The following is from Joe Kovacs book, "Shocked by the bible"
� 2010 WorldNetDaily
"Easter" is such a pretty-sounding word, isn't it?
It instantly makes many people think of a variety of joyous images such as springtime, sunshine, blooming flowers, pretty dresses and bonnets, colored eggs, cute baby chicks and adorable, little bunny rabbits.
It also brings to mind for countless millions the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave.
They say this is the holiest time of the year, because yes, the Creator of the universe, Jesus Christ, is alive on His heavenly throne after spending three days and three nights completely dead.
I could not agree more with people becoming aware of the story of Jesus' death and return to life. It shows us the path to becoming born into the actual Family of God, as the Bible indicates many sons and daughters will be brought to glory as the immortal "children of God."
But brace yourself, because there's a very dark side to this centuries-old tradition, and it has to do with the famous Ten Commandments of God.
The very first commandment of the Big Ten is perhaps one of the most overlooked in everyday life.
In just eight words, it states: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." (Exodus 20:3)
Sounds simple enough. Christians would never put another god in front of the true God who made the universe � right?
Wrong.
Most Christians, whether knowingly or unknowingly, violate this very first commandment of God each year by placing before God the actual name of a pagan goddess of fertility and the dawn.
In case you haven't figured it out by now, her name is � believe it or not � "Easter."
That's correct, folks. The word Easter is actually the name of an ancient, heathen goddess who represents fertility, springtime and the dawn.
Some of her symbols are flowers, bunnies, eggs, the sun and the moon. Who'da thunk?
In different languages and through a variety of cultures, the name of this deity � who in reality does not even exist � is spelled different ways, including Ishtar, Astarte, Ostara, Eostre and Eastre.
Even in the Bible itself, many of God's own chosen people actually followed the customs of numerous Easter goddesses, with her name spelled in the King James Bible as "Ashtaroth" and "Ashtoreth."
For those who have never seen Easter in this light before, take a look at what Scripture itself has to say. I'm adding emphasis with the modern word in parentheses so you can see what God is really telling you:
"And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth (Easter)." (Judges 2:13)
"And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and If you don't believe me, go ahead and Google it. Or simply open up an encyclopedia or a dictionary to probe the pagan origins. Feel free to ask your preacher. An honest one will have to admit it.
"And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth (Easter) from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines." (1 Samuel 7:3)
"And they cried unto the LORD, and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken the LORD, and have served Baalim and Ashtaroth (Easter)" (1 Samuel 12:10)
"For Solomon went after Ashtoreth (Easter) the goddess of the Zidonians" (1 Kings 11:5)
"And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth (Easter) the abomination of the Zidonians ..." (2 Kings 23:13)
While Easter may sound like a pretty word, just look again in that list above at some of the terms God associates with Easter and her customs: "corruption," "sin," "abomination" and "evil."
And here's a Bible newsflash for you. We're not even supposed to be saying the E-word.
Crack open your own Bible and read it for yourself:
"Make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth." (Exodus 23:13)
Certainly, Christians today who celebrate Easter don't do so with the intention of worshipping another god besides the true God, and I'm not saying or even implying that. But the fact of the matter is many are bringing the name of a pagan, nonexistent goddess before Him, violating the very first commandment.
Additionally, it's more than just the name that bothers God. He specifically warned His people not to worship Him using heathen customs:
"Be careful not to be ensnared by inquiring about their gods, saying, 'How do these nations serve their gods? We will do the same.' You must not worship the Lord your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord hates." (Deuteronomy 12:30-31, NIV)
Perhaps if the springtime holiday were called "Hitler Sunday" or even "Satan Sunday" instead of Easter, people might have an easier time understanding the problem of attaching evil to God. Would people decorate swastikas instead of eggs and hold goose-stepping contests, all the while claiming such customs were now Christianized?
For those who might wonder why the King James Bible mentions Easter in Acts 12:4, keep in mind the Bible was not initially written in English. The word in its original language of Greek is "Pascha," meaning "Passover" and translated as Passover in every other instance, some 28 times. Bibles published since 1611 have corrected this glaring error.
Ladies and gentlemen, it's way past time to dump all this fertility-goddess nonsense when it comes to honoring the true Creator.
Enough with the name of Easter, the coloring of eggs, the Easter egg hunts, baby bunnies and fluffy little chicks. These are all symbols of reproduction which have been associated with the heathen fertility goddess for millennia now.
