Posted on 12/18/2015 6:39:27 AM PST by NRx
The shocking truth is that egg nog isn t in the Bible, yet Christians continue to drink it at Christmas time.
Yes, but how do you penalize a chariot racer for "taunting"?
One of my confirmation class church history recollections (dim after so many years) is that the early Christians might have wanted to use a pagan festival as cover. If the date was approximate anyhow, it was prudent during the era of the underground church to wait until the jpagans were lining up for their roast goose and Yorkshire pudding, and blend in with the crowd.
As best I understand, these objections are based in the legacy of how the early historical church evangelized pagan societies. The church suggested different meanings for the symbols that were important to the pagans. These were generally accepted, and the result was that both the church and the new converts celebrated in this manner.
It worked so well that hardly anyone of the common people remembers the old pagan deities. And thus it could stay such until the end of history, except for people who bring the old deities back to mind for various reasons, either because they are anti-Christian and want to mock a weak version of Christianity back, or because they believe they have the “only correct style.”
Now as a rascally evangelical I have to say that sometimes the historical church went too far and invented doctrines that the scriptures don’t show any way of getting to — i.e. not new witnesses to old truths like most of the “Christmas” symbols are, but new claims to truth as it were. But this really is an independent topic of concern. It is so easy to lump together everything you hate about a situation and then just damn it. That’s not illuminated from Christ. That is darkened from pride. Christ looks for something to move forward with, even amidst the darkest situation. Our pride says we refuse to bear with the flaws while this is going on. Our pride says that Christ can’t be more powerful than hypothetical opportunities for evil.
My $0.02 and Christians may differ and I understand that they do. But what I have said is where I believe the heart of Christ is.
It’s understandable how that could happen, but frankly to me that represents a Christian society that was diminishing in its boldness.
If you aren’t pushing through Christ, then you will find the world, flesh, and devil pushing you. Does not for a moment mean you aren’t destined to heaven, but your reward is then less than it could be.
Pit drive through on the next lap.
I concur in eggnog at the holidays being quite a fitting symbol for Christ, who really is God’s deluxe treatment for a lost humanity. We probably ought to dress like beggars when we consume it, and share it with our poorest neighbors, to heighten the contrast, but of course it isn’t absolutely required.
Judah - there is no law in the arena...
Thinking of biblical metaphors of “winning the race.” Maybe it’s like in Calvinball; you apologize if you did it wrong. (Could be worse ways.)
Jer 10: 2 Thus says the Lord:
“Do not learn the way of the Gentiles;
Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven,
For the Gentiles are dismayed at them.
3
For the customs of the peoples are futile;
For one cuts a tree from the forest,
The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax.
4
They decorate it with silver and gold;
They fasten it with nails and hammers
So that it will not topple.
Heh, heh, someone had to bring this up.
And the calm Christian answer is, please have this ready in case anyone actually ever worships a Christmas tree.
Where does it say they were Mary’s children?
... Generally, one of two things tend to be worshiped around the Christmas season. Either (per faith) it is Christ, or else (per secularism) it is self. The first is infinitely preferable, but neither one entails worshiping the Christmas tree. Not that such a thing is theoretically impossible (and I knew a secular guy who got a tree so big he couldn’t even get it into his house without cutting it further down... pretty good effort for a Selfmas), but we’re barking up an empirically inapplicable tree here. That doesn’t help the worship of the Lord at all.
Just my $0.02
I remember that as a young person I became very disturbed to learn that there were ancient pagan beliefs that bore similarities to beliefs in my own religion.
In time, I came to realize that the human heart is programmed by our Creator to seek to learn His truths and that these people were glimpsing just parts of the the whole picture.
5
"Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field are they, And they cannot speak; They must be carried, Because they cannot walk! Do not fear them, For they can do no harm, Nor can they do any good."
(Jer 10:5, NASB).
He's clearly not talking about a Christmas tree.
Also we notice that nobody counterfeits $3 bills. Forgers ape what is genuine because, as mentioned, people are made so that they may look for such things. It’s pretty silly the atheists who refuse to believe because they might be attracted to God. They might as well refuse to eat because they might like the food.
This is a sad kind of thing that says, because you can damn something that has a superficial similarity to something else you have been deeming good, you have to back off from that something else too.
We might need to accommodate people of weak faith. If a Christmas tree offended someone who did not fully understand, I would never force a Christmas tree on that person.
But it’s another thing for the offended person to go around telling us we’re all wrong because he’s offended. A better case needs to be made.
Ever since the proto-evangel—”And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.”—Satan has been sowing his lies. He had NO idea what God kept hidden for long ages, though. Humiliation was fittingly given when Christ triumphed over him through the Cross!
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