Last week, in Nice, France, I was privileged to participate, along
with 30 scholars, mostly scientists and mathematicians, in a conference
on the question of whether the universe was designed, or at least
fine-tuned, to make life, especially intelligent life. Participants –
from Yale, Princeton, Harvard, Berkeley and Columbia, among other
American and European universities – included believers in God,
agonistics and atheists.
But it was clear that the scientific consensus was that, at the very
least, the universe is exquisitely fine-tuned to allow for the
possibility of life. It appears that we live in a “Goldilocks Universe,”
in which both the arrangement of matter at the cosmic beginning and the
values of various physical parameters – such as the speed of light, the
strength of gravitational attraction and the expansion rate of the
universe – are just right. And unless one is frightened of the term, it
also appears the universe is designed for biogenesis and human life.
Unless one is a closed-minded atheist (there are open-minded
atheists), it is not valid on a purely scientific basis to deny that the
universe is improbably fine-tuned to create life, let alone intelligent
life. Additionally, it is atheistic dogma, not science, to dismiss
design as unscientific. The argument that science cannot suggest that
intelligence comes from intelligence or design from an intelligent
designer is simply a tautology. It is dogma masquerading as science.
And now, many atheist scientists have inadvertently provided logical proof of this.
They have put forward the notion of a multiverse – the idea that
there are many, perhaps an infinite number of, other universes. This
idea renders meaningless the fine-tuning and, of course, the design
arguments. After all, with an infinite number of universes, a universe
with parameters friendly to intelligent life is more likely to arise
somewhere by chance.
by Brother Gregory Williams May 29, 2011 NewsWithViews.com
[Mr. Williams and NewsWithViews] are no affliated with The Plain Truth
Forward by Bob Barney: This is an excellent article concerning God's Holy Days and the role they play in Christian life today. I was even surprised to see that Mr. Williams even understands when Firstfruits takes place (after Passover Week) and not on the 3rd day of Passover as many assume in error.
The Feasts of Israel were in-gatherings and played an essential roll in maintaining a free nation. Without these festivals there was no practical way to bring a nation together and to create bonds in society that were essential for a free state.
There was no civilly enforceable contract to compel performance in a pure republic because the status or state of the people was independent according to the nature of a republican form of government.[1]
Since religion[2] was how you cared for others within your community and society these gatherings were essential for the maintenance of a governmental system based on liberty. Each elder of each family was required, by common sense, to participate.
Making this system work was dependent on everyone working and doing their part. There was no central leader forcing everyone to pay their share. What you contributed and how you participated set the path for success or failure and acceptance or rejection by your nation was founded in either the brotherhood of caring or the covetousness of controlling hearts.
Just as it keeps the weekly Sabbath, the
Church of God also observes the annual holy days that were ordered by God,
kept by the ancient Israelites and continued by the early New Testament
Christians. These seven annual "appointed feasts" picture God's plan of
salvation for man.
The annual holy days are named the Passover and Feast of Unleavened
Bread, Pentecost, the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement and the
Feast of Tabernacles and Last Great Day. These days occur on specific
dates of the current Hebrew calendar, with the exception of Pentecost
which is counted in a biblically prescribed manner. Like the weekly
Sabbath, each is reckoned from sunset to sunset.
The functions of these annual holy days are partly the same; those of
the weekly Sabbath.
The primary importance of the festivals is their
function as spiritual symbols, outlining God's plan of salvation for the
individual and the world. These days include religious instruction and
worship which provide for spiritual renewal on a regular basis.
The holy days serve as spiritual, psychological and social high points
of the year. They allow people to get together in an atmosphere of leisure
and enjoyment.
In addition, these days provide opportunity to rest
physically. Psychologically, the human need for change of pace and a time
to forget the ordinary concerns of day-to-day life is met by these
periodic festivals. However, the central concern of these days is
spiritual. Supplementing the weekly Sabbath services, there is still a
need for intensive concentration on spiritual matters over a period of
days without the distraction of the normal routine of making a living. The
spring and autumn festival seasons supply this, especially the Feast of
Tabernacles which is customarily held only in a few central locations.
The holy days fulfill the spiritual objective of being holy
convocations for the Church today. They also are "shadows of things to
come" pointing to and outlining the substance of God's great plan of
salvation for all mankind.
This is briefly summarized as follows:
The Passover represents the sacrifice of Christ which pays for the sins
of all who repent and accept it in faith. It also represents partaking of
eternal life through Jesus Christ (shown by the bread and wine which
symbolize His body and blood). The Feast of Unleavened Bread is symbolic
of the continual removing of sin from the spiritual sphere of one's life
and the continual practicing of a new godly way of life, represented by
Christ, who was unleavened, that is, without sin
Pentecost pictures both the foundation of this New Testament Church and
the sending of the Holy Spirit for the individual.
The Feast of Trumpets
symbolizes the spreading of the gospel to the world like the trumpet call
of a watchman; it also shows the return of Jesus Christ to set up the
Kingdom of God on earth.
The Day of Atonement, a solemn day of fasting and
self-searching represents the time when sin shall be placed upon the head
of its ultimate source, Satan the devil. The removal of the cause of evil
allows God's Kingdom to hold unopposed rulership over mankind.
The Feast
of Tabernacles is symbolic of the millennial rule of God through Jesus
Christ and His saints. It shall be followed by an opportunity for
salvation for all who have lived and died and were not previously called
to have a part in the first resurrection—this is the meaning behind the
Last Great Day.
The culmination shall be the new heaven and new earth
(Rev. 21), in which all creation shall be renewed in preparation for the
humanly unfathomable eternity on beyond.
The functions of the annual holy days are partly the same as those of
the weekly Sabbath. They provide physical rest from the regular routine.
Yet there are a number of differences on the purely physical plane of
observance. The annual festival periods provide high points of the year as
social occasions on which to see friends and relatives and during which
one can have the means and the leisure to enjoy good food and recreation.
