courage and discernment to separate from the traditions that have been learned from the heathen or pagan, and which by definition then are against Your teaching for how we should live. Let there be an awakening for Your people around this nation and the world to turn away from the ways of the world and turn toward Your ways. Amen. 

 Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Adultery / Sex Outside Marriage, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Holy / Set Apart, Homosexual Behavior, Self Control, Worldliness

Flee Sexual Immorality; Our Body Is for the LORD

Today we reflect on a simple, but profound principle in God’s word. Do not read this quickly. Dwell on it. It is more than just taking good care of our body physically. Our bodies belong to the Lord. They are not made for immorality. The body is for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. Let us not abuse what God has given us with immorality and sin.

1 Corinthians 6:9-20

9Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, 10nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor those habitually drunk, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. 11Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

The Body Is the Lord’s

      12All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything. 13Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them. Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. 14Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through His power. 15Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be! 16Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, “THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH.” 17But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. 18Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. 19Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.

Do not think immorality is constrained to prostitutes as highlighted in the passage above. Immorality involves sexual activity other than between two people who are married in accordance with God’s word. This can take place between two who are not married (fornication), between one who is married with someone other than their spouse (adultery), between two people of the same gender (homosexuality), between close family members (incest), or involving animals (bestiality).  There are scriptures throughout the Bible to back up each of these as immoral and against God’s word.

Our bodies serve as temples for the Holy Spirit who is in us. We are not our own but have been bought with a price. Flee sin and glorify God in your body. Do not give up the kingdom of God for such sin.

9Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?

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Rejecting God Has Serious Consequences

We can not simply claim to follow Christ and continue in sin, in direct rebellion against Him. Those who genuinely turn their lives to Christ will show it through their actions and attitudes. We will not be perfect. Certainly not. However, we will strive to turn away from sin rather than embrace and accept it. Our Father could not be more clear… those who continue in sin and rebellion against the Father will not inherit the kingdom of God.

1 Corinthians 6:9-11

      9Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. 11Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

Take caution not to rationalize your sin. The world would have you believe that everyone will inherit the kingdom of God, regardless of sin and rebellion against the Father. God’s word could not be more clear. There are serious consequences for those who choose to remain in sin rather than repent and submit to Jesus as Lord.

Be encouraged. Our sins can be forgiven through Jesus. God has made a way for us to be reconciled to Him through Jesus.

Take a few minutes right now. Pray for God to help you overcome sin and rebellion against God through the Holy Spirit and submit to Him in obedience. Give thanks for Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross for our sins to be forgiven.

Shalom. May the grace and peace of our Lord, Yeshua (Hebrew for Jesus), be with you. Devotion by John in service to Christ

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Yeshua’s Prayer for His Disciples… Important Insight on How to Pray

I found Yeshua’s prayer in John 17 for His disciples very moving. I encourage each of us to read it and apply the key points He highlights to our own prayer life for ourselves, our loved ones, and other followers of Christ.

Yeshua came to the Father in prayer for His disciples as He prepared to leave. We can learn much by reviewing and considering His words.

John 17:13-21

The Disciples in the World

     13“But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves. 14“I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 15“I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.16“They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17“Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. 18“As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19“For their sakes, I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.

      20“I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; 21that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.

  • Yeshua wanted His disciples to have His joy made full in themselves
  • He gave us the instructions of YHWH to make our joy full. We can rightly conclude He intended for us to obey them, not just be aware of them.
  • Those who follow Yeshua, like Yeshua, are not “of the world”. The world will hate and reject us, usually more so as we stand and live more boldly for Christ. This does not mean every person will hate us, but one need only look around at newspapers for national and world events to see that followers of Christ are persecuted in varying degrees depending on where they are in the world. (I do not mean people who claim Christ and live like the world… the devil and the world love these folks.)
  • We need the Father’s help to protect us from Satan. Yes, he is a real adversary.
  • Sanctify means to be set apart as holy. Yeshua asks YHWH to make us holy through truth, or the word. Again, we can reasonably conclude He intends for us to live according to the word rather than the same way the world lives.
  • Here, Yeshua specifically calls out that He is praying not just for this specific group of men, but for all who believe in Him.
  • His desire is for us as His followers to be united. We can see this is not the case throughout the world. This can seem difficult at times because we are not called to accept false teaching, but we are called to unity. Many disagree on the true application of scripture creating division. We should allow room for debate where scripture permits, but some teachings are heretical and dangerous and need to be rejected. (e.g. The teaching that everyone who claims Yeshua in name pleases the Lord and goes to heaven even if they are without repentance and do not change their lives to match His instruction.)

