Easter

Many people adhere to what they have been taught all their lives.  They assume their beliefs and practices are correct, so they do not examine there origin.

            A good example is Easter.  Most people believe the Bible has much to say about this holiday.  Some believe there are Bible verses that mention rabbits, eggs, hot cross buns, Lent, Good Friday and, of course, Easter.  They would be surprised to find that there is no scriptural basis for any of these with the exception of hot cross buns and sunrise services.  Adonai calls them abominations, which, of course, Adonai condemns.

            The word translated “Easter”, is the Greek work “pascha” (derived from the Hebrew word pesach; there is no original Greek word for Passover) and it has only one meaning.  It has always meant Passover and it can never mean Easter.

            In Acts 12:1, King Herod began to persecute the Church, culminating in the brutal death of the apostle James by sword.  This pleased the Jews so much that the apostle Peter was also taken prisoner by Herod.  The plan was to later deliver him to the Jews.  In verse 3 it says “Then were the days of unleavened bread (Days of Matzah).”  The Church observed these feast days as described in Leviticus 23.  In verse 4, we read,  “so when Herod seized him, he threw him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each, with the intention of brining him to public trial after Pesach.”  The Church still observed Passover ten years after the death of Yeshua!

           

            The story of Passover is found in Exodus 11:4-12:51 and Leviticus 23:5-8.  This was Adonai's deliverance of Israel from Egypt.  They were instructed to bring a lamb with no blemishes into their home on the 10^th of Nisan.  They cared for it, for four days, and slaughtered it on the 14^th of Nisan.  They were then instructed to apply its blood over their door posts to ensure the first born in the household would not die.  Any first born found in homes without the blood, would die.  This was the first Passover.  The blood of the unblemished lamb protected Israel and all Egyptians who obeyed this command.   

            In the New Testament we read 1 Corinthians 5:6-8, “Your boasting is not good.  Don't you know the saying, 'It takes only a little hametz to leaven a whole batch of dough?'  Get rid of the old hametz, so that you can be a new batch of dough, because in reality you are unleavened.  For our Pesach lamb, the Messiah, has been sacrificed.  So let us celebrate the Seder not with leftover hametz, the hametz of wickedness and evil, but with the matzah of purity and truth.”  The Messiah is the Lamb of Adonai (John 1:29; Acts 8:32; 1 Peter 1:19; Rev. 5:6).

            The New Testament symbols of the bread and wine were not instituted in order that Christians could eat the body and drink the blood of the Messiah, the true Lamb of Adonai.  Some denominations have missed the mark with this teaching.  In Mark 7:7-9, we read, “Their worship of me is useless, because they teach man-made rules as if they were doctrines (God's Laws).  You depart from God's command and hold onto human tradition.  Indeed, he said to them, 'you have made a fine art of departing from Adonai's command in order to keep your tradition!'”

           

Read Luke 22:14-19, “When the time came, Yeshua and the emissaries reclined at the table, and he said to them, 'I have really wanted so much to celebrate this Seder with you before I die!  For I tell you, it is certain that I will not celebrate it again until it is given its full meaning in the Kingdom of God.'  Then, taking a cup of wine, he made the b'rakha (blessing) and said, 'Take this and share it among your selves.  For I tell you that from now on, I will not drink the 'fruit of the vine' until the Kingdom of God comes.'  Also, taking a piece of matzah, he made the b'rakhah, broke it, gave it to them and said, 'This is my body, which is being given for you; do this in memory of me.'  He did the same with the cup after the meal, saying, 'This cup is the New Covenant, rectified by my blood, which is being poured out for you.”  They are clearly observing the Passover Seder!  Look at Matthew 26:20, 26; Mark 14:17, 22; Luke 14:15; Acts 10:41; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; 1 Peter 2:24; and Revelation 19:9.  It is clear these passages show that the Lords Supper is the Passover Seder. 

            I am a Jewish Believer in Yeshua Ha'Mashiach (Messiah Yeshua-Jesus).  So, I remember the slavery of my ancestors in Egypt and exodus during Passover.  However, when Yeshua came, He became that Passover Lamb that was slaughtered to save my people from losing their first-born.  His blood is my salvation and forgiveness of my sins. 

            Yeshua is Jewish.  He grew up observing all the appointed times and feasts written by Adonai through Moshe (Moses) in the first five books of the Bible known as Torah. 

             The observance of Passover and the Unleavened Bread (Matzah) is intended to cause us to remember the suffering of our ancestors in Egypt (a type of sin), and what we suffered because of sin and our deliverance.