Psychologically, the annual festivals usually allow a more lengthy
break from regular routine than does the weekly rest day. They are
something to look forward to. They provide the occasion for doing things
as a family unit. While they differ somewhat from the traditional modern
holiday or vacation, their psychological function is very similar,
especially for those who do not have other vacation periods during the
year.
One of the major differences of the annual festivals from the weekly
Sabbath is that Church members are enjoined to follow the biblical
injunction of Deuteronomy 14:22-26, and set aside up to one tenth (or
tithe) of their income in a special fund for use in celebrating these
days. This provides the opportunity for the enjoyment of extra-special
food and drink.
During the non-holy days of a festival, suitable
recreation is also encouraged, especially for the family unit. A special
offering is taken on the annual Sabbaths in accord with Deuteronomy
16:16-17.
In addition to regular church services on each of the annual holy days,
the following festivals have their own special observances. Along with the weekly Sabbath, these festivals place worship and
service of God at the forefront of the minds of Church members. Rather
than taking over former heathen celebrations which have been synchronized
with Christian observance or making up celebrations without any precedent,
the real human need of regular festive celebrations is met by age-old,
God-ordained observances clearly attested in the Bible itself. The days
carry a symbolic teaching which looks forward as well as backward and
places God squarely in the center—the focus of its range of vision.
Millennium
The Old Testament prophets looked forward to the rule of God's Kingdom
on the earth (a time identified as the 1,000 year rule of Christ described
in Revelation 20). Some of these prophets describe holy day observance in
several passages.
One of these passages is Ezekiel 40-48, in which an eschatological
temple is pictured in detail. Along with the weekly Sabbath (described
under Sabbath), the annual festivals are referred to in a general way in
several verses (45:17; 46:9,11). The Passover and Feast of unleavened
Bread and the Feast of Tabernacles are named specifically (45:21-25) as
being kept in the prophetic Kingdom of God. Zechariah 14:16-19 pictures a
time when all nations shall come up to Jerusalem to worship at the Feast
of Tabernacles. Those who refuse shall be punished by natural disaster
until they repent and worship as God desires. This demonstrates that the
annual festivals of God are not restricted to Israel but rather are
designed for the entirety of mankind.
by Earl L. Henn (1934-1997) Forerunner, "Bible Study," May 1996
As we study the meaning of God's holy days, a logical pattern surfaces that unlocks truths that remain a mystery to the vast majority of the world's people. The day of Pentecost symbolizes a major key to spiritual understanding because upon this day God sent His Holy Spirit to His church, providing Christ's disciples with the power, love and understanding to carry out the work of the church. This regeneration by the Holy Spirit, the key to understanding the spiritual principles of God's Word, opens our understanding of the plan that God is working out among humanity.
God established His holy days around the two major harvests of the year, a small one in the spring and a larger one in the fall. These harvest seasons typify two spiritual harvests. Pentecost, occurring in late spring, symbolizes the first spiritual harvest and reveals that this is not the only day of salvation. Those whom God calls now are merely a "pilot group" that He has specifically selected to be His "firstfruits." This day is also the anniversary of God's church—the beginning of the portion of God's master plan in which He calls people out of this evil world to create in them His holy, perfect, spiritual character.
1. During what three periods of the year did God command Israel to appear before Him? Exodus 23:14-16.
Comment: The "three times" are three general periods during which God's holy days fall. Passover and Unleavened Bread occur in early spring, the "Feast of Harvest" in late spring and the "Feast of Ingathering" in the fall.
Comment: Before the Israelites could reap the spring crop, God commanded them to bring a sheaf of grain to the priest, who waved it before God for acceptance. This "wavesheaf offering" occurred on "the day after the Sabbath" that falls during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. {Actually this day is a High Sabbath that falls on the 8TH Day of Passover}
3. How do we determine when to observe Pentecost, also called "the Feast of Weeks"? Leviticus 23:15-16, 21.
Comment: This late spring holy day must be counted. God instructs us to count 50 days from the day that the wavesheaf was offered. This explains why this day is commonly called Pentecost, which means "count fifty."
4. What special offering did God command to be offered on Pentecost in the Old Testament? Leviticus 23:17.
Comment: God commanded that two loaves of bread be offered as firstfruits to God. These two loaves represent the Old and New Testament churches.
Comment: Pentecost, the Feast of Firstfruits, represents the first part of God's spiritual harvest. God is now calling a small number of people, the firstfruits, into His church. These people, who live in the world but are not part of it (John 17:15-16), are training to be the leaders in the World Tomorrow when God will work to save the whole world.
6. Is the end time a spiritual harvest? Matthew 13:24-30, 37-43.
Comment: "End of the age" (verse 39) refers to the time of Christ's second coming and the resurrection of the dead when God will reap the firstfruits of His harvest! The fifty days between the wavesheaf offering and Pentecost symbolize the time from the founding of the church to the end of the age when the small harvest of the firstfruits occurs.
Comment: Jesus Christ, the first of the firstfruits, willingly gave His life so others may receive forgiveness of sin. He was a holy, sinless sacrifice, and three days later, He was the first person resurrected to eternal life! In this, He fulfilled the symbolism of the wavesheaf offering.
8. Did Jesus have to be accepted just as the wavesheaf offering was? John 20:17.
Comment: Jesus was crucified on the day of the Passover in AD 31, which fell that year on a Wednesday. God resurrected Him at the end of the weekly Sabbath (Saturday). He appeared to Mary Magdalene the next morning, the day after the weekly Sabbath during Unleavened Bread, when the priests presented the wavesheaf offering. He did not permit her to touch Him because He had not yet ascended to the Father. Just as the High Priest had to wave the sheaf of grain before the spring harvest began, so our Savior had to ascend to the Father to be accepted before Him. Once this happened, He allowed His disciples to touch Him (cf. Matthew 28:9; John 20:20-28).