I encourage you to pray and reflect on these verses as well as incorporate them into your own prayer life. Ask the Father to enlighten you on their full meaning and application for your life. Pray this prayer for your children or loved ones as well as other brothers and sisters in Christ.

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

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The LORD Is Sanctuary for the Believing Remnant

God always seems to sustain a righteous, believing remnant among His people. Even as the nation around them falls away from God, there are some who still seek Him and who still try to live according to His ways. The context in Isaiah is similar. The nation has fallen away from God. There is war. There is a believing remnant.

What is fascinating is that in verse 14 we see that God can at once be a sanctuary for His remnant and also a stone to strike or stumble over for the rest of the nation. There is reason to be encouraged and hopeful for the remnant. God will come. Wait for the LORD and eagerly seek Him.

Do not be drawn astray by the rest of the lost in your nation, even those who claim to follow the LORD. Seek the LORD and wait for Him. Hold fast to His instructions. Seek God and God alone for sanctuary.

Isaiah 8:9-22

A Believing Remnant

9“Be broken, O peoples, and be shattered;
And give ear, all remote places of the earth.
Gird yourselves, yet be shattered;
Gird yourselves, yet be shattered.

      10“Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted;
State a proposal, but it will not stand,
For God is with us.”

      11For thus the LORD spoke to me with mighty power and instructed me not to walk in the way of this people, saying,

      12“You are not to say, ‘It is a conspiracy!’
In regard to all that this people call a conspiracy,
And you are not to fear what they fear or be in dread of it.

      13“It is the LORD of hosts whom you should regard as holy.
And He shall be your fear,
And He shall be your dread.

      14“Then He shall become a sanctuary;
But to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over,
And a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

      15“Many will stumble over them,
Then they will fall and be broken;
They will even be snared and caught.”

      16Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. 17And I will wait for the LORD who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob; I will even look eagerly for Him. 18Behold, I and the children whom the LORD has given me are for signs and wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion.

      19When they say to you, “Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should not a people consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn. 21They will pass through the land hard-pressed and famished, and it will turn out that when they are hungry, they will be enraged and curse their king and their God as they face upward. 22Then they will look to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be driven away into darkness.

I continue to be struck by how closely the book of Isaiah applies to our nation even today. Most of what was a godly nation are lost. Many claim God in name only. Those of us who find ourselves the seemingly small but faithful remnant, should not lose heart. Be encouraged. Seek the LORD earnestly and eagerly. Trust in His instructions while we wait and do not listen to the ways of the nation around us.

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, thank You for hope and encouragement for Your faithful remnant. We eagerly seek You. Please turn the people’s hearts to You, many for the first time. Raise up the righteous to lead and have positions of authority throughout our nation in government, business, healthcare, education, and absolutely in Your church. Enlighten the minds of the people to understand and apply Your word and Your truth in our lives. In the name of Yeshua, our Messiah, we pray. Amen

Shalom. May the grace and peace of our Lord, Yeshua, be with you. Devotion by John in service to Christ

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God Provides Shelter and Refuge for the Righteous Remnant

We continue in Isaiah 4 to read about the vision from God through Isaiah for God’s people who have turned from His ways and blended with the world. To understand the full effect, I encourage you to read chapters 1-3 if you have not been reading along with us in the past few days. God’s judgment was forceful against His rebellious people. As we reach the conclusion of the vision here in chapter 4, we see some relief and hope for the remnant, which is declared holy, or set apart for God’s purpose and living according to God’s ways. Now, having purged the wickedness, He creates shelter and refuge for the remnant.

Isaiah 4

A Remnant Prepared

      1For seven women will take hold of one man in that day, saying, “We will eat our own bread and wear our own clothes, only let us be called by your name; take away our reproach!”

      2In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth will be the pride and the adornment of the survivors of Israel. 3It will come about that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy—everyone who is recorded for life in Jerusalem. 4When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and purged the bloodshed of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and the spirit of burning, 5then the LORD will create over the whole area of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, even smoke, and the brightness of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory will be a canopy. 6There will be a shelter to give shade from the heat by day, and refuge and protection from the storm and the rain.

We can certainly conclude in our day, as in Isaiah’s day, that the remnant will often suffer to some extent along with the wicked who dwell among them and dominate the nation in which they live. However, there is always hope for the remnant who remain faithful to the LORD.

