Come Out Of Her My People

The final episode of the season is here! In this episode we talk about participation in the Church body and leaving apostate churches (Revelation 18:4)

PSALMS to God · Come Out Of Her My People

¹After this I saw another angel with great authority coming down from heaven, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor. ²He called out in a mighty voice:

It has fallen,
Babylon the Great has fallen!
She has become a home for demons,
a haunt for every unclean spirit,
a haunt for every unclean bird,
and a haunt for every unclean and despicable beast. ³For all the nations have drunk
the wine of her sexual immorality,
which brings wrath.
The kings of the earth
have committed sexual immorality with her,
and the merchants of the earth
have grown wealthy from her sensuality and excess.
⁴Then I heard another voice from heaven:

Come out of her, my people,
so that you will not share in her sins
or receive any of her plagues.
⁵For her sins are piled up[e] to heaven,
and God has remembered her crimes.
⁶Pay her back the way she also paid,
and double it according to her works.
In the cup in which she mixed,
mix a double portion for her.
⁷As much as she glorified herself and indulged her sensual and excessive ways,
give her that much torment and grief.
For she says in her heart,
“I sit as a queen;
I am not a widow,
and I will never see grief.”
⁸For this reason her plagues will come in just one day—
death and grief and famine.
She will be burned up with fire,
because the Lord God who judges her is mighty. Revelation 18:1-8 CSB

Episode on defining "Church"

• I think of the Church as the body of Christ
• This doesn't have borders, but generally we look for people within a certain distance
• I still consider people I am able to call and pray with or talk to about spiritual matters part of my Church family

Personally I prefer smaller Churches where you can get to know people and develop ginuine relationships
Christianity is about doing life together!

If majority of the Church is in apostasy, it's time to leave
Matthew 10:14 says to move on if people don't want to hear the truth
Now is the time to leave behind the god of the world and start following the God of the Bible; it's time to focus on truth and turn away from man made traditions.

Then I heard another voice from heaven:

Come out of her, my people,
so that you will not share in her sins
or receive any of her plagues.
Revelation 18:4 CSB

Subscribe on YouTube

I recently started a YouTube channel![2]
Season 3 will be visual in addition to the usual format!
Currently I am doing a Bible Study series that includes my note taking

References & Footnotes

1. This is the last episode of the season, but God willing, I will be back in January 2021

The Reformation & Prophecy

Did you know that the Reformation is quietly mentioned in prophecy? This episode is diving in to the history and formation of the Catholic and Protestant Churches.

PSALMS to God · The Reformation and Prophecy

⁷ Then the angel said to me, “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast, with the seven heads and the ten horns, that carries her. ⁸ The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up from the abyss and go to destruction. Those who live on the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast that was, and is not, and is to come. ⁹This calls for a mind that has wisdom.

“The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated. They are also seven kings: ¹⁰Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he comes, he must remain for only a little while. ¹¹The beast that was and is not, is itself an eighth king, but it belongs to the seven and is going to destruction. ¹²The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they will receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour. ¹³These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast. ¹⁴These will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will conquer them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings. Those with him are called, chosen, and faithful.” Revelation 17:7-14 CSB

Disclaimer: This episode is not an attack on individuals. All statements made are about the organization and beliefs of the Catholic and Protestant Churches. There are people who mean well and are unaware of the errors of their church in many lost/deceived/apostate churches (not limited to the Catholic Church). In the end, God will judge them by their relationship with Him and according to what they knew.

The official start of The Reformation is generally attributed to October 31, 1517, when Luther nailed his 95 Theses.
There were attempts at reformation before Luther, as well.

The invention of the printing press and translating the Bible into the common tongue gave ordinary people access to the Word. The Gutenberg Bible (one of the first books ever printed) was still printed in Latin, but over time the availability of the Bible in the common tongue (e.g., English, German, etc.) became the norm

King Henry splitting from the Catholic church over his desire tho divorce his wife is both an example of the power the papacy had over European kings as well as part of the success of the reformation.[1]
The Vatican has a ton of money.[2]
"The Pope is the ruler of both Vatican City State and the Holy See. The Holy See, as the supreme body of government of the Catholic Church, is a sovereign juridical entity under international law."[5]
The relationship change between the US and Catholicism

• Many protestants fled persecution from the Catholic church during The Reformation and ended up in the US. (There were also a few Catholics who fled persecution from protestants that ended up in the US, as well)
• The Supreme Court shifted drastically to now being ~62% (75% if Trump's nominee is confirmed) Catholic.[7]
• JFK is the only professed Catholic president the US has had.

Revelation 17:9 says the woman (or church[10]) is on 7 mountains(hills); The city of Rome, where the Vatican is located is also known as the 7 Hills or the 7 Hills of Rome.[9]

Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and they will deceive many Mark 13:6 CSB

The picture usually attributed to Jesus was painted approximately in the 1500s—it is not the Messiah.
Many suspect the picture is based on Cesare Borgia.[8]
Whoever it is a picture of, it does not match descriptions of the Biblical Christ; Christ was not European.[8]

For an in-depth study, check out this reference: Who Is the Antichrist?

²¹“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. ²²On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, drive out demons in your name, and do many miracles in your name?’ ²³Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you lawbreakers!’Matthew 7:21-23 CSB

Bible verses mentioned in the episode:

• People claim they know Christ but He denies knowing them — Matthew 7:21-23
• A beast is a nation — Daniel, Acts 10-11, Revelation
• Do not make a graven image — Exodus 20:4
• Descriptions of people "turning white" — Exodus 4:6-7; 2 Kings 5:27
• The woman (Church) hiding in the wilderness — Revelation 12
• Matthew 24:5; Luke 21:8; Mark 13:6

Leaders of Reformation Identify Papacy as Antichrist

I have looked up the individual references, but for ease, I'm linking to a reference of references 😊. [11] There are many more, but I only listed the most well known (other names are included and cited in the reference).