9. Did Christ's disciples observe Pentecost? Acts 2:1.
Comment: This was the Day of Pentecost exactly fifty days after Christ ascended to heaven{On FIRSTFRUITS, the 8th Day of Passover} to be accepted by the Father on the day the sheaf of grain was waved.
10. What happened then to fulfill a promise that Jesus had made to His disciples? Acts 2:2-4; John 14:16, 26.
11. Was the Holy Spirit to be IN the disciples as contrasted to dwelling WITH them? John 14:17.
Comment: During Jesus' life on earth, the Holy Spirit was with the disciples. After the Holy Spirit came on Pentecost, the Spirit was within them as it had been in Christ. At this time, the disciples were born from above by the Holy Spirit, marking the beginning of the church of God.
Comment: About 25 years after Christ's ascension into heaven, Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, hurried to be in Jerusalem in time for Pentecost! Just as the early church kept Pentecost every year, so the true church of God continues to keep it today as a continual reminder of our part in God's great master plan of salvation!
Was the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem more than a place of worship? Was it, in addition, a roadmap to future events – a kind of prophetic landmark whose significance is only now revealed through the development of satellite imagery?
The book asserts it has "deciphered Isaac Newton’s greatest paradox: None other than 'the unified field theory' of Bible prophecy."
Sir Isaac Newton was not only a great thinker in physics, the book explains, but had extensive knowledge of the Scriptures with a special interest in prophecy. Newton believed there was a hidden code, a type of time-encrypted language. He believed the key to deciphering this code was the Temple of Solomon. He wrote extensively on the length measurements of the Temple and suggested it intersected time and dimension, serving as a prophetic and supernatural structure.
According to Flynn, although Newton never cracked this code, he was on the right track and was limited only by the lack of sophisticated satellite technology.
"The description of Jerusalem as a terrestrial center point, situated in the center of the world, is found in Philo's Legatio and Gaium," Flynn notes. "The world is like a human eyeball. The white of the eye is the ocean surrounding the world, the iris is this continent, the pupil is Jerusalem, and the image in the pupil is the Holy Temple."
"A belief that the ancients held unusual scientific knowledge, of which only fragments remain today, was held by many great philosophers and scientists who participated in the 'scientific revolution,' explains the publisher's description of the book. "Though research by these men led to great discovery, many were convinced that they were merely scratching the surface of an immense but lost pristine knowledge … somehow reflected in the architecture and remains of ancient civilizations."
Now comes Flynn's treatise which takes on the explanation of the true form and nature of the original knowledge.
"For the first time in history, 'Temple at the Center of Time' uncovers what Newton was looking for and, in so doing, proves that pivotal events in history are unquestionably connected in time and space to Jerusalem," the review said. "Newton didn't know it. The key was right in front of him."
Among the mysteries addressed is the location now of the lost Ark of the Covenant.
The Turin Shroud is not a medieval forgery,
as has long been claimed, but could in fact date from the time of
Christ's death, a new book claims.
Many Catholics believe that the
14ft-long linen cloth was used to cover Christ's body when he was lifted
down from the cross after being crucified Photo: EPA
Experiments conducted by scientists at the University of Padua in northern
Italy have dated the shroud to ancient times, a few centuries before and
after the life of Christ.
Many Catholics believe that the 14ft-long linen cloth, which bears the imprint
of the face and body of a bearded man, was used to bury Christ's body when
he was lifted down from the cross after being crucified 2,000 years ago.
The analysis is published in a new book, "Il Mistero della Sindone"
or The Mystery of the Shroud, by Giulio Fanti, a professor of mechanical and
thermal measurement at Padua University, and Saverio Gaeta, a journalist.read more
Central to our understanding of the biblical Feast of Unleavened
Bread is the realization that the resurrected Jesus Christ lives His
life in every individual Christian.
Source: Photos.com
Growing numbers of Christians around the world are discovering and
celebrating the biblical festivals outlined in Leviticus 23. By looking
at the symbolism associated with these days, they are coming to view
them in light of the life and mission of Jesus Christ.
After all, Jesus Christ Himself commenced the acting out of the plan of
salvation by becoming our sacrificial Passover lamb. As the apostle
Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 5:7, "For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us" (compare Isaiah 53:7-9 ; 1 Peter 1:18-19 ).
Furthermore, Jesus started His Church on another of these festivals,
the Feast of Pentecost (Acts 2). He must have considered them important.
During the spring of the year (March-April in the northern hemisphere),
immediately after Passover and before the Feast of Pentecost, falls
another biblical feast—the seven-day Feast of Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:6-8 ; Exodus 12:17-18 ).
Here we'll take a brief look at the greatest event to have ever taken
place during this feast—and what it means for Christians today.
I come home from work at 10:00pm, and I microwave some leftovers for
dinner. As soon as I turn to the table, the bowl falls out of my hand
and directly onto the floor where it shatters into four or five large
pieces. Fortunately, there were only two shards, so it was easy to clean
up. Thus, I write without my dinner.
Between commercials during
each episode, I have commented about the series on Facebook. Afterward, I
use my comments as notes or an outline for my blog post. Each blog post
is written after days of consideration. Originally, I wanted to make it
immediate, but life issues delayed it until Thursday. Then, I realized
it was much better to just wait.
The Pharisees claim to uphold a
strict and ridged adherence to the Law, but they tend to break the Law
when it serves their own self-interests. Even though the Pharisees have
convicted Jesus of blasphemy, Caiaphas remains troubled about what to do
with Him. The law is clear: stone him. However, he does not want to
stone Jesus for fear of His supporters rioting. Pilate has the authority
and power to kill Jesus; if the people protest and riot, they would be
massacred. If Pilate kills Him, it would absolve him of guilt in eyes of
the people. Furthermore, the people would be too terrified of a
massacre to protest, so there would still be peace.
Caiaphas goes
to Pilate and informs him of a dangerous criminal threatening Rome and
Judaea. Pilate considers this the High Priest's problem and states
bluntly, "then kill Him."
