A POSSIBLE YOU
FINDING GOD’S DESTINY FOR OUR LIFE
PART 52
IMMANUEL
Well, here we are again at Christmas and may I say that we have had some difficult trials and times of sadness but all in all this has truly been a year of blessing. I am so grateful our heavenly Father sent His Son Jesus to live on this earth and eventually SACRIFICE His life for our sins with His blood. It was the highest sacrifice and the ONLY ransom that had the power to redeem us and open the doors not only to heaven – but also allows us to walk in His presence NOW! God’s grace is amazing and has extended His invitation for anyone to become a child of the King of Kings. So, why do I feel a check in my spirit when I see Santa Clause? Because I am looking at an image of someone that appears to be trying steal God’s glory and take away the attention that the incarnation and resurrection deserves. Now brother, there is no reason why we cannot have BOTH! The other day I was driving down the road and saw Santa and all the reindeer right beside a nativity scene, and I thought nothing of it! I am sorry, but this bothers me and I believe it has everything to do with God’s Spirit and my spirit within me. There is only one God that has the divine abilities that NO OTHER god has – yet I cannot help but think it is no coincidence that an imaginative character would arrive at the winter solstice and claim to have super-natural powers that is equal to Jesus Christ. To be weary of such a popular entity should not seem strange neither should it be judged as being silly within the Christian world – I am afraid that is not the case. Many in the Christian faith justify this story as something that is crucially important to the development of the young and innocent imaginative mind. To be honest, I can tolerate the Christmas traditions because my human nature just like everyone else enjoys the ideas and concepts of magic and fantasy – but is there anything wrong with wondering how Jesus really feels about all of this?
I admit there is a world of topics to talk about that are more, let us say…peaceful and I am sure – less controversial. It is true that most people stand rather strong in their traditions and it is no secret that any drastic change in the way things are done would no doubt bring a negative response from those who disagree. But likewise, I would hope we have also come such a distance in our spiritual journey that it would be a shame to compromise with the world just because we like the warm fuzzy feelings of “anything” or any type of ritual or celebration that would be offensive to the Lord. I would be the first person to confess how the season of Christmas brings emotions that are sentimental and are difficult to explain, and I certainly do not want everyone I know to dismiss me as an old, grumpy and senile fanatic. I love the thought of the Father sending His only Son Jesus to the earth, but I am just trying to untangle all of the other holiday “symbols” that has tried to weave itself into the cloth of reverence toward God and goodwill toward men. I would never want to offend anyone and I want to be the first to admit that I have in the past actually opposed Christians that were trying to avoid being associated with the pagan connections with Christmas along with the negative chaos affiliated with commercialism. May I also add that I was not very loving in my approach to this situation neither was I, let’s see…filled with Godly wisdom and maturity. I remember when I was a younger man; I worked with a Christian fellow that decided to lead his young family away from the traditions of Christmas. He had been heavily influenced through the teachings of his church and had trusted their doctrines and spiritual leadership about not embracing certain holidays. I think what really irritated us was that he would openly describe the scenario of his Christmas mornings without a tree or presents and how his small children would cry. We all thought this was a type of “abuse” and would strongly criticize and accuse him with everything from being in a cult to having mental problems. So, I have seen persecution (and participated in it) and have witnessed the anger against a person that makes a decision to swim “upstream” against what the masses believe. This makes me consider that with such strong emotions that are expressed about such a trivial topic as putting up a tree and decorating it with silver and gold, how will people react when we are faced with following or rejecting the ideas and temptations associated with the anti-christ?
We all make choices each day that are connected to our world-views. In order to be led by the Holy Spirit and follow God’s specific blueprint for our destiny, we must stay constantly focused and extremely sensitive to being side-tracked. I believe compromise is something we must on “full alert” with in order to stay pure in the holiness of divine truth. I cannot think of anytime when compromise should be accepted as each of us has the personal responsibility to seek out our own salvation with fear and trembling. We have been called to be a light and as we have mentioned before, the light from a “lighthouse” is not sporadic but constantly faithful. We are a “never failing” source of truth to voice His gospel and if pressed into a corner, we just need to boldly confess that it is wrong for us to participate in something we feel is not God’s will. I can safely say that we will all have the “opportunity” if we live long enough to stand before the world and proclaim our allegiance. I realize that no one is “forcing” us to celebrate holidays any particular way but I am only suggesting that it is wisdom to consider the social issues that are being discussed all around us and how that possibly in the near future our legal system will require all people to accept certain views whether they agree or not. My point is that with a small amount of compromise here and there or making special considerations at certain times, we can become vulnerable to a “weakening” or a breakdown of the standards and absolutes of our convictions. I realize we are not perfect, but I know that Jesus would never consider a small amount of leaven into His life. What I am trying to discover, is why we would.