1. John Wycliffe — Bible Translator
2. William Tyndale — Bible Translator
3. Martin Luther — founder of the Lutheran Church
4. John Knox — founder of the Presbyterian Church
5. John Calvin — founder of Calvinism
6. John Wesley — founder of the Methodist Church
7. Charles Spurgeon — leader in the early Reformed Baptist Church

References & Footnotes

1. Sarah Pruitt. "How Henry VIII’s Divorce Led to Reformation". History. October 22, 2018
2. Ahiza Garcia. "Vatican Inc.: 5 facts about the business of the Catholic Church". CNN. September 24, 2015
3. Kristopher Morrison. Wealth of Roman Catholic Church impossible to calculate". National Post. March 9, 2013
4. "The Inquisition: A Model For Modern Interrogators". NPR. January 23, 2012
5. "U.S. Relations With the Holy See". US Department of State. August 27, 2020
6. Steven R. Weisman. "U.S. and Vatican Restore Full Ties After 117 Years". New York Times. January 11, 1984
7. "Demographics of the Supreme Court of the United States". Wikipedia; visited October 13, 2020
8. Kim Lacapria. "Is the Modern Face of Jesus Modeled on a ‘Gangster’s Son’?". Snopes. January 3, 2017
9. "Seven Hills of Rome". Encyclopædia Britannica. July 20, 1998
10. "Bible Verses about Woman as Symbol of Church". Church of the Great God; visited October 13, 2020
11. "Historic Quotes on the Papacy being the Antichrist". Reformed Books Online; visited October 13, 2020

You Are What You Eat

I grew up seeing Christians eat pork like Leviticus 11 didn't speak against it. Not once did anyone explain why we living contrary to that law. Eventually I decided to find out for myself. Spoiler alert, I realized the Bible didn't give us permission to eat things God told us not to.

PSALMS to God · You Are What You Eat

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 1 Corinthians 6:19 NKJV

• What you eat matters!!
• What you eat affects your physical health[3][4][5]
• What you eat affects your mental health[1][2]
• Think about what happens to your mind and body when you consumer things such as: coffee/caffeine, heavy drugs (e.g., heroin), alcohol, medication, etc.
• When I changed my diet I saw major differences. When I cut out unclean meat, it was like a Claritin clear commercial. When I cut out meat entirely, I no longer struggle with eczema, I have less menstral cramping, and I have more energy.
• God gave us specific information concerning what we eat from the very beginning!

I actually have an episode from season 1 with the same title. 🤷🏾‍♀️ It's worth a listen to if you haven't heard it yet (it's about self control when eating)

Genesis 1:29 & Genesis 2:16-17

• God gives Adam and Eve permission to eat from all seed bearing vegetation
• God's only rule is that they cannot eat from the Tree of Knowledge—the first and only rule before the fall was about what people consumed as food.
• for more information check out: You Are What You Eat: The Original Diet

Genesis 9:3-5

• God introduced flesh into our diet after the flood
• Noah knew the difference between clean and unclean animals; this is evidenced in Genesis 7:2,8 and Genesis 8:20. If Noah had been expected to eat and/or sacrifice the unclean animals, God would have told him to bring equal amounts of those animals.

Leviticus 11

• This is where we (the reader) are introduced to the definition of clean and unclean meat
• This definition had to exist before Moses wrote this chapter as Noah already knew what clean and unclean was. A precedence had already been set that only clean animals were sacrificed (meat eaten was always sacrificed first). Also, Islam formed from descendents of Abraham's oldest son, Ishmael, who lived long beofre Moses. Islam adheres to a similar dietary law—differences in the law could be due to passing down word of mouth, versus God re-establishing the definition with Moses.

Isaiah 66

• During the end times there consuming swine (pork) is still considered an abomination
• Read Isaiah 65 to under the context that these verses reference the end of days
• for more information check out: You Are What You Eat: Isaiah 66

Why do people think we have permission to eat unclean meat?

Mark 7 / Matthew 15

• People generally skip to "it's not what goes in but what comes out that defiles a man"
• The context of the passage is that the Pharisees were upset the disciples didn't wash their hands before eating bread
• This passage doesn't address unclean food, and if it did Peter wouldn't have been so shocked in Acts 10 since he was present for Christ's lecture
• for more information check out: You Are What You Eat: Mark 7

Acts 10

• Peter has a vision where he is told to kill and eat unclean animals
• Peter rejects this idea and boasts that he has never eaten unclean meat (this how we know Jesus didn't give them permission to do so in Mark 7)
• As with most dreams/visions in the Bible, we are told what the dream represents: Acts 10:28 and Acts 11:1-18
• The "beasts" in the dream symbolized unclean nations (the Gentiles); this follows the pattern of dreams in the Bible (see Daniel 7)
• for more information check out: You Are What You Eat: Acts 10

Romans 14

• The weak man eats only vegetables, but the strong one eats meat
• Note that the contrast is between vegetarian and omnivore, not clean and unclean meat
• Parallels 1 Corinthians 8 and 10, which are about meat sacrificed to idols
• for more information check out: You Are What You Eat: Romans 14

1 Timothy 4:1-7

• Can you actually eat all things? You can't eat bleach, poison, things you're allergic to, etc.
• Key phrase: "God created to be received with thanksgiving"
  What was created to be received with thanksgiving? Seed bearing plants and clean meat
• Notice that both forbidding to marry and commanding to abstain from clean meats is something that is done in the Catholic Church (and some protestant churches that kept traditions such as Lent)
• for more information check out: You Are What You Eat: 1 Timothy 4:1-7

Colossians 2

• This is about man made docrtines—while the Jews were notorious for adding to the law, there is a dietary law given by God
• Eating healthy is not an ordinance that is against you—the ordinances that were against the Israelites were the ones that required death and/or sacrifice when they broke them
• The list of things not to be judged on all related to the feast days and the ceremonial law (sacrifices)

¹⁷“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. ¹⁸For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. ¹⁹Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.Matthew 5:17-19 NKJV

References & Footnotes

1. Jeremy P. E. Spencer. "Food for thought: the role of dietary flavonoids in enhancing human memory, learning and neuro-cognitive performance: Symposium on ‘Diet and mental health’". Cambridge University Press; Volume 67, Issue 2. May 2008, pp. 238-252
2. Adrienne O'Neil, PhD et al. "Relationship Between Diet and Mental Health in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review". American Journal of Public Health. October 2014
3. "Diet and Health: Implications for Reducing Chronic Disease Risk". National Research Council (US) Committee on Diet and Health. 1989
4. WC Willet. "Diet and health: what should we eat?". Science ; Volume 264, Issue 5158. April 22 1994, pp. 532-537
5. Marian Glick-Bauer and Ming-Chin Yeh. "The Health Advantage of a Vegan Diet: Exploring the Gut Microbiota Connection". Nutrients. 2014

Church Hurt

Church hurt turns a lot of people away from God when it's actually us that are the problem. In this episode, I want to talk about how "Christians" have turned people away from Christ because we don't follow the words of Christ.

