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This seems like a fitting thread to post a story that a friend of mine sent not too long ago- the story of the Christmas tree:

Once upon a time, a long long time ago, there was a man named St Boniface...he lived about the year 700, and he went into the land that today we call Germany, to tell the people there about Jesus Christ.

He told them how Jesus is all powerful God, but he came to us as a little baby, how he loved little children and the poor and weak, and how he died for our sins on the Cross.

But, the people were warriors, they said they didn't need a God who was a baby, spend time with little kids or weak people, and they especially didn't like a God who died. They wanted a strong and powerful God that could help them be strong in battle and defeat their enemies.

The people worshiped everything in nature they thought was powerful..the sun, the earth, the wind..but mostly, they worshiped the oak tree, because it was large, strong, powerful, and mighty.

They especially worshiped one oak tree that was older, larger, and stronger than all the others...they believed it would live forever, and no one could ever chop it down.

St Boniface said, "you don't understand. There is only one God and he is the creator of the trees and all things..he is the most powerful..and he came to us on earth. There is more power in the innocence of the child Jesus, who loved the sick and the poor, and who died on the cross, then you can possibly imagine. It is a greater and more powerful thing, to love and forgive an enemy, than to destroy and kill an enemy. Behold !"

He took an axe..said a prayer..and with one mighty swing, the great oak tree came tumbling down !! The people couldn't believe it !

Now next to the oak tree was a tiny pine tree. St. Boniface said, this is the tree that you should be focused on.

It reminds us of Jesus. Unlike the big oak tree, it is small, like the tiny child in the manger. Unlike the round oak tree, it is pointed on the top, in the way that Jesus points us to Heaven and to the Father.

Most of all, the pine tree stays green and keeps its leaves all year long...to remind us that Jesus came to give us eternal life ! And from that day the Christmas tree became the symbol of Jesus Christ, who was born as a tiny child, to point us to Heaven, to save us from our sins, and to bring us life everlasting.

Later, people began to decorate the pine trees with lights, to remind us that Jesus Christ is the Light of the World, who shines in the darkness and makes all things bright.

So whenever you see a Christmas Tree, think of Jesus, because that is what it is all about!

Funny how people rarely go looking for the meaning behind things such as Christmas trees and prefer to simply denounce them as pagan. Same could be said for Christmas itself. Merry Christmas to you all!

>Again, I wish you a very Merry Christmas. May the blessings of Christ be upon you during this holy holiday season. :)

Sigh! Having come out and been delivered from the false doctrines of the apostate Christian church, I know how their heads work. Baal-worshippingJezebel says to the Church as she seduces them to commit spiritual fornication (Re 2:20), "Just say a blessing on everyone even those who don't agree with you 'cause they must be enemies and keep doing your own thing, it is okay to be right in your own eyes and you are excused from obedience because you are a Christian and G~d loves you too much to require you to obey and not worship Mammon and will bless your every idolatrous, sinful behavior." You are probably relying on: Mt 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.

I say to you, like Paul: Gal 4:16 Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?

It appears that you put your piece on this thread without reading the thread which is to help those who are true and wish no longer to be deceived to come out of Deception. Yours piece missed the point and your blanket blessings amount to "not receiving instruction" (Pr 1:7) because you haven't read the thread. If you had read it you would know Christmas is NOT a holy day, but a satanic unholy day with ample use of "mother and child" images associated with the occult; the satanists know that and laugh themselves silly at the Christians who don't believe the Truth. Those "Christians" are deceived (something Jesus warned about) and have become atheistic Secular Humanists. BTW Derek Prince* writes that Humanism is a demon.

>Funny how people rarely go looking for the meaning behind things such as Christmas trees and prefer to simply denounce them as pagan. Same could be said for Christmas itself. Merry Christmas to you all!

All that the L~rd said is being fulfilled. He said many would be deceived, that men loved darkness more than light and few there be that find eternal life. The dry unfruitful branch of the apostate Church which loves tradition and lies more than the Truth is being whacked off and readied for the fire.

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* Derek Prince, They shall Expel Demons, (Baker Books, 1998), p. 84.

cc to ALS: It is likely that "the easy prey" who are taken captive at the will of the devil will not know what I am talking about. 2 Ti 2:26. There are far greater problems involved in this falling away than just Christmas.