I want to go, to give you now, in summary, some things that
really will, in a nutshell, show you what to look for in the immediate future;
in the months, year or two, just ahead of us now.
1. Look for a charismatic Arab leader who will attempt to
bring Arab nations under the one green flag of Islam, who will become the king
of the south of prophecy.
2. Look for the creation of a multi-national, all-European
army or rapid-deployment force capable of immediately launching an occupation of
Palestine. That's already being formed.
3. Look for the intervention of a great false prophet who
will give his blessing to the creating of a united Europe and its advance into
Palestine.
4. Look for the building of a temple or the erection of a
temporary structure and the dedication of a corner stone, and the institution of
priests and sacrifices in Jerusalem.
5. Look for some major catastrophe to strike Israel, which
will cause either the government to approve the destruction of the Arab mosques,
or a coup by the Israeli military to accomplish the same thing.
6. Look for a combined attack of Arab armies against
Israel.
7. Watch for skyrocketing energy prices and a global
economic meltdown with Japan as well as Europe and the United States plunging
into a global great depression.
8. Look for the emergence of dictators and kings to take
over chaotic governments mired in depression, civil unrest, race wars, and
anarchy.
9. Continue to watch for major attacks against the West
from terrorists, possibly using chemical, biological, and even nuclear dirty
bomb weapons, attacking water supplies, transportation, nuclear power plants,
and major centers of population.
10. Expect in the future major persecution of God's people
and attacks against God's work on Earth by a great false church and her
sympathizers.
11. Look for this king of the south to push at the beast
power of Europe, such as an oil embargo, which would have to result in an
immediate military occupation of the Middle East including the sources of oil.
12. Look for the possibility that the invasion of Israel by
the beast power is this time in an attempt to save the remaining Jews alive as a
peacekeeping gesture rather that to occupy as if an enemy.
13. Watch for increasing earthquakes in diverse places,
disease epidemics, and regional wars around the world; China might invade
Taiwan, North Korea might invade South Korea, the Philippines or Vietnam or
North Korea might invade to each other to try to obtain the Spratley Islands.
Look for an increase in heavenly signs such as meteor showers, and comets that
might occur.
14. Look for the eventual time when the work of God is
going to be put down and out and will be censored and will be unable, anymore,
to shout a witness and a warning. That is a scenario of prophecy that is
Biblically based, and you can watch for those things all around the world as you
have been, I'm sure. So don't cease, and always, when you watch your daily news
and see these things happening, see them in the context of what you know Bible
prophecy says is sure to happen.
During this Passover season, many Christians who understand that Passover and not Easter are what Christ and the early Church of God observed. Today, thousands of Jews and Sabbath keeping Christians still observe the Passover in the spring. Everyone knows, Jesus kept the Passover, from the time of His youth. Luke records:
His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast (Luke 2:41-42).
The Apostle Paul also understood that that Jesus was a symbolic replacement for the Passover lamb that the Jewish people used. He also taught that Christians should still continue to observe Passover:
Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (1 Corinthians 5:7-8).
But how were Christians to do this?
The Apostle Paul explains:
For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me." In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body (1 Corinthians 11:23-29).
So Christians were to keep the Passover in the manner that Jesus observed His final Passover. And that was at night as memorial--a memorial is an annual, not a weekly event. Notice that Jesus stated, "For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes." It is Jesus' death that this commemorates, and the Christian Passover is the annual commemoration of it. Also notice that Jesus DID NOT say to do this AS OFTEN AS YOU DESIRE, only that when you do it, you are proclaiming His death.
Now here is the rub, the simple fact is that Jesus did not hold his Passover on the same night that the Jews did! His was on the night of Nisan 13, one full day before the Jews where to have their Passover lamb. Scholars understand this dilemma and have tried to explain the paradox away over the years be making arguments that Jesus was forced to follow the Passover a day earlier only this one time because he had to die and the real date when the Jews would be slaughtering the lamb. The problem is that the Gospels never mention this fact! In short, the disciples, who seemed to always question Jesus whenever he veered from accepted norms, were not a bit wondering why their Passover meal was a day earlier than the rest! We can not also think they knew anything about Jesus' death, because he informed them of it (to their disbelief) that night during the meal. The Gospels state:
“Then came the Day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover must be killed. And He sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat." So they said to Him, "Where do You want us to prepare?" And He said to them, "Behold, when you have entered the city, a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him into the house which he enters. Then you shall say to the master of the house, 'The Teacher says to you, "Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?" ' Then he will show you a large, furnished upper room; there make ready." So they went and found it just as He had said to them, and they prepared the Passover (Luke 22:7-13).”
It is apparent that this was only the 12th day of Nissan (in the Jewish calendar) when this happened, and not the 13th, as other have stated. We know this because unlike what the Bible commands, Jews have adopted a pagan calendar system whose days begin at the start of the nighttime, rather than the morning time. The Roman day begins at midnight, Jews at about 6PM, whereas the Bible states the dawn is the start of the new day. (See our link: When does the day begin).
Hence according to Jewish time the 13th did not start until sunset of this day when the remark in Luke is referring to, but that IS NOT what the Gospels say. It states that this day was the day when the Passover lambs where to be slain, one full day before the Jews did it! Someone is not following the same dates here, and any reading of these verses demonstrates this perfectly.
A different Calendar?
A shocking search into the three groups that made up Judaism in the times of Christ: Essenes, Pharisees, and Sadducces. With radically differing beliefs, these movements often clashed. It turns out that there were great disagreements over the calendar among many other things religious. For example, the dating of the new moon by the Pharisees differed from the Sadducces by a day or two, hence holy days where counted differently by the two groups whenever each came to power. Whenever a Pharisee was the High Priest, the Pharisee calendar was used, and when a Sadducce was High Priest, their dating system was used.