PSALMS to God · Church Hurt

¹Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! ²It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. ³Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. ⁴And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” Luke 17:1-4 NKJV

What is the difference between corporate church hurt and personal church hurt?
In this episode I talk about "corporate" and "personal" church hurt. When I say corporate church hurt I'm referring to things that apply to the institution of organized religion. These offsenses may not affect a person personally, but are issues with the religion as a whole. Personal church hurt occurs at a specific church between specific people.

Corporate Church Hurt Examples

• Racism -- Protestant "Christians" behaved outside of the word of God in their practices of slavery and murder of the indigenous population in America.[1]
• Sexism
• Sexual Assault/Pedophila

The issue is that people are claiming to be followers of God, but not living according to His Word and lying about His Word (re: all the images of Biblical figures as white people)

Admitting that you have angered someone is part of the process. Some times you have to pray to be compassionate and let God do the resolving of the situation.

Here are a few verses to meditate on:

• James 1:19-20
• Ephesians 4:2-3
• Romans 12:17-21
• John 13:34-35
• Proverbs 27:5-6
• Matthew 5:38-42
• Proverbs 19:11

"I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." -Gandhi[2]
The I Feel Statement—I feel _____ when you _____ and I would like you to _______.

References & Footnotes

1. In the episode, I called out Protestants because that's who shaped most of the US's history, but Catholicism has played a a role in spreading white supremacy as well.
2. Soutik Biswas. "Was Mahatma Gandhi a racist?". BBC News. September 17, 2015

Councils & Creeds

PSALMS to God · Councils & Creeds

Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained from the world. James 1:27 CSB

After the first century, the Church continued to have disagreements. When the Constantine declared he was a Christian, the Church became mainstream. With that change, there was an influx of people into the Church that may or may not have been truly converted—Christianity was now "hip." It was during this time that modern Christianity took form.

The Roman religion I mentioned and failed to pronounce is Mithraism. It was the dominate religion until the legalization of Christianity.[1] Much of the sun worship that has crept into the modern church comes from Mithraism.

The first 7 ecumenical councils

1. The First Council of Nicea (325ad)
2. The First Council of Constantinople (381ad)
3. The Council of Ephesus (431ad)
4. The Council of Chalcedon (451ad)
5. The Second Council of Constantinople (553ad)
6. The Third Council of Constantinople (680–681ad)
7. The Second Council of Nicaea (787ad)

Important decisions from the First Council of Nicea include a stance against Arianism (the belief that Jesus is a created being) and officially abandoning Passover for the pagan holiday of Easter.[2]

The Council of Laodicea was held in 364ad. Although it is considered a minor council by scholars, the major decision to "move" the Sabbath to Sunday was made.[3][4] (Note: only God can transfer holiness, we will dive deeper into this in the next episode)

Christians must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honouring the Lord's Day; and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema from Christ. Canon 29 of the Council of Laodicea[4]

References

1. Reinhold Merkelbach. "Mithraism". Encycolpædia Britannica. February 5, 2020
2. "First Council of Nicaea". Encycolpædia Britannica. November 29, 2019
3. What happened at the Council of Laodicea?". GotQuestions.org; visited July 8, 2020
4. "Synod of Laodicea (4th Century)" New Advent; visited July 8, 2020
5. "First Seven Ecumenical Councils". Wikipedia; visited July 8, 2020

Book Review: Is Christianity the White Man's Religion?

Is Christianity the White Man's Religion?: How the Bible is Good News for People of Color by Antipas L. Harris caught my eye while scrolling through Instagram. I've had my share of conversations on this topic, and though I've already been able to navigate this questionfor myself, I thought the book might introduce more information that would make such conversations easier. Based on the title, I expected the book to provide historical and theological answers to some of the age old questions people have by delving into the true history of the Bible, the Church, and white Christianity. Unfortunately, if I didn't have answers to the titular question, this book would not have helped me on that journey.

A Surface Level Mess

At 70 pages in, Dr. Harris has mentioned police brutality, racism, the Hebrew Israelites, Nation of Islam, African Spiritualism, and Megyn Kelly, but he hasn't answered a single question. Not only has he not answered questions, he has lead the casual reader to have new questions. For instance, he introduces the Hebrew Israelite theory that black people are the true Israelites and even provides the scriptural reference they use to support their idea (one of the few scripture references we see written out thus far), but as he complains about this group pulling young blacks from the Church, he doesn't give any push back as to why they are wrong. If I was unfamiliar with the group and the theory, I would have been more interested in researching their theory than continuing his book. This is just one example, but there are three main issues I have with the book: it lacks a clear focus, doesn't know who its audience is, and has questionable language when it comes to the theology.

A Lack of Focus

In one section, Dr. Harris has a heading "Does Jesus Care About Black People?" In this section he starts to discuss how racial identity informs how we relate to people, thus provoking black Christians to desire a black Jesus whom they can relate to. He follows this up with an example of Megyn Kelly asserting Jesus to be white, and then states that she needs Jesus to be white. Dr. Harris then leaves this conversation to discuss his time pastoring in prisons. He begins talking about racial bias in incarceration rates and how the Nation of Islam empowered black prisoners (also members of Nation of Islam are allowed to wear the Nation of Islam bow tie in jail). At the end of the chapter, I have potentially useful tidbits strung into an incoherent mess.

