Pagan Holiday Thread

It's not good that you don't recognize the opportunity to share the gospel. Paul saw opportunity everywhere and made the most of it:

Acts 17:23 For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.

24 “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands.

And then he went on from that to preach to the people of Athens.

So handing out tracts about the Lord and the Gospel with the treats to children who might not otherwise get to know God is actually a great way to spread the gospel. Especially to children who's parents don't bring them to church.


💐

I'm waiting for the prophecy from the Bible about Halloween being pagan and to not be celebrated. You can't find it because it's not there. Therefore is then there no testing from me of God as you charged since I know the origin of Halloween and that it is not from the pagans but from the Christians, even the particular saint, the noble officially beatified, but bibllically full saint Charlemagne. In fact Saint Charlemagne and the Christians pretty literally became saints because they wiped out the pagans, and for a Lynx bonus point he also cut down both the most literal tree worshippers as well as the trees they worshipped too and moved the date of All Saints Day in the West to November 1st and thereby the day before it, the e'en, effiectively became Halloween to celebrate the saints of Jesus.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlemagne

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irminsul

seoulsearch,

mazipan? seoulsearch have you even had Dutch Christmas log? Banketstaaf (Dutch Christmas Log) - Lavender & Macarons

You show me where I said that the "Bible" has such a prophecy and I will show you the verse.

Or you could actually try listening to what I said and not keep using deception to interpose your disingenuous arguments.

God has said quite clearly in prophecy to stay away from Halloween.

I'm assuming the following is the post that suggested this idea that you were referring to a prophecy in the bible.

Reminds me of Stollen, which is quite popular at Christmas time .

Has marzipan running through the fruity bread and is quite yummy room temp and plain or toasted with butter .

View attachment 268759

Some might consider it fruit cake in disguise...

Yeah. Thanks for trying to help but even if there was doubt on what I meant there,:

1) Pretty much any practicing Christian who wasn't born-again yesterday would be aware of the multiple possibilities of meaning.

2) There was follow-up. The person is just choosing to be obstinate to even recognizing what was said. This is an abuse of my good-will and won't be tolerated much longer. I'm giving them this last chance to repent and be straight with me.

I'm waiting for the prophecy from the Bible about Halloween being pagan and to not be celebrated.

If you have to have moral compromise to share the gospel, then it isn't the gospel any more.

Really, though, this is the second post I have responded to you in 5 minutes where you have put your own thoughts and opinions over what God is saying to people. I can respect those who just don't know yet that the gifts of the Spirit are still active and who will respectfully say so, but to just keep putting your own opinions over God's without explanation is a very weak position.

Just because you see that as a prophecy doesn't mean it comes from the Lord. Oftentimes, manipulative people will dress up their views as prophecy to try to force others to do things their way.

I'm so thankful to God for helping me see the truth so that I don't end up under your sway or other people like you. 💐

I do not see Hallowe'en mentioned in the Bible either. But there is this:

Romans 14:5
One person regards a certain day above the others, while someone else
considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.

Titus 1:15
To the pure, all things are pure; but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing
is pure. Indeed, both their minds and their consciences are defiled.

Thank you for articulating this thought. You just worded something I've thought of for years, but couldn't describe as precisely.

I used to go to a "Spirit-filled church" in which multiple people seemed to believe they were always direct mouthpieces of the Holy Spirit. If you didn't go along with them, join their ministry, support their cause, believe in healing to the degree they did ("Throw out all your meds unsupervised and believe in Jesus for healing!"), well, then you just didn't have enough faith, didn't really believe in God or were fighting against Him yourself, because they were just the messenger (and somehow always in perfect lockstep with God, making them able to correct everyone else but never accept correction themselves.)

And if that didn't work, well, there's always good old 1 Samuel 15:23 -- "Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft (like the sin of divination,) stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols, arrogance like the evil of idolatry."

I was called rebellious and stubborn more than once. And of course there's times when I am! But something was bothering me, especially when these people lamented about others not being humble or teachable but somehow always failed to show any of those qualities themselves. I guess that's just for all the other pathetic sinners like myself and not them? This is one of my own personal litmus tests -- I will only choose those who display humility and being able to be taught themselves as teachers. I tend to ignore "teachings" from anyone I've never seen apologize to anyone or refuse accept correction as much as they give it (because I don't believe anyone is that perfect that they need no or so little correcting.)

And as I was figuring these things out, the term that came to mind was "spiritual manipulation."

I'm a lot less prone to falling for it now. And I've become pretty adamant about warning other singles about this, because I've seen and heard too many cases of lonely singles being sucked in by dynamic, forceful personalities who won't accept any other way but their own -- because of course, "their way" is always "God's." But they see themselves and God as one in the same, and they want to make you more like them, not like God.

They always tell me, "Take it up with God, because you're arguing with Him, not me."

Oh believe me, I do. If I'm wrong, I ask Him correct me and show me the reasons why I need to listen to so-and-so. But I also ask that if they are wrong, well... I'm sure God is capable of dealing with it on His own. After all, the OT bar for anyone giving false prophecies was death, so I'm sure God has some kind of modern-day measuring stick figured out. May all who speak prophecy be held to His standards and then some, as the Bible says teachers are held to higher standards.

Mostly though, I just ask Him that no one else will be strong-armed into deception by such people.

yep. I say "give me a verse" and they say "if you dont believe me you are arguing against God, you should not need a verse, et cetera, et cetera, et etera." and I say "ok, whatever. it isnt worth arguing about. and they denounce me as stubborn and unacceptant of Gods truth. sheesh

You're very wise to have learned this early in life -- many kudos to you!

I sure wish I would have realized it sooner myself. It would have saved me years of agonizing, when I was really just going through normal spiritual growing pains that some tried to keep us from (because then we wouldn't have to be reliant on them.)

I know someone who walked away from the faith because he said, "Every time you don't do what these people want, they threaten you with hell." I know that's not the right conclusion either but it sure can feel that way sometimes, and it's hard to find a balance.

I guess that's what some people use as their weapon. Their misdirection has people all tied up in knots, thinking God is mad at them -- when really, what's happening is you're learning to think for yourself, and ask God questions directly -- which is a threat to those believing their "special gift" puts them above everyone else.

I sure wish I would have realized it sooner myself. It would have saved me years of agonizing, when I was really just going through normal spiritual growing pains that some tried to keep us from (because then we wouldn't have to be reliant on them.)

yep. I say "give me a verse" and they say "if you dont believe me you are arguing against God, you should not need a verse, et cetera, et cetera, et etera." and I say "ok, whatever. it isnt worth arguing about. and they denounce me as stubborn and unacceptant of Gods truth. sheesh

When that happens I take a nap on a tree branch and wait for them to run out of breath.

Not sure if I want to bite. Are these holidays pagan - Yes for Halloween, Christmas, and Easter. Is it appropriate to be celebrating them - Depends on which one you mean and how.
Is it worth getting into - Depends on who is listening and why.

I guess I will say, and fairly categorically, that Christians are foolish if they think celebrating Halloween is no big deal. To direct quote God from a prophetic word:

"You say; but it’s only one day – and I say; there is only one eternity."

God has said quite clearly in prophecy to stay away from Halloween. Test this with Him for yourself or don't - It's up to you to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

When that happens I take a nap on a tree branch and wait for them to run out of breath.