Of course we know that our holidays are not what they seem, yet that does not seem to stop us from joining in. Many of the tiny details that have been passed along for centuries are traditions that have come directly from the witchcraft of pagans and heathens in connection with idol worship. With our appetite and endless infatuation for anything that appeals to our carnal imagination, it seems to make no difference what we do as long as we hide behind the justification that we are not really bowing down to idols. Subtle sins are like snare traps, very similar to watching television programs that offer just a few repulsive nasty words or just a small amount of erotica, nudity and lust. Satan has not been unleashing the floodgates of sin upon the masses all at once, but for the last 60 years he has slowly been serving the coolaid one glass at a time. Those who hate the taste of sin can eventually acquire a tolerance to it when given small amounts every day. Selah. Social issues that years ago would have not even been discussed as an acceptable option have now become embraced as valid reasons for the numerous practices and lifestyles. The New World Order preaches their poison and the authorities are forced to follow the lies that has now turned God’s laws upside down! “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter.” (Isaiah 5:20) Allow me to ask you a question: would you rather be simple minded and left alone to believe the stories and fables you have been told, or would it be better if you conducted theological research and found that much of what you trusted as innocent – was actually dangerous? Let’s look at it like this: what if you were a scientist that studied the chemical compounds of processed food and how they affect the body and let’s say that you adored a certain snack that you ate several times a day. In your research you discovered that this particular treat caused a gradual shutdown of your organs and produced an aggressive growing cancer. Would you be sad that you stumbled across this knowledge that can now save your life or would you wish that you had never found the problem so you could have enjoyed your snacks? “The wise shall inherit glory: but shame shall be the promotion of fools.” (Proverbs 3:35)
All over the world we can see how folk legends and traditions have become a “sacred” part of certain cultures and each society accordingly will strongly defend them. Whoever coined the phrase, “when in Rome, do as the Romans do” was not thinking about the consequences or dangers that is connected many times with things that are cute and seemingly harmless. Allow me to say that bombs made in the shapes of teddy bears do not lessen the unpleasant reality that “cute” can destroy! I believe when it comes to our pagan traditions that we can clearly see the connection between the love for children and our vulnerable emotions. The enemy knows that he could never persuade the masses to participate in a world-wide holiday with something that did not include our most valuable treasure – our children. He uses the innocent child, the needy, desperate, heart wrenching emotions of thinking about a child that does not have a store bought trinket. The concept of Santa is that he loves the little children so much that He has dedicated his entire life to making them happy with gifts. So, we charge upon the retail world in a furious “call to battle” against the crowds and go in debt as we try to make them happy in the name of how can I “wow” you with more materialism. Somehow all of this evolved from Jesus being born in a manger and dying on a cross to save the souls of a lost and dying world. “For certain men are false apostles [spurious, counterfeits], deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles [special messengers] of Christ. And it is no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.” (II Corinthians 11:13-14)
Satan influences the imagination of humans with giving away fancy bottles of “snake oil” that has no warning labels of ingredients or dangerous side-effects. The highest commandment within the kingdom of darkness is that every human can freely think, speak and act however they want without any consequences or remorse. Satan’s idea is simple: If he can teach that imitational freedom is the most perfect social and political way of thought, then humans can be excused for their personal falsehoods and deceptions without condemnation or consequences. After all, the idea behind tolerance is that I am accepting you for who you are and what you believe so you must respect what I do also and together our compromise can establish a beautiful unity. This break-down of God’s absolute truth is not an accident! The modern thought of social psychology is to relax and accept the agnostic way of thinking that everyone is all a part of a divine acceptance. Of course the agnostic embraces the law of secular humanism because one gives legal authority to enable the other to exist. This is what is being taught today to the young people of this world. It is up to the Christian to step forward and proclaim there is no place for pantheist lies and the deception of heresy when it comes to deceiving our upcoming generation. Would it really be that disappointing to a child if they were told the truth about the difference between a fable and reality from the beginning? To embrace and teach a “make believe” story to the young and naïve about how a human figure can perform such great and magical miracles that directly affect every human on the planet is wrong. We can argue that we are only joking, kidding, telling white lies or whatever justifies our intentional falsifications but it is a lie. Here is a short list of what is actually being taught as real events concerning the image of Santa Clause and the symbol of the Christmas tree.