1. Dr. Harris never answers the question "Does Jesus Care About Black People?" in the section. Why did he make that the heading if he wasn't going to answer the question?
2. The discussion of how racial identity drives our interaction with God could have been flushed out much deeper. There are historical and pyschological aspects to this topic. What's more is that Dr. Harris asks if Christ can relate to the ghettos and barrios, but he neglects to talk about Christ's position at the bottom of society. Not only was Christ considered lowly in Jewish society, but the Jews were conquered by Rome and considered low among the larger society.
3. When Dr. Harris brings up Megyn Kelly, he names the woman she was responding to as though it is of importance, but it doesn't actually have any relevance. In fact, he spends time bemoaning her need to view Jesus as a white man, just a paragraph after explaining why minorities want to see him as a man of color. He doesn't give any reason why one is justifiable and the other is not. Nor does he offer any suggestions...
4. Instead of addressing the questions he has already brought up, Dr. Harris goes off on a tangent about people in prison. Why do we need to know about bow ties in prisons? Why are talking about the Nation of Islam instead of answering the question? If we're going to tie prison in to identity, why aren't you discussing the fact that most of the disciples were wrongfully accused and thrown in prison?

The entire book reads like this.

Who is Your Audience?

Another big issue in the book is that there's a disconnect between the title/synopsis and who the intended audience is. Based on the title, I assumed the audience was someone who was either asking the question "is Chrisitianity the white man's religion?" or someone who deals with people asking this question (pastor, youth leader, parent, etc.). Instead, the book reads as though it is written for someone who doesn't know this question exists and has no idea why anyone would ask the question. The first chapter should introduce the problem, but subsequent chapters should move you closer to an answer.

There are definitely larger issues of structural racism or concepts of racial identity that warrant deeper discussion in an individual chapter, but there should also be answers within these chapters. For instance, in the above example about racial identity informing the relationship one has with God, we should have also had discussions about how we can identify with God. If the audience is already asking the titular question, they aren't reading the book to hear more questions.

If instead the book is meant for those who are confused as to why one would ask the question, the title and synopsis should have been written to indicate that the book is meant to guide people through the minds of those asking the question. It should not purport to answer the questions if it's not going to deliver.

The Language of What You Believe

Several sentences in this book made me pause and ask about the authors beliefs. We're going to discuss 3 of them.

The incarnation is about a God who came among us in Jesus Christ and set up residence in our neighborhoods (John 1:14)

On page 72, Dr. Harris refers to "a" god coming amongst us and not "The God" who came into our life. If this was the only questionable sentence in the book, I would write it of as poor wording. However, just a few pages later (page 75), he seems to question the Biblical narrative of history.

From this child, the Hebrew people—the nation of Israel—are said to have eventually emerged.

Dr. Harris doesn't seem convinced that the nation of Israel descends from Abraham and Sarah's child Isaac. He leaves room for other possibilities, making me question his loyalty to the scriptures. This is excerbated by his sudden confidence in the worldly narrative.

Finally, when Constantine's own mother converted to the faith, the emperor saw the light. Constantine became the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity.

On page 86, Dr. Harris seems fully convinced that Constantine actually converted to Christianity. Most scholarly sources admit that Constantine had a very superficial understanding of Christianity. In fact, Constantine's "conversion" is a crucial part of the problem the book is supposed to be addressing. The Romans had a habit of taking the religions of the regions they conquered and meldng them with their own beliefs for the benefit of the kingdom—a weird form of assimilation if you will. This is how may of the pagan practices crept into the religion, but more importantly for Dr. Harris' book, this is how the religion went from be the religion of brown people, to the religion of Europeans. The pattern of him questioning the Biblical narrative of Israel's formation (the words of Moses, a man of color) but boldly asserting the narrative of Constantine, is the exact issue he's supposed to be addressing in the book!

What Dr. Harris Got Right

I like to end on a positive note, so lets talk about what Dr. Harris did acheive. Eventually he does get to issues such as "the curse of Ham" (there is no curse of Ham, the curse was on Canaan), and discussing the African presence in the Bible. Really, the meat of the book doesn't start until about half way through. By the time I had reached this part of the book, I was exhausted and had no interest in finishing. If you must read this book, I suggest starting in chapter 6, then you might actually finish.

Book Review: Pagan Christianity?

Pagan Christianity? by Frank Viola and George Barna dives into the traditions of most modern churches. The authors research the history of each tradition and contrast it with the early Church described in the New Testament.

Pagan Christianity?: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices by Frank Viola and George Barna was recommended to me by a friend from church. Many of the young adults I know have been on a quest to sort out what's real and what fake, what's mandated by God versus man, and what God truly intended His Church to look like. So when my friend mentioned the book, many of us were excited to read it. It didn't live up to my expectations, but I think it's still worth the read for many.

Summary

Frank Viola and George Barna cover many traditions, such as the order of service, dressing up, the building itself, and the division of the body into clergy versus laity. In each chapter of the book (perhaps purposefully numbered at 12), the authors walk us through the history of a given tradition, starting with the original New Testament Church, following the twists and turns to the modern tradition. Essentially, the book is a history of how certain pagan traditions became intermingled—often to the point of being sacrosanct—with our current church.

Bias

The authors are clearly biased toward a particular narrative, only presenting the traditions they disagree with. It is also evident that the authors write from a Protestant point of view, as many Catholic traditions such as praying to Mary, bowing to statues, creating saints, etc. are not given much attention. There is no mention of the pagan origins of Easter or Christmas, and only two to three sentences about Sunday not being the Sabbath. This is one of the reason I only give the book 3 stars. Clearly the authors did a lot of research, in fact there are countless footnotes and citations within each chapter. So why did they only present certain pagan traditions?

The History Aspect

For me, there wasn't anything particularly shocking in the book. Many of the traditions that aren't Biblical are pretty easy to spot if you read the word often or do even a little research on your own. However, I did like the historical context provided for each topic. Having that background makes it easier to discus with those who are deeply immersed in a particular tradition.

Redundancy

The book is written in an academic format in which each chapter contains a summary of the chapter and the final chapter is actually a summary of the whole book. If the concepts were more complex, or perhaps if I had picked this book up before I'd done any researching on my own, I might have appreciated this. However, since the topics were fairly simple, it just came off as redundant to me. These summaries did not provide new information or clarify anything in the chapter, so after about the fourth or fifth chapter I started skimming the summaries.

