O you who love the Lord, hate evil! – Psalm 97:10 ~ There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. – Proverbs 14:12
Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?”
He said to them, “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’
“But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’
“Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’
“But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’
“There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.”
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke.13.22-Luke.13.30
God has His watchmen to help the undiscerning (which is all of us in some area or other) and we can seem like the light is being shone in our brothers’ eyes or that we are bullies when there is something that we know they are doing against God’s Word, but we desire to help them to see it. If they refuse the correction, then we are viewed as not being loving though we really are. Yet, this is still a good word for watchmen to heed; that we are pointing the light to God’s Word and if they get upset, leave it with God, rather than turning the light on them to blind them.
When I was a teen or in my early twenties, I’m not really certain exactly when this event occurred. One thin I am sure of, it was late at night.
I was driving along on a road that was usually deserted at the time I was on it heading toward home. In fact, home was just a few more twists and turns down the road.
I was probably driving way too fast. It seems that most of my driving in those days was way too fast.
But as I was driving along this narrow, dark, familiar road, I approached another vehicle. The dim red tail lights began to come more and more into focus and soon I could see they were attached to a beat up white van.
I was deciding whether or not to pass the van and the strangest thing happened.
The rear doors on the van flew…
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Hear the Word of the Lord, ye that tremble at His guard; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for My name’s sake, said, Let the Lord be glorified: but He shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed. -Isaiah 66:5
Let us pray for all such as are cast out wrongfully from the society which they love. May the Lord appear to their joy!
The text applies to truly gracious men who tremble at the word of the Lord. These were hated of their brethren and at length cast out because of their fidelity and their holiness. This must have been very bitter to them; and all the more so because their casting out was done in the name of religion, and professedly with the view of glorifying God. How much is done for the devil in the name of God! The use of the name of Jehovah to add venom to the bite of the old serpent is an instance of his subtlety.
The appearing of the Lord for them is the hope of His persecuted people. He appears as the advocate and defender of His elect; and when He does so it means a clear deliverance for the God-fearing and shame for their oppressors. O Lord, fulfill this word to those whom men are deriding! ~ C.H. Spurgeon
http://bible.christiansunite.com/Faiths_Checkbook/faith0301.shtml
Sunday Service: 2 April 2017
“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” -Proverbs 14:13; 16:25
The English word Easter and the German Ostern come from a common origin (Eostur, Eastur, Ostara, Ostar), which to the Norsemen meant the season of the rising or growing sun — the season of new birth. The word was used by ancient Europeans to designate the “Feast of New Life” in the spring. The word long antedates Christianity. Originally, it referred to the celebration of the spring sun, which had its birth in the East and brought new life upon the earth. The ancient Teutonic goddess of spring was addressed as Eostre. Easter, then, antedates Christianity by centuries.
But what about the myriad customs that surround this day — the chocolate bunnies, the Easter eggs, the parades? Again, you may be surprised to learn that red, blue, yellow or green eggs, as symbols of the renewal of life, were part of a custom that goes back centuries before the birth of the Messiah. Eggs, a symbol of fertility in many lands, are easily traceable to ancient pagan lore. So is the famous Easter bunny. (Only the chocolate rabbit is modern.) This rapidly breeding and multiplying animal was an ancient symbol of fecundity. And so modern children, eagerly hunting for Eastern eggs supposedly deposited by a rabbit, are unknowingly following an ancient fertility rite. What about the Easter parade? Does that, too, date back to the days of antiquity when pagans paraded in the springtime, donning new hats and clothes to honor their goddess of spring? The answer is yes. Scholars can trace the Easter parade to similar rites in ancient Germany, Greece, and even India. Hot-cross buns, interestingly enough, were eaten by pagan Saxons in honor of Easter, their goddess of light. The Mexicans and Peruvians had a similar custom. In fact, the custom of eating hot-cross buns was practically universal in the ancient pagan world! Easter fires, although not a widespread phenomenon today, are still lit in some northern European countries, notably Germany. This practice is clearly traceable to pagan antiquity. And what about Easter sunrise services? They too go back to the pagan custom of prostrating before the rising springtime sun. The goddess of light, Eastre or Ostera, was identified with the rising sun. Throughout the Middle Ages, this pagan custom was continued, “A universal celebration was held in the Middle Ages at the hour of sunrise. According to an old legend, the sun dances on Easter morning or makes three cheerful jumps at the moment of rising, in honor of Christ’s Resurrection….All over Europe people would gather in open plains or on the crests of hills to watch the spectacle of sunrise on Easter Day. The moment of daybreak was marked by the shooting of cannon and the ringing of bells… In most places the crowds would pray as the sun appeared….From this medieval custom dates our modern SUNRlSE SERVICE held by many congregations in this country on Easter Sunday” (Weiser, The Easter Book, pp. 158 — 159). Plainly, then, today’s Easter has its roots deep in ancient paganism — centuries before the birth of the Messiah — and its rites have scarcely changed.
There was an ancient pagan custom of holding a sunrise service in the spring to worship the risen sun-god, Baal, Tammuz, or Nimrod! The Bible condemns this practice. Notice in the book of Ezekiel:
He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do. Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the Lord’s house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz. Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these. And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east (Ezekiel 8:13-16).
When is the sun toward the east? In the morning! These men were holding a sunrise service, worshipping toward the rising sun! At the very temple of YEHOVAH God, they were mixing in pagan religious rites, customs and ceremonies! Source page
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