A significant feature of the Essene sect and its calendar, which was based on a solar system Of 364 days, unlike the common Jewish calendar, which was lunar and consisted Of 354-days. It is not clear how the sectarian calendar was reconciled, as was the normative Jewish calendar, with the astronomical time system, but most likely by starting from the springtime, each calendar was was quite similar on common dates.
The author of the Essene “Book of Jubilees” accuses the followers of the lunar calendar of turning secular "days of impurity" into "festivals and holy days" (Jubilees 6:36-37).Books of Jubilees and the writings of Enoch I which discuss the calendar and dating system by which these people lived. Scholars had been attentive of the Apocryphal Calendar before this find, but interest was renewed with the discovery of these scrolls by which the Qumran sect lived. It is based on 364 days per year. The year is divided into four periods (to correspond to the four seasons of the year), of 13 weeks or 91 days in each period. There are 12 months in each year or a total of 52 weeks.
This “solar” calendar warrants extensive study, as there are now numerous proofs it was the calendar used by Abraham, King Solomon, King David, and High Priest Zadok. It is my belief that this solar calendar used by Moses and David, and Solomon, was also being used by Jesus and early Christians, and the reason why Christ's disciples where not wondering why their Passover came early is simple: They always followed a different Passover while with Christ. It appears everybody in that time had different dates for holy days!
So while many Christians in the Churches of God think that Christ changed the date of Passover from the 14th of Nissan to the 13th (instituting a new Last Supper instead) he did no such thing! Christ was not following a new “Last Supper,” but the Passover!
“And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.(Luke 22:15)”
this was a Passover meal, pure and simple!
The Answer!
It is clear that Jesus was eating the Passover one night before the Jews. It is also clear that he was not eating it a day early just this once. I believe it is also evident that Jesus was following the true Godly calendar instituted by Moses, followed by ancient Israel until their captivity. I also contend that Jesus observed a MORNING start of the day, as Moses did, and God commanded in Genesis. In a perfect solar year, the springtime is always on the 20th of March. 14 days later, every year is April 2, the correct time to kill the Passover, and to eat it that same night! Also we know that Christ died on a Wednesday and not a Friday, and his meal was on a Tuesday night! I was quite blown away recently to hear Hal Lindsey state on his national radio program that he has come to believe that the scriptures show a Wednesday crucifixion.
Jesus declared that he would be dead for 3 full days and nights. “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered Him, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; yet no sign shall be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the fish; so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Matthew 12:38-40”
Try and get three days and three nights from Friday sunset to Sunday morning, you cannot!
Even more clearly, Jesus said that He would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. This promise meant that 72 hours would pass from His death to His resurrection and that this would be the sign for the Jews that He was who He said He was (the Messiah). The Friday crucifixion with a resurrection before sunrise on Sunday morning totals approximately 36 hours. If we understood Jesus to mean that within three days and three nights He would rise again, then any period short of that would suffice. But He taught thatafter three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, then He would rise again. This logically would necessitate the crucifixion on a Wednesday, then the daylight and nighttime periods of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday would be three days and three nights. We count from either His actual death shortly after 3 PM or from the time His body was laid in the tomb, shortly before the annual Sabbath began, although I believe we should count the 72 hours from the time the body was laid in the tomb.
Notice in Matthew 27 that the chief priests met with Pilate the next morning after the crucifixion to get permission to post a guard and seal the tomb. The Bible records that this was the day after the day of preparation. This day of preparation is the 14th of Abib/Nisan in the Jewish calendar, when the homes were scoured for any leavened bread within the house and a preparation of food was readied for the Passover meal, and the Feast of Unleavened Bread [Mark 15:42, Luke 23:54, John 19:14, 31, 42]. Therefore, the grave of Jesus was not sealed until the morning of the 15th of Abib/Nisan, on the annual Sabbath. In the text from John 19:31, we learn that the body of Jesus needed to be removed from the cross because the Sabbath was about to begin and that Sabbath was a high day or annual Sabbath. This is consistent with the other verses which teach that the day of preparation was the day that Jesus died. Now we only need to determine whether the annual Sabbath and weekly Sabbath fell on the same day, which would lead us to the conclusion that Jesus died on a Friday afternoon, shortly after 3 PM as commonly taught. If not, then He died on another day of the week.
But the Jews, because it was the day of preparation (evening of the Sabbath), they were saying, "These bodies should not pass the night on their crosses, because the Sabbath say is approaching, for that Sabbath was a high day (an annual Sabbath)." And they asked Pilate to break the legs of those who had been crucified, and they would be taken away (die quickly). John 19:31
And Nicodemus came also, who had come before to Jesus by night; and he brought with him spices of myrrh and aloes for Jesus, about a hundred pounds. And they took away the body of Jesus and wrapped it with linen and with spices, just as is the burial custom of the Jews (Judeans). John 19:39-40
And Josephtook the body and wrapped it in a sheet of pure linen; and he placed it in his own new tomb, which was cut in stone. Then they rolled a large stone against the entrance of the tomb; and they departed. And Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb (grave). Matthew 27:59-61
Jesus died sometimes between AD 26 and 35 according to all scholars who get these dates from various secular events. Herod died 4 BCE, so Jesus must have been born on or before 4 BCE. Luke 2:2-5 says Jesus was born during the time of Cyrenius (Quirinius) was Governor of Syria. Cyrenius became governor of Syria 6CE. So Jesus must have been born 6BCE or later. The gospels say that Jesus was crucified during the governorship of Pontius Pilate, which places it within the range 26 to 36 CE.
Is there a time between these years that the Jewish Passover fell on a Wednesday night, that their Preparation day would have fell on a Wednesday daytime, which is our April 3rd (The real date of Passover) and that they would be eating their Passover that same evening? The answer is YES! In the year 30 BCE, on our calendar today, April 2 (the real Passover) fell on a Tuesday night, and April 3rd when the Jews started killing the lambs on their 14th of Nisan! The schedule of events fits perfectly!
Jesus died for our sins! “... for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed (Romans 3:23-25).” He is our Passover! “For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (1 Corinthians 5:7-8).”