The Follow Up

Many reviews I read criticized the authors for not providing solutions, but I will give them credit that they have a follow-up book that is supposed to do just that. I, however, was not impressed with this book enough to read the second one.

Overall Thoughts

Overall I think this is a good book for people who have solid faith but have never questioned what they've been taught in church. Many intertwine faith in God and faith in the Church, so if your relationship with God is not strong and you lose confidence in the church, your faith crumbles. For this reason, I say proceed with caution. For some, this could be the eye opener that strengthens their faith, because they've been questioning the church anyway. However, for those who are unable to separate the traditions of the church from the Word of God, this may be more confusing than helpful. If you are new in your walk with Christ, or have not spent much time in the Word, but are curious, I would recommend reading the book with someone who is more seasoned and has a deeper understanding of the Word.

References and Footnotes

1. Frank Viola and George Barna. Pagan Christianity?: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices. December 31, 2007

Stolen Ideas

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I will reject you from serving as my priest.
Since you have forgotten the law of your God,
I will also forget your sons.
Hosea 4:6 CSB

I wrote a post on denominations and major doctrines that divide them a while back.[1] You can read it here.

Forgive me for sounding out of it. It was a rough week at work so I had a lot on my mind as I was recording and kept getting distracted.

Did you know that halos are part of sun worship and have nothing to do with the Word of God?

References

1. Ree Hughes. "What's Your Denomination?". PSALMS to God. April 11, 2015

And, lo, the Angel of the Lord Came Upon Them

There are definitely aspects of Christmas that I think are Godly, but there are definitely aspects that are pagan (this is how the devil gets you, mix a little good in with his evil). The good things about Christmas are things you can do anytime. I can give gifts to friends and family (even strangers) at any time. I can make plans to see my family any time. I can fellowship with my fellow believers any time. Just like I can talk about the crucifixion any time, I can talk about His birth any time. None of these activities is restricted to December.

⁹And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. ¹⁰And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. ¹¹For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. ¹²And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. ¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, ¹⁴Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.Luke 2:9-14 KJV

Introduction

The announcement of Jesus' birth to the shepherds in Luke 2 is one of the most beautiful things written in the Bible. I used to have the pleasure of reciting these verses almost every year during the church Christmas play each year when I was a child. These words have never gotten old; despite years of repetition, they never lose their impact on me. Each time, it's as though I'm hearing it for the first time and I'm overjoyed!

People don't really recite these verses during other parts of the year, instead, they tuck them away and save them for the month of December. They mix these verses with the man made traditions of Christmas and gleefully end the year... Something about this has always felt wrong to me.

Two years ago, I wrote a series called The 12 Days of Christmas, in which I talked about the pagan origins of several Christmas traditions. Many people are well aware of these pagan origins, but the question among the Church is whether or not these origins matter. The holiday is almost exclusively associated with Christianity now, so does that mean we are free to celebrate it?
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Questions & Answer

I've been asking about the celebrating of Christmas since I was knee-high to a grasshopper. There are people who are staunchly against Christmas, but for the most part, most churches are all for it. In mainline denominations such as Methodist and Baptist churches, the question of celebrating Christmas never comes up. At the church I grew up in, people thought I had lost my marbles for suggesting there was something off about the holiday. Jehovah's Witnesses don't celebrate the holiday because they fail to recognize the deity of Christ. Now that I've been attending a Seventh Day Adventist church, I see that they too have mixed feelings on the holiday. The pastors at my church did a Bible Study on the topic last Wednesday, and even though I was not able to attend, I was able to view it online.[3]

They brought up many points and suggestions, but unfortunately, I still have doubts and questions...

The Issue of Commandments

Many people who are against celebrating Christmas are quick to point out the issue that God did not command us to celebrate the holiday. If you look in the Bible, God is very specific when He tells the Israelites to keep a holy day. For example, when He commands them to celebrate Passover, He gives the date and the menu. God even provides instructions for how to make up the holy day if they are prevented from celebrating at the appointed time (Numbers 9). Moving in to the New Testament, we are told that Jesus dies on the 14th of Nisan as the Passover Lamb around the ninth hour (Matthew 27:45-50, Mark 15:34-37, and John 19:30-31).[1]

Contrarily, Jesus' birthday is a bit fuzzy. God sends the wise men and the shepherds to worship Jesus, but He doesn't tell us any details for us to commemorate the occasion annually. We are told that Mary became pregnant 6 months after John the Baptist's mother, Elizabeth (Luke 1:24-27). However, we aren't told when Elizabeth became pregnant! The shepherds are told of the birth at night, leading us to assume the birth happened at night though we aren't given an exact time. However, the wise men don't actually show up until years later. We learn of the wise men's search for Jesus in Matthew 2. In Matthew 2:16 it appears that the wisemen's information about Jesus led Herod to believe He could be two years old! So did the wise men arrive around the time of His birth or a few years later? Did they even show up around the date He was born?

God's treatment of the date in the case of Jesus' birth is a stark contrast to the dates of the feasts and Jesus' crucifixion. However, as the pastors point out, there are plenty of holidays that are celebrated that are not commanded by God. Jews celebrate Hanukkah and Purim, neither of which are ordained by God. Here in the United States we celebrate national days (like Vetran's Day or Independence Day) and Thanksgiving. So, does it matter that God didn't ordain Christmas as a celebration?

Both Hanukkah and Purim celebrate God's faithfulness to Israel. Hanukkah is about the rededication of the Temple and is known as the Feast of Dedication.[4] The Bible doesn't explicitly say Jesus celebrated Hanukkah, but it does tell us Jesus went to the Temple during that time. Purim celebrates the triumph of the Jews over Haman during their captivity, as told in the book of Esther. Jesus neither confirms nor denies Purim as a holiday to celebrate. Nonetheless, the Bible shows the Israelites celebrating Purim at the end of Esther without condemning it.