           

When Egypt awoke and found their first-born dead, the Isralites were freed.  This starts the Days of Matzah.  Exodus 12 explains that Adonai ordained Passover as a permanent ordinance forever.

            Yeshua kept Passover, and all believers should follow His example.  It is important to observe the festivals in their own season.  Yeshua followed Exodus 13:10, which explains that the Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread were to be kept annually.   It does not say “week to week” or “month to month” or “pick any season you wish.”   

            The first day of the week starts at sundown on Saturday.  According to the Genesis 1, sunset to sunset is one day.  In Acts 20, Paul is visiting a congregation in Troas immediately after the Days of Unleavened Bread.  He spent the entire Sabbath preaching to the brethren and continued well into Saturday night (the first day of the week).  Some claim that Acts 20:7 refers to keeping the Lord's Supper on Sunday morning because the term “break bread” is used.  The fact is, Paul's long preaching had left people hungry.  It was midnight, and they wanted to eat.  This is why verse 11 says those present “had broken bread and eaten.”  This was an ordinary meal, not the observing of the Lord's Supper, or communion.

            The first day of the new year begins near the spring equinox when the new moon usually is first visible to the naked eye in Jerusalem (not the United States).  The Biblical calendar as used by Jews today is correct.  But, it must be remembered that, on the 14^th day of the first month at sunset, is Passover, and in the 15^th day of Nisan is the start of the Days of Matzah.    Jews still observe the Feast of Passover, on the eve of 14^th Nisan.  The Lord's Supper or New Testament Passover should be observed after sunset on the same evening.  After all, it was the Passover meal Yeshua was sharing with his disciples.

           

America's founders knew that Easter was the pagan festival to Ishtar.  A children's book about the holiday, Easter Parade: Welcome Sweet Spring Time!, by Steve Englehart, p. 4, states, “When the Puritans came to North America, they regarded the celebration of Easter—and the celebration of Christmas—with suspicion.  They knew that pagans had celebrated the return of spring long before Christians celebrated Easter...for the first two hundred years of European life in North America, only a few states, mostly in the South, paid much attention to Easter.”

            Page 5, “Easter first became an American tradition in the 1870's.”  The original 13 colonies of America began as a Christian nation, with the cry of “No king but King Jesus!”  The nation did not observe Easter within an entire century of its founding.

            Let us look at the origin of Easter.  Long before the Resurrection of Yeshua, since the days of The Tower of Babylon, there was a pagan holiday named “Easter” that was named after the pagan goddess Ishtar who was also known by several other names.  These names include Isis (Egypt), Venus (Rome), Mother Nature, Queen of Heaven, and Freya (for which “Friday” is named from Freya's day).

            Ishtar was the wife of Nimrod, mentioned in Genesis 10:8-12, of ancient Babylon.  She was deified as the goddess of fertility and spring time after her death.  From her name we get the English word “estrogen”.  The rabbit was her earthly symbol and eggs were used as a symbol of fertility.  Egg hunts were common on her Spring festival, due to a Tuetonic myth that states Ishtar changed a bird into a rabbit that could still lay eggs after its transformation. 

           

This celebration, called Eastara, was celebrating the returning of life to the Earth.  Rabbits, eggs and children are sacred at this feast and Pagan in need of fertility talismans now color hollow eggs and pass them quickly through the ceremonial fires. 

            Worshippers of Ishtar would sacrifice infants to her and dip eggs in the blood of the sacrificed infants.  This is where the practice of coloring “easter eggs” came from.

            The infants sacrificed at this celebration, comes from last yeas celebration.  This pagan festival was a sex orgy that celebrated the return of life via the fertility of Ishtar's conception of Tammuz.  Worshippers of the Babylonian religion celebrated the conception of Tammuz on the first Sunday after the Full Moon that followed the Spring Equinox.  They celebrated it by baking cakes to Ishtar, getting drunk, engaging in sex orgies and prostitution in the temple of Ishtar.  Women were required to celebrate the conception of Tammuz by lieing down in the temple and having sex with whoever entered.  The man was required to leave her money.  Babies were sacrificed in the honor of these pagan gods and their blood was consumed by the worshippers.