Take 5 minutes (or more) and pray not only for yourself and your family, but also for God’s people among the community and nation in which you live. Pray further for the nation as a whole and the people in it to turn to God and repent of their wicked ways. Pray that the LORD would raise up righteous leaders and prepare the people to hear them. Pray that He would strike down, remove, or convert any wicked leaders who are leading the people and the nation down the wrong path. Pray that the eyes of the people would be opened to the wonderful ways of God and they would turn to Him and His ways with a passion that would sweep the nation. Pray for a return to holiness and godliness for Yahweh’s people through Yeshua. Pray in the name of our messiah, Yeshua.

Shalom. May the grace and peace of our Lord, Yeshua, be with you. Devotion by John in service to Christ

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In the Last Days… God’s Universal Reign

Isaiah 2 gives us a prophetic sneak peek at the last days. The house of the LORD will be established and raised above all else.  All nations will stream to it. Many will seek the LORD and His ways. The law will come forth from Zion. He will judge over the nations. Nations will turn away from war forever. Man will be humbled, and God alone will be exalted. Those that do not submit to Him will hide from His terror and majesty. What a joyous day for those that call Him LORD!

Isaiah 2

God’s Universal Reign

      1The word which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

      2Now it will come about that
In the last days
The mountain of the house of the LORD
Will be established as the chief of the mountains,
And will be raised above the hills;
And all the nations will stream to it.

      3And many peoples will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
To the house of the God of Jacob;
That He may teach us concerning His ways
And that we may walk in His paths.”
For the law will go forth from Zion
And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

      4And He will judge between the nations,
And will render decisions for many peoples;
And they will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not lift up sword against nation,
And never again will they learn war.

      5Come, house of Jacob, and let us walk in the light of the LORD.

      6For You have abandoned Your people, the house of Jacob,
Because they are filled with influences from the east,
And they are soothsayers like the Philistines,
And they strike bargains with the children of foreigners.

      7Their land has also been filled with silver and gold
And there is no end to their treasures;
Their land has also been filled with horses
And there is no end to their chariots.

      8Their land has also been filled with idols;
They worship the work of their hands,
That which their fingers have made.

      9So the common man has been humbled
And the man of importance has been abased,
But do not forgive them.

      10Enter the rock and hide in the dust
From the terror of the LORD and from the splendor of His majesty.

      11The proud look of man will be abased
And the loftiness of man will be humbled,
And the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.

A Day of Reckoning Coming

12For the LORD of hosts will have a day of reckoning
Against everyone who is proud and lofty
And against everyone who is lifted up,
That he may be abased.

      13And it will be against all the cedars of Lebanon that are lofty and lifted up,
Against all the oaks of Bashan,

      14Against all the lofty mountains,
Against all the hills that are lifted up,

      15Against every high tower,
Against every fortified wall,

      16Against all the ships of Tarshish
And against all the beautiful craft.

      17The pride of man will be humbled
And the loftiness of men will be abased;
And the LORD alone will be exalted in that day,

      18But the idols will completely vanish.

      19Men will go into caves of the rocks
And into holes of the ground
Before the terror of the LORD
And the splendor of His majesty,
When He arises to make the earth tremble.

      20In that day men will cast away to the moles and the bats
Their idols of silver and their idols of gold,
Which they made for themselves to worship,

      21In order to go into the caverns of the rocks and the clefts of the cliffs
Before the terror of the LORD and the splendor of His majesty,
When He arises to make the earth tremble.

      22Stop regarding man, whose breath of life is in his nostrils;
For why should he be esteemed?

Prayerfully reflect on the scripture. Do not dismiss it. Consider the contrast to what we see today. Imagine the LORD reigning over all the nations in righteousness. Imagine no need for war. Imagine those that are against God are the ones who must hide. Let us give thanks to God for this hope-inspiring vision of the future. There is also much we can conclude from this vision. If the law will come forth when the LORD reigns in the end times, how can we logically assume that it is irrelevant today? or just take pieces and parts of it that we are interested in following because that is what our church or pastor says to do. We must embrace all of God’s word and seek to understand how to apply it!

Let us also see how Isaiah’s vision puts emphasis on the evil of idols and blending with influences from other nations and cultures that are separate from God. We are to be set apart!

Shalom. May the grace and peace of our Lord, Yeshua, be with you. Devotion by John in service to Christ

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.