Civil holidays are a little different. They have no religious significance. Thanksgiving, Vetran's Day, and the like are all independent of religion. Celebrating such a day says nothing about your religious affiliation and does not require you to partake in pagan festivities. While I agree with the pastors that it is possible to over do it in any celebration, I don't think it's right to compare celebrating Thanksgiving, which has no religious significance or connotation, to celebrating Christmas.

Overall, I agree that God not commanding us to celebrate Christmas, it not a commandment to abstain from Christmas. Just as with Israelites celebrating Hanukkah and Purim, or us celebrating civil holidays, I think all things done to the glory of God are ok in His eyesight (Philippians 4:8).

The Issue of Paganism

The biggest issue with Christianity is the mixing of paganism and Christianity. When the pastors dove in to this topic, they concluded (based upon 1 Corinthians 8) that today, no one is going to be confused about whether you are celebrating Jesus or Sol Invictus so it isn't as much of an issue as people make it out to be. I disagree with this statement, however. There are two types of confusion that we promote when celebrating the birth of Jesus at Christmas.

The Lie of December 25

I know a large number of ex-Christians and one thing that is common with these ex-believers is that they felt like they were lied to. One reason they feel lied to is that they grew up, read a history book and learned of the pagan origins of Christmas. They discovered that December 25 is actually the birthdate of pagan gods like Tammuz or Sol Invictus and decided that Christianity is just as false as those religions. They count Jesus among the many pagan myths because His story is the same, despite the fact that it is not.

Whether they read a Bible or not, when the church is teaching that December 25 is Jesus' birthday, it becomes difficult to separate that fact from Biblical Truth. When I was in 7th grade, a friend of mine who is Jehovah's Witness, tried to explain that Christmas is not in the Bible. I was too stuck on the fact that Luke 1 and 2 clearly tell the birth of Jesus to process the fact that nowhere in that passage is December 25, Christmas trees, lights/candles, etc., mentioned. The same is true for these ex-believers. They have been programmed to associate December 25 with Christ's birth. Church tradition takes precedence over the Bible in their mind and Jesus' birthday is December 25, thus to them, Jesus is no different than the pagan myths.

Whether a church celebrates or doesn't celebrate, I think it is important that church admit it is not the actual date of Jesus' birth to avoid confusion. Of course, for the countless people who don't go to church, well, many of them are looking at Christians as though they're idiots because we proclaim to be against paganism and celebrate pagan birthdays since we don't know the birthdate of our Savior...

Santa

The second problem is Santa. Sure, the majority of the general population does in fact associate Christmas with Christianity, but the majority of the population also associates Christmas with Santa. I did a post on the similarities between the fairy tale of Santa and the reality of Jesus a few years ago. I was amazed at how badly the Santa myth tries to replace Christ. What's more, is that it works!

The pastors make mention of avoiding the worship of self during the holidays by giving to those in need, which I think is wonderful. What I'm not sure about is how many people will know that what you mean when you say Christmas. Growing up in a Christian family, the most repeated questions/statements of December were about Santa and gifts. People always said "I hope Santa is good to you" or "Was Santa good to you?" and asked "What did you put on your list to Santa?" Aside from the Christmas play at church, no one ever mentioned Jesus. The gifts weren't attributed to Jesus and we weren't encouraged thank Jesus for our blessings. All of that praise went to the fictional Santa...

I know Santa isn't real. You know Santa isn't real, but most of the children in the world do not know Santa isn't real. I can tell you for a fact that as happy as Luke 2 makes me, when I was 5 the reason I couldn't sleep on Christmas Eve is because I was excited about all the presents I would receive the next day. I wasn't thinking about Jesus in the least.

Idolatry

Photocredit: Unsplash.com/Aaron Burden

Most people I know who are aware of the pagan origins of Christmas, and the fact that it isn't even Jesus' birthday, argue that none of this matters if we keep Jesus as the focus.

Let's think about it. When the first Christians participated in these festivities, it was definitely because they were converts from a pagan religion and their participation in these traditions was a holdover from that lifestyle. We can be sure of this because outside of people coming to worship Jesus after hearing of His birth, there is no mentioning of celebrating Jesus' birthday. We see Jesus and the disciples keep the Passover, and Paul mentions returning to keep an unnamed feast, which is surely one of the feasts outlined in the Old Testament. However, the disciples and apostles never mention commemorating Jesus' birthday. In fact, celebrated birthdays are only mentioned 3 times in the Bible and all 3 times it is a pagan celebrating (Genesis 40:20, Matthew 14:6, Mark 6:21). So while we are neither forbidden nor commanded to celebrate birthdays, all Biblical evidence of birthdays is associated with paganism... Ecclesiastes 7:1 explains that the day of someone's death is more important than their birth. Jesus had to be born to save us from our sins but it was His decision to suffer and die for us that gives us salvation.

Do we think God was upset with the early Christians for participating in the customs but is suddenly ok with us doing so?

We can argue that Christmas is thought of as a Christian holiday all day, but the fact is, Christmas is associated with Santa, Rudolph, and Frosty the Snowman too. There is no other name given to the holiday in which Santa brings gifts to little kids, and even though January is the traditionally the coldest month of the year in Northern Hemisphere, no one talks about Frosty after Christmas. God didn't say to worship Him more than other gods, He said to worship Him only and not to have idols. Jesus should never be sharing the spotlight, especially on His birthday!

I've never been to a church that didn't decorate for Christmas... Despite Ecclesiastes 7:1, there aren't really any decorations for the resurrection, and the decorations placed in the church for Christmas are not Christ focused! A tree is placed in the sanctuary along with poinsettias, garland, and lights—all of which stem from pagan traditions. Poinsettias are native to Mexico and would not have been present in Israel during Jesus' birth. They became associated with Christmas in the 1800s.[2] As one of the pastors mentioned, the tree was associated with a fertility cult.[3] While I did see on the news that one church placed a nativity outside (and someone stole the baby Jesus, smh), no church I've ever been to has placed a nativity in the sanctuary. If we are truly focused on Jesus and worshipping God, why is our idea of decorating focused on the worldly aspects of Christmas? If you can't celebrate the holiday without trees and lights, what does that say about your focus?