We are to keep the feast of Passover, not Easter, a pagan day instituted by pagans that took created a false Christianity that we are warned not to follow!
When did Jesus die? Most likely on this date some 1983 years ago!
Just that you know, because most don't, tonight is the Passover in God's Calendar. Tonight will be the Passover meal, followed by seven days of unleavened bread. Tomorrow will be the "HIGH DAY" starting at dawn. The Bible clearly points that "Christ is our Passover" and that we are to "keep the feast" (Blue Letter Bible it folks, you will find it!). Unfortunately, most Passover following Christians churches MISTAKENLY follow the Jewish calendar and have the wrong date of Passover and every other one of God's Holidays. Now you know the real date!
The reference below is a good read on Christians and Passover, but they too follow the wrong date.
Editor's Note: In a nutshell, the real Calendar given to Moses was SOLAR based on fixing the new year on the spring equinox. Moses was raised as an Egyptian, which also followed the SOLAR and not a Lunar-Solar Year. The Hebrew Calendar given to Moses by God was the same as the Egyptian, but starting with a different month. The year started on the spring equinox (March 20-21) instead of the summer solstice (The Egyptian new year about June 21). The Bible shows beyond any shadow of a doubt that God's calendar only has 12--- 30-day months (that's only 360 days, the true year BEFORE the Flood of Noah) and that 5 1/4 days of each year are simply NOT COUNTED!
Many today do not believe in the flood, but the evidence of the great flood of Noah is found everywhere and no place better than the calendar, any calendar! Before the flood, the earth was formed perfectly and the calendar was also perfect! The pre-flood humans followed a 360 day, twelve month calendar with each month have exactly thirty days! After the flood however, all hell broke out for mankind trying to keep the old "perfect" calendar. The earth had trillions of tons of extra water weight and sloed down! 5 1/4 days slower to be exact! Ever since, man has tried to make the calendar perfect again, but we cannot! The moon now circles the earth in only 29.5 days, so lunar months are no longer accurate (a lunar year is only 356 days long) Post flood mankind worked on calendars for generations. The Egyptians finally decided on a fix for the calendar that is actually more accurate than the calendar we follow today! Even with our modern calendar, we lose a day every four years (leap year) and we almost never know how many days are in many months (28, 29, 30 or 31????) The Egytian and Moses' calendar had 12-30 day months EVERY YEAR and 5 and 1/4 "no days". This calendar never needed adjustment! Passover, and all Holy Days (except the weekly Sabbath fell on the same date each year!)
In Moses' calendar that "fixed date" is the spring equinox to make sure Passover always fell on the same solar day! Proof of a 12 month 30 day month year? Revelation says that 1260 days ARE 3-1/2 years OR 42 months! Do the math! It is PLAIN and simple. The Bible answers all of it's own mysteries. Proof that Jesus did not follow the Jewish Calendar? His Passover was 1 Day BEFORE the Jewish Passover! Nobody ever notices that fact..... Even the Armstrong's can't figure out the holydays because they never understood that the calendar Christ was following was the one that Moses followed and NOT the one the Jews were following then.
It is one of the "Feasts of the Lord" in the Bible, all of which have special meaning and significance for all believers in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The feasts were commemorated by Jesus and His apostles – and continued to be observed by Jesus' followers in the first century even after His death and resurrection.
Forward by BOB BARNEY: They have the wrong year, but do have the right theory! Finally, a bunch of people INCLUDING THE POPE now agrees with me!!!
Sir Colin's book, The Mystery of the Last Supper, out this week, uses astronomy to re-create calendars, plus detail drawn from texts such as the Dead Sea Scrolls to propose a timeline for Jesus's final days.
''The claim I make is that we're misinterpreting some parts of the Gospels because we don't understand sufficiently life in the first century AD,'' he said.
Sir Colin argues that Jesus celebrated Passover early using the pre-exilic calendar, dating from before the Jewish exile to Babylon, but still used by some marginal groups in society at the time. It would have been understood by early Christians as operating alongside the official Jewish calendar, he said.
Pope Benedict XVI spoke of a similar theory in 2007, when he said Jesus probably celebrated the meal with his disciples according to the Qumran calendar, at least a day before mainstream observances.
April Fools' Day, sometimes called All Fools' Day, is one of the most light-hearted days of the year. Its origins are uncertain. Some see it as a celebration related to the turn of the seasons, while others believe it stems from the adoption of a new calendar.
New Year's Day Moves
Ancient cultures, including those of the Romans and Hindus, celebrated New Year's Day on or around April 1. It closely follows the vernal equinox (March 20th or March 21st.) In medieval times, much of Europe celebrated March 25, the Feast of Annunciation, as the beginning of the new year.
In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII ordered a new calendar (the Gregorian Calendar) to replace the old Julian Calendar. The new calendar called for New Year's Day to be celebrated Jan. 1. That year, France adopted the reformed calendar and shifted New Year's day to Jan. 1. According to a popular explanation, many people either refused to accept the new date, or did not learn about it, and continued to celebrate New Year's Day on April 1. Other people began to make fun of these traditionalists, sending them on "fool's errands" or trying to trick them into believing something false. Eventually, the practice spread throughout Europe.
Problems With This Explanation
There are at least two difficulties with this explanation. The first is that it doesn't fully account for the spread of April Fools' Day to other European countries. The Gregorian calendar was not adopted by England until 1752, for example, but April Fools' Day was already well established there by that point. The second is that we have no direct historical evidence for this explanation, only conjecture, and that conjecture appears to have been made more recently.
Constantine and Kugel
Another explanation of the origins of April Fools' Day was provided by Joseph Boskin, a professor of history at Boston University. He explained that the practice began during the reign of Constantine, when a group of court jesters and fools told the Roman emperor that they could do a better job of running the empire. Constantine, amused, allowed a jester named Kugel to be king for one day. Kugel passed an edict calling for absurdity on that day, and the custom became an annual event.