The apostles did not find a basket of eggs or a chocolate bunny rabbit in Jesus' empty tomb, and they certainly didn't go Easter-egg-hunting while spreading the good news of the kingdom of God.
The maker of all things, Jesus Christ, is offering all of us a spectacular, glorious future as an immortal child of God who will be judging angels and the citizens of the world, reigning alongside Him for eternity.
God not only wants to be worshipped in spirit and in truth, but He wants absolutely nothing to do with this phony baloney goddess.
Is it really worth offending your Maker for the pretty-sounding, colorful lie of the nonexistent, evil chick called Easter?
Cattleman, the word if is a conditional clause that doesn't imply anything other then stating as I told you before, I don't know if you are saved or not any more then you can know if I'm am or not.
If you have a problem with that, like I stated earlier take up with the Lord, and if you don't think he will hear you, take it up with administrator. One thing is for certain you don't make the rules here and I have nothing that I can see that has been in error of house rules.
Is making a issue out of words, your way of winning a debate?
dear gary, you are right in that i dont make the rules here.. but i sure do help enforce them...
now im asking you again to please stop with your questionin my salvation and disrespectful, condescending and insulting,antagonistic words to me here .. thats three times in a row ive had to ask you to stop.. and had to ask ya the other day to as well for the same kinds of things... now it needs to stop.. thanks
Gary~ That is totally outa line Sir...Not a one of US has to explain to anyone here bout what makes us saved...you are shewing dis-cord...nota a good or Christain way to do...xo
Ole Cattle, would you mind explaining to me why you think you are saved?
Thanks
Gary
mine here
ya see gary i knew you was implyin i werent saved.. and was not of GOD..same as you were doing the other day on the other post.. you dont go round slappin a man lookin out for things here,, in the face.. and for the record i dont think im saved but i know i am saved..
youve been asked to stop over and over again with the insults , implications and antagonistic remarks..ect..
it seems youve made your choice.. so be it..
so i will await for the powers that be and not partake of any more discussion here with you now.. as youve made it all clear about your personal insults to ole cattle here now..
now im fixin to get real quiet here.. and wait.. patience is a virtue ...
So, cattleman, I have joy when a person asks if I'm saved or not. Gived me a chance to testify for the Lord. You are the first person I have come across that finds asking that as an insult. I'm really amazed.
Colossians 4:6 �Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.
1 Peter 3:15 �But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
I don't care if the traditions came from the Catholics, Lutherans, Baptists or whomever. The point is that they are not commanded to be observed anywhere in Scripture. Christmas, Easter, Sunday, Communion and more traditions are all non-biblical. Paganism is paganism. You can put a dress and lipstick on a pig but it's still a pig. The Church, Catholic and Protestant, continues to practice holy days that are the traditions of men and certainly not of God.
Not to encourage Gary's actions and responses, but I have something to say.
GARY: "Ole Cattle, would you mind explaining to me why you think you are saved?"
GARRETT: If you are allowed to ask this, then I'm going to have to ask why you believe yourself to be God. You make it sound like YOU know who is saved and who isn't saved without even meeting the person. I tell you this, NO ONE sees the heart like God does. NO ONE sees the whole picture like God does. And NO ONE can pass judgement as God does.
People... this is kinda embarrassing. We're all adults here. Let's put our childish ways behind us. Everyone take a step back, take a deep breath, and remember what sets us apart from the rest of the world. "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." If someone who isn't as strong in their faith were to "walk in" on this conversation, everything God had been doing for that person would be in danger because we always wanna be right and don't mind offending other people while voicing our opinions. If you see a discussion going sour or not really agreeing with your views, JUST BACK OFF. That simple. Don't feed the fire. It's like Paul said to Titus: "But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him." Good advice. If we can't help build someone up or if the conversation doesn't seem to be going anywhere productive, just back off. Swallow the pride.
One final note... I don't want any hard feelings here. I'm sorry I called you out, Gary, but your comment struck a cord. I understand your zeal for the Lord and for His Word, but we should all be careful on how we approach others. Love ya, man. I hope we can all share in PEACEFUL, stimulating conversations here. I truly do enjoy it... MOST of the time. :laugh:
Friends please read my post that I wrote earlier again. When I got saved I received letters in the mail saying I was going to hell for going to a pentacostal church from family.
Who are we as men to question some one else who has proven themselves.I am the most imperfect person here.
I am sure that my friend Ole, cattle will agree we are not perfect.So, please stop bad mouthing him.