Photocredit: eBay/ginnelly

In high school, I bought a nativity wreath like the one pictured to the left. I spent the month of December painting it (I wish I had mine handy so I could picture it instead—my people are more diverse in skin tone). Not two days after Christmas, my mom was fussing at me to put it away. Have you ever noticed that Christmas decorations go up way before Jesus' birth and then disappear right after. In my home town it's considered bad luck to enter the New Year with Christmas decorations still up.

Consider that. Why would a continued celebration of Jesus's birth be bad luck? Would it not be grand to start the new year praising the birth of our Savior? Furthermore, if we follow the Biblical birth of Jesus, the shepherds and wise men didn't show up until after the birth! Our celebrations should start on Jesus' birthday and continue for some time after, not the other way around. Instead, we revel in consumerism for a month before he is born and then rush to erase the supposed signs of His birth the very next day.

Consumerism

Speaking of Santa and gifts, let's talk about consumerism. How do you get through the holidays without getting swept into consumerism?

Yesterday, I got off work early and decided to go grocery shopping so I could have food for my parents when they arrive tonight. It's an 11 hour drive, so the least I can do is prepare dinner, right? Since I typically go grocery shopping on Sunday, my refrigerator starts looking bare around this time of the week. I have enough food to get me through until Sunday, but not enough to feed two more people. So off to the store I went. Not to buy a lavish spread, but to get the basic necessities of a feeding guests. It took me 45 minutes to drive one mile.

Everybody in the city was headed to the mall, which unfortunately is near the grocery store. People were driving like mad men trying to get to the mall to get the last of their Christmas shopping done. In all the commotion, I got frustrated and gave up on going to the grocery store. I remember this insanity well, however. Many of my friends are now stressed out about getting gifts and how much they've spent.

⁶But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. ⁷Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.2 Corinthians 9:6-7 KJV

I think Jesus is all about giving, but as the pastors pointed out, it shouldn't be about self. I feel as though it's impossible to give cheerfully during Christmas. There's way too much stress in shopping and expectations. When I was an avid gift giver I worried about two major cultural faux pas: 1) being the cheap giver and 2) receiving a gift from someone you didn't buy a gift for.

The Cheap Giver

For most of the time I gave gifts I was either unemployed and buying gifts for my friends with my parent's money or employed part time at a minimum wage job. Spending $10 on someone was a lot. Most of the gifts we exchanged were small lotions or perfumes from Bath & Body Works (because they're guaranteed to have some kind of buy one get one free type of sale right now) or fake jewelry from the likes of Claire's. Still, no one wants to spend $10 on a gift for someone and receive a gift they bought from The Dollar Tree. It's culturally unacceptable. Except, that's the complete opposite of God's stance on giving. We are to give without expectation. A genuine gift may be $100 and I may not receive anything in return.

We are called to give to those who are in need. If they are in need, it stands to reason that they probably can't give us anything back. I feel like this is a good time to direct you to an advertisement of a man who gave a little boy soup for his sick mother and later received a free operation from the boy, who grew up to be a doctor![5] This shouldn't be part of our expectations, but unfortunately this is very much a part of our culture and thus mangled into the holiday.

Photocredit: Pixabay/Peggy und Marco Lachmann-Anke

The Forgotten Giver

When it became tradition for my friends to buy each other gifts for Christmas, it wasn't just something my circle of friends started doing, but something the whole school was doing. This meant Sally Sue who sits next to you in English, and thinks you're friends because you say hi, might get you a gift even though you don't even know Sally Sue's real name... The worst thing about giving a gift to someone and not receiving one in return, particularly in school, is that it's a statement of mismatched placement in each other's lives. Since we bought gifts for those we were close to and considered good friends, this awkward situation means one person considers someone a close friend while the other person doesn't reciprocate that sentiment. That's embarrassing...

Regardless of how I viewed people I knew, the last thing I wanted was to leave someone feeling insulted and belittled. I am definitely guilty of lying with the excuse of "oops, I left your gift at home, I'll bring it tomorrow" to cover my tracks. Then, I'd have to go out that night and buy the person a gift. Now, I've lied and given a gift out of necessity. That's not what God wants from us. So why is it such a common theme in a holiday people claim is about Him?

The pastors talk about giving to those in need, which is a wonderful idea, but it clashes with the cultural celebration of Christmas. A coworker at my job this year gave me a present for the holidays—she's not even Christian, she's Muslim—she is not in need, nor had I thought to give her gift, so any gift I give her now is from the cultural instillation that I should return the gesture. This is a common theme during the holidays. Lots of people give and expect in return, meanwhile if we aren't participating in this consumerism, we're causing offense.

Last year, my mom went on and on about how she sent out Christmas cards (which she did begrudgingly), and this one person she sent a card to didn't send her one. As someone who doesn't send out cards at all, I was trying to explain to my mom that it was possible this person didn't send out cards to anyone, but my mom was still upset that she didn't receive a card. The expectation in our society is that you will do certain things during the holidays. If you don't people are upset. That's unhealthy.

The Bankrupt Giver

Fortunately, I never hit the milestone of spending money I don't have to buy gifts, but a common reason for depression during the holidays is tied to the expectations I mentioned above. People feel pressured to give "good" gifts. Parents feel pressured to give the children a "good" Christmas. It's embarrassing to tell people you're having financial trouble or have them figure it out, so people buy lavish gifts they can't afford to keep up appearances. We receive unexpected gifts then feel obligated to reciprocate the gift even if we can't afford to. Meanwhile the 1% is getting rich off of our attempt to please those around us.

Conclusions

As mentioned above, there are definitely aspects of Christmas that I think are Godly, but there are definitely aspects that are not (this is how the devil gets you, mix a little good in with his evil). The good things about Christmas are things you can do anytime. I can give gifts to friends and family (even strangers) at any time. I can make plans to see my family any time. I can fellowship with my fellow believers any time. Just like I can talk about the crucifixion any time, I can talk about His birth any time. None of these activities is restricted to December. Overall, I think it is our duty as Christians to insure that people are not confused. While that doesn't necessarily mean you can't enjoy the season, I do think people should spend more time addressing these issues so that those who are struggling or lost can actually see the light of Jesus.