"In a way," explained Prof. Boskin, "it was a very serious day. In those times fools were really wise men. It was the role of jesters to put things in perspective with humor."
This explanation was brought to the public's attention in an Associated Press article printed by many newspapers in 1983. There was only one catch: Boskin made the whole thing up. It took a couple of weeks for the AP to realize that they'd been victims of an April Fools' joke themselves.
Spring Fever
It is worth noting that many different cultures have had days of foolishness around the start of April, give or take a couple of weeks. The Romans had a festival named Hilaria on March 25, rejoicing in the resurrection of Attis. The Hindu calendar has Holi, and the Jewish calendar has Purim. Perhaps there's something about the time of year, with its turn from winter to spring, that lends itself to lighthearted celebrations.
Observances Around the World
April Fools' Day is observed throughout the Western world. Practices include sending someone on a "fool's errand," looking for things that don't exist; playing pranks; and trying to get people to believe ridiculous things.
The French call April 1
Poisson d'Avril, or "April Fish." French children sometimes tape a picture of a fish on the back of their schoolmates, crying "Poisson d'Avril" when the prank is discovered.
What are the ancient origins of Easter and does it really matter?
In the ancient heathen world there were gods and goddesses for everything. There were gods for the sun, moon, trees, animals, love, and so on. And as Paul found out, there was even a god called the “unknown god”, just in case they missed any. Some of these gods were at one time real human beings and after death were glorified to the status of a god or goddess. The people did not necessarily worship the sun or the moon but the god that was “in charge” of the sun or the moon, etc… Even the great Caesars were given god-like status even while some were still alive!
The greatest of all of the gods throughout all of history and all civilizations was virtually always the “sun-god”. And the first god worshipped as the god of the sun was Nimrod, the very same Nimrod from the book of Genesis. And from the book of Genesis we learn that Nimrod was a great grandson of Noah, an incredible hunter and became a mighty king on the earth. Genesis also records for us in chapter 10 that he was responsible for building the kingdoms of Babel and Nineveh along with many other cities. But his most famous accomplishment was the “brilliant” idea to build a “tower whose top would reach the heavens”. This in turn provoked the LORD to come down out of heaven to confuse their language and scatter them over the face of the earth. This infamous tower became known as the “Tower of Babel”. Nimrod was said to be the most powerful ruler of all time and when he died, Babylonian legend says that he ascended into the heavens and he became the sun-god. The name that the people of his time would call him would be “Baal” which means “lord”. The wife that he left behind was named Semiramis, who would now become the “Queen of Heaven” since she was the wife of the sun-god Baal.
Years later Semiramis became pregnant. She declared that she had become pregnant by the rays of the sun of her deceased husband, Nimrod (Baal), and nine months later she gave birth to a son in which she gave the name “Tammuz”. Because of the god-like status of his late father Nimord, baby Tammuz was quickly haled to be the reincarnation of his father Nimrod. Tammuz, like his father, also became a mighty hunter on the earth. But, when he was forty years of age, he was killed by a wild boar on one of his hunting expeditions. Because he was revered to be the reincarnated sun-god, his death brought great despair upon the people of Babel. So, they set aside forty days of weeping and fasting for Tammuz each year in the Spring to commemorate each year that he was alive. (This tradition has been passed down through the ages to the church and is where we get the forty days of fasting before Easter Sunday. This is where the Catholic original tradition of “Lent” came from until Catholic leadership changed the origination to the 40 days of fasting that Jesus did in the wilderness.) After the forty days of weeping, they would kill a wild boar (getting back at the boar that killed Tammuz) and eat the ham on the first Sunday after the Spring Equinox (This is where the tradition of eating ham on Easter Sunday came from). Also as a side note, one of the ancient statues of Mary holding baby Jesus in the Vatican is actually a REAL statue of Semiramis holding baby Tammuz! The Catholic Church just changed the names to Mary and Jesus!
Many years later, as the legend continues, Tammuz’s mother Semiramis dies and ascends into heaven. But as the luck of the Babylonian legend would have it, when she ascended into the heavens, the gods sent her back down to earth in a giant egg at sunrise on the first Sunday after the vernal equinox (first day of Spring). She landed in the Euphrates River, the egg busted open and she turned a bird into an egg laying rabbit. (Have you ever wondered where the Easter Bunny and Easter Eggs came from? Well, now you know.) Eggs were very symbolic of many pagan religions as many believed that the earth itself came from a giant egg. Furthermore, the rabbit was looked upon as the most fertile animal on earth and the egg was also viewed as a symbol of fertility and new life. This is why these two symbols were attributed to the new “Queen of Heaven”, Ishtar.
It is also important to note that the process of deifying someone included renaming the individual after they had died. Many times they would be given a name that represented whatever they were going to be the god of. The new name of Semiramus according to the Babylonians was Ishtar, the god of fertility and the god of the East, or sunrise. Later, the Phoenicians and the Greeks in their language called her Astarte, the Zidonians called her Ashtaroth (Judges 2:13 “And they forsook the LORD and served Baal and Ashtaroth.”), the Philistines in the time of Saul kept the name Ishtar and the Celtics called her Eostra.
(Judges 10:6, “And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the LORD, and served Him not.”)
But all of these names were referring to the same goddess: the bare-breasted fertility goddess of the Spring. And guess what the Anglicization of the Babylonian name “Ishtar” is? You guessed it---Easter.
The Resurrection was not on Easter Sunday! Easter is not a Christian name, but the title of the idolatrous queen of heaven." Here's an explanation of the true origin and meaning of Lent, Easter eggs, and sunrise services!
WHY DO you believe the things you believe, do the things you do?
The chances are you never stopped to ask yourself that question. You have been taught since childhood to accept Easter as the chief of the Christian holidays.