1. Santa can transform his body (and solid inanimate objects) into any shape or form in order to enter through walls or any solid barrier.
2. Santa has the magical power to disappear and become invisible.
3. Santa has the magical power to fly and work at a supernatural speed. He has unlimited resources and unlimited power.
4. Santa has the super-natural ability to be omnipresent. This means he shares the divine power with God to know every person on earth, where they live and to remember each deed whether good or bad all at the same time – every second. This constant observation and recording of individual good works and trespasses is a direct insult to the idea that God is THE “all knowing” judge that punishes sin and rewards obedience. In this position, Santa becomes a god or idol just like all of the other gods of the world.
5. Santa has the power to know the hidden desires of every person on earth. The Bible teaches that God is the only one who is omniscient by discerning the thoughts, motives and intents of the conscience of everyone that has ever lived or will ever live.
6. The North Pole, which is the permanent magical dwelling of Santa, represents God living in the eternal super-natural kingdom of heaven. The elves that have special powers are servants of Santa and are representative of the angels who were created to serve God day and night and who have powers to accomplish God’s work. The sleigh and reindeer are a type of the white horse that Christ will ride when he appears in the air. The gifts in the sleigh represent the rewards and crowns that will be given to the remnant “saints” when Christ returns. Santa comes in the night when everyone is asleep, just as Christ has said that he will return when everyone least expects – as a thief in the night. His hair is white and so is the Lord’s. Santa has a list of deeds and God has the book of life.
7. Santa is portrayed as having the authority to give animals the magical ability to talk and fly. But, God is the only one that has ever empowered animals to speak in a human voice or communicate with them using telepathy.
8. The spiritual idea of giving gifts comes from the Father giving life to man and of course Jesus coming to the world, then man responding back with worship. Our Christmas example of giving came from the kings that brought treasures for Jesus and left them with Mary and Joseph as a form of respect and worship for the promised Messiah. Exchanging presents in this day and age has become a distorted act of generosity and has become uncomfortable. The true idea of giving is to be a blessing for those who are truly needy and this is what Christians are to follow every day of the year – not just a holiday. In what way does the concept of our modern gift exchange program cause us to truly worship God? It doesn’t! We just like to give and receive presents because it is exciting!
9. The Christmas tree combines the ancient traditions (B.C.) with the 1700 year old Santa Clause holiday. “Thus says the Lord, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. For the customs of the people are vain: for one cuts a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers that it move not”. (Jeremiah 10:2-4) Sounds like a Christmas tree, so why do we do it? Because we love it!
10. The foundation of our responsibility as followers of Christ is to teach the gospel and how to trust this good news. Yet Christians proclaim even to their own children how to have faith that SANTA is real, that he will appear each year and that he can be depended on to always bring good blessings. When the child is finally told this entire story was a lie, Christian parents then proceed to tell another story about the God figure that is similar but this time it REALLY is true! We are told from birth that Santa NEVER fails but in real life we discover that we do not always get what we ask for and sometimes we experience suffering and failure. These negative discouragements and disappointments are conveniently never associated with Santa. However, in the harsh reality of trying to find who is to blame, the concept of Jesus can be thought of as “less reliable” especially with a non-Christian atmosphere. What a terrible situation. Santa ends up being a hero and Jesus becomes portrayed as being the bad guy. And we wonder where these twisted ideas came from and what a confusing view this brings to love and trust.
It seems that everyone can accept the baby Jesus because he is so small and not a threat to our lifestyle. Even non-Christians are not spiritually threatened with a nativity scene. When Jesus is shown as a baby, adults immediately feel they have power and control over Him with nothing to fear. However, the crowd quietly wanders away when they meet Him as an adult with all of the authority of heaven and earth demanding for everyone to surrender their life to Him. Immanuel.
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