References

1. John Gill. "Acts 3:1 Commentary". via Bible Study Tools; visited December 23, 2017
2. "Poinsettia". Wikipedia; visited December 23, 2017
3. Joesph Salajan and Andrew Nugget. Deeper Part 10 Should (Could?) a Genuine Christian Celebrate Christmas?. Plantation SDA Church via YouTube. December 20, 2017
4. "What is Hanukkah". Chabad.org; visited December 23, 2017
5. Lee Moran. "VIDEO: Tear-jerking ad shows how a small act of kindness can have a big impact ". NY Daily News. September 17, 2013

Ecclesiastes 7: Wise Sayings

Ecclesiastes 7 continues Solomon's profound look at the purpose of life. Solomon ponders the difference between birth and death, emotions such as sadness, anger, and happiness, how to prolong our lives, and more.

Introduction

Ecclesiastes 7 continues Solomon's profound look at the purpose of life. Solomon ponders the difference between birth and death, emotions such as sadness, anger, and happiness, how to prolong our lives, and more.
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Death Versus Birth

We celebrate birth and mourn death, but Solomon tells us death is more important than birth. Later, he says the end is better than the beginning, so why don't we see it that way?

When we are born, we don't know anything and we can't do anything for ourselves or for those around us. We are but a burden on those around us. As we grow older, we become more helpful. We are able to contribute to society and achieve purpose. It is when we die that our legacy is sealed. In many cases, death is actually a call to action.

In 1955, a young boy named Emmett Till was brutally murdered. The subsequent image of his dead body sparked outrage around the country and was a catalyst for the Civil Rights' Movement.^[1] Similarly, when Jesus died on the cross (and was resurrected), He became the catalyst for our redemption.

Further, as long as we are alive, there is more we can do. Once we die, or come to our end, nothing else can be done.

Sadness Versus Laughter

Would you rather laugh or cry? I'm pretty sure you said laugh, which means you were also confused when you read Ecclesiastes 7:3. Solomon tells us sorrow is better than laughter. Solomon's advice is actually contrary to what we teach today. Today, we teach people to seek happiness and cast out negativity. While I think we should expel negativity from our lives, I understand what Solomon is saying.

In life, we learn from misfortune. Whether it is through the death of a loved one, a loss of love, sickness or injury, we turn these experiences in to wisdom. Most of the lessons I've learned in life were accompanied by sorrow or fear, not laughter. The time for laughter is after the sorrow has passed or before it has hit. Solomon is reminding us that if our whole life is nothing but laughter, we will become fools because we never learn wisdom.

Anger

Consistant with the rest of the Bible, Solomon once again tells us to resist anger. Solomon reminds us that dwelling on anger is a trait found among fools, not the wise.

Live Longer

When I was in high school, I watched a movie called Raise Your Voice which shook loose something I knew, but hadn't really thought about. The key event in the movie (which happens in the beginning of the movie so this isn't a spoiler), is that when two kids sneak out to attend a concert, one is killed in a car accident. Although good things eventually happen for the surviving character, it took me back to the 5th commandment. God tells us if we obey or parents we will be granted longer lives. Our parents speak from experience; just like God's rules are meant to keep us safe, so are our parents' rules. What's more, when we break those rules, we often put ourselves in danger to hid our actions.

Solomon echoes this sentiment in Ecclesiastes 7 by telling us that the key to living longer is being prudent. When we make wise decisions, we lower our risk of fatality, increasing the chance that we will die of old age. For instance, if we drink heavily, we increase our chances of health problems such as a liver failure. We increase our chances of being involved in altercations (drunk people tend to have short fuses since their inhibitions are lowered). We increase our chances of dying in a car accident if we drink and drive. Solomon is telling us to think through our actions and make wise decisions.

Holier Than Thou

For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.Ecclesiastes 7:20 KJV

No one likes a person who has a "holier than thou" attitude. For those unfamiliar with the phrase, it refers to people who think they are more righteous than those around them. Generally, they tend to be judgmental, pointing fingers at everyone else's sins but ignoring their own. Solomon reminds us not to be like that. No one is just; everyone sins.

This verse doesn't just remind us not to judge, but it reminds us to forgive. We all make mistakes and if we are following God, eventually we seek repentance. Just as God forgives us, we should forgive our fellow man—Jesus tells us to forgive our neighbor 490 times ()! We cannot expect those around us to be perfect. We also need to forgive ourselves. In the beginning of our walk with Christ, we will stumble most as we make changes in our life; during this time we can be discouraged if we are too hard on ourselves. Remember, we all mess up at one point in our life! The important thing is that we learn from our sins, repent, and ask God to help us overcome temptation.

Finding A Woman

And I find more bitter than death the woman, whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her.Ecclesiastes 7:26 KJV

Verse 26 is one of the more interesting verses in the chapter; at least to me. When I first read it, I wasn't exactly sure what it meant. Solomon starts the section (in Ecclesiastes 7:23) stating the difficulty of finding wisdom and he concludes with the difficulty of finding a woman.

A woman in the Bible symbolizes the church (Jeremiah 6:2). While the fact that a man can be found but a woman cannot lends to notion that this woman is literal, it also seems as though it could be talking about a church. Based on verse 26, this woman or church is trouble; at her core, there are only traps, which tells us she is full of gimmicks and trickery. This could easily apply to a real woman or a church built on false doctrine. Her hands as bands implies she restrains those who come to her. The Hebrew word translated to bands esur, which means bonds or chains.^[2]

Whether this references a literal woman or church, believers will be able to identify these traps and escape them while sinners will play right into her hand.

Unnecessary Inventions

Photocredit: Unsplash.com/Alex Knight

Ecclesiastes 7:29 brings up a point that is more relevant today than it has been in all the years since it was written: man's desire to invent unnecessary things. We pride ourselves on our ability to create new technology, but often our creations are more harmful than helpful (like guns or weapons of mass destruction). God gave us everything we need, but we're always trying to invent something new. Whether its seemingly harmless, like adding to God's word (i.e., false religion) or physical objects, these invents lead us astray.

References

1. "The Death of Emmett Till". History; visited September 30, 2017
2. "612. esur". Bible Hub; visited October 12, 2017