            The babies conceived at this orgy were born 9 months later.  The pagan festival of Saturnalia, which always began on December 25^th (and lasted 12 days), and was the celebration of the birth of the sun-god supposedly conceived on “Easter”.  The December 25^th celebration of Saturnalia was intricately woven with the festival of Easter sex orgies.  Many babies would be born around December 25^th from the sex orgies.  Many of these babies would be sacrificed the following spring at the next feast of Ishtar.  Christmas is an attempt by the Roman Church to reinvent Saturnalia in a Christian manner, replacing the birth of Tammuz with the birth of Yeshua.  Similar logic is why most Buddhists celebrate the birth of Buddah on December 25^th.

           

Satan, the deceiver, is determined to counterfeit Adonai's Law.  The Roman Catholic Church incorporated pagan festivals, Pasted Christian names on them and ordained them as Christian holidays. The idea was to attract the heathen worshippers.  In 2^nd Corinthians 11, Paul warns of false leaders.  In verse 3-4, “and I fear that somehow your minds may be seduced away from simple and pure devotion to the Messiah, just as Havah (Eve) was deceived by the serpent and his craftiness.  For if someone comes and tells you about some other Yeshua than the one we told you about, or if you receive a spirit different from the one you received or accept some so-called “good news” different from the Good News you already accepted, you bear with him well enough!”

            Sunrise services are mentioned in the Bible; however, Adonai does not approve of this custom.  The prophet Ezekiel was being shown an important prophecy concerning the sins of Adonai's people in our time.  Ezekiel 8:13-18, “He also said to me, 'You will see even worse abominations that they are doing.'  He brought me to the entrance of the north gate to Adonai's house; and there before me were women weeping for Tammuz.  'Human being,' he asked me, 'have you seen this?  You will see practices even more disgusting than these.'  He brought me into the inner courtyard of Adonai's house; and there, at the entrance to the temple of Adonai, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of Adonai and their faces toward the east; and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.  He asked me, 'Human being, have you seen this? Does the house of Judah consider it a casual matter that they commit the disgusting practices they are committing here, thus filling the land with violence, provoking me still more?  Look!  They are even putting the branch to their nose!   Therefore, I will act in fury, my eye will not spare, I will have no pity.  Even if they cry loudly right in my ears, I will not listen to them.'”  Also, read Ezekiel 9 to see what Adonai's perspective is on sunrise services.  He hates this practice.  

            Although it may seem beautiful, religious and deeply moving to those participating in it, Believers are forbidden to devise their own religious customs and ideas.  As His people He expects us to follow His feast days, not the ancient practices of sun worship in its modern, modern package. 

            Deuteronomy 12:28-32, says,  “Obey and pay attention to everything I am ordering you to do, so that things will go well with you and with our descendants after you forever, as you do what Adonai sees as good and right.  When Adonai your God has cut off ahead of you the nations you are entering in order to dispossess, and when you have dispossessed them and are living in their land; be careful, after they have been destroyed ahead of you, not to be trapped into following them; so that you inquire after their gods and ask, 'How did these nations serve their gods?  I want to do the same.'  You must not do this to Adonai your God!  For they have done to their gods all the abominations that Adonai hates!  They even burn up their sons and daughters in the fire for their gods!  Everything I am commanding you, you are to take care to do.  Do not add to it or subtract from it.”  Adonai tells Believers to never combine holiness with paganism.  Never mix what is true with the lies.  Read also, Joshua 1:7; Proverbs 30:6; and Revelation 22:18, 19.

            Jeremiah 7:18, says, “The children gather the wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough to make cakes for the queen of heaven; and, just to provoke me, they pour out drink offerings to other gods!”  Those cakes were hot cross buns.  It seemed so innocent.  Additionally, look at Jeremiah 44:17 and 2 Kings 17:16.

            Judges 2:11, says,  “Then the people of Israel did what was evil from Adonai's perspective and served the ba'alim (Ba'al).”  Ba'al was a false god and Ishtar (Easter) was the queen of heaven.  Adonai allowed His people to be taken from their land into captivity as a result of sin.  And after deliverance, Israel still returned to false gods.  This pattern was repeated until eventually, the Northern Tribes were taken into captivity and became lost in history.  The Jews we know today are the remnants of the Southern Tribes of Judah and Benjamin.

            In the New Testament there are two completely different churches pictured.  One is the true Church that Yeshua built.  It is described as His bride.  This bride is those who keep Adonai's laws and trust in Him, until He comes for her.  We are warned in prophecy of false teachers who will creep in and corrupt the church organization with paganism.  True Believers will flee from many of their original congregations in order to continue to obey Adonai as God commanded.  The true Bride, Jews or Gentiles, who accept Yeshua as their Savior.  Since Yeshua was Jewish, His followers should follow His example and live as He lived.