You have supposed it is part of the true Christian religion to observe Lent, "Holy Week," "Good Friday," to buy hot cross buns at the bakery, to have colored Easter eggs, to dress up and go to church Easter Sunday -- perhaps to attend an Easter sunrise service!
Because of the "sheep" instinct in humans, most of us believe a lot of things that are not true. Most of us do a lot of things that are wrong, supposing these things to be right, or even sacred!
Ishtar the Pagan Goddess
What is the meaning of the name "Easter"? You have been led to suppose the word means "resurrection of Christ." For 1600 years the Western world has been taught that Christ rose from the dead on Sunday morning. But that is merely one of the fables the Apostle Paul warned readers of the New Testament to expect. The resurrection did not occur on Sunday! (For the astonishing proof setting forth the exact time of the resurrection, write for our free booklet The Resurrection Was Not on Sunday.)
The name "Easter," which is merely the slightly changed English spelling of the name of the ancient Assyrian and Babylonian goddess Ishtar, comes to us from old Teutonic mythology where it is known as Ostern. The Phoenician name of this goddess was Astarte, consort of Baal, the sun god, whose worship is denounced by the Almighty in the Bible as the most abominable of all pagan idolatry.
With the growing concerns of nutrition and fitness, I get more and
more questions about the health practices of great leaders like Jesus.
In his excellent book “What Would Jesus Eat?” Dr. Don Colbert does a
great job of explaining what the Master would have eaten and drank
during his day.
Colbert told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “I thought I’d go back to
the training manual – the Bible – and see what Jesus ate. Lo and behold,
Jesus ate the healthiest diet ever developed, the Mediterranean diet.”
The Bible gives us some hint to the Savior’s health habits in verses
like Luke 24:42, which tells how he ate broiled fish and honeycomb.
Other passages describe how he consumed fish, bread and wine at the
feeding of the multitudes, the wedding at Cana and Lord’s Supper.
Colbert, however, takes the search a step further, looking at the average diets of those living in first-century Israel.
Jesus was a Jew, so he would have followed Old Testament dietary laws. These laws were exacting:
Easter is the greatest of all "Christian" observances, closely followed by Christmas. It supposedly celebrates the resurrection of Christ. WHY, then, did Paul command the Gentile Christians to "show the Lord's DEATH" till He come? Jesus Christ Himself celebrated His famous "Last Supper," with His disciples, proclaiming that a bit of unleavened bread represented His body; that a sip of wine represented His shed blood. This was in commemoration of His DEATH for the sins of all mankind. Why is there no command anywhere in the Bible to celebrate His resurrection? Why did not the apostles celebrate it? Is the "Passover" only "Jewish," and therefore not Christian? Should Christians observe Easter? Does the Bible command Easter observance? You will be astonished at the answers! Here, from the pages of your own Bible is the PLAIN TRUTH about EASTER and the Passover!
You were born into a "ready-made" world. You had no voice in how it is structured; its customs, traditions, religions, or politics. It took you about two years to learn the language of your parents; about six years to learn your own indigenous alphabet; about seven or eight years to learn to read simple sentences, and to begin to write.
However, from your earliest years, long before you learned to read or write; long before you learned what "research" or "study" was, you heard about the tooth fairy, Santa Claus, the Easter bunny, and watched, no doubt, hundreds of cartoons and kiddy shows on television. From your earliest years on this earth, your parents were inculcating into your mind the traditions, customs, fables, superstitions and assumptions of their own upbringing.
The point is, you first learned of "Easter," or other religious customs through your parents or guardians. You did not research history, carefully weigh the facts, and make a reasoned decision to observe "Easter."
Millions of adults in the western world of professing Christianity have memories of those sleepy mornings when, all excited to be dragged from bed at perhaps 3:00 or 4:00 a.m., they were dressed in frilly little frocks or a new little boy's suit, complete with clip-on bow tie; white patent-leather shoes, greens and yellows—the colors of spring—and trundled off in the family car to an open air coliseum, or perhaps to a hilltop, to join with hundreds or thousands of others in an "Easter Sunrise Service."
You didn't know what "Easter" was. Only that it sounded a little like a point on the compass. Of course, the sun rose in the East. Maybe that was it? Or was it merely the opposite of "Wester"? Most likely, if you are like millions of others, you never became curious enough to go to a major encyclopedia and look up the term. We tend to take our environment for granted.
Have you ever looked into the history and origins of Easter?
Good Friday is the Friday immediately preceding Easter Sunday, as
followed by most mainstream Christian churches. It is celebrated
traditionally as the day on which Jesus was crucified, yet the Bible
never mentions the day "Friday" as the actual day Christ died, it was
inferred by early Catholic church leaders almost 300 years after
Christ's death on the stake. If you are interested in a study of the
issue, please see our article on SUNDAY that discusses the various views
on which day Jesus was crucified. Assuming that Jesus was crucified and
died on a Friday, modern churches follow this day (TODAY) as the day
Jesus died.
The Bible does not instruct Christians to remember
Good Friday or Easter for that matter, the holiday that the early church
followed was Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Why is
Good Friday referred to as “good”? What the Jewish authorities and
Romans did to Jesus was definitely not good (see Matthew chapters
26-27). However, as church theolgians say today is that the results of
Christ’s death "are very good!" Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his
own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for
us.” First Peter 3:18 tells us, “For Christ died for sins once for all,
the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to
death in the body but made alive by the Spirit.”
Many Christian
churches celebrate Good Friday with a subdued service, usually in the
evening, in which Christ’s death is remembered with solemn hymns,
prayers of thanksgiving, a message centered on Christ suffering for our
sakes, and observance of the Lord's Supper. Whether or not Christians
choose to “celebrate” Good Friday, the events of that day should be ever
on our minds because the death of Christ on the cross is the paramount
event of the Christian faith.
If you follow today as Good Friday,
be aware of the Biblical account but most importantly remember that on a
day in history, GOD DIED FOR YOUR SINS! That knowledge and a humble and
contrite heart will bring you a long way on the path to your
